The Last Of Us Season 2 Must Avoid 1 Controversial Decision From The Games (& It’s Not Joel)

Summary

• The Last of Us season 2 needs to rethink its storytelling approach to balance Ellie and Abby’s perspectives effectively.
• Both characters’ journeys are crucial to season 2, but the show must avoid isolating Ellie or Abby for too long.
• By telling Abby and Ellie’s stories simultaneously, The Last of Us season 2 can avoid the divisive narrative pitfalls of the game.

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for The Last of Us Part II and potential spoilers for The Last of Us season 2.

The Last of Us season 2 will have to manage plenty of continuous moments from its source material, and HBO must avoid repeating one controversial gaming decision. After a successful first season, HBO’s hit show will return for season 2, which will be based on the events of The Last of Us Part II. Despite its strong critical reviews, The Last of Us Part II proved to be divisive, containing plenty of moments that split opinions among fans, including the infamous Joel scene that The Last of Us season 2 will have to deal with.

While this is undoubtedly the game’s most controversial moment, the show won’t be able to avoid it, but there is one decision from Part II that HBO can steer clear of. Despite the game’s high-quality narrative, there is one element of its storytelling that season 2 would benefit from dropping. Players control both Ellie and Abby in The Last of Us Part II, and while experiencing both of their journeys is crucial to the plot, Naughty Dog’s approach to conveying these stories was somewhat divisive, which HBO can try and avoid repeating when the show returns.

The Last of Us
season 2 is scheduled to be released in 2025.

The Last Of Us Season 2 Can’t Tell Abby & Ellie’s Stories One By One

The Last Of Us Season 2 Has To Change The Game’s Approach To Telling Its Story

Unlike Part II, The Last of Us season 2 can’t afford to tell Abby and Ellie’s stories one by one. While the game starts by blending their story, The Last of Us Part II shifts its perspective to tell most of the game through Ellie’s perspective before switching back to Abby. Once the game focuses on the Seattle section, the player follows Ellie through days 1-3 before taking control of Abby and going back to day 1. While both characters have completely different stories, Ellie’s journey directly impacts Abby’s, meaning a lot of the suspense is gone from Abby’s section.

This does work somewhat from a gaming perspective, but given Abby is a divisive character, forcing players to follow her journey for multiple hours while Ellie’s story is left on a cliffhanger proved to be controversial. If season 2 adopts this same storytelling strategy, Ellie will miss several episodes in a row, which could cause backlash from the audience. This is why The Last of Us season 2 has to change the game’s approach to avoid the same problems, as the show could suffer from focusing too heavily on either Ellie or Abby, which could make some viewers switch off.

Season 2 Still Has To Include Both Abby & Ellie’s Perspectives

Ellie & Abby’s Individual Perspectives Are Crucial To The Last Of Us Season 2’s Story

Although season 2 shouldn’t tell their stories one at a time, HBO’s The Last of Us still needs to include both Ellie and Abby’s perspectives. Naturally, much of the plot will happen through Ellie’s eyes as it did in season 1, but it is important that Abby also gets her full story. Given how controversial she is, The Last of Us season 2 must include Abby’s father in the story and showcase why she wanted revenge on Joel in the first place. Even if the audience doesn’t support her, highlighting Abby’s motivations is critical to understanding her background and personality.

Ellie’s blossoming relationship with Dina, flashbacks with Joel, and quest for revenge are all critical aspects that should be included. However, Abby’s role in the WLF, friendship with Lev, and history with Owen are equally important, with both characters needing to have their full journeys shown. The show can’t afford to prioritize Ellie over Abby despite the audience’s attachment, and given The Last of Us season 2 may be split into two parts, this gives both characters more time to tell their complete stories while experiencing both the more wholesome moments of their journey, alongside the brutality.

How Season 2 Can Easily Fix The Last Of Us Part II’s Problem

The Last Of Us Season 2 Can Simultaneously Tell Ellie & Abby’s Story

The Last of Us season 2 may have a big problem regarding Part II’s story approach, but it also has a simple solution. Rather than splitting Abby and Ellie’s journeys, the TV show can tell them alongside one another. HBO doesn’t have to dedicate a series of episodes to each character; instead, it can easily cut between their stories in each episode. This means Seattle Day 1 can be told over the course of a few episodes, switching between Abby and Ellie throughout, in order to avoid putting all the focus on one character and isolating the other.

Outside the rare exceptions, season 1 didn’t tend to have an episode focus on a single perspective, meaning the show’s pacing would be far better suited to telling Ellie and Abby’s stories alongside one another. This would avoid setting up Ellie’s cliffhanger, only to circle back around and dedicate several episodes to Abby despite knowing where she ends up. It also allows the show to cut from a tense moment with Ellie to a calmer moment with Abby and vice versa, giving The Last of Us season 2 the perfect solution to the game’s controversial storytelling problem.