The Last of Us’s second-season third instalment—titled “The Path”—opens with an unflinching coda to Joel’s murder before jumping three months ahead to a Jackson still reeling. Show-runner Craig Mazin and director Peter Hoar explore the town’s trauma: Tommy’s quiet vigil over Joel’s body, Ellie’s guttural scream upon waking in hospital, and the council debate over whether revenge is worth the risk to a battered community.
That debate ends in a resounding “no,” but Ellie (Bella Ramsey) has already made up her mind. Armed with Dina’s newfound intel identifying Joel’s killers as the Washington Liberation Front, she and Dina slip out under cover of night, pausing only at Joel’s grave before embarking on their 870-mile journey—the series’ first extended road narrative since season one.
New factions and brutal encounters
Episode 3 introduces Seattle’s warring factions: the militarised W.L.F. (“Wolves”) and the religious Seraphites (“Scars”). Ellie and Dina stumble upon the aftermath of a brutal off-screen massacre that sets the grim tone for their infiltration. Critics praised the expanded world-building—The Ringer called it a purposeful “slow-road reset,” while Vulture dubbed the hour a “transitional episode” clearing space for a new narrative era.
Surprises for game veterans
For fans of the original game, the show still delivers fresh moments: a frank conversation about Ellie and Dina’s New Year’s kiss, and deeper psychological layers to Ellie’s grief. Spanish outlet MeriStation highlights subtle visual foreshadowing—blink-and-you’ll-miss-it hints such as Abby’s lookout tower glimpsed in a wide shot of Seattle.
Audience momentum
Early data suggest the series remains a streaming juggernaut. Analytics firm Samba TV reports The Last of Us topped the U.S. streaming Top 10 for the week ending 27 April, ahead of The White Lotus and Reacher.
“The lights are green; the roller-coaster just left the station.”
Where Episode 2 shattered the old status quo, Episode 3 sets the roller-coaster in motion. Ellie and Dina arrive in a foreboding Seattle—low on trust but high on determination—poised for a collision with the Wolves and their unseen nemesis. As Mazin teased, if “The Path” is the climb, the descent promises to be steep.