The in-game story experience jumps around a lot in the timeline. So I’m going to re-tell the story in timeline order for the purpose of a possible enlightened perspective. I’ll also include my (hopefully wisest) interpretations of where the characters are at emotionally during some scenes. I hope I get it right for you.

I’m going to start by describing Abby’s and Ellie’s prologues separately (the four years leading up to Joel’s fateful day), then mixing their two stories from there.

Ellie Prologue (4 years in Jackson)

Right after the final moment of Part I, Joel and Ellie move into “Jackson”, a wholesome community where normal folks attempt to live normal lives. Part two begins with Joel having a heart to heart with his brother, Tommy, in seclusion (most likely very soon after Joel and Ellie arrive in town). He confesses to Tommy his dark secret — that he killed Firefly members to prevent Ellie from being operated on. This operation would have produced a vaccine to make life better for every human still living, but Ellie would have died in the process. Joel could not let that happen. He knew Ellie would not approve, and he does feel some kind of guilt for lying to her… but this decision was the epitome of who Joel is. He would sacrifice anything to protect the ones he loves — even humanity’s future, and even his relationship with Ellie (because he will have to remember that lie every time he looks at her). But it’s not about him anymore; it’s only about her ~ anything to protect Ellie. He decides the best route forward is to be the best father figure for Ellie he can be for as long as he can. Tommy is shocked, but agrees to take Joel’s secret to his grave.

Upon returning to the town after his meeting with Tommy, Joel delivers a guitar to Ellie (a gift) and finally sings for her in a moment of rare vulnerability.

Joel’s lyrics include “if I ever were to lose you, I’d surely lose myself”: a way for Joel to confess how much Ellie means to him without being too literal. She catches on to it but is still too disappointed to feel endeared. She thought their journey and the things she had to do were going to be worth it. It will take some time to come to terms with the fact it had all been for nothing.

[Ellie in part one: “…after everything I’ve done; it can’t be for nothing.”]

1 year later, Ellie hasn’t forgotten how it didn’t seem to add up, but she’s allowing herself to just be happy and ignore it. This is the height of her relationship with Joel. They have assumed a father-daughter rapport; Joel sees her as his second chance at being a father, and Ellie is thrilled to feel what it’s like to have a parent who loves you. As well, she’s thrilled to just let herself be a kid for once and forget about the horror she’s been through. Joel surprises her with a trip to an abandoned, yet still intact, museum in which she can laugh, play, and imagine like a kid is supposed to.

She has an amazing time and that puts a smile on Joel’s face. But, even here, it seems she can’t escape her reality and the questions that gnaw at her; she sees a Firefly symbol on the wall and some feelings come rushing back.

Another year later, she’s sixteen now, and she’s feeling distant. Maybe she’s smarter now, or maybe she’s just tired of ignoring it, but there’s this uncertainty and angst hanging over her relationship with Joel, which is why she’s preferred to make runs with Tommy lately. But Joel takes reluctant Ellie on a patrol through a hotel. Despite her distance, the two have a rich history and work well together regardless. At the hotel, they happen upon a sad story: two bodies and a note describing a couple who left Jackson because they wanted to help people. They didn’t make it far before being bit and decided to end their lives so they wouldn’t turn. Ellie comments that it’s too bad they weren’t one of the immune people. (Remember, Ellie has spent two years buying into what Joel said: that there are other immune people.)

Joel hesitates after this comment, then ignores it saying they should get going. Ellie notices his hesitation, so she presses the subject by asking something she’s been wondering for a while. (Paraphrase:) So there’s no cure, fine, but why did you take me away from the hospital before I had a chance to speak with anyone and ask questions? Joel responds by essentially saying he was disappointed and it was pointless to stay. Then Ellie asks why she’s never seen or heard of another immune person. Joel suggests maybe they hide it like he’s taught Ellie to. She continues her argument, but Joel is done coming up with explanations. He reinforces sternly that there is no cure; we both wish it was different, but it’s not. The two depart the hotel leaving Ellie unsatisfied. That would be her final attempt to learn the truth from Joel.

As her angst increases, she runs away from Jackson without permission. She heads to St. Mary’s hospital, where she was first examined by doctors, hoping to ask the Fireflies themselves what happened. But the Fireflies aren’t there. Instead, she finds an audio recording of a Firefly citing Ellie’s immunity as a miracle and reinforcing the legitimacy of a potential cure (all contrary to what Joel told her). She sits outside the hospital pondering the recording when Joel approaches on horseback. He had tracked her, frantically worried. As a parent would, he scolds her while also embracing her. She is cold to him, and, with new evidence to support her suspicion, she gives Joel one last opportunity to come clean. She tells him she will disappear if he lies again. Joel knows she’s not bullshitting, but he also knows that telling the truth will do just as much damage. It will ruin what relationship they had, and he’ll lose her like he lost Sarah. However, he has no choice. It’s extremely difficult for him, but he tells her what happened in the simplest words possible: “the vaccine would have killed you, so I stopped them”. Then it dawns on Ellie that everything about the world she’s living in could have been different. Should have been different if only Joel had done the right thing. She’s shocked and loses her breath and cries. She angrily tells Joel she will return to Jackson (a barter for learning the truth), but she wants zero to do with Joel ever again.

Two years later, Ellie has a bitter, almost non-relationship with Joel. He’s just a guy who happens to live nearby. She gets annoyed when she hears that he has checked up on her or made arrangements to help her. She doesn’t want his help. But two years is a long time, and Ellie has been busy growing up. The anger has simmered down, and she begins to realize there’s a small part of her that has remained open to Joel, despite her conscious efforts.

At a joyous gathering where Jackson townsfolk dance and socialize, introvert Ellie stands at a bar and watches her crush, Dina, dance. She knows Dina has a history with her guy friend, Jesse, so it’s all but a pipe dream. But when Dina invites her on the dance floor, flatters her, and kisses her, it breathes new life into Ellie.

Suddenly, a townsman, Seth, insults the two girls for kissing in public (clearly some bigotry involved). Ellie is prepped to fight with Seth, but Joel intervenes trying to protect Ellie. Ellie then scolds Joel reminding him she doesn’t need saved, and she storms away.

Later that night, Ellie finds Joel sitting on his porch plucking away at his six-string. I get the feeling she didn’t really know why she approached him and had no plan for the conversation. Maybe she wanted to clear the air, maybe a part of her just missed him, though she’s still resentful. At first its just small talk. Though the words they’re saying are insignificant, the fact that Ellie came to Joel at all spoke volumes. There are strong, conflicting feelings in Ellie as they talk, and she doesn’t know what to do about them. They get on the subject of Dina. Joel communicates approval of Ellie’s lifestyle and asserts that Dina would be lucky to have Ellie. This means a lot to her, which intensifies her conflicting feelings. I think she has a moment then where she yearns for an end to her bad blood with Joel and is willing to try to push past it. I think there’s two sides to Ellie in this moment, but she only lets one side do the talking. She blurts out, “I was supposed to die in that hospital, my life would have fucking mattered, but you took that from me.” Then Joel tells her the most honest thing he’s ever told her: “I would do it all over again.” Meaning, right or wrong, crazy or not, he believes in his decision: giving Ellie a chance at life has and always will be worth every bit of pain it has caused the both of them. She’s surprised at this, and will need to digest it. She’s learned something about Joel. For the time being, she says she’s not sure if she can forgive him, but would like to try. With that line, she’s let her vulnerability slip into plain sight and she has to fight back tears. Joel has to do the same, because he feels every ounce of what it means for her to say that.

Ellie departs leaving their relationship potentially open for gradual rebuilding.

Abby Prologue (Salt Lake to Seattle)

Abby is a young girl whose father is a surgeon working with the Fireflies. They are stationed at St. Mary’s hospital. Not long before the final moment of Part I, on the day when the fabled immune girl, Ellie, shows up at the hospital, the surgeon, Jerry, is rushed to the medical wing to begin work. He has a tense conversation with Marlene where he explains that the procedure to make a vaccine will kill the girl. Marlene is bothered that they would do this without asking the girl if she’s okay with that first. Jerry knows the weight of it, but has a conscience that tells him its the right thing to do. Abby overhears the conversation and reaffirms to her father, she would want him to do it even if it was her under the knife.

After the climax of Part I where Joel shoots his way to Ellie’s rescue, Abby runs to the surgery room to discover her father was killed in Joel’s path. She is ruined.

A year later, Abby has relocated to Seattle and joined a group known as WLF. She enjoys spending time with her friend (and possibly crush), Owen. Though he technically has allegiance with WLF, he has implied a dissatisfaction with that way of life and looks for excuses to get away. In one such instance, he discovers an abandoned aquarium and takes Abby there to show her. Abby, being studious, is reluctant to follow him because she wishes to do right by the WLF and fit in. But he wares her down. Inside a turquoise room of the aquarium, the two share a kiss.

When Abby stops it prematurely, Owen is concerned she doesn’t like him that way. But actually, Abby is distracted by the fact her father’s killer is still out there, and no one knows where.

Three years later, Abby has bulked up and trained hard to one day meet her father’s killer. She goes to visit Owen at the aquarium which is now his home-away-from-home. He is in a relationship with a girl named Mel, but still has a sort of sexual tension with Abby. She visits Owen to tell him she has a solid lead on where to find Joel, and Isaac, the leader of the WLF, has approved a sanction of WLF soldiers to accompany her on a revenge trek. But she still wants Owen by her side.

Owen is reluctant about the whole idea of Abby’s revenge, but he ultimately agrees to be with her in her time of need.

The Fateful Day

Ellie is late for her rendezvous with Jesse; she is due to go on her route of clearing out infected around Jackson. Ellie instantly confesses that Dina (Jesse’s ex) kissed her.

She feels bad, but Jesse is fine with it. On their way to the stable, Ellie is motioned over by Maria who makes Seth apologize for insulting Ellie. Ellie is not impressed by Seth’s half-assed attempt. Maria then talks one on one with Ellie because the bad blood between Ellie and Joel is palpable, and she wants to know what’s up. Ellie dismisses that conversation. Ellie then implies to Dina that she assumes the kiss meant nothing because Dina was drunk.

So they resume platonic friendship for the time being and go riding out of Jackson on horseback together.

Somewhere near the outskirts of Jackson, Abby, in a cabin with her small WLF band, is awakened by Owen who found something of interest. He takes her to an overlook where they get an ample view of Jackson.

This is the place they had been looking for — the place where they suspect Joel is. But it is bigger and more dangerous than they anticipated. Owen doubts their ability to handle this and worries for the safety of his newly pregnant girlfriend. Abby is irritated by his hesitance and heads off on her own to do something.

Dina and Ellie have been clearing groups of infected along their route. In casual conversation, Ellie mentions she’d like to invite Joel to watch a movie later that night. Dina has no idea what a strain Ellie and Joel’s relationship is currently under. Then a nasty blizzard hits them, so they take refuge in an old library. There, they discover a hideout assembled by a now-dead citizen of Jackson. In the hideout, they find some joints. They smoke them and share their feelings in an intimate moment which leads to a confession of mutual feelings via passionate kissing.

Meanwhile, Abby, in her search for clues runs into a horde of infected and is rescued by Joel and Tommy who happened to be on patrol. They introduce themselves and Abby realizes she’s found her father’s killer. As they become harassed by more infected, Abby suggests a place where they can be safe — the cabin where her WLF friends are holed up. They run to the cabin and are safe from infected. But when Joel’s name is announced to the group, shit goes bad.

Abby immobilizes him with a shotgun and preps for torturous exacting of revenge.

Ellie is partially undressed with Dina on a couch, and she’s feeling open enough to finally tell Dina about her immunity. She describes it in earnest, but Dina assumes she’s joking. Before Ellie can rebuke, Jesse arrives and informs them that Joel may be in trouble. Ellie takes this very seriously and heads out. She arrives at Joel’s patrol spot and searches for him inside the cabin. There she finds him beaten and bloody. Before she can act on his attacker, she’s subdued by the rest of the WLF and pinned down. From there, she’s helpless and witnesses the final deadly blow on Joel from Abby.

Ellie is shocked, devastated, and blacks out. Afterward, Owen tries to convince the rest of the group that killing Tommy and the girl (no one realized this was the immune girl) is not necessary. Abby agrees and ultimately gets the final say.

Some days later, Ellie is sullen in her home with the shades drawn. Tommy visits to make sure she’s eating. Ellie is intent on traveling to Seattle to find Abby. But Tommy warns they need more prep time. Ellie is reluctant to follow his warnings but agrees to wait just a little bit longer. She’s doing her best to remain hard, but she almost crumbles when Tommy hugs her.

After visiting Joel’s grave, Ellie heads to Joel’s home to “pick up some things” before she heads to Seattle. Dina is intent on accompanying her to Seattle for moral support. Tommy has ridden away towards Seattle to deal with Abby alone. In response, Maria forbade the release of any other horses, yet still Abby and Dina intend to escape with one somehow. From Joel’s home, Ellie secures the broken watch he always wore as a keepsake, and she ends up taking his signature revolver as well.

Then Maria shows up to the house to confront Dina and Ellie. It was Tommy’s demand that Maria keep Ellie in Jackson while he goes after Abby, but Maria knows Ellie will sneak out unsupplied if its her only option; she can’t stop her. So she agrees to let her have a horse to go to Seattle on one condition — keep Tommy from getting himself killed.

Seattle Day 1

Abby awakens at the impressive WLF camp in the heart of Seattle (CenturyLink Field). The Jackson band of WLF members are still mentally recovering from the killing Joel experience. Abby, her good friend, Manny, and showingly pregnant Mel are out on a standard patrol when their convoy becomes ambushed by members of the Sepharites (whom WLF members refer to as Scars). They fight off the ambush but wreck the vehicle and must continue on foot.

Ellie and Dina arrive on the outskirts of downtown Seattle. Their plan is to find members of WLF and make them reveal the location of Abby. They also hope to catch up with Tommy who seems to be a few steps ahead of them at every interval. They have a lengthy adventure while searching for clues.

Abby and friends reach the WLF HQ where she has a conversation with Isaac, the leader of the WLF.

Isaac describes a ballsy plan to invade the Scars’ home island in order to put an end to the bloodshed between the two factions once and for all. But Abby is more concerned about Owen. She has heard that there was an incident where Owen shot a fellow WLF member to protect a Scar. Now the WLF want Owen dead, and he has vanished. Abby pleads with Isaac to be the mediator between Owen and the WLF so they can get to the bottom of it peacefully, but Isaac refuses; he wants Abby focused on the invasion. Abby agrees, but after Isaac leaves, she makes plans to quickly get to Owen at the aquarium (no one else except Mel knows to look for Owen there).

Abby heads to the aquarium alone. On her way, she runs into a vicious pack of Scars, is knocked out, and taken.

Ellie and Dina are in an underground spore-ridden tunnel wearing breathing masks and making their way further into the city when a pack of infected surprise them. A runner attacks Ellie and cracks her mask open (the one she wears to alleviate suspicions of her immunity). Dina has a moment of panic before she realizes Ellie really is immune to the spores. Dina is shocked, but also completely out of breath and weak for some reason. Now maskless Ellie escorts collapsing Dina out of the tunnel, and they find an abandoned theater to lay low in.

There, Ellie explains her immunity, and Dina reciprocates Ellie’s honesty by unexpectedly saying she’s pregnant with Jesse’s baby. This stresses Ellie out and she decides to get some space. As she explores the theater, Ellie finds an old radio and a map with which they can use to spy on WLF and get information. Then she discovers a guitar that still plays. She plays Joel’s song briefly and has a moment of melancholy remembering him.

Later that night, Abby has been strung up by the Sepharites in preparation for one of their ritual sacrifices. Then suddenly, the moment is interrupted by a group of infected, and two outcasted Scars, who were captive and set to be punished, along with Abby, fight off the infected and manage to eliminate the other Scars. To escape the scene and get away from more approaching infected, Abby and the Scar outcasts team up reluctantly. The two Scars are siblings: older Yara and younger Lev. Yara has suffered a terrible wound on her arm and is in much pain. Once they’ve escaped the peril, Abby leaves Yara and Lev at a small empty home and finally continues toward the aquarium.

Abby finds contemplative Owen alone there. She wants to learn the truth about Owen ‘protecting a Scar’. Owen surprisingly confirms this.

He tells a story of how he was expected to execute a pathetic old Scar man who had given up. He couldn’t do it. A fellow WLF, Danny, got into a tangle with Owen over it, which resulted in Danny accidentally getting shot. This was a turning point for Owen. Seeing the particular emotion in the old scar man who was ‘tired’ evoked a realization in Owen that he was also ‘tired’. He feels there’s nothing for him here; he needs a change; he’s going to act on a hunch that the Fireflies are still around and go out searching for them. Abby is offended that he would leave her and pregnant Mel. Owen argues the point by offending her in return. Their argument turns physical. Then their physicality turns sexual. The tension had boiled over, and they get something they’d both been needing.

Seattle Day 2

Abby has a nightmare; she keeps reliving the moment when she found her father dead. She decides to return to the aid of the Scars who helped her escape last night. They are still waiting in hiding where Abby left them. Yara is suffering badly from her wound, so Abby carries her back to the aquarium where Mel, a medic, may be able to help. Upon Abby’s arrival, Mel is reluctant to help a Scar, but they trust Abby. Mel says they have to amputate but don’t have the proper supplies. Abby decides to make a run back to the WLF-occupied hospital to gather what’s necessary. Owen doesn’t understand why she’s doing this.

He also assumes there’s going to be tension between Abby, whom he slept with last night, and Mel, his girlfriend, but Abby says she doesn’t give a shit and heads toward the hospital with Lev.

Ellie awakens at the theater and apologizes to Dina for how she reacted to the news about the pregnancy. Then they overhear reports of a lone male trespasser in Hillcrest, which they assume must be Tommy. So Ellie heads there, leaving sick Dina at the theater.

While there, Ellie runs into a bunch of WLF, causes a stir, and bumps into the lone trespasser which turns out to be Jesse. Ellie shows Jesse back to the theater so he can set up camp with them. When there, Dina is delighted to see Jesse. Seeing the two together, Ellie is forced to recall what good chemistry Dina still has with Jesse, and she feels a bit third-wheeled.

She also considers that it might be right thing for Dina to go back with Jesse since he’s the father of her baby. She’s ALSO a bit nervous on Dina’s behalf, because Jesse doesn’t yet know about the pregnancy. A lot of things on her mind in that moment (all of which are just my interpretation of the look on Ellie’s face).

In order to get to the hospital as quick as possible, Abby agrees to use the Scars’ special “sky bridges” which Lev knows about. Supposedly they will shave hours off the journey. But Abby had no idea how unsafe and scary they’d be. Crossing them seriously incites Abby’s fear of heights. By the end of the trip, Abby and Lev have seen many of each other’s vulnerabilities and really trust each other. It’s also the first time we learn Lev was once referred to as “Lily”.

Abby arrives at the hospital leaving Lev just outside, but word has gotten out about her disappearance. Isaac wanted her to lead an assault group on the island, but instead she disappeared. So the other WLFs are ordered to detain her until further notice, which they do. However, Nora, a friend of Abby’s, releases her unbeknownst to the rest of the WLF. Abby then procures Nora’s help in acquiring medical supplies under Nora’s assumption they are meant for Owen. Abby heads back to the aquarium with the supplies.

Later, Dina visits Ellie to help mend a wound of hers.

Then she informs Ellie she has a lead on a woman called, Nora — one of the WLF present at Joel’s death. She’s at the WLF-occupied hospital. Ellie decides to head there immediately and doesn’t wait for Jesse to awaken, because she’s concerned Nora won’t be there for long.

Ellie heads toward the hospital. But lying unexpectedly in her path is a band of Seraphites, whom she has heard referred to as Scars. She has her first run-in with these frightening people who seem to be psychotic savages.

After some close calls with the Scars, Ellie arrives at the hospital, sneaks in, and locates Nora. Nora is kind of shifty though, and Ellie ends up in a tense chase through the hospital which, unfortunately for Nora, lands them both in a lower-level ridden with spores. Nora has become infected and coughs and gags against a wall, while Ellie breathes fine. Nora realizes, this whole time, that girl from Jackson was the fabled immune girl! Ellie just wants to know where Abby is. Since Nora knows she will die (or turn) anyway, she refuses to tell. Ellie makes the choice to inflict pain on Nora — so much that she would have to give in and reveal Abby’s location.

Ellie shows back up at the theater. We don’t know exactly what she did to Nora; all we know is that Ellie is physically shaking, looks mortified, has blood all over her, and now knows where Abby is. Dina and Jesse are immediately concerned for her. Dina takes her to a room to wash the blood off her. Ellie is still trembling on the verge of tears when Dina begins to cleanse her.

Ellie finally says out loud, “I made her talk”, partly confessing to Dina, partly confessing to herself. Ellie is shocked she went that far. Dina tries to comfort her with an embrace. Ellie admits, “I don’t want to lose you”. I think she said this not because she’s afraid of Dina dying or deciding to stay with Jesse, but because she’s afraid if Dina knew the extent of what she did, she’d never look at her the same…

Back at the aquarium, Abby simply explains her actions with the Scars to Owen by saying, “they’re just kids”.

Yara’s arm is successfully amputated, and Yara is content. Abby’s recurring nightmare is suddenly pleasant this time around, possibly meaning she feels she’s finally doing what is right for her.

Seattle Day 3

Ellie has chat with Jesse. He has figured out Dina must be pregnant due to her sickness; Ellie confirms. Because of this, Jesse pleads they cut this Seattle adventure short. Ellie reluctantly agrees. But they decide they can’t leave Tommy, so the plan is to wait for him at the aquarium (they assume, if the info about Abby is correct, then that’s where they’ll find him). Jesse confirms with Ellie that gathering Tommy is their only objective; if leaving Abby alive is what it takes to get Dina back safely, then so be it.

Soon after Abby wakes up at the aquarium, she bumps into Mel.

I don’t know if Mel found out about her and Owen or if she’s just resentful that she just provided medical treatment to a Scar, but Mel’s in a bad mood and takes it out on Abby. She tells Abby that her and Owen, along with the two Scars, are headed to Santa Barbara, but Abby better not follow. Mel believes Abby brings everyone down around her; she calls her a piece of shit, which really gets to Abby. Meanwhile, Lev is upset at the idea of leaving his family, and runs off somewhere. Abby and Yara are searching for him and end up bonding. We learn Lev was intended to be a ‘wife’ according to old rules, and there’s really no protocol for a transgender Sepharite. Owen pulls Abby aside for a moment and resumes talk about Abby joining them in Santa Barbara (obviously unaware of Mel’s feelings about it). Abby says she can’t, but Owen pleads: despite the mess of everything around them, they deserve to try and find happiness.

This would be her last heart-to-heart with Owen, and it’s cut short when they’re informed Lev has taken a boat back to the Scar island to reunite with his mother. Abby is intent to follow Lev there and keep him from certain danger (because he’s an outcast now). She prevents Owen from joining her (I think because she can’t stand the idea of Mel’s baby losing its father).

On their way to the dock to grab a boat, Yara and Abby are interrupted by gunshot sounds. Abby must investigate quickly before continuing. She discovers her friend, Manny, is pinned down by a crack sniper at the marina. She joins his fight to try and take out the sniper. The sniper is Tommy. The two encroach on Tommy’s location and back him into a corner. As a result, Manny is shot and killed. Then Abby and Tommy have a close-quarters dispute which results in Tommy being thrown into the water, and he disappears. It is unclear whether Abby recognized him as Joel’s brother in that moment, or if Tommy recognized Abby. They must’ve, right? But there’s nothing to suggest they did. In the aftermath, Abby and Yara continue their plan to get to the island.

During the sniper fight, Jesse and Ellie get wind of the battle via WLF guards. Jesse thinks it must be related to Tommy and decides to head there immediately, since regrouping with Tommy was supposed to be their only objective. But it’s not Ellie’s only objective. She uses the excuse that getting Abby is the best way to help Tommy, but really, she’s just obsessed with finding Abby. Jesse and Ellie part ways, angry with each other — Jesse to Tommy, Ellie to the aquarium. Ellie, alone then, steals a boat so she can reach the aquarium.

On the island, Abby and Yara receive a view of the WLF’s island assault. The assault distracts the Scars, so they are able to sneak to Lev’s house where they find Lev’s mother dead by Lev’s hands and Lev cowering in the corner. It was self-defense. Lev is broken up, but comforted by Abby. The three of them continue toward the battle. They’ve got some plan to escape through the chaos.

Ellie arrives at the aquarium and sneaks in. Instead of finding Abby, she finds Mel and Owen and approaches them. They aren’t who she’s looking for, so she asks where she can find Abby.

Ellie tells them she won’t hurt them if they give her what she wants, but there’s no telling if she was honest or not. While questioning them, Owen tries to grab the gun away from her and ends up getting shot. Mel also joins in after seeing Owen get shot, and it doesn’t go well for her either. Again, it’s not clear if Ellie recognizes them as ones who were present at Joel’s death, but I’m guessing she recognizes them from the found photos at least. Either way, they are WLF members; they are the enemy in Ellie’s mind. As he’s bleeding out, Owen tries to mouth something desperately to Ellie. He can’t make it clear, but he was trying to warn Ellie of Mel’s pregnancy, just in case anything could be done to save her. Ellie then notices dead Mel’s pregnant belly and has a panic attack. She’s okay killing as long as the victims never become too real. The pregnancy was too real, symbolizing there was a whole life to this person… Then Tommy and Jesse show up just in time to pick crying Ellie off the ground and escort her back to the theater.

On the Scar island, as Yara, Abby, and Lev head to an escape route, they are met with a band of WLF who instantly kill Yara as a random Scar, then recognize Abby who is guarding Lev. Abby pleas with them; Lev saved her life, so she owes him. Isaac, who shows up at the scene, doesn’t care and is sadly willing to gun down Abby in order to rid Seattle of Scars. Then surprisingly not-yet-dead Yara interrupts the moment and gives Abby and Lev a chance to escape before being finished. They escape through the chaos of the WLF and Sepharite warzone, but Abby regretfully has to kill several of her fellow WLF in order to get Lev out safely. Now Lev and Abby are both officially outcasts from their original factions. They sail back to the aquarium leaving the burning island in the distance.

At the aquarium, Abby and Lev discover dead Owen and Mel. This is the second time in Abby’s life where she experiences a fate-worse-than-death.

She doesn’t spend much time crying before she’s filled with rage. Lev points out that Owen’s killer stupidly left their map behind which informs Abby where they are holed up.

Back at the theater, Tommy, and Jesse decide on their route back to Jackson. Ellie is quiet; she’s not sure how she feels anymore. Then, Abby busts in, immediately shoots and kills Jesse, and takes Tommy hostage, leaving Ellie to act. Ellie, beyond frustrated by everything, surrenders her weapon and pleads with Abby: “I know why you killed Joel, it’s me you want.”

It’s unclear what Abby was planning to do in that moment, but before we can find out, Tommy distracts her giving Ellie a chance to escape. Tommy is shot in the head as a result. Abby then chases Ellie into the back of the theater where they have it out. Abby proves way to strong for Ellie and beats her to a bloody pulp. While beating her, Dina attempts to save Ellie by throwing herself on Abby. Dina is immediately bested and beaten as well.

Ellie calls out, “she had nothing to do with this, she’s pregnant!” Abby, seeing red, is about to kill Dina anyway just to make Ellie as miserable as possible, getting revenge for Mel and Owen. Then Lev calls out to Abby and, with just a look and a tone of voice, is able to subtly remind her of all the death they’ve already experienced today. This calms Abby down a bit — at least enough to decide against brutally killing a pregnant girl. Abby leaves Ellie and Dina still barely alive and demands Ellie never let herself be seen by Abby ever again.

Homelife

A year more-or-less later, Ellie is living with Dina and Dina’s baby, whom they named JJ, in a farmhouse not too far from Jackson. Things are quiet, calm, and simple.

Dina and Ellie are a committed, loving couple and parents to JJ. They do normal things like raise sheep and do the dishes. Ellie draws a lot.

One particular day, Ellie has a fit of PTSD in their barn while she was holding JJ. Her mind rushes back to the moment she found Joel being beaten, only in this scenario, he’s crying out for her help. Dina calms her from this waking nightmare and takes JJ from her since it had scared him.

Ellie is reminded that she’s not over this thing that torments her, and furthermore, she feels bad that she put JJ in danger by blacking out while holding him.

A day not long after, Tommy shows up at the house. He’s got a limp and a messed up eye now. He makes small talk with the three of them, but he didn’t come over just to visit. He lays a map out in front of Ellie. She already knows where he’s going with this even before he says anything, and she gets nervous. He describes a lead on Abby and assumes Ellie still wants to get to her. She is hesitant, but before she can respond, Dina speaks for her, “We’re done with that”. Tommy hears her, but he’s pretty sure he knows Ellie better than that; Dina doesn’t speak for her, because Ellie, Joel, and him go back way farther. He waits for Ellie’s response. Ellie eventually says, “I’m sorry”, meaning she knows how much it means to Tommy, but it’s not worth the risk anymore. They both know Tommy can’t go because of his handicap now. So Tommy becomes aggravated that Ellie has given up and he just has to live with never getting revenge for his brother’s killing. He criticizes Ellie for not following through with how she promised to make Abby pay. Then he storms out. But he leaves the map of Abby’s supposed location.

Ellie is haunted by the memory of Joel. It makes her skin hurt. She has trouble sleeping. She has trouble eating. She can’t talk about it. And now, she thinks her episodes may pose a danger to her loved ones, Dina and JJ… After some time, Ellie realizes there is only one answer to the problems, and she packs her bags in the middle of the night. It’s not about Abby anymore; it’s about Ellie not knowing how to be a person and being desperate for an answer. Dina comes downstairs and finds her. Dina sees the bag, but tries a bit of denial and small talk; she doesn’t want to imagine life without Ellie. It doesn’t work. Ellie says finishing it is her only option. Dina bargains in a very sensible way, but Ellie can only respond with, “I can’t”. I think she thinks Dina would never fully understand why she has to do this, and I think she’s right. So she doesn’t say any more; she walks out leaving Dina sobbing.

Santa Barbara

Abby and Lev are touring the abandoned homes of a street in Santa Barbara, California, looking for the Fireflies. It’s hot, dry, and yellow. She has a lead… an address. When they find the place, they discover a radio with a list of frequencies. One of the frequencies yields a response from a Firefly. She is able to convince them of her intentions by correctly answering the respondent’s quiz — the name of the man who ran the Salt Lake outpost (her father). The respondent then tells her the Fireflies are 200 strong and gives her an exact location where to find them.

This is exciting, because it means the Fireflies are still around, so a cure is still theoretically being researched. But Abby never makes it to them. As they leave the house, she and Lev are ambushed by a new, sadistic faction called the Rattlers. They are enslaved and brought to the Rattler stronghold.

Ellie arrives in Santa Barbara with a singular focus, finding Abby. It’s not long before she too bumps into the Rattlers and gets badly impaled. However, she lucks out and ends up getting the better of the two she encountered. She throws one into an infected which finishes him, and learns from the other one that Abby has been taken to their stronghold. So she sets sights on that stronghold.

After infiltrating the stronghold, she encounters some prisoners in the lower level. They inform her Abby is at “the pillars” in exchange for freeing them. Ellie heads to the pillars where she discovers Abby has been strung up and left to rot in the sun.

She’s lost a lot of weight and her head has been shaved. She’s in really bad shape.

Ellie didn’t anticipate this at all. She finally found Abby, but what is she supposed to do with her now? Ellie cuts her down and frees her. Abby recognizes Ellie, but when she sees Ellie is not attacking her, she tends to Lev who was also strung up. She’s got bigger problems than Ellie right now. Abby groggily carries passed out Lev and tells Ellie there are escape boats on the beach. Ellie’s wound from being impaled is getting worse, and its impeding her mobility. Both women are not healthy, and they make their way over to the boats slowly.

Ellie has plenty of time to consider what her next move could possibly be. She considers just leaving, but then she remembers how it felt to see Joel brutally beaten before her. She reminds herself: she can’t let Abby’s pathetic physical condition keep her from remembering the monstrous thing she did. Plus, Ellie needs a resolution to this chapter in her life. So she tells Abby to fight her. Abby tries to shrug it off, but she’s backed into a corner when Ellie puts a knife to Lev.

So Abby reluctantly agrees. Both of them wounded and tired, begin to fight each other sloshing around in the shallow water of the beach. There is a lot of back and forth, and the two become even more wounded and tired. It’s a viscous bare-knuckle brawl. At one point, Abby bites off two of Ellie’s left-hand fingers. Ultimately, Ellie gets the advantage over Abby and begins to drown her by holding her face in the water. She holds it there for a long time with the intent of finally avenging Joel, but suddenly an image of Joel on his porch plucking his six string enters her mind, and she releases Abby from the water letting her gasp her way back to life. Ellie’s reasoning is so beautifully open to interpretation, I don’t know if I should even bother trying to explain it.

But I will. There’s no right answer here, so I can only describe what this scene means to me: Ellie was pushed between two extreme versions of herself, and the only way to know which one was worse was to try them both out. There’s the version of her who suffers from haunting memories of Joel. That one was bad; that’s why she left Dina. Then there’s the version of her who kills. It’s the one she’s testing here. As she’s drowning Abby and getting closer and closer to finishing her off, she gets to feel what it will be like to successfully avenge Joel — and the feeling is flat; she gets nothing from it. As a result, the hatred it requires to continue drowning Abby suddenly dissipates, and her instincts take over and remind of the good things — an image of Joel being happy. It’s the part of her that doesn’t want to be a killer that starts to speak to her in her time of need and reminds her what she was about before all this started… She only ever sought those peaceful moments. Going that far with Abby was the only way to force the ‘killer’ version of herself to either fail or succeed. It failed, proving that way was never going to be right for her. So she releases Abby out of pure instinct. Ellie is more confused than ever in this moment and knows absolutely nothing — except that killing Abby would have been wrong.

Abby catches her breath and immediately leaves with Lev. Ellie is left sitting in the water, weeping, clutching her torn fingers.

Ending

Still rather unsure about many things, Ellie knows one thing for sure: the obvious next step is to return to Dina. But when she arrives, the home is cleared out; no sign of Dina and the baby. Ellie is not surprised. She is quiet about it. She is in despair about Dina but understands this is her punishment, and she will accept it. Miraculously though, Dina left all of Ellie’s drawings and personal effects in her little art room, including Joel’s guitar. Ellie picks up the guitar and attempts to play. The loss of her fingers makes it impossible to sound decent. I think she already knew her guitar days were over but gave it one last try anyway, if only as a way of connecting to Joel one last time. It wasn’t enough to lose Dina, JJ, and Jesse in her quest for vengeance; her musical ability has been stripped from her as a permanent reminder of the cost of hatred. Sadly, she leans the guitar against the window so it can breath, leaves everything in that room, and walks away. The guitar left behind is a symbol for her leaving Joel behind and moving forward to rebuild her life.

Final Thoughts

Like the lyric from Joel’s song, “If I ever were to lose you, I’d surely lose myself”, Ellie lost herself when she lost Joel. Going on a quest for revenge, killing strangers, it wasn’t really Ellie. This story as a whole was, in a way, about Ellie trying to recover herself. Though she spent those two years being mad at him, she was a teen; she was just very hurt. But she loved him. It’s only the people we love that can hurt us the worst. Though she didn’t know it at the time, she wasn’t ready to be without him. She had learned herself in his presence. So without him, the her that was left didn’t make sense. She was able to feign happiness in the home with Dina, and she loved her, but a part of Ellie was still lost. And she did not find it until that moment she releases Abby from the water. Some fans are upset that she didn’t kill Abby in the end, as though it leaves her character unsatisfied and her journey pointless. But I think it’s the opposite. Despite what Ellie had assumed in that moment, her problem had not as much to do with Abby as much as Ellie losing something that was so important to her and not knowing how to be without it. She had to travel to the end of the world and back (metaphorically) and stretch herself to her limits to find out what she really was without Joel and what her life was going to mean from this point on. She had to lose so much in order to gain that perspective, but once she did, she was finally ready for her next chapter.

Speaking to the theme of hatred, I think it’s really powerful that this story describes the cycle of violence, then leads us by example showing two different characters who look inward and decide to end that cycle. It’s Abby’s decision to end it instead of kill Ellie. Ellie didn’t understand that at the time; she had to be put into that same situation to discover it for herself. Ellie and Abby both wanted the same thing: to be done. And it’s awesome they both found that the done-ness could be achieved by allowing their hatred to dissolve instead of by feeding it. This story’s commentary on vengeance is not that it’s pointless, but that it takes strength and courage to rise above it.

The Last of Us was a story about Love. The Last of Us Part II is a story about Hate… (This, according to the director.) And there will undoubtedly be a third game. So assuming there is some trifecta of powerful themes… what will Part III be about? In the classic trilogy format, the second episode is always the one in which the main character is forced to grow in painful ways; they learn something dark about themselves that they wish they hadn’t but ultimately are wiser for it. The Last of Us is true to that format. And the third episode is classically where the character uses that wisdom to finally realize their true potential. Considering Ellie, that makes me excited.