The Last of Us is one of the most critically acclaimed video games of the century, and HBO's adaptation of it is one of the most critically acclaimed television shows in recent years. This is all the more impressive given how ubiquitous the zombie genre has been these past few decades. There's lots of praise to go around, from the show's production design, remarkable actors, sharp writing, and well-executed action sequences that make sure we know (and care about) what's happening.
Similarly, the show's plot twists are essential. The Last of Us takes place in a post-apocalyptic United States where a fungal virus called Cordyceps has led to wide-scale death, societal disruption, and a fundamental change in government. Joel (Pedro Pascal) lost his daughter (Bella Ramsey) at the beginning of it and is now tasked with transporting a teenager named Ellie to a place where she can possibly help produce a cure for this virus. Though much of this show is about survival and hope, it's also about the formation of an unexpected father-daughter bond that gradually builds throughout this first season's narrative. With that in mind, the 10 best twists in the series (so far) surprise the audience, propel the story forward in exciting ways, do a remarkable job of developing the characters, and build on the show's core themes.
10 Tess Dies
"Infected" (Season 1, Episode 2)
Joel's partner, Tess (Anna Torv), is apparently as tough as he is. Yet she dies in just the second episode, which is a bit sooner than many viewers might have expected. She shows Joel and Ellie where she has been bitten and tells them to keep going. She then pours gasoline on the floor, along with some grenades, anticipating the massive swarm of infected coming their way. After managing to flick on a lighter, she blows them up (and her with them).
Suddenly, this group of three has been knocked down to two. It's hard to think that they'll be able to make it the rest of the way, but, more importantly, Joel just lost someone he loved. This has a significant impact on him in more than one way. Tess insists that he take Ellie to the Fireflies, wherever they are, so Joel's loyalty to his partner keeps him dedicated to the mission. Also, that it's just the two of them now will more or less force him to eventually bond with Ellie.
9 The Ground Breaks Open from a Sinkhole
"Endure and Survive" (Season 1, Episode 5)
At the end of episode five, Henry (Lamar Johnson), Sam (Keivonn Montreal Woodard), and Ellie wind up completely surrounded by the resistance group that took over Kansas City. Henry is about to get shot when a large vehicle falls through a sinkhole in the ground. All of a sudden, the sound of infected rises from the earth. It's a thrilling moment, as everyone anticipates that an attack is coming. Even Joel from up in the house in the distance, who has a clear shot of the resistance soldiers, understands that the priority here might have just shifted.
More infected swarm out of the hole than they can handle, overtaking the heavily armed forces in this cul-de-sac. Just in the nick of time, the infected distract the antagonists of the episode for long enough for Joel and the others to make their escape. The way the camera holds that shot as the infected swarm out of the hole is terrifying, but this entire scene is terrifically done. As far as plot twists go, it doesn't get much more exciting than this. It also shows just how easily you can suddenly die in The Last of Us' world.
8 Henry Killed the Former Leader of the Resistance Movement
"Endure and Survive" (Season 1, Episode 5)
In episode five, we learn that Henry assassinated the former leader of the Kansas City resistance movement. That's why he's the most wanted man there. The reason he gives helps us understand why he would do that: the government promised to give him medication for his deaf brother's leukemia in exchange for the favor. In this alternative world, such medication is advanced enough for Henry to consider that a fair trade.
Though it's not exactly a shocking revelation, since we already know that he's in hiding from the people who took over the city, it does support the story's themes—political upheaval, for instance. Of course, the more important one is killing others who don't deserve it (and are important to many others) to save either yourself or the ones you love. Henry doing what he needs to do for Sam helps the viewer better understand why Joel does what he does in the season finale.
7 Sam Gets Infected
"Endure and Survive" (Season 1, Episode 5)
Ellie and Sam are conversing in his room when we find out that he was just bitten during the swarm from earlier. This is heartbreaking on a few levels. First of all, Ellie has just made her new friend and will probably have to say goodbye just as quickly. She doesn't tell the adults, either; she even tries to save him by cutting herself and letting her blood pass into Sam's wound. That actually gives us some hope that he might survive, but it's no use. By morning, he's already turned.
Henry killed a man to save his brother, yet Sam would die young anyway. Henry actually winds up shooting Sam himself when the boy attacks, which makes this all the more tragic. Henry can't live with that, and shoots himself immediately afterward. Along with the emotional toll this takes on Ellie, this also sets up the idea of someone who would rather die than live without the person they love most. Overall, twists for secondary characters like these help make this show every bit as powerful as HBO's best original dramas.
6 Joel Decides to Take Ellie the Rest of the Way, After All
"Kin" (Season 1, Episode 6)
Joel has finally reunited with his brother (Gabriel Luna) in what feels like a post-apocalyptic paradise, but it's time for at least Ellie to leave. After Joel asked him to take her the rest of the way, Tommy was ready to follow through on that promise. He knows where to go, and he has more confidence. But when they get to the horse stables, there's Joel. He's ready to go, telling Ellie she ought to make the choice of with whom she wants to travel.
She picks Joel with no hesitation, which is touching. Most fans probably didn't expect this new character to take the reins (no pun intended) of this story's main narrative, so Joel deciding last minute to accompany Ellie isn't that surprising. That said, it's still integral to Joel's character development and the relationship he has with her. Although it seems Ellie is more attached to him at this point than he is to her, that's going to change in the coming episodes—and this pivotal decision sets that up.
5 The Fireflies Attack When Joel and Ellie Finally Arrive
"Look for the Light" (Season 1, Episode 9)
The Last of Us subverts expectations in ways that make it one of the best video game shows ever made. When Joel and Ellie finally make it to the Fireflies, they're greeted with a smoke grenade. Joel gets knocked out, Ellie is taken. You would think that the people whom Joel and Ellie have come here to help would give them a warmer reception, but nope. Just like everyone else, the Fireflies treat them at first as hostile—making this arrival feel much less happy and celebratory than expected.
It's also weird to see Joel and Ellie get taken out so easily. The camera is facing this heavily traumatized duo as they amble through town telling jokes while only the audience can see what's behind them. This makes them look surprisingly innocent, compared to the rest of their entrances throughout the season. They weren't expecting this kind of hello, either, so this lingering shot is a way of saying that they can never let their guard down—that their dream of living together peacefully is doomed. It also sets up an even bigger twist, as we can see Joel responding to all this in a less-than-ideal fashion.
4 Tommy Never Sent Word Out to Joel
"Kin" (Season 1, Episode 6)
It's worth noting that Tommy and Joel responded to their separation in completely opposite ways. Joel was always checking in to see if his brother was out there, maybe sending a signal. He would then use his trip with Ellie as an opportunity to find his little brother. In contrast, Tommy is in a stable community that's clearly difficult to penetrate and has the ability to communicate with the outside world. For the sake of safety, though, Tommy didn't even try to contact Joel.
This clearly hurts Joel's feelings, and it makes their reunion much more bittersweet than expected. Granted, Tommy was willing to take Ellie the rest of the way after his older brother admitted that he felt like he couldn't anymore; but this twist still establishes that what was most important to Joel has somewhat let him down. Equally important is that Joel now knows his sibling is protected; he doesn't have to play the part of older brother anymore, which gives him little left to live for.
3 Joel Lies to Ellie About the Fireflies
"Look for the Light" (Season 1, Episode 9)
Joel has basically just damned humanity in The Last of Us' Season 1 finale. This is disturbing enough on its own, but Joel makes this even worse by lying to Ellie about what happened. It's hard to imagine that she would approve of him killing all those people to save her, especially since she was clear earlier about wanting to see their mission to the end. Joel understands this, so he tells her that there were others like her that they've been using to combat Cordyceps. He also tells her that they were attacked and had to leave.
Those are two pretty extraordinary scenarios happening at the same time, and Ellie can tell that something's off. While this is attached to the greater twist of Joel betraying the Fireflies, this decision to lie to someone he loves like a daughter further undermines any sense of satisfaction for the audience that our main characters made it out alive. Instead, the viewer is deeply unsettled by a relationship that this man was so desperate to hold on to that he was willing to not only murder good people but also manipulate Ellie herself.
2 The Surgery is Lethal
"Look for the Light" (Season 1, Episode 9)
Since Cordyceps are most commonly spread from a bite, one could reasonably expect Ellie's blood or saliva to be used for a cure. The show has been making us think this way, conditioning us through repetition to think that some kind of vaccine could be made via relatively non-invasive methods. This proves not the case, as Joel wakes up in the Fireflies' headquarters only to have Marlene tell him that the doctor is going to use the Cordyceps in Ellie's brain to make the (potential) cure. This will kill Ellie, and Joel's expression as he slowly realizes this is painful to watch.
The show masterfully hinted at this, too. When Ellie tried to help Sam by cutting her hand and sharing some of her blood with him, she went so far as to write "My blood is medicine." Alas, she turned out to be wrong, suggesting that there's more to it than that. Along with building on a previous twist, the revelation changes this conversation's tone and suddenly raises the stakes higher than the audience anticipated.
1 Joel Decides to Kill Everyone to Save Ellie
"Look for the Light" (Season 1, Episode 9)
When Marlene claims that she has no choice but to have Ellie go through a surgical procedure that will surely kill her, the camera looks down at Joel. On all fours, he says "I do" with eyes that seem to have gone dead. It seems he's made a decision, and it's so stunningly tragic that this goes down as one of Pedro Pascal's greatest roles. He decides to save Ellie from the operation, which means he has to kill most of the Fireflies to do it.
While we always saw Joel as a complicated guy who's been hardened by this post-apocalyptic hellscape, we always saw him as a hero of this story. Suddenly he's the opposite, as the guy single-handedly wipes out what feels like humanity's only chance of finding a cure to the Cordyceps phenomenon. His parental bond with Ellie has grown so naturally and gradually throughout the season that this decision, though perturbing, still feels true to his character. This darkly poignant insight into parental instincts goes down as one of the most astonishing twists in television history.
