HBO’s original series The Last of Us based on video game franchise under the same name season one episode four entitled “Please Hold to My Hand” kicks off with Pedro Pascal’s Joel Miller, and Bella Ramsey’s Ellie during a pit-stop to refuel the truck they are using. During this the viewer sees Ellie as she plays with the gun, she got from Nick Offerman’s Bill’s armory. In her mind, she has this fantasy outlook of being a survivor and using violence to keep living. This demonstrates how she still has an innocent view of the world in the sense that she sees herself as a hero survivor ready to have an action-packed adventure. Another example of this is how she reads from a pun book to lighten up the mood with Joel. The interesting part about this is how Joel seems to be warming up to Ellie due to how he tries to hide his smile when she reads the puns to him. It can be assumed by the viewer that with everything they have been through he is growing more and more attached to her. The viewer could even guess that he is starting to see her as his new daughter. The acting by Bella Ramsey sets the scene well when she plays Ellie. She manages to capture the innocence of what it is to be a kid no matter the situation. She knows that Ellie is someone who is still naïve to the horrors of the world and demonstrates it by how she makes jokes with so much relaxation behind. However, she also manages to capture what it is like to see the world for what it is. The way she expresses Ellie’s fear of the infected is just how anyone would express it if they were in an intense situation like her.
Additionally, the viewer sees Ellie lose her innocence due to her killing someone in order to save Joel from being killed by an enemy survivor. It is here where the viewer sees her take things more seriously as she now sees that the real threat is not the infected but, it is what is left of humanity. In a surprising turn of events the viewer also sees Joel try to shield Ellie from a horrific moment when it comes to killing the survivor she shot. This is a result of him possibly warning other people about them as they are not from the city they are trying to pass through. In Joel’s mind, he sees that Ellie is a kid that needs to be protected by the world. He probably sees her as his daughter that he failed to protect and now he has a second chance to right his wrong. Which is why he feels guilty that she had to shoot someone and get blood on her hands. This is where Pedro Pascal shows how he captures Joel’s emotions as a character. He knows how much Joel has suffered due to the loss of his daughter. He knows that at this point he is a broken man forced to live in a world that has given up hope. Instead of finding help in dealing with his grief he has to continue on without help in situations that showed him the dark side of people. And Pedro shows this with how tough Joel is as well as how hard he has made his heart. However, he manages to show his softer side as well. With the little moments where he smiles and jokes with Ellie, he gives the viewer the hint that there is still a human being inside of him.
At the end of the episode, the viewer sees the group rebels that took over the city looking for someone that crossed them. It would seem that the leader has a personal vendetta against the man due to him possibly betraying her leading to her brother being killed. The interesting part about this is how the rebels fought against the government due to their cruel fascist methods. However, the rebels themselves rule the city by using the exact same methods. The series does a fantastic job at showing how these types of real-world situations tend to end up in a never-ending circle. With the winner always justifying their actions using lies such as it is all for the good of everyone. The way the series uses the cinematography as well as the colors for the city rebel segments helps the overall tone of the episode. Usually, the series has somewhat of a bright type of color when it is just Joel and Ellie. Although, when the series focuses on the rebels the colors change to dark grey. As if all matter of hope and peace are gone with the rebels as they are more animals than people. This is further supported by how when the rebel leader threatens the doctor the scene’s color is dark with a small light that outlines the gun pointed at his head.
Also, in comparison to the game the series continues to add more content to the overall story. A clear example is how Joel and Ellie camp out in the wilderness on their way to the city. From here they both have a small moment where they joke around with the pun book. Not to mention that Joel ends up drinking and talking about coffee. This is different in the game due to him never being able to drink it ever since the outbreak began. The details, however small they are, end up making the series much more wholesome as it adds more depth to the characters.
Rating: 9.5/10