The Last of Us: Ranking Every Episode from Worst to Best

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HBO’s The Last of Us has given us some of the best TV episodes of the last ten years, though it hasn’t been perfect, particularly in its second season. The first season, released in 2023, was widely praised as a faithful and compelling adaptation of the video game, as well as a fantastic show and a visually impressive experience.

Season two received a much more varied reaction from viewers. While adapting the first part of the divisive game The Last of Us Part II, the show rushed the story, altered characters, and made some confusing changes from the source material. Here’s a ranking of all 16 episodes of HBO’s The Last of Us, from the least to the most enjoyable.

16. Convergence

Season 2, Episode 7

Image via Max

The second season of The Last of Us ended on a disappointing note, with its final episode feeling weak and anticlimactic. While the finale covers the last part of Ellie’s journey through Seattle, it doesn’t quite deliver a clear message and struggles with developing its characters.

Ellie behaves very differently than usual in this episode, having a childish outburst when things don’t go her way and acting aggressively towards Jesse. She also risks her life for a stranger from the Seraphites. The episode makes Mel’s death feel even more disturbing, perhaps overly so, and the trip to the Seraphites’ island feels unnecessary and forced.

15. Please Hold To My Hand

Season 1, Episode 4

The fourth episode of The Last of Us changed the location from the game’s Pittsburgh to Kansas City. While it features important moments between Joel and Ellie and intense action, the episode is somewhat hampered by the introduction of Kathleen, a new character played by Melanie Lynskey who wasn’t present in the original game.

Anna Lynskey is a talented actor who generally elevates any project she’s part of, but her character, Kathleen, isn’t very engaging. The only thing we learn about Kathleen is that she’s mourning her brother, who’s never shown or discussed, and her storyline feels repetitive, especially at a critical point in the story where we should be focusing on Joel and Ellie.

14. Future Days

Season 2, Episode 1

Image via Max

The second season of The Last of Us starts strong with some really good scenes, but also hints at potential problems later on. The supermarket encounter with the stalker is as scary as it is in the game, and it was a nice touch to see Joel and Dina begin to form a connection.

However, this episode has some major flaws that ultimately hurt the season. It reveals Abby’s entire backstory – her motivations, why she dislikes Joel, and her journey to Jackson – right away, ruining a key surprise from the original game. Furthermore, Joel’s therapy scene foreshadowed a pattern for the season: explaining characters’ feelings instead of letting those feelings unfold naturally through their actions.

13. Infected

Season 1, Episode 2

Following the impressive first episode, the second installment of The Last of Us focused on a more intimate, character-focused story. “Infected” centers on Tess’s death and Joel’s hesitant agreement to continue the journey with Ellie on his own. Anna Torv delivers a powerful performance in Tess’s final scenes, though the unsettling encounter with the infected feels out of place and detracts from the emotional impact.

The episode starts with a gripping cold open that reveals how the outbreak began. A Jakarta-based mycology professor examines the first infected and quickly realizes the danger of the Cordyceps fungus. She urgently advises the military to bomb the city and desperately wants to be with her family, a powerful scene that significantly improves the episode.

12. Day One

Season 2, Episode 4

The story of The Last of Us Part II really takes off when Ellie and Dina reach Seattle, and the TV show followed suit, saving that part for the second half of the first season. The second season’s “Day One” episode shows Ellie and Dina arriving in Washington and beginning their pursuit of the Wolves. Bella Ramsey and Isabela Merced wonderfully recreate the iconic “Take on Me” scene in a music store.

Similar to the game, the TV show’s Seattle storyline reaches a peak when Ellie and Dina are forced to hide in an old subway station, and Dina discovers Ellie’s immunity. While the show improved some parts of this scene – for example, portraying Ellie’s infection as a brave act instead of a random event – it also made some strange choices, particularly by significantly altering the emotional impact of Dina’s pregnancy announcement.

11. Look For The Light

Season 1, Episode 9

HBO / Courtesy Everett Collection

The first season of The Last of Us concludes much like the end of the original game. Joel and Ellie locate the Fireflies, who plan to operate on Ellie to create a cure for the infection – but the procedure would kill her. Joel then fights his way through the hospital to rescue her.

The TV show leaves out the most impactful part of the game – the player actually having to perform the difficult task. This lack of direct involvement lessens the emotional weight of the ending, but Pedro Pascal delivers a fantastic performance, convincingly portraying the character’s anger, detachment, and intense focus.

10. The Path

Season 2, Episode 3

Image via Max

The second episode of the season was shocking, with Joel’s death and the destruction of Jackson. So, it makes sense the third episode took a breather to explore the aftermath and characters’ reactions. However, jumping ahead three months and dedicating an entire episode to Jackson felt like it stopped the revenge story from moving forward.

After Joel’s death, Ellie immediately sets off for Seattle, consumed by grief, anger, and the trauma of what happened. Though she waited three months before starting her journey, that delay almost stopped her emotional progress. This episode features compelling drama, especially with Tommy, who is understandably heartbroken but remains remarkably composed.

9. Endure And Survive

Season 1, Episode 5

After four episodes, The Last of Us delivered some much-anticipated action with infected in its fifth episode, “Endure and Survive.” The show’s writers seem to be using the TV format to focus more on character development and dialogue – things games often don’t have time for – while intentionally reducing the constant action sequences that video games frequently rely on.

The show still relies on frightening zombie scenes to emphasize the dangers of this world after the apocalypse and how urgently a cure is needed. This episode features more of Kathleen’s story, but also introduces two of the series’ most compelling characters – Sam and Henry, wonderfully portrayed by Lamar Johnson and Keivonn Montreal Woodard – and culminates in a deeply emotional ending that closely follows the original game’s storyline.

8. Feel Her Love

Season 2, Episode 5

Ellie began behaving more like her character in the game “Feel Her Love.” She became consumed by her desire for revenge and went after Abby’s friends, even though she knew it was a bad idea. However, this change came too late to make a real impact. While Ramsey did a great job portraying Ellie’s anger, it felt out of place because the show hadn’t built up to that level of rage beforehand.

Honestly, the timing felt a little off with Ellie and Dina finally sharing their feelings. It was sweet, but happening while they were literally running for their lives in that creepy building just didn’t quite land for me. And some things felt too convenient – like Jesse showing up right when they needed him most, or Ellie magically finding the perfect way into the Wolves’ hospital. It pulled me out of the moment a bit, you know?

7. Kin

Season 1, Episode 6

In the episode “Kin,” Pascal delivered a powerful performance, expertly handling both the touching reunion with Tommy and the intense confrontation with Ellie, scenes lifted directly from the game. The episode’s depiction of PTSD and panic attacks was deeply moving and offered a compelling new layer to Joel’s character, making him more relatable and vulnerable than in the original game.

The episode beautifully portrays a growing connection between Joel and Ellie, thanks to the fantastic chemistry between actors Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. While adapting a particularly beloved and emotional part of the original game, “Kin” not only met expectations but truly captured its heart.

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2026-02-21 16:21