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Spoilers for The Last of Us season 2, episode 2, “Through the Valley.” Jackson is hit by a devastating infected attack, and Abby uses the chaos to take revenge on Joel for killing her father. Ellie arrives in time to see Abby kill him. The episode aired April 20, 2025, and runs 57 minutes, according to TV Guide.
What happens in “Through the Valley”?
As Jackson braces for an increase in infected sightings, Abby and her companions debate how to get into the settlement and find Joel. Their plan collides with a crisis: a mass infected attack overwhelms the town’s defenses.
![The Last of Us Season 2 [2025] [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41FoaY99CuL._SL160_.jpg)
Tommy and Maria help lead Jackson’s defense as residents fight to keep the infected out. The attack causes serious losses and turns the settlement into a scene of confusion and danger. Joel and Dina are caught up in the chaos outside the town, while Ellie and Jesse are elsewhere.
Joel and Dina encounter Abby during the attack. Joel helps her survive the infected, not knowing who she is or why she has come to Jackson. Once the immediate danger passes, Abby reveals her purpose: she is there because Joel killed her father, the doctor at the Salt Lake City hospital, while saving Ellie in the season-one finale.
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Abby’s group captures Joel. Ellie reaches them and witnesses Abby kill him. The episode makes clear that his death is not a fake-out: it is the devastating consequence of the choice Joel made at the hospital, and the event that reshapes Ellie’s story.
Why does Abby kill Joel?
Abby’s revenge is rooted in the events at the end of season one. Joel killed the surgeon who was going to operate on Ellie, believing that the procedure would kill her. The show now identifies that surgeon as Abby’s father, making Joel’s rescue of Ellie the reason Abby has hunted him down.
Rank #2
The episode gives viewers that connection as Joel dies. It does not make Abby’s act morally simple; it places her motive beside the loss Ellie has just witnessed. The two perspectives are held in tension rather than resolved for the audience.
How does the episode differ from the game?
The series retains Joel’s death and Abby’s motive from The Last of Us Part II, but changes how the story reaches that moment and what surrounds it. The creators’ explanations to TheWrap describe decisions shaped by television’s need to show the community and its relationships directly.
Rank #3
![The Last of Us: The Complete 1 & 2 Seasons [7-Disc Set] [2023–2025] [Blu-ray] [Region Free]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51xxB0fkBTL._SL160_.jpg)
- COMPLETE SEASONS 1 & 2 COLLECTION – Includes every episode from the first two acclaimed HBO seasons across a 7-disc Blu-ray set
- BASED ON THE AWARD-WINNING VIDEO GAME – Faithfully adapts Naughty Dog's legendary post-apocalyptic masterpiece with cinematic storytelling
- STARRING PEDRO PASCAL & BELLA RAMSEY – Outstanding performances alongside Gabriel Luna, Kaitlyn Dever, Jeffrey Wright, Isabela Merced, and Catherine O'Hara
- HIGH-DEFINITION BLU-RAY – Experience every episode with exceptional picture quality, immersive audio, and bonus features
- REGION FREE BLU-RAY – Compatible with Blu-ray players worldwide
| Story element | What the series does | What the adaptation changes |
|---|---|---|
| Jackson’s infected attack | A large-scale assault becomes a major set piece during the episode. | The community-wide battle is an original expansion for television, rather than a direct recreation of a game sequence, as Engadget and Sky note. |
| Patrol pairings | Dina is with Joel; Tommy stays in Jackson to help defend it. Ellie is with Jesse. | Neil Druckmann said the choices help show the stakes for Jackson and give the relationships more room on screen, in TheWrap’s interview. |
| Abby’s motive | Abby explains her connection to Joel’s past as part of the confrontation. | The series reveals her father’s identity earlier in the story than the game does, according to TheWrap. |
| Character relationships | The episode can show characters responding to one another during the patrols and attack. | The television adaptation uses scenes and dialogue to convey dynamics that the game can develop through interactive play; this is an adaptation difference, not a claim that either medium tells the story better. |
Craig Mazin, the series’ co-creator and executive producer, told TheWrap: “We’re not interested in shock value. That’s not what we do.” He and Druckmann said they discussed when to place Joel’s death, but did not spend long considering a move. Their comments, including why Tommy needed to be in Jackson, are in TheWrap’s April 20, 2025 interview.
Why pair Joel and Dina on patrol?
The pairing lets the episode show Dina and Joel together before the attack, while Tommy’s presence in Jackson connects him to the town’s defense. Ellie’s patrol with Jesse places her away from Joel until she reaches the scene. Druckmann described the choices as a way to show what is at stake for Jackson and to spend more time with the relationships, rather than simply copying the game’s arrangement.
Rank #4
- Pedro Pascal, Gabriel Luna
Where can you hear the creators discuss the episode?
HBO’s official companion podcast for “Through the Valley,” hosted by Troy Baker with Mazin and Druckmann, discusses Joel’s fate, the Jackson battle, and the episode’s controversial moment. The listing is available through Apple Podcasts.
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