The Last of Us Season 1 Episode 9 Recap and Finale Ending Explained

By Ricky Valero
Published: March 13, 2023 (Last updated: September 15, 2024)
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Summary

While The Last of Us has seen some ups and downs throughout the season, the final two episodes bring together the story with a fitting end. An intense episode that lets the season end on a high note.

We recap the HBO series The Last of Us Season 1 Episode 9, “Look for the Light,” which contains spoilers and explains the Ending of the Finale.

The season finale of The Last of Us has arrived. In Episode 8, we saw  Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) fighting for their life as James and David were able to track them down and wreak havoc. However, as they have done all season, Ellie and Joel were able to prevail, but not without some new wounds.

The Last of Us Season 1 Episode 9 Finale Recap

The finale starts with a pregnant woman running in the woods, attempting to escape the Infected. As she is lying on the floor, having labor pains, an Infected bursts into the room and attacks her. After she kills it, she delivers the baby, and this is when we find out it is baby Ellie. Later that night, the team arrives to rescue her, but she’s infected and says she wants her to take Ellie and go to Boston.

Present day, Joel and Ellie are still traveling down the road. Still struggling from what happened, the roles are reversed, with Joel doing much of the talking with Ellie being quieter. The duo finds a building, and upon getting to the top, they see a giraffe which excites Ellie. Joel presents the idea of them playing it safe and returning to Tommy, but Ellie says it cannot be for nothing after all they’ve been through. She says they finish what they started, and after that, they go where he wants.

After the duo shares a bonding moment of how Joel got to where they are, he says it’s time for some lousy pun jokes. However, one thing leads to another, and a stun grenade comes in, and now the duo has been taken captive again. We find out it was the Fireflies, and they are impressed with how Joel made it through everything to get her here. That said, Marlene tells him that Ellie is fine, but she is heading to surgery. Finally, she mentions that they think it can be a cure.

Does Joel save Ellie?

Joel wants to see Ellie, but Marlene refuses and tells her men to take him to the highway, drop him off, and shoot him if he pulls anything. We know it won’t be that simple, as Joel gets the best of the two guards, taking them down. One by one, Joel takes guard after guard out without fear and only one hope, to save Ellie. Next, he makes his way to the surgery room, where he finds Ellie. He asks the doctor to unhook her but refuses, and Joel shoots him. After the nurses do it, Joel picks up Ellie and attempts to leave with her in his arms.

As he tries to escape into the parking garage, Marlene attempts to stop her. She pleads with him, saying they can find a way even after all he has done. Joel doesn’t care and leaves anyway. In the car ride, Joel tells a story about how they tried to run the tests, and there is more like her. However, they stopped looking for a cure. Ellie asks more questions, but he says people came inside and attacked the place, and they barely escaped.

Who dies in The Last of Us Season 1 Finale?  

In between Joel telling Ellie the story, we see Joel shoot Marlene. After getting Ellie settled in the car, we hear Marlene struggling to ask Joel not to kill her. But Joel said she would continue to come after her and pulled the trigger, killing her.

The Last of Us Season 1 Finale Ending Explained

As they travel down the road, the car finally gives out on them, forcing them to begin to hike. Joel begins to tell stories of Sarah and how she would’ve liked Ellie. They are closing in on returning to Tommy’s when Ellie stops Joel to tell him the story of the first time she killed someone. Then, she tells stories of all the people who have come and gone. Joel tries to interrupt her, Ellie asks him to swear to her that everything he said about the Fireflies was true, and he said I swear, and the season comes to a close with her saying, okay.

What did you think of The Last of Us Season 1 Episode 9 (finale), and the Ending? Comment below.

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