Most fans have gotten used to the fact that The Last of Us has been changing some key points from the video game. The latest change in Episode 8 appears to be an interesting one since it involves Joel and Ellie being reunited after she had killed her kidnappers. So why make a subtle change in the TV series? Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann offered a simple explanation for the minor divergence.
In The Last of Us Episode 8, Ellie singlehandedly killed James then David after they attempted to chop her up into little pieces. When Ellie finally emerged from the burning restaurant, Joel was there to comfort her after her terrible experience. But in the game, Joel enters the building and pries Ellie away as she bludgeons David.
It's an interesting change and the showrunners quickly pointed out that they wanted the reunion to be safer for Joel and Ellie.
"We didn't want it to happen with the fire around. The danger of the fire just felt a little different than it did in the game," Mazin and Druckmann said in the Last of Us podcast. "There was also the question of, 'How does Joel get inside if the keys are on David? It was a little bit of a logic thing, too, and we wanted our Ellie to have completed it to the point where she could literally walk away on her own."
"I think it was important when the scene was constructed in the game, and I think it's the same for the show, that we want the audience – or the player – to think Joel is going to save Ellie because that's what this character traditionally does," they added.
It's certainly different but the effect was the same. Viewers were left in tears as Joel comforted Ellie and they hugged in the emotional reunion.
The Last of Us Episode 8 is now streaming on HBO Max.
Related: The Last of Us Episode 9 Preview Teases Heartbreaking Conclusion
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