The Last Of Us Season 2’s Abby Teaser Reveals A Joel Parallel

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Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for The Last of Us season 1 and The Last of Us video game series!Neil Druckmann’s The Last of Us season 2 Abby tease reveals she is more like Joel than she realizes. Following the season 1 finale, Druckmann tweeted a The Last of Us season 2 tease, marking one of the first Sundays without a TLOU episode. HBO’s The Last of Us was a major hit for the streaming service and broke viewing records consistently throughout its nine-episode run. Based on the video game series The Last of Us, HBO’s adaptation stays faithful to the video game, while also developing major and minor characters to fit the different medium.

Since The Last of Us season 1 followed the video game pretty closely, The Last of Us season 2 is likely to follow in its footsteps and adapt the controversial The Last of Us part 2. The sequel game introduces Abby, the daughter of the Firefly surgeon that Joel killed in The Last of Us season 1 ending. Early in the game, Abby gets her revenge on Joel for murdering her father. Ellie is forced to watch Joel be brutally murdered which sets her on her own path of revenge and hate.

Related: Does Ellie Believe Joel At The End Of The Last Of Us Season 1?

Abby's The Last Of Us Season 2 Teaser Hints She's Just Like Joel

Abby, as much as she hates Joel for killing her father, becomes just like him - an irony encapsulated in the “endure and survive” mantra. In a clip for HBO, Troy Baker, who voices Joel in The Last of Us video game series, explains why “endure and survive” has the same meaning in the show as in the game. In The Last of Us season 1, episode 5, Joel mentions the comic book line “endure and survive” which Henry deems “redundant.” Baker dissects the line: “It’s a comic book line, and that’s the point, is it represents this innocence has been lost.” This complexity is exemplified perfectly by Abby's story.

Joel loses his innocence after seeing his daughter die and thus will go to any length to protect Ellie. Similarly, Abby loses her innocence when Joel kills her father, and thus will go to any length to eventually kill the man that took him from her. Additionally, both characters see a redemption of sorts through their adopted families, and Abby’s dynamic with her friend Lev is very similar to Joel and Ellie’s. The Last of Us season 2 should lean into the parallel between the two, even though the ties between Ellie and Abby will be more important for the future of the series in many ways.

Why Abby's Joel Parallels Need To Be Shown In The Last Of Us Season 2

Even though Abby is posed as a villain at the beginning of The Last of Us part 2, she is eventually humanized through gameplay. Druckmann and Mazin’s dedication to depicting the complicated nature of human beings will likely continue on TLOU season 2 with Abby. Not only is Abby a product of her environment and past, just like Joel, but she will stop at nothing to protect those she loves. In many ways, Abby and Joel are very similar, so it is heartbreaking to see how their worlds collide in such a tragic way.

Additionally, the Abby and Joel parallels support the cycle of violence theme of the series. Joel kills Abby’s father to save Ellie, but this violence leads Abby to kill Joel and traumatize Ellie who becomes violent as a result. While Joel’s actions fit his character, his decision to kill everyone in the way of his happy ending for Ellie has consequences. These consequences impact Ellie greatly in The Last of Us Part II. Neil Druckmann’s tweet hyped up The Last of Us season 2 and ensured video game fans that Abby is on her way to the series.