Joel Miller and Ellie Williams. They aren't just characters in a video game or a high-budget HBO show. For anyone who’s sat through the quiet tension of a Wyoming winter or the brutal humidity of a Boston summer with them, they feel like family. Or, more accurately, like a warning about what happens when you love someone too much.
The relationship between joel and ellie the last of us is basically a masterclass in moral gray areas. It’s messy. It’s violent. Honestly, it’s kind of a miracle it lasted as long as it did. Most people focus on the big "lie" at the end of the first part, but if you look closer, the cracks were there way before they ever stepped foot in that Salt Lake City hospital.
Why the Hospital Choice Wasn't Just About a Cure
Everyone talks about the vaccine. "Joel robbed the world of a cure!" "The Fireflies were going to kill a kid without asking!" You’ve heard it all. But for Joel, the decision wasn't a philosophical debate about the trolley problem. It was survival. Not physical survival, but emotional.
Remember Sarah? Joel’s daughter who died in his arms on the first night of the outbreak? That trauma didn't just "go away." It fossilized. By the time he meets Ellie, he’s a shell of a man. He’s a smuggler who doesn't care about anything but the next shipment. Then this 14-year-old girl with a foul mouth and a book of puns shows up.
By the time they reach the Fireflies, Ellie is his "baby girl." When Marlene tells him they have to cut into her brain to get the vaccine, Joel doesn't see a "humanity-saving opportunity." He sees his daughter dying a second time. And he wasn't going to let that happen again. Not for anyone.
The Real Cost of the Lie
The tragedy isn't just that Joel lied. It’s that he lied to the person who valued truth above everything else. Ellie spent her whole life feeling like her existence had to mean something because everyone she ever cared about—Riley, Tess, Sam—died while she lived.
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When Joel tells her the Fireflies "stopped looking for a cure," he didn't just save her life. He stole her purpose. That’s the real reason for the rift in Jackson. It wasn't just the dishonesty; it was the fact that he made a choice for her that she probably would have made differently herself.
Life in Jackson: The Years We Didn't See
In The Last of Us Part II, we see them living in Jackson, Wyoming. On the surface, it looks peaceful. Joel is fixing guitars. Ellie is going on patrols with Dina. But the tension is thick enough to cut with a machete.
For about two years, they actually had a decent shot at a normal life. Joel taught her how to play guitar. They went to a museum for her birthday (the "hatosaur" scene is still the peak of the entire franchise, let's be real). But you can see it in Ellie’s eyes—she knows.
Eventually, the truth comes out. Ellie travels back to Salt Lake City, finds the recording, and realizes Joel murdered everyone to "save" her. The relationship basically dies right there. For the next two years, they are "done."
The Significance of the Porch Scene
This is the part that most people get wrong. They think Ellie hated Joel until the moment he died. That’s not true.
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The night before Abby shows up in Jackson, Ellie goes to Joel’s house. She finds him on the porch. He’s just sitting there with his guitar. It’s awkward. It’s quiet.
- The Admission: Joel tells her that if Lord gave him a second chance at that moment in the hospital, he’d do it all over again.
- The Olive Branch: Ellie doesn't forgive him. Not yet. But she says the most important line in the series: "I would like to try."
That’s what makes his death the next morning so devastating. They were just starting to fix it. The cycle of violence that follows isn't just about revenge; it’s about Ellie’s guilt over all the time she wasted being angry at a man who would have burned the world down just to see her smile.
How the HBO Show Changes the Dynamic
If you've only seen the show, you're getting a slightly "softer" version of Joel. Pedro Pascal’s Joel has panic attacks. He admits he’s scared. Troy Baker’s Joel in the game is a bit more of a brick wall.
One major change in Season 2 is the introduction of Gail, a therapist played by Catherine O'Hara. In the game, Joel doesn't go to therapy. He bottles everything up until he explodes or gets killed. The show giving him a space to talk about his trauma adds a layer of "what could have been." It makes the tragedy feel even more modern.
Another big difference is the timing of the "porch scene." In the game, it’s a late-game reveal that recontextualizes everything you’ve done as Ellie. In the show, they’ve played with the timeline to make the emotional beats hit differently for TV viewers.
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What Most Fans Get Wrong About Ellie's Immunity
There is a common theory that Ellie isn't actually immune, but just has a "mutated strain" of Cordyceps. While the surgeon's logs in the game mention her blood behaving differently, the narrative intent is clear: she is the "miracle."
The debate shouldn't be about whether the vaccine would have worked. The point is that Joel believed it would work and he chose her anyway. If the vaccine was a 0% chance, the choice is easy. The fact that it was a real possibility is what makes Joel’s character so complex. He’s both a hero and a villain, depending on which side of the door you’re standing on.
Next Steps for Fans and Collectors
If you want to dive deeper into the lore of joel and ellie the last of us, there are a few things you should definitely check out:
- Read "American Dreams": This is a comic book miniseries that serves as a prequel to the first game. It focuses on Ellie and Riley and explains how Ellie ended up in the Boston QZ.
- Compare the "Museum Scene": Watch a side-by-side of the game version and the HBO Season 2 version. Notice how the dialogue changes when they aren't limited by "gameplay" mechanics.
- Analyze the Guitar Tracks: The music by Gustavo Santaolalla is literally the heartbeat of the series. Listen to "Allowed to be Happy" versus "Longing"—it tells the story of Joel and Ellie better than words ever could.