The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 6 preview teases the return of this dead character

The concluding minutes of The Last of Us Season 2 episode 5, "Feel Her Love", had viewers and fans surprised. That's because Joel Miller, played by Pedro Pascal, returns to the HBO series after he died in the second episode, "Through the Valley". But before you celebrate under the impression that his death has been reversed, it is imperative to note that this moment in the next episode is a flashback.

Moreover, we have known ever since the end of the second episode that Joel Miller has several other scenes in The Last of Us Season 2. It's just that these scenes are all set in the past, set before the events of the current season, or before his death at the hands of Abby and her crew. Given that the end of the latest episode is all about the payback for what happened to Joel, it just makes sense that the next episode is a flashback episode with Joel.

Joel's return in The Last of Us Season 2 next week might clear out some mysteries:

The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 6 will be clearing not one but two mysteries that have been set up since the first episode of this season. First, we will see Joel and Ellie sharing a strong father-daughter bond as he takes her to a space museum for her birthday. But it is after Ellie learning the truth of the Salt Lake City hospital from the season 1 finale that her relationship with Joel is strained, answering the mystery of her anger towards Joel.

However, the most important mystery that next week's The Last of Us Season 2 episode will answer is the unanswered death of Eugene, Gail's husband. The first episode of this season reveals that Joel had shot Eugene for an unknown reason. Theories are circulating on the internet that Joel lied about Eugene getting bitten by an infected, to justify shooting him. But fans believe that Joel did so to protect Ellie's secret.

Needless to say that the upcoming episode of The Last of Us Season 2 has fans excited. Co-showrunner Craig Mazin said this to USA Today in an interview after the release of the second episode, which saw the death of Joel:

"I don't think I'm spoiling anything. We have not seen the last of Pedro Pascal on 'The Last of Us.'"

What can we expect from the finale of The Last of Us Season 2?

Even before the release of this season, we knew that The Last of Us Season 2 would not be adapting the second game in its entirety. So, considering Ellie has tracked and killed one of Abby's crew members, Nora, it won't be surprising if she goes on to kill Manny, Mel, and Owen as well. Of all these kills, Mel's death would be the worst because she is pregnant (just like Dina) in the game.

This brutal action is what viewers might find controversial in the finale of The Last of Us Season 2. But it would drive home the point of the entire series, which, in co-showrunner Craig Mazin's opinion, according to a The Hollywood Reporter interview, is:

“The point of this story is that the entire concept of protagonist is flawed. The entire concept of villain is flawed. Our way of processing the world through heroes and villains is a mistake. It ends up creating these barriers between people that shouldn’t be there.”

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Want to meet Joel Miller again? Catch the 6th episode of The Last of Us Season 2 this coming Sunday, May 18, 2025.

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