Summary

Unscripted sounds added powerful depth to a key scene in episode 5 of The Last of Us.
Director Craig Mazin reveals the eerie sounds were an accidental addition, enhancing the emotional impact.
Ellie's emotional journey intensifies as she grapples with grief, dreams of Joel, and prepares to confront her past. (In 118 characters)

Season 2 of The Last of Us aired its fifth episode on Sunday, which saw Ellie and Dina continuing their journey in Seattle. The episode featured several terrifying sequences, but it also showcased one of this season's most emotional moments. However, according to the showrunner, Craig Mazin, that particular sequence took place much differently than what they had intended.

The fifth episode of The Last of Us Season 2, "Feel Her Love," followed Ellie and Dina on Day 2 in Seattle. The duo was getting ready to resume their journey and making a plan on how to reach Lakehill Hospital. In the initial few minutes of the episode, Ellie can be seen wandering inside what seems like a big theater. She saw a lot of instruments on the stage and didn't think twice before picking up an acoustic guitar. However, as soon as she hit the first string, something happened, and she stopped playing. The scene also featured an eerie, disturbing kind of sound that felt like Ellie was taken back to the moment when Joel died. But it seems that the eerie sound featured in the scene was not in the script.

The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 5 Recap: Ellie and Dina’s Risky Plan, and a Terrifying New Infected Threat

Ellie and Dina continue their journey in Seattle while encountering a catastrophic situation. However, someone known finally saves them.

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By Aayush Sharma

The Theater scene in 'The Last of Us' Season 2 featured an "unscripted moment" that changed to some powerful

the last of us season 2 feel her love — A still from 'The Last of Us' Season 2, Episode 5.

Speaking on the fifth episode of The Last of Us podcast, showrunner Mazin opened up about the theatre scene and what it meant for Ellie. While talking about the scene, Mazin shared an interesting story about how they captured that disturbing noise at the editing table and moved forward in using those sounds in the scene. Mazin said, "This very strange thing happened in the editing room. So I'm watching this with Tim Good, our editor, and as the camera moves around, there's this low bass rumble that begins. And then it finishes as the camera moves. And I said, Tim, that bass rumple that you put in is genius. And he turned to me and he said, I didn't put a bass rumble in." The showrunner added that the sounds actually came from "two doors down," where the show's editor was doing her work on one of the upcoming episodes. He added, "That came from two doors down where Emily Mendez was working on editing the seventh episode and happened to have this very bassy thing happen that went through the walls. I kid you not."

Mazin noted that they were surprised at what had happened and decided to put the sound in the scene, labeling it as the "happiest accident."

The particular season in the fifth episode of The Last of Us Season 2 takes place after Dina starts stitching a plan on how to move ahead with their journey. She is using her mathematical prowess to determine the distance and the movements of the WLF soldiers. Ellie doesn't know a thing about it, so she goes down to the theater and picks up a guitar. As soon as she picks it up, viewers hear a disturbing sound in the background, making viewers realize that the guitar reminds her of Joel and what happened to him. The scene is a reminder that even though Ellie might be feeling a bit better because of Dina's confession about how much she loves her, there's a lot of darkness inside her, and she will only be free when she avenges Joel's death. The moment feels heavy, like the past won’t let her move on. It shows that even small things, like a guitar, can bring back big emotions when someone is grieving.

That's why, when viewers see Ellie in the end scene, she looks a bit relieved. Although it is a dream sequence, Ellie is seen waking up from her sleep and is greeted by Joel. Metaphorically, in that dream, Ellie's face relaxes when she sees Joel. His presence made her feel calm, like a small break from all the pain. Even though it's a short moment, it felt like the beginning of her redemption journey, with the death of Nora bringing her back to him. It gave Ellie a bit of peace she had been needing. But things are definitely going to get more dangerous as Ellie tries to infiltrate the WLF defenses. Dina and Jesse don't know about her whereabouts, and if Ellie is pinned down, it would be difficult for anyone to save her. Will Ellie continue to enter the depths of the Lakehill Hospital, or will she return to Dina and continue with the plan they had originally made? The answer to that burning question might be given in the remaining two episodes of Season 2.