The Last Of Us episode 4 review: Welcome to Kansas

Please be aware of spoilers in this The Last of Us Episode 4 review. 

After last week’s incredible episode of The Last of Us, it’s hard to follow up on what many consider one of the best pieces of television of the last decade. Perhaps it speaks to its quality that while episode 4 doesn’t leave the same impression, it still manages to be another fantastic adaptation of the source material.

Hope in the dark

After the gut-wrenching events involving Bill and Frank that took up most of episode 3’s runtime, episode 4, Please Hold My Hand, manages to include some lighter moments to contrast against the bleak world. 

Opening with Joel and Ellie on the road, this is the first full episode we’ve managed to spend a decent chunk of time with the pair. Looking back at their introduction in the pilot episode, it’s clear the cracks in their sheltered-off personalities are beginning to erode as they slowly warm to one another.

With iconic moments from The Last of Us game featured - including Bill’s magazine choices and Ellie’s joke book - it adds some much-needed moments of levity that are sorely needed in a show fueled by darkness.

It particularly shines in Joel, whom Pedro Pascal manages to convey so much without even speaking. Simple eye glances and other instances of body language showcase just how fast Joel is succumbing to Ellie, with his paternal instincts taking over.

Please Hold My Hand is also bookended by two beautiful moments. The opening sees Joel and Ellie camping, with Joel refusing to sleep in an effort to keep Ellie safe. However, it’s the latter that really tugs on the heartstrings, as the pair giggle like children to one of Ellie’s many, many jokes.

Truck stop

Despite these moments of levity, this is The Last of Us, and as expected, things never stay jolly for too long. Joel and Ellie’s road trip comes to an abrupt end early on in the episode as they’re ambushed by a group of other humans.

While this could have easily been another action set-piece, the showrunners did an excellent job of making the duo’s first enemy encounter one that focuses on character development.

We see Joel’s rage and urge to protect Ellie come in full force as she takes down people in order to keep her safe. But the most impactful moment comes from seeing Ellie take down someone in front of her very eyes. While she doesn’t end up finishing the kill, it causes an interesting moral dilemma where they end up pleading for their life in front of the pair.

Moments like this happened fairly frequently in the video game version of The Last of Us but slowly lost their effect throughout the story. Here, we get to see both characters react to the situation in a realistic way, that not only builds up their relationship but also places a moral dilemma in the viewer.

The instances of violence in The Last of Us are far less frequent here than they are in the game, and perhaps that makes them more effective. It feels as though Joel and Ellie’s world is hanging on a thread and could be fractured at any moment when explosive story beats hit the fan.

More deviations

As has come to be expected with the TV adaptation of The Last of Us, more welcomed deviations are delivered to mix things up. Sure, you get some iconic moments and lines from the game repeated but Please Hold My Hand also works on telling a new story.

This comes in the guise of Melanie Lynskey’s character, Kathleen. During the episode’s moments in the game, enemies face down Joel and Ellie with very little backstory, however, the story is much different here.

A good chunk of the runtime here is dedicated to introducing Kathleen and the group she leads. The events of the episode see her attempting to track down someone known as Henry - a name fans of the game will immediately recognize.

The episode does a good job of fleshing out an otherwise faceless force seen in the games but it does leave Please Hold My Hand feeling more of a setup episode, rather than a contained story that the previous three episodes have done flawlessly.

Lynskey does a good job of bringing Kathleen into this world with her soft voice contrasting against the darker actions she takes. It’s hard to judge how her inclusion will feel in the grand scheme of things until future episodes flesh her out further, which leaves this episode feeling incomplete.

It almost feels like it would have been a more robust decision to merge this week’s and the next’s episodes. With some episodes already reaching the 85-minute mark, it’s not exactly something the showrunners couldn’t have commissioned.

The good news is the next episode of The Last of Us will be airing slightly earlier next week thanks to the Superbowl. Episode 5 is expected to drop onto streaming services this Friday, meaning the cliffhanger episode won’t leave you hungry for too long.

The Last of Us continues to prove it can make the jump to TV perfectly, and that Naughty Dog’s direction was never limited to a video game format. While Please Hold My Hand may feel incomplete compared to other episodes in the series, its character moments will still leave you satisfied.

Score: 4/5