The Last of Us has finally returned for its long-awaited second season and the HBO series delivers, once again. Similar to how the first season adapted the first video game of the series, The Last of Us Season 2 adapts The Last of Us Part 2. This is a far denser and more complex story than the first game; it’s non-linear, it deals with heavy themes, and it takes risks that arguably probably would’ve never been allowed if the first game wasn’t such a smash hit. Personally speaking, this is the season I have been most excited to see, just to witness how showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann bring this layered and divisive story to a new audience and medium.

The Last of Us Season 2 picks up five years after the events of the first season. Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) are living peacefully in the quaint town of Jackson, though there’s more tension between the two since we last saw them. Of course, Ellie is older now and, as a result, has some teenage angst, prompting her to demand more freedom and agency from Joel. Joel’s late daughter never made it to Ellie’s age, so it’s a new and turbulent time for the two, all underscored by Joel’s dark secret from the finale of Season 1.