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This post contains spoilers for “The Last of Us” season 2, episode 3.
“The Last of Us” season 2 is staying pretty loyal to the video game so far, but there have been a few key changes, several of which pertain to the character of Tommy (Gabriel Luna). Back in season 1, it was revealed that his wife Maria (Rutina Wesley) is pregnant, and in season 2, we meet their son, who doesn’t exist in the games. In episode 3, there’s another big Tommy change.
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In “The Last of Us Part II,” Tommy is the first one to set out for Seattle in pursuit of the group that killed Joel. He’s also angry about Joel being murdered, but he recognizes that Ellie is determined to try to hunt down his killers, so in order to keep her safe, he decides to strike out on his own before she can set off on her mission. Ellie and Dina give chase after he leaves Jackson, leading to the whole group hunting Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) in Seattle.
Season 2 of the HBO adaptation changes things. Instead of Tommy being the one who leaves for Seattle, it’s Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Dina (Isabela Merced) who leave of their own accord, largely prompted by Dina’s own dedication to the quest. Tommy tells Ellie that he wants to go, but he defers to the Jackson council and what’s seen as the good of the community. When the leaders of the community vote not to pursue Abby, he stands with his wife. This change in motivations could have some big consequences later in the story, and it plays into some of the prior changes to Tommy’s character on the show.
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Tommy is a more kindly character in the Last of Us show
Gabriel Luna’s version of Tommy is a bit softer than the one seen in the video games, and not just in that he doesn’t immediately jump to vengeance after Joel’s death. The HBO series plays him a bit more as a foil to Joel — someone who was protected by his older brother throughout his life, but who also understands the ways in which Joel flirted with real darkness in his soul. Make no mistake: He still wants revenge in the show. He tells Ellie as much, and we know that he votes in favor of pursuing Abby. But he doesn’t let his grief become all-consuming the way Ellie does, or the way Joel does in season 1 after losing his daughter.
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Those changes make sense in the context of a TV show, where supporting characters get more room to breathe. In the video games, characters like Tommy don’t get the same degree of perspective or spotlight because the focus is always more on the playable characters. It also makes sense to differentiate Tommy a bit, offering a third point of sorts on the triangle that is him, Joel, and Ellie — each of whom has their own relationship to the core themes of violence and loyalty.
HBO’s Tommy could mean even bigger changes for The Last of Us
If you’ve played “The Last of Us Part II,” you’ll know that Tommy has a presiding influence on Ellie’s journey over the course of that game. Without getting into spoilers, his new, softer demeanor could foreshadow larger narrative changes down the line. We likely won’t know in “The Last of Us” season 2 due to it only covering a portion of the video game. There are moments much later on in the original version where Tommy casts a long shadow — material that will probably be saved for season 3, or even a possible fourth season, should Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann decide to extend the show that long.
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Regardless, it’s difficult to reconcile the TV version of Tommy with some of those moments in the game. “The Last of Us” has already made a number of changes to the source material on HBO, often to its benefit. As things move forward, it should be interesting to see how the adaptation shifts things around this new version of Tommy.
New episodes of “The Last of Us” hit HBO and Max on Sunday nights. Solana Token Creator
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