Part of me tried to bring up the hope that they might change the fate of the show. They changed many other things about the story, including a lot about Henry and Sam themselves. , it may have been wishful thinking born out of a deep connection with the character. Details are subject to change, but this plot beat had to stay there simply because it was emotionally raw.
Andrew: I don’t know how every beat plays out, but I do know that the story is defined by the pairing of Joel and Ellie. This sad air of inevitability gives the show—first with Tess, and now with Henry and Sam. I don’t think every ally they make along the way will die, become infected, or both, but it seems pretty unlikely they’ll head west with our heroes.
Many of the details of Henry-Sam’s story are different from the game, and you mentioned last week that this Kansas City story and its characters are different from the game. What purpose do the changes serve if you don’t know what will happen in the next few episodes? Just reformatting things to work better on TV or something else?
Kyle: Some changes are kind of incidental in the grand scheme, like making Sam a bit younger and deaf. is Kathleen’s creation, which gives it a stronger narrative focus. I appreciate you trying to make her a little more human by remembering her brother and such, but in the end Little Miss “LOL, these Jokers have no trials” is her I didn’t feel too bad when it made a comeback.
Andrew: The show decided it needed to make Kathleen a monster and humanize her in just two episodes. It’s hard to root for a character to defend.
In contrast, one thing the show quickly established was the friendship between Ellie and Sam. We’ve talked about her “tough girl” looks here before, but what makes this story so clear is that she’s just a lonely child, and everyone she gets close to sees her. It means that you will soon realize that there is a possibility of leaving.
