Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Last of Us season 2, episode 1 and The Last of Us Part II!

The Last of Us season 3 already being announced, meaning that a variety of changes and addition are sure to come as the story of The Last of Us Part II progresses.

The Last of Us season 2, episode 1 only barely scratches the surface of what The Last of Us Part II's story has to offer, setting up an exciting rest of the season. The premiere mostly focuses on Ellie and Joel's lives in Jackson five years after the events of season 1. Joel is in therapy and Ellie has sparked a new romance with a friend named Dina. Meanwhile, Abby and a band of characters from Salt Lake City are headed to Jackson in order to get revenge of Joel for his actions in The Last of Us season 1 finale.

11 Abby & Her Friends Are Seen Before They Leave Salt Lake City

& Before The 5-Year Time Jump

The timeline of The Last of Us Part II is one of its most interesting aspects. In the game, Abby isn't first seen until she is near Jackson, with Joel and Tommy meeting her before she reveals her true intentions. In the second half of the game, the player controls Abby, with the game flashing back to the time before she leaves Seattle. Interestingly, The Last of Us season 2, episode 1 shows a scene in which Abby and her friends are mourning the Fireflies' deaths in Salt Lake City, with this taking place before the time jump.

10 Dina Has A Close Relationship With Joel

Taking The Place Of Ellie

Dina is a major character in the story of The Last of Us Part II, and season 2 seems to be expanding her character even more. In episode 1, Dina plays an active role in attempting to get Joel and Ellie to reconcile. In her attempts to mend this rift, Dina has grown close with Joel. Dina goes to Joel's house and learns about construction and technology, with Joel even telling his therapist that he sees her as a daughter in a similar way to Ellie. This connection makes Dina more tied into the main story of The Last of Us season 2, with it being a fantastic change.

9 Joel Is Going To Therapy & His Therapist Is An Original Character

Played By Catherine O'Hara

The world of Jackson is getting fleshed out to a significant extent, with episode 1 almost entirely focused on Joel and Ellie's lives in the post-apocalyptic community. One of the new details is that Joel is going to therapy, something that is noticed by Dina. Joel has been seeing a therapist, played by Catherine O'Hara, with this character not appearing in The Last of Us Part II at all. While in therapy, Joel discusses the pain that he is feeling over the rift in his relationship with Ellie. However, he is still forced to keep the secret of Ellie's immunity, making things incredibly complicated.

8 Joel Killed Eugene In HBO’s The Last Of Us

He May Be The Same Eugene From The Game

During Joel's therapy session, Catherine O'Hara reveals that Joel shot her husband. Her husband was a character named Eugene, with him not being seen in the HBO show. A resident of Jackson named Eugene Linden exists in the world of The Last of Us Part II, and if this isn't the same character, it is at least an Easter egg. In the game, Eugene owns a marijuana farm. Before discussing Eugene, Joel brings his therapist some marijuana, further cementing the connection between these two characters.

The reason why Joel shot and killed his therapist's husband hasn't yet been revealed, with this being one of the biggest mysteries after The Last of Us season 2, episode 1. However, it has to be important. In the game, Eugene dies of a stroke before the events of The Last of Us Part II, meaning that this mystery will probably pay off eventually.

7 Joel is The Head Of Construction In Jackson

His Job Got A Major Upgrade

Joel has also gotten a major upgrade when it comes to his job in Jackson. In The Last of Us season 2, it is revealed that Joel seems to be some kind of head of construction. Joel has a conversation with Maria in episode 1, with them debating what the best uses of Jackson's construction resources are. Joel seems to be overseeing the repairs of a school and other facilities, proving that he has a lot of responsibilities. In the game, Joel does some construction work in Jackson, although it is played as a much smaller deal.

6 The Greenplace Market Scene Plays Out Differently In The Game

Ellie Is On Her Own

In episode 1 of The Last of Us season 2, Ellie and Dina go on patrol, with them investigating the Greenplace Market. Once inside the building, they take down an infected, only for Ellie to fall through the floor. Dina is still on the top floor, with her leaving to find a way to save Ellie while she deals with another infected. In the game, both Dina and Ellie fall through the floor, with them having to take on a horde of infected rather than a singular monster.

5 The Infected Have Gotten Smarter

Are They Evolving?

In season 2's Greenplace Market scene, Ellie and Dina make a horrifying discovery. The infected that Ellie fights on the bottom floor of the supermarket seems to use strategic thinking, something that other infected haven't been capable of doing. Because of this, Ellie comes to the conclusion that the infected have gotten smarter. Ellie reports back to the Jackson council about this evolution. In the game, new types of infected are constantly found, but it isn't presented as them evolving to be smarter as a whole.

4 Ellie Is Only Bit Once In The Last Of Us Games (But 3 Times In The HBO Show)

More Could Come In The Future

The final change with the Greenplace Market scene has to do with Ellie. When fighting the infected on the bottom floor, Ellie is bitten on her stomach. Due to Ellie's immunity, this isn't a big deal, although she does have to keep it a secret from Dina and the rest of Jackson. This extra bite doesn't happen in The Last of Us Part II, but this isn't the first time that Ellie has gotten a new bite in the show. Ellie was bitten a second time in The Last of Us season 1 as well, with her only getting the bite on her arm in the original game.

3 The Cordyceps Vines Are Invading Jackson

Teasing The Return Of Spores

Near the end of The Last of Us season 2, episode 1, an ominous shot of a pipe is shown. Some sort of cordyceps vines can be seen growing within the pipe and coming out into the Jackson settlement. This is not a thing in the game, meaning that some new threat will be facing Jackson in the HBO show. This could have to do with the introduction of spores in The Last of Us season 2, a major gameplay element that was missing from the first season.

2 The Last Of Us Season 2 Takes Place In 2029, Not 2038

Thanks To HBO's New TLOU Timeline

HBO's The Last of Us had its timeline shifted when being adapted, with the series taking place earlier than the game. In the game, the cordyceps virus outbreak took place in 2013, with the rest of the game taking place in 2033. In The Last of Us show, the virus outbreak takes place in 2003, with the rest of the season 1 taking place in 2023. The Last of Us Part II then takes place in 2038, and due to the timeline changes, HBO's version of the story takes place in 2029.