[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Yamer

I think a good thing to keep in mind with Ellie is that from the first moment we meet her she is angry and unpredictable. This softened as season 1 progressed, and it really seems like Joel was the stabilizing, father figure in her life.

Now that he has (violently) been taken from her, she has resorted back to the angry, compulsive personality she has without that guiding force in her life correcting course.

She's not rational without Joel, and as such those personality flaws are the catalyst to the plot points of Season 2 (and likely going forward). If you don't dig that, the show is probably going to lose your interest and you're going to find the character irritating.

Spoiler!

Part of the problem is source material does all these thing better than the show. The character is more rounded, more believable and displays those traits more convincingly.

I don’t think complaints about show Ellie are centered on her being angry. It’s that she’s immature and dumb. Game ellie was obsessed but smart. Never stupid.

Yes they’re different versions of the same character. But it’s impossible, as a game player, to ignore they did it sooo much better in the game.

Maybe it’s because Bella isn’t a great actress or the writing is weaker or the budget constraints robbed of us of more character development but in the parts of the show they did include, this version of Ellie is a weaker character, less convincing and infinitely less dynamic than her game counterpart.

I was so mad at Ellie in the game that she made these decisions. The dynamic of Joel making the decision he made at the end of the first game to save her, robbing her of her agency and now she's robbing herself of it by carrying out a revenge plot he never would have wanted for her was so tragic. Yes he was dead but she could have had the life he killed all those people to have. She's throwing it all away for him and it's not what he wanted.

But in the show, this journey of hers is overshadowed by how immature and stupid she seems all the time. I'm not disappointed in her like I was in the game. I'm annoyed with her. And sure it's normal for a 19 year old to be immature but that wasn't a trait she showed in the game. She was funny and had personality, maybe even compulsive, but she wasn't immature. Life as an immune savior in a post apocalyptic world will do a lot to mature a person quickly. As will having multiple harrowing journeys that includes being kidnapped by cannibals and seeing your father figure murdered before your eyes. That was the tragedy.

She lost all her innocence and turned into this systematic killer with desire for revenge. But right there in Jackson was a life of peace and serenity and now she's ruined it. Again, I love the comparison with her experience with her first love in the mall. She was robbed of teenage puppy love because of tragedy. Now she's had a second chance and she's ####ed it all up.

To be fair, I don't think Dina is nearly as interesting of a character in the show either. Here's hoping they get a more true to the source material Abby. Everything hinges on what they do with Abby.

I still thought S2 was fine. But it was far inferior to the first season and is far inferior to the game.