The following contains spoilers for The Last of Us Season 1, Episode 4, "Please Hold to My Hand," now streaming on HBO and HBO Max.
The Last of Us fans will witness the next stage of Joel and Ellie's journey sooner than expected, as the HBO video game adaptation's fifth episode just landed an earlier premiere date.
HBO announced via Twitter that The Last of Us Episode 5, "Endure and Survive," will drop on HBO Max and HBO On Demand on Friday, Feb. 10 at 9 p.m. ET. The episode's linear premiere on HBO will follow on Sunday, Feb. 12, during its usual 9 p.m. ET time slot. HBO didn't provide a reason for the early release of "Endure and Survive," however, it was presumably to avoid clashing with Super Bowl LVII. The network also confirmed in a press release that The Last of Us' remaining episodes will air on Sunday nights as originally scheduled.
The Last of Us Episode 5's early debut will come as welcome news to audiences desperate to know how Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) will make it out of the previous episode's cliffhanger ending alive. Episode 4, "Please Hold My Hand," closes with the pair held at gunpoint by siblings Henry (Lamar Johnson) and Sam (Keivonn Montreal Woodard). No matter how this situation resolves itself in "Endure and Survive," it seems likely that cooperation between Joel and Ellie will play a key role, considering how their relationship develops over the course of "Please Hold My Hand."
The Last of Us Digs Deeper into the Raiders
There's also a decent chance that The Last of Us' fifth episode will continue to follow its predecessor's lead where its expanded depiction of the Raiders is concerned. "Please Hold My Hand" builds on the Raiders' lore established in the original Naughty Dog video game by introducing the group's leader, Kathleen (Melanie Lynskey). The episode also provides the Raiders with added motivation, revealing that Henry murdered Kathleen's brother, prompting her to seek revenge on him. This explains why the Raiders are tracking Joel and Ellie in The Last of Us Episode 4, as Kathleen suspects the duo is connected to Henry.
Additions to The Last of Us canon such as this are common throughout the HBO adaptation, although the show's creative team also works hard to include nods to its source material. Notably, the final shot in Episode 3, "Long, Long Time," is modeled on a menu screen featured in the video game.
Source: Twitter