HBO’s The Last of Us Finally Brings Spores into Season 2

The HBO adaptation of The Last of Us by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann has mostly remained faithful to the much-loved Naughty Dog video games while making considered modifications for television. Nevertheless, one significant aspect from the games has been missing—until now.

With the arrival of Season 2, Episode 5, the series has at last unveiled spores, the airborne menace that is crucial in the original games. This signifies a substantial change in the show’s handling of the Cordyceps infection.

In the video games, characters often don gas masks to shield themselves from spores emitted by the Cordyceps fungus. These spores serve as an essential narrative element, particularly in The Last of Us Part II. For instance, in the game, Ellie’s immunity is exposed to Dina when her gas mask fails in a spore-laden tunnel, allowing her to emerge unharmed. Conversely, in the television adaptation, Ellie (portrayed by Bella Ramsey) gets bitten while protecting Dina (Isabela Merced) in a subway station in Seattle.

Druckmann and Mazin had previously opted to exclude spores from the series to maintain realism. “If we wanted to depict it realistically, and there are spores around, characters would need to wear gas masks all the time,” Druckmann stated in a discussion with Polygon during Season 1. “Then so much would be lost, which is perhaps the most crucial part of the journey—what’s happening internally, behind their eyes, in their souls.” Instead, they chose to delve into alternative ways of transmitting the infection.

However, in Episode 5 of Season 2, the spores make their much-anticipated appearance. The episode discloses a quarantined basement in Seattle’s Lakeville Hospital, where Cordyceps spores have begun to disperse through the air. This zone is situated directly beneath the Washington Liberation Front (WLF), a militant faction introduced this season.

The mention of spores first occurs during a dialogue between Hanrahan (Alanna Ubach) and WLF leader Elise Park (Hettienne Park). Elise shares a story about a botched operation in the hospital basement, where her son Leon commanded a squad that came across airborne spores. Aware of the peril, Leon instructed his mother to secure the infected team inside, sacrificing himself in the process.

Elise reassures Hanrahan that the spores haven’t yet permeated the ventilation system. However, by the episode’s conclusion, Ellie pursues Nora (Tati Gabrielle) into a deeper section of the hospital, reopening sealed doors and potentially letting the spores seep into the rest of the facility.

This turn of events implies that the Cordyceps fungus is advancing. Previously, the infection had already contaminated Jackson’s water supply. Now, it’s airborne in Seattle. The stakes are escalating, and the threat is becoming increasingly intricate.

The Last of Us Season 2 is now streaming on Max, with new episodes premiering Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.

Interested in experiencing the story yourself? Here’s how to play The Last of Us games.