HBO’s The Last of Us is back after a two-year wait for its second season, which in turn is an adaptation of around half of The Last of Us Part II on PlayStation. The game in question was historically quite polarizing, but co-showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann (the latter of whom was the Game Director) don’t seem too concerned with altering the game much in order to try and rewrite history. But it’s a solid start so far, one that taps into the game’s roots while introducing new elements to the narrative.

One of those new elements is the revelation that Joel (Pedro Pascal) is going to therapy. After the shocking finale last season and Joel lying to Ellie (Bella Ramsey) about the events in the hospital, a rift has grown between the two over the five years that have passed. I think it’s always been clear, as someone who’s played these games, that Ellie never fully bought into the lie, and as time went on, it created a strain between the two. So having Joel check himself into therapy, but refusing to open up about said lie shows the guilt is he carrying, but also that he doesn’t regret the choice he made, as he tells his therapist Gail (Catherine O’Hara) that he never hurt her, but he did save her (which in turn is the problem on so many levels for their stories). Gail, in turn, reveals she utterly hates Joel for killing her husband Eugene a year ago, despite knowing that he had no choice, implying he was probably Infected. But knowing that doesn’t erase the hate, and this serves as an introduction to the larger theme of Part II: if the first game was ultimately about love, the second one was very much about hate.

A new element to the show, but not the game, is the introduction of a new character named Abby (Kaitlyn Dever). While she doesn’t have too much to do in the premiere, her introduction was very different than the game, and I’m a bit iffy on how the scene played out, as I think it overplayed its hand a bit. In the game, Abby’s introduction is what we see in the episode’s closing moments, and her motivations and origins are shrouded in mystery for a good chunk of the game, whereas this introduction frames her goal upfront, which takes away a lot of the ambiguity around her character.

The set design in the premiere was fantastic. The town of Jackson really feels alive and vibrant, and HBO clearly spared no expense on the details. The dance near the episode was near identical to its video game counterpart, and I actually don’t mind this scene playing out in the present-day, as opposed to being a flashback like it was in The Last of Us Part II.

Performances are, of course, top notch, with Pascal and Ramsey owning their respective roles. I think I would’ve liked a bit more time with the two of them to see the fracture between them, as opposed to being told about the rift instead. I did find Ramsey’s youthful face to make it hard to believe that Ellie has aged five years, but their performance as Ellie was spot on regardless. Isabela Merced as Dina was the scene stealer though, injecting a youthful energy and optimism we’ve never seen before in the series that works as a perfect foil to Ellie’s grumpy indifference. So far, I like this interpretation of Dina more than her game counterpart. Gabriel Luna as Tommy was third billed in the opening credits, and he also does a great job as Joel’s brother, who has a leadership role in the town and finds himself balancing that responsibility with trying to keep Ellie safe. When Ellie and Dina are brought forth to talk about their scouting mission, they seem like two children who have been brought in front of the principal. Tommy may not have anticipated it, but he’s a pillar of the community with both respect and authority.

One of the common criticisms of the first season, as an adaptation of the game, was the distinct lack of Infected (the zombie-like monsters that are the cause of society’s collapse). The opening doesn’t keep the goods from us, giving us a Clicker hunt and introducing a Stalker variant to the fray in a tense standoff scene with Ellie. The Clicker scene even made use of throwing a bottle to serve as a distraction, a staple mechanic from the game series. There were also allusions to a greater threat on Jackson with the tendrils worming their way through the town’s plumbing, and Maria (Rutina Wesley) vocalizing her fears of a horde coming down on them one day.

It’s a bit wild that no one got around to singing Future Days, considering that’s what the episode is called. But this was a reintroductory episode, and a lot of seeds have been planted in this episode for events further down the line, some of which may only pay off even further down the line in the third season of the show. I don’t think we’ll get our dose of Pearl Jam for some time, but I do think we’ll get that moment down the line. Now that everyone’s in their “starting positions”, the show can really start diving into its larger and more complex themes as seen in Part II.