The Last Of Us Episode 9 Reveals The Sad Story Behind Ellie's Switchblade
This post contains spoilers for HBO's "The Last of Us" and the video game series of the same name.
Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) have come a long way since they first met begrudgingly in "The Last of Us," and the two have now encountered a critical life-altering turning point in the season finale of the show. Faced with the reality of losing Ellie forever, Joel makes a choice that was not his to make, hence dooming humanity's chance at surviving the apocalypse while inadvertently setting Ellie on a path of angst-fueled by survivor's guilt. Although Joel's decision to save Ellie emerges as the emotional crux of the episode, one of the most gut-wrenching emotional reveals has to be the heartbreaking story behind Ellie's handy switchblade. Although Ellie has handled guns and other machetes throughout the series, the switchblade still remains her go-to weapon, as it is more than an instrument for defense — it is an emotional keepsake.
When Joel and Ellie first meet, the former traps her switchblade under his feet to stop her from attacking him. Ellie responds with exasperated anger and is extremely protective of her weapon. Those acquainted with "The Last of Us" video game franchise were probably able to immediately understand this reaction, as the origins of the switchblade are mapped out in the prequel comic series, "The Last of Us: American Dreams." Although "American Dreams" predominantly focuses on Ellie's life at the Boston QZ, the comic series reveals that the switchblade originally belonged to her mother, Anna.
As "The Last of Us" opens its season finale with Anna (played by none other than Ashley Johnson, the voice/motion-capture actor for Ellie in the games), the show adds greater context and meaning to the significance of this tiny, but formidable personal weapon.
Love and remembrance
"American Dreams" briefly touches on Anna's fate the day she gives birth to Ellie and the fact that she dies shortly after handing her daughter over to Marlene (played by Merle Dandridge, both in the games and the HBO adaptation). The episode fleshes out the details of this moment, where Anna is seen evading the infected and having to fight for her life while she gives birth. The scene is especially harrowing, as Anna has to wrestle with and stab an infected while being in unimaginable pain. The pure joy of holding her daughter in her arms is, however, short-lived, as she realizes she has been bitten and does not have much time before she turns. After Marlene and her men find her, she asks her to take care of Ellie, and hands over her switchblade as the only emotional keepsake for her daughter.
In "The Last of Us" video game, Ellie receives the switchblade and a letter, in which Anna writes how holding her daughter in her arms was "the most incredible thing" she had done in her life while affirming that while the world is messed up, life is worth living. Anna also mentions Marlene, highlighting how much she trusts her friend and asks Ellie to find her purpose and fight for it, ending the note with "Make me proud, Ellie!" Although the show does not touch upon this letter, the switchblade's emotionally-charged backstory is enough to deepen our understanding of Ellie's attachment to this keepsake, as it is the only tangible thing that ties the two of them together. It is also a reminder that the switchblade was Anna's way of offering protection to Ellie — a final act of love in a world where survival is not only difficult but often unbearably painful.
Mapping the weapon's history
As the adaptation alters Ellie and Marlene's dynamic to a considerable extent, it is unclear when exactly she might have received the switchblade. The flashback sequence with Riley (Storm Reid) shows that Ellie had it with her at the FEDRA school, as she uses it to stab the clicker that attacks her and Riley at the mall. The weapon not only proves useful during moments of life and death but also underlines the pathos of having to use it in situations that are traumatic, exacerbating the emotional wounds that Ellie has to shoulder throughout her life.
In the show's penultimate episode, Ellie finds herself in an especially dangerous and vulnerable position. With Joel weakened from an infected stab wound, Ellie has no choice but to step up as his protector and do most of the heavy lifting when it comes to directly opposing David's men. When David's men approach their safehouse, Ellie gives her switchblade to Joel, as it is the only weapon he can effectively use in such a weakened state. Given how attached and protective she is of the switchblade, this act denotes her love for Joel as a father figure, as she is willing to entrust him with something so dear to her. Joel uses this blade to chart out a brutal trail of violence after Ellie is kidnapped by David, using it to detect her location and leave no survivors behind.
Episode 9's reveal about Anna adds more layers to the weapon that Ellie has had to use numerous times to keep herself and her loved ones alive. As Ellie's relationship with violence is already undergoing drastic shifts, it is likely that it will reach a point where blind vengeance will be the only option that remains.