Who is Last of Us episode 5 ending kid? Meet Sam from the games.

HBO’s Last of Us ends its fourth episode with a cliffhanger — Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) waking up to guns in their face, one of which is being held by a child with a drawn-on, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles-style eye mask.

It’s a continuation of a violent welcome to Kansas City: They’re only there for a few minutes and everyone’s immediately trying to kill them. Federal Disaster Response Agency is not in control. The Hunters are taking over the city. They shoot at sight. But the Hunters aren’t only after Ellie and Joel — in fact, they don’t even know they’re there yet. The Hunters, led by Melanie Lynskey’s Kathleen, are desperately searching for a mysterious person named Henry (Lamar Johnson), someone she thinks got her brother killed.

The episode doesn’t give much context as to who this mysterious Henry is, and doesn’t even mention Sam (Keivonn Woodard), but Last of UsPlayers will instantly recognize your name.

[Ed. note: This story contains spoilers for The Last of Us game and potentially the show.]

Henry and Sam, the beloved brother duo are from Last of UsThe Pittsburgh Section section was where Ellie and Joel first met, making it one of our most poignant stories. Joel and Ellie skip Pittsburgh on their westward journey, instead heading to Kansas City in Missouri. The show’s creators have reimagined most of the Pittsburgh parts into the Kansas City episode, including Henry and Sam. Surely we’ll learn more about them in episode 5, but thanks to the game, we’ve already got context on what could happen.

Ellie and Joel get ambushed in Pittsburgh by Sam and Henry. Henry grabs Joel as he slides through the window. Henry thinks Joel is a Hunter and attacks him. Joel takes a number of hits, Ellie even tries to slice him with her knife. Before they realize it Sam is holding a gun towards them. Henry quickly realizes that they’re not with the Hunters; the Hunters don’t keep kids around, because it’s the “survival of the fittest,” Henry says.

They quickly agree to join up and head toward Henry and Sam’s hideout, where we learn a lot more about their background. On the way to their hideout — an office building — the group of four have to hide inside a toy store. It’s a poignant moment; Ellie and Sam are kids, and they’ve been deprived of a normal childhood. It’s still novel for them to be in a toy store at all. There’s one particularly heartbreaking moment when Sam’s looking at a Transformer toy and Henry tells him to stop — they can only take what they need.

There’s a lot of action and fighting through the city, both with people and infected. But more important than that, we learn a lot about Henry and Sam — two characters who quickly became fan favorites. They’re from Hartford, Connecticut, and have been traveling since they left the Hartford quarantine zone after things collapsed there. They were also ambushed upon entering Pittsburgh, just like Joel and Ellie. Henry and Sam were left alone with the rest of their party and are trying to flee the city.

The hideout is back. Last of UsThe group slows down, allowing them to enjoy conversation and laughter. Joel and Henry talk about bikes. Sam and Ellie openly discuss being afraid. They have a similar relationship. Ellie gives Sam that toy he was looking at, and his response is shocking: He throws it, and shows that he’s been bitten. The next morning, he’s turned — and attacks Ellie. Henry intervenes and stops Joel trying to get him killed. After blaming Joel for his actions, Henry turns on Joel and shoots himself.

It’s a shocking moment, coming so quickly after the lightness of the previous night. The scene is truly heartbreaking. Naughty Dog the developer was also criticized. Last of Us’ release for using Black characters in this way, repeatedly. This happens several times. Last of Us Part 2 of The Last of UsThe story was never reflected on the viewers’ lives, as the developers do not take into account how they see it. Others argue that Last of Us is a tragic story where a lot of people die, including marginalized people — that the representation is an overall win. It all comes down to how cruel marginalized characters, particularly Black ones, are treated in these games. Henry and Sam often act as heroes and save Ellie and Joel several times. Naughty Dog realized that Henry had to be killed in order for Joel and Ellie both to live.

HBO’s Last of UsThis storyline may be altered, just like the Bill and Frank episode. We won’t know, however, until the fifth episode airs next week.