In The Last of Us, although Ellie tries to save Sam from the cordyceps infection with her own immunised blood, this does not work, and he turns into a monster soon thereafter.
Ellie has been a fan-favourite character for as long as she has been a part of the The Last of Us franchise.
However, in the most recent fifth episode of the show, Ellie had to face a difficult truth when she could not save Sam from getting infected with the cordyceps virus.
Why do people love Ellie so much?
There is no doubt that HBO’s new series, The last of Us, has catapulted young Bella Ramsey into the spotlight, with over 29 million viewers tuning in to watch the show.
However, Bella’s character, Ellie Williams, has been an integral and popular part of the franchise for a long time.
Ellie is not only beloved on The Last of Us because she holds the key to stopping the cordyceps infection, but also because her character is such a unique combination of young girl, and a FEDRA-trained soldier.
This is likely also part of what convinced Joel to look after her and protect her.
The Last of Us: Does Ellie save Sam?
Two of the many characters that Joel and Ellie meet during their cross-country journey are Henry and Sam. As it turns out, Henry and Sam have such a sad backstory that they rival Ellie when it comes to sympathy points.
Henry and Sam were first introduced in the fifth episode of the show, titled “Endure and Survive” when they ambushed Joel and Ellie while they were hiding from the rebel leader – Kathleen.
Their dynamic is definitely similar to that of Joel and Ellie, and once both parties realise that the other is not out to get them, they form a small team on a mission to cross a bridge that will lead them to Pittsburgh.
However, as is always inevitably the case on this show, their plan does not work out as they intended for it to and they have to fight off the Infected, as well as Kathleen’s soldiers.
Unfortunately, they do not escape these confrontations unscathed and Sam shows Ellie that he was bitten by the Infected after the attack when they are back in their room at a motel.
Instead of telling Joel or Henry that Sam has been infected, Ellie decides to put some of her own blood over Sam’s wound to try and cure him with her immunity.
Unfortunately, this does not save Sam from his grim fate, and Sam attacks her the next morning before being shot by his own brother.
What happened to Henry after he was forced to shoot his brother?
There is no doubt that Sam and Henry had been through a lot together by the time that they met Ellie and Joel.
Henry was a militia informant turned refugee who would do just about anything to protect his younger brother. But Sam turning into a vicious monster who was trying to kill Ellie was Henry’s last straw.
He shot and killed his brother to keep Joel from being the one to shoot him and he then promptly turned his gun on himself. Ellie and Joel buried Henry and Sam’s bodies and carried on with their journey.
What happened to Sam in the game?
Most of Henry and Sam’s storylines are similar to how the NPCs die in the game. However, there are some key details that were changed. In the game, Sam is about four years older than he is on the show, and Kathleen and her militia do not exist at all.
Another significant change that HBO made to the Henry and Sam narrative is the fact that Sam never told Ellie about his wound in the game, which meant that she never tried or failed to save him, unlike in the show.
How will Sam’s death impact Ellie moving forward?
The fact that The Last of Us‘ creators decided to have Ellie try and fail to save Sam on the show implies that this moment will mark a significant moment for her character. This was already evident in the “I’m Sorry” message which she left at Sam’s grave.
Earlier in the episode, Joel and Henry have a discussion about how moving through their world is more difficult when you have someone relying on you. Sam definitely relied on Ellie when he showed her his wound.
However, she disappointed him in the end when her blood could not save him from the infection. Sam’s death perhaps also led to a bigger realisation on Ellie’s part that her immunity may not be the key to stopping the cordyceps infection after all.