What happened in The Last of Us episode 6?

But, as ever, things don't go exactly according to plan in episode 6 of the HBO show.

The latest episode picks up with Joel and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) following the heartbreaking deaths of brothers Henry (Lamar Johnson) and Sam (Keivonn Woodard) in episode 5.

They continue their journey west, in the hopes that Ellie can save the world after she survived a bite from an infected, with Joel and Tommy reuniting.

Meanwhile, Joel and Ellie's bond has clearly strengthened after everything they've been through but they face a major fallout in episode 6 - one that could damage their relationship for good.

By the end of the episode, things have taken a turn for the worse, with Joel in a bad way. Will he make it out alive?

Pedro Pascal as Joel and Gabriel Luna as Tommy in The Last of Us. Liane Hentscher/HBO

As Joel and Ellie head west, they stumble across a hut with two locals, Florence and Marlon, warning them about their journey. Asking them about the best way west, Marlon tells them to "go east" and that death lies across the river.

"We don't see who's out there but we see the bodies they leave behind," Florence says. "Some infected, some not. If your brother's west of the river, he's gone."

Do our heroes heed that stark warning? Of course not! They carry on west and make camp, where Ellie starts to think about the future, if her blood truly can create a cure.

She tells Joel she tried to save Sam, by dripping her blood onto his bite when he was infected, but Joel tells her it's bound to be more complicated than that.

The pair reach the 'River of Death' as Ellie's dubbed it and, seeing no one about, head across. But, in a turn of events that should shock no one, they soon run into trouble.

Rutina Wesley as Maria in The Last of Us. Liane Hentscher/HBO

Surrounded by people on horseback, Joel assures their attackers that they're just passing through. They set a dog on the pair of them to check if they're infected.

After Ellie was bitten by one of the infected but managed to survive the bite, Joel is clearly nervous - but the dog doesn't detect anything.

Joel tells them he's looking for his brother which clearly changes things, as the group allow them to ride back to a QZ with them.

As Joel enters the QZ, he finally sets eyes on Tommy, with the pair of them sharing a hug as they reunite.

Bella Ramsey as Ellie in The Last of Us. Liane Hentscher/HBO

Ellie doesn't seem to be loving life in the QZ and is understandably suspicious of the group, but she and Joel share a meal with Tommy and new character Maria.

As Joel asks Maria for a "moment just for family," Tommy reveals that he and Maria are married - and Joel doesn't seem too happy about the whole situation.

Maria and Tommy give Joel and Ellie a tour of the very well-stocked QZ, and Ellie and Maria leave the brothers to catch up over a drink.

Tommy asks how Tess is, with Joel lying and saying she's fine. He also lies about Ellie, telling him that she's the daughter of a Firefly looking for her family.

Tommy tells Joel that the Fireflies have a base at the University of Eastern Colorado, about a week's ride away, but there are hordes of infected between them. Joel assumes Tommy is coming along, but he tells him he can't and that he's going to be a father.

Again, Joel's not best pleased and Tommy's lashes out, clearly heartbroken he's not happy for him. Joel promises that he and Ellie will be out of their hair in the morning.

Meanwhile, Maria has left Ellie some supplies and she goes to find her. She heads into her house, seeing a memorial for two names - Kevin and Sarah.

Maria explains that Kevin was her son, and Sarah was Joel's daughter - something that's news to Ellie. She tries to warn Ellie about Joel but she's having none of it.

Joel and Tommy patch things up, and Joel tells his brother the truth about Ellie - that she's immune and that Tess died. He fills him in on what happened in Kansas City and admits he feels like a failure for not being able to protect Ellie. He asks Tommy to take her, reasoning that he's younger and stronger, and Tommy agrees, saying he'll take her at dawn.

Ellie overhears the conversation and confronts Joel. She brings up Sarah, telling him that she's lost people too, as he hits back: "You don't know what loss is."

She tells him that everybody she's ever cared for has either left her or died, and that she'd just be more scared with someone else. Clearly affected by the mention of his daughter, Joel insists that the pair of them will go their separate ways in the morning.

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Tommy comes to fetch Ellie and the pair head to the stables, where they find Joel. He tells Ellie that she deserves a choice, and she immediately decides to stick with Joel, telling him: "Let's go."

The pair continue their journey and finally reach the University of Eastern Colorado, where the Fireflies are meant to be based - but they're nowhere to be found.

Instead, they find an abandoned lab, with a map pointing to Salt Lake City. However, before they can look further, they have to make a run for it after being found by a group of raiders.

Joel gets into a fight with one of the attackers, but he's stabbed in the process. Ellie helps him up onto the horse and the pair only just escape the rest of the group.

By the end of the episode, though, Joel's left in a bad way, losing blood and falling off of the horse. Ellie pleads with him not to leave her, and we're left on a major cliffhanger.

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