This publish incorporates spoilers for “The Final of Us” franchise.
It is time to enterprise again into the land of the Contaminated with season 2 of HBO’s “The Final of Us,” which is about to discover the aftermath of the choice Joel (Pedro Pascal) made for Ellie (Bella Ramsey) on the finish of the primary season. This new season carefully follows Naughty Canine’s gripping, divisive “The Final of Us Half II,” a recreation that wades via the darkest, most uncomfortable human impulses to etch compelling character arcs. Many of the criticism (at the very least, those price listening to) levied in opposition to “Half II” are directed at its bleak, exhausting core, which bleeds into each second the participant spends navigating this violent post-apocalyptic world. At instances, these overwhelmingly oppressive themes really feel a bit too on the nostril, too jarring to abdomen at sure dramatic junctures. However that’s the very essence of “Half II:” it consciously makes us query our actions, forcing us into moral dilemmas we’d moderately keep away from.
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“Half II,” nonetheless, isn’t a very dreary expertise. Ellie has pals she will be able to lean on, who emerge as glimmers of hope when issues change into insufferable. One among them is Dina, Ellie’s love curiosity, who fills within the slot of deuteragonist within the recreation, helping Ellie in her journey that’s steadily formed by grief-fueled revenge. Even earlier than tragedy befalls the Wyoming commune, Dina’s presence is like heat sunshine. And when issues do take a flip for the more severe, Dina’s firm feels comforting as a result of it typically balances out Ellie’s headstrong, impulsive line of pondering. I am unable to communicate for everybody, however for me, a lot of the bleakness within the recreation felt much less daunting at any time when Dina accompanied Ellie, being steadfast like her very personal North Star.
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Now, who performs Dina in HBO’s adaptation of “The Final of Us Half II?” Isabela Merced will probably be embodying this position in season 2, so let’s dive deeper into the character, together with the initiatives Merced has been part of up to now.
Isabela Merced performs Dina within the second season of The Final of Us
Merced has starred in a string of initiatives since a formative age, together with her debut efficiency being CJ Martin in Nickelodeon’s “100 Issues to Do Earlier than Excessive College.” Proper after, Merced voiced Kate in 2014’s “Dora and Mates: Into the Metropolis!,” the animated spinoff to the mega-popular “Dora the Explorer” collection. After showing in a bunch of initiatives, Merced performed Isabel Reyes in “Sicario: Day of the Soldado,” a serious position that highlighted her caliber for intense, dramatic performances that depend on subtlety.
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Maybe, Merced’s hottest movie position (up to now) is her flip because the titular character in “Dora and the Misplaced Metropolis of Gold,” alongside together with her efficiency as Kay Harrison in Fede Álvarez’s thrilling, video game-esque “Alien: Romulus.” You may additionally acknowledge Merced from the Mark Wahlberg-Rose Byrne comedy “Prompt Household” and her portrayal of Anya Corazon in “Madame Net.” As for future initiatives, be looking out for Merced as Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl in James Gunn’s upcoming (and extremely anticipated) “Superman” reboot.
Given Merced’s assured capability to embody characters which have journeyed to hell and again, her rendition of Dina is certainly price trying ahead to. A major chunk of Ellie’s arc in season 2 will characteristic Dina, the duo’s love for one another, and the way even the sweetest, most stunning relationships can fester in a world poised to kill you at each flip. In some ways, Dina is Ellie’s emotional anchor (and vice versa), and this deep, loyal dynamic will probably be examined again and again. A present like “The Final of Us” — which frequently stews in its miserable nihilism to drive emotion — desperately wants characters like Dina, whose regular compassion and immediately likable nature can gentle up (nearly) each darkish nook.
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“The Final of Us” season 2 premiere drops on April 13, 2025 on HBO and Max.
