Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Episode 4 of The Last of Us.With each successive episode of The Last of Us, we have gotten to discover more and more about the dark corners of what is left after the world ends. Each, in their own subtle ways, have shown how adapting a story well doesn’t mean you have to be solely restrained by the source material. It isn’t just about overexplaining mythology or answering questions that were best left unanswered either. Rather, the early part of this first season has been about uncovering small details and characters that had otherwise been glossed over in a game that was built around getting to the next action sequence.

In Episode 3, it was about two characters we had previously known only briefly that got their own individual episode that was the best of any so far. Now, in Episode 4, it is the arrival of a new character by the name of Kathleen who pushes the story into previously uncharted territory. Played by Melanie Lynskey, her arrival has already proven to be a welcome addition to the story even as she now poses a threat to Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) who unwittingly cross her.

RELATED: 'The Last of Us': The Best Adaptations Are Not an Exact Copy of the Original

Melanie Lynskey Is a Welcome Addition to 'The Last of Us' Story in Kansas City

While the episode initially recreates one particular ambush scene from the game that players will recognize, it soon begins to diverge from the perspective of the protagonists and pull us deeper into the layers of the city. After Joel and Ellie slink off into said city following a brutal fight with their attackers, the episode cuts away to see who it is that is running the ruins they now find themselves trapped in for the time being. It is there where we meet Kathleen. From the moment that Lynskey comes onto the screen, her performance carries with it a heavy weight that is understated yet no less effective. Of course, considering who it is that is playing her, none of this should come as too much of a surprise. For those that are unaware, Lynskey has long been a great screen performer in a whole host of projects over the last couple of decades and has recently starred in the equally great show Yellowjackets which is currently going into its second season. However, even as all of those performances remain worth checking out, there is something that is different playing out here. Though we only get a short glimpse of Lynskey in action, as the episode itself is also the shortest one that has aired thus far, these moments are still the standouts and hold even more promise for future ones.

In her introductory scene, Kathleen is conducting an interrogation of a doctor who pleads with her to stop what is happening. She responds with righteous indignation before pulling a gun on him in a darkly snarky response to how he said he only betrayed her earlier because he was coerced to do so at gunpoint. When she then goes outside, she discovers the members of their group that were killed by Joel. As her face falls, we see that she is not used to this type of violence and death. Still, she then goes back in and coldly executes the man that she had once known well. There is no hesitation to her actions once she sets her mind to them and Lynskey captures the cruelty that is boiling just underneath. If we look close enough, we can almost see the person that Kathleen once was underneath the persona she puts forth. Just as this is the case, we can also see that her former self is long gone, and a more callous one has taken her place. She controls the city via violence that comes from desperation and, as we come to know in one revealing scene, it may also bring about the demise of it as well.

Lynskey Crafts the Nuances Of Her Character Even in Short Snapshots

After sending out various armed patrols to try to find those who were behind the deaths of her group and track down others that have gone missing, there is a small scene where Kathleen is shown something that no one else knows about. In a side room tucked away in an isolated building, something big is pushing up from the ground. Though we don’t see it yet, it is clearly at least one larger infected being from the game that could also be a whole horde. When Kathleen sees this, the way Lynskey captures the fear that crosses her face and the way her character then pushes it down to keep her attention on tracking down the defectors from the group is fascinating.

It establishes how she is overlooking a clear and present danger to all the people of the city in favor of controlling others because she almost can’t help herself. The smart thing would be to redirect all resources to make sure everyone is protected from the real threat right in front of her. Even as her first in command is clearly worried about it, she overrides his concern and orders him to stay the course. It is a fleeting scene, but we already feel like we understand the flawed psyche of a character we had only just met a moment prior. There is obviously more to come, but the foundation being laid is a strong one.

Rather than just being part of an indistinguishable swarm of enemies, Kathleen feels like one that is all too human and more painful to learn about as a result. In inviting us to look deeper into the conflicts that have consumed this universe and the people that have been left behind, it adds a texture that feels more truthful. Kathleen is not just a villain though she does awful things. She is a person that we can see has been through pain of her own. She is more like the central characters than it would ever seem were we just to observe her from afar. In this new character and the storyline we are getting the first sliver of, the series continues to peel back additional layers to those that have managed to survive. We knew that all were broken as a result. Seeing this play out, even in new characters we are getting to know, gives this shape and form that feels all too familiar. Where the previous episode of The Last of Us was about rebuilding a life, Kathleen and this one are hinting at what happens when we lose sight of our humanity in favor of something else that will destroy all we held dear in the first place.

You can watch the fourth episode of The Last of Us on HBO and HBO Max.