Then in the 1990s and 2000s, the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator Joss Whedon was partly responsible for changing the way TV series handle death, with heroes carrying the pain of a loss for multiple episodes — to the point where fans would anxiously wonder whether the show would ever be fun again.

There’s an understandable and undeniable pall hanging over The Last of Us after last week’s shocker. And it’s the calm before the storm that’ll make up the rest of the season: Ellie and Dina’s trip to Seattle to track down Joel’s killers.

The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 3, “The Path,” opens with fire. The ashes of the world, thousands of clicker corpses at the gates, still burning. A broken watch. The cleaning of Joel’s body. If you’ve never seen a dead body after the fact,