The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 just introduced a Part 2 character much earlier than expected

We're almost midway through The Last of Us season 2 - and it's been quite the ride.

Just when you think Ellie has been through enough, the show has introduced another antagonist - and it happens much earlier than it does in the game. Isaac Dixon, played by both Jeffrey Wright in the game and now on the show, is arguably the star of The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 - and he's absolutely terrifying.

If you haven't played The Last of Us Part 2 and are a little confused as to who Isaac is, we've got a brief explainer for you down below. However, there are major spoilers for The Last of Us season 2 episode 4 ahead (as well as some mild spoilers for The Last of Us Part 2) - so don't scroll on unless you've already tuned in.

Who is Isaac Dixon?

Episode 4 begins with a flashback to somewhere in Seattle, 20 years earlier, in 2018. A group of soldiers sit inside of a FEDRA truck, laughing and recounting stories. When one of the soldiers asks why FEDRA calls the citizens “voters,” a man sitting quietly in the truck says, “Because we took away their rights. We took away their right to vote, so we started calling them voters to mock them.” The truck stops in the middle of a neighbrhood, where a bunch of seemingly harmless citizens emerge. The man, who is the commanding officer, insists on getting off the truck and speaking to them alone, which is apparently against protocol - though he brings one soldier, the one who seems the youngest of the group, with him.

"You Isaac?" one of the citizens asks. Once she confirms her identity, Isaac turns and throws a bunch of bombs into the truck and locks the door, killing all the soldiers inside. “Welcome to the fight," the woman says. These citizens are part of the Washington Liberation Front (WLF), a group, much like the Fireflies, that was formed as a resistance to FEDRA.

In the game, we meet Isaac when we're playing as Abby, at the end of Seattle Day One - this is about 9 or so hours into the game, for time reference, after we've played through Ellie's perspective. We already know from off-screen conversations that Isaac is the leader of the WLF, and come upon him torturing a Seraphite in a disgusting, dimly lit bathroom for information, though we don't see the torture. Abby and Manny follow Isaac into an elevator, where he tells them it's time to wipe out the Seraphites once and for all. There is no backstory or origin like we see in the show, which makes his cruelty even creepier.

In the show, Isaac tortures the Seraphite in an old kitchen by brutally burning his flesh with a frying pan after heating it on the stove. He tells a story about how he's always wanted to own cookware that nice, before explaining that it isn't the most ideal choice for interrogations because it doesn't hold heat for very long. It's here that we hear Isaac refer to the Seraphite as a "Scar," a reference to the Glasgow smiles that the cult's soldiers have carved into their faces. Two soldiers stand guard outside, one being the young and inexperienced soldier from the flashback.

The torture lasts for several minutes before he, upon realizing the Seraphite will not tell him where the cult plans to attack next, gives up and shoots him dead. It's here that we learn (or at least it's implied) that Isaac is now the leader of the WLF - and another major antagonist in Ellie's world.

The Last of Us airs on Sundays in the US on HBO and Max, before landing on Sky and NOW in the UK the following day. Ensure you don't miss an episode with our guide to The Last of Us season 2 release schedule.