I like this commentary about Joel's decision.

I honestly agree that the lack of infected actually took away from some of the depth of this ending. The infected didnt feel like they had a strong enough presence to really be all that upset at Joel for taking Ellie. Like “well it seems like humans are the worst part of the world anyways, so why kill Ellie for a cure”

"Kin" was an emotional powerhouse of an episode. Superb acting by Pedro in particular. He's really knocking it out of the park. Such a thrill to see the story taken so seriously by all involved.

Expanse bros discuss the first episode.

Nice to see Anna. Sounds like she and the other creatives put a lot of thought in how her character related to Joel and Ellie, and who she became as she lived and survived the nightmare. She was fantastic, as have been all the performances, no matter how short. This is a well cast, well directed, and very well acted series.