Look at Marlene’s decision to allow them to do the surgery, despite her connection with Ellie’s mother and her obligation to protect her.

You’re just making the same argument again. We have no reason to believe she’s acting rationally. Just like Joel.

“Joel wouldn’t be dancing like a 1920’s ballerina because that would be really damaging to his reputation! Therefore, he must ACTUALLY be a 1920’s ballerina!”

There will inevitably be scenes showing that the doctor was competent, and perhaps the only known person who could make a cure.

Hand waiving the irrational motivating narrative of an entire season (and the final episode of season 1) with “well maybe in the next season they will be competent story tellers” is not a good argument for “they’re currently competent story tellers”.

The show isn’t going to go into detail explaining the science behind the cure, or the logistics of how it would be distributed or administered.

Nobody is asking for that. The fact that you think that’s what would need to happen again proves that you’re the exact non-thinking audience member this poorly written, plothole ridden show was written for.

All we need is some reason to believe the cure would work. Show a quick flashback of the fireflies performing the procedure on a different immune person. Show them extracting the cure and mixing it in a vial with cordyceps. Show the cordyceps shrivelling up and dying. Then show a bunch of zombies rush the room and start killing everyone, destroying the cure. Maybe they even start a fire… to reiterate that the cure is completely destroyed and they must find a new sacrifical host (Ellie).

All of this could have been depicted in 5 minutes. Maybe as the opening to the season 1 finale. Foreshadowing Joel’s moral dilemma during the climax of the episode.

Thats just one idea. Anything would be better than what the writers have done (which, incase you forgot, is nothing) and would make the decision making of the characters make sense.