That ‘The Last Of Us’ Moment Works For The Same Reasons The Video Game Fans Hated It
The Last of Us just gave TV one of its most thunderous, most earth shattering moments. Ever.
That’s pretty difficult considering we’re in the Golden Age of television. Well, technically, we’re now in the Mid Age of television, but there are still plenty of shows doing the most, delivering rizzy moments on the reg. So, when The Last of Us blesses us with a moment as huge as it did with Episode 2, we must savor it.
*Major spoilers ahead*
Joel’s death in The Last of Us S2E2 is a major blow for anyone who didn’t play The Last of Us Part II on the PlayStation 4. Myself included! During Season 1, I saw so many people online who warned about “the thing next season” and “that major event” that I categorically stopped reading anything remotely spoileresque about this show. I could sense that something big was coming and wanted it to smack me in the face. And boy, did it ever. The last time a TV show had me this gooped about a character death was in 2013 when Game of Thrones dropped the Red Wedding. And I’ve seen a lot of shows since then! Yellowjackets … Killing Eve … Orange is the New Black. And yet, The Last of Us wins!
That said, we can never have nice things, and some fans of The Last of Us Part II are already complaining that Joel’s Show Death is not as good as his Game Death. Some of their reasons are based in misogyny; others are based in an originalist approach to the source text. Let’s break down some of their reasoning and see if they may have a point.
Argument #1: Abby is too girlish
This is the most misogynistic argument. Some gamers believe that Kaitlyn Dever, who plays Abby, is too “weak and skinny” to kill Joel, as Abby does in S2E2. Some claim that Abby should have been muscular, as she was in the game; otherwise, she emasculates Joel by beating him. *Insert Liz Lemon eye roll*
I would argue that Kaitlyn Dever’s slender frame makes her violence towards Joel all the more shocking. Abby’s rage is so powerful that she’s able to wield brutal, devastating force despite not being She Hulk. As for her ability to overpower Joel, that’s pretty clearly explained by the fact that she shoots him in the leg first.
Argument #2: Bella Ramsey is a bad actor
An argument with less obvious misogynistic undertones is one that has followed Bella Ramsey’s casting as Ellie since Season 1. Especially after Ramsey came out as nonbinary, Last of Us gamers have taken issue with Ramsey’s wokeness and lack of similarity to Game Ellie. (In other words, Show Ellie is not as hot as Game Ellie.) But they also attack Ramsey’s acting skills and apparent lack of range as a way to justify their feelings about Ramsey’s looks and politics. However, I’d say that Ramsey’s previous coldness worked to their advantage in S2E2. It made it feel all the more heartbreaking when Ramsey finally cracked and showed big emotions as Ellie watched Joel die. Plus, Ramsey has been great at showing microexpressions, which has felt very right for the moody and closed-off Ellie.
Argument #3: Tommy was supposed to be there, not Dina
This is a relatively innocent argument put forth by some fans of the game who don’t like it when the show makes changes to the game’s plot. Basically, the issue here is that Tommy — not Dina — should have come with Joel to the lodge where Joel ultimately died. This is what happened in the game, after all. However, I would argue that this change works from a storytelling standpoint, since now Dina and Ellie will have both been traumatized by Joel’s gory death. I’m even more emotionally invested in their budding relationship now.
Argument #4: Abby shouldn’t have betrayed her motivations so early on
Another originalist argument about The Last of Us is that Abby shouldn’t have explained her hatred towards Joel in Episode 1, since it robbed viewers of the “mystery” of why she was traveling to Jackson. But again, I’d say that this works from a TV storytelling standpoint since it helped build real tension in the otherwise relatively slow Season 2 premiere. Co-creator Neil Druckmann said so himself.
That said, no matter how you look at it, The Last of Us will never be the same. The story could go anywhere now, and all of us — game-players and non-game-players alike — are glued to our seats. Plus, whether the show ultimately honors the spirit of the game going forward or becomes something else entirely, it’s still giving fans first-class entertainment in the Age of Mid TV, and for that we should all be grateful.
