Photo Credit: HBO
'The Last of Us' Fans React to the Brilliant Third Episode, "Long Long Time"
The Last of Us fans praised third episode "Long Long Time," a look into the love story of survivalists Bill and Frank.
Fans are emotionally recovering from the latest episode of The Last of Us. Airing on Sunday night (January 29), the third episode, "Long Long Time," centered the apocalyptic love story between characters Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank (Murrary Bartlett)
Prior to the episode's release, show co-writer, Neil Druckmann – also the video game's co-writer – shared that it would deviate from the show's main storyline. "As awesome as that episode is, there are going to be fans who are upset by it,” Druckmann said in an interview with The New Yorker. “To me, the story we tell is authentic to the world. It’s authentic to the themes that we’re talking about.” In other words: there’s fidelity even in deviation.
"Long Long Time" was a masterclass in LGBTQ representation to some critics, as Frank is mainly seen dead in the 2013 TLOU video game, while others considered the episode to be insincere. Critic Riley MacLeod of the Washington Post wrote that Bill and Frank “fall into well-worn gay death tropes” while Jade King of The Gamertold CNN that "Long Long Time" was an improvement from the video game treating the duo's relationship as an "afterthought."
\u201cLong, long time.\u201d— The Last of Us (@The Last of Us) 1675105200
“Bill is left alone to deal with his failure of keeping Frank alive in the game, but here they die in each other’s arms, content that they have lived a full, loving life and can go out on their own terms,” King said. “You can almost view it as a reclamation of agency from queer characters who have so often been done wrong.”
The conclusion of "Long Long Time" made for an impactful end as Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) discovers Bill and Frank's bodies at the end before continuing on with their journey.
Read more reactions below.
\u201cthe last of us really said hey what if we write a queer love story where the conflict doesn't revolve around violent homophobia, but instead explores the crushing prospect of growing old without your partner. what then huh\u201d— morgan sung (@morgan sung) 1675102608
\u201cStill reflecting on @TheLastofUsHBO. ep 3. This episode has burrowed into my heart because it was a reminder that we LGBTQ+ people are survivors. Faced with a plague\u2026 our community being decimated, with no resources or support, we survive. A beautiful reminder. #TheLastOfUs\u201d— Steven Canals (@Steven Canals) 1675097284
\u201cHi @FTC \u2014 did you catch last night\u2019s episode of The Last of Us? It was incredible.\n\nNo wonder the show is breaking records. It\u2019s a true blockbuster, watched by tens of millions.\n\nIf you haven\u2019t already, you should check it out. You may be particularly interested in the fact that\u201d— Lulu Cheng Meservey (@Lulu Cheng Meservey) 1675102064
\u201ci think maybe the wildest take i've seen about last night's ep of The Last of Us is that it "disrespected" the character of Bill when it actually took a relatively one dimensional character and gave him purpose and a beautiful, fulfilled life. not enough explosions tho, i guess!\u201d— Zachary Ryan (@Zachary Ryan) 1675098628
\u201cPeople really are complaining about there being little to no \u201cviolence\u201d in episode 3 and here I\u2019m still emotionally recovering from last night\u2019s episode \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d\n\n#TheLastOfUs\u201d— DomTheBomb (@DomTheBomb) 1675103905
\u201cIdk what game you\u2019ve been playing but to me the last of us has always been about choosing love & family when the world has so little of it.\u201d— haaniyah angus (@haaniyah angus) 1675071635
\u201cthe last of us writers were like \u201chey joel needs a car. what if we write the most touching and heartbreaking hour of television in the world\u201d\u201d— zach silberberg (@zach silberberg) 1675050642
\u201cHomophobic game bros trying to say it was only implied that Bill was gay in #TheLastOfUs when Ellie literally finds a gay porn magazine in his truck.\u201d— Lee (@Lee) 1675105098
\u201cthis scene is so much more meaningful because gay marriage wasn\u2019t legal back then im actually devastated #TheLastOfUs\u201d— Bella Ramsey emmy campaign manager (@Bella Ramsey emmy campaign manager) 1675049423
\u201cThe Last of Us portrayed the greatest dystopian love story of our generation while also giving us the funniest dystopian exchange in human history\n\n#TheLastOfUs #TheLastOfUsHBO\u201d— Brian Anthony MS, PA-C (@Brian Anthony MS, PA-C) 1675104119
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