Summary
Naughty Dog’sThe Last of Usincluded a number of emotionally resonant cutscenes, made more impactful through the use of clever dialogue and a compelling cast. As the game’s protagonist and anti-hero,many of Joel’s quoteshelped to set the stage for this conflict and dramatic tension, working to solidify his backstory and changing perspectives on the world. Some of these musings resonated in the story ofThe Last of Us Part 2, showing a fateful side to his words.
One ofJoel’s quotes became a prophecy of what was to come in the game’s sequel. His final words before killing Marlene were a self-justification of his actions; “You’d just come after her” was used as means to an end, a way to protect Ellie from any future harm. Despite Joel believing that Marlene would be the last of their ordeal with the Fireflies,The Last of Us Part 2proved differently. Joel’s killings did indeed have consequences, though the extent of which was far greater than he could have imagined.
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The Words of Joel in The Last of Us Continued to Hold Relevance Throughout its Sequel
The Last of Usset up Joel and Tommy’s sibling relationshipas having deteriorated throughout the aftermath of the Cordyceps outbreak. Joel relayed to Ellie that their falling out was due to a disagreement in perspective; grief-stricken by the loss of his daughter, Joel did what was needed for survival, no matter the cost. On the other hand, Tommy retained a sense of hope through the Fireflies, burdened by the nightmares of what he and Joel had been complicit in. Though Tommy left to Jackson, the two were reunited through Joel and Ellie’s trek across the US, where these past tensions came to the surface:
Interestingly,The Last of Us Part 2put Tommy in similar conflicting ideals. At first, he was reluctant over the idea of revenge because of how it might leave the people of Jackson vulnerable, though he eventually joined Ellie’s side to detrimental repercussions. After getting crippled and half-blinded by Abby and witnessing Jesse’s death, Tommy, who was once okay with letting Abby live, ended up adopting the same revenge stance that plagued Ellie throughout the game. This culminated in a switch, where he worked to convince Ellie that her cause should be continued rather than the other way around.
This resulted in him and Dina coming head-to-head, as the two saw the world, and what Ellie needed to do, in different ways. Dina tried to pull Ellie to the side of accepting the past and living in the now, while Tommy felt that she should keep her promise and kill Abby after all that she had done.
It was a prophetic switch-up from the first game that showed Tommy taking on the samebleak outlook that Joel once had, spurred on by his break-up with Maria among the other losses he’d experienced. Another of Joel’s more stand-out quotes came in the form of his willingness to speak about his daughter again:
This line was delivered in a more positive light when Ellie gave him the photo of him and Sarah, though the quote took on a darker turn in the game’s sequel. Joel’s past in the death of Abby’s father was what incited the plot, having repercussions on both Ellie and himself. While Joel remarked that he would have done the same thing if given another chance, the damage that his actions took, both inEllie’s trust in himand Abby’s revenge towards him, showed that the past was more than capable of catching up.
The Last of Us Part 2is available now for the PS4.
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