‘I didn’t sign up for a musical!’ Are the guitar sing-alongs killing The Last of Us?

This week’s occurrence of The Last of Us contained a infinitesimal that froze the blood. For a divided second, the hearts of the viewing assemblage roseate into their throats successful horror. This is simply a amusement that has presented america with panic aft nightmarish panic but, adjacent by these exceptional standards, this was astir excessively overmuch to bear. I americium talking, of course, astir the country wherever Ellie started playing a Pearl Jam opus connected a guitar.

Within the broader satellite of The Last of Us, the opus – entitled Future Days – is of tremendous importance. If you’ve played the game, you’ll cognize the country it hints at. It’s devastating. You’ll besides cognize that, if the amusement hews intimately to the root material, the wide taxable of guitars volition yet trim the assemblage to affectional husks, teeing up the saddest, astir hopeless ending to immoderate large portion of storytelling successful years.

But if you haven’t played the game, the show of Ellie picking up a guitar for the 2nd clip successful arsenic galore weeks volition person been a origin for alarm. Last week’s occurrence crushed to a standstill truthful Ellie could sing Take connected Me by a-ha each the mode through, and the interest was that the aforesaid happening would hap again. And, without wanting to dependable similar 1 of those dismal review-bombers, I didn’t motion up for nary musical.

The information that determination could person adjacent perchance been 2 consecutive acoustic sing-along episodes is indicative of a bigger occupation with the signifier of play two. It finds itself falling betwixt 2 stools. On 1 hand, Joel is dead. He died successful occurrence two, successful what is apt to beryllium the precocious constituent of the full series. On the different hand, play 3 volition crook the full amusement connected its head. Again, if it sticks to the blueprint laid retired by the game, the absorption volition crook to Abby, the young pistillate who killed Joel. It promises to beryllium a bravura portion of storytelling, recontextualising a quality who seems similar a implicit monster.

But present we find ourselves stuck successful the doldrums. We person had 3 episodes without Joel oregon Abby, leaving america with the communicative of Ellie going to Seattle to get her revenge. And, boy, those 3 episodes person dragged. There person been meandering broadside plots astir spiritual cults, agelong soliloquies by Jeffrey Wright, a emotion communicative that mightiness beryllium saccharine but feels comparatively unearned and, of course, the entirety of Take On Me by A-Ha played connected an acoustic guitar.

The biggest occupation is Dina. As Ellie’s emotion interest, she should play an important relation successful the show, awakening her to a satellite beyond axenic survival. This is thing the amusement knows however to do, the stand-alone play 1 occurrence starring Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett being a shining example. But close present Dina feels a small grafted on, similar a makeshift Joel replacement who exists solely to forestall the amusement from turning into a bid of episodes wherever Ellie grunts successful a succession of corridors by herself.

Dina gazes connected adoringly arsenic Ellie sings a-ha’s Take connected Me … successful full. Photograph: HBO/2025 Home Box Office, Inc. All rights reserved. HBO® and each related programs are the spot of Home Box Office, Inc.

Again, this mightiness each wage disconnected down the line. Dina, Abby, the cults, adjacent the guitars volition yet person satisfying conclusions. But we’re talking a agelong mode down the line. This week it was revealed that play 3 of The Last of Us won’t commencement filming until adjacent year. Given that determination has typically been a twelvemonth and a fractional spread betwixt filming and broadcast, this means that we’re expected to clasp each these glimpses and hints successful our heads until the past fractional of 2027.

The Last of Us has 2 episodes near this season. One of them volition beryllium a stand-alone communicative astir a quality who, successful the game, is seen lone arsenic a photograph. There’s a bully accidental that the occurrence volition beryllium saccharine and moving, but it doesn’t connection a batch of anticipation successful presumption of crippled propulsion. We’re inactive near with the consciousness that The Last of Us has been spinning its wheels since Joel’s death.

Perhaps, successful the grander strategy of things, this agelong was ever designed arsenic a breather, a resting spot betwixt the strength of what has been and what’s yet to come. But fixed the yawning chasm betwixt seasons, that breather is starting to look a small similar suspended animation. Let’s anticipation things prime up successful 2027.