Well, I think we can all agree that The Last of Us episode 3 ripped out our collective hearts and stomped on them pretty hard, eh?
The 76-minute episode, which tells the story of Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank (Murray Bartlett), a gay couple who lived for two decades by themselves in a post-pandemic small town outside Boston, is both a moving love story and a pretty hard gut punch, made all the more emotional by the little details sprinkled throughout.
One of the final elements you might have missed near the end of the episode? The ending of Bill's final letter to Joel (Pedro Pascal), who he'd made reluctant acquaintances with after Frank and Tess (Anna Torv) had covertly become friends over the radio.
Why did Bill leave a letter?
In 2023, the same year Joel, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Tess leave their apartment in the Boston quarantine zone to begin their journey into the Massachusetts wilderness, Bill and Frank have reached a tragic point in their decades-long relationship: Frank is terminally ill, presumably with cancer, and one morning he wakes Bill with his decision to make it his final day on Earth. He wants to suit up at their preserved boutique, get married to Bill, and have a final meal of rabbit and Beaujolais red wine — the same meal they shared on the day they first met — before Bill gives him a fatal overdose.
We watch their day play out in deeply moving montage, and everything goes according to Frank's plan until the very end, when he realises Bill has taken an overdose too.
"This isn't the tragic suicide at the end of the play," says Bill. "I'm old. I'm satisfied. And you were my purpose." The last we see of Bill and Frank is their retreat to the bedroom to die in each other's arms.
Later, when Joel and Ellie arrive at the now-empty house, they discover that Bill has left a letter on the table, marked: "To whomever, but probably Joel."
What was at the end of Bill's letter?
After explaining his and Frank's fate and mindfully warning people away from the bedroom, Bill's letter addresses Joel directly. Ellie reads the letter aloud.
"I used to hate the world and I was happy when everyone died," Bill writes. "But I was wrong. Because there was one person worth saving. That's what I did: I saved him. And I protected him. That's why men like you and me are here: We have a job to do. And God help any motherfuckers who stand in our way.
"I leave you all of my weapons and equipment. Use them to keep—"
At this point Ellie abruptly stops reading, anticipating the emotional impact of the end of the sentence, and Joel takes the letter from her to read himself. We see a brief close up, and the words "Tess safe" are clearly visible in Bill's hand.
The letter only goes on for a few more lines and Joel's hands keep us from reading it in full. But we can see "and she decide you're" on one line, followed by "I recommend pairing" on the penultimate line. On the last line we see a word that looks like a type of wine, possibly "Bordello".
It's slight guesswork, but it seems like Bill finished his letter by recommending a food and wine pairing to Joel and Tess, if they decided to stay the night. It's only a brief moment, but it's another poignant reminder of the first and the final meals that Bill and Frank shared ("A man who knows to pair rabbit with a Beaujolais" was Frank's admiring remark on their first meeting). These are the types of finite details that make the show — and episode 3 in particular — so moving.
The Last of Us is now streaming on HBO Max with new episodes airing weekly on Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
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