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The Last of Us Season 2, episode 6: Joels song has a deep-cut meaning

Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal play Ellie and Joel in

Just when we thought the wound of episode 2 might be healing, The Last of Us picks at the scab with episode 6. A flashback episode shows Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) in happier times, specifically, with a series of Ellie's birthdays in Jackson. 

With the two of them finally safe and settled, Joel relishes giving Ellie a home and happy memories sprinkled with cake, handmade gifts, day trips, and even a song — which was teased in episode 5. And it's not just any song. Like the haunting cover that plays at the end of episode 2, Joel's tender ditty has a connection back to the game and beyond.

What song does Joel sing to Ellie on her birthday? 

Joel (Pedro Pascal) builds a guitar for Ellie in "The Last of Us."
Joel (Pedro Pascal) builds a guitar for Ellie in "The Last of Us." Credit: Liane Hentscher / HBO

After Joel presents Ellie with the guitar he crafted with his own hands, she asks him to sing. He initially declines, but then reluctantly plays the instrument while singing softly: 

"If I ever were to lose you

I'd surely lose myself

Everything I have found dear

I've not found by myself

Try and sometimes you'll succeed

To make this man of me

All my stolen missing parts

I've no need for anymore

I believe

And I believe 'cause I can see

Our future days

Days of you and me" 

The song is "Future Days," released by Pearl Jam in 2013.  

Last week, Mashable's UK Editor Shannon Connellan broke down how the song played in the game The Last of Us Part II. You can watch it below, where Joel is voiced by Troy Baker.

Earlier in the season, the TV adaptation included a cover of Ellie (voiced by Ashley Johnson) singing "Through the Valley." Both songs were released by Sony Music Entertainment as part of the digital album The Last of Us Part II: Covers and Rarities on Sept. 17, 2021. 

What's the meaning of "Future Days" in The Last of Us? 

Ellie plays her guitar in "The Last of Us," Season 2, episode 5.
Ellie plays her guitar in "The Last of Us," Season 2, episode 5. Credit: Liane Hentscher / HBO

That's multilayered. Both in the game and in the show, Joel singing this song seems to speak to his devotion to Ellie. His reason to exist is her. And in episode 6, even ever-joking Ellie recognizes this in her own way, responding to the song by saying, "Well, that didn't suck." 

Beyond Pearl Jam's lyrics, however, showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann added more meaning by naming the first episode of Season 2 after the song. "Future Days" kicks off the season to reveal that there's a rift between Joel and Ellie, one so deep he's going to therapy and she's living in the garage. 

Joel is seeking professional help to find how he might get back to the time shown in this flashback episode, the happy days when Ellie would joke with him and smile at his efforts. And the tragedy that he won't and she can't cuts deeper in this episode, as we're forced to recognize all the future days that were lost to Abby's vengeance. 

New episodes of The Last of Us Season 2 premiere on HBO and HBO Max Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.



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