How Joel Defied Destiny in The Last of Us

the theme of Fate is really interesting in the last of us because it does not appear until very late in the story for the first 23ds of the game not a single character mentions anything about fate Destiny or predeterminism or that anything that happened to any of these characters was meant to be or that their lives have any meaning Beyond surviving from one day to the next and when characters finally do begin to express a belief in some greater purpose it is almost immed immediately defied by Joel if there is such a thing as Fate In This World then Joel breaks it in half in the end individual choice is absolutely shown to surpass Destiny I also want to bring another game into this discussion and it's one that I've already examined in detail on this channel God of War Ragnarok now Ragnarok is another game whose story deals with the theme of Fate but from a very different direction and I think these two stories actually complement and enhance each other in a really fascinating way that I'm excited to show you but first we need to talk about The Last of Us okay so Tess never says a word about fate Bill does not care about Destiny Henry and Sam never mention anything about their lives being predetermined and neither does Tommy instead these characters discuss Human Relationships they discuss survival and what survival is worth and the connections between survival and Community those are the primary themes of the game at least at first it's not until we reach the Final Act the winter season that this new theme appears the first character who professes a belief in fate is David and this is really interesting too that the writers would use a character as Despicable as David a personification of human evil as a vehicle to introduce the player to this question of Destiny but we'll discuss that more later for the first 2/3 of the game The Last of Us is is presented to be a world without Destiny or at least a world where people do not believe in or care about Destiny this is a world of random chance coincidence and happen stance there's no meaning or purpose to anything people are just surviving in any way they can and this is especially true in regard to life and death who lives and who dies just a look at all the major character deaths in the first 23ds of the game starting with the prologue while escaping from the initial outbreak Joel and his daughter Sarah are fired upon by a soldier Sarah is struck by a bullet and dies Joel meanwhile is unscathed The Writers Do not present this situation as if there is some larger meaning behind why she is killed and he is totally unharmed no character ever claims that it was her Destiny to die and his to live it's just something that happened it's just random a consequence of the path of the bullet her death is meaningless and if her death is meaningless then his survival must be equally meaningless and you will see something very similar with the deaths of Henry Sam and Riley but there's something a little bit different with Tess during Joel and Tess's journey through Boston they both have very close calls with infected they both have moments where an infected leaps on top of them biting and nashing and flailing and they just barely get away just barely survive but in the end and it is revealed that she got bit and he did not and again there is no reason for this no purpose no fate no Destiny he got lucky and she didn't but there's a difference here because unlike Sarah Tess has an opportunity to make her death meaningful instead of just dying randomly whenever the infection takes over her body she chooses when she will die she decides that she will use her death to buy Joel and Ellie a little time to escape her death will benefit them will safeguard them at least for a little while her death will have a purpose in their journey and this is the first time when the story suggests that maybe life and death can still have some meaning in this world the reason for Ellie's immunity is never really discussed in the game a random mutation good luck the exact reasons don't matter to the story what matters is the emotional Journey this immunity sends her on what that Journey reveals about human life relationships and The Human Condition and according to the themes of the last of us our condition is that we're living in a world of pure random chance where people die for no reason at all and our lives have no apparent meaning beyond the ephemeral connections we Forge between us except maybe not The Last of Us complicates this brooding sense of nihilism in the last Act of the game all of a sudden characters begin to glimpse a deeper meaning behind seemingly random events contrary to everything else that's happened in the story so far characters begin to express a belief in some purpose larger than themselves and to see exactly how this theme is introduced and developed we are going to watch three cutcenes the first is with David terrible despicable evil David who as I've mentioned before is the first character in the game Who discusses the theme of Destiny and we are going to watch the scene where does so together as you watch I want to ask you a question what do you think the writers want the player to feel about this concept of Destiny in this scene do they want you to believe it's real that our characters lives are being Guided by something more than mere random chance or is David as full of BS in this dialogue as he is everywhere else okay here it is I'd say we make a pretty good team we got lucky lucky no no no such thing as luck now you see I believe that everything happens for a reason sure I do and I can prove it to you now this winter that's been especially cruel a few weeks back I sent a group of men out nearby town to look for food only a few came back he said that the others had been slaughtered by a crazy man and get this he's crazy man traveling a little girl you see everything happens for a reason the scene begins with Ellie expressing skepticism in the idea of Fate which is what we should expect from her character at this point we got lucky it was random there's no meaning behind any of this but for the first time in the game David pushes back against the nihilism that has dominated the story so far he says no there is something else Happening Here something more than just random chance and I can prove it to you because you and I ell we share this unexpected connection because you killed a bunch of my friends and then you disappeared over the horizon of course we never thought we'd find you you were gone but then incredibly here you are appearing as if from nowhere wandering into my waiting Open Arms this is too perfect to just be coincidence now I think the writers definitely want the audience to be skeptical of his beliefs I often find it helpful to think of stories in terms of tools what tool are the writers using in this scene and why are they using it well the writers are using David a villain and not just any villain but the grossest and most despicable villain in the whole game and they're using him to communicate a new theme in the story and why would they do that because they want the audience to understand that this new theme is [ __ ] writers often use villains to communicate ideas which though they may contain and some kernel of Truth are ultimately revealed to be flawed in some way that's what makes them villains their inability to overcome their flaws David's concept of Fate is just as perverse as his desires as I discussed in my video analyzing his character his motivation is control he wants to possess Ellie he wants to own her he wants to use her like a new toy for fun and pleasure than to discard when he's done with her that this could be the meaning behind her survival this epic dramatic Journey she's been on the meaning of fate these guiding strands of destiny that are delivering each soul to their final destination that the purpose of all this could just be to provide David with a new human play thing that is a concept of Destiny which is totally debased and disgusting David's flaw here is that he believes that Destiny exists to serve his own personal pleasure a ridiculous notion and if it ended there if the game never brought up the theme again I would feel confident in saying nope according to the last of us predeterminism is BS and everything really is just random and meaningless except that is not how it goes the theme is brought up two more times in quick succession the theme gets complicated as more characters Express a burgeoning belief in fate and the next character to do so is actually Ellie h herself in the scene with David she was totally dismissive of the idea that their survival was the result of anything other than luck but by the time she reaches Salt Lake City something has changed in her character so we're going to watch that scene next and we're going to watch a little bit of the last scene in the game too because they go together and as you watch I want you to think about another question what is the difference between Ellie's expression of fate and David's what makes hers more noble than his okay here it is we don't have to do this you know that right what's the other option go back to Tommy's just be done with this whole damn thing after all we've been through everything that I've done it can't be for nothing her name was Riley and she was the first to die and then it was Tess and then Sam none of that is on you well you don't understand Ellie never outright uses the words fate or destiny to describe what she's talking about here but she is still expressing something very similar when she talks about everything that's happened everyone who has died she says it can't be for nothing Ellie is carrying the deaths of her friends and family with her all the time the deaths of Riley of Tess of Henry and Sam the terrible things that she's had to do to survive all the people she herself has killed when I discussed the deaths of Riley Henry and Sam earlier I described them as random and meaningless because that's how the story presents them to be however I also discussed how Tess's death despite being equally random as all the rest was imbued with meaning due to the choices of the characters well what if Riley Henry and Sam's deaths could be imbued with meaning after the fact too Riley's death revealed Ellie's immunity an extraordinary finding with potentially profound consequences for the entire human race that first loss set Ellie on her path Henry and Sam saved her from drowning in the river in Pittsburgh allowed her to continue her journey to eventually reach the fireflies maybe if Ellie's journey across the United States has some ultimate meaning then their deaths can be made meaningful too okay so but what is the difference between Ellie's expression of fate and David's well David essentially said I am certain that fate does exist and it benefits me personally whereas Ellie says I am not certain if fate is real in fact I'm very skeptical of the idea but I want my journey to have some greater purpose than mere survival I have a deep longing for the deaths of the people I care about to have some sort of purpose too to be more than just unlucky accidents and maybe that's not exactly fate but it is something very similar the next two characters who Express a belief in fate are Joel and marleene so let's watch that next scene here it is you came all this way how'd you do it it was her she fought like hell to get here maybe it was meant to [Music] be I lost most of my crew AC crossing the country I pretty much lost everything and then you show up and somehow we find you just in time to save her maybe it was meant to be once again the characters do not explicitly use the words fate or destiny instead they use the phrase maybe it was meant to be and it is important that there is uncertainty in this phrase unlike David they do not say it definitely was meant to be they just say maybe it's possible because Ellie's Journey has been so incredible so extraordinary so amazing she had to fight so hard to make it here had to overcome such impossible odds so many seemingly insurmountable challenges she should have died so many times she should have drowned just in that last scene that maybe there's something more than just nihilism and random chants here maybe something deeply meaningful and profound is occurring here and just like Ellie Marlene's desire for meaning is driven by her personal loss she too lost so much to be here she wants the deaths of the people she cares about to have a purpose it's the exact same motivation earlier I talked about how when a Villain Like David expresses an idea we know that it must be flawed in some way but what about characters like Marlene and Joel they're not entirely Heroes but they're not entirely villains either they are both flawed complex and morally gray characters and most intriguing of all they end up diametrically opposed to each other in the end these are two characters who are in many ways total opposites and yet in this moment they are expressing the exact same idea using the exact same words maybe it was meant to be so what are the writers doing here what do they want us to think are we supposed to believe in fate or not does Ellie's Journey have a purpose and meaning or not well I think the writers want us to be uncertain these characters have a deep longing for meaning for something greater than themselves for their lives and their losses to matter are open to the possibility of purpose but no matter how much they long for meaning the unfortunate truth is that they may still be living in a meaningless world and what would the purpose of Ellie's journey be how would her story have to end in order for all those deaths to matter well if the fireflies or some other group really were able to craft a vaccine from her immunity and they really were able to use that vaccine to save Humanity to rebuild the world to restore civilization as unlikely as all that is that definitely would be meaningful that could have been her Destiny and if it was her Fate To Die here to serve as a sacrifice for a restored world then Joel broke that fate right his individual ual choices trumped fate in the end it's not a question of meaning or purpose or nihilism or even survival it is a question of choice what do these characters choose to do except maybe it's not really a choice at all maybe fate is still at play just not in the way you think and what if Joel never really chose anything what if his behavior was dictated by something greater than himself what if he was always going to do what he did at the end what if it was Joel's fate not his choice to slaughter all those fireflies and this is where I want to bring God of War Ragnarok into the discussion because that game Story presents a totally different concept of Fate than the one we've been examining in this video that I think is very relevant to Joel's story okay so the characters in God of War are steeped in Prophecy and fate frea was once shown a prophecy in which her son balder would die a meaningless death and then as a result of her own choices he did die a meaningless death there was once a prophecy that balder's death would be followed by thimble winter the harshest of all Winters and then when he dies thimble winter really does begin katos once saw that his entire journey in God of War 4 had been prophesied by his late wife and she prophesied his future death too a prophecy which hangs over his head for the entirety of godav War Ragnarok atraeus is desperately searching for his own role in the prophecy his own role in the story his own destiny and is shaken to the core when he finally finds it and all of these characters are living under the prophecy of Ragnarok a terrible future war between the Gods in which most of them will perish a catastrophe which will shatter the world as we know it the burning of the entire surface of the Earth the deaths of millions some of the characters are fighting against this prophecy trying to prevent it from happening others are trying to f fulfill the prophecy trying to bring about this terrible series of events and within this complex swirl of Destiny prophecy purpose choice and meaning of war and death and disaster the story of God of War Ragnarok presents a very original Twist on the concept of Fate one that I had not encountered before and this is what is relevant to the last of us at one point in the game katus embarks on a journey to meet the norns magical beings who are said to be able to see the future to tell you what your destiny is but when Kratos finally meets them they say something very different about the nature of Fate than you might expect and we're going to watch that scene together and as you watch I want you to pretend like katos is not here at all pretend like the Norms are actually speaking to Joel how does what they're saying apply to Joel's story to his character's ultimate fate okay here it is you come to us pious octar seeking freedom from your scripts as if knowing your lines would Grant you the power to rewrite them speak you will die katos of [Music] Sparta you called but you called him the destroyer of Fate there must be a way to subt Des there is no Destiny Park the protagonists are speechless they do not understand there is no Grand Design no script only the choices you make that your choices are so predictable merely make us seem prent when my son was Bor shut [Laughter] up your prophecy said he would die a needless death and he did because you could not let him go because he he thirsted for revenge and because you kill Gods but what Kratos did it was not out of hate should I bring him a crown then he still slays Gods but now he's sad about it you are the sum of your choices nothing more and because your choices never change you will learn that heimall intends to kill your son an Asgard and you will do what you do best best and then Ragnarok the skies burn the curtains fall EX on me again he misses the point focusing on the second act to the exclusion of the final a common mistake in storycraft we usually think of Fate as being something much greater than ourselves as something profound and Grand Destiny is something that shapes the lives of millions of people across the world that shapes the path of history that guides us all towards both our tragedies and our triumphs it doesn't matter what we choose what our preferences are what time we get out of bed in the morning our ultimate fate will remain unchanged because it is greater than any single Choice fate is as big as the universe itself but in this scene the norns offer a very different perspective according to them fate is exactly as small as shortsighted as Petty and as selfish as any single one of us fate is not colossal it is individual fate is not something greater than ourselves or something outside of ourselves fate is our own inner nature our truest self who we really are deep down inside according to the norns our nature is unchangeable immutable and permanent you cannot change who you really are people will always make the same choices over over and over and over again for example katus will always choose to protect his son no matter what the circumstances are no matter what the consequences are so when he discovers that Heimdall is going to kill his son he will kill Heimdall first which will lead to Ragnarok and so the prophecy is fulfilled not because of Destiny but because of who Kratos is deep down inside he is a slave to fate because he is a slave to himself and can't you already see how this applies to Joel's character too this could just as easily be Joel in this scene the norns could be telling him you will learn that the fireflies are going to kill your daughter and so you are going to do what you do best and that will eventually result in a terrible disaster and tragedy and even knowing this you would still do it anyway because that is who you are in the prologue when Joel Tommy and Sarah are trying to escape from the outbreak in their car they pass passed by this other family on foot who ask for help Tommy is about to stop the car to offer them help but Joel says no he tells his brother to keep going so he can protect his own family that is essentially the same choice that Joel makes at the end of the game when he chooses to kill Marlene to protect Ellie Joel is always going to make that choice he is always going to choose his own family's well-being over anyone and everyone else except it's not really a choice at all is it because Joel is not capable of making a different Choice it might as well be his Destiny in the end Joel does not break fate at all he is a slave to fate because he is a slave to himself in God of War Ragnarok katos actually does eventually manag to make a different Choice he averts tragedy he defies his own violent and selfish nature but Joel is not kattos katos is meant to be an inspiring character to show us how even the most miserable and angry of people can be transformed can choose to be better than their worst selves kattos is a god performing extraordinary Feats is his role in the story but Joel is meant to be human he is meant to be flawed he's not supposed to be your role model he is just Joel and he always will be this is one of the few areas that I think the show does better than the game in the show when Joel begins his Rampage through the fireflies headquarters he transforms into this emotionless robot his movements are so automatic like he's running on autopilot it's like he's operating on pure Instinct he becomes a sort of zombie which I think matches this idea that he's not really making a choice here he is just following through on his innermost nature the theme of fate and destiny is very complicated in The Last of Us it does not show up at all until nearly the very end and when it does the writers intentionally undermine it by having the most despicable character in the game introduce it to the audience and yet the theme keeps getting brought up both by characters we trust and characters we don't it's not the typical concept of Fate the unbreakable chains of Destiny instead it is expressed as a deep longing for meaning in an apparently meaningless world and even when it seems like our characters may have found some purpose in this story immediately afterwards that purpose is utterly shattered surpassed by individual Choice except if we bring God of War Ragnarok into the discussion it starts to feel like the last of us is actually a story about the immutability of Fate where characters are bound by Destiny because they are bound to their own Natures because they will always make the same choice and I think you can apply this to part two as well is not Abby just as much of a slave to her own nature as Joel is is it actually Ellie who breaks fate when she makes a new choice at the very end of the second game but those are questions for another video this one has reached its end next time I'm going to post two shorter videos examining Joel and Ellie again covering some aspects of their characters that I've overlooked in the past but before that I'm actually going to be taking a break from The Last of Us I am going to take advantage of the release of Final Fantasy 7 rebirth to do a couple videos on the original game because while the remake are undeniably very pretty I find them to be a bit bloated and overcooked I really prefer the blocky blurry polygonal 1997 original Final Fantasy 7 introduced the world to some of the most famous characters in video game history and I'm excited to examine how those characters were originally written but even if you don't care about Final Fantasy there will be more Last of Us videos in the future so please look forward to those [Music]

Channel: FatBrett

Views: 90,666

Keywords: The Last of Us, Last of Us, Lore, Story, Explained, Analysis, Character, Joel, Ellie, Marlene, David, Sarah, Tess

Id: JvqXKdPEyOk

Length: 28min 15sec (1695 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 25 2024