After yesterday’s post about the supply chain, I’d also be remiss to not mention HBO’s hit new series The Last of Us, from the PS game of the same name.
The premise is mostly straightforward – end-of-the-world type shenanigans, with zombies (these being somewhat faster than the regular, shambling variety), survivors, and the journey to save the world. Some of the key elements that make this show unique aren’t anything incredibly new, yet still effective. Rather than a virus, this time it’s a mind-controlling fungus. Its mission, to spread.
A few weeks back, the internet was all abuzz regarding episode three. In it, the love story between Bill and Frank is watched beautifully, and painfully, from beginning to end.
The controversy comes from a large chunk of the viewership not appreciating a homosexual relationship depicted on screen.
This is obviously a much bigger topic and issue than can be handled here. Matters of tastes and preferences; of what to watch and what you feel comfortable watching; of making something commercial vs. artistic (a problem dating back centuries); of how we communicate on the web. The list can go on and on.
What I will say as a Cis-hetero man is that episode 3, Long, Long Time, had me in tears, and I found it as beautiful a love story as you can find on television. This I find even more surprising, given the nature of the tv show as a post-apocalyptic, horror narrative. But that’s no less than we should expect from our television programming.
Michael's Musings 