The Last of Us episode titled, “Long Long Time” made viewers emotional after it told a heartbreaking story about two men who fell in love in the middle of the apocalypse. Thanks to the episode’s success and season one coming to an end, the full script for what was described as the show’s “happy episode” is now available online for the public to access.
The script for The Last of Us episode 3 was released via Deadline in its “It Starts On The Page” series. The show’s co-showrunner and episode writer, Craig Mazin, released an introduction before fans engage themselves with what’s on the page, where he explained what went through his and Neil Druckmann‘s minds when making the episode, how love can fit in The Last of Us universe and his thoughts on Bill and Frank in the episode.
“…in the world Neil Druckmann and I built for this show, it was just as important to show how love could still flourish in a positive way. I wanted to explore how two very different kinds of love— the nurturing, generous and beautifying, as well as the protective and possessive— could exist in balance.
“Bill and Frank embodied these two kinds of love. And for me, as someone who has been married for over 25 years, it was just as important to portray that kind of love… the lasting, well-worn love that is a product not merely of attraction or chemistry, but of commitment.”
Mazin also pointed out the effects of love, something that was discussed heavily when the episode came out. The showrunner pointed out that love can inspire people and could leave life lessons to others. He also hoped that people would find Bill and Frank’s relationship realistic. It seems that goal stuck the landing, considering the amount of people that were in tears when the episode first aired.
“My hope was that people would see in Bill and Frank’s relationship the victory of honest, achievable, realistic love… even in Bill and Frank’s ending. After all, each of us will end. That’s not failure for any life well-lived, or for any love we share. It’s simply the final act of what was hopefully a beautiful play. And if we’re lucky, as Bill is, we leave behind a lesson that inspires others to live as we did. Frank changes Bill for the better. Bill changes Joel for the better. Joel changes Ellie for the better.
“This is what love can do.”
The script is extremely detailed and it’s 64 pages long. What’s cool about it is that you can see how the episode was originally two hours long and read which parts were removed or reshot. Some examples include more wholesome moments between Bill and Frank, removed dialogue between characters, and so on.
The script also included a line that was uttered by Bill, which was reported that it was never supposed to be in the show until Nick Offerman suggested it be included.
The Last of Us episode 3 received high praise when the episode came out while being one of the biggest deviations from the source material. However, naysater argued that the episode was a filler since it didn’t primarily focus on Joel and Ellie. Regardless, the episode gave fans a newfound appreciation for Linda Ronstadt‘s song “Long Long Time,” with many hoping it would be next in line to receive the “Kate Bush Effect.”
All episodes of The Last of Us season one are now available to stream on Max.