The Last Of Us Episode 6 Sparks Debate Over Communism
The latest episode of The Last of Us has left plenty of discussion in its wake. Spoiler warning for the content ahead, for those who have not yet seen episode six. The eventful episode saw Joel and Ellie busting into a couple's home in the beginning, where they're warned off crossing a river as the other side is full of dead bodies. The pair do not heed these warnings.
Turns out, there's a bustling community on the other side, with the thriving settlement understandably protected with a firm hand as Joel and Ellie are ambushed by armed horsemen and women. Joel is saved as his little bro Tommy is a major figure of the settlement. They're brought into the small town and a reunion occurs. The starring pair are then given a tour of this Wyoming community, with new character (for the show) Maria talking through its features, which leads to a moment that is kind of amusing but also educative. Viewers have certainly noticed.
Related: The Last Of Us Is Proof That We Should Let Adaptations Adapt
Maria talks through how the community works, saying everyone equally contributes and owns resources. Joel – who is Texan let's not forget – quips, "So, communism". His equally Texan brother Tommy replies: "Nah, it ain't like that." But his lawyer partner Maria corrects them. "This is a commune. We're communists", she says, factfully and simply.
It's amusing because of Joel and Tommy's reluctance to call a spade a spade, and perhaps an ideological wariness, left over from their pre-apocalypse days, over communism. The United States has a well-known history of fear of communism, of course, with the Red Scare of the first half of the 20th century, and its rivalry with the USSR. To this day, words such as "socialist" and "communist" are
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