I think it was probably the best episode thus far. It seemed to me that Bill and Frank sorta fell for each other a little too quickly, which made that aspect of it feel forced, but aside from that it was great, in my opinion. I cared more about Bill in this one episode than I have for Ellie throughout this entire series thus far (I really hate her portrayal in this show and wish they'd picked someone else to play her). Frank was a bit bland, of course, but Bill more than made up for it.
I suspect many people who didn't like the episode probably just instinctively see it as yet another shoehorned piece wokeness, pandering to the activist crowd. Which isn't surprising considering that sort of behavior has reached epidemic proportions in film and television over the last several years (only so many times you can try to sneak agendas down people's throats before they start becoming hyper-paranoid that this is all you'll ever do). And the series already pulled similar virtue-signaling shenanigans with race by not-so-subtly making Joel's daughter black and portraying Joel himself as Latino (granted, Pedro at least looks and sounds like Joel, so I'm kinda fine with that).
All that being said, Bill was gay in the video game and that aspect of him and his relationship with Frank (if you explore enough to uncover it) is one of the more memorable things about the character. The show goes into a lot more detail about this relationship than the game and while there no doubt is a bit of pandering behind this decision, I felt the show actually pulled it off too well to get mad at it. The only odd-feeling thing to me, really, was the fact that they put a largely stand-alone episode in so early in the series before we've even gotten to know Ellie or Joel all that well. Also, it's kind of a shame that Bill dies in the episode (he doesn't in the game) as he was a great character. But, again, the show pulled his death off so well that I find it difficult to gripe about it.
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TrentnQuarantino (8858)
a year ago
> Bill and Frank sorta fell for each other a little too quickly
I agree. BUT, it was episodic TV, and the characters had been alone for who knows how long. That would tend to increase the need for companionship.
I like all the characters. Ellie is a wiseass, but most kids are kind of like that. Good point about how the writing of that episode was really well done - despite some shortcomings.
Also agree that some people cannot see anything but wokeness, and are programmed to fit that over everything - they wear anti-wokeness goggles. Wokeness is just about being aware, awake, to the struggles of other people, and in my opinion is another programmed right-wing attempt to isolate people and make them hostile to each other to prevent revolt.
> I felt the show actually pulled it off too well to get mad at it.
Yeah, it was very clever and well done - it's like a comedian like Louie CK can make you laugh about stuff you don't really want to, the storyline of this show made people see the relationship of these two despite prejudices, which is why I thought it as so good and it reminded me of how great literature and drama can be to expand humanity. Fuck the anti-woke neanderthals.
I agree again that I was not suspecting this sort of stand alone episode so early, which I have to imagine was also planned. Break the mold ... mold ... no pun intended.
I would have liked it they made another choice about Bill. I feel like suicide was a cop-out and not something the average person in that situation would do, and they did it for expediency and simplifying the show's plot. But, on the other hand Frank broke through to Bill's soft center and maybe emotionally his character felt he could not take going back to being alone, and knew he did not have it in him to find other people or risk getting to know them.
Do you happen to know what it was that Frank had? Was it ALS ... it was like one moment Bill was the one who was going to die from gunshot, and then the next all of a sudden Frank is in a wheelchair with no explanation.
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[deleted]
a year ago
That is why it came across as some woke shit, because they put so much time in building up the gay angle but didn't bother to even give a cursory explanation for what happened to them beyond that.
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Chester (223)
a year ago
Wokeness is just about being aware, awake, to the struggles of other people
🤣🤣🤣
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