HBO's The Last Of Us: 9 Scenes We Want To See

9. Joel's Hunting Days

We tend to hail Joel as a hero, excusing his many misdeeds because of our love of his relationship with Ellie. The connection between the duo is one of the narrative's very few symbols of hope so we can't be blamed for clinging on to it. The truth is though, Joel has an incredibly dark past and spent several years as a Hunter.

It shouldn't come as much of a surprise. During his journey with Ellie, Joel shoots and hacks his way through endless hoards of human 'enemies' who are enemies simply because they're 'the other' and not with us.

While killing in the name of protecting Ellie is something we understand, would we feel the same way about Joel's hunting days?

The narrative alludes to the fact that Joel and Tommy joined a group of Hunters shortly after the outbreak - killing 'tourists' for their supplies and torturing them for information. Tommy was less of a willing participant than Joel. The Last of Us heavily tackles the themes of morality and redemption. It seems only fair that HBO's The Last of Us divulges Joel's past if we're to accept his redemption .. or not.