The Last Of Us Episode 4 Review - 6 Ups & 2 Downs

5. The Joke Book

We see the aforementioned joke book two more times, and each time it slowly breaks down one of Joel’s barriers.

In the second scene, where the pair are out camping in the woods, Joel actually hits Ellie with the punchline first, seemingly pleased with himself. This interaction not only adds a bit of humour to the script, but also allows Joel himself to acknowledge how protective and fond of Ellie he’s becoming. It’s no coincidence that after this he finds himself unable to sleep and standing guard with his rifle, even though he himself stated how unlikely it would be for anyone to find them this deep in the wilderness at night.

The third use of the book comes right at the end of the episode. At this point, Joel and Ellie have been through hell: she’s shot someone, they’ve both been shot at, and have a full on militia chasing them down. This time, Joel lets himself laugh at the terrible joke about poop running in your genes and as a viewer you get the sense that this is the first time this dude has probably laughed in about 20 years. It’s a cathartic scene for both the characters and the audience, and nicely demonstrates just how close the pair are getting and how far they’ve come.

Now I focus on the joke book so much because this absolutely could have been one of those fan service inclusions that was fun, but didn’t mean much. Instead, the writers have implemented it three times not only to inject humour into the scenes, but to demonstrate a change in the relationship between these characters.