When the The Last of Us 2 was announced with a trailer, the internet immediately took to speculating and nitpicking every little detail in the video. One of the most popular rumor is that Joel, one of the two protagonists in the first game, is dead.
Though the gaming community can't decide if it will happen before or during the events of the sequel, they seem sure that his fate is inevitable. However, I believe otherwise. Joel will live on to see the third installment, if any.
Killing Off Joel In The Last Of Us 2 Seems Easy
Granted, we need an explanation as to why 19-year-old Ellie is so angry in The Last of Us 2 trailer. She talks about hunting a certain group of people (ahem - Fireflies) and killing them. With that, we need a reason. What would drive our innocent little girl to committing a massacre? The murder of the closest person to her, perhaps?
Of course, it's easy to arrive at that conclusion. Joel coming out of the light and walking into the room where Ellie is playing the guitar is just a hallucination - an element that signifies she can't come into terms with his death. How often have we seen characters talking to a dead loved one because they can't move on?
This is exactly why it's hard to believe that Joel will die in The Last of Us 2. Naughty Dog using his death as plot fuel seems like the easy way out. We've seen too much of a character stuck between vengeance and moving on that we will probably know how the ending will play out.
Naughty Dog Can Do Better Than Lazy Storytelling
The Last of Us story is one of the most amazing stories I've ever witnessed. We see a father giving up on a world where his daughter no longer lives in. We also see a strong girl carrying a weight bigger than what she was made for. Every scene is spectacular and the father-and-child relationship that blossomed is beautiful to watch.
The easiest way to create conflict would be to break that relationship off - and that's the opposite of what I expect from Naughty Dog. Guys over there can break through the usual storytelling by giving us the same emotions we felt in the first game without targeting the protagonists' bond.
Sure, I expect challenges in The Last of Us 2. Ellie might even go mad at Joel for a short bit after discovering what he did at the end of the game. Joel might be kidnapped at one point. However, every other story already tells of a parent-child relationship breaking off because one died while protecting the other.
Sometimes, They Lie
Another detail that makes me believe that Joel is not going to die is that The Last of Us' trailer was not exactly truthful to us. If you remember watching it, you will know that at one point, you expected Joel to be bitten then Ellie will have to shoot his head off.
Obviously, that didn't happen. So The Last of Us 2 trailer being cryptic and such with not showing Joel's face is not making me fall for it. You already had me in the first one, Naughty Dog, but not this time.
