Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Last of Us Part II.
There’s been a lot of discussion about whether or not The Last of Us season 2 can use Pearl Jam’s “Future Days” on its soundtrack, but that’s not the only musical dilemma the show faces. As The Last of Us enters its second season on HBO, showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin will begin to tackle the gargantuan nonlinear narrative of The Last of Us Part II. Based on the trailers and set leaks, it seems as though season 2 will cover Ellie’s half of the story before moving onto Abby’s in season 3.
The game famously opens with Joel singing a song for Ellie like he promised. He plays “Future Days” by Pearl Jam, perfectly encapsulating their relationship and foreshadowing the tragedies that will befall them, before gifting the guitar to Ellie so he can teach her how to play. Since the TV show moved the outbreak to 2003 and the song came out in 2013, there’s been a lot of debates around whether the series can use “Future Days.” But that’s not the only musical timeline dilemma faced by the showrunners.
HBO's New Outbreak Day Means The Last Of Us Part II's Best Songs Won't Exist In The TV Show
Crooked Still's album Shaken by a Low Sound came out in 2006
“Future Days” isn’t the only song from The Last of Us Part II’s soundtrack that came out after the TV show’s outbreak day. The Crooked Still album Shaken by a Low Sound is key to the Jackson dance scene and the Santa Barbara epilogue, and that album came out in 2006, so it might face a similar problem. “Ain’t No Grave” plays when Ellie, Dina, and J.J. are dancing in the kitchen, Ellie plays “Ecstasy” when she can’t sleep, and most importantly, “Little Sadie” plays over the flashback to the Jackson barn dance.
After her ordeal in Santa Barbara, when Ellie returns to find the farmhouse empty except for all her stuff that Dina left behind, Shaken by a Low Sound is sitting atop Ellie’s guitar. This album is just as crucial to The Last of Us Part II’s musical storytelling as “Future Days,” and it wouldn’t feel right if it wasn’t included in the TV show. But since it came out in 2006, if the showrunners are keeping a strict timeline, they’ll have to choose a different album for The Last of Us season 2.
Why The Last Of Us Season 2 Should Just Use The Game's Songs Anyway
Surely the audience can suspend their disbelief in a zombie show
Rather than switching out the songs to line up with the TV series’ timeline, the showrunners should just go ahead and use the game’s songs anyway. The music choices in the game were so perfect; The Last of Us’ showrunners won’t find a song that captures Joel and Ellie’s relationship and the themes of the story quite as beautifully as “Future Days,” and at this point, it’s practically an unofficial theme song for the franchise. In a world full of mushroom zombies, surely the audience can suspend their disbelief about when a song came out.
