The Last of Us writers Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann have revealed why Joel was having panic attacks in episode 6 of HBO's hit show. It turns out, getting older, weaker, and less able to protect those you care about can be pretty traumatising. Spoilers for the six episodes so far follow.
On The Last Of Us Podcast (transcribed by Collider), the pair discuss why Joel is now dealing with panic attacks. It's a nice layer of added depth that we don't get in the original Last of Us game.
"We wanted to explore the impact of what’s happened to Joel in the wake of Henry and Sam, despite time having passed significantly and it’s shown when he exits the cabin and seizes his chest.
"This episode is about Joel coming to terms with how terrified he is that she’s going to die and it’s going to be his fault. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll see as many times Joel has helped her, he’s failed her. And those are the things he dwells on."
Joel confides in his brother Tommy later in the episode, saying "five years ago I would have destroyed him," when speaking about an infected Sam attacking him. He chastises himself for being "too deaf and too slow" to protect himself or Ellie and begs Tommy to take her to the university for him.
Despite the panic attacks being an important character moment for Joel, they've already been memed to death, with everyone's Twitter timeline awash with a three-panel picture of Joel clutching his chest. What can you do though, when something is funny, it's just funny.
As well as adding more depth to Joel, episode six of the show also has not one, but two accidental shots of crew members. One where they're hiding under a tree during an overhead shot, and another where a hand creeps up to tickle Shimmer's chin as Ellie is introduced to her.