The first episode of The Last of Us ends on the notes of the song ‘Never Let Me Down Again’, performed by the band Depeche Mode. It is not a random choice.
The first episode of the series The Last of Us is now available on the Amazon Prime Video platform, and it’s a huge triumph. Whether or not you played the video game released in 2013 on PlayStation 3, you risk being caught up in the prodigiously staged post-apocalyptic universe.
The pilot obviously includes some small details that matter, spread over a duration that almost reaches that of a film (more than 1h20). One of them concerns the last seconds, which sound the song ‘Never Let Me Down Again’, performed by Depeche Mode. What does it mean, and what does it mean for the rest of the adventures of Ellie and Joel?
The remainder of this article contains minor spoilers for Episode 1 of The Last of Us.
“I’m taking a ride with my best friend”
When Ellie walks into Joel’s apartment for the first time, she scans the surroundings and comes across several interesting items. His attention is mainly on the book The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits, which lists the greatest musical hits in history, and a radio set. These two objects are linked by a note referring to a code of survival in an environment where actions and gestures are highly controlled. Joel and Tess use it to communicate and barter with Bill and Frank (the letters B and F) — other survivors not seen in the first episode (but who exist in the video game).
The code is as follows :
- When a song from the 60s sounds, it means that there is nothing new;
- When a song from the 70s sounds, it means that there is a new stock (of resources);
- When a song from the 80s sounds, we don’t know what it means (a big red cross is inscribed).
Cleverly, Ellie manages to trick Joel into believing that the radio played ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’, a song from 1984, during his nap. The hero then activates as if there were an emergency. With her lie, Ellie cracked the last line of the code: when a song from the 80s rings out, it means there is danger.
At the end of the episode, therefore, ‘Never Let Me Down Again’ is played by the radio. This hit is from 1987, which means Bill and Frank are definitely in dire straits. This is a teaser for an upcoming episode.
In addition, we can note that the lyrics of ‘Never Let Me Down Again’ are in perfect symbiosis with what Joel and Ellie are about to experience: “ I’m taking a ride with my best friend / I hope he never lets me down again / He knows where he’s taking me / Taking me where I want to be. ” Translation : ” I’m hitting the road with my best friend / I hope he won’t let me down / He knows where to take me / Take me where I wanna be. In addition, another sentence is particularly suited to the road trip: “ We see the world pass us by. »
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