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The Final of Us is sort of the musical present. It is made us cry to Linda Ronstadt’s “Lengthy Lengthy Time,” jam out to Depeche Mode’s “By no means Let Me Down Once more,” after which cry once more to that very same Depeche Mode track. However episode 7, titled “Left Behind,” would possibly simply be the present’s most musical episode but.
“Left Behind” provides us an in-depth have a look at Ellie’s (Bella Ramsey) backstory by means of a flashback to an evening she and her greatest pal Riley (Storm Reid) spent in an deserted mall. Proper from the opening scenes of the flashback, you’ll be able to inform music will play a giant position within the episode. As Ellie runs laps at her FEDRA faculty, she listens to Pearl Jam’s “All or None” on her Walkman. Later, in a collection of Easter egg-filled pictures of her room, we see a stack of cassette tapes together with Etta James’s Inform Mama and A-ha’s Headlines and Deadlines: The Hits of A-ha.
‘The Final of Us’ episode 7 ending hyperlinks tragically again to a key scene in episode 4
Songs from each albums make appearances later within the episode — however these aren’t simply any needle drops. These songs, in addition to “All or None,” all tie again to varied The Final of Us video games. This is how.
“I Obtained You Babe” by Etta James.
Bella Ramsey and Storm Reid in “The Final of Us.”
Credit score: Liane Hentscher/HBO
Etta James’s cowl of Sonny and Cher’s basic duet seems in the identical place in each “Left Behind” and The Final of Us: Left Behind DLC upon which the episode relies. Riley performs the track for Ellie, and the 2 of them dance collectively earlier than sharing a kiss. Within the DLC, Riley mentions that she’s the one who gave Ellie the James tape. We do not get that trade within the present, however the truth that Ellie retains it shut by in her room highlights simply how a lot it means to her, like her Will Livingston joke guide or her beloved comics.
“Take On Me,” by A-ha.
Bella Ramsey and Storm Reid in “The Final of Us.”
Credit score: Liane Hentscher/HBO
Whereas each The Final of Us present and sport use “I Obtained You Babe” in the very same means, A-ha’s “Take On Me” will get a considerably totally different remedy. Within the present, it performs whereas Ellie marvels on the marvel of a working mall escalator. The track and its iconic synth riff lend the sequence the texture of a basic happy-go-lucky mall montage. Positive, this mall has been looted and is roofed in classically post-apocalyptic particles, however for Ellie, it is a complete new world! “Take On Me” captures her joyful exploration completely. Plus, the scene accommodates a enjoyable nod to the track’s lyrics: When Ellie launches herself down the escalator at Riley, she tells her, “I am coming for you,” a mirror of A-ha singer Morten Harket’s declaration, “I will be coming in your love, okay?” (A telling second, given Ellie and Riley’s candy kiss later within the episode.)
The Final of Us Half II provides “Take On Me” a extra somber context. Whereas mourning a devastating loss, Ellie performs “Take On Me” for her girlfriend Dina. Ellie’s model is way sadder and slower than the unique, lending it a top quality that’s directly romantic and tragic. This mix of romance and tragedy extends to the present’s use of the track as properly. For starters, in enjoying “Take On Me” over a scene the place Ellie interacts with Riley, the present establishes that it is a track that Ellie associates with love, with the upbeat sound of A-ha’s unique accentuating the thrill and uncertainty of her crush. Nonetheless, Ellie and Riley’s story ends in sorrow, and the 2 by no means get sufficient time to discover a romantic relationship. If Ellie performs “Take On Me” for Dina in Season 2 of The Final of Us, maybe she — together with the viewers — shall be considering of Riley.
“All or None” by Pearl Jam.
Bella Ramsey in “The Final of Us.”
Credit score: Liane Hentscher/HBO
The looks of Pearl Jam’s “All or None” in “Left Behind” is an attention-grabbing one, as this explicit track by no means seems in any of The Final of Us video games. Nonetheless, one other Pearl Jam track, “Future Days,” performs a serious position in The Final of Us Half II. Keep in mind how Joel admitted he needed to be a singer in episode 6, and the way Ellie insisted he sing for her later? In Half II, we lastly get Joel singing to Ellie. “Future Days” is the track he goes with.
It is a poignant track alternative, with traces like “If I ever have been to lose you / I would absolutely lose myself” talking to the deep familial bond between Joel and Ellie. The track turns into a motif all through Half II, with Ellie typically enjoying it when she thinks of Joel. Since he gave her her guitar and taught her to play it, her instrumental renditions of “Future Days” carry much more emotional weight.
For the reason that present’s timeline adjustments the yr of the Cordyceps outbreak from 2013 to 2003, utilizing “Future Days” as a needle drop subsequent season can be chronologically incorrect. Nonetheless, the inclusion of “All or None,” which got here out in 2002, is a pleasant strategy to spotlight Pearl Jam’s connection to the franchise whereas nonetheless conserving the timeline correct. The lyrics right here additionally converse to Ellie’s scenario at her FEDRA faculty. “It is a hopeless scenario,” the track opens, reflecting Ellie’s hopeless angle about Riley’s disappearance. Later lyrics embrace traces like “I attempt to run on,” which comes by means of actually in Ellie operating laps round a health club and figuratively in how she tries to persevere with out Riley.
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“All or None” is a stable track alternative right here for the Pearl Jam connection, but it surely additionally raises the query: What track, if any, will Joel sing to Ellie in The Final of Us Season 2? It appears unlikely that showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann would reduce the scene given its significance. So will they use one other Pearl Jam track to be in line with the unique, or will they department out fully? Primarily based on the music choice all through the present up to now — and particularly in “Left Behind” — I’ve a sense one other nice, but devastating, needle drop is someplace on the horizon. Carry on the music…and the tears.
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