For fans of The Last of Us games, watching the show both faithfully adapt and flesh out characters from the beloved video game has been pure joy. But even that didn’t prepare them for the level of, ahem, fleshed-out detail they would get into in episode four when Ellie (Bella Ramsey) pulled out a copy of Bearskin magazine, which, of course, she absconded with from Bill and Frank’s home. You know, the setting of one of the greatest episodes of television ever made? That house.
In the episode, Ellie pulls out the magazine for some “light reading” while she and Joel (Pedro Pascal) head back out on the road in search of his missing brother Tommy. And fans quickly caught on to the easter egg.
“Where’s the Emmy category for “most faithful recreation of a gay magazine from a video game” because The Last of Us would win it”
Twitter user @TomZohar posted a side-by-side of the magazine in the game and on the show and proposed an interesting question. “Where’s the Emmy category for ‘most faithful recreation of a gay magazine from a video game’ because The Last of Us would win it.”
They’re not wrong, the level of detail on the remake is fantastic. Not only does it recreate the image of Ace (although, let’s be honest, he could be a bit more bear-like) but it also features all the cover text!
@TomZohar added “I’d give anything for a copy of Bearskin magazine btw. Ace Von Champ you will always be famous” and we couldn’t agree more.
Fans, of course, expressed their delight as well on Twitter.
“@TomZohar I would brave the halls of Comic-Con to get a limited edition copy”
“@TomZohar I was shook that it was a 1-to-1 recreation. Glad they didn't cut that bit haha”
“@TomZohar Bill had taste”
“@TomZohar I'm amazed at how accurate it is”
“@TomZohar Every scene that was exactly like the game I was like “THIS IS EXACTLY LIKE THE GAME WOW””
The Last of Us continues to strike a chord, not only with fans of perfectly recreated gay porn mags but with the audience at large. Episode four saw continued growth in viewership, setting another series high with 7.5 million viewers (up from 6.4) last week. No wonder it’s already been renewed for a second season.
Turns out that sometimes we can have nice things — and sometimes they’re the glistening abs of one Ace Von Champ.
