As is often the case, I’m late to the pop culture party and thus I didn’t watch The Last of Us until I was the last of us to watch it. (Bad Mom jokes abound.) I hate scary shows. I haven’t seen a scary movie since Silence of the Lambs and I’m still terrified when I think about that movie. I have zero interest in zombies and also zero interest in video games. I’m a nerd. I like books and puzzles and a good night’s sleep. 

After all three of my children and pretty much the whole world kept recommending The Last of Us, I convinced my husband to watch it with me. Yes, there are zombies and yes, there are some scary and disturbing scenes. Also, since we just lived through a world-wide pandemic, this show also pushes a lot of fear buttons about ever having to live through that again. And yet, I cannot stop thinking about the beauty of this show. It is filled with love, relationships, moral dilemmas, and a range of emotions that are part of the human experience.

There is an incredible love story that literally broke our hearts. There are parent-child relationships that also resonate so deeply. There are deep friendships and dangerous frenemies. The moral dilemma is one that any parent could relate to that also absolutely tugged at our emotions. I covered my eyes for many of the zombie scenes and yet, I just couldn’t turn away from this show. I still think about it almost every day and can’t wait for the next season.

As with almost everything in life, I learned a few good lessons from this zombie show. First, don’t judge a show by its zombies! I rejected it immediately because it had zombies. I’ve got some biases to work on in that I’m apparently a zombiephobe. I also judged it because it was based on a video game, which led me to asking myself why? As I’ve seen with my sons, video games can bring people together, can challenge us, and can open our eyes to different cultures and worlds. Why was I so quick to judge? 

If I so quickly dismissed this show, what else am I dismissing in life that might be a spectacular opportunity for personal growth and entertainment? How old must one be before they realize that judging quickly, or even judging at all, really benefits no one? The Last of Us opened my eyes to a different reality. It’s a scary one and a beautiful one and isn’t that what life is all about?

Love,

Lisa Kaplin Psy. D. PCC