Kira Deshler Wrote About The Queer Storylines In “The Last of Us”

For her newsletter, “Paging Dr. Lesbian,”  Kira Deshler wrote an essay analyzing the LGBTQ+ aspects of season 2 of The Last of Us, an HBO Max series based on a video game about a post-apocalypse where a Cordycep fungus has infected the majority of the human population. In the essay, Deshler argues that in this season, so far, “homophobia still exists, but gay pride doesn’t.”

She notes how characters Ellie and Dina recognize homophobic slurs, and yet, when they go through the remnants of  Seattle’s “gayborhood”, don’t realize the significance of a Pride flag. Deshler ponders the implication for both the show’s storytelling and commentary on identity politics.