Be sure to check out the companion video "Why Now is the Perfect Time for a World War Z Sequel" on Nebula: nebula.tv/videos/lsoo-why-now-is-the-perfect-time-for-a-world-war-z-sequel (using this link gets you a personalized discount and helps support the channel!)
Try living in a world where it already seems like an apocalypse. Not because of covid or social interactions. But a neglect of those with negative ones 24/7 by "happy" people. Being in constant pain due to toxic positivity zero connections to be on fight daily and not even alone to fly away. Some of us live and survive like this and many laughing at our suffering. What of these people rather than an viral infection? Long before anything. Nothing to lose. During the peaceful times for the majority? With suicide never coming into light just "living".
In the Last of Us (HBO show, and to a lesser extent, the game), the apocalypse is very obviously NOT the end of history; and I think that's a powerful message.
@@heassik3088 We're resilient little fuckers. I genuinely think there is nothing beyond a massive asteroid that could get rid of us for good. And we're already testing asteroid defence systems.
20:32 I also came to this realization watching Last of Us. The difference between surviving and living. It was episode 3 when it clicked. Joel and Bill go through the motions of surviving to see the next day. Almost mechanical. Frank and Ellie on the other hand are living: having fun, making connections. The badass survivors have also become zombies in their own right.
very interesting perspective. I was just arguing about the immediacy of death and suffering in post-apocalyptic settings makes need to survive and act clear. In this manner, we could say that post-apocalyptic life is simplified compared to modern life, where societal stability and abundance makes survival and action less self-evident. But I had not thought about the distinction between survival and living...
@@reynemanzano Post-apocalyptic life would NOT be simpler compared to modern life. 90% of your day would consist of maintaining gardens and livestock and collecting water without any labor saving devices. Every day would be exhaustion and ache and fear that a slight change in weather would devastate your food supply. Watch the film A HIDDEN LIFE if you want to see what pre-industrial farm living is like.
I went to emergency room at our local hospital the other night. The waiting area was standing room only, the 2m distance stickers almost worn off the floors; aisles were crowded with dozens of sleeping homeless people, shopping carts mounded with trash blocking the ways; security guards? too many to count; two young men under guard, secured to wheelchair via tie straps yelling profanity; the nurse who installed my iv quietly wept and apologized for it....we are not so far from breaking. Thank you for offering good time stories to help me deny the truths at hand. God bless, and good luck.
@@cleigh113 I live in a small (65,000) northern town in Ontario, Canada. I was at the hospital from about 5pm until near midnight. The care and attention I received was top quality - the nurses unbelievably attentive. The environment, however, was absolute chaos; 3 code whites (violent person) while I was there. The hospital is a designated warming center for the homeless during colder nights. Drug abuse is out of control.
@@jlloydb1of9 Don't forget, that's one room on one bad night and it's designed to solve those problems, but it also concentrates them. Last few years have been tough on everybody, we'll get through it. Our parents went through worse and our grandparents before them too.
@@jlloydb1of9 My dad was a prosecutor growing up. He lived in a world inundated with the worst of humanity, he refused to let it consume him and was an ever present positive force in my life. Everytime I get down, I just remind myself he dealt with murderers and rapists, daily, and came home smiling.
I feel that the appeal to apocalypse stories like these is a sense of 'the return of meaningful action'. There's less people to replace you, less structure to adhere to, and less pressure to conform to, and in many ways that can feel liberating, knowing that nobody else around may know how to tend a vegetable garden as well as you, and it is your joy and your personal calling to do just that, and thus feeling like you are making a real difference to the world around you, while also not being forced or expected to shape your personality or beliefs to a large structured society's standards.
Wow... You put my feelings into words... All I want to do is grow plants. If all hell broke loose, I'd be free to do just that. I've got hermetically sealed totes full of seeds of all types.
The selfish desire to literally destroy societal stability so that we have overall less peace in totalityjust so I as an individual have a little bit more personal peace and significance. Maybe a bit more self awareness and rationality is needed not the destruction of the collective machine for production?
What’s crazy is that if you want to… you really could return to that life style. Communities like that exist. Or you could just go off the grid. Live off the land. Not in America tho. Because someone would own the land, and even if you owned it you’d have to make enough money to pay taxes on it… You really can’t just build a life anymore. You can’t go into the woods and just start building a cabin. Which is BS. Tho it makes sense. If they did let you do that I doubt as many of us would keep killing ourselves for bosses that hate us.
While you put it nicely, it is rather well known "science" that people struggling for survival have more "meaning" in their life and less time to get bored and depressed. Not much to add to your idea though :)
@@DonnaBrooks it's a post-apocalypse story, we don't get a precise diagnosis. There's a scene where we see Offerman badly injured and the other guy is desperately tending to him, and then it flashes forwards many years and Offerman is the able-bodied one and his beloved is in a wheelchair with deteriorating mobility. It seems like a neurological disease like Motor Neurone to me.
I feel like since covid began in 2020, many of us also felt the things you pointed out in this video, constant longing for connection, meaning, purpose, missing our loved ones, distrusting the current institution, fear of the future and the unknown, many of us have lost someone because of covid, many lost their jobs, properties, etc, this theme is relevant now more than ever. Even tho the world didn't end, as in post apocalyptic and apocalyptic stories, we still felt so vulnerable and fragile, the fact that the foundation of our society was shaken to it's core due to the pandemic, our governments, families, lives as we know it, will never be the same again.
I think... we are at the start of the apocalypse... it doesn't happen in one day..or a year... or even ten... it takes more time... I don't think we'd know when it was over until we got to the post-apocalyptic stage... idk maybe I'm just a pessimist... but in some ways I kinda hope for the end of the world as we now know it.
The idea that humans have a built in resistance to despair is interesting. I recall reading that humans almost went extinct, possibly falling to as little as 2000 people. It'd be interesting if this resilience in the face of the apocalypse is inherited from ancestors who survived an apocalypse of their own.
@@Dani_1012it is widely speculated that the supervolcano in Indonesia erupted 70,000+ years ago. The ash and dirt from the eruption is believed to have covered the sun for around 6 years which made plant-based food scarce making foraging unsustainable. Also, it ultimately also affected the animals mankind used to hunt then. There's also a theory that this eruption is why the remains of mankind from 100,000 years ago are significantly larger... to survive the scarcity of food, humanity had to size down. We literally are smaller than our ancestors...we could say we are descendants of giants :')
I'm a mental health practitioner for chronically suicidal folks, and this isn't just how we survive the apocalypse, this is how we build lives worth living in the here and now. We need each other as much as we need food, air, or water
Oddly reminded of the movie Warm Bodies; how it's connection that ultimately saves humanity, not the closing of borders and distrust in others. It's a bit of a silly Romeo and Juliet-esque romcom set in a zombie apocalypse, but that message in the end honestly is why I like it so much.
Signed in just to reply bc Warm Bodies is one of my favorites. If you haven't read the book, I highly recommend it because the author has said that he wrote it in response to the current state of the world we're in and it takes the themes a whole lot further. It makes a lot of R's comments about "just wanting to connect" that much more effective. I remember being so pissed at how the movie was marketed as a romance (and to be fair, the romance is there) when the dark humor and overall message was what was really special about it for a zombie story. There's also some banger quotes in the book like "There is no ideal world for you to wait around for. The world is always just what it is now, and it's up to you how you respond to it." and "We are where we are, however we got here. What matters is where we go next." Highly recommend :)))) Can you tell it's my favorite book?
@@For4Reel bruh the story is the same just the way it progressed is different and theyre adding elements that werent even in the game something a proper adaptation is supppsed to do
I think one of the things that attracts us to post-apocalypse stories is the freedom they offer. Evolution hasn't changed us to any significant degree for many thousands of years. Our most basic needs and desires are no different to those of our forebears who wandered the plains of Africa, the forests of Europe and the steppe and mountains of Asia. In sharp contrast, our modern world demands different things of us. From the moment we become truly conscious, we're herded through school and then into work to sell our time on this earth for everything from our most basic requirements to increasingly fabulous novelties to ease the pain of our way of life. In many respects we're born into captivity. I think the end of the world represents the breaking of that cage that our Paleolithic selves are trapped within. It's a fantasy, of course; such a life would often be harsh and short, but it is still a life that our instincts were made from, and from which all our fundamental drives and behaviours derive. Love, companionship, the banding together against shared adversity, and the urge to wander, to be free beyond the abstract concepts of political theory. In short, as you put it, our true natures.
The thing is, our nature will change. We are still evolving and if we live long enough we will keep changing. It's unfortunate that there is such a disconnect between our nature and way of life but answer to that is slowly evolving nature not regressing as society. It's a bit like cottage core the romanticization of simple agrarian culture but only fantastic version of it.
It is incredibly rare I come across deep and valuable comments on this platform. I very much enjoyed your writing and admired your thinking and perception of reality my friend.
"It demonstrates that regardless of our circumstances, it will always be human beings finding each, loving each other, and quietly living out fulfilling lives together." 🥰😊
@@LuisSierra42 As he said in the essay, having an optimistic outlook doesn't mean we can't be skeptical, much like the characters in Station Eleven. You can do both and still be a good person, it is really not that hard.
@@DaRkasSet13 In order to see what would happen with society if a government collapses, we just have to take a look at the many countries where this has happened, Haiti, Libya, Syria, Somalia, etc. People naturally form gangs and they start fighting each other for resources in the same way societies used to work in ancient times, so i don't believe that if civilization collapses, people are going to be mostly dancing and singing all around
@@LuisSierra42 We would not be where we are today if hUmAN nATurE was inherently bad. Chaos and destruction can bring about the worst of us, but that doesn't mean everyone will do so. In the current day, criminal and greedy acts are very much products of bad environments and still make up a very low percentage of the worlds actual population. If everything ends the majority of people aren't going to suddenly turn evil, and it is you being too pessimistic rather then us/this video being too optimistic.
There's been a similar movement in sci-fi. Anyone who's read The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet will know what I mean. It feels refreshing to me. And honest. Episode 3 of the Last of Us is one of the most beautiful pieces of television I've ever seen, and I'm so glad it exists.
You might really like Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. It goes through the intensity of the changing climate, but envisions a world where we act and create something better for the ones who come after us.
... that's cause it is. This is not the best humanity has to offer, this is a misstep along the path. We have so much, yet have done nothing to resolve the actual issues of our time. When we get past this, we'll look back on this as an age every bit as barbaric as the "dark ages" (yes, I'm aware that's a horseshit term for laymen). Nero's fiddling will be but a mild joke compared to 1.5 billion fiddlers actively shooting flamethrowers into their own homes. This time we're living in will be seen as the most childish, self absorbed, and evil time of humanity; where we had so much and did nothing with it but evil. That'll be an oversimplification of course, there is still good being done, its literally what's going to get us past this, but only the exceptionally privileged would see this as a golden age.
STATION ELEVEN is my jam! I freaking love this series and convinced a friend to watch it with me. I thought he was going to watch only a few episodes, but it turned into a marathon and, in the end, he sat there crying, in stunned silence, when the final episode concluded. He eventually whispered, "Thank you for this, Thank you so much for this." I've known him for 27 years and last year was the first time I saw him cry. Interestingly, he's been avoiding THE LEFTOVERS as though it's a plague. He watched one episode and stopped. He said he doesn't believe he will be able to handle it. There are some things that change us, fundamentally. CHILDREN OF MEN was one of those movies for me. THE LEFTOVERS and STATION ELEVEN are the shows that have done this to me, ANDOR, surprisingly, also did this to me. And, already, THE LAST OF US has been holding the same power. It's not enough to focus on survival. We require connection and love. That's where the light resides.
Andor and Station Eleven were very powerful for me too! I havent seen the other you mentioned but I will definitely check them out. I was crying for a lot of of Station Eleven 😅
I love your pitch for the World War Z sequel. I was disheartened when I saw how far the movie strayed from the original book, and really wished they had explored more of the stories. Now, I think the stage has been perfectly set (with the pandemic sort of passed) to explore the nuance of those stories in a new life. Even though the real world pandemic wasn’t as drastic as zombies, people are still scrambling to find the humanity in the last few years of isolation. Exploring that humanity in these mediums is showing to be extremely well received if the heart is in the right place.
I agree, World war Z is a collection of accounts thanks to the interviewer and I would really love to see each of those stories in an episodic way I mean if they can make the Last of Us they can definitely make a book-faithful WorldWar Z
I was hoping they would take the approach which has been so successful with other movies like, Magnolia, Traffic, or Babel, in which they used famous international casts playing a cameo roles. It could have used the documentary approach that worked so well in District 9. The approach they took was the only thing that marred the final product; relying on the star power of Brad Pitt to carry the whole thing. I’m a big fan of Pitt, but let’s face it? One guy had to be on the scene of every single pivotal event during the rapid, chaotic breakdown of society? It was that bonkersness which robbed the movie of the one thing the book had going for it: its plausibility.
Zombie media is generally not to my taste, but World War Z? I adore that book. WHen i read it the first time, i simply could not stop. WHen i reread it recently, same thing happened.
I'm still haunted about the story of the family that drive into the wilderness in Canada and live out their car in a wider community. And then things just slowly unravel when they realise that none of them have the skills to live out there. It's been seared in my mind forever. It's been 12 years since I've read it.
It's pure magic. In my darkest hours, when I'm struggling with fear and losing hope, a new essay from LSOO is there and my trust in "us" returns slowly.
The Leftovers really is a perfect show. Three tight seasons that told an original story in a perfect way. It takes the "mystery box" concept that the other creator of Lost (the one with more fame and less talent) constantly talks about, but actually makes the mystery an important part of the story. "I think I'll just let the mystery be."
I absolutely loved what they did with the Last of Us to make a beautiful story instead of a depressing one. Plus, it was such a moving story and the actors did such a great job. We need more optimistic post apocalypses.
Finally, humans are filled with possibilities. We adapt, not only to our environments, but to the stories we tell each other. If the story is "everyone is selfish and untrustworthy," we act accordingly. We need to make stories we can live in. I love "survival is not enough," it emphasizes the kind of mindset we need to survive the future.
So happy to see Station 11 here! This story is one of the best I've seen about surviving after the end, not to kill each other, but to heal each other.
As a wheelchair bound person who takes 13+ meds I hope that im just taken out with the first wave or I just end it. I feel like this new world there would be no place for a person like me, especially I'm sure there would be no way even if I didn't take medications. It always makes me feel sad.
We are not there so it's good at least! Half of my family went through cancer surgeries/treatments and at times when people romanticize "simple times" or any type of libertarian society the only thing I can think about is how all of them would be dead. The are rotten issues with our world now but they are solvable and life now in general IS better than it was in the past for any type of marginalized community.
I’m injured and useless I don’t take pain meds so there’s that but I’ve nothing to contribute besides my knowledge n rational skills. I cant even demo most anything. I can’t type but on a phn, laying down. 1 finger yeah. No book happening. Frustrating is an understatement
To touch on one small part of your presentation that touched me in the show…I felt that Bill and Frank’s romance was so beautiful (and would have been beautiful no matter the couple in this setting) because they were able to build this love and romance completely removed from the weight of others, either good or bad. It was literal years before they met any others at all, and it was ok because they weren’t treated as anything but themselves by Joel and Tess. A wonderful exploration.
Such a wonderful essay. The Leftovers is my favorite television series ever, and Station Eleven is near the top as well. The Last of Us Part II is the best game I've ever played. The connecting themes between them all are so strong, I love this type of storytelling. All of these shows also use bottle flashback episodes as an exquisite storytelling device - see Ep 3 of The Last of Us with Bill and Frank, or S1E3 and 4 of The Leftovers (among others), or several episodes of Station Eleven, specifically E5 "The Severn City Airport". All three shows owe a lot to a modern pioneer of this device - LOST (no coincidence that the showrunner there created The Leftovers).
Station Eleven was a beautiful representation of a realistic post apocalyptic world. We as people don’t only need water and food to survive but also entertainment and art to truly thrive.
Hands down the best channel on RUclips. I've not even seen any of these shows (yet) and I found myself deeply emotional at the discussion around each of them. Thank you for "holding back the apocalypse one good day at a time" (killer line).
Most of humankind is inherently peaceful and loving, even the people that participate in violence. The outliers of humanity are the people that are born not being able to understand or feel empathy. All of this crap where they say "this is just human nature" violence is learned and it is something that we experience, not something that is natural to us.
In these scenarios, the one thing that is different from previous times is "resource abundance" (at least at the start). In other words, a world where people's access to the things they need to survive (land, housing, tools, food, water, etc) is not limited by the ability to pay. This means that a collective commons can spring up where before life was constricted and brutish because people needed to generate an income at all costs just to survive. A pay to play system. This kind of post-apocalyptic scenario thus produces a non-rivalrous world where human beings can once again reclaim their true nature.
It's amazing. I just wish that there was more similar shows. The shows I've seen that has given me somewhat similar vibes (but are still very different) is Midnight Gospel and Undone.
@@cornfednebraskaneerOddly, I feel that the adaptations of Tom Perrotta's work are generally superior to his books. The Leftovers is probably the best TV show of the modern era. The book was...fine. With Little Children, the film felt like a much-improved second draft. So too, with Election.
Having played TLOU 10 years ago and watched Station11, The Leftovers finale hit me in such a potent way it will always hold a special place in my heart. Every story develops its own tone and are truly worth watching and I would give my kidneys to be able to forget them and experience them again
I'm glad you covered Station Eleven. It's such an underrated show and it's also one of my favorite books. I always thought it refreshing that the message was that surviving is necessary but is not the only way to live.
I was at HBO when "The Leftovers" was made - I read the pilot script and it just felt off - I didn't connect to it at all. Some years later, I was a devoted reader & watcher of post apocalyptic fiction and a friend at HBO said he thought I'd really like it. So I binged it and was blown away. Especially the last two episodes just tore me apart and left me sobbing. It's great storytelling. Another great video essay on a topic I enjoy, thanks!
Great video. I love the framing of the apocalypse as a state of mind we encompass and breaking free of that by searching for hope. The Last Of Us is such an interesting case study as a story originally written before the pandemic and now getting a second life after it, and you can feel the way it is shaped by the collective experience of the pandemic. I'm glad it decided to bring a more hopeful message, really loving the series so far. I haven't seen Station Eleven or The Leftovers, I definitely have to add them to my watch list now.
I still recommend the World War Z audiobook; it is one of the best. I always thought that the best way to do the book justice would be a Band of Brothers style HBO miniseries. Well, now that 10 years have passed and the streaming revolution has come, it does seem like the time is ripe.
7:08 I’m a queer man, so it’s somewhat rare I see a love story in fiction that proves a good representation of how I would love somebody, but Bill and Frank were perfect, and I think that’s why it got me. Crushed me so bad that I could barely talk for almost half an hour it got me because the first time in popular culture that I had seen a real representation of gay love, the kind of love that I want as an adult, that I can only dream of experiencing for myself, the first time I saw that, it was ripped away, but it wasn’t violent. Their relationship ended the way it had existed, coming from a place of undeniable and beautiful love. They never stopped loving each other and that’s what I long for in my life. That’s why it hurt so much to see it end so soon.
As I'm sure you know, there is no such thing as perfect love, gay, straight, whatever. It doesn't exist. However, the ideal is useful in improving the real love that we have and express to others. So I'm not condemning the depiction for not being realistic- perhaps they chose to ignore the bad days and concentrate on the good ones, as one naturally and intelligently does when one is in love. I have been with the same woman for over 20 years now- since 2001, and we argue semi frequently- although not too seriously. But a common mistake I see is people clinging to an ideal of perfection. The perfect lover. They judge the person they're with against an imaginary ideal - against a perfection that does not exist. Accepting the other persons humanity- their failings, is the only way to make love last. And so the warning against perfection.
@@dionmcgee5610 obviously, yeah perfection is unattainable. I think the show knows that though, because the make a point of showing that bill and frank DO argue.
The thing about apocalypse films, is it’s about the journey, and what comes with it. It reminds me what grandpa taught; you are what you carry with you.
I'm preparing for the soon-to-be apocalypse by gathering as much water as i can in order to control a specific subset of the survivors. I'm also thinking of changing my name to something more dramatic like Immortan Joe or something
i’ve seen some comments talking about how our present world is so ~close~ to an apocalypse, but from my view i feel our world has already reached a place where it could be defined as dystopian or apocalyptic - unquestionably in certain areas, less so in others, but overall meeting the requirements for what could be called an apocalypse. our present at the very least serves as the impetus for a hyper-present yet still oncoming apocalyptic story, which is something we all can agree on. but i think we would more definitively categorize the present as apocalyptic if we could look at it objectively, outside of our experience living within it. because all people of all times have had something to live for, so not having something to live for should not be criteria for what is and isn’t an apocalypse. if that was the criteria, nothing outside of complete extinction of humanity would be an apocalypse, because even two of us, even ONE of us, would find something. i imagine how people of other centuries, if given the chance to see how we live, would be both amazed at our advances and disgusted at our worsening inequalities and many of our societal expectations. how our advances have not led to less suffering, but more, with most people of the past envisioning the future as holding the potential to achieve universal peace akin to that in Star Trek. at present, the most optimistic of us would not reasonably predict such peace, maybe at best a continuance of our current prosperities. even medieval peasants got more days off than most americans do, while having a social structure that (aside from times of mass crop failure or disease) ensured they would be fed, housed, and a part of a community. many if not most of the people of our modern day do not have those guarantees or even mild assurances under neoliberal global capitalism. am i saying i’d rather be a medieval peasant? no, but it’s important to examine how our modern society can be seen as barbaric when viewed through the eyes of past humans who we usually think of as less enlightened or living in squalor. looking at our conditions outside of our personal context for those conditions and wondering what we can do better is the duty of every person, even if we can only make small changes in our lifetimes. that is something i firmly believe as someone who often lives in despair yet still desperately wants to cling onto the same hope that these apocalyptic stories tell us again and again to preserve. for our own sakes, for our loved ones, for our community, for our world. we pity the hanged man that came before us as the noose tightens on our own necks, and we are told to be thankful that the floor hasn’t yet dropped. but it shouldn’t be a question of who has it better, or whose noose is more snug; rather, what if no one has ever needed to be hanged in the first place?
This commentary and analysis felt like watching a flower bud unfold before my eyes - you let us in to ideas and messages that rang true, and deep. No pretension, no tortured analyses, just a gentle, better understanding. Thank you so very much for sharing your wisdom with us. You are the Professor that we all hope to be lucky enough to meet one of in University. A feast for the mind and heart.
When post-apocalyptic settings become a fantasy about rebirth of humanity it's a sign of a very troubled times. There's so much things I feel I have to hide, even and especially from people closest to me, because of fear of misunderstanding and hurt. I feel like to do something honest to yourself and your beliefs you have to become braver and braver or to endure more and more fakeness to survive in modern society. As an example (one of many, but fresh in my mind) I don't remember when I was moved by a scene of any marriage until Frank's and Bill's one. Marriage is horrifyingly interesting and controversial to me - even if it's a sincere act of commitment of two people loving each other I cannot shake the feeling that this one true thing is wrapped in many layers of artificial stuff, easier to swallow if you're wealthy, eager to party or don't mind to go through religious/state procedures. And it all have to follow a strict protocol. Frank and Bill were truly marrying each other, in a very personal and sweet manner, after years of love. They were as real as those strawberries in the garden among desolated land.
"Frank and Bill were truly marrying each other, in a very personal and sweet manner, after years of love. They were as real as those strawberries in the garden among desolated land." Annnnnnd I'm crying again-
Marriage is a human universal in all known cultures historically. If you have a problem with it, then it may signal something deeper in you, or that our current world is so different than before, or that there has always been something wrong with humans.
My personal favorite post-apocalypse series is the manga Girls' Last Tour because it take a truly hopeless scenario and finds happiness in it. I'd say a lot of post-apocalyptic stories take place in "mortally wounded" worlds. That is to say if something isn't done soon then humanity will "bleed out" and go extinct, but the bleeding is being stopped with new communities forming (like Jackson in TLOU) and there is a budding hope for the future. The world of GLT on the other hand is one that is letting out it's very last breath. There is no hope for a recovery. It's over before the story begins. Despite an utterly hopeless reality, GLT is a remarkably lighthearted series following two girls as they travel through this dead world living their day to day life as they scour for means of survival. Even though there's no real hope for the future they can still enjoy life and they have a purpose because they still have each other. They can marvel at and find happiness in the simplest of pleasures like eating freshly baked bread, a scavenged bar of chocolate, or taking a photo together. The world may have ended, but their lives have not and they're going to make the most of their time together. Everything is doomed to end, but that doesn't mean we can't find joy in the time we have.
when you know that the world has ended, it frees one's mind to think about one's own life and nothing beyond that. there's nothing to fight for anymore. just pure hedonism and survival.
I was utterly blown away by the Last of Us tv show going into it blind not having played the game. The cinematography in the first episode immediately pulled me in and although the tv show isn't done yet it is one of my favorite shows. Apocalypse stories have always drawn my attention especially the way in which they portray humanity, so thank you for this new upload.
station eleven is the most refreshing take on apocalyptic fiction i’ve seen in a while. its thesis is that people will always seek to build community, through their trauma. and in that sense it reflects our past as much as our potential future. it also literally reflect our past, many societies have experienced apocalypse (the black plague, settler colonial genocide, etc). and yet human relations have always been forged and built out of them. and also traveling theater caravans were literally how the theater tradition was born. and the dangers they faced on the roads at the hand of bandits reflect the kinds of dangers nomadic and trades people would face on the ancient trade routes, before mass civilizations had a monopoly on state control. ancient traders also feared bandit attacks and traversing through pockets of “dangerous territory”
It got acclaim by those who watched, but it was a very underrated and underwatched show, never even nominated for any major awards besides critics choice
@S I watched it live and remember people who watched it saying it was great but have literally never met anyone irl who's seen it. Also don't think viewership was that high either.
@Taboowriter I always loved Kevin and think Matt had a pretty great arc (started off as a PoS but grew). The show is kind of about depressed people, so makes sense you might not like any of them. But as succession showed, you don't have to like characters for it to be a good show.
I mean no offence when I say this, I love putting on your videos to fall asleep. I do watch them normally but I you are my go to for a nice deep sleep ❤
Your essay has struck a deep chord in me. I feel like these are things that I know, that all of us know deep down. I think I was unable to articulate them until I listened to you speak them out loud. So thank you, for this beautiful essay, and for giving voice to things that need to be said, and talked about.
This was one of the main underlying themes of The Walking Dead, mainly its earlier seasons. Most people only know the show for its viral shock moments and plot twists that became more invasive as the show went on, but it was always the same message as in the video of finding a way to live through an apocalyptic setting that I got a lot from
Primitive skills are priceless in an apocalyptic setting. This is appealing to people who feel that the current world has left them behind. Nerds are getting rich with tech. The apocolypse makes hunting, fighting, etc abilities important again. It allows viewers to feel essential and appreciated again.
I think it's easy to see where it's going: Post-Dystopian. I started working on a story in that genre 10 and a half years ago, before hardly anyone was using that genre name. Now, it seems others have seen a similar zeitgeist and are writing stories in or adjacent to that category. Some show cultures making due by adapting and getting used to what remains. Some are set further down the road where cultures start advancing once again. Mine is set even further, where the culture has recovered and in some aspects even exceeded the collapsed culture in both technology and morality. Star Trek might be considered to be in that last frame, although their culture has moved on so far from the collapse that it can be hard to see that the collapse happened without being told explicitly of their history.
Well done, as always. You shocked me with the synchronicity...your thumbnail reads, "Survival is not enough" and I just uploaded and scheduled the premiere of my new song in which the chorus goes, "I wanna do more than survive...I want more than to thrive". Keep up the great work.
I prefer the story of the Last of Us told by the game overall, but the show couldn’t really pull of Joel having a triple figure body count so… the changes were necessary. Also, I really liked the Bill and Frank storyline. It’s just weird to cycle characters in and out in an episode. In a game you can welcome and kill off or discard characters every mission, but in a show it is weird. Which is WHY it works better as a game for me.
this is a really beautiful video. I used to think about what would i be doing in an apocalypse and honestly the only thing i could think of was offing myself. Because my current struggles already felt insurmountable and the loss of whatever comfort i had would be too much to live without. Until recently i finally voiced my thoughts to my partner who told me that they believed i could survive and i agreed that i could but its not about surviving. Suriving is something i do everyday because i dont feel safe within my own mind and its a constant struggle to live. the conversation ended abruptly because ultimately its awkward to so casually admit that i was still entertaining the idea of suicide. And since then ive started to wonder what makes life worth living now as opposed to during an apocalypse. i dont really know the answer but i watching this video makes inspires me to keep searching for that meaning. Its very inspiring to me that ive stumbled acros this video at this point in my life and my journey with depression. I really appreciate that it was here and im glad you made it. I feel like i really need to prioritize watching these shows.
Really interesting analysis- I enjoy this kind of ‘apocalyptic’ story, because they always show that hope and connection are the most important things we can hang on to, even when everything else is falling apart. Because if you don’t have hope, you have nothing. That’s part of why I loved the WWZ book so much.
People have been saying that through thousands of years, what we need to concentrate on is being the best selves for others, world is not as bad as news makes you believe it is.
It's no more or less far-fetched than it was when the US and USSR were pointing nukes at each other or when the depression wracked the planet. Humanity is an astounding sturdy species with a propensity towards the melodramatic.
@@alexcoyg3281 Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. How many children...not adults but children die of nutrition-related causes every 24 hours? You're right. We, all of us, need to concentrate on being the best selves for others we can be.
I keep seeing the phrase "It's easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism". Living in late stage capitalism, is knowing every day is closer to midnight and being powerless to change it.
i would posit most people believe it's easier to have a civil war than to just stop paying taxes aka stop funding the destruction of our country/things that violate your conscience..and post apocalypse, voluntaryism, where we trade goods and services and each party gets what they value, will be everywhere...capitalism isn't the problem...it's psychopaths with power and armies fucking it up for the rest of us...
It's exciting to escape the trope of escalating tension, death and drama that is so chronic in this genre. Look at the walking dead; they had to keep escalating who dies and what happens- you get numb to it, you stop getting attached to new characters that feed the death and drama machine and eventually, you just aren't invested. Death, conflict and sadness can be ended. Hope is unending; we can always dream.
I've wanted to watch it all the way through for years but I get so damn depressed so fast watching the show. Since I already have depression, it takes a toll on me to watch
I concur. I've watched that series 3 times over and have taken something away from it each time. It is heavy, as Joe B points out, and can take take a toll on you if you internalize too much of it. But if you can disassociate it just enough, it can impart the lessons of an anti-hero story to name one
I shouldn´t have watched this at work. I think you´ve Pavlov´d me into crying whenever you get deep into the emotional resonance and crafting of stories... specially onesI am already in love with. I skipped the Station Eleven bit. It´s on my watchlist, but between The Last of Us, MUBI, anime and some books I´m reading, I won´t be able to cope with more emotional gut punches. It´s like rewatching The Leftovers: the resonance of these stories can be far too much if the rest of your life feels like a weight that doesn´t allow you to breathe. I believe this stories are also part of our zeitgeist because of how our world is developing. This feelings of uneasiness, of being unable to help to change climate, end war, improving our mental health, our society... there is a void there, a lack of hope, that these stories are trying to find in the medium of imagination. I have been writing a story for a while with the same themes, and have found myself unable to separate my hopes from it, having it turn into something far less violent and more introspective, more about how the characters connect instead of how they fight each other. This is what I see in this chaotic stories. Anyway. Bawling. Thx.
Great point man! I've been noticing the same trend recently (non-dystopian post-apocalyptic stories.) Also glad you mentioned The Leftovers. That might be the best show I've ever seen.
This really helped me understand why even though I have hated the vast majority of apocalyptic stories in the past there are more and more exceptions. For example, the Road Warrior was a forgettable excuse for chase scenes and fights but The Road Warrior: Fury Road is one of my favorite movies. It's the difference between dog eat dog hopelessness and people uniting and taking care of one another.
An excellent essay about the rise of the green apocalypse. You captured my opinions and feelings. I too hope that The Last of Us generates the viewers that Station 11 and The Leftovers deserve. Bravo.
Weird to say, but a new generation will watch the HBO show before playing the game. What happens will be people who compare the show with the game to enjoy everything again.
I struggled with Station Eleven show as well. Felt like it was made for a younger generation. I did watch twice though and recommend it. There are not enough post apocalyptic shows out there 😂 Station Eleven book was great.
When I first saw the leftovers... I didn't know what was going on... But I got caught in the emotions and struggles the characters were going through... Towards the end... Even w the explanation of what actually happened... I was still lost... It didn't matter...what mattered was how the characters made it through all those hard times and the love they had for each other
17:52 I’d like to make another note here relating to my personal life. It’s been a pretty long while since I’ve had anyone outside of my own family that genuinely made me feel loved and in the times since that’s gone away, I’ve noticed an emptiness that I couldn’t really put my finger on until now. It’s the lack of reason to go on without someone to love and to be loved by.
The HBO show feels like two writers going back and forth about how they wished they had done what the other one did. It's a joy to watch the show as well as all the folks that have been looking down on videogames finally understand that they are just as much art as any book, movie or show is going "Well, this is one awesome story, how come I never heared of it before?!"
It’s interesting cause apocalypse meaning “the end of the world” or cataclysmic event is a fairly modern definition. In its original Greek it means to “uncover, disclose, reveal.” Or to create more insight or vision. Which is why it’s highly appropriate that “green apocalypse” is becoming a new theme in the apocalypse genre. The ancient wisdom of what an apocalypse really means for human beings is shining forward because, yes, sudden changes and insights happen all the time and can even be devastating and yet people persevere and find meaning within it, and may even become all the wiser because of it. There’s a deeper spiritual truth in apocalypse which is not really new if you think about it. It’s a tale as old as time. Human beings have survived countless apocalypses and flourished, at the micro and macro level, which should tell us there’s more to ourselves than we give ourselves (or our fellow man) credit for in these modern times.
Thank you for making this. With all of the madness that we're seeing on the news, with the whispers of every kind of war trying to break out, it's good to hear something SANE that gives me HOPE.
TLOU just makes me want to watch the superior The Road. I don't think post-apocalypticism determines human nature as savage but rather determines the importance of a common language through its negation. The protagonists are those who are attempting to pursue virtue in a post-moral world.
The original two versions of The Last of Us on PS3 and 4 felt more like a turning point. The last remains of the destruction were just barely hanging on as nature began to reclaim the cities, but the ugly architecture and tiny groups of hostile survivors were still left over as the new military factions grabbed up whatever cities they could. This carried over into Part 2, by which point that reclamation was complete and everyone belonged to a large faction or city-state because it was the only way to get by, even if you didn't 100% agree with their ideals. This artistic progression was lost in Part 1, which was retroactively portrayed with the same lush greenery as its sequel
I truly do feel that one quote from Days Gone, a game I hold very dear, applies to every story, of everybody on Earth. “Surviving ain’t living”. That is what sets us apart from other animals, it’s not our ability to survive, it’s our ability to live.
If you like Station Eleven, I’d definitely recommend Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play. It’s a play, and the premise seems goofy, but it’s genuinely a great modern post-apocalyptic story
"If you intend to claim the frenzied flame, I ask that you cease. It is not to be meddled with. It is chaos, devouring life and thought unending. However ruined this world has become, however mired in torment and despair... Life endures. Births continue. There is beauty in that, is there not? If you would become Lord, do not deny this notion. Please, leave the frenzied flame alone." The earnestness in sincerity in which Melina says this line always hits hard. Even in the face of a sometimes hopeless world, there will always be good and light to be found.
This was well put and made, reminds me of Days Gone and it's underlying message as this quote: “Doesn't Matter When You Hit The Road, Where You're Headin' Out To - But You Damn Well Better Know Where You're Comin' Home To.” Boozer - Days Gone
In apocalypses where only very few people survive, it may be possible to form connections and build something new. But I'm afraid the reality will be millions of people without any resources fighting for their survival. There will be no wine for a romantic dinner in the solitude. There will be two moms or two dads fighting each other to get a little bit of dirty water for their respective children to drink, because it's all that is left.
Post apocalyptic stories sometimes wallow in their premise. In the example of the Last of Us, I think the Fireflies finding a vaccine and playing kingmaker would have more to say about our world than pretending no technological fixes exist. Humans are capable, but are we fair? Despite this the Last of Us show is knocking it out of the park
I love your voice, once in my life I made a call to one of those business guru type programs to help you start a business. A very emotional and courageous moment for me, sitting on the phone a man answered who sounded JUST LIKE YOU, it said “Well, what kind of business would you like to start?” And in that moment I sat quiet realizing, I didn’t know exactly. It was the calmness in the voice that felt almost like a resonance of my own mind asking me who I really wanted to be and what I wanted to provide. I always hoped I might be able to get you to record that one line for when I tell my own story.
Strangely, I feel like Joel was always meant to be the flawed selfish character he was in the source material. Not all people become their greatest versions of themselves. While the circumstances surrounding him in Part 2 of the games were not what I would have expected or preferred, in the end it's more or less what I expected-- albeit in a very mishandled way. But, oh well. Good or bad Frank ending, I believe Joel's arc would have always been a slow spiral.
Be sure to check out the companion video "Why Now is the Perfect Time for a World War Z Sequel" on Nebula: nebula.tv/videos/lsoo-why-now-is-the-perfect-time-for-a-world-war-z-sequel (using this link gets you a personalized discount and helps support the channel!)
Really enjoyed this insight. Left a fuller comment in the main thread. Thank you.
Try living in a world where it already seems like an apocalypse.
Not because of covid or social interactions.
But a neglect of those with negative ones 24/7 by "happy" people.
Being in constant pain due to toxic positivity zero connections to be on fight daily and not even alone to fly away.
Some of us live and survive like this and many laughing at our suffering.
What of these people rather than an viral infection? Long before anything. Nothing to lose. During the peaceful times for the majority?
With suicide never coming into light just "living".
Do a Review on Zeitgeist addendum
No because it would just be people talking about how sad they are or some crap. My emotions (눈‸눈)
In the Last of Us (HBO show, and to a lesser extent, the game), the apocalypse is very obviously NOT the end of history; and I think that's a powerful message.
I believe that humanity won't dissapear if there's something that wipes the majority of people out of earth, some people will survive
Exactly it shows people can go up through the worst and get back up it's very realistic
Very powerful message
@@heassik3088 We're resilient little fuckers. I genuinely think there is nothing beyond a massive asteroid that could get rid of us for good. And we're already testing asteroid defence systems.
Why to a lesser extent the game? Folks been acting like the game had one or two lines of dialogue and the show created all the rest wtf
20:32 I also came to this realization watching Last of Us. The difference between surviving and living. It was episode 3 when it clicked. Joel and Bill go through the motions of surviving to see the next day. Almost mechanical. Frank and Ellie on the other hand are living: having fun, making connections. The badass survivors have also become zombies in their own right.
very interesting perspective. I was just arguing about the immediacy of death and suffering in post-apocalyptic settings makes need to survive and act clear. In this manner, we could say that post-apocalyptic life is simplified compared to modern life, where societal stability and abundance makes survival and action less self-evident.
But I had not thought about the distinction between survival and living...
I think you have the ppl backwards.
Wait until you realize we don’t need an apocalypse for people to be living in survival mode in the current world
I'd rather be the survivalist than be like Frank or Ellie being incompetent and silly
@@reynemanzano Post-apocalyptic life would NOT be simpler compared to modern life. 90% of your day would consist of maintaining gardens and livestock and collecting water without any labor saving devices. Every day would be exhaustion and ache and fear that a slight change in weather would devastate your food supply. Watch the film A HIDDEN LIFE if you want to see what pre-industrial farm living is like.
I went to emergency room at our local hospital the other night. The waiting area was standing room only, the 2m distance stickers almost worn off the floors; aisles were crowded with dozens of sleeping homeless people, shopping carts mounded with trash blocking the ways; security guards? too many to count; two young men under guard, secured to wheelchair via tie straps yelling profanity; the nurse who installed my iv quietly wept and apologized for it....we are not so far from breaking. Thank you for offering good time stories to help me deny the truths at hand. God bless, and good luck.
that is an experience. Where did this take place, as in country?
@@cleigh113 I live in a small (65,000) northern town in Ontario, Canada. I was at the hospital from about 5pm until near midnight. The care and attention I received was top quality - the nurses unbelievably attentive. The environment, however, was absolute chaos; 3 code whites (violent person) while I was there. The hospital is a designated warming center for the homeless during colder nights. Drug abuse is out of control.
@@jlloydb1of9 Don't forget, that's one room on one bad night and it's designed to solve those problems, but it also concentrates them. Last few years have been tough on everybody, we'll get through it. Our parents went through worse and our grandparents before them too.
@@userJohnSmith thank you, for offering a more optimistic perspective.
@@jlloydb1of9 My dad was a prosecutor growing up. He lived in a world inundated with the worst of humanity, he refused to let it consume him and was an ever present positive force in my life. Everytime I get down, I just remind myself he dealt with murderers and rapists, daily, and came home smiling.
Before, we imagined how we’d die in a apocalypse. Now, we understand how we live in one.
I wonder if that could be said about living in a dictatorship.
What does that mean really? Apocalypse, then?
@@SGR403 Literally means modern life is a fucking stress and it sucks might as well call it an apocalypse experience already.
im14andthisisdeep
@@KokorocodonIt makes a lot more sense to call it a dystopia than an apocalypse
I feel that the appeal to apocalypse stories like these is a sense of 'the return of meaningful action'. There's less people to replace you, less structure to adhere to, and less pressure to conform to, and in many ways that can feel liberating, knowing that nobody else around may know how to tend a vegetable garden as well as you, and it is your joy and your personal calling to do just that, and thus feeling like you are making a real difference to the world around you, while also not being forced or expected to shape your personality or beliefs to a large structured society's standards.
Wow... You put my feelings into words... All I want to do is grow plants. If all hell broke loose, I'd be free to do just that. I've got hermetically sealed totes full of seeds of all types.
The selfish desire to literally destroy societal stability so that we have overall less peace in totalityjust so I as an individual have a little bit more personal peace and significance.
Maybe a bit more self awareness and rationality is needed not the destruction of the collective machine for production?
What’s crazy is that if you want to… you really could return to that life style. Communities like that exist.
Or you could just go off the grid. Live off the land.
Not in America tho. Because someone would own the land, and even if you owned it you’d have to make enough money to pay taxes on it…
You really can’t just build a life anymore.
You can’t go into the woods and just start building a cabin. Which is BS. Tho it makes sense. If they did let you do that I doubt as many of us would keep killing ourselves for bosses that hate us.
Apocalypse stories show how much we live in a falsely structured world, that what we find to be valuable has no value in that world.
While you put it nicely, it is rather well known "science" that people struggling for survival have more "meaning" in their life and less time to get bored and depressed. Not much to add to your idea though :)
Man, I still can't hear Bill saying "you were my purpose" without breaking down again. So beautiful...
😭😭😭
That makes two of us😢
I came to the comments area just to write about that line. I've never even seen the show & Nick Offerman made me cry! 8:22
Could someone please tell me what is wrong with the guy in the wheelchair? @@abisspassenger
@@DonnaBrooks it's a post-apocalypse story, we don't get a precise diagnosis. There's a scene where we see Offerman badly injured and the other guy is desperately tending to him, and then it flashes forwards many years and Offerman is the able-bodied one and his beloved is in a wheelchair with deteriorating mobility. It seems like a neurological disease like Motor Neurone to me.
I feel like since covid began in 2020, many of us also felt the things you pointed out in this video, constant longing for connection, meaning, purpose, missing our loved ones, distrusting the current institution, fear of the future and the unknown, many of us have lost someone because of covid, many lost their jobs, properties, etc, this theme is relevant now more than ever.
Even tho the world didn't end, as in post apocalyptic and apocalyptic stories, we still felt so vulnerable and fragile, the fact that the foundation of our society was shaken to it's core due to the pandemic, our governments, families, lives as we know it, will never be the same again.
Not same for you sure kid, but my life got better since pandemic, I made money from it and now living it up.
I think... we are at the start of the apocalypse... it doesn't happen in one day..or a year... or even ten... it takes more time... I don't think we'd know when it was over until we got to the post-apocalyptic stage... idk maybe I'm just a pessimist... but in some ways I kinda hope for the end of the world as we now know it.
@@YoWotm8Lol well then you are the minority sir
Covid just showed how evil the System we live in is.
A Tate Fanboy.
Did you buy some minors in East Europe and forced them into prostitution?
The idea that humans have a built in resistance to despair is interesting. I recall reading that humans almost went extinct, possibly falling to as little as 2000 people. It'd be interesting if this resilience in the face of the apocalypse is inherited from ancestors who survived an apocalypse of their own.
Correct ! A small pocket in Asia I believe, survived . We are resilient .
@@july9566 Can we get more context on this?
@@Dani_1012 Look up the Toba Eruption; I believe that's what they're referring to
This didn't happen
@@Dani_1012it is widely speculated that the supervolcano in Indonesia erupted 70,000+ years ago. The ash and dirt from the eruption is believed to have covered the sun for around 6 years which made plant-based food scarce making foraging unsustainable. Also, it ultimately also affected the animals mankind used to hunt then. There's also a theory that this eruption is why the remains of mankind from 100,000 years ago are significantly larger... to survive the scarcity of food, humanity had to size down. We literally are smaller than our ancestors...we could say we are descendants of giants :')
I'm a mental health practitioner for chronically suicidal folks, and this isn't just how we survive the apocalypse, this is how we build lives worth living in the here and now. We need each other as much as we need food, air, or water
perpetuation of normalcy for you and those you love is all prepping is
Oddly reminded of the movie Warm Bodies; how it's connection that ultimately saves humanity, not the closing of borders and distrust in others. It's a bit of a silly Romeo and Juliet-esque romcom set in a zombie apocalypse, but that message in the end honestly is why I like it so much.
Signed in just to reply bc Warm Bodies is one of my favorites. If you haven't read the book, I highly recommend it because the author has said that he wrote it in response to the current state of the world we're in and it takes the themes a whole lot further. It makes a lot of R's comments about "just wanting to connect" that much more effective. I remember being so pissed at how the movie was marketed as a romance (and to be fair, the romance is there) when the dark humor and overall message was what was really special about it for a zombie story.
There's also some banger quotes in the book like "There is no ideal world for you to wait around for. The world is always just what it is now, and it's up to you how you respond to it." and "We are where we are, however we got here. What matters is where we go next." Highly recommend :)))) Can you tell it's my favorite book?
The show is so good. When you first get to see the city, I was blown away. They did such a good job on capturing the feeling of the world.
As someone who didn't play the game, i was in awe
The show is not good, the game is. And instead of making an adaptation and interpretation they follow the storys and scenes nearly 1 by 1!
@@For4Reel game is a great, the show is good.
@@For4Reel uhhhhh no they dont. a lot of the show is different
@@For4Reel bruh the story is the same just the way it progressed is different and theyre adding elements that werent even in the game something a proper adaptation is supppsed to do
I think one of the things that attracts us to post-apocalypse stories is the freedom they offer. Evolution hasn't changed us to any significant degree for many thousands of years. Our most basic needs and desires are no different to those of our forebears who wandered the plains of Africa, the forests of Europe and the steppe and mountains of Asia. In sharp contrast, our modern world demands different things of us. From the moment we become truly conscious, we're herded through school and then into work to sell our time on this earth for everything from our most basic requirements to increasingly fabulous novelties to ease the pain of our way of life. In many respects we're born into captivity.
I think the end of the world represents the breaking of that cage that our Paleolithic selves are trapped within. It's a fantasy, of course; such a life would often be harsh and short, but it is still a life that our instincts were made from, and from which all our fundamental drives and behaviours derive. Love, companionship, the banding together against shared adversity, and the urge to wander, to be free beyond the abstract concepts of political theory.
In short, as you put it, our true natures.
The thing is, our nature will change. We are still evolving and if we live long enough we will keep changing. It's unfortunate that there is such a disconnect between our nature and way of life but answer to that is slowly evolving nature not regressing as society. It's a bit like cottage core the romanticization of simple agrarian culture but only fantastic version of it.
It is incredibly rare I come across deep and valuable comments on this platform. I very much enjoyed your writing and admired your thinking and perception of reality my friend.
So well said. I share your sentiment
“I was never afraid before you came along”
Bruh. I felt that.
"It demonstrates that regardless of our circumstances, it will always be human beings finding each, loving each other, and quietly living out fulfilling lives together." 🥰😊
The video is way too optimistic about people
@@LuisSierra42 As he said in the essay, having an optimistic outlook doesn't mean we can't be skeptical, much like the characters in Station Eleven. You can do both and still be a good person, it is really not that hard.
@@DaRkasSet13 In order to see what would happen with society if a government collapses, we just have to take a look at the many countries where this has happened, Haiti, Libya, Syria, Somalia, etc. People naturally form gangs and they start fighting each other for resources in the same way societies used to work in ancient times, so i don't believe that if civilization collapses, people are going to be mostly dancing and singing all around
@@LuisSierra42 We would not be where we are today if hUmAN nATurE was inherently bad. Chaos and destruction can bring about the worst of us, but that doesn't mean everyone will do so. In the current day, criminal and greedy acts are very much products of bad environments and still make up a very low percentage of the worlds actual population. If everything ends the majority of people aren't going to suddenly turn evil, and it is you being too pessimistic rather then us/this video being too optimistic.
@@gavingleason650 but that low percentage is a high percentage of our leadership soooo yeah
There's been a similar movement in sci-fi. Anyone who's read The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet will know what I mean. It feels refreshing to me. And honest. Episode 3 of the Last of Us is one of the most beautiful pieces of television I've ever seen, and I'm so glad it exists.
The end of the most recent book (our spaces and the ground between?) had me ~howling~ by the end.
You might really like Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. It goes through the intensity of the changing climate, but envisions a world where we act and create something better for the ones who come after us.
episode 3 sucked.
And we are fortunate to be alive now to watch it
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet is amazing. I just read it
The thing about Station Eleven is that it makes the real world look like the apocalyptic one
Does the video contain spoilers?
@@imnotusingmyrealname4566 nope
@@warandpoetry9542 ah thx, perfect so I can watch it
Well said. Station Eleven the TV show is a very hopeful vision. The book it is based on isn't so hopeful. I preferred the TV show.
... that's cause it is. This is not the best humanity has to offer, this is a misstep along the path. We have so much, yet have done nothing to resolve the actual issues of our time. When we get past this, we'll look back on this as an age every bit as barbaric as the "dark ages" (yes, I'm aware that's a horseshit term for laymen). Nero's fiddling will be but a mild joke compared to 1.5 billion fiddlers actively shooting flamethrowers into their own homes. This time we're living in will be seen as the most childish, self absorbed, and evil time of humanity; where we had so much and did nothing with it but evil. That'll be an oversimplification of course, there is still good being done, its literally what's going to get us past this, but only the exceptionally privileged would see this as a golden age.
STATION ELEVEN is my jam! I freaking love this series and convinced a friend to watch it with me. I thought he was going to watch only a few episodes, but it turned into a marathon and, in the end, he sat there crying, in stunned silence, when the final episode concluded. He eventually whispered, "Thank you for this, Thank you so much for this." I've known him for 27 years and last year was the first time I saw him cry. Interestingly, he's been avoiding THE LEFTOVERS as though it's a plague. He watched one episode and stopped. He said he doesn't believe he will be able to handle it.
There are some things that change us, fundamentally. CHILDREN OF MEN was one of those movies for me. THE LEFTOVERS and STATION ELEVEN are the shows that have done this to me, ANDOR, surprisingly, also did this to me. And, already, THE LAST OF US has been holding the same power. It's not enough to focus on survival. We require connection and love. That's where the light resides.
Andor and Station Eleven were very powerful for me too! I havent seen the other you mentioned but I will definitely check them out. I was crying for a lot of of Station Eleven 😅
I love your pitch for the World War Z sequel.
I was disheartened when I saw how far the movie strayed from the original book, and really wished they had explored more of the stories. Now, I think the stage has been perfectly set (with the pandemic sort of passed) to explore the nuance of those stories in a new life. Even though the real world pandemic wasn’t as drastic as zombies, people are still scrambling to find the humanity in the last few years of isolation. Exploring that humanity in these mediums is showing to be extremely well received if the heart is in the right place.
I agree, World war Z is a collection of accounts thanks to the interviewer and I would really love to see each of those stories in an episodic way I mean if they can make the Last of Us they can definitely make a book-faithful WorldWar Z
I was hoping they would take the approach which has been so successful with other movies like, Magnolia, Traffic, or Babel, in which they used famous international casts playing a cameo roles. It could have used the documentary approach that worked so well in District 9. The approach they took was the only thing that marred the final product; relying on the star power of Brad Pitt to carry the whole thing. I’m a big fan of Pitt, but let’s face it? One guy had to be on the scene of every single pivotal event during the rapid, chaotic breakdown of society? It was that bonkersness which robbed the movie of the one thing the book had going for it: its plausibility.
Zombie media is generally not to my taste, but World War Z? I adore that book. WHen i read it the first time, i simply could not stop. WHen i reread it recently, same thing happened.
I liked world war zimmerman
I'm still haunted about the story of the family that drive into the wilderness in Canada and live out their car in a wider community. And then things just slowly unravel when they realise that none of them have the skills to live out there. It's been seared in my mind forever. It's been 12 years since I've read it.
It's pure magic. In my darkest hours, when I'm struggling with fear and losing hope, a new essay from LSOO is there and my trust in "us" returns slowly.
The Leftovers really is a perfect show. Three tight seasons that told an original story in a perfect way. It takes the "mystery box" concept that the other creator of Lost (the one with more fame and less talent) constantly talks about, but actually makes the mystery an important part of the story. "I think I'll just let the mystery be."
I absolutely loved what they did with the Last of Us to make a beautiful story instead of a depressing one.
Plus, it was such a moving story and the actors did such a great job. We need more optimistic post apocalypses.
Finally, humans are filled with possibilities. We adapt, not only to our environments, but to the stories we tell each other. If the story is "everyone is selfish and untrustworthy," we act accordingly. We need to make stories we can live in. I love "survival is not enough," it emphasizes the kind of mindset we need to survive the future.
So happy to see Station 11 here! This story is one of the best I've seen about surviving after the end, not to kill each other, but to heal each other.
👍👍👍
remember the reunion of the adult Kirsten and aging Jeevan, wow. the emotion.
As a wheelchair bound person who takes 13+ meds I hope that im just taken out with the first wave or I just end it. I feel like this new world there would be no place for a person like me, especially I'm sure there would be no way even if I didn't take medications. It always makes me feel sad.
Virtual hugs to you.
Hang in there bud
We are not there so it's good at least!
Half of my family went through cancer surgeries/treatments and at times when people romanticize "simple times" or any type of libertarian society the only thing I can think about is how all of them would be dead. The are rotten issues with our world now but they are solvable and life now in general IS better than it was in the past for any type of marginalized community.
I’m injured and useless
I don’t take pain meds so there’s that but I’ve nothing to contribute besides my knowledge n rational skills. I cant even demo most anything. I can’t type but on a phn, laying down. 1 finger yeah. No book happening.
Frustrating is an understatement
Knowledge and wisdom to use it- high value in that.
To touch on one small part of your presentation that touched me in the show…I felt that Bill and Frank’s romance was so beautiful (and would have been beautiful no matter the couple in this setting) because they were able to build this love and romance completely removed from the weight of others, either good or bad. It was literal years before they met any others at all, and it was ok because they weren’t treated as anything but themselves by Joel and Tess. A wonderful exploration.
Such a wonderful essay. The Leftovers is my favorite television series ever, and Station Eleven is near the top as well. The Last of Us Part II is the best game I've ever played. The connecting themes between them all are so strong, I love this type of storytelling.
All of these shows also use bottle flashback episodes as an exquisite storytelling device - see Ep 3 of The Last of Us with Bill and Frank, or S1E3 and 4 of The Leftovers (among others), or several episodes of Station Eleven, specifically E5 "The Severn City Airport". All three shows owe a lot to a modern pioneer of this device - LOST (no coincidence that the showrunner there created The Leftovers).
The leftovers is a hidden gm, amazing acting , music , a crime it wasn’t more popular
>TLOU 2 is the best game I've ever played
My condolences
@@buildman126 It made me do a double take ngl XD
@@buildman126 oh would it kill you to be okay with people finding joy in things you hate???
@@nessie7306he meant the storyline dude it’s absolutely terrible due to a certain company writing it
Station Eleven was a beautiful representation of a realistic post apocalyptic world. We as people don’t only need water and food to survive but also entertainment and art to truly thrive.
Hands down the best channel on RUclips. I've not even seen any of these shows (yet) and I found myself deeply emotional at the discussion around each of them. Thank you for "holding back the apocalypse one good day at a time" (killer line).
Most of humankind is inherently peaceful and loving, even the people that participate in violence. The outliers of humanity are the people that are born not being able to understand or feel empathy. All of this crap where they say "this is just human nature" violence is learned and it is something that we experience, not something that is natural to us.
In these scenarios, the one thing that is different from previous times is "resource abundance" (at least at the start). In other words, a world where people's access to the things they need to survive (land, housing, tools, food, water, etc) is not limited by the ability to pay. This means that a collective commons can spring up where before life was constricted and brutish because people needed to generate an income at all costs just to survive. A pay to play system. This kind of post-apocalyptic scenario thus produces a non-rivalrous world where human beings can once again reclaim their true nature.
that's why you gotta prep and get out of the cities...more prepared people means fewer people behaving badly
Thank you for featuring The Leftovers - that show changed my life. I wish more people knew about it.
Yeah, that show is something else, maybe more crazy than the book.
It's amazing. I just wish that there was more similar shows. The shows I've seen that has given me somewhat similar vibes (but are still very different) is Midnight Gospel and Undone.
incredibly good show
It is amazing ❤
@@cornfednebraskaneerOddly, I feel that the adaptations of Tom Perrotta's work are generally superior to his books. The Leftovers is probably the best TV show of the modern era. The book was...fine. With Little Children, the film felt like a much-improved second draft. So too, with Election.
The Leftovers is an absolute MASTERPIECE. The story isn't about what happened, but about how we move on.
Having played TLOU 10 years ago and watched Station11, The Leftovers finale hit me in such a potent way it will always hold a special place in my heart. Every story develops its own tone and are truly worth watching and I would give my kidneys to be able to forget them and experience them again
I'm glad you covered Station Eleven. It's such an underrated show and it's also one of my favorite books.
I always thought it refreshing that the message was that surviving is necessary but is not the only way to live.
I was at HBO when "The Leftovers" was made - I read the pilot script and it just felt off - I didn't connect to it at all. Some years later, I was a devoted reader & watcher of post apocalyptic fiction and a friend at HBO said he thought I'd really like it. So I binged it and was blown away. Especially the last two episodes just tore me apart and left me sobbing. It's great storytelling.
Another great video essay on a topic I enjoy, thanks!
Great video. I love the framing of the apocalypse as a state of mind we encompass and breaking free of that by searching for hope. The Last Of Us is such an interesting case study as a story originally written before the pandemic and now getting a second life after it, and you can feel the way it is shaped by the collective experience of the pandemic. I'm glad it decided to bring a more hopeful message, really loving the series so far. I haven't seen Station Eleven or The Leftovers, I definitely have to add them to my watch list now.
I still recommend the World War Z audiobook; it is one of the best. I always thought that the best way to do the book justice would be a Band of Brothers style HBO miniseries. Well, now that 10 years have passed and the streaming revolution has come, it does seem like the time is ripe.
7:08 I’m a queer man, so it’s somewhat rare I see a love story in fiction that proves a good representation of how I would love somebody, but Bill and Frank were perfect, and I think that’s why it got me. Crushed me so bad that I could barely talk for almost half an hour it got me because the first time in popular culture that I had seen a real representation of gay love, the kind of love that I want as an adult, that I can only dream of experiencing for myself, the first time I saw that, it was ripped away, but it wasn’t violent. Their relationship ended the way it had existed, coming from a place of undeniable and beautiful love. They never stopped loving each other and that’s what I long for in my life. That’s why it hurt so much to see it end so soon.
As I'm sure you know, there is no such thing as perfect love, gay, straight, whatever. It doesn't exist.
However, the ideal is useful in improving the real love that we have and express to others.
So I'm not condemning the depiction for not being realistic- perhaps they chose to ignore the bad days and concentrate on the good ones, as one naturally and intelligently does when one is in love.
I have been with the same woman for over 20 years now- since 2001, and we argue semi frequently- although not too seriously.
But a common mistake I see is people clinging to an ideal of perfection. The perfect lover. They judge the person they're with against an imaginary ideal - against a perfection that does not exist. Accepting the other persons humanity- their failings, is the only way to make love last.
And so the warning against perfection.
@@dionmcgee5610 obviously, yeah perfection is unattainable. I think the show knows that though, because the make a point of showing that bill and frank DO argue.
I'm bisexual but I wanted more action in that episode. Some parts was good. But others was too slow
"I don't want to survive! I want to LIVE!"
- Captain from Wall•E
🥲
The thing about apocalypse films, is it’s about the journey, and what comes with it. It reminds me what grandpa taught;
you are what you carry with you.
Great comment.
I'm preparing for the soon-to-be apocalypse by gathering as much water as i can in order to control a specific subset of the survivors. I'm also thinking of changing my name to something more dramatic like Immortan Joe or something
You barely even scratched the surface of Station 11 and now I ABSOLUTELY need to watch it.
It’s definitely worth the watch
I have always had a strong appeal towards apocolypse stories. I never knew why. Thank you so much for making this video and helping me realize.
i’ve seen some comments talking about how our present world is so ~close~ to an apocalypse, but from my view i feel our world has already reached a place where it could be defined as dystopian or apocalyptic - unquestionably in certain areas, less so in others, but overall meeting the requirements for what could be called an apocalypse. our present at the very least serves as the impetus for a hyper-present yet still oncoming apocalyptic story, which is something we all can agree on.
but i think we would more definitively categorize the present as apocalyptic if we could look at it objectively, outside of our experience living within it. because all people of all times have had something to live for, so not having something to live for should not be criteria for what is and isn’t an apocalypse. if that was the criteria, nothing outside of complete extinction of humanity would be an apocalypse, because even two of us, even ONE of us, would find something.
i imagine how people of other centuries, if given the chance to see how we live, would be both amazed at our advances and disgusted at our worsening inequalities and many of our societal expectations. how our advances have not led to less suffering, but more, with most people of the past envisioning the future as holding the potential to achieve universal peace akin to that in Star Trek. at present, the most optimistic of us would not reasonably predict such peace, maybe at best a continuance of our current prosperities. even medieval peasants got more days off than most americans do, while having a social structure that (aside from times of mass crop failure or disease) ensured they would be fed, housed, and a part of a community. many if not most of the people of our modern day do not have those guarantees or even mild assurances under neoliberal global capitalism.
am i saying i’d rather be a medieval peasant? no, but it’s important to examine how our modern society can be seen as barbaric when viewed through the eyes of past humans who we usually think of as less enlightened or living in squalor. looking at our conditions outside of our personal context for those conditions and wondering what we can do better is the duty of every person, even if we can only make small changes in our lifetimes. that is something i firmly believe as someone who often lives in despair yet still desperately wants to cling onto the same hope that these apocalyptic stories tell us again and again to preserve. for our own sakes, for our loved ones, for our community, for our world.
we pity the hanged man that came before us as the noose tightens on our own necks, and we are told to be thankful that the floor hasn’t yet dropped. but it shouldn’t be a question of who has it better, or whose noose is more snug; rather, what if no one has ever needed to be hanged in the first place?
This commentary and analysis felt like watching a flower bud unfold before my eyes - you let us in to ideas and messages that rang true, and deep. No pretension, no tortured analyses, just a gentle, better understanding. Thank you so very much for sharing your wisdom with us. You are the Professor that we all hope to be lucky enough to meet one of in University. A feast for the mind and heart.
When post-apocalyptic settings become a fantasy about rebirth of humanity it's a sign of a very troubled times. There's so much things I feel I have to hide, even and especially from people closest to me, because of fear of misunderstanding and hurt. I feel like to do something honest to yourself and your beliefs you have to become braver and braver or to endure more and more fakeness to survive in modern society.
As an example (one of many, but fresh in my mind) I don't remember when I was moved by a scene of any marriage until Frank's and Bill's one. Marriage is horrifyingly interesting and controversial to me - even if it's a sincere act of commitment of two people loving each other I cannot shake the feeling that this one true thing is wrapped in many layers of artificial stuff, easier to swallow if you're wealthy, eager to party or don't mind to go through religious/state procedures. And it all have to follow a strict protocol. Frank and Bill were truly marrying each other, in a very personal and sweet manner, after years of love. They were as real as those strawberries in the garden among desolated land.
"Frank and Bill were truly marrying each other, in a very personal and sweet manner, after years of love. They were as real as those strawberries in the garden among desolated land."
Annnnnnd I'm crying again-
@@KristinaEspinoza If those are good tears then it means a world to me, thank you :)
Cringe
Marriage is a human universal in all known cultures historically. If you have a problem with it, then it may signal something deeper in you, or that our current world is so different than before, or that there has always been something wrong with humans.
My personal favorite post-apocalypse series is the manga Girls' Last Tour because it take a truly hopeless scenario and finds happiness in it. I'd say a lot of post-apocalyptic stories take place in "mortally wounded" worlds. That is to say if something isn't done soon then humanity will "bleed out" and go extinct, but the bleeding is being stopped with new communities forming (like Jackson in TLOU) and there is a budding hope for the future. The world of GLT on the other hand is one that is letting out it's very last breath. There is no hope for a recovery. It's over before the story begins.
Despite an utterly hopeless reality, GLT is a remarkably lighthearted series following two girls as they travel through this dead world living their day to day life as they scour for means of survival. Even though there's no real hope for the future they can still enjoy life and they have a purpose because they still have each other. They can marvel at and find happiness in the simplest of pleasures like eating freshly baked bread, a scavenged bar of chocolate, or taking a photo together. The world may have ended, but their lives have not and they're going to make the most of their time together. Everything is doomed to end, but that doesn't mean we can't find joy in the time we have.
when you know that the world has ended, it frees one's mind to think about one's own life and nothing beyond that. there's nothing to fight for anymore. just pure hedonism and survival.
I was utterly blown away by the Last of Us tv show going into it blind not having played the game. The cinematography in the first episode immediately pulled me in and although the tv show isn't done yet it is one of my favorite shows. Apocalypse stories have always drawn my attention especially the way in which they portray humanity, so thank you for this new upload.
Fr me and my girlfriend loved the show I couldn't stop saying what was different
And agreed we need much better zombie shows
station eleven is the most refreshing take on apocalyptic fiction i’ve seen in a while. its thesis is that people will always seek to build community, through their trauma. and in that sense it reflects our past as much as our potential future.
it also literally reflect our past, many societies have experienced apocalypse (the black plague, settler colonial genocide, etc). and yet human relations have always been forged and built out of them. and also traveling theater caravans were literally how the theater tradition was born. and the dangers they faced on the roads at the hand of bandits reflect the kinds of dangers nomadic and trades people would face on the ancient trade routes, before mass civilizations had a monopoly on state control. ancient traders also feared bandit attacks and traversing through pockets of “dangerous territory”
Thank God someone is finally talking about The Leftovers. Amazing show and everyone should go watch now.
finally? were you not around when the show was on and getting acclaim...
It got acclaim by those who watched, but it was a very underrated and underwatched show, never even nominated for any major awards besides critics choice
I tried to get into it and watched up until season 2 because I thought smart people liked it, but god damn is it bad. There are no likable characters.
@S I watched it live and remember people who watched it saying it was great but have literally never met anyone irl who's seen it. Also don't think viewership was that high either.
@Taboowriter I always loved Kevin and think Matt had a pretty great arc (started off as a PoS but grew). The show is kind of about depressed people, so makes sense you might not like any of them. But as succession showed, you don't have to like characters for it to be a good show.
I mean no offence when I say this, I love putting on your videos to fall asleep. I do watch them normally but I you are my go to for a nice deep sleep ❤
hahahaha. No offence intended but i watch them at 2x speed
@@LuisSierra42looooool
Soothing voice and deep themes
Your essay has struck a deep chord in me. I feel like these are things that I know, that all of us know deep down. I think I was unable to articulate them until I listened to you speak them out loud.
So thank you, for this beautiful essay, and for giving voice to things that need to be said, and talked about.
This was one of the main underlying themes of The Walking Dead, mainly its earlier seasons.
Most people only know the show for its viral shock moments and plot twists that became more invasive as the show went on, but it was always the same message as in the video of finding a way to live through an apocalyptic setting that I got a lot from
Primitive skills are priceless in an apocalyptic setting. This is appealing to people who feel that the current world has left them behind.
Nerds are getting rich with tech.
The apocolypse makes hunting, fighting, etc abilities important again. It allows viewers to feel essential and appreciated again.
Not to mention all these ceos are basically fucked without there workers and their money they losses all there power without the all mighty dollar
Station 11 is so good. It starts kinda flat but really sneaks up on you.
Station 11 is great, it drew me in like nothing else. It has this heavy sense of mystery and something greater going on.
I think it's easy to see where it's going: Post-Dystopian. I started working on a story in that genre 10 and a half years ago, before hardly anyone was using that genre name. Now, it seems others have seen a similar zeitgeist and are writing stories in or adjacent to that category. Some show cultures making due by adapting and getting used to what remains. Some are set further down the road where cultures start advancing once again. Mine is set even further, where the culture has recovered and in some aspects even exceeded the collapsed culture in both technology and morality. Star Trek might be considered to be in that last frame, although their culture has moved on so far from the collapse that it can be hard to see that the collapse happened without being told explicitly of their history.
Well done, as always. You shocked me with the synchronicity...your thumbnail reads, "Survival is not enough" and I just uploaded and scheduled the premiere of my new song in which the chorus goes, "I wanna do more than survive...I want more than to thrive".
Keep up the great work.
I prefer the story of the Last of Us told by the game overall, but the show couldn’t really pull of Joel having a triple figure body count so… the changes were necessary.
Also, I really liked the Bill and Frank storyline. It’s just weird to cycle characters in and out in an episode. In a game you can welcome and kill off or discard characters every mission, but in a show it is weird. Which is WHY it works better as a game for me.
this is a really beautiful video. I used to think about what would i be doing in an apocalypse and honestly the only thing i could think of was offing myself. Because my current struggles already felt insurmountable and the loss of whatever comfort i had would be too much to live without. Until recently i finally voiced my thoughts to my partner who told me that they believed i could survive and i agreed that i could but its not about surviving. Suriving is something i do everyday because i dont feel safe within my own mind and its a constant struggle to live. the conversation ended abruptly because ultimately its awkward to so casually admit that i was still entertaining the idea of suicide. And since then ive started to wonder what makes life worth living now as opposed to during an apocalypse. i dont really know the answer but i watching this video makes inspires me to keep searching for that meaning. Its very inspiring to me that ive stumbled acros this video at this point in my life and my journey with depression. I really appreciate that it was here and im glad you made it. I feel like i really need to prioritize watching these shows.
Really interesting analysis- I enjoy this kind of ‘apocalyptic’ story, because they always show that hope and connection are the most important things we can hang on to, even when everything else is falling apart. Because if you don’t have hope, you have nothing. That’s part of why I loved the WWZ book so much.
These days, the apocalypse isn't a far-fetched idea.
People have been saying that through thousands of years, what we need to concentrate on is being the best selves for others, world is not as bad as news makes you believe it is.
It's no more or less far-fetched than it was when the US and USSR were pointing nukes at each other or when the depression wracked the planet. Humanity is an astounding sturdy species with a propensity towards the melodramatic.
Remember when one guy was the only thing that prevented nukes from flying? Yeah that was crazy.
@@alexcoyg3281 Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. How many children...not adults but children die of nutrition-related causes every 24 hours?
You're right. We, all of us, need to concentrate on being the best selves for others we can be.
I haven't even watched Station Eleven, but when you described it, I got teary eyed. I'm still wondering why.
I keep seeing the phrase "It's easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism". Living in late stage capitalism, is knowing every day is closer to midnight and being powerless to change it.
i would posit most people believe it's easier to have a civil war than to just stop paying taxes aka stop funding the destruction of our country/things that violate your conscience..and post apocalypse, voluntaryism, where we trade goods and services and each party gets what they value, will be everywhere...capitalism isn't the problem...it's psychopaths with power and armies fucking it up for the rest of us...
Thank you for this. I’ve been struggling with panic attacks and anxiety the past few weeks and this really did help put things into perspective
It's exciting to escape the trope of escalating tension, death and drama that is so chronic in this genre. Look at the walking dead; they had to keep escalating who dies and what happens- you get numb to it, you stop getting attached to new characters that feed the death and drama machine and eventually, you just aren't invested. Death, conflict and sadness can be ended. Hope is unending; we can always dream.
"The Leftovers" is the greatest tv show ever produced. Props for encouraging people to watch it. All 3 seasons are perfect in entirely different ways.
I've wanted to watch it all the way through for years but I get so damn depressed so fast watching the show. Since I already have depression, it takes a toll on me to watch
I concur. I've watched that series 3 times over and have taken something away from it each time. It is heavy, as Joe B points out, and can take take a toll on you if you internalize too much of it. But if you can disassociate it just enough, it can impart the lessons of an anti-hero story to name one
Amen for that
Never heard os Station Eleven or The Leftovers, gonna have to go see how I can watch them! Great video!
they are amazing and really helped me get through the pandemic
I shouldn´t have watched this at work. I think you´ve Pavlov´d me into crying whenever you get deep into the emotional resonance and crafting of stories... specially onesI am already in love with.
I skipped the Station Eleven bit. It´s on my watchlist, but between The Last of Us, MUBI, anime and some books I´m reading, I won´t be able to cope with more emotional gut punches. It´s like rewatching The Leftovers: the resonance of these stories can be far too much if the rest of your life feels like a weight that doesn´t allow you to breathe.
I believe this stories are also part of our zeitgeist because of how our world is developing. This feelings of uneasiness, of being unable to help to change climate, end war, improving our mental health, our society... there is a void there, a lack of hope, that these stories are trying to find in the medium of imagination. I have been writing a story for a while with the same themes, and have found myself unable to separate my hopes from it, having it turn into something far less violent and more introspective, more about how the characters connect instead of how they fight each other. This is what I see in this chaotic stories.
Anyway. Bawling. Thx.
You use “these stories” and “this stories” alternately - “these” is correct with the plural.
@@AdinaIspas I am not an english native speaker. Thanks for pointing that out
Great point man! I've been noticing the same trend recently (non-dystopian post-apocalyptic stories.) Also glad you mentioned The Leftovers. That might be the best show I've ever seen.
I knew you'd come through on this. 🙂 I rewatched your video on the game after this show started and was waiting for you to revisit. Thank you.
This really helped me understand why even though I have hated the vast majority of apocalyptic stories in the past there are more and more exceptions. For example, the Road Warrior was a forgettable excuse for chase scenes and fights but The Road Warrior: Fury Road is one of my favorite movies. It's the difference between dog eat dog hopelessness and people uniting and taking care of one another.
An excellent essay about the rise of the green apocalypse. You captured my opinions and feelings. I too hope that The Last of Us generates the viewers that Station 11 and The Leftovers deserve. Bravo.
Man... I really appreciate your take on these works. Thank you.
Weird to say, but a new generation will watch the HBO show before playing the game. What happens will be people who compare the show with the game to enjoy everything again.
this needs more attention. also side note, i love your narrating voice!!
I struggled with Station Eleven show as well. Felt like it was made for a younger generation. I did watch twice though and recommend it. There are not enough post apocalyptic shows out there 😂
Station Eleven book was great.
When I first saw the leftovers... I didn't know what was going on... But I got caught in the emotions and struggles the characters were going through... Towards the end... Even w the explanation of what actually happened... I was still lost... It didn't matter...what mattered was how the characters made it through all those hard times and the love they had for each other
The show never explains what happened. It's left ambiguous.
@@rvantong I was referring to the departure... When they "reveal" the departure
17:52
I’d like to make another note here relating to my personal life. It’s been a pretty long while since I’ve had anyone outside of my own family that genuinely made me feel loved and in the times since that’s gone away, I’ve noticed an emptiness that I couldn’t really put my finger on until now. It’s the lack of reason to go on without someone to love and to be loved by.
The HBO show feels like two writers going back and forth about how they wished they had done what the other one did. It's a joy to watch the show as well as all the folks that have been looking down on videogames finally understand that they are just as much art as any book, movie or show is going "Well, this is one awesome story, how come I never heared of it before?!"
It’s interesting cause apocalypse meaning “the end of the world” or cataclysmic event is a fairly modern definition.
In its original Greek it means to “uncover, disclose, reveal.” Or to create more insight or vision. Which is why it’s highly appropriate that “green apocalypse” is becoming a new theme in the apocalypse genre. The ancient wisdom of what an apocalypse really means for human beings is shining forward because, yes, sudden changes and insights happen all the time and can even be devastating and yet people persevere and find meaning within it, and may even become all the wiser because of it.
There’s a deeper spiritual truth in apocalypse which is not really new if you think about it. It’s a tale as old as time. Human beings have survived countless apocalypses and flourished, at the micro and macro level, which should tell us there’s more to ourselves than we give ourselves (or our fellow man) credit for in these modern times.
Thank you for making this. With all of the madness that we're seeing on the news, with the whispers of every kind of war trying to break out, it's good to hear something SANE that gives me HOPE.
TLOU just makes me want to watch the superior The Road. I don't think post-apocalypticism determines human nature as savage but rather determines the importance of a common language through its negation. The protagonists are those who are attempting to pursue virtue in a post-moral world.
The original two versions of The Last of Us on PS3 and 4 felt more like a turning point. The last remains of the destruction were just barely hanging on as nature began to reclaim the cities, but the ugly architecture and tiny groups of hostile survivors were still left over as the new military factions grabbed up whatever cities they could. This carried over into Part 2, by which point that reclamation was complete and everyone belonged to a large faction or city-state because it was the only way to get by, even if you didn't 100% agree with their ideals. This artistic progression was lost in Part 1, which was retroactively portrayed with the same lush greenery as its sequel
Came for my weekly sip of FUNDAMENTAL insight.
I truly do feel that one quote from Days Gone, a game I hold very dear, applies to every story, of everybody on Earth.
“Surviving ain’t living”.
That is what sets us apart from other animals, it’s not our ability to survive, it’s our ability to live.
I encourage you to wonder why you feel the need to set "us" apart from animals.
@@ghislainbugnicourt3709 uhh i don't know, i felt like it at the time? What are you even implying lmao
I love your channel.
If you like Station Eleven, I’d definitely recommend Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play. It’s a play, and the premise seems goofy, but it’s genuinely a great modern post-apocalyptic story
"If you intend to claim the frenzied flame, I ask that you cease. It is not to be meddled with. It is chaos, devouring life and thought unending. However ruined this world has become, however mired in torment and despair... Life endures. Births continue. There is beauty in that, is there not? If you would become Lord, do not deny this notion. Please, leave the frenzied flame alone."
The earnestness in sincerity in which Melina says this line always hits hard. Even in the face of a sometimes hopeless world, there will always be good and light to be found.
"Survival is not enough."
Your channel has been a sincere inspiration to me, and so it seems, to many of us. Thank you for constantly reminding us how important stories are.
This was well put and made, reminds me of Days Gone and it's underlying message as this quote:
“Doesn't Matter When You Hit The Road, Where You're Headin' Out To - But You Damn Well Better Know Where You're Comin' Home To.”
Boozer - Days Gone
In apocalypses where only very few people survive, it may be possible to form connections and build something new. But I'm afraid the reality will be millions of people without any resources fighting for their survival.
There will be no wine for a romantic dinner in the solitude.
There will be two moms or two dads fighting each other to get a little bit of dirty water for their respective children to drink, because it's all that is left.
I have to let you know you're the one who directed me toward Station Eleven. Great show, great book. Thanks, dude.
Post apocalyptic stories sometimes wallow in their premise. In the example of the Last of Us, I think the Fireflies finding a vaccine and playing kingmaker would have more to say about our world than pretending no technological fixes exist. Humans are capable, but are we fair?
Despite this the Last of Us show is knocking it out of the park
I always liked reading sci-fi that explores problems that might happen in the future, but that stuff hits a lot more close to home now
I love your voice, once in my life I made a call to one of those business guru type programs to help you start a business.
A very emotional and courageous moment for me, sitting on the phone a man answered who sounded JUST LIKE YOU, it said “Well, what kind of business would you like to start?”
And in that moment I sat quiet realizing, I didn’t know exactly.
It was the calmness in the voice that felt almost like a resonance of my own mind asking me who I really wanted to be and what I wanted to provide.
I always hoped I might be able to get you to record that one line for when I tell my own story.
Respect for including Station 11 - the show turned out quite good. It was sort of slow but built up well. The book was good as well.
Hope your video brings much needed attention to Station Eleven. Thank you
Strangely, I feel like Joel was always meant to be the flawed selfish character he was in the source material. Not all people become their greatest versions of themselves. While the circumstances surrounding him in Part 2 of the games were not what I would have expected or preferred, in the end it's more or less what I expected-- albeit in a very mishandled way. But, oh well. Good or bad Frank ending, I believe Joel's arc would have always been a slow spiral.
I fell asleep listening to this video on repeat- this is the only video that lets me do that- absolutely amazing