Ratings For Pedro Pascal’s New Series Plummets, Review-Bombed Due to Same-Sex Scenes

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Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin without his helmet on

Credit: Lucasfilm

Pedro Pascal’s new series has been savagely review-bombed after a same-sex couple-centric episode debuted last week.

Pedro Pascal on the red carpet
Credit: ABC

Pedro Pascal hit the mainstream as Oberyn Martell in HBO’s Game of Thrones. The Chilean-American actor then went on to star as Javier Peña in Netflix’s Narcos before becoming part of Lucasfilm’s galaxy far, far away as the titular bounty hunter in Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian on Disney+.

The Mandalorian is soon to start its third season on The Walt Disney Company’s streaming service and Pascal will reprise his role as Din Djarin alongside the pop culture phenomenon Grogu AKA “Baby Yoda”.

Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) allowing Grogu to touch his face
Credit: Lucasfilm

Related: Marvel Star, ‘The Last of Us’ Actress Passes Away

But before the beloved Star Wars series commences on March 1, the hugely popular actor — the internet’s “Daddy” — can be found tackling hordes of infected on HBO’s latest hit drama series, The Last of Us from Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann. Pascal co-leads the television show as Joel while Bella Ramsey plays Ellie; The Last of Us is based on Naughty Dog’s acclaimed PlayStation video game of the same name.

With just three episodes in the bag, The Last of Us has quickly climbed the rankings of the most-acclaimed and highest-praised TV shows, and an increasing viewership has caused Warner Bros. Television to greenlight a second season.

The Last of Us game by Naughty Dog poster
Credit: Naughty Dog

While the premiere and the second episode stayed close to the source material, in all of its brutal, tragic, and action-packed glory, the third episode — “Long, Long Time” — slowed the series down to paint a domestic picture of love, hope, and survival.

“Long, Long Time” explored the self-inflicted exile of Bill (Nick Offerman) and his subsequent relationship with Frank (Murray Bartlett) in Lincoln, Massachusetts. Significantly expanding on the storyline from the videogame, Craig Mazin’s script and Pete Hoar’s direction drew critical acclaim as it depicted the struggles of survival and how love will persist even in the darkest of times. However, it would seem that not everyone appreciated the change of pace and the characters that this third episode focused on.

Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) looking at a plane crash in 'The Last of Us'
Credit: HBO

Bill and Frank’s relationship has caused a ruckus amongst some viewers with the episode — despite being described as the season’s best so far by TV critics — has pulled the lowest rating of the show on IMDb; “Long, Long Time” currently holds a 7.9/10 while the previous two episodes, “When You’re Lost in the Darkness”, and “Infected”, each hold a 9.2/10.

The thousands of 1-star reviews have caused the overall rating to slide, and while some will argue the show has not been review-bombed, the figures speak otherwise. Each with an incredibly high 9.2/10, the first two episodes hold circa 76,000 and 69,000 total reviews — “Long, Long Time” has 158,000, more than both put together.

Frank (Murray Bartlett) and Bill (Nick Offerman) in 'The Last of Us'
Credit: HBO

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The inclusion of a deep LGBTQIAP+ romance in a show such as this has been seen as an attempt to get political, according to some reviewers, while others have declared the episode as a filler and too much of a departure from the videogame. Dear Reader, let’s not forget that an adaptation can — and, arguably, should — move away from its source material. Bill was homosexual in PlayStation’s “The Last of Us”, but the story played out much differently.

Same-sex representation is much-needed in media, especially in blockbuster TV series such as The Last of Us. The creative team’s decision to situate the audience in one town, with one person that became a couple, in a show about a globally-devasting pandemic is bold and important (and is probably why, along with Offerman and Bartlett’s performance, the episode has received such high praise).

Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) in 'The Last of Us'
Credit: HBO

The Last of Us airs on Sunday nights on HBO in the United States and runs for nine episodes. In addition to Pascal and Ramsey, the HBO series also stars Anna Torv as Tess, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, and Storm Reid as Riley Abel.

Star Pedro Pascal recently broke the internet after appearing in a gritty Mario Kart skit on Saturday Night Live where the actor played the famous Italian plumber, Mario.

What are your thoughts on the review bombs for The Last of Us? Let us know in the comments down below!

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