The Last of Us Episode 3 Ending Explained: What Disease Does Frank Have? What Does the Song They Play on The Piano Mean?

The second episode of The Last of Us ended with a tragedy. The first did so with the death of Sarah, Joel’s daughter, while the second took the travelers to Boston, where Tess (Anna Torv) was bitten by an infected and had to sacrifice her life so that Ellie and Joel could continue with their trip. Before she died, Tess asked Joel to find Bill and Frank, since with the Fireflies they were going to contact the dead, they might be the only way to get out of that place and keep getting closer to the place Ellie was going to. (Bella Ramsey) must arrive, where supposedly scientists are working to find a cure for Cordyceps. The third episode of the series picks up right after what happened in Boston, with Tess’s death affecting her fellow smuggler deeply.

But here there isn’t much time to suffer or cry and there’s still a long way to go (where Ellie discovers that, within weeks of the initial infection, millions of innocent and uninfected people were brutally murdered). During The Last of Us Episode 3, the series shifts its focus to Joel’s companions we’ve heard so much about, Bill and Frank. During the episode, we see how Bill manages to survive the original outbreak of 2003 and what he does before meeting his partner and falling in love with him. The story of these two characters is very beautiful, but it ends in a very tragic way due to the illness that Frank suffers from toward the end of the chapter.

The Last of Us Episode 3: The Story Plot

After they escape from Boston, Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) still find themselves metabolizing what happened, hinting at some brief interactions that could make their relationship less angular. Passing between abandoned highways and desolate ruins, the thought of two individuals already widely mentioned in the first few episodes leads the viewer’s attention to move elsewhere, thus leaving room for a very rare digression from the main route. In an extreme act of deepening and contextualization, so far never so clear and pushed compared to what little was shown in the video game, the story of Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank (Murray Bartlett) is narrated from start to finish with a decidedly intimate and introspective.

Observing how Bill managed to create a little corner of paradise, turning his existence upside down with the arrival of Frank and the subsequent correspondence with Joel and Tess, the development of the relationship between the two creates a delicate and almost alienating story compared to the now shattered world seen throughout the show. By focusing on the ups and downs, fears and worries of a couple of characters eager to live a normal life, The Last of Us wants to offer a different perspective to the drama, trying to represent love in its way extremely privileged context compared to any other. For almost an hour, the terrible dynamics of a drifting world seem distant nightmares and every little internal turbulence acquires extreme value concerning the perspective of the characters involved in the events. Maintaining a surprising stylistic coherence even in telling a story that seems alien, the short interludes granted at the beginning, middle and end of the episode create the perfect link with the well-known narrative.

Once entered the coils of the story, however, the characters appear so transparent and human as to involve the observer in a whirlwind of emotions that cannot leave one indifferent due to how it explores subtle dynamics and particularly sensitive themes. Catapulting the audience into the heartbreaking testimony of Bill and Frank, Druckmann boldly shows his intention to tell humanity through multiple points of view, exploring stories of real life in an enveloping way along paths never traveled before. Combining ethereal atmospheres and moments of incredible stillness, the heart of the episode focuses not on tension, but on drama, creating a purer and more understandable reality than ever for anyone who finds themselves observing the development of events.

Why Bill Killed Himself?

At the end of Bill and Frank’s story, Frank insists on having one last perfect day with Bill, before crushing his pills and putting them in wine so he can die in peace, on his terms. This is probably in response to his illness. In a surprise twist, especially for The Last of Us players, Bill reveals that he put Frank’s pills in the bottle of wine they both shared, meaning Bill will meet the same fate as Frank. This is a big change from the original game, as Bill is still alive when Joel and Ellie leave Lincoln. As for why Bill takes his own life, it ties into the story told in the episode. Bill and Frank’s love for each other was so strong that Bill had no reason to continue living in a world without Frank.

Why Did Ellie Take Frank’s Gun?

As far as Joel and Ellie’s story goes, one of the biggest elements that will come into play in the show’s future is Ellie getting Frank’s gun. While Bill showed many guns in his bunker, Frank kept his gun in a drawer. At the end of the episode, after Joel and Ellie find out what happened to Bill and Frank, Ellie finds this gun and takes it without Joel’s knowledge. This ties into Ellie’s joke, that she asks for a gun during episodes 1 and 2 of The Last of Us, but also hints at darker things in the future. Joel and Ellie’s next arc, known from the game, involves a group of bandits in control of a city. In the game, the city was Pittsburgh. However, HBO’s The Last of Us changed that to Kansas City. As the location change takes place, the story will surely remain similar as Ellie soon comes face to face with the harsh reality of having to use Frank’s gun.

The Ending Sequence of Episode 3 Reverses the Truck Scene from the First Episode

Joel and Ellie leave Lincoln in Bill’s truck mirrors episode 1 of The Last of Us. The scene in episode 1 involving Sarah, when she and Joel were attempting to escape the epidemic, is mirrored by Joel and Ellie driving Bill’s truck with Linda Ronstadt’s Long Long Time playing in the background. This song was important to Bill and Frank’s story – correcting the LGBTQ+ mistake of The Last of Us games – the words “I’m going to love you for a long, long time” can also apply to any father-daughter love Joel will try to Ellie, foreshadowing their future journey.

The Last of Us Episode 3 Ending Explained: How Do Bill and Frank know Each Other?

In this episode, we find out that Bill (Nick Offerman) manages to escape the evacuation and mass murder because he hid in a secret cellar under his house, and after everyone left, he set about collecting everything he could. need to stay alive and protected from the infected, including traps, security systems and gardens to have food. 4 years later Frank (Murray Bartlett) comes into Bill’s life, he falls into one of his traps, and, after Bill tests him to find out if he is infected, he lets him up to let him go and walk to Boston, but they talk for a bit, and she finally lets him into her “ghost town”.

That first day, the two have a big dinner (and a mini concert where Frank plays  Linda Ronstadt’s song Long Long Time,  which pretty much reveals what the future holds for these two characters, plus it’s a message from that love lasts and is key to survival, even if it can bring more pain), and that is the beginning of a great relationship that neither of them thought they could have. Of course, not everything is perfect, there are frictions and discussions, differences about how to manage that place, and about the possibility of inviting “friends”, who turn out to be nothing more and nothing less than Tess and Joel, who adopt the communication system through of songs when Frank suggests it.

What Disease Does Frank Have?

According to what we see of Frank at the end of episode 3 of The Last of Us, the most likely disease that afflicts him is Parkinson’s. This condition damages the brain, gradually deteriorating different parts of the organ. The main symptoms are involuntary shaking and tremors of the body, slow movements, stiffness and insomnia. The deterioration is gradual, but unstoppable and ends up being deadly.

Is There a Cure for Frank’s Parkinson’s?

Because Parkinson’s is currently incurable, finding a doctor who can help Frank is impossible. This means that even if they weren’t in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, they couldn’t cure his disease. After accepting this reality, the couple decides to plan one last day together, before dying in a very tragic way. This episode is very thought-provoking, as it shows that while Cordyceps is a big threat, other diseases could be worse. By this, I mean that, although the fungus can be avoided, Parkinson’s and other conditions of this type do not let up. In this way, while humanity is in this weakened state, other diseases also pose a much greater danger.

What is the Name of the Bill and Frank Song?

• The song they play on the piano is Long Long Time, by Linda Ronstadt.
• It was released in 1970 as part of the Silk Purse album.
• Its lyrics speak of loneliness and love, an unconditional love that will last a long, long time.
• Thanks to this music, Bill and Frank manage to express what they feel.
• Thus, we can say that it represents the relationship between the two, which ends their loneliness and leads them to spend the rest of their lives together.

What Does the Song They Play on The Piano Mean?

The lyrics of the song say it begins with the phrase “Love will abide, take things in stride Sounds like good advice but there’s no one at my side”, but then it evolves and reaches a very sad part.

WAIT FOR THE DAY

YOU’LL GO AWAY

KNOWING THAT YOU WARNED ME OF THE PRICE I’D HAVE TO PAY

AND LIFE’S FULL OF FLAWS

WHO KNOWS THE CAUSE?

LIVING IN THE MEMORY OF A LOVE THAT NEVER WAS

‘CAUSE I’VE DONE EVERYTHING I KNOW TO TRY AND CHANGE YOUR MIND

AND I THINK I’M GONNA MISS YOU FOR A LONG LONG TIME

‘CAUSE I’VE DONE EVERYTHING I KNOW TO TRY AND MAKE YOU MINE

And I think I’m gonna love you for a long long time

This connects directly to the story of these characters, who meet by accident, fall in love and manage to create a life together, which makes Bill reveal to Frank that this makes him afraid, for the day he no longer they can be together. Their relationship, like Tess and Joel’s (and Joel and Sarah’s), ends in tragedy. Frank is sick and there is no cure, and Bill’s worst nightmare comes true when the day comes when he has to let go of the love of his life, who asks him to help him have a dignified death (while the moving music by Max Richter, called On the Nature of Daylight, plays in the background).

The Arrival of Joel and Ellie

After walking many kilometers, Ellie and Joel finally arrive at Bill and Frank’s house, but it’s already late, they are dead, they decided to stay together until the end and die together, but they leave a letter for Joel, where they say goodbye to him and They tell you that you can take whatever you need. There, Joel understands that he has a job to do, to protect Ellie (because he couldn’t do it with Tess), so he takes a few things, including the car Bill left him the keys to, and moves on, heading to Wyoming to look for his brother (this is Tommy, whom we met in episode 1).  And there are new rules for Ellie, she can’t talk about Tess, she can’t talk about her condition and she has to do everything Joel tells her. As they are leaving Lincoln, Linda Ronstadt plays again, the singer of the song they played on the piano.