TV series and video game adaptation The Last of Us has been an immediate hit, impressing fans of the original game series as well as new viewers who have never played.
The HBO series won over fans with a touching gay storyline, universally applauded for the deft handling of the LGBTQ+ characters. Once again the series has impressed viewers with its depiction of everyday life in the apocalyptic setting, this time focusing on periods.
The Last of Us tells the story of a smuggler, played by Pedro Pascal, who has to safely take Ellie (Bella Ramsay) across the US, which has been ravaged by an infection turning people into zombies.
In this post-apocalyptic world, Ellie and smuggler Joel have to fight for everything they need - including sanitary products.
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Episode eight of the series gives viewers a reunion between Joel and his brother Tommy, and teenage Ellie is introduced to Tommy and his partner Maria and given some gifts. She gets a "super f**king purple" coat and a menstrual cup, complete with instructions.
Ellie is initially grossed out by the period product but is extremely grateful for the reusable item. Menstrual cups are a plastic cup used when on your period as an eco-friendly alternative to tampons and sanitary pads.
This isn't the first time The Last of Us has tackled this topic as in earlier episodes, the 14-year-old took a box of tampons from a basement, while dodging hundreds of infected zombies.
The menstrual cup inclusion has garnered even more praise than the tampon scene as Ellie reads through the instructions and the camera lingers on the leaflet and the cup, which viewers said helps to "de-stigmatise" periods.
Having consistent and normalised depictions of this fact of life for people with uteruses has impressed fans, who are used to seeing periods ignored in post-apocalyptic media.
One fan tweeted: "A menstrual cup, finally the last of us showing how it works having a period in a post apocalyptic world."
Another added: "The continued showcasing of women needing access to period products in #TheLastOfUs is excellent! To see a diva cup get equal weight of importance to fixing boots is great storytelling that acknowledges the different personal issues people would face in a dystopian situation."
"Underrated detail, I love how they acknowledge and normalize Ellie having her period in #TheLastofUs," shared a third viewer. "It's always annoyed me how that gets ignored in survival stories, and here it reinforces the awkward age she's at in the middle of the apocalypse."
Popular menstrual cup brand Mooncup also tweeted: "In case of a zombie apocalypse, make sure to pack your Mooncup! Periods are a fact of life and it's great to see #TheLastOfUs doesn't shy away from it!"
In an interview with Vulture, executive producer Craig Mazin said: "In a post-apocalypse, it's annoying to have to deal with that and have a shortage of options. Why wouldn't we show it?
"Especially because our co-lead is a 14-year-old girl. This is part of her life!"
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