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[abbysirlwife]

— WHY IS JOEL SO POPULAR ?

pairing : none, just analysis trigger warning : mentions of race, suicide and child death. word count : 729

Joel's race and the phenomenon known as "pretty privilege" may be responsible for his attractiveness and overall likeability (and no, I'm not just making this up; it has been shown). Sam, a thirteen-year-old boy who tragically dies after becoming infected, and Henry, his older brother and parental figure, both appear in the first game. Henry is an overprotective and occasionally cold man who ultimately commits suicide. Since Henry and Joel both want to protect the child who has been placed in their care, it is easy to compare the relationships between these two young, black men and Ellie and Joel. Ellie and Sam's brisk friendship serves as additional evidence of this comparison. It is clear from their comparable personalities and shared interests that the only factor separating these two pairs is race.

In Natalia Gevara's article 'Is it pretty privilege or white privilege?', she details how pretty privilege can be seen as synonymous with white privilege due to the west (and, increasingly, the east) finding the 'white, thin, cisgender and able bodied' individual the most attractive. Due to this, it can only be considered that someone who complies with the desired qualities of Eurocentric standards is what is meant by "pretty." She continues by arguing that 'it takes away from these real definitions that are rooted in systemic oppression. Because at the end of the day, privilege is less about whether or not you get free drinks at the bar because the bartender thinks you are pretty, and more about escaping the police with your life because you are white.' This is demonstrated by how differently Henry and Joel approach protection. Joel is shown turning extremely aggressive in one of the final scenes of "The Last Of Us Part I," killing anyone who gets in the way of him defending Ellie. Meanwhile, in Henry's case, we are shown a scene in which he first kills his now-infected brother before turning the gun on himself. He is revealed to be extremely upset by the first act, yet his initial inclination was to continue to carry it out. It's possible that this is the case because Henry is a person of colour and is more accustomed to living in a world where others come before oneself. Sadly, this does result in him ending his own life after he had realised what had just happened. On the other hand, Joel takes no such repercussion as he is likely used to taking without being judged as 'barbaric' or 'ill mannered'.

It is nevertheless clear that Joel is significantly more popular than Henry even when both characters are depicted in the HBO series by actors of different ethnic backgrounds. Within the fandom, Pedro Pascal's character Joel is much more admired and "simped" over. This is probably because of his Eurocentric traits, like his straight hair, doe-like eyes, and smaller lips. In contrast, Lamar Johnson, the African-American actor who played Henry has fuller lips, almond shaped eyes and an afro. Although these qualities are not ugly, owing to Eurocentric beauty standards, the majority do not appreciate them as much, which decreases the popularity of his character among those who have seen the show or played the game.

It may even be argued that the only reason he is not as liked as much as Joel was due to his limited time in the show/ game. However, I do not personally find this argument compelling. This is because, in my opinion, Joel shouldn't be as well-liked among the community as he is. Joel's past in the previous game is only truly seen as a dreamlike memory, whereas Henry's predicament is much more carnal as we see his brother's (and his own) deaths take place in real time, after their bond has already been developed for the audience. When it comes to personalization, it makes more sense for the empathy to be felt for Henry rather than for Joel. Joel's narrative does a fantastic job at eliciting sympathy, but empathy is tough to achieve because we originally view events through Sarah's perspective, even in the 'dream' she passes away in.

Concluding, even though Joel is an objectively tragic and well-written character, most of his fame, love, and recognition can be attributed to his attractiveness, and consequently, to the fact that he is white and played by a conventionally attractive actor.