The Last of Us Stars on That Love Story Twist

As Linda Ronstadt says, we think we’re gonna love this for a long, long time.

Fresh off the season two renewal news, The Last of Us continued its inaugural run with an instantly iconic third episode, which saw Bella Ramsey, Anna Torv and Pedro Pascal cede the show to Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett‘s unexpected soulmates.

“My first reaction to the episode was surprise,” Bartlett revealed in a behind-the-scenes featurette for the Jan. 29 episode. “It was this unexpected, beautiful love story in this bleak world.”

The episode, which heavily featured Ronstadt’s “Long Long Time,” detailed the 20-year love story between Offerman’s Bill and Bartlett’s Frank, set against the backdrop of an apocalyptic world ravaged by raiders and zombie-like clickers. And the already-emotional focus was all the more poignant as it’s something players of the original 2013 video game didn’t get to see due to Frank’s early, off-screen death.

“Bill and Frank are kind of opposites, really, in terms of the way that they kind of operate in the world,” Bartlett continued. “Bill’s super practical and not emotional and Frank is the opposite of that.” Offerman echoed his co-star’s sentiments, adding: “Bill is a sad character, to me, when I just envision him in the world before Frank shows up.”