Fans are praising the creators behind The Last Of Us after the latest episode of the post-apocalyptic drama featured a menstrual cup.
The HBO show - which stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay - has become very popular over the past few weeks due to its adaptation of the video game and deviations from the original plot such as introducing an LGTBQ+ couple.
Now, episode six of the series - which aired on February 20 - is being celebrated for its period representation after a scene showed 14-year-old Ellie (played by Ramsey) holding a menstrual cup.
However, the scene also left many male viewers confused as they struggled to understand what the item was, and what its purpose is.
In the episode, Joel (played by Pascal) and Ellie arrive in a town where his brother Tommy (played by Gabriel Luna) lives with his new wife, Maria (played by Rutina Wesley).
After the couple gives them a warm welcome, Maria secretly gifts the teenager a menstrual cup, alongside fresh clothes. Ellie seems perplexed at first but then she smiles to herself and squishes the cup between her fingers. She then briefly looks at the pamphlet's instructions and says "gross," with a smile.
Check out the trailer for The Last of Us:The scene was short but has quickly become one that viewers took to their social media accounts to celebrate. Some have applauded the show for its realism in portraying girls getting their monthly periods.
Others are also praising the show and its creators for normalizing the discussion around menstruation and opening up the floor to questions.
One user wrote: "You know possibly the coolest part of TLOU tv show is that they acknowledge periods?? Ellie being stoked to find tampons, and Maria giving her a menstrual cup, is so f***ing good. Periods are almost never addressed in media and I just like seeing it handled normally."
Another person said: "Kudos to TLoU for the scene where Ellie is given a menstrual cup. I mean, I was happy when she found those tampons in an earlier episode, but the fact that different kinds of menstrual products are shown throughout the show makes me appreciate it even more."
A third user commented: "I really don't think y'all understand how awesome it is to not only have Ellie find tampons in episode 3, but also be presented with a menstrual cup this episode??? I did not see or hear about periods in media growing up. This f***ing groundbreaking!"
A fourth stated: "Showing Ellie getting a menstrual cup made me so happy they didn’t have to do that but they did and I appreciate the detail!!"
Meanwhile, some women had to explain to the men in their lives what the item was, as one user revealed: "Was watching The Last of Us with my dad and the scene with the diva cup comes [on] ofc he goes 'what is that thing'."
And another second user chimed in: "Watched the latest episode of the last of us… had to explain to my stepdad what a menstrual cup is."
Speaking about the choice to include the applauded scene, showrunner Craig Mazin told Vulture: "[The menstrual cup] is a great solution in the ongoing apocalypse. It’s a reusable solution that doesn’t require you finding boxes of tampons in Infected-ridden cellars."
He also explained why the creators didn't feel the need to include more information about the cup in the scene and said: "The intention was that if you don’t know what it is, you can ask someone or you can Google."
"It’s more for the people who do know what it is. We do this all the time in shows with things like guns. People don’t know how to load guns, and we don’t explain it to them. Why should we have to explain this?" he added.
