Last week, “The Last of Us” – HBO’s live-action adaptation of the incredibly popular video game – premiered to instant acclaim. From the performances and stellar cast to the score and special effects, game fans and newcomers alike began hailing it as “the best video game adaptation to date”.
For those unfamiliar with the source material: “The Last of Us” follows Joel (Pedro Pascal), a smuggler in a post-apocalyptic America. Twenty years ago the fungal Cordyceps infection decimated the country by transforming those afflicted into violent, cannibalistic monsters.
Hardened by his past losses, Joel is understandably brutal and pragmatic – so when he’s tasked with transporting Ellie (Bella Ramsey), a somewhat feral teenager who’s immune to Cordyceps, out of the quarantine zone and across the U.S. to a research facility, he tries to look at it like any other smuggling job.
But it isn’t long before this unwilling dad and his angry foster daughter quickly form a ride-or-die bond as they fight to survive.
And therein lies the real reason why “The Last of Us” is so compelling, beyond all of the zombie-esque horror and action carnage. More than anything, this is a found family story about a guy thrown into fatherhood somewhat against his will, how he rises ably to the challenge, and is more than capable of killing to protect his newfound kid.
A friend dubbed this trope “Unexpected Baby Acquisition,” and in the past few years it’s become one of my very favorite fiction set-ups. So to honor Pedro Pascal’s latest addition to this fine canon, I’m looking back at a few of the greatest surprise dads/unexpected babies that came before, starting with:
1. Léon & Mathilda (“Léon: The Professional”, 1994)
Léon (Jean Reno) is a “cleaner” (aka a hitman) who leads a lonely life in New York’s Little Italy, his only company is a houseplant. Until the day a corrupt DEA agent (Gary Oldman, in a wonderfully unhinged performance) murders the family that lives down the hall, sending the sole survivor, 12-year-old Mathilda (Natalie Portman, in her first role), to Léon’s door.
When Mathilda discovers Léon is a hitman, she begs him to train her so she can avenge her 4-year-old brother. Somewhat unwillingly, Léon agrees. In between lessons on weapons, Léon shares his love of movies with the girl while she teaches him how to read.
“The Professional” is a real heartbreaker of a film from start to finish, full of revenge and tragedy and sacrifice. It’s pretty clear from the beginning that these lonely, broken people won’t get a “happily ever after,” but the tearjerker of a finale is a poignant and fitting one.
2. Bruce Wayne & Dick Grayson (aka Batman and Robin)
Their first meeting has been retold several times over the year, but usually it goes like this: early in his crime-fighting career, Bats is either attending a performance at the circus or is investigating shady dealings connected to the place when a bit of sabotage leads to the deaths of the acrobatic Flying Graysons, leaving their young son Dick an orphan.
Even though Bruce is barely keeping himself alive at this point, he offers to take the boy in. In short order, Dick discovers the billionaire’s true identity and, like Mathilda, convinces Bats to train him in order to seek revenge. Thus the immortal partnership of Batman and Robin is born ...
Plenty of superheroes have sidekicks, but what makes Bats and Robin even more interesting than other dynamic duos is that, beyond the hero stuff, you also get the father/son emotions and conflicts.
Bruce is an unholy mess of a man on his own, and then you throw sudden fatherhood at him? You give him a kid who’s practically his own mirror, also desperate for revenge and just as headstrong and capable? Talk about juicy.
3. Geralt & Ciri (“The Witcher”)
Monster-slayer Geralt (Henry Cavill) is dragged to just one (one!) fancy party by his BFF Jaskier (Joey Batey) ...
He just happens to intervene when the princess’ lover, afflicted with a curse that makes him a hedgehog (no, really), is almost killed by the enraged queen ...
He makes just one sarcastic quip about invoking the Law of Surprise in payment – and he’s saddled with a destiny baby, the future Princess Ciri (Freya Allan).
So now this born grump/itinerant adventurer is bound by magic and fate to a girl with bizarre, possibly evil powers, and if he doesn’t do right by her then the whole world may just fall apart.
No biggie.
I’m such a soft touch for big, brawny guys who usually grunt rather than speak but are absolute putty around girls – and that’s Geralt to a giant, obsidian “T.” Love watching a dude who strikes fear into the hearts of others with a single glare rearranging his entire life to accommodate a kid.
4. Wolverine (“The X-Men”)
Good old Wolverine. That growly Canadian superhero with adamantium claws and a super-fast healing factor has yet to meet an abandoned girl he didn’t immediately adopt.
In the comics, he’s been a mentor/father figure to Kitty Pryde. In the animated series from the 1990s, he takes mallrat Jubilee under his wing, saving her from Sentinels and crummy foster parents alike.
In the first live-action “X-Men” film, he picks up the hitchhiking Rogue and immediately throws down with baddie Sabretooth to protect her. And in 2017′s “Logan,” he rescues his cloned daughter, Laura, who needs his help to escape murderous operatives.
Like I said: gruff dude + endangered, unusual girl = a winning combination, and proof the best action heroes have mushy hearts under all of those muscles.
5. Mando & The Child (aka Din Djarin & Grogu, “The Mandalorian”)
And let’s bring it full circle with another superb Pedro Pascal role! Lone wolf Mando just wanted to collect his bounties and bring some Beskar home at the end of the day.
But when he’s hired to find a tiny green creature, he breaks all of the rules to keep the kid safe. Now the universe’s greatest bounty hunter is a single dad on the run, doing whatever it takes to put gas in the spaceship and buy juice boxes for his big-eared son.
What makes “The Mandalorian” so charming is the core dynamic of Tired Old Hunter (and Mando is so very, very tired, all the time) and Precious Lil Baby. Thanks to Pascal’s fantastic voice-acting, we’re 100% invested in the relationship between a character whose face we (almost) never see and a character who’s an inanimate puppet.
Mando will go to any lengths to be a good dad to Grogu. He’ll take hinky jobs for the money. He’ll break one of the fundamental tenets of his creed and remove his helmet. He’ll face down an evil Moff with an entire star destroyer full of death robots. Truly, he’s one of the greatest dads in space history, no question.
With season three of “The Mandalorian” fast approaching – and the rest of season one of “The Last of Us” yet to air – this is truly a golden era for fans of Surprise Dads.
- ANGIE BARRY is a contributing columnist for Shaw Media. To suggest future topics for The B-List, which covers topics in pop culture, history and literature, contact her at newsroom@mywebtimes.com.