Carbon Costume

Marlene (played by Merle Dandridge, the only actor to reprise her role from the original game) is the leader of the Boston Fireflies in the HBO video game adaptation The Last of Us. At the start of the series, Ellie is in the custody of the Fireflies under Marlene’s command, but she asks Joel and Theresa to take custody of her after a deal gone wrong leaves her injured.  Marlene’s clothing is indicative of her status as a militia leader.  She wears sturdy boots and tactical pants with a form-fitting tank top layered over a utilitarian sports bra.

Kathleen Coghlan (played by Melanie Lynskey) is the leader of a rogue group of survivors in HBO’s The Last of Us.  After taking over the QZ and Fedra in Kansas City, Kathleen and her followers, including Perry, seek to hunt down a man responsible for reporting on her brother to the military police force they’ve since overthrown.  Kathleen has long, dark hair that she pulls back, and wears rugged jeans, sturdy boots, and a grey military jacket over a beige collared shirt.  She straps her handgun to her left thigh with a black holster.

Ellie Williams (played by Bella Ramsey) is a main character of HBO’s horror series The Last of Us.   Ellie is a young teenage girl who appears to be immune to the devastating fungal infection that has turned much of humanity into zombie-like creatures.  Ellie ends up leaving the Boston Quarantine Zone with Joel and Theresa after Marlene is injured.  Ellie’s costume is relatively simple, with lots of practical layers including jeans, a baseball tee, a hoodie, and a study jacket.  She also carries a switchblade, which a prop knife can be used in place of.

Frank (played by Murray Bartlett) is a survivor of the fungi outbreak in HBO’s video game adaptation The Last of Us.  Frank is on his way to Boston from Baltimore when he lands in a trap laid by Bill, who is initially reticent to let Frank stay on his property.  Soon enough, though, Bill demonstrates that he’s an excellent chef, and the two bond over their love of Linda Rondstadt.  It’s not long until they fall in love and spend the rest of their lives together in Bill’s fortified neighborhood.  When Frank first appears, he is dirty and disheveled from his travels.  He emerges from the trap wearing a ribbed crewneck sweater.  After a shower, he changes into one of Bill’s plaid shirts.  He continues to wear plaid as he ages, and when the two marry at the piano that first brought them together, Frank wears a black blazer over a white shirt.

Bill (played by Nick Offerman) is a survivalist in the apocalyptic series The Last of Us on HBO.  Bill evades the military when they come to round up survivors and outfits his house and neighborhood to be optimally secure.  When Frank lands himself in one of his traps, Bill’s solitude is brought to an end, and the two fall in love and share a life together for many years.  Bill’s look varies throughout the episode because it spans so many years.  When he first meets Frank, he’s wearing a grey sweatshirt and jeans, is outfitted with plenty of weaponry, and has long brown hair and a full beard.  As he ages, his hair goes grey and he wears it a little shorter, but he never quite ditches his lumberjack-inspired fashion choices, opting for sturdy clothes and plenty of plaid.  When he and Frank marry, he wears a tweed blazer.

Joel Miller (played by Pedro Pascal) is one of the main characters in HBO’s video game adaptation The Last of Us.  Joel is a smuggler working out of the Boston Quarantine Zone twenty years into the pandemic that resulted in the death of his daughter Sarah.  Soon, he is tasked with escorting Ellie Williams out of the QZ.  Joel’s clothing is rugged and durable.  He wears more than one outfit, but you can’t go wrong with a flannel shirt and jeans, maybe layered under a brown coat.  Most importantly, Joel always wears his green banded wristwatch, even though it no longer works, because having it fixed was his daughter’s last gift to him before she died.

Sarah Miller (played by Nico Parker) is Joel‘s daughter in the HBO video game adaptation The Last of Us.  Sarah is kind and generous, teasing her father on his birthday while making him breakfast and taking time to have his watch repaired as a gift.  Unfortunately, Sarah meets an untimely demise at the very beginning of the pandemic which sets the series in motion.  Sarah wears pale jeans with some doodled decorations on the right leg, but the defining aspect of her outfit is her Halican Drops t-shirt.  She also uses a purple backpack and wears a few adjustable bracelets on her left wrist, as well as a shark tooth necklace.

Mia (Beatrice Granno) is a character in The White Lotus. First appearing in season two, Mia is an aspiring local singer. It’s her dream to become a famous performer. She tries to resist her friend Lucia’s attempts to introduce her to sex work. But the two quickly become quite the clever duo, scheming their way into the luxury resort.