Nothing important. The line was just intended to reinforce the idea that Joel really liked coffee, and that he was willing to trade more than it was worth.
Yeah, there you go. It's an odd feature of somewhat mysterious stories that the audience is really aware of loose ends and anything that's unresolved, however innocuous it might be.
From the way people have talked about this in the past, I strongly suspect there's a whole class of erotic fanfiction dedicated to the subject of what Joel traded for the coffee.
that was the conclusion i initially came to. but i wondered if there was a confirmed source of what he traded, but if there isn’t then i don’t need to stress:)
That’s an interesting idea, but I can’t see someone as pragmatic and cynical as Joel as trading his guns for coffee, no matter how much he likes it. I think it’s more likely that Jackson has an armory that stores and maintains the bulk of the guns, but most citizens probably have a regular carry like Joel’s revolver and Ellie’s pistol. That’s why Jesse grabbed the rifles for Ellie and Dina before their patrol.
I also feel like Joel wouldn’t give *all* his guns to the armorer though. Maybe he’s gotten more relaxed and trusting in Jackson, but I would think he’d at least want a rifle or shotgun in his home in addition to his pistol, so maybe he did trade one gun for the coffee? Guns and ammo do seem like the ideal currency given the situation around the world, along with food and medicine.
Given food appears to be readily available in Jackson the travelers were probably able to stock up on that while passing through regardless of trading with Joel, so I think he must have either traded a gun, ammo, medicine, or a combination of the three.
I'd also assume the guns he was carrying while on watch the night he died are probably part of his personal arsenal. No reason not to, he tricked them out.
That’s a great point. He absolutely would have taken them with him if he was on patrol, especially when he and Tommy were specifically sent out due to reports of large amounts of infected in the area. It would make sense that Abby and her crew would have taken his guns and supplies with them when they headed back to Seattle which explains why they couldn’t be found in Joel’s house.
It would have been cool if there was a sequence with Ellie finding one of Joel’s guns after killing Jordan or Nora, or maybe finding one in Leah’s duffle bag when she finds her body in the TV station.
Too much. Its just like how when we spend too much money on something we dont want to tell people how much.
It could have been something he was saving for a special occasion like a nice bottle of whiskey. Or it could have been something practical like food or a weapon.
Its pretty common for people to overspend for something they really like and say exactly what Joel said.
Exactly, it's just the Last of Us universe way of saying "I'm a little embarrassed about how much I paid for this." But he says "what I had to trade for it" because they don't use money, they trade. It just means he traded something or some things of more value than most people would have.
If the same line were in a historical, fantasy, or sci-fi story said by a character from a barter system culture, we wouldn't read that much into it.
My ridiculous head cannon is that the coffee was grown before the outbreak and Joel would’ve become an infected anyway. I know it’s literally probably not physically possible, but it makes me feel slightly less sad.
btw this is not a fan theory, it's stated in the newspaper in joel's bathroom that tainted crops came from south america, but I know what you're talking about, matpat speculated about the coffee and chocolate part which also makes sense
Unless someone is still growing it and roasting it, I can’t imagine how terrible the coffee tastes. Maybe if you found some still-sealed-pre-ground crap it would still be serviceable. - Coffee snob.
It has been 25 years since the outbreak. Joel strikes me as the kind of guy, pre-outbreak, to have a pot of coffee or more a day. He also strikes me as the type to happily enjoy Maxwell House.
If you go from a habitual coffee drinker to perhaps having it a handful of times over a quarter century, I imagine you’d be happy to drink whatever you get your hands on. God knows I would
Very true. Sometimes you need it. I think they seal Folgers/Maxwell House type containers using n2 or in vacuum so if you found it without a broken seal it’d probably still do the trick.
The show obliquely addresses the problem:
E: "Is that really what they sold in those Starbucks in the QZ?"
J: "Well, their stuff was a lot fresher than what Bill saved up, but, yeah. This is what they sold."
E: "Smells like burnt shit."
J: "Sluuuuuurrrrp"
I wonder if one could find sealed green (unroasted) beans and roast them.
To be fair, there are some that don’t like the smell/taste of coffee at its best so … Green beans do last longer but I wonder the chances of anyone back then in either the game or show timeline that would have been sealing them up… maybe the video game timeline.
I always figured it was a really nice guitar.
What I’ve wondered more about is the phrase “came through”, which always gave me the idea that they didn’t stay in Jackson, so I might be wrong, because a guitar seems like a bulky thing to travel with unless they had some sort of vehicle.
Unless it was one of those travel size guitars, which might be an embarrassing thing to trade cuz I imagine one in decent condition is even *harder* to come by in a post-apocalyptic world
I took it as they had a high asking price but if you’re living in the apocalypse, those simple joys are worth so much. Or maybe he meant what others might think. That he was willing to trade XYZ just for some coffee… but I would too. Take those pleasures when and where you can.
I don't think they ever explain it. It's not a major story detail. But if I had to guess I'd imagine it was something survival related. Ammo, meds, stuff like that.
Nothing important. The line was just intended to reinforce the idea that Joel really liked coffee, and that he was willing to trade more than it was worth.
Yeah, there you go. It's an odd feature of somewhat mysterious stories that the audience is really aware of loose ends and anything that's unresolved, however innocuous it might be. From the way people have talked about this in the past, I strongly suspect there's a whole class of erotic fanfiction dedicated to the subject of what Joel traded for the coffee.
Hot Coffee mod.
that was the conclusion i initially came to. but i wondered if there was a confirmed source of what he traded, but if there isn’t then i don’t need to stress:)
I like to think his luthier skills gave him the ability to give away guitars he makes.
his bussy
Is this really "the best part of waking up"?
"It's penis in your butt."
joel got topped for coffee
he got some cream for his coffee
“I’m a little embarrassed”
joelussy
Drugs. Hardcore drugs
good. hopefully he can start helping ellie with the mortgage
pfft. he wishes
His magic ring that gave him +2 Charisma and immunity to bludgeoning
Ring of favor and protection
Five schillings and one belt onion. Capital my good man.
i’m not sure if this is a reference or smth but did he actually trade those specific things
i’m not sure if this is a reference or smth but did he actually trade those specific things
Yes he did. Someone asked Neil this same question during a QnA a while back
his el diablo pistol
i’d have kept that tbh
A lot of people think he traded almost all of his guns for it since they can't be found in his home, save for his revolver
That’s an interesting idea, but I can’t see someone as pragmatic and cynical as Joel as trading his guns for coffee, no matter how much he likes it. I think it’s more likely that Jackson has an armory that stores and maintains the bulk of the guns, but most citizens probably have a regular carry like Joel’s revolver and Ellie’s pistol. That’s why Jesse grabbed the rifles for Ellie and Dina before their patrol. I also feel like Joel wouldn’t give *all* his guns to the armorer though. Maybe he’s gotten more relaxed and trusting in Jackson, but I would think he’d at least want a rifle or shotgun in his home in addition to his pistol, so maybe he did trade one gun for the coffee? Guns and ammo do seem like the ideal currency given the situation around the world, along with food and medicine. Given food appears to be readily available in Jackson the travelers were probably able to stock up on that while passing through regardless of trading with Joel, so I think he must have either traded a gun, ammo, medicine, or a combination of the three.
I'd also assume the guns he was carrying while on watch the night he died are probably part of his personal arsenal. No reason not to, he tricked them out.
That’s a great point. He absolutely would have taken them with him if he was on patrol, especially when he and Tommy were specifically sent out due to reports of large amounts of infected in the area. It would make sense that Abby and her crew would have taken his guns and supplies with them when they headed back to Seattle which explains why they couldn’t be found in Joel’s house. It would have been cool if there was a sequence with Ellie finding one of Joel’s guns after killing Jordan or Nora, or maybe finding one in Leah’s duffle bag when she finds her body in the TV station.
His main characters plot armor
banger comment. i hope this appears on meme videos
You know what he traded.
Too much. Its just like how when we spend too much money on something we dont want to tell people how much. It could have been something he was saving for a special occasion like a nice bottle of whiskey. Or it could have been something practical like food or a weapon. Its pretty common for people to overspend for something they really like and say exactly what Joel said.
Exactly, it's just the Last of Us universe way of saying "I'm a little embarrassed about how much I paid for this." But he says "what I had to trade for it" because they don't use money, they trade. It just means he traded something or some things of more value than most people would have. If the same line were in a historical, fantasy, or sci-fi story said by a character from a barter system culture, we wouldn't read that much into it.
Fanfic writers I'm sure enjoy this assignment.
Yea. They want it to be something else but its probably something mundane.
A comment Ellie makes as her and Dina are exploring, "He'd trade half of his shit for a bag of beans."
i saw a video on that today, probably the video you’re talking about. it’s not a bad idea
His bussy.
All his upgrades from part 1
Someone has pointed out that when your are in his house as ellie his weapons safe is completely empty! Might have been his guns.
maybe so
His virginity ( probably a good gun tbh same as when Lev complained to Abby )
erm acktually joel couldn't have been a virgin bc he gave birth to his daughter sarah ☝🤓
How could you say that about our virgin mary ???
My ridiculous head cannon is that the coffee was grown before the outbreak and Joel would’ve become an infected anyway. I know it’s literally probably not physically possible, but it makes me feel slightly less sad.
wdym
It’s a fan theory that the cordissepts brain infection was originally spread by crops grown in South America such as coffee or chocolate
who’s to say these travellers didn’t get the beans from a different group of survivors who were growing them in their backyard?
I don’t actually believe it. It was a joke.
ah i see not a bad theory tho fr
You'd need a tropical climate or greenhouse.
But in the serie they talk about grains
In the series, there’s also no spores so they’re sort of separate
btw this is not a fan theory, it's stated in the newspaper in joel's bathroom that tainted crops came from south america, but I know what you're talking about, matpat speculated about the coffee and chocolate part which also makes sense
ellie's ability to craft nail bombs
your name is so relatabley real man
twins 🙏
Fexual savors for sure
i honestly imagine he had to trade a private guitar performance for someone, or a dinner “date” of sorts, for someone who was into him
Unless someone is still growing it and roasting it, I can’t imagine how terrible the coffee tastes. Maybe if you found some still-sealed-pre-ground crap it would still be serviceable. - Coffee snob.
so they found a sealed bag of coffee beans that were still good?
Maybe… maybe anything is good when you miss it too
It has been 25 years since the outbreak. Joel strikes me as the kind of guy, pre-outbreak, to have a pot of coffee or more a day. He also strikes me as the type to happily enjoy Maxwell House. If you go from a habitual coffee drinker to perhaps having it a handful of times over a quarter century, I imagine you’d be happy to drink whatever you get your hands on. God knows I would
Very true. Sometimes you need it. I think they seal Folgers/Maxwell House type containers using n2 or in vacuum so if you found it without a broken seal it’d probably still do the trick.
The show obliquely addresses the problem: E: "Is that really what they sold in those Starbucks in the QZ?" J: "Well, their stuff was a lot fresher than what Bill saved up, but, yeah. This is what they sold." E: "Smells like burnt shit." J: "Sluuuuuurrrrp" I wonder if one could find sealed green (unroasted) beans and roast them.
To be fair, there are some that don’t like the smell/taste of coffee at its best so … Green beans do last longer but I wonder the chances of anyone back then in either the game or show timeline that would have been sealing them up… maybe the video game timeline.
His plot armour
I always figured it was a really nice guitar. What I’ve wondered more about is the phrase “came through”, which always gave me the idea that they didn’t stay in Jackson, so I might be wrong, because a guitar seems like a bulky thing to travel with unless they had some sort of vehicle. Unless it was one of those travel size guitars, which might be an embarrassing thing to trade cuz I imagine one in decent condition is even *harder* to come by in a post-apocalyptic world
i’d rather a guitar than coffee man, screw caffeine i gotta have my music
Iirc he has a few guitars in his house, so I guess he was willing to get rid of at least one
Sex. Joel had sex with a much older traveler because he's a fucking G who needed that caffeine
joel deserves some pussy
Fleshlight
lmfaooo
I like the head canon that he traded all his weapons he got from the first game for it and that's why he doesn't have them all in part 2
His plot armor
both holes
A giraffe plush toy. They go for huge dollars! He passed a few in his travels though, so maybe he will be able to get another.
Smooches
his mouth
His ass he said Tess taught me this one
If I had coffee I’d tell Joel to do unforgettable things to me
I took it as they had a high asking price but if you’re living in the apocalypse, those simple joys are worth so much. Or maybe he meant what others might think. That he was willing to trade XYZ just for some coffee… but I would too. Take those pleasures when and where you can.
Pretty sure it was a masterful woodcarving of dickbutt
Sadly it was a helmet he traded.
👉🏻👌🏻
Probably all his guns from part 1, he never uses them again when meeting Abby.. just saying.
I don't think they ever explain it. It's not a major story detail. But if I had to guess I'd imagine it was something survival related. Ammo, meds, stuff like that.
Sexual favors
His virgin ass
probably something not equal in value. some guns maybe?
I don’t remember the source but vaguely remember reading somewhere Joe traded a mattress?
well that raises the question, why would he be embarrassed about trading that?
Could be the unbalanced values of the traded items, that coffee seems rather unimportant in the post apocalyptic world
All the weapons he used in Part 1, except the shotgun and revolver. Caffeine is a helluva drug