The Last of Us: The Show!

[Majora]

I can understand some of the criticisms but wooden acting?! Joel, Tess and Ellie were all brilliantly cast.

[tobert]

The challenge with this for me is I am too familiar with the story and, so far, this has followed the main beats of the game pretty closely. That means that, other than the opening sequences, which I love, it’s been an exercise in comparison.

 

 

 

[Sumire]

I only just watched this last night after very recently playing both games through again. Over all I think it was a good effort, but there were a few things I wasn't that keen on. One would be Joel and his brother. I just do not think they are as good as the in game characters, I just preferred that almost cowboy persona of the original characters. I understand Pedro seems to taking everything by storm at the moment, but I just don't think he was that great in this so far. I am sure he will get better though as the relationship between the characters becomes stronger. Ellie seemed fine so far.

 

Also I thought the Clicker looked a bit off. The head looked slightly comical.

 

It is amazing how, 

Spoiler

when his daughter dies,

it was a lot more emotional in game for me than it was in live action. I think it says a lot for how powerful games can be.

 

I am looking forward to seeing how this goes in future episodes.

 

7/10 so far!

[catinthehat]

I'm loving this so much.  I've just finished replaying Part 1 for the umpteenth time, and loved that as well.  The show is just nailing everything for me, and my wife and I are both enjoying it massively.

 

It's weird how it's hitting so differently for many of us.  I'm finding the show to be just as impactful as the game.  Particularly the scene at the end of episode 2...

 

Spoiler

Where Tess dies.  You can see how absolutely terrified she is.  It's played so well by Anna Torv, it's devastating.

 

[FishyFish]

[El Geet]

2 hours ago, Sumire said:

I only just watched this last night after very recently playing both games through again. Over all I think it was a good effort, but there were a few things I wasn't that keen on. One would be Joel and his brother. I just do not think they are as good as the in game characters, I just preferred that almost cowboy persona of the original characters. I understand Pedro seems to taking everything by storm at the moment, but I just don't think he was that great in this so far. I am sure he will get better though as the relationship between the characters becomes stronger. Ellie seemed fine so far.

 

Also I thought the Clicker looked a bit off. The head looked slightly comical.

 

It is amazing how, 

  Hide contents

when his daughter dies,

it was a lot more emotional in game for me than it was in live action. I think it says a lot for how powerful games can be.

 

I am looking forward to seeing how this goes in future episodes.

 

7/10 so far!

Re your spoiler, isn’t that largely down to that being the first time you experience it?

 

I think what games can do better than TV is let you fill in the blanks a bit better/more effectively and there’s no denying that Last of Us is probably one of the best storytelling experiences we’ve had in video games. 
 

Spoiler

I had no problem with the way the TV show portrayed the relationship between Joel and his daughter but it is portrayed in a certain way. In the game it’s left up to you to fill in the blanks of how their relationship was and we naturally assume it’s a great relationship whatever that means to each of us.

 

[drmick]

Most of you in this thread have played the games by the looks of things. And maybe the majority of those who have played the games are having issues with the TV show?

 

I've never played the games- and more than that knew absolutely nothing about the story.

 

I'm enjoying this so far. I hope they can get more John Hannah into distant flashbacks.

[DarhkFox]

I played the game twice in the past, last time not for a few years - so whilst i know the story, i think it's neat they are adding bits or changing bits around (for the better).

 

Like the origin in ep2, i thought that was great. It ended slightly different as well, which i felt worked out better than the game.

 

I think Joel/Ellie is growing on me a bit. If I hadn't played the games, i don't think i would have a problem but they seem to be a little different personality wise here, at least from memory.

[pledge]

IMDb might not be fully up to date regarding number of episodes for each character but regarding John Hannah:

 

Spoiler

He's only listed as a single episode, despite others showing numbers higher than those that have aired.

 

I expect each intro segment to be unique and he wont be back.

 

[makkuwata]

Brenaissance. Mummy 4: This time it’s Perusonal.

[Garibaldi]

3 hours ago, tobert said:

The challenge with this for me is I am too familiar with the story and, so far, this has followed the main beats of the game pretty closely. That means that, other than the opening sequences, which I love, it’s been an exercise in comparison.

 

 

 

True. I hope that season 1 spans the entirety of Joel and Ellie’s story, and future seasons are entirely new stories and characters. Much like what I hoped TellTale would do with their Walking Dead series, but they kept following one specific character. 

[Arn X Treme]

Never played the games, although I own the first one.

 

Saw all the hype online for this and wasn't immediately bothered by it until I saw Nick Offerman's tweet and decided I'd watch it for him.

 

Two episodes down, and it's "ok" I'll carry on watching it for now, but I don't think it's a groundbreaking IMDB 9 or anything imo. It feels a lot like the early seasons of the Walking Dead or Revolution, where I want to know more about what lead us to present day than what is actually going on at the moment. 

 

I've not read all the thread previous to this page, but I echo some of what's been said online about it looking pretty etc and the acting being good. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sumire]

1 hour ago, El Geet said:

Re your spoiler, isn’t that largely down to that being the first time you experience it?

 

I think what games can do better than TV is let you fill in the blanks a bit better/more effectively and there’s no denying that Last of Us is probably one of the best storytelling experiences we’ve had in video games. 
 

  Reveal hidden contents

I had no problem with the way the TV show portrayed the relationship between Joel and his daughter but it is portrayed in a certain way. In the game it’s left up to you to fill in the blanks of how their relationship was and we naturally assume it’s a great relationship whatever that means to each of us.

 

 

I recently replayed it via the "new" remastered version. I just thought it was a bit more shocking and emotional in the game, well for me anyway.

I did enjoy the first two episodes on a whole though, but it is nothing that special at the moment. Certainly not as good as they are making it out in reviews.

[Fry Crayola]

1 hour ago, drmick said:

Most of you in this thread have played the games by the looks of things. And maybe the majority of those who have played the games are having issues with the TV show?

 

I'd like to take a moment to clarify my earlier post. It's hard for me to be as amped about this as I was for, say, Better Call Saul, but that's just because I've already seen it.

 

That's on me, not the show. I'm glad it's not different just for the sake of being different, going off in its own direction just to give me something new to watch. And we're only two epsides in. It's got loads of space to grow.

[Majora]

Episode 3 is 80 minutes long and almost entirely material that isn't in the game so I think that should assuage some of the criticism about the show not feeling like its own entity.

 

Also, regarding the critic reviews, HBO sent critics the entire season to review which is pretty much unheard of. Normally, TV critics only get sent a few episodes for review before a season airs. That speaks to HBO's confidence in the show but it is also true that The Last of Us was a slow-burn in game form, no? When it was released I definitely don't remember people declaring it a masterpiece by the point in the game the TV show has reached. In fact I remember a lot of 'is this it?' comments during the early game. It was only really once you had been on that year long journey with Joel and Ellie that I think many of us understood the glowing reviews.

[Eighthours]

Enjoying this a lot so far, although I get some of the criticism about the production design and lighting looking a bit flat in the daytime sequences. Here at least it does seem to be evoking the look of the game a bit too much. Also, some of the FX shots are currently a bit green-screeny (whenever it's Joel, Ellie and Tess in the foreground, for example). I'm really liking the scripts and performances, though, and Druckmann did a good job with his first outing as a live-action director in episode 2. Obviously it helps having an experienced crew and Craig Mazin' alongside you. But still!

 

I thought the ending to the episode worked as long as you:

 

Spoiler

View it as Tess deliberately not attacking the infected in order to have more time to spark the lighter. 

 

On those terms, I'm fine with it. Looking forward to next week's 80 minute behemoth.

[Chadruharazzeb]

This is particularly interesting for me as I'm usually unfamiliar with source material seeing as I don't read too many books or comics so getting into an adaptation I already know is fascinating. So far in loving it. 

[JohnC]

[BossSaru]

Two episodes in and no appearance of

Spoiler

a brick

 

Disappointed.

[glb]

Really enjoying this so far, and pleasingly so is the better half, as we don’t always meet in the middle when it comes to series. Played the game a while back so not comparing too much, just being pleasantly surprised when I see something familiar. The tone and pacing all feels right, and it’s clear HBO have put a lot of effort into getting it right, not least in having Craig Mazin aboard.

 

Particularly enjoying the ‘game’ moments when the characters’ paths get blocked so they have to keep moving forward. Nice little touches like that compliment the adaptation without the show having to point out its origin every five minutes.

[Stopharage]

I'm really enjoying this so far; the intro sections really are the strongest part though which gives hope and optimism that we may see some decent TLOU universe stories coming about in future seasons. Whilst Netflix's Black Summer was a deeply flawed zombie series, it was also great at showing the zombie outbreak and how people survived it. It also wasn't scared of building up characters to then kill them off. That kind of approach to a TLOU off-shoot would be great. 

 

It is really closely sticking to the game at the moment and so I get the criticisms that some have made about it feeling overly familiar but I think they're unfair. I'm watching this with my wife and kids and they're absolutely captivated by it. They're already emotionally invested in the characters, were scared when the clickers turned up and are desperate for the next episodes. Coming to this with no knowledge of the series must heighten the enjoyment and expectation; I'm jealous that they have no awareness of what's to come. 

 

Also think our enjoyment and appreciation for this will grow as the relationship and bond between Joel and Ellie develops and we see them experience the events of the first game; it's that relationship development which is at the heart of what is best about the game. Whilst the game's prologue is memorable for the end scene, the game doesn't really flourish until we get to meet Bill. So I wasn't expecting to be blown away by these early episodes but am really impressed by them - in no small part because of what the  two prologues have brought to proceedings. I also think they've done pretty well with the quieter, more tender moments which are part of what makes the game so great; I can't wait to see how they do one of the most memorable scenes at the university, with 

Spoiler

the giraffes.

 

[Ry]

I'm currently playing Part 1 remake on PS5 and I don't see any point in playing it actually. (I don't replay games and watching the show already feels like replaying the game)

 

Off to trading folder it is!

[MidWalian]

HBO has confirmed there will be a second season.

[Chadruharazzeb]

3 hours ago, MidWalian said:

HBO has confirmed there will be a second season.

 

Rat King! Dogs! Golf! Fun times ahead. 

[makkuwata]

I wonder how they’ll go about casting. There’ll need to be a lot of counselling involved to cope with certain ‘fans’.

[MidWalian]

29 minutes ago, Chadruharazzeb said:

 

Rat King! Dogs! Golf! Fun times ahead. 

 

19 minutes ago, makkuwata said:

I wonder how they’ll go about casting. There’ll need to be a lot of counselling involved to cope with certain ‘fans’.

 

I haven't played the second game and have avoided story spoilers and now wondering if a dog gets killed by a golf club.

[Chadruharazzeb]

I can honestly say that does not happen. 

[iknowgungfu]

Watched the first two episodes and really enjoyed them. There are some less than subtle nods to the game mechanics and structure (someone already mentioned the falling debris). Traversing the hotel felt very videogamey but I didn’t mind it. 
 

I think people might be expecting too much. I mean it’s an adaptation of a video game set in a zombie apocalypse. I don’t care so much about some of the nit picks (the clickers did look a little Unconvincing but the sound and movement was great). I like what they have started with between Joel and Ellie. There are some nice subtle moments. My favourite being 

Spoiler

When Joel takes in the view across the city with Ellie. He waits while they both go down the ladder and he takes a quick look at his watch because being around Ellie obviously evokes the loss of his daughter years ago. Things like that elevate it for me. 

If I had one criticism, at times some of the cinematography echoes the video game a bit too much and I think both mediums have different “languages” which will work for viewers/players. 

[makkuwata]

At times such as the exact moment you just described liking!

[teddymeow]

Y'all know I'm a ridiculously huge fan of TLOU. It's my favourite game ever.

 

I was planning on waiting until all episodes were available to watch and then binge the lot but,.with the first wp being up on Sky's YouTube channel, I thought, why not...

 

30 minutes in and I'm impressed, amazed, and, after "that scene" in absolute bits again. I had to pause it and go check on my children and make sure they were tucked in snugly in their beds.

 

They did it! The crazy sons of bitches did it!!