While fans have waited impatiently for HBO’s take onThe Last of Us, the show has finally arrived with its first two episodes. With game writer-director Neil Druckmann and award-winning co-creator Craig Mazin behind the wheel, fans of the game can be relieved that the show is a faithful retelling of the beloved game, allowing a whole new audience to experience the incredible story.
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Though television and video games are entirely different mediums, and just like any adaptation, changes were bound to happen when adaptingThe Last of Usfor a television audience. While fans of the game will pick up on these changes immediately, newcomers to the post-apocalyptic world will be blissfully unaware of what changes have occurred.The Last of Usis a highly cinematic series, so first-time viewers may be curious as to how things played out differently with a controller in hand.
Warning! Spoilers ahead.
6The Opening
Right from the opening moments, fans of the game could tell that the HBO series would be a different but equally compelling experience. The opening scene of the game is quite simple, opening with a sweet interaction between Joel and Sarah. Instead, the series starts by going back in time to the 60s, where on a fictional talk show two scientists discuss the possibility of a viral pandemic, particularly a fungal pandemic, spreading throughout the world.
Though the original opening does a fantastic job of setting up Joel and Sarah’s relationship, the talk show helps draw in new viewers by giving context to theCordycepsvirus that is so integral toThe Last of Us. Given that the series takes a longer time to get to the outbreak, this scene also adds a layer of tension to otherwise mundane scenes. There’s also an added creepiness to the whole opening,given that the real world has already experienced a global pandemic. After witnessing the effect COVID-19 had on the world, audiences are left wondering just how devastating a fungal pandemic would actually be.
5The Prologue
The Last of Ushas arguably one of the most impactful prologues in all of gaming. Players take control of Sarah as she and Joel witness the end of civilization, all before Sarah is tragically killed. The show, however, extends this opening for nearly half of the episode’s runtime. Fans follow Sarah throughout her whole day, learning about how she fixed Joel’s watch and spent time with her neighbors just hours before the outbreak. The new opening also gives audiences a good look at the infected in a terrifying sequence in which Sarah finds one of the infected inside her neighbor’s house, a sequence that’s absent in the game.
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The game’s opening works well largely because it’s a video game. Giving players control over Sarah naturally allows players to empathize with her, so not much needs to happen in order for her death to hit hard.Watching a story unfold is different than interacting with one, however. Due to the extended opening, viewers both new and familiar are given a chance to get to know and care for Sarah before she dies. And though some of the specifics of the nighttime sequence are changed, the overall confusion and tension remain as viewers witness the unnerving breakdown of society.
4Discovering the Virus
One of the great things about television is that it’s not confined to the storytelling rules of video games, meaning that Druckmann and Mazin have an opportunity to show how theCordycepspandemic unfolded around the world. Fans see that inthe devastating cold open of the show’s second episode. Taking place in Indonesia days before the outbreak, mycology professor Ibu Ratna’s lunch is interrupted by military forces, who take her to examine a recently-infected corpse. After examining the body, Ratna tells the military that the virus must be stopped at all costs, even if that means bombing the city and everyone there.
The first episode directed by Druckmann, this scene gives audiences a rare glimpse that most zombie narratives gloss over, which is the scientific discovery of the virus. This scene’s true terror comes from just how real it feels. Much like HBO’sChernobyl, the scene shows the dread that comes with discovering an inevitable deadly threat, proving that Mazin really was the perfect choice for adaptingThe Last of Us. Druckmann also proves with this scene alone that he’s just as effective of a television director as he is a game director, perfectly balancing horror and tragedy with this single character just like he does throughout the entire franchise.
3Introducing Ellie
Ellie has become one of the most iconic and beloved video game characters, so there was no doubt that fans were eagerto see Bella Ramsey take on the characterin the pilot episode. Since the writers are no longer limited to simply Joel’s perspective in television, they’re allowed to introduce viewers to Ellie much earlier than they were in the game. Whereas in the game players meet Ellie at the same time Joel meets her, in the series fans meet Ellie when she’s still being looked after by the Fireflies.
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Fans get a first taste of how Ramsey and the show’s writers will handle Ellie, with her witty attitude leading to new fun dialogue and properly introducing her personality to first-time viewers of the story. A proper heart-to-heart with Marlene also gives fans an idea of what their relationship might’ve looked like before Joel. Introducing Ellie on her own also allows audiences to develop a connection to her individually, whereas in the game players are only able to develop that connection through Joel.
2The Infected
Given thatThe Last of Usis a unique take on the zombie apocalypse, it should come as no surprise that both the show and the game give fans an idea of how the virus works and spreads. Though they are vastly different,they are both equally interesting and terrifying. In the game, various locations will be infected with spores, filling the air with an airborne version of the virus that can cause anyone breathing it in to be infected. Spores are nowhere to be found in the HBO series, though they are replaced with other, arguably deadlier alternatives.
One of the more noteworthy visual changes to the infected is the addition of tendrils protruding from the mouth. In the show’s universe, it’s from these tendrils that the infected spread the virus when they bite victims. Episode 2 also added some new lore never touched upon in the games. In the series, theCordycepsfungus also spreads underground, connecting the infected. Disturbing the fungus can alert the infected, which as fans see in the episode, can lead to swarms of infected being lured to one location. While spores work well as a game design mechanic, these changes add a level of danger to the series not found in the games, almost making spores seem preferable.
1Tess’s Death
In the post-apocalyptic world ofThe Last of Us, Tess is the first major character to be killed. In both the show and the game, her death is fundamentally the same, though the manner of her death is one of the show’s biggest and most controversial changes. In the game, her death is quite simple. After revealing that she’s infected, both she and Joel are convinced that Ellie’s immunity is real. As FEDRA soldiers arrive, Tess dies holding them off as long as possible while Joel and Ellie escape.
In the show, FEDRA soldiers are instead replaced with infected; once Joel shoots a living infected inside the building, other infected outside sense their location and swarm the building. Joel and Ellie escape while Tess stays behind, preparing to blow up the building. When the infected storm in, one walks up to Tess, “kissing” her as he attempts to infect her with her tendrils. It’s at this moment that Tess blows up the building, killing herself and all the infected inside.
Replacing FEDRA soldiers with infected makes more sense for worldbuilding, while also fitting the episode, which is all dedicated to establishing how the infected work.Tess’s kiss with the infected has drawn a divided response, with many claiming it to be emotional while just as many claiming it to be weird and unnecessary. The end result is still the same regardless; an unforgettable scene in what is sure to become an unforgettable series.
The Last of Usairs Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO.
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