The long-awaited The Last of Us TV series has finally debuted. New episodes are available each Monday on the HBO Max streaming platform. Is this adaptation good, and how has it changed the source material? Let’s check it out.
The Last of Us – the game
If we’re talking about The Last of Us TV series, we have to start with Naughty Dog’s game and its phenomenon. It was first released in 2013 as a PlayStation exclusive and sold about seven million copies. This result makes TLoU the third best-selling PS3 game, behind only GTA V and Gran Turismo 5. Even more gamers experienced the emotional journey with Joel and Ellie on PS4 as The Last of Us Remastered sold ten million copies. No wonder the PS5 received its version of the game too. This time it was completely remade and renamed The Last of Us Part I to correspond with its sequel, The Last of Us Part II. The remake was released in September 2022 for the Sony next-gen console, while its PC port will hit the shelves on March 3, 2023.
The key to Naughty Dog’s success
What was the key to the spectacular success of The Last of Us? We would venture to say it wasn’t the gameplay because it has its flaws. However, the plot more than compensated for all its shortcomings. The game, directed by Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmann, provides an almost cinematic experience where gameplay is used to connect parts of the emotionally-charged journey of Joel and Ellie. Unlike most action games, The Last of Us offers something completely unique. It takes players on a multilayered and mature journey in which shooting infected enemies serves merely as a pretext for telling the story of the characters and their relationships. The moral dilemmas they have, the tough choices they have to make, and the obstacles they must overcome make players care for Joel and Ellie and really root for them.
The cast
The story in The Last of Us is very cinematic, so its TV or movie adaptation was just a matter of time. As usual, fans have been pointing out actors who should portray major roles. Hugh Jackman, Josh Brolin, and Gerard Butler were among the stars mentioned as the perfect Joel, while Kaitlyn Dever, Maisie Williams, and Sophia Lillis were suggested as Ellie. The bar was set very high as both actors from the game, Troy Baker (Joel) and Ashley Johnson (Ellie), were praised and awarded for their performances. Ultimately, HBO decided on Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. In the supporting cast, we may see, among others, Gabriel Luna (Tommy), Anna Torv (Tess), and Nick Offerman (Bill). It’s worth noticing that Merle Dandridge, who portrayed Marlene in the game, reprises this role in the TV series.
HBO TV show vs. the game
The Last of Us debuted on HBO on January 16, 2023, to universal acclaim. The show has a Metascore of 84 and a User Score of 8.0. Scores on Rotten Tomatoes are even higher – critics’ approval ratings of 99% and an audience score of 96%. As you can see, both critics and fans like what they’ve seen so far. They, among other things, praised the show for its faithfulness to the source material. It’s not a surprise since the game’s co-creator, Neil Druckmann, is also responsible for the show. However, some changes have been made. Let’s analyze the most significant differences between The Last of Us video game and the HBO adaptation.
*** The following part contains spoilers ***
Many dialogues or scenes are precisely recreated in the show, but it’s impossible to copy the whole source material. As a result, we won’t mention details such as the location of the burning farm or the names of Joel’s neighbors. However, there are also more noteworthy differences.
Sarah
Sarah plays a pivotal role in Joel’s past, and in both the game and the series, we can experience the early part of the story through her eyes. The HBO show, on the other hand, allowed us to spend much more time with her. For example, there are scenes showing Sarah at school, in a watchmaker’s shop, or visiting her neighbors. Consequently, viewers unfamiliar with the original story may assume that she is the protagonist; hence, her death is even more shocking.
The outbreak day
The series starts with a debate about a hypothetical unstoppable pandemic caused by a mutated fungus. Even though viewers can assume that a similar scenario is going to happen, the zombie invasion feels more sudden. On the other hand, Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us gives us glimpses of the upcoming catastrophe. For instance, we can spot a newspaper with an article about a mysterious infection. There are also other differences. In the game, one of the infected breaks into Joel and Ellie’s house, while in the show, Sarah discovers an infected person at her neighbor’s place. Moreover, while Joel, Sarah, and Tommy are trying to reach the highway and escape, they can see falling planes, which is a spectacular addition to this already compelling scene.
The infected
We don’t have the chance to get a closer look at the infected in the first episode of the HBO show. However, there is a noticeable detail that was missing from the game. In The Last of Us TV series, the infected have mycelium in their mouths.
Tess and Joel
In the show, we can see that there is a deeper relationship between Joel and Tess, while in the game, they seem more like associates.
Ellie
The girl portrayed by Bella Ramsey appears to have a slightly different attitude than her video game counterpart. For instance, she cracks the radio code, which was missing from the game. Moreover, in the original, when Ellie meets Joel for the first time, she seems to have a relationship with Marlene, while in the show, she’s held captive by the Fireflies.
Action
Some players stated that the HBO show is unfaithful to the source material because Joel should die every five minutes. Obviously, it’s a joke. However, viewers would be yawning if they had to witness Joel shooting countless enemies or patiently sneaking past them. As a result, some changes were necessary. For instance, in the game, Joel and Tess have to fight tons of Robert’s thugs before they can reach the gangster. In the adaptation, they didn’t have to use their guns because Robert and his men had already been killed by the Fireflies before Joel and Tess arrived.
Tommy
In The Last of Us TV series, Tommy’s disappearance is Joel’s main motivation. The protagonist wants to go outside and look for his brother, who has been missing for three weeks. In the game, we don’t know why Tommy is not around. We only learn that he had worked with the Fireflies.
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