HBO: The Last of Us

[ArtDamage]

Is it possible to have both loved and hated the last episode at the same time?

I have to say, Nick Offerman was the perfect casting for Bill. He looked the part and really got the "crazy doomsday prepper" down perfectly. I really enjoyed getting more of his backstory, and actually getting a look at Frank. For those that played the game, this was obviously a massive departure from the game's story where Bill actually helps Joel and Ellie gather supplies and get a car together. But, the story they wrote was brilliant and really hit some incredible emotional notes. I don't mind that they took a different path with the story, because it enhanced it so much.

But - it's really a shame they took away all of the interaction between Bill and Joel/Ellie. Bill and Ellie really go at it in the games, their bickering is everything from chaotic to hysterical, and I was really hoping Bella would get a chance to break through with Ellie's personality in those scenes with Bill.

Oh well. Great episode overall. Wish some things were different, but I guess that's where someone who isn't familiar with the source material can enjoy it a bit more than someone who is. Looks like they're going to keep the brutality from Pittsburgh in the next episode. Looking forward to that. The place where Joel and Ellie do begin to trust each other.

Pretty much my exact thoughts. I feel a little bummed we got robbed of the interaction between the three of them, but the episode was still pretty good.

There were some kind of head scratcher moments, like Bill standing out in the middle of the street shooting or other stuff that Hollywood thinks looks "tactical" that sorta stood out. Stuff that someone prepared like Bill is would likely not be doing. Those are more nitpicks though.

 

[R_R_X]

Episode 3 was ok but definitely boring to me, nothing amazing or grundbreaking so I really don't understand (maybe a bit) why so many are considering it to be the best episode of the show and of TV in general considering what's still to come when it comes to the game story, I actually thought it completely messed up the pacing having an entire episode dedicated to characters who have zero impact on the story.

So positives, Bella has finally started to win me over, not completely but I definitely felt she was Ellie this episode, I still don't understand why they're adding this dark side to her when it's supposed to be born out of the journey she goes through also didn't really care for her asserting herself over Joel saying Tess's death wasn't her fault when in the game she feels incredibly guilty about it and tries to apologize to Joel and even brings her up later on.

Nick Offerman did an amazing job as this version of Bill, loved the prepper stuff and seeing him thrive in the world, the realationship with Frank was really well done and sweet, it's heartwarming seeing this hermit grow out of his shell thanks to Frank, it's a hard departure from how the story unfolds in the game but I found it to be a good one for the TV version.

Unfortunately I think the episode spent too much time on Bill and Frank, they missed out on so many amazing moments with Bill and Ellie and also Joel and some amazing and intense set pieces to tell this tender love story which wasn't in the game but man it all feels a bit pointless considering what happens, at the end of the day the episode doesn't really add much to the overarching story of Joel and Ellie unless you count the letter at the end which felt like the writers were once more spoon feeding the audience about character motivations.

Anyway next episode looks like we go to Pittsburgh which I think will be replaced with Kansas City in the show and I cannot wait to see what goes down there, if you're a new fan and you thought Bill and Frank was emotional just wait until Sam and Henry.

 

[Gipetto0812]

Is it possible to have both loved and hated the last episode at the same time?

I have to say, Nick Offerman was the perfect casting for Bill. He looked the part and really got the "crazy doomsday prepper" down perfectly. I really enjoyed getting more of his backstory, and actually getting a look at Frank. For those that played the game, this was obviously a massive departure from the game's story where Bill actually helps Joel and Ellie gather supplies and get a car together. But, the story they wrote was brilliant and really hit some incredible emotional notes. I don't mind that they took a different path with the story, because it enhanced it so much.

But - it's really a shame they took away all of the interaction between Bill and Joel/Ellie. Bill and Ellie really go at it in the games, their bickering is everything from chaotic to hysterical, and I was really hoping Bella would get a chance to break through with Ellie's personality in those scenes with Bill.

Oh well. Great episode overall. Wish some things were different, but I guess that's where someone who isn't familiar with the source material can enjoy it a bit more than someone who is. Looks like they're going to keep the brutality from Pittsburgh in the next episode. Looking forward to that. The place where Joel and Ellie do begin to trust each other.

I agree with you. It was a nice episode in it's own way, but not the one I wanted. I feel like Offerman as was perfect casting as you said, though wasted in the episode. Like you said, the interaction between the 3 of them, especially the bickering between Ellie and Bill were what I was looking forward to, which would've worked well with Offerman's acting.

Some online reviewers are going on about how this is the best episode of the the season and I just can't see that being the case, at least not for me. Nothing against the content of the episode as it was nice in it's own way. But I would've preferred to have this episode be what we don't see in the game before we get to the part of how Joel and Ellie meet up with Bill. That would've been more interesting IMO. We could've had the nice story of Bill and Frank's lives, built some connection with Bill and then had a fun "this is Bill coping with the loss of Frank" with all the crazy traps and what not around town.

The next episode looks like it's going to be a little more action packed at least.

 

[BeefEaster]

Wow, that was incredible. I'm at a loss for words, honestly.

 

[Mandible]

In a series that lasts for a ton of seasons to deviate for an episode and tell one characters backstory/story is fine - but when you have a limited 9-part series to squeeze this amazing story into and that's based primarily on two protagonists, and you waste an entire episode on a minor side character and leave out so much (from the game) character building moments from the two leads, is nothing short of baffling.

Also, when Ellie is first introduced in this episode, it's something like "I've never been in the woods. More bugs than I thought." Whereas in the game, it's a moment of joy and wonderment about "what's on the other side of the wall." About things she's only ever heard of and never seen. About the natural beauty of nature that we take for granted every day. Her little head is exploding and it's an amazingly touching moment that effects you in so many ways.

But nah, let's piss all that away and focus on Bill - because that will make you feel so much more about the overall story by the time everything wraps up at the end. I'd rather them focus on building Ellie, and Joel, and their relationship.

I was on the fence before this ep, but they're leaving out too many amazing character moments that enormously enhance why the story is so special - so all my interest/hope is completely shot now.

 

[R_R_X]

In a series that lasts for a ton of seasons to deviate for an episode and tell one characters backstory/story is fine - but when you have a limited 9-part series to squeeze this amazing story into and that's based primarily on two protagonists, and you waste an entire episode on a minor side character and leave out so much (from the game) character building moments from the two leads, is nothing short of baffling.

Also, when Ellie is first introduced in this episode, it's something like "I've never been in the woods. More bugs than I thought." Whereas in the game, it's a moment of joy and wonderment about "what's on the other side of the wall." About things she's only ever heard of and never seen. About the natural beauty of nature that we take for granted every day. Her little head is exploding and it's an amazingly touching moment that effects you in so many ways.

But nah, let's piss all that away and focus on Bill - because that will make you feel so much more about the overall story by the time everything wraps up at the end. I'd rather them focus on building Ellie, and Joel, and their relationship.

I was on the fence before this ep, but they're leaving out too many amazing character moments that enormously enhance why the story is so special - so all my interest/hope is completely shot now.

Man now that you mention it there's so many moments they missed out on, Ellie's wonder at nature and even bugs "Oh look, fireflies!" still dunno why they're making her so obnoxious in the show, seeing her discover this whole new world with such childlike wonder was so beautiful in contrast to what Joel saw in it.

The dynamic with Bill and Ellie is also such a missed opportunity and how Bill acts as a mirror for Joel and warns him about things to come, I think they still could've kept the love story as it is but also have elements of the game, it's a good episode but I absolutely agree with you it wasted too much time on characters we will never see again and ultimately added nothing to the main story of the protagonists and the world, it was more a bottle episode that you would see in shows with 20 or so episodes each season.

It's a shame that a lot of people will only ever watch the TV show and miss out on all those beautiful moments from the game, I don't think they truly know what they're missing and it's easy to say the game is the game and the show is the show but when so many of the best moments are missing it is hard to not go "This is great but it's not the game." but it seems like we're in the minority because I see nothing but praise for the show and this episode everywhere I look, many saying it's better than the game in every way which I don't know if it's just recency bias, shilling, something else or all of it combined, it's a very good adaptation which does some things better but I wouldn't say it's better than the game for me.

 

[Mandible]

Man now that you mention it there's so many moments they missed out on, Ellie's wonder at nature and even bugs "Oh look, fireflies!" still dunno why they're making her so obnoxious in the show, seeing her discover this whole new world with such childlike wonder was so beautiful in contrast to what Joel saw in it.

The dynamic with Bill and Ellie is also such a missed opportunity and how Bill acts as a mirror for Joel and warns him about things to come, I think they still could've kept the love story as it is but also have elements of the game, it's a good episode but I absolutely agree with you it wasted too much time on characters we will never see again and ultimately added nothing to the main story of the protagonists and the world, it was more a bottle episode that you would see in shows with 20 or so episodes each season.

It's a shame that a lot of people will only ever watch the TV show and miss out on all those beautiful moments from the game, I don't think they truly know what they're missing and it's easy to say the game is the game and the show is the show but when so many of the best moments are missing it is hard to not go "This is great but it's not the game." but it seems like we're in the minority because I see nothing but praise for the show and this episode everywhere I look, many saying it's better than the game in every way which I don't know if it's just recency bias, shilling, something else or all of it combined, it's a very good adaptation which does some things better but I wouldn't say it's better than the game for me.

It's modern day bandwagon ******** designed to bring as much attention to the show as possible and get more viewers.

TLOU 1, isn't the most awarded, lauded, loved, revered, game in history for no reason. Just go back and watch Grounded (The Making of the game), or read the Art Of book, or watch any of the millions of YouTube videos from people from EVERY walk of life, and it all makes sense why it's such an unparalleled masterpiece - the characters and the story. NOT the gameplay and game design, we've seen that a million times before.

To be deviating as much as they are isn't doing any favors to those that have never played the game - it's depriving them.

 

[Asta]

I liked the beginning with the developing relationship between Ellie and Joel, how she was irritating him, sometimes intentionally with her snark, and at others just by being an annoying kid. They both have barriers around themselves as coping mechanisms. Joel is laconic and reluctant to engage, while Ellie protects herself with sarcasm.

As in the game I'm waiting for the moment when they finally connect, and Joel finally stops regarding her as a nuisance, and begins to see her as a daughter. There are signs of it in the show, as Joel begins to talk more about the past, and Ellie "Thanks" him.

Then the development is curtailed by back story. While the Bill and Frank scenes are played well (though differently to the game), I was eager to get back to where we left off.

As others have said, if this series wanted to dwell so much on the past, with filling in gaps and world building, it needed to allow itself more episodes in total to allow for that luxury.

Bill and Frank dragged on so long I resorted to repeatedly clicking the five second skip button during the non-dialogue parts, until Ellie and Joel arrived.

It augments the game world rather than replacing it, meaning that viewers should really experience the game to get the full picture. The differences I can overcome as differences in perspective or telling. Except they missed out the whole episode of meeting Bill, depriving the audience of the connection and action. That didn't make much sense.

When we finally get back to our two main characters there's some nice little moments with them.

We also see Ellie in her classic outfit, and then equipped with her Beretta Model 70.

And there was a reason why Frank looked like Joel...

Then at the end there's a very overt expression of Joel's growing protectiveness of Ellie when he tells her to put her seat belt on, and reaches over to pull the belt across her.

The series isn't a carbon copy, and certain elements have been promoted in place of more essential ones, but overall I'm liking it a lot.

 

[namoruku]

I thought the episode was really great -- I've reminded myself while watching this adaptation that it doesn't necessarily need to be a very very close re-enactment of the entire game's story, and that I'm fine with them using this TV format to expand on the game's story instead. Of course I understand other huge fans of the games would prefer they include all the plot points, but I think the main purpose of this show is to be a sort of retelling of the game's story. I'd rather they do that and expand on parts of the story than just act out the same exact scenes from the game, for the sake of fanservice.

 

[glitch1044]

I knew they were going to extend the Bill and Frank story for this series, but a 115 minute episode featuring only 30 mins with Joel and Ellie...on a show thats supposed to be about them? Featuring characters that literally didn't help progression at all for our mains characters? I only expected maybe 10-15 minutes of Bill and Frank max, and then they would continue on with the original story (Bill, Joel and Ellie).
At this point I don't even care what they do anymore, I'll play the game when I want to experience this story the way the original writers wanted us to. Obviously, this series was intended for a very different crowd.
The weirdest thing so far though, (as @R_R_X mentioned), is how they seem to be making Ellie out as this psychopath, who has this infatuation with death and killing s*** for some reason. I can't make sense of why they would want to portray Ellie like that. Maybe it's so that we'll feel more sympathy for Abby in season 2?

Non-related to the last EP. It's kind of neat seeing familiar locations in the show. Apparently most of it was filmed in Alberta, my home province. I feel sorry for them if they had to film the winter bits here up north though. It gets so freaking cold! Lol

 

[RavenAsh]

To me the hardest issue of a video game adaption like The Last of Us, or other Sony properties like God of War, Horizon or Uncharted, is that there are literal performances to place up against the live action counterparts. This isn’t a comic book or a novel. It isn’t even a live action retelling of an animated movie. We who have played these games instinctively connect to the performances given, in this case, by Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson. For a decade that’s been our view of this story. So as a tv show, you’re already in a tough spot because you have to truly sell us on these new performances in VERY similar settings WHILE ALSO not doing too much copy and paste or a viewer may go ‘eh I liked the game more’ or ‘eh the game did that scene better’. This is absolutely coalescing in the way Ellie is being written, so many little childlike wonder moments removed. That’s not Bella Ramsey’s fault. That’s on the writers. They’ve changed the feelings many have on Ellie’s character at least in the show. Is it to set up Part II better in their eyes? Maybe. But it unfortunately damages Part I because her childlike wonderment is incredibly important to juxtapose with the winter section and the decisions she is forced to make there. Of course, they’re sticking with the broad strokes of the game, no question. I’m sure now, after Uncharted was met with very mixed reviews and this has been given glowing ones, they’ll likely stick to this model going forward as they work on God of War and Horizon. That’s awesome and I love that the story is now reaching more people. But they have to understand that removing a scene, even as small as Ellie looking at fireflies and being in awe, actively changes an audience’s perception of a character. I’m not saying give us a slavish exact shot for shot adaption, BUT I think it is valid to consider the kind of scenes you are cutting and truly ask yourself if you are changing the emotions and feelings the story is presenting. The Last of Us 1 was a perfect stew. As you take out ingredients, without replacing them with something as nice, it makes it hard to connect as much as I did with the game. Is it still a fantastic adaptation in a lot of ways? For sure. But the intricacies, that can be missed in some of the writing decisions, are what leaves a more special experience in the game.

 

[Space Jockey]

And in the game there is an immediate connection because one is playing as the character, being the character, as opposed to watching on the sidelines.
RandomHero hit the nail on the head, I loved the episode, I don't think I went as far as hated the episode. It's hard to fault the episode 'as is' - it's excellent. But seeing clickers running into Bill's traps and the panic of Joel getting caught up in one himself was missed. My daughter complained that we didn't see the high-school bloater.

 

[e30ernest]

I enjoyed this episode a lot. I didn't mind spending time on characters outside of Joel and Ellie at all (since it did give some good backstory on how the pandemic evolved). I am surprised FEDRA didn't come over to get their supplies though.

I see a lot of the complaints here are from people that played the game again. I have been able to borrow my brother's PS4 remaster. I might end up playing this after this show has finished its run in HBO so not to ruin my enjoyment of the series.

 

[darthviper107]

Great episode and I think they did a really good job with the characters and story.

For people that are concerned they aren't doing enough to develop the Joel/Ellie relationship, remember that Joel wants to leave Ellie for his brother to take care of once he gets to Jackson, and we aren't all that close to that point in the show. So there's still a lot of time for them to develop that relationship.
And also, this episode was still very relevant to the main story as it shows how Bill could develop love for someone even when he never expected to and actively avoided people. Joel is similar in that aspect although his reason is that he lost the people he loved.

They could have had that story end how it did in the game which could work as a warning to Joel of what he could become if he truly gives up on people. However, I am glad they took a more positive direction with that story since there's so many other depressing and tragic gay characters in movies/TV.

 

[chrisstbh]

Frank was pretty manipulative.

I knew they were going to extend the Bill and Frank story for this series, but a 115 minute episode featuring only 30 mins with Joel and Ellie...on a show thats supposed to be about them?

That's the thing though, in a game for the most part you're locked into the POV of the main protagonist, in a TV show you can follow and expand on different characters too. It may not build upon the story of Joel and Ellie but it builts upon the story of this world, showing how other people survive etc.

 

[glitch1044]

I might end up playing this after this show has finished its run in HBO so not to ruin my enjoyment of the series.

Very good idea to wait, playing the game before this series is done will honestly probably ruin the show for you.
This series reminds me of when they try to translate a novel into a movie or tv series, and it misses half the story. This show is missing a lot of interactions between Joel and Ellie.
You'll be in for a treat when you play the game.

 

[Cap'n Cook]

Easily best episode of the three so far and I’m a stout ‘OG’ fan. Superb television.

 

[Jmek]

The first major deviation from the game, and an excellent episode. I have to admit I was really moved by Bill and Frank's story and the character beats with Joel, Tess and Ellie.

A helluva lot of pathos and some fantastic world building too, really enjoying this so far.

 

[ironwez20]

Great episode. But damn did they get old very fast. Age wise. They didn’t look so old when they met

 

[jye4ever]

Video games lulz

**** the stupid game just give me great adult drama I could give 2 craps if the show craps on some silly game especially if the show or movie is great.

I play video games to blow **** up I would never go there searching for compelling stories that sounds ridiculous even saying that lol

Hold on let me put aside the compelling drama in the game so that I can dungeon crawl open some cabinets drive a car climb a ladder and shoot my gun lol

Keep making the smart changes.

Videogames lulz