SPOILER WARNING
One of Max’s most popular shows since it’s launch back in 2020 has been “The Last of Us,” an adaptation of the post-apocalyptic video game of the same name. The series follows protagonists Joel and Ellie, as they travel across a United States that has been overrun by fungal-infected people for the past 20 years. I am fairly new to the “The Last of Us” fandom, having only watched the show and played the games for the first time this January. Despite this, “The Last of Us” has utterly consumed my life. The first episode of season two premiered on Sunday, April 13, and fans of both the show and the video games have a lot of opinions on the direction the series is taking.
The show is now adapting the second game, “The Last of Us: Part II,” by splitting its contents between this season and the upcoming season three. Taking place five years after the events of season one, season two examines the strained relationship between Ellie and Joel after settling in Jackson, Wyoming. It also introduces new threats to the characters like more infected and other humans. Although we did not get a whole lot of action in this first episode, we definitely got a good sense of what Joel and Ellie’s lives look like now and have already been well acquainted with a slew of new characters, some familiar to the game, some not.
Personally, I really enjoyed this first episode. I am a big believer that adaptations do not have to be perfectly faithful to the source material, so long as it does not ruin any major plot points or the integrity of the characters or the story itself. So far, I do not feel that any of the changes the show has made to the game’s story have done any irreparable damage.
One positive change the show’s inclusion of Part II is its decision to tell the story chronologically, as it makes the most sense for a television adaptation. While I am hoping to see a decent amount of Abby and her crew in season two, I hope that season three will be when the show delves into the bulk of her story. Especially as someone who was not completely sold on her as a character in the game, I would love for them to weave in more backstory from before Ellie arrives in Seattle, Wyoming later in the season.
Overall, most of the criticism that I have seen both online and from people I know feels a bit nitpicky to me. To me, the inclusion of “stalkers” (an intelligent variant of infected) is a way to both rouse interest in show-only viewers and correct for their absence in the first season. The choice to give Dina and Joel an established relationship makes a lot of sense to me, given they live in a small town, and she is Ellie’s best friend. These types of changes translate well to television and allow us to explore relationships that we might not have been privy to when playing as Ellie.
It is important to keep in mind that we are still only one episode in, and it will take the whole season – maybe even through season three – to really see the vision that show creator Craig Mazin and game and show creator Neil Druckman, are trying to execute. While it is nice to see a beloved work faithfully adapted, it is also nice to bring something new to the table, especially if one of the creators of the original is involved in its making. Only time will tell if the season exceeds or falls short of the high bar set by the acclaimed first season, but I am excited to see where this goes.
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