Other Game spoilers thread for The Last of Us TV Show - Enter at your own risk (Contains spoilers for Last of Us Parts 1 & 2)

[Red the Bear]

It's to create something less generic.

I'd call a video game less generic than tv series but hey what do I know.
don't you dare to bring my tagline into this!

So people who don't play games can enjoy the story?

What's the point in watching a soap when it recycles the same storylines every 3-4 years?

Why make marvel movies on story reliant comic books?

Why make movies of books?

Books, comic books etc operate on wholly different medium to movies while modern video games have a large overlap with them with how they utilize cinematics, voice acting , motion capture etc so to make a tv series out of a video game that already endeavored itself to be as close to a cinematic experience as possible to me seems like a waste of resources from an artistic point of view.

 

[Red the Bear]

Weird question if we're all honest.

I suppose so, it just had me thinking about it for a while after the news of them making it came out.

 

[Drawfull]

I suppose so, it just had me thinking about it for a while after the news of them making it came out.

The news of HBO making it came out in 2020. So that definitely qualifies as a while.

 

[One Night Only]

I'd call a video game less generic than tv series but hey what do I know.
don't you dare to bring my tagline into this!

Books, comic books etc operate on wholly different medium to movies while modern video games have a large overlap with them with how they utilize cinematics, voice acting , motion capture etc so to make a tv series out of a video game that already endeavored itself to be as close to a cinematic experience as possible to me seems like a waste of resources from an artistic point of view.

I'd dare to say there are things the creators looked back on and decided weren't correct, or things they wanted to develop more.

The audience can be completely different for games Vs TV though, I know my old man would probably struggle to play the last of us and he hasn't played games for years, but he'd probably enjoy the story, same with things such as the Witcher too.

I was always confused by them making games into TV / movies but it's usually a whole different experience imo. Half the cut scenes in games I want to skip so I can get back to smashing skulls and stuff.

 

[Red the Bear]

I'd dare to say there are things the creators looked back on and decided weren't correct, or things they wanted to develop more.

The audience can be completely different for games Vs TV though, I know my old man would probably struggle to play the last of us and he hasn't played games for years, but he'd probably enjoy the story, same with things such as the Witcher too.

I was always confused by them making games into TV / movies but it's usually a whole different experience imo. Half the cut scenes in games I want to skip so I can get back to smashing skulls and stuff.

Yeah fair enough especially un regards about the diffrent demographics involved , even though I find the practice obsolete i guess it helps making it more well known.

Still I hope Hollywood doesn't get any long term ideas, we already have enough remakes as is no need to add endless movie games to the list.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Hrrrrm, bit flat for me. Storm Reid felt too old to be Riley. Didn’t feel like a believable relationship at all. The mall looked great, though. Bella Ramsey was excellent as usual.

mostly now it just feels like there’s a lot crammed into the last 2 (shorter) episodes. Feels like that could’ve been shorter.

 

[One Night Only]

Yeah fair enough especially un regards about the diffrent demographics involved , even though I find the practice obsolete i guess it helps making it more well known.

Still I hope Hollywood doesn't get any long term ideas, we already have enough remakes as is no need to add endless movie games to the list.

Yeah, with this being a win for a TV series adapted from a game, every game which sells decent will get a TV show now and 95% of them will be dogshit and the market will be oversaturated.

 

[Red the Bear]

Yeah, with this being a win for a TV series adapted from a game, every game which sells decent will get a TV show now and 95% of them will be dogshit and the market will be oversaturated.

It's inevitable I'm afraid. Although I suppose it was long time coming as they did try their hand with halo previously.

 

[esmufc07]

Uncharted could be a really good TV show. I refuse to watch the film.

This episode was…ok. Definitely longer than it needed to be.

Disappointed to learn that the final 2 are fairly short episodes. Figured the finale would be a good 60-70 minutes at least. Lots to get through.

 

[WI_Red]

At this point M&D have enough credit built up with me that I am going to trust they are going to give us the story they want to tell. Will it make everyone, especially the game players, happy? Probably not, but my takeaway from listening to their podcast is that they were not limited by HBO and that they are telling the story of TLOU exactly how they want to tell it. I guess we will know in 2 weeks.

 

[Berbasbullet]

Episode was good, not great. Similar vibes to episode 3 but episode 3 was executed much better and is a GOAT tv episode for me.

Was nice though, see an extended episode where Ellie is happy (for most of it).

 

[DixieDean]

Bella is very impressive as ellie.

I do have some worry how she is going to protray her as a killer is S2, though. She's so tiny.

 

[Bobade]

Bella is very impressive as ellie.

I do have some worry how she is going to protray her as a killer is S2, though. She's so tiny.

She's hardly a meathead in the game either though, to be fair.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Bella is very impressive as ellie.

I do have some worry how she is going to protray her as a killer is S2, though. She's so tiny.

I imagine she'll a) do a lot less killing and b) any killing she does do will be accidental/self defense killing.

 

[Mockney]

It’s interesting that people in the other thread are seeing this as a bit of a filler ep, considering

a) how well regarded a part of the game it is - it was certainly one of the tent poles I looked forward to seeing them do - and…

b) it being a DLC, which could back up that it very much was something original story didn’t need!?

Personally I think the Bill & Frank episode stole a lot of its thunder. Which is interesting again, since one was largely new and invented and the other a very faithful repetition of the game. It’s one of the very few things that hadn’t hit quite as hard as it did in the game for me, and it’s probably ‘cos they kinda already did a similar - but fresher (to us) - thing earlier.

 

[Drawfull]

I never know what to spoiler or not so:

Spoiler: Seasons 2 & 3

It'll be interesting to see if they split series 2 and 3 as per the game, or have more overlaps between Ellie and Abby's arcs towards the conclusion. Assuming there'll be a year between season 2 and season 3, I'm not sure the game's halfway cliffhanger will feel very satisfying in TV form.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

It’s interesting that people in the other thread are seeing this as a bit of a filler ep, considering

a) how well regarded a part of the game it is - it was certainly one of the tent poles I looked forward to seeing them do - and…

b) it being a DLC, which could back up that it very much was something original story didn’t need!?

Personally I think the Bill & Frank episode stole a lot of its thunder. Which is interesting again, since one was largely new and invented and the other a very faithful repetition of the game. It’s one of the very few things that hadn’t hit quite as hard as it did in the game for me, and it’s probably ‘cos they kinda already did a similar (but fresher) - to us - thing earlier.

Aye, a DLC is a DLC for a reason I suppose.

Interesting they left out Ellie finding medical supplies for Joel in a mall (thus leading to the flashbacks) - Think that would have helped make the flashbacks a little less jarring/improved pacing... and also got around the fact that she's just sewn up a nasty wound, without cleaning it, with some random, unsterile needle and thread she found in a drawer.

 

[Mockney]

Aye, a DLC is a DLC for a reason I suppose.

Interesting they left out Ellie finding medical supplies for Joel in a mall (thus leading to the flashbacks) - Think that would have helped make the flashbacks a little less jarring/improved pacing... and also got around the fact that she's just sewn up a nasty wound, without cleaning it, with some random, unsterile needle and thread she found in a drawer.

yeah, and I don’t feel any of the new stuff about FEDRA added much. I guess it’s to play into the theme of “having a protector/having to be the protector” but I think that could’ve been intuited rather than just outright said by a one scene character.

 

[Massive Spanner]

It’s interesting that people in the other thread are seeing this as a bit of a filler ep, considering

a) how well regarded a part of the game it is - it was certainly one of the tent poles I looked forward to seeing them do - and…

b) it being a DLC, which could back up that it very much was something original story didn’t need!?

Personally I think the Bill & Frank episode stole a lot of its thunder. Which is interesting again, since one was largely new and invented and the other a very faithful repetition of the game. It’s one of the very few things that hadn’t hit quite as hard as it did in the game for me, and it’s probably ‘cos they kinda already did a similar - but fresher (to us) - thing earlier.

I think you've hit both of the biggest reasons there. it was nowhere near as good a standalone episode as the Bill & Frank one (which also wasn't in the game at all so was a nice surprise), and, DLC is optional filler. This was sandwiched right before the last two episodes, which are apparently quite short, and have a lot to cover.

I loved Left Behind but Riley was a bit off in this, she looked way too old (tall) compared to Ellie and it wasn't convincing. And now I'm worried they won't cover the David and hospital storylines as well as it. For me it was the first big misstep in an otherwise amazing adaptation.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

It’s interesting that people in the other thread are seeing this as a bit of a filler ep, considering

a) how well regarded a part of the game it is - it was certainly one of the tent poles I looked forward to seeing them do - and…

b) it being a DLC, which could back up that it very much was something original story didn’t need!?

Personally I think the Bill & Frank episode stole a lot of its thunder. Which is interesting again, since one was largely new and invented and the other a very faithful repetition of the game. It’s one of the very few things that hadn’t hit quite as hard as it did in the game for me, and it’s probably ‘cos they kinda already did a similar - but fresher (to us) - thing earlier.

I'm sure some of them will appreciate it more if they keep Ellie's monologue in the finale about the people she's lost.

The thing about repetition is what I keep thinking when some people say they want more action sequences. To be honest I'm tired of them in shows like this. It ultimately just becomes a bunch of people either running away or standing in a line firing guns at an opposite line of monsters. I think if we had more scenes like that then the clickers and runners in Episode 2 lose their edge, likewise with the wall shagger in the last episode. The horde in episode 5 has so much impact because it isn't wedged between a couple of mundane runny chasy bitey moments.

 

[Mockney]

I'm sure some of them will appreciate it more if they keep Ellie's monologue in the finale about the people she's lost.

If you mean the bit where she basically explains Left Behind, I’m not sure, ‘cos I kinda think a lot of the impact of it in the game was hearing it first. And basically ending the DLC right at the point where she says the line Ellie said - that you’ve already heard, and now has a huge amount of significance being as it’s the cornerstone of Ellie’s plea to Joel in the very last scene of the game - is really restrained and evocative…. Whereas here it’s just a line she says, so the ending feels a bit more anticlimactic. I’m not sure it’s gonna work quite the same the other way around. Also Ellie’s monologue is just gonna be explaining a thing we’ve already seen now.

They’ve already done a bit to seed Riley a lot more in the show - probably for this reason - but again, as it’s never been in a scene as powerful as ‘the literal ending’, I’m not sure it worked as well.

 

[Organic Potatoes]

This didn't hit like episode 3 for me. It was well crafted and performed, but it feels like we could have trimmed it short and moved on to my favorite parts of the story.

 

[Massive Spanner]

I think if, as some reviewers have said already, the final two episodes feel rushed, this episode will be looked back on very poorly.

 

[padr81]

I imagine she'll a) do a lot less killing and b) any killing she does do will be accidental/self defense killing.

You can't go on a murder revenge mission against a group and kill everyone by accident/self defense. They're gonna have to make Bella seem more violent, which I think she's probably well capable of but they might have to change the manner of some of the killings.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

You can't go on a murder revenge mission against a group and kill everyone by accident/self defense. They're gonna have to make Bella seem more violent, which I think she's probably well capable of but they might have to change the manner of some of the killings.

They've already made Joel incredibly tame so I'm worried that they've decided to make the show less focused on visceral moments in general. Unless, of course, Joel goes full on mental in the finale...

 

[padr81]

They've already made Joel incredibly tame so I'm worried that they've decided to make the show less focused on visceral moments in general. Unless, of course, Joel goes full on mental in the finale...

I have a feeling it'll be tamer too, the only killing I think will be ice cold Joel will be the Abby's father. I think Marlene will be an accident/struggle for the gun kinda thing.

Not sure how they're gonna handle season 2 given how much violence they've removed from this one but ya never know. A proper brutal end for David and Joel cleaning house could set up S2 nicely.

 

[Reditus]

It is weird it’s only 9 episode

so for the final 2 we have Ellie meeting David earning, him earning her trust. To eventually it all going wrong getting held in a cage ready for cannibal time. Joel to recover go searching kill em all, rescue Ellie meet giraffe, find abandoned firefly camp go through tunnel of doom before finally coming across fireflies. Hospital time where Ellie is tested to reveal what needs to happen only for Joel to kill em all again. Then assuming a little bit at the end too. I also imagine a young Abby will be introduce at some stage too

 

[Massive Spanner]

I’m not sure how Joel has been more tame? There just haven’t been as many infected and people for him to kill. But he’s had no problem killing then when he needs to.

it‘s more that in this he’s old and not really capable of being the killer he used to be anymore.

It is weird it’s only 9 episode

so for the final 2 we have Ellie meeting David earning, him earning her trust. To eventually it all going wrong getting held in a cage ready for cannibal time. Joel to recover go searching kill em all, rescue Ellie meet giraffe, find abandoned firefly camp go through tunnel of doom before finally coming across fireflies. Hospital time where Ellie is tested to reveal what needs to happen only for Joel to kill em all again. Then assuming a little bit at the end too. I also imagine a young Abby will be introduce at some stage too

It was 10 episodes but HBO combined the first two into a single episode.

 

[CloneMC16]

I’m not sure how Joel has been more tame? There just haven’t been as many infected and people for him to kill. But he’s had no problem killing then when he needs to.

it‘s more that in this he’s old and not really capable of being the killer he used to be anymore.

He went on that long monologue with Tommy about how he's old, starts crying, and talks about how he will get Ellie killed. Apart from when Sarah died, Joel never showed that type of emotion in the game. It also doesn't help that the tv show has such little combat. Joel kills a whole lot more in the game, and the kills are far more brutal.

Joel is also softer with Ellie far earlier in the show than the game. When she saves his life in episode 4, he's quite grateful, and tells her nobody should have to kill someone at her age. His reaction in the game is closer to annoyance that she could have killed him. The jokes she tells in the game are also met with mostly a lack of interest from Joel. He gets a bit annoyed with her telling them. At the end of episode 4, he has a laugh with her over one of the jokes.

Joel doesn't really soften up towards Ellie in the game until around the university section.

I'm interested in seeing if they keep the torture scene in when Joel starts looking for Ellie. My assumption is no, and that would be disappointing. It really shows Joel's brutal side and what he's willing to do to find Ellie.

Season 2 is going to be nothing like the game. If season 1 is anything to go by, a tonne of the violence will be removed.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

I’m not sure how Joel has been more tame? There just haven’t been as many infected and people for him to kill. But he’s had no problem killing then when he needs to.

it‘s more that in this he’s old and not really capable of being the killer he used to be anymore.

It was 10 episodes but HBO combined the first two into a single episode.

In comparison;

*I don't think any of these traits are bad*

- how stoic he seems when confronting Tess after she's infected.
- listening to Bill's letter about saving Tess.
- begging the old man to drop the rifle in episode 5.
- defensively but almost pleadingly telling Ellie "no" when she brings up Sarah.
- like you said; he's older in this. That in itself makes him lose a lot of his brutality (how he almost died when they got to Kansas City for example) that contrasts what he was like before his daughter died. It seems like they tried to counter this by making him ditsy and a bit useless/shit before the pandemic.

Don't get me wrong; I like Pedro's Joel as much as game Troy Baker's Joel. They're different characters and I understand that. It's just that, currently, the main event that leads into what will happen in Season 2 doesn't really seem like it's going to happen unless Joel has a shift into full on beast mode for the finale. Right now I can't see Pedro's Joel doing something as stupid as game Joel, who just seemed like a big ball of anger and confrontation.

That might all change though. They've already developed him quite well in the show and I'm sure we'll get another callback to losing his daughter like we did in Episode 1 and the guard outside Boston. Maybe we'll see more of this Joel that everyone in the show keeps saying is really dangerous?

 

[SalfordRed18]

As mentioned, it is interesting that the episode that's clearly liked the least, even disliked is the DLC. Can't argue against that it doesn't add much because you literally didn't need to do it to complete the game originally.

 

[WI_Red]

In comparison;

*I don't think any of these traits are bad*

- how stoic he seems when confronting Tess after she's infected.
- listening to Bill's letter about saving Tess.
- begging the old man to drop the rifle in episode 5.
- defensively but almost pleadingly telling Ellie "no" when she brings up Sarah.
- like you said; he's older in this. That in itself makes him lose a lot of his brutality (how he almost died when they got to Kansas City for example) that contrasts what he was like before his daughter died. It seems like they tried to counter this by making him ditsy and a bit useless/shit before the pandemic.

Don't get me wrong; I like Pedro's Joel as much as game Troy Baker's Joel. They're different characters and I understand that. It's just that, currently, the main event that leads into what will happen in Season 2 doesn't really seem like it's going to happen unless Joel has a shift into full on beast mode for the finale. Right now I can't see Pedro's Joel doing something as stupid as game Joel, who just seemed like a big ball of anger and confrontation.

That might all change though. They've already developed him quite well in the show and I'm sure we'll get another callback to losing his daughter like we did in Episode 1 and the guard outside Boston. Maybe we'll see more of this Joel that everyone in the show keeps saying is really dangerous?

I think they have set it up perfectly in that Joel has not been a raging ball of violence combined with the emotional bond we see being formed with Ellie. It is going to frame him snapping in the hospital that much more sudden and devastating.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

I think they have set it up perfectly in that Joel has not been a raging ball of violence combined with the emotional bond we see being formed with Ellie. It is going to frame him snapping in the hospital that much more sudden and devastating.

That's my hope as well!

 

[Drawfull]

It is weird it’s only 9 episode

so for the final 2 we have Ellie meeting David earning, him earning her trust. To eventually it all going wrong getting held in a cage ready for cannibal time. Joel to recover go searching kill em all, rescue Ellie meet giraffe, find abandoned firefly camp go through tunnel of doom before finally coming across fireflies. Hospital time where Ellie is tested to reveal what needs to happen only for Joel to kill em all again. Then assuming a little bit at the end too. I also imagine a young Abby will be introduce at some stage too

Spoiler: Future Cast spoilers

I don't think Abby is in it, but Ellie's mum is introduced at some point, Ashley Johnson's playing her.

I think they'll probably skip a lot of the David stuff: it'd be easier for them to just have her captured since David already knows who she is, although that gimps getting penicillin for Joel I guess. Then she escapes, boss fight, Joel saves. That doesn't take ages. I'd be surprised if the tunnel/bus stuff makes it in. It's certainly going to be interesting as to what gets the chop, unless they've misled us about season 1 being the entire first game.

 

[CloneMC16]

Based on how they've made the rest of the show, a lot of the winter chapter is easier to skip. A good amount of it is combat and sneaking around avoiding people. There's a good 30/40 minutes of gameplay before Ellie gets captured. Most of it will be cut. Then Joel wakes up and has his combat section that they will cut. I don't think they will struggle to fit this episode into their 1 hour slot.

They're definitely going to cut the tunnel before the hospital. I think they will keep part of the bus section. Especially because that's linked to the giraffes. We also get to see how much Ellie was effected by what happened with David. I think it's important for that part to be shown. Since there is no combat here, it's the type of content I expect to make it into the show.

 

[SalfordRed18]

I need to finally play the second one sharpish.

 

[Bosws87]

Think the series has got worse as it's gone on and i can't see the ending being anywhere near as poignant as it is with the game.

The relationship between the characters just doesn't have enough time to flourish like the game.

 

[SalfordRed18]

Think the series has got worse as it's gone on and i can't see the ending being anywhere near as poignant as it is with the game.

The relationship between the characters just doesn't have enough time to flourish like the game.

What do you think would have been better? 6 episode season with a little longer episodes, 2 seasons per game?

Personally think 9 episodes is fine and pretty standard for the type of show it is.

 

[Bosws87]

What do you think would have been better? 6 episode season with a little longer episodes, 2 seasons per game?

Personally think 9 episodes is fine and pretty standard for the type of show it is.

Hard to say tbh, i guess this is how most people feel when the books they love are turned into films (not a big novel reader)

Just bits that you feel are important or vital to the story and they are non-existent or glazed over in the series, may well be a better watch going in completely alien.

 

[CloneMC16]

Think the series has got worse as it's gone on and i can't see the ending being anywhere near as poignant as it is with the game.

The relationship between the characters just doesn't have enough time to flourish like the game.

I mostly agree with you. I do like the show for what it is, but the characters don't have enough time to bond. Joel and Ellie's relationship has been rushed a lot more. A bunch of content that develops their relationship has been cut.

I did really like the first two episodes, though. I think they're on par with the game. I don't think 3,4,5, and 7 are on the level of the game. Episode 6 inside of Jackson is also very good. Seeing the actual town is better in the show. Ellie running off and the argument between them is done better in the game. Joel's injury makes more sense in the show.

I still believe that the last two episodes could be great. I want to see some of that old man strength from Joel in the hospital.

I think I would have liked the show a lot more if I hadn't played the game.

Hard to say tbh, i guess this is how most people feel when the books they love are turned into films (not a big novel reader)

Just bits that you feel are important or vital to the story and they are non-existent or glazed over in the series, may well be a better watch going in completely alien.

100%. I'm not much of a book reader, but that is exactly how it must feel.