Let’s get one thing straight, I know writing “the best video game adaptation” isn’t such a high bar to conquer. In the sea of either awfulness; or pure mediocrity (I can list many films, but let’s just not), there were only some that stood out. My personal favourite was always the first Silent Hill (2006) or the Resident Evil franchise, despite most of those films being objectively bad. And this is the thing, even though I could find myself enjoying most of them, I could tell they were not all that. But HBO struck gold with The Last of Us. One could say it’s easy to adapt one of the best games of the last decade, possibly in the 2000s. But here’s the thing, had we gotten this adaptation around 2015/16, I bet you it would still be a mediocre, 100-minute “horror” that would disregard what made the game so unique and beloved. And I think this is what the people behind this show managed to crack – they didn’t treat it as a “video game adaptation”. They treated it as a story that had to be told properly and translated well into the cinematic medium.

You can imagine there are already many “hot takes” about this show, the latest being that this show is better than the game. And even though this might sound odd, you are comparing apples and oranges here, people. Hear me out. Both are excellent in their own medium, and that is the point of well-made adaptation. This show (as great as it is) doesn’t compare to the game because it doesn’t have to. This show has details the game doesn’t have and vice versa. It is the same argument as whether books or films are better in the Harry Potter franchise. The answer is: “Depends on you and what you are in the mood for.” The books have much more details and characters the films are condensed in a more cinematically pleasing package. And that is my point; I think this is how they “cracked the code”. We don’t just want to see the same scenes replied on the big screen. We want to see the same characters with their strengths and flaws. But on the opposite side of the flip coin, many other films based on video games failed when they showed us the characters we recognised but put them in a generic environment. Or, like Warcraft (2016), you had to know most of the world to enjoy the film. There is a very thin, prickly line between copying the best scenes from the game onto the screen without going overboard, and The Last of Us nailed it. Why? Because they weren’t afraid to change the details. And that is why I won’t tell you I prefer this show over the game or the other way around. Because the game is perfect when I control it, control our characters. The tv show works beautifully, when I want to watch it. That is the beauty of different mediums.

The answer is so evident, but Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann understood that no matter how beloved the game is (and the game is in my TOP 3 games of all time), they need to change some details. But here is the thing about that those changes have to serve the cinematic story; they can’t be random. For example, the fungus, how it spreads, how the pandemic broke through, we got that, and they have tweaked that slightly from the game. They gave us quite a few scenes that were not in the game, and I love them because they made sense within this “TV” universe.

The only valid complaint (because we have to address the anti-LGBTQ review bombing soon) I have read from the fans is they wished there would be more action scenes. Because that is the most noticeable change the creators have made – we get much fewer action sequences, especially with Infected, let alone Clickers or Bloaters. And, on the one hand, sure, I wouldn’t mind one or two more of those tense scenes like in episode two. However, this is where I bring it back to my original point about different mediums and why ultimately, they succeeded – this is not what the game is about. Again, hear me out. Sure, do you kill a lot of infected? Yes. But had we gotten just nine or ten episodes of that, how different would that be from other shows? I admire the decision and the foresight to understand that to translate what was so special about this game to the TV screen, they had to get rid of most of the action. Because you can see/get post-apocalyptic action on almost every corner of pop culture today, but that wasn’t what made this game win over 200+ game of the year awards. It was the flawed, broken characters. So I didn’t mind it being less actiony or horror-y because they nailed the atmosphere, the characters, and their dynamic. But before we talk about them, let’s talk about the elephant in the room.

If you go through the IMDb episode list, you may notice two episodes rated lower than the rest, episode three (Long, Long Time) and seven (Left Behind). Now, were these just two random episodes the creators “dropped the ball” on? No, they were both as great as the rest of this show. What they showed, however, were characters who were openly gay. Both characters, by the way, were gay in the fucking game too! That isn’t even the “they changed things” argument; no, because if you go to the game, one of those characters is hinted at being gay, and the other is openly gay. And somehow, in 2023, it still rubs people the wrong way…? Honestly, this is tiring. If you look at these episodes, they were both done in such a great way it’s hard to hate them. Especially episode seven is literally a copy of the game’s DLC, called Left Behind. They hit all the notes they were supposed from that DLC, and I loved it. And regarding episode three, I liked the novelty. They showed us how some other people would handle a pandemic like that. For example, you always see the survivors who shoot their way through everything; you see looters, rapists, murderers, and the worst of humanity. But then there is this character who simply wants to be left alone. He is crafty and was prepping for something like this for a while (all the doomsday preppers must have felt validated). And yeah, he happens to be gay. Jesus, people grow the fuck up. Gay people exist. And some could kick your ass whilst having a lovely duck with wine as their dinner later on.

Anyways, the show (the same as the game) is about Joel and Ellie. And when Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey got their roles, I was cautiously optimistic. I knew them both to be great actors; I just wasn’t sure they were “suited” for these roles. And now, I am more than happy to say they were the perfect choices for their roles. Pedro brings the “lone wolf” quality, yet they made him more vulnerable than the game, which I thought was a great decision. It gave us more glimpse into Joel’s character, and his hesitancy about Ellie and their relationship between them was superb. You get why he is hesitant to let her get close to him. But when the show needs it, he is a ruthless killer, the same as in the game. And in the same vain, you understand that he isn’t a hero, nor a villain. He is just a guy who has been through a lot and is just dealing with shit. A lot of shit.

Bella got me from the second episode (as she wasn’t in much of the first episode), and ever since then, she slowly transformed into the Ellie we knew from the game. Foul-mouthed, loyal, honest and caring, Bella Ramsey managed to portray all of these and much more. She gave Ellie everything she had and then some. And her chemistry with Pedro, aka Joel… simply perfect. At the start, you believe they don’t like each other, only for you to see them as this daughter/dad. And hence the ending (the same as the game’s) hurts again, especially for us who played the second game (my review for The Last of Us: Part II can be found here). The amount of almost invisible setup they did for the next season or two… will be the real test of whether this show will be “one of the greats”. Again, the gamers know why, but if you think this season was dark with characters making questionable choices, you have seen nothing yet.

And that is the thing, that is the key to “cracking this video game adaptation” code. The Last of Us was never about the pandemic or the infected. It was about us going through this world with two characters that act and feel like real people. Both have done questionable, sometimes straight-up evil stuff (albeit Ellie not as much in this season, but don’t worry, it is coming) and yet, because we saw their entire journey, we understand them and even root for them. Despite knowing deep down, these are more complex and nuanced characters whose actions can be, at times, hard to defend. There are no heroes or villains.

Overall, The Last of Us came, saw, and slaughtered the competition of video game adaptations. Which was unfair, to begin with; given their quality, it would be like Gordon Ramsay challenging me to a cook-off. And don’t get me wrong, I know my around in the kitchen, but that is just unfair. I enjoyed this show; I enjoyed all the changes they made because they worked for the TV medium, and the best part about it is anybody can enjoy it. Have you played the game ten times? You will probably love it! Have you never heard of it? You will probably love it too! This adaptation is as rare as they come, and if the only argument is “well, is the game or show better?” we know we live in a great timeline. Also, fuck the anti-LGBTQ review bombers.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke