Review: The Last of Us – Episode 1

Released in 2013 to the Playstation 3, “The Last of Us” has stood as one of the greatest narrative video games of all time, with over 200 Game of The Year awards. Ten years after the release, the classic title is getting a TV adaptation, releasing onto HBO Max. While Pedro Pascal’s casting of Joel was positively received, Bella Ramsey’s casting of Ellie was initially criticized due to their lack of likeness to the original character. Considering fans had a decade to speculate the casting, the choice of Bella Ramsey initially upset a lot of people. While Pascal has great resemblance to Joel in the original videogame, Ramsey doesn’t. However, after seeing the first episode and their character’s interacting, Ramsey is a great fit for Ellie’s character. The first episode opens up with a prelude following Joel and his daughter, Jane. As we get an eerie view of a zombie apocalypse unfolding through Jane’s eyes, tragedy is quick to unfold. After a time-skip, the story follows Joel and Ellie’s journey in a post-apocalyptic world. With Joel being reintroduced while burning the corpse of a small child, the inhumanity of their world pulls the viewer into the harsh reality quickly. As tensions rise between the government and revolutionary organizations like the Fireflies, Joel and Ellie depart into the dangerous outdoors. However, witnessing terrorism, death, and abuse throughout the episode, the contrast of the main character shines. Joel, living as an adult experiencing his new reality, and Ellie, a child desensitized to the world she’s been born into. Throughout the episode, the show seems to stay true to its source material, with a majority of the script, story, and even camera angles coming straight from the game. While it may not assist in building out the world the game laid down, the choice of respecting the original plot of the game results in a beautiful new look of a story so highly received.