The Serie The Last of Us, from HBO and available on HBO Max, had a challenge that seemed insurmountable before it was released. That of adapting, respecting the essentials of the story, one of the most successful video games of recent years. Which, since its launch in 2013, boasts a cinematographic bill, which raised some questions. Would it become one of many proposals set in a dystopian future? Would it find its place in the science fiction genre regardless of the source material?
The production, headed by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, nailed it, and well above most expectations. The Last of Us it is much more than a well-narrated plot. It is the exploration of a world in ruins, which goes beyond threats from survivors or infected monsters. It is a careful journey about the value of hope, the promise of a future despite violence and the importance of love in extreme situations.
The Last of Us It is the premiere of the year and you can only see it on HBO Max
The Last of Usthe recreation of one of the best video game stories
But the video game adapted series did something else. He maintained the feeling of intimate connection with a variety of painful events in the midst of a global tragedy. The Last of Us left aside the violent scenes, the gore or the unnecessary bloodshed to build, with care, the relationship that links its characters.
He explored the various scenarios for the survival of a population decimated and besieged by a danger that seems impossible to stop. The result is a careful account of the years after the fall of civilization, encompassing love stories and mourning after thousands of tragic deaths. All in the context of the search for a second chance for the world population.
From the ruins of the city of Boston until the peaceful life in Jackson. the script of The Last of Us It goes through the multitude of possible scenarios after a biological collapse that no one could have foreseen. She does it realistically, away from drama and with an emphasis on practicality. The production is concerned with providing a sense of error and human equivocation to each of the circumstances it shows.
The clickers (clickers), fruit of the contagion of the Cordyceps, they are not as important – at least in what the series shows – as human aggression. Throughout the first season of The Last of Usmuch of the violence it comes from armed survivors or fanatical and unscrupulous groups. A perspective that gives the argument a fatalistic point of view on cruelty and fear.
The series format allows more narrative context to be given than in a video game
One of the most surprising elements of the adaptation of The Last of Us it was all the extra information that was added throughout the first season. That included more contextualization about how, why, and under what conditions the fungal infection broke out and how it spread.
Through two prologues in the first and third chapter, the plot manages to achieve what could only be inferred in the game. Build a series of realistic and scientifically verifiable reasons about the possibility of a major biological disaster.
Also, and contrary to other productions of the style, more attention was paid to contagion. In The Last of Us, the outbreak is the consequence of a process that took decades to develop due to global warming. The plot also concretizes how the infection became a pandemic, detailing a large-scale disaster.
All this creates an atmosphere with a terrifying fidelity that almost documents a disaster in real time. It also delves into events that could make a similar situation worse. The violence in the streets, the government turned into a totalitarian entity, the sudden destruction of civilization. The Last of Us he has managed to make his plot more than just an exciting experience, he has turned it into a fearsome one. Likewise, it is a painful argument with shades of catastrophe that, despite efforts, ends up sweeping the entire world.
Survival in the worst conditions
But the greatest contribution of the adaptation of The Last Of Us to the material from which it comes is the way in which it contextualizes its characters. joel, played by Pedro Pascal, comes to life in somewhat different dimensions from the game, without losing its essence. The story begins by showing the consequences of a personal trauma, ending in his redemption as protector of a girl in the middle of the ruins of the world in which he was born.
For his part, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) is a survivor who was born knowing nothing but a post-apocalyptic world. Despite this, the young actress brings optimism, independence and energy to her role. Also, deep enough to cover the emotional wounds that an orphan in the middle of a catastrophe could suffer.
The decision of the creators to add secondary figures that in the original material are merely referential has enriched the narrative panorama of The Last of Us. The episode of the story of Bill (Nick Offermann) and Frank (Murray Bartlett) resulted in one of the best moments in TV history.
The plot is not limited to a brief encounter with Bill, as it happens in the video game. Instead, he carefully builds a parallel story to the central plot, with which he manages to show what happens beyond the quarantine zones or anarchy in abandoned cities.
This twist gives the production a depth that emulates several of the source material’s most celebrated moments. With its leisurely pace and search for a goal despite hopelessness, the adaptation of The Last of Us portrays life in the midst of the desolation of the apocalypse.
What distinguishes The Last of Us of other apocalyptic arguments?
During years, The Last of Us it marked the way forward for other experiences for video game consoles. With a deep and emotional script, richly detailed visuals, and exploring the landscape of destruction in great detail, the game became a landmark. His series adaptation achieves the same thing, but expands redemption and makes it the end of an intimate path. A nuance that adds depth to its characters, to the new places to discover and, especially, to the central conflict.
What would you do to keep the little that remains of the world standing? It is the big question that the first season of the series has raised The Last of Us. The answer comes in nine chapters that cover human nature from its highest points to its most wicked.
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In the end, the conclusion is part of the power of Neil Druckmann’s work as a whole. all tours lead to the search for a reason to continue, despite the tragedies behind. An element that gravitates above all in the last chapter of the season and brilliantly closes the production premise.