The Last of Us: HBO shows that it is possible to make a game adaptation (almost) perfect [REVIEW]

In what seems to be the distant year of 2013, a game developer called Naughty Dog released a game titled The Last of Usdirected by Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmann and starring Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson. Almost 10 years later, the production that marked the industry was adapted for TV, with production by HBO.

Even with idealization through a renowned television channel like HBO, The Last of Us didn’t have an easy task ahead of him: making a video game adaptation that worked after countless failures, such as Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021), Hitman: Agent 47 (2015) and Super Mario Bros. (2013).

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However, it’s safe to say that fans of games, and especially the game of the Naughty Dogyou can rest assured: adaptation fulfills the role very well and shows how it is possible to make an (almost) perfect adaptation for the screen after the fame of this type of production is tarnished.

On the night of next Sunday, the 15th, the series of The Last of Usheaded by Druckmann and Craig Mazin (showrunner of Chernobyl), will begin to be displayed in the HBO weekly, with each episode made available on HBO Max. THE Rolling Stone Brazil received all nine episodes of the first season in advance to write this review.

Just like the games, the series takes place in a post-apocalyptic world caused by the fungus. Cordyceps (which exists in real life but does not affect humans), and is played by Joelplayed by Pedro Pascal in the new version. 20 years after the day of the outbreak, the character has become a smuggler in the quarantine zone and knows Ellie (Bella Ramsey). So they are forced to endure brutal circumstances and relentless killers on a journey through the.

the series of The Last of Us it’s pretty faithful to the source material – of course, some changes needed to be made to adjust for the language of a series and new audience. The main element of this fidelity is found in the development of Joel and Ellie in the narrative, as well as the exciting and impeccable performances of Easter and ramseywho put on a real show, like Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson there in 2013.

In addition, the two lead actors worked with a phenomenal supporting cast, which includes Gabriel Luna (tommy), Merle Dandridge (Marlenethe only one in the game to reprise the role), Anna Torv (Tess), Nick Offerman (bill), between others. It is also worth mentioning how baker and Johnson participate in the series, with a certain prominence, but with much smaller roles.

After all, the great strengths of the original production are, in fact, the performances and the captivating characters, surrounded by a narrative and premise that are quite simple, if compared to other productions in the games industry.

With the hits on successful elements of the game, the series of The Last of Us also gets most of the changes right, especially in the exciting episode focused on bill and Frank (Murray Bartlett) – and both performances are worthy of emmy, clear. The arc of the two is quite different from the source material, it’s almost a fillerbut it ends up as something quite important for the plot to follow.

Perhaps, a character that could have been more highlighted was Tess, who seems to have been one of the few characters not to be expanded upon, either with some context about her or something entirely new, and leaves something to be desired. On the other hand, it is quite interesting to see new facets of Marlene, one of the most important parts of the narrative.

as a fan of The Last of Us, it was really cool to see such complex characters come to life with the cast chosen for the series. The unusual connection between Neil Druckmanwho managed to bring the soul of the game to the series, with all the knowledge of Craig Mazin on TV brings an unmissable experience, which excites and leaves you more fascinated by this incredible world.

Proceed with caution. #The Last of Uspic.twitter.com/7gkCp97lQy

— The Last of Us (@TheLastofUsHBO) January 8, 2023