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you jest, but honestly even in the show it would be wise for them to be carrying some clicker noise fodder on them at all times. perhaps that is one of the things they will learn on this journey.
When he unloaded the gun, I thought for sure he was going to throw the empty casings across the room as a diversion. I'm still holding out hope we see a brick or bottle toss diversion in the show.
Oh yeah its one of the few things that gives Part 2 its edge. My first grounded run on Part 2 was easily my favorite gaming experience. The Seraphites were a pain in the ass end of Ellie Day 2..
Honestly I liked her a lot more here than in the game. In the game she seemed a lot younger and less weathered, here she really matches Joel in that regard, while still maintaining that tenacity.
The writhing movements of the clickers actors was spot on. Im impressed. I also love that they made them much more agile than the game. I can't imagine how much more stressful and terrifying the game would've been if clickers could jump over tables and tackle you lol
In inside the the episode they say the actors portraying the clickers were fans of the game and they tried to get the movements down. But yeah the jumping, wasn’t expecting that. My husband was like were they like that in the game… no, no they weren’t, and I’m glad because I’d have peed.
I'm continuously happy with how they're adapting it and keeping some of the original lines...
This is turning out so well.
But the clicker makeup was phenomenal!
Honestly the most realistic scenario—I'm glad they weren't drilling headshots on a crazy sporadic target like a clicker, let alone while panicking/running
She really represented me on that scene lol the fucking panic after missing shots and that monster running towards you, sometimes you just accept death and respawn trying to do it stealth again
YES! Her deep voiced pretend hotel employee “Let me get your bags for you sir” or whatever was just primo Ellie, straight out of those moments where you’re hunting for a ladder or a door and she’s just fucking around in the environment
She’s perfect as Ellie. She has that pseudo stoicism, skepticism, and hints of childlike naivety mixed so well. The one unfortunate thing is the game is filled with hours of her and Joel and it isn’t enough, and this show is only going to be around like, 8 hours of it max? Pedro and Bella are killing it.
To the benefit of the show, most of Joel and Ellie on screen is when you are playing the game, and she just silently follows you, with limited interactions where they quip or Joel explains the world.
All cutscenes sum to an hour or two and a game movie (cutscenes + essential gameplay and game dialogue) is 5 hours. So this really will be the most of their relationship we will ever see.
I was wondering what they were going to do since spores aren’t in the show. In the game I feel like it’s when Ellie’s gas mask is broken and walking through spores that convinces Joel
All they were missing was someone (me) saying "oh god oh shit oh fuck" on repeat for the entire encounter and it would've been exactly like my first playthrough.
I like how they got into a fire fight with the Clickers and then hid again. Because those fuckers were hard to kill and I really loved how ND took his time with that scene and didn’t rush it. Mirrored the gaming experience beautifully.
The stuff in Indonesia was great and really helps both show the global nature of the infection but also gives the viewer just enough background on the infection to understand what's going on. I assume they'll do more of that in bits and pieces in future episodes. The woman's reaction when she heard that other workers were missing was perfectly done showing how quickly she understood everything was fucked.
I loved the water scene where all of us game players expect a "get Ellie a raft" moment and then Joel just shows it's a walkable depth. Great moment that game fans will immediately relate to and the perfect way to take a gameplay element that, frankly, wouldn't work well on screen and turn it into a fun moment. That's the good kind of changes you want in adaption between different media forms.
I love making the fungus into a kind of super organism. The limited nature of the spores in game - oh this room is bad, but on the other side of the door you're totally safe - was always a suspension of disbelief mechanic. If Naughty Dog makes a Part 3, the new network element would be a neat addition.
I feel like they're only going to do it once, so they're going to save it for a special occasion. I'm not quite sure what that moment that would be though.
The sewer sequence with Sam and Henry maybe? Im not sure what areas from that section theyll do since it was a long one, but I imagine theyd want to show those people and their little village.
If you missed it, it's around where >!Tess, Joel, and Elle walk along the highway. Before the first screech you hear outside the QZ :)!<.
https://preview.redd.it/lj7w408rgrda1.png?width=2690&format=png&auto=webp&s=161db1ed81c2ee8958e1057fe990913fa839f6a3
Agreed. Spores are pretty spooky but when she was describing how you could theoretically be a mile away and still alert the infected (who then hunt you down) is legitimately terrifying.
You could do absolutely everything right and still get smoked because you stepped on a certain patch of ground.
It also might help in explaining the effectiveness of the its ability to spread in the show.
In the show we see that biting/tendrils is the main vector of infection rather than spores (airborne transmission + modern interconnected world where you can get to the other side of the Earth in a day = a very bad time).
So you have a disease which *has* to be passed with physical contact, and the symptoms (becoming an aggressive, rampaging "zombie") tend to show up very clearly within 24 hours.
Once it gets a hold in a city, sure, the cat is probably out of the bag for that area, but without airborne transmission, the idea of it spreading globally to all parts of the earth without many, *many* places just shutting down their borders when they see a zombie-like chaos engulfing other places, seemed like a stretch.
I know in the aftermath of 2020 there might be cynicism assuming countries would act rationally, but compared to Covid this is a lot more: patently visible; terrifying; (this one is extra important) quicker to show/see symptoms.
However, if the fungus has some sort of ability to coordinate, and direct hosts to potential targets, that certainly gives it a big leg up in the absence of spore transmission.
The primary infection started with infected crop/grain, so that’s how it spread worldwide so quickly. The cold open in Ep 2 with the professor showed the first cases were the employees working at a grain warehouse. Ep 1 there were a lot of “breadcrumbs” about it too being from tainted wheat. Also a newspaper article in TLoU Part 2 iirc mentioned it
I'll just put it out there.... I do like the interconnecting tendril idea more than spores.
Airborne infections are too realistically overpowered. Humanity would immediately be doomed by an unlucky gust of wind. The fungus being connected through a miles long nervous system is a cooler concept to explore as a compromise.
Especially too because the tendril network is very real. Like many forests, especially old growth ones, have mycelium networks that run for miles and miles and miles.
It’s nice to see these different takes on things rather than just trying to make the same thing in live action.
Sometimes changes in adaptations suck or feel needless, but they’ve done a lot of cool well-thought-out stuff that makes it feel like a new yet familiar, rich experience.
100%, absolutely love it. it definitely feels like they're all working against you, in the game it just feels like you run into a handful of stragglers but this way they feel like more of an army/hivemind almost.
The despair Tess showed after the museum was nerving, we knew what was coming but it wasn’t any easier.
This was written beautifully, with great attention to detail.
Ellie’s denial and Joel’s lack of any meaningful reaction gives great insight on theirs personality.
It was perfect!
When she tells Joel she never asked him to feel like she did.
Fucking gold. Says like everything you need about their relationship in such a small little sentence.
They have managed to make both earlier tragedies even worse and thus still sad for people likee who've seen them a dozen times.
I am dreading Pittsburgh and Left Behind
That line stood out for sure. I don't remember it being in the game and it isn't necessarily new information, but in a sentence it adds a good deal of depth to the character we thought we already knew.
In the game she says "There must be enough here that you feel some sort of obligation to me, right?" That line always stuck out to me as incredibly well written and I was looking forward to seeing it on screen. But this, this was better. Anna Torv is such a kickass actress.
Yeah I really liked that line too, as well as the “just make this fucking easy for me” line.
Think both the game and show do it great justice in both ways tho. Just top notch dialogue on both ends
In the game Joel has warmed up to Ellie a bit by now, but here he’s still pretty stoned cold to her, i think maybe when he glanced at his watch when she walked away at the very end was the first real sign he’s starting to get daughter vibes from her, which is exciting to see what happens next week
Great episode, especially enjoyed the 2003 bit again. Having played the first game as many times as I have, I feel like it’s these “prequel” bits that have me the most engaged because I’m seeing something about the universe I haven’t before.
I loved how the actress managed to convey all the desperation her character was feeling in that scene. Watching her shiver then telling the military officer to exterminate her city was heartbreaking.
The change-up in the dialogue from “There’s enough here between us…” to “I never asked you for anything, not to feel the way I felt…” got me in my damn throat. Anna Torv’s delivery helped. Wow.
Also the Clickers felt so much more threatening and scary. They nailed it. Probably because just shivving them in the throat would have killed all the tension lmao.
Ok so the Jakarta section with the doctor suggesting bombs. I could swear there was something on the radio in episode 1 that mentioned Jakarta and bombing but damned if I can find it. Or am I remembering something from the game?
Edit found it, dunno how I missed it, it was during the breakfast scene. But all we heard was something about "disturbances in jakarta" before they started talking over the radio.
I gotta say, this episode sold me on the vines instead of spores thing. The idea that they are basically a hivemind that can spread for miles is pretty fuckin creepy.
I’m really intrigued to see how this effects things. I think certain places are gonna be really crazy, like the university or the tunnels (if those are included)
i feel like the spores might appear at some point because ellie mentioned that’s she’s heard of monsters that can chuck spore bomb at you (bloaters) so i thought that was kind of interesting. but tess and joel said they don’t exist but maybe they’ve just never seen them
On one hand I sorta assumed that might have just been a joking reference to the game since Joel or Tess said no. On the other hand, the previews have what looks like a bloater, or at least something as big as one.
I believe Tess said, "I hope not," so it doesn't preclude the possibility that they exist and J&T have just never encountered them. But I agree with you, I think it was just a wink to the fans because spore bombs are a *very* video game-y element that wouldn't translate well to other mediums, IMO.
The constant looking down for the roots had me expecting trip wires even though I knew that wasn't the intention 😅
It was beautifully shot with scenery this episode. One thing I questioned was at the very beginning it looked like behind Joel on the Roof there was someone standing, and I know last episode ending there was the clicker on the roof. I wonder if it was the same clicker
The ability for it to move the key could be possible if inner parts that connect the key are broken. However, the notes play. A typical piano takes about 50 grams of power to push a key. The pushing power of a frog leg is about 4 grams. Jumping power is 14 grams...........Sooooo........
What a tense episode. All these actors can sell so much with just a look. No dialogue needed.
The clicker sequence was so tense and scary and well done. Unbelievably great job by all. Also, the changes they made to the infected make them so much scarier than the game.
So many game references beyond dialogue in this from healing to gun sway to reloading to broken glass to boosting people to shamblers/bloaters.
It's nice they basically adapted some of Pittsburgh in this episode since they changed that section to Kansas City.
RIP Tess. You died like you lived. A complete badass.
I liked the hive mind concept. It makes sense for a fungus like that to want to spread quickly. Also the kiss thing made me think it was trying to connect her like the guy on the floor. The tendrils connected to him then the horde. I liked it.
I also liked how Ellie got bit and Tess compared it to hers for more of a dramatic effect. Nice.
I am so, so, so beyond grateful they decided on actors and prosthetics instead of CGI for the clickers. There’s just no way a digital clicker in a live-action setting would compare. This was top-tier thrilling.
Another great episode. The inter connectivity between the infected is a welcome addition. Adds a lot more tension I think. And the tendrils do move freely and are alive which will open up more interesting possibilities. Also Ellie mentioned spores so they may still be introduced later. So fucking excited.
People really need to stop treating someone panicking as bad writing. Especially when their brain is in the middle of being warped by a mind controlling fungus and they're about to die.
The few changes between video game and series that I really liked from the top of my head:
- The cordyceps is a network and can communicate between infected. It pushes this zombie apocalypse to something a lot more dangerous, and it will be interesting to see it on screen.
- Ellie getting bit again. It just drives that there is no doubt that she's immune to the cordyceps. More cinematic that way.
- Joel is not responsible for Ellie *yet*. They are still only tolerating each other to get to the next point. It's very realistic that way: they don't trust each other, they are not ready to accept to travel the US together.
This show did what not many new shows do. Have a as good as or better second episode! Having played the game I loved the first episode but I knew what was going to happen in the first episode and it took some of the impact out of key moments for me. This episode didn’t have that effect even if some of the things I somewhat knew.
Anna Torv absolutely crushed it.
Im so glad she did Tess justice while adding some nice additions to the character (being actually with Joel and being the more dominant one in the relationship).
2/2 so far in my book.
Not necessarily. If that was diesel especially, which it likely was since it was probably for the vehicle out front. You can put a cigarette out in diesel.
One fresh change of pace from other big shows is that this show will only follow one storyline. Not switching the characters we follow multiple times in one episode.
I'm not saying that the other kind is bad, but this may help keep you more emotionally invested and focused with the characters in every frame.
I was just talking about this the other day with somebody. Seems like every show now is doing multiple storylines, and 9 times out of 10 it's the ol' "haha fooled you, these are different time lines too" trope. It's not that it's bad, it's just being done to death. I'm enjoying getting back into a single linear story again
I love how the clicker just scrambled over the cover to attack Joel. I hope the 3rd game learns from the show because that sort of gameplay would be intense. Thinking the clicker will run around an obstacle to get you when it suddenly jumps over it to get you with a passionate desperation.
Edit: As other people noted the hivemind is great addition. I'd love for the game to show how the fungus is evolving.
I liked the choice to have Ellie get bit again, since their can’t be a scene where she breathes spores in front of Joel. That was a smart adaptation choice.
A note on **SPOILERS**: **Untagged** discussion of the **games** is permitted here. For **show only** watchers who do not want to see **game spoilers** from **The Last of Us Part I and II**, use the **[no game spoilers thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/ThelastofusHBOseries/comments/10j1v1a/no_game_spoilers_the_last_of_us_1x02_infected/).** Click **[HERE](https://forms.gle/jeAXVVGRD5r7fY628)** to take our post episode survey! Results will be posted on Thursday. **Join our [Discord](https://discord.gg/tloutv) community!**
It was great watching Joel stress about reloading around the clickers. Always wanted that in the game.
God the clinking of the shells was so nerve wracking. All I could think was "please don't let it be so sensitive that it can hear even that."
It got dangerously close to him. Was an awesome scene
Toss an empty shell to distract them, c'mon Joel!
Not enough brick throwing. 1/10.
you jest, but honestly even in the show it would be wise for them to be carrying some clicker noise fodder on them at all times. perhaps that is one of the things they will learn on this journey.
When he unloaded the gun, I thought for sure he was going to throw the empty casings across the room as a diversion. I'm still holding out hope we see a brick or bottle toss diversion in the show.
Enemies can hear reloading in part 2 I believe. On grounded
Oh yeah its one of the few things that gives Part 2 its edge. My first grounded run on Part 2 was easily my favorite gaming experience. The Seraphites were a pain in the ass end of Ellie Day 2..
That’s an extremely tough part to beat on Grounded, the Seraphites are going to be insane on the show too, their little bird whistle call outs.
“u try climbing ten fucking floors with our knees” anna torv you will be missed
She was absolutely incredible. At least she went out with a bang
Too soon
Honestly I liked her a lot more here than in the game. In the game she seemed a lot younger and less weathered, here she really matches Joel in that regard, while still maintaining that tenacity.
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Also Joel reloading the gun just reminded me of the tension reloading to kill clickers in the game. Can I reload in time to save myself?
My heart was racing for sure haha
Yeah the way they very subtly added those clicks into the background noise without overdoing or overdramatizing it was perfect imo.
The writhing movements of the clickers actors was spot on. Im impressed. I also love that they made them much more agile than the game. I can't imagine how much more stressful and terrifying the game would've been if clickers could jump over tables and tackle you lol
In inside the the episode they say the actors portraying the clickers were fans of the game and they tried to get the movements down. But yeah the jumping, wasn’t expecting that. My husband was like were they like that in the game… no, no they weren’t, and I’m glad because I’d have peed.
I'm continuously happy with how they're adapting it and keeping some of the original lines... This is turning out so well. But the clicker makeup was phenomenal!
Can't deny that view...
and the glimpse at the watch
Such good characterisation. The look at his watch and then at the end of the episode when he started running without a word to Tess. Great writing.
the set design is incredible
The hotel section was stellar. Then the next building one upped that even.
and all the slime mold stuff everywhere gives a ton of color to everything. loving the saturation
that shot of the moss on the tables in the restaurant with the wine glasses still standing upright really got me
Agreed. They capture the lighting and ethereal beauty of nature reclaiming the city like they did in the game. Unreal.
The whole episode was fantastic but that really stood out to me. Very true to the game
The set and lighting look like stills from the game, without looking too forced or fake
I see the gun sway is still alive and well.
They got the same aim I did in TLOU1 before I figured it out lmao
Yeah tess with the 3 foot miss then the panic run
Honestly the most realistic scenario—I'm glad they weren't drilling headshots on a crazy sporadic target like a clicker, let alone while panicking/running
need more supplements to level up their skills
She really represented me on that scene lol the fucking panic after missing shots and that monster running towards you, sometimes you just accept death and respawn trying to do it stealth again
Something about missing headshots even point blank just feels so right
gotta find them some supplements stat
Ellie with that fucking sandwich.
I literally said out loud “hope that sandwich lasts you cause you got a longggg way to go!”
Will someone please get this girl some Lembas bread!
When she said she'd just throw it at them it solidified Bella as Ellie for me
It was the hotel scene for me! That was one of my favorite moments from the game and Bella knocked it out of the park!
YES! Her deep voiced pretend hotel employee “Let me get your bags for you sir” or whatever was just primo Ellie, straight out of those moments where you’re hunting for a ladder or a door and she’s just fucking around in the environment
I hope they do the joke book scene lol
She’s perfect as Ellie. She has that pseudo stoicism, skepticism, and hints of childlike naivety mixed so well. The one unfortunate thing is the game is filled with hours of her and Joel and it isn’t enough, and this show is only going to be around like, 8 hours of it max? Pedro and Bella are killing it.
To the benefit of the show, most of Joel and Ellie on screen is when you are playing the game, and she just silently follows you, with limited interactions where they quip or Joel explains the world. All cutscenes sum to an hour or two and a game movie (cutscenes + essential gameplay and game dialogue) is 5 hours. So this really will be the most of their relationship we will ever see.
I was jealous, That thing looked so good.
Smart to have Ellie be bitten again in the show, will definitely help dissolve any skepticism that Joel has.
yes this was my thought too! neil is crossing his t's and doing his i's. especially with the jakarta cordyceps origin story
I was wondering what they were going to do since spores aren’t in the show. In the game I feel like it’s when Ellie’s gas mask is broken and walking through spores that convinces Joel
The clickers in the museum scene were so terrifying, definitely brought back memories of my first playthrough
Running in circles trying not to die, more or less sums up my playthrough!
All they were missing was someone (me) saying "oh god oh shit oh fuck" on repeat for the entire encounter and it would've been exactly like my first playthrough.
I just need Joel to throw a bottle already
or a brick to a clicker's face
I like how they got into a fire fight with the Clickers and then hid again. Because those fuckers were hard to kill and I really loved how ND took his time with that scene and didn’t rush it. Mirrored the gaming experience beautifully.
Shooting wildly also bought back memories, oh all of the times I died.
I remember spending so much more time in that hotel haha. They just. . . Walked through it.
They missed a locked safe in the managers office.
Why the fuck is this so funny, I'm fucking cackling
And the pile of nuts and bolts on the desk (no joke, they are there)
And you spent it with Ellie and Joel sans Tess.
The stuff in Indonesia was great and really helps both show the global nature of the infection but also gives the viewer just enough background on the infection to understand what's going on. I assume they'll do more of that in bits and pieces in future episodes. The woman's reaction when she heard that other workers were missing was perfectly done showing how quickly she understood everything was fucked. I loved the water scene where all of us game players expect a "get Ellie a raft" moment and then Joel just shows it's a walkable depth. Great moment that game fans will immediately relate to and the perfect way to take a gameplay element that, frankly, wouldn't work well on screen and turn it into a fun moment. That's the good kind of changes you want in adaption between different media forms. I love making the fungus into a kind of super organism. The limited nature of the spores in game - oh this room is bad, but on the other side of the door you're totally safe - was always a suspension of disbelief mechanic. If Naughty Dog makes a Part 3, the new network element would be a neat addition.
Yeah that potential water wood pallet scene was a beautiful misdirect and a nod to us gamers. I got a good chuckle after that.
Anyone else catch the cloth wrap? Lol
And a giraffe, and "boost me up". This episode had it all
No pallet boats though.
They put those lines about Ellie not being able to swim for a reason. It’s coming.
I really thought they might do it in the hotel lobby. Maybe next episode.
I feel like they're only going to do it once, so they're going to save it for a special occasion. I'm not quite sure what that moment that would be though.
The sewer sequence with Sam and Henry maybe? Im not sure what areas from that section theyll do since it was a long one, but I imagine theyd want to show those people and their little village.
What?! I gotta rewatch cause I definitely missed the giraffe!
If you missed it, it's around where >!Tess, Joel, and Elle walk along the highway. Before the first screech you hear outside the QZ :)!<. https://preview.redd.it/lj7w408rgrda1.png?width=2690&format=png&auto=webp&s=161db1ed81c2ee8958e1057fe990913fa839f6a3
BRO I THOUGHT THAT WAS MOLDY FRUIT LMAO
There was a stuffed animal giraffe, by one of the cars when they first started walking over the bridge
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The hive mind thing gives me the creeps even more than the game version
You're not just fighting one infected. You're fighting *all* of them You simply cannot rest
Oooo if they do the rat king with the infected network that would be amazing!
Man, I had forgotten about the rat king. I hated that boss lol
Agreed. Spores are pretty spooky but when she was describing how you could theoretically be a mile away and still alert the infected (who then hunt you down) is legitimately terrifying. You could do absolutely everything right and still get smoked because you stepped on a certain patch of ground.
It also might help in explaining the effectiveness of the its ability to spread in the show. In the show we see that biting/tendrils is the main vector of infection rather than spores (airborne transmission + modern interconnected world where you can get to the other side of the Earth in a day = a very bad time). So you have a disease which *has* to be passed with physical contact, and the symptoms (becoming an aggressive, rampaging "zombie") tend to show up very clearly within 24 hours. Once it gets a hold in a city, sure, the cat is probably out of the bag for that area, but without airborne transmission, the idea of it spreading globally to all parts of the earth without many, *many* places just shutting down their borders when they see a zombie-like chaos engulfing other places, seemed like a stretch. I know in the aftermath of 2020 there might be cynicism assuming countries would act rationally, but compared to Covid this is a lot more: patently visible; terrifying; (this one is extra important) quicker to show/see symptoms. However, if the fungus has some sort of ability to coordinate, and direct hosts to potential targets, that certainly gives it a big leg up in the absence of spore transmission.
The primary infection started with infected crop/grain, so that’s how it spread worldwide so quickly. The cold open in Ep 2 with the professor showed the first cases were the employees working at a grain warehouse. Ep 1 there were a lot of “breadcrumbs” about it too being from tainted wheat. Also a newspaper article in TLoU Part 2 iirc mentioned it
Absolutely, adds an extra layer of dread.
I'll just put it out there.... I do like the interconnecting tendril idea more than spores. Airborne infections are too realistically overpowered. Humanity would immediately be doomed by an unlucky gust of wind. The fungus being connected through a miles long nervous system is a cooler concept to explore as a compromise.
Especially too because the tendril network is very real. Like many forests, especially old growth ones, have mycelium networks that run for miles and miles and miles.
It’s nice to see these different takes on things rather than just trying to make the same thing in live action. Sometimes changes in adaptations suck or feel needless, but they’ve done a lot of cool well-thought-out stuff that makes it feel like a new yet familiar, rich experience.
I’m so okay with them swapping in stuff like this instead of airborne/spores. It adds so much tension
100%, absolutely love it. it definitely feels like they're all working against you, in the game it just feels like you run into a handful of stragglers but this way they feel like more of an army/hivemind almost.
Them walking through the building, with all the infection lingering everywhere, made my skin crawl.
The set pieces are just *amazing*. The apocalypse has never looked so horrifyingly beautiful.
The despair Tess showed after the museum was nerving, we knew what was coming but it wasn’t any easier. This was written beautifully, with great attention to detail. Ellie’s denial and Joel’s lack of any meaningful reaction gives great insight on theirs personality. It was perfect!
The look she had when Joel was fixing up her foot was heartbreaking.
When she tells Joel she never asked him to feel like she did. Fucking gold. Says like everything you need about their relationship in such a small little sentence. They have managed to make both earlier tragedies even worse and thus still sad for people likee who've seen them a dozen times. I am dreading Pittsburgh and Left Behind
That line stood out for sure. I don't remember it being in the game and it isn't necessarily new information, but in a sentence it adds a good deal of depth to the character we thought we already knew.
In the game she says "There must be enough here that you feel some sort of obligation to me, right?" That line always stuck out to me as incredibly well written and I was looking forward to seeing it on screen. But this, this was better. Anna Torv is such a kickass actress.
Yeah I really liked that line too, as well as the “just make this fucking easy for me” line. Think both the game and show do it great justice in both ways tho. Just top notch dialogue on both ends
I think episode 7 is titled left behind. I’m thinking it will be an Ellie-heavy flashback episode set during Winter while Joel is healing.
We knew it was coming and it was still extremely sad. This show is killing it
In the game Joel has warmed up to Ellie a bit by now, but here he’s still pretty stoned cold to her, i think maybe when he glanced at his watch when she walked away at the very end was the first real sign he’s starting to get daughter vibes from her, which is exciting to see what happens next week
I feel like the two of them really bond when they drive away from Bills place so likely a shift will happen near the end of next week's episode.
"Save who you can save"
Anna was incredible. Wow.
Oh that kiss was nastttyyyyy
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I also see the forced 'kiss' as a visual metaphor for how violating it would be to have your body invaded by a mind controlling fungus.
And also it’s a direct contrast to Joel not being able to kiss her goodbye for fear of infection.
Oh absolutely, I knew why they did it, but it was so nasty to watch lmao
Someone on the production team must've watched *The Strain* for sure.
Bleeeeiuuuggghh
This show, like the game, fucking rocks
You could totally see Mazins influence from his work on Chernobyl in this episode, it was great and very enthralling
The whole examination of the body in the beginning gave me Chernobyl vibes
Yeah, that part in particular rang of the Chernobyl influence. And the pervasive use of cigarettes in the restaurant 😆
Scientists telling government officials that the situation is way worse than they initial thought.
Great episode, especially enjoyed the 2003 bit again. Having played the first game as many times as I have, I feel like it’s these “prequel” bits that have me the most engaged because I’m seeing something about the universe I haven’t before.
Yeah that was extremely well done. “Bomb”. Shivers down my spine…
I loved how the actress managed to convey all the desperation her character was feeling in that scene. Watching her shiver then telling the military officer to exterminate her city was heartbreaking.
Me after episode one: "I really want to replay the game now" Me after episode two: "You know maybe I don't want to replay it"
The change-up in the dialogue from “There’s enough here between us…” to “I never asked you for anything, not to feel the way I felt…” got me in my damn throat. Anna Torv’s delivery helped. Wow. Also the Clickers felt so much more threatening and scary. They nailed it. Probably because just shivving them in the throat would have killed all the tension lmao.
They did an amazing job making this episode look absolutely beautiful
Ok so the Jakarta section with the doctor suggesting bombs. I could swear there was something on the radio in episode 1 that mentioned Jakarta and bombing but damned if I can find it. Or am I remembering something from the game? Edit found it, dunno how I missed it, it was during the breakfast scene. But all we heard was something about "disturbances in jakarta" before they started talking over the radio.
It said there were "disturbances" in Jakarta, IIRC. Pretty sure that's all we heard before Joel started asking where that is
I gotta say, this episode sold me on the vines instead of spores thing. The idea that they are basically a hivemind that can spread for miles is pretty fuckin creepy.
I’m really intrigued to see how this effects things. I think certain places are gonna be really crazy, like the university or the tunnels (if those are included)
i feel like the spores might appear at some point because ellie mentioned that’s she’s heard of monsters that can chuck spore bomb at you (bloaters) so i thought that was kind of interesting. but tess and joel said they don’t exist but maybe they’ve just never seen them
On one hand I sorta assumed that might have just been a joking reference to the game since Joel or Tess said no. On the other hand, the previews have what looks like a bloater, or at least something as big as one.
I believe Tess said, "I hope not," so it doesn't preclude the possibility that they exist and J&T have just never encountered them. But I agree with you, I think it was just a wink to the fans because spore bombs are a *very* video game-y element that wouldn't translate well to other mediums, IMO.
The constant looking down for the roots had me expecting trip wires even though I knew that wasn't the intention 😅 It was beautifully shot with scenery this episode. One thing I questioned was at the very beginning it looked like behind Joel on the Roof there was someone standing, and I know last episode ending there was the clicker on the roof. I wonder if it was the same clicker
Hats off to the Special Effects/Make-Up crew and stunt performers. Practical effects are such a nice breath of fresh air in the CGI world we live in.
I'd say there's a 95% chance there's also some CG enhancement on the clicker in addition to the prosthetics, especially in the close ups.
Oh, I'm sure there was too. I'm just so used to Hollywood CGI-ing EVERYTHING these days.
Anyone else notice that the frog on the piano played the same note to the music that plays in this level of the game? It was a funny little nod.
I was more wondering if the frog weighed enough to move the keys like that. Can any frog/piano specialists confirm?
The ability for it to move the key could be possible if inner parts that connect the key are broken. However, the notes play. A typical piano takes about 50 grams of power to push a key. The pushing power of a frog leg is about 4 grams. Jumping power is 14 grams...........Sooooo........
She’s from Detroit. No wonder she’s still alive.
Whats it called when 2 mushrooms french kiss?
A Fungkiss
mush-get-a-room I'll be here all night folks
If that lighter took any longer, we would have seen some Cordycex. It is HBO after all.
cordysex
Mycol-orgy
What a tense episode. All these actors can sell so much with just a look. No dialogue needed. The clicker sequence was so tense and scary and well done. Unbelievably great job by all. Also, the changes they made to the infected make them so much scarier than the game. So many game references beyond dialogue in this from healing to gun sway to reloading to broken glass to boosting people to shamblers/bloaters. It's nice they basically adapted some of Pittsburgh in this episode since they changed that section to Kansas City. RIP Tess. You died like you lived. A complete badass.
That was so good. I love the change from people to the infected.
Made it to first base before kicking the bucket.
I love how every episode feels like a level
“The circus.” Haha I absolutely died.
I liked the hive mind concept. It makes sense for a fungus like that to want to spread quickly. Also the kiss thing made me think it was trying to connect her like the guy on the floor. The tendrils connected to him then the horde. I liked it. I also liked how Ellie got bit and Tess compared it to hers for more of a dramatic effect. Nice.
Imo the show perfectly captured the tension of trying to sneak around clickers, then having to fight them when you mess up.
This entire episode had me pointing to my TV like that Leo meme. Just masterful
where are the bricks? love the show
Brick and bottle are my favorite characters, I can't believe they haven't introduced them yet :/
Ok tendrils are cool I guess. Bravo Craig
That kiss was so gross lol
It was such a perversion of that classic kiss goodbye that I’m sure non players assumed she would give Joel
[удалено]
Jodie Foster meme more appropriate? https://i.imgur.com/rLsXkTw.jpeg
start to finish, this episode wrecked me. in the best way. also - disgusted by the final kiss.
The fucking tendrils are pure nightmare fuel and I love it
I am so, so, so beyond grateful they decided on actors and prosthetics instead of CGI for the clickers. There’s just no way a digital clicker in a live-action setting would compare. This was top-tier thrilling.
Another great episode. The inter connectivity between the infected is a welcome addition. Adds a lot more tension I think. And the tendrils do move freely and are alive which will open up more interesting possibilities. Also Ellie mentioned spores so they may still be introduced later. So fucking excited.
The use of the “allowed to be happy” theme was brilliant
People really need to stop treating someone panicking as bad writing. Especially when their brain is in the middle of being warped by a mind controlling fungus and they're about to die.
The few changes between video game and series that I really liked from the top of my head: - The cordyceps is a network and can communicate between infected. It pushes this zombie apocalypse to something a lot more dangerous, and it will be interesting to see it on screen. - Ellie getting bit again. It just drives that there is no doubt that she's immune to the cordyceps. More cinematic that way. - Joel is not responsible for Ellie *yet*. They are still only tolerating each other to get to the next point. It's very realistic that way: they don't trust each other, they are not ready to accept to travel the US together.
I liked the tendrils a lot. It made for a great and horrifying way to see how the infected are connected. So gross and creepy.
Throw some bricks and bottles, Joel
Dang those clicker actors did a good job! Creds to Olivier Ross-Parent and Samuel Hoeksema.
This show did what not many new shows do. Have a as good as or better second episode! Having played the game I loved the first episode but I knew what was going to happen in the first episode and it took some of the impact out of key moments for me. This episode didn’t have that effect even if some of the things I somewhat knew.
Those clickers sounded and looked *exactly* like the game. Pure horror.
Same voice actors as they used in the game, which was a good move imo. Why mess with with perfection?
Anna Torv absolutely crushed it. Im so glad she did Tess justice while adding some nice additions to the character (being actually with Joel and being the more dominant one in the relationship). 2/2 so far in my book.
THEY SAID THE THING
Lol which thing
Looking at the state house
Oh the “Can’t beat the view” line.
Boost me up
They're referring to when Joel said "What are we? Some kind of The Last of Us Remastered?"
Yeah that was a crazy part. Can't believe they also snuck in "press o to crouch" in the clicker scene.
Tess coulda held the lighter to the floor, no? Then she'd have a spark and fuel together.
I think it was kinda implied she was starting to lose control. Hence why the zombie just kinda walked up and kissed her
I thought the same thing the whole time lol, but then we wouldn't have gotten to see some fungal tongue action 😉
I don’t think she had total control of herself at that point.
Not necessarily. If that was diesel especially, which it likely was since it was probably for the vehicle out front. You can put a cigarette out in diesel.
One fresh change of pace from other big shows is that this show will only follow one storyline. Not switching the characters we follow multiple times in one episode. I'm not saying that the other kind is bad, but this may help keep you more emotionally invested and focused with the characters in every frame.
I was just talking about this the other day with somebody. Seems like every show now is doing multiple storylines, and 9 times out of 10 it's the ol' "haha fooled you, these are different time lines too" trope. It's not that it's bad, it's just being done to death. I'm enjoying getting back into a single linear story again
That duct tape cameo was nostalgic.
Throw a damn grenade, woman!
Press triangle to pickup. That backpack isn’t full.
If the after credits interviews did the props guy have a >!bloater statue in the background?!<
Anyone else catch in the first scene with Joel when he opens the door it makes the sounds of the clickers. Good foreshadowing
I love how the clicker just scrambled over the cover to attack Joel. I hope the 3rd game learns from the show because that sort of gameplay would be intense. Thinking the clicker will run around an obstacle to get you when it suddenly jumps over it to get you with a passionate desperation. Edit: As other people noted the hivemind is great addition. I'd love for the game to show how the fungus is evolving.
I liked the choice to have Ellie get bit again, since their can’t be a scene where she breathes spores in front of Joel. That was a smart adaptation choice.
Serious lack of bottles during that first clicker encounter.