Welcome back to the blog, readers. I just got done watching the second episode of the newest HBO series The Last of Us, titled "Infected." Directed by Neil Druckmann. I just wanted to share my thoughts with you all.
NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.
Off the bat, this is another stellar episode that focuses more on the character drama than big spectacle, something the games excelled in. I loved the interactions between Joel, Ellie and Tess, and their three actors (Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey and Anna Torv respectively) seamlessly become their characters. Even more so this week.
Bella Ramsey in my mind IS Ellie. She just encapsulates this character much better than Ashley Johnson, especially when she's quipping and dishing out one-liners. Her pretending to be infected to get a rise out of Joel and Tess and her scene in the hotel, which mirrors a scene from the first game are just some of the examples of why I love her as this character.
We're starting to get the chemistry between Joel and Ellie, especially so in the scene where they're waiting for Tess to find them a way through and Ellie begins asking Joel questions. When the questions get too personal for Joel, he shrugs her off immediately. One of the questions she asks is how he got to Boston from Texas. This is actually something I have wondered about for a while.
I very much appreciate the opening scene, as a nice palette cleanser. We actually are taken to Jakarta on Outbreak Day, as a doctor played by Christine Hakim discovers the outbreak and advises the government to bomb the city. That in my mind is a good explanation as to why America decided to bomb its major cities, to slow the spread of the infection. I also loved the new direction they took with infection, as spores were kind of illogical in the sense of the show. Staying true to the nature of real fungi is a great plot point.
The show knows how to build tension and pay it off. Last week it was Outbreak Day and this week it was the battle with the Clickers in the museum. As soon as Ellie sees the dead soldier we know exactly what's going on. When they go silent, I was left holding my breath as they traversed the museum and stumbled upon two Clickers. (FYI, if you are new to TLoU, here's a brief explanation on what a Clicker is. A Clicker is a more advanced version of a Runner, infected so long that fungus begins to grow around the face of its host, rendering them blind. To make up for it, they navigate using sound and echolocation, very similar to the aliens in A Quiet Place.) The battle is tense and leaves you gripped the whole way. My one concern was how they would handle interactions with the infected and I loved what we got.
The ending of the episode is wonderful and a nice diversion from the game. Two core elements remain, Tess being bitten and her last stand in the courthouse. I think it makes it more personal that it was the infected chasing the group and not the military, plus they harken back to something that was explained before about long-distance communication. Her sacrifice was heartwarming and powerful for characters we just got introduced to.
To conclude my thoughts, I loved this episode and I cannot wait for episode 3 and meeting Bill and Frank.
Comments