The Last of Us Show Has Done the Impossible (So Far)

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Hope you enjoyed the video. And like me look forward to the rest of the season

[@chobbsyboi5065]

dang it walrus... you made me cry again. XD

[@joshuacampbell1625]

What I will say about Arcane, Cyberpunk and Castlevania is that the stories were very open ended and weren't really based on a specific story beforehand, and so in adaptation there was alot more room to maneuver. The last of us however is different, because it has to focus alot on a pre made story, and adapt with a significant degree of faithfulness.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

And that's what I thought would be impossible until this show has started to prove me wrong. Well put

[@Kusanagikaiser999]

that all nice but I feel now people are saying that to knockout Arcane and Edgerunners when STILL are adaptations no matter what.....did movies of COMIC BOOKS adapt the exact comic word by word, scene by scene....go read the Long Halloween and compared that to The Dark Knight....or even Spiderman 2 and go read the comics that that film took ideas from.....adaptation not mean straight forward, great Last of Us is trying and succeeding so far, but that not mean That Edgerunners and Arcane didn't do an beyond amazing work, and still are far above what we have seen in the world of game adaptations even with Last of Us now out.

[@karolinakuc4783]

​@@Kusanagikaiser999 Those're good stories. And well LoL lore changes constantly so it's rather impossible to make 100% acurrate adaptation having considered animation took 6 years. But I think they found golden ratio between fandom and actual lore. Telling good story is priority. As for Cyberpunk: Edgerunners it happened before the events from the game so it is not adaptation of the game but of the world in it. Which is the same technocracy in which human life doesn't matter.

[@MrSherbert]

I think the line from episode three "Older means we're still here" is severely underappreciated; loved it

[@AFlyingWalrus]

I love that line as well

[@jaroneller1525]

what you said about ep 2, translating gameplay to screen. i was in awe of how well they translated the atmosphere of both the beauty of the world and the terror of encountering clickers. the subtle nods to combat were insane. my dad had never played the game and i was just sitting there freaking out when Joel quietly unloaded his bullets. im so excited for the rest of the season

[@LucasGuillemette]

I was ugly crying for the whole 10 last minutes of episode 3.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Same

[@random_internaut]

episode 5 is going to wreck me.

[@jaroneller1525]

100% agree with you. ive been so awestruck with the way they adapted it. understanding the chances but also limitations of your medium is the key to properly adapting a story and just like you've said they have hit every beat so far. the changes made, while sometimes altering the story significantly like ep 3, were all perfectly in line with the way television works. hell, i like these changes even better than the game. the opening scenes in ep 1 and 2 added so much, but would have broken the immersion in the game. having neil druckman work so closely with the producers has really made every change feel like its not just necessary, but meaningful. he gets to improve bits and pieces, add on to a story millions have already fallen in love with and show us visions he's had for this work that simply didnt fit the medium before.

[@cazory2147]

The real Ace in the Hole is Craig Mazin. That guy knows how to be a showrunner. Chernobyl is a must watch.

[@sophiaisabelle01]

We can always trust with what you have in store for us. Keep up the good work.

[@TDLBallistic]

Funfact: the Clickers in ep. 2 are entirely practical effects, and the people they hired to play the Clickers were fans of the game and understood how they were supposed to move and act

[@ItsLoHere]

I've been watching the BTS bits after the credits to hear the process behind Neil's approach to writing the screenplay and he wholeheartedly says he wants to improve the story he wrote back in 2013. When I heard that, I was relieved and excited for the rest of the series. I also like the nods to the gameplay, and I'm glad they also aren't trying to match the gameplay completely 1-to-1. Sometimes adapting gameplay to shows and films can end up looking too campy. The people that did the Uncharted movie recreated the gameplay 1-to-1 for a lot of the action scenes and it just... looked wrong. Like some things will work in video games that look epic as hell, but slap it onto a live-action adaptation and the feeling ranges from uncanny to outright cartoonish to the point I can't suspend my disbelief. Neil stated in an interview that season 2 of the show is going to be an adaptation of the second game so I'm curious how much of the philosophy behind the writing holds up because the internet decided to start a whole culture war about it before the game came out and led to many critiquing the game in bad faith when it released. I want to believe the writing team won't give in to the pressure from a small sect of the internet, but it's happened before. Even the comments in the IGN post announcing the statement are pretty nasty. I'm also down to watch you play The Last of Us 2 on stream! I'm genuinely curious about your thoughts on the game.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Thanks for dropping by with a well said and thoughtful comment. Appreciate it

[@kiarya7939]

Already liked because I KNOW this is gonna be epic 🎉❤

[@abigailaceves9230]

I’m not a gamer myself, but I do watch gameplays & cutscenes as I’m more of a story viewer. The Last of Us has one of the best storytelling that hit hard in my mind & heart I’ve seen. Then, the HBO adaptation came in & boy I didn’t see that coming. It hit me as hard as the original.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

It has been a lovely surprise.

[@CaesiusX]

I can see the _three episode rule_ being a good barometer for many people. But some of my all-time favorite shows struggled in their first season, or at least during that first season. I suppose one might then simply declare that as _not being a good show._ 🤷🏼‍♂️ But those later seasons knock your socks off. And of the shows which come to mind, those first seasons were still essential, if not wholly up to par with the rest of the show. 🤔 Great video! 😎👍 Thanks for all the time and effort!

[@AFlyingWalrus]

I wholy agree. Some shows are incredible once you get to a certain point. The three episode rule was just a good way to introduce the topic of TLoU as now 3 episodes in we have a pretty good idea of the amount of passion that's gone into it.

[@finnthefinn]

That was my experience with Breaking Bad. It was a bit slow for my taste at first and I couldn't really get into the overarching story until the beginning of season two.

[@thehomiespirit]

If you're not already listening to the official podcast after each episode, you have to! It is hosted by Troy Baker (voice of Joel in the games), who interviews the showrunners, Neil Druckmann (co-creator of the game) and Craig Mazin. Their insights on changes and choices are just brilliant.

[@aicnerolf]

beautifully well put! looking forward to your end of the season video, i'm sure we're in for a ride the next 6 episodes

[@joesoq]

i agree with everything except tess's loss hurting more in the show. i felt the exact opposite as the tess content that was cut(the robert scene where she was so eager to pew pew) was necessary to display her nuance as a character. in hbo's defense, they are probably trying to fit the whole 1st game to the first season which consists of 9 eps (i think). but god i loved how you dissected the combat in ep2. oh lawd. hbo has been on a tear lately.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

I think Tess hit harder for me because of the changes in episode three. Bill's letter and the scene following it made it more painful in retrospect for me

[@joesoq]

@@AFlyingWalrus ahh okay i get your point. i was overwhelmed with bill and frank emotions that i didnt really felt much of a loss/poignancy from tess dying. but yeah i get it.

[@yetispaghetti5754]

I cant wait to watch the series then come back and watch this video

[@AFlyingWalrus]

The video will be waiting for you

[@6372jxct]

im autistic and the last of us has been my special interest since i first played it and after finding out they were doing a live action, i was a bit iffy about the idea but im glad they translated it so well to a tv show!!!!

[@zeb4048]

Thank you for your solid work. Truly appreciated.

[@DeathTempler]

I also have this 3 episode rule. If a show doesn't interest me after 3 episodes, I'm generally out. I hope more showrunners/film makers follow the example this show leads. Halo was heart breakingly bad. TLOU is heartbreakingly amazing.

[@zanderstipe4928]

I love your videos man! keep up the amazing work!

[@KornerIsabel]

excelent video!!!!

[@kriscynical]

My parents are both in their 70s. My dad doesn't play videogames AT ALL, and my mom plays puzzle games (and Breath of the Wild now that I sucked her into the lore of the series 😈). I told them to watch this because I thought they'd enjoy it, although I warned them that it could get brutal. I also told them it was based on a videogame that's widely considered a masterpiece of storytelling in the genre, which really just intrigued them more, if anything. They LOVED IT. Now my dad is fascinated with the fact that "That was originally a VIDEOGAME???" lol

[@JonathanMandrake]

The biggest problem I have so far is that the characters feel more like in part 2 than the original. I really loved OG Joel and Ellie. Joel led whenever there was something to do so that if something goes wrong, he knows he did what he could. Ellie was rude and swore a lot, but you could very well see the hurt little girl hiding behind this mask. In the series, Joel doesn't really lead as much, he lets things happen, and at least so far, there is no girl hidden behind the mask of rude swearing Ellie. This in combination with how they depict the ending in regards to the cure will make or break the show for me. The core of the issue is that Druckman split the fanbase in two equal parts with Part 2, and the difference is what they felt when they played the game. Feelings can't be argued about, they are simply felt. Half the people felt the feelings they were supposed to feel, which gave them the great experience it should have been. The other half grew more and more distant from what the writers wanted them to feel, and they saw the manipulation trying to make them feel a certain way that is, to them, completely unjustified. They hated it more and more over time, and their opinion is just as fair as that of the other group. Just like with The Last Jedi, radical decision-making that tried to frame what happened differently and changed characters in ways that were questionable split the fan base in two groups that are both justified, and I fear that Druckman will simply cater to the group loving Part 2, which would only divide the fanbase further

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Ellie through me off in episode 1. But through the course of 2-3 I can see more and more of the game Ellie coming through. I think Bella will surprise a lot of people. But we will see

[@UndergroundRose]

Yeah, I fear this show will change things at the end of season 1 and thus deviate from the game, by making it more in line with Part 2 (which is gonna be season 2 I'm pretty sure) The retconning of the first game done by Part 2 was pretty absurd.

[@surfagirl]

I definitely agree the level of care and detail that went into the scriptwriting was beautiful.They definitely respected the source material and tried to honor the characters in the best way they could.I do think it's 1 of the best video game adaptations of all time. The writing the dialog the characters everything was done perfectly.There was a job given to characters that didn't have a lot of screen time in the original game and it built upon the world and made it feel very genuine. Even on the watch with the episode you catch Easter eggs from the game that make it fun for fans. Definitely excited to see what they do at. Season. 2 I'm. Sure it's gonna p*** a lot of people off

[@PurH662]

When need more watchers like a lot to watch this show like I mean it so we won’t have shows like Velma or Big Mouth getting another season and letting potential shows having only one season or getting cancelled

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Agreed

[@Kusanagikaiser999]

So far I love the show as well....only 1 thing I hate and is not the show itself is the marketing..............and is the avoiding the videogame curse thing that the creators of the show says THIS is the show that is finally breaking that...............newsflash no is not, and they totally I assume not count animation into that, because Castlevania, Arcane, Cyberpunk Edgerunners, hell, even in live action....Detective Pikachu, Sonic 1 and 2 did that, again is the marketing, not the show, so far, beautiful rendition of the game story and I can't wait for see ep.4 that probably is out now. My only concern for Last of Us story is that....they eventually will adapt Part II and.....yeah not a fan of that if they do, unless they CHANGE a LOT more....not plan on watch part II...but Part 1, I really loving and want to see it until the end, let's hope the entire season manage to nail what these 3 episodes have done so far and we can add Last of Us in the list of greatest game adaptations long Arcane, Edgerunners, Castlevania and Pikachu and Sonic.

[@TimothyMark7]

if your open to any suggestions maybe ya can do a avatar 2 video, considering the CGI on that movie and worldbuilding literally blows almost every recent marvel and sci fi movie out of the water

[@sojabursche]

i mostly agree with what you said in your video, but episode 3 had 1 problem and it is important to acknowledge that. the portrayal of disability and suicide during a time where many countries have already implemented laws or are considering laws that put pressure on disabled people to choose suicide.

[@johanstenfelt1206]

Hm, how very interesting, fair and valid points and opinions, I guess we’ll see if the Show will keep it’s pace or not, i hope that by end of it all, it doesn’t disappoint in the end. So, a 10 Episodes Season, huh? How much do you think the Show will be able to cover with that?

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Depends on how they pace it. I don't want the rush it

[@TerraCorvusEntertainment]

I would love to see it, but I can´t aford a second streaming service and it is not on Netflix. 😭 Do you think they would ever put it on DVD?

[@AFlyingWalrus]

It's possible. But there are definitely not many ways of procuring shows that are locked behind streaming sites across the web

[@acslater017]

The HBO adaptation is a huge success. Most of the changes are for the better. I only have a few quibbles: 1) They established a pattern of pre-credits cold opens in Episodes 1 and 2 and then seem to have abandoned it. In episode 1 especially, I would have hewn more closely to the game and placed the credits immediately after Sarah’s death. It allows the viewer to absorb the impact of what just happened. In the TV show, it’s a bit too much to absorb: the world ends, Sarah dies, a 20 year jump, now who’s this kid stumbling around outside Boston? Also, the back-to-back child deaths seem sort of excessive in that sequence. The episode 2 cold open in Indonesia was great, but in hindsight it feels a bit out of place when they don’t continue the pattern established. 2) The accents of Ellie, Tess and Henry are just a bit off in certain scenes. I guess one could justify it by saying that culture would’ve been shaken up in such a world. 3) The university scene in episode 6 was a bit underwhelming. I understand it’s more grounded than Joel falling off a second story mezzanine onto a conveniently positioned piece of rebar, but they still could’ve done a bit more with it. The game’s version fighting their way out of the building was so impactful, memorable and iconic; the TV version didn’t have to match it exactly, but IMO they could’ve made it more dramatic than “Oh shoot I think I got stabbed. Get on the horse!”

[@random_internaut]

Just like you, when i heard about this show back in 2021, i was sceptical but it has truly blown me away. Bella ramsey as Ellie is simply amazing and the changes made are for the better, adding to the story, expanding it and making the show even more compelling. I just love that the showrunners appreciate the game as much as i do, that is a rare thing nowadays.

[@Agent_Cobalt]

I wasn’t worried about the start, I’m still worried about how it ends. The first game had a perfect ending, which was undercut by the writing in the sequel. And I say that without even thinking about the events of the sequel. The way what Joel did is talked about and treated turns something ambiguous and clever into something more generic and black and white

[@MissMarisa7Beauty]

Me about to buy an HBOmax membership

[@cdbitesky]

I'm so worried they're going to ruin the ending

[@AFlyingWalrus]

We will see.

[@moondustberries8171]

i really wanna watch this video before i watch the show but im worried it might be better if i just go in blindly

[@AFlyingWalrus]

If you are worried about spoilers this video only covers the first 3 episodes

[@borjankosarac3645]

The Tv show “The Witcher” kind of… isn’t a game adaptation, though? The games are a sequel to the books, which were (the basis for) the steadily-crappier show.

[@thetaria]

1:56 this got my blood boiling- The Wtcher was a book series first. I'm pretty sure the series was based off of the book series. I still liked the video but goddamnit-

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Yes it was "based" on the book series. But, seeing as it has followed the books about as closely as the alternate ending, extended story of the games. It's a very poor adaptation.

[@z-herb8006]

Was halo a 1 to 1 adaption? Like I don't think it's based on any game and the witcher is based on the books not the games

[@AFlyingWalrus]

Not really, but that's just how my brain wanted to say it. The Witcher tried to be a book adaptation and failed miserably in doing so.

[@slamsM6]

...the disaster of the witcher? 🤨 bro, what show were *you* watching?

[@AFlyingWalrus]

The one where they butchered the original point and plot of the story turning Geralt from one of the best written complex characters in fantasy to a mindless killing machine that's borderline literate. While also somehow destroying every side character and missing every emotional point and heart of the original stories. (Other than Jasker"Dandelion") Actually have done a full video going over why the show is a disaster, and I called Henry leaving the show due to creative differences over a year ago.

[@NotAGoodUsername360]

It's amazing that they captured the spirit of the game so perfectly yet madd meaningful enough contributions to justify its existence. I was worried with Neil Druckman at the helm we were going to get more political bullshit, but I respect his restraint and respect for the original team's vision. Very odd choice to make the first season just two episodes long, but I guess that's an HBO season for you.

[@AnjnShan]

My take: The first two episodes are easily, easily the most faithful. The third is, so far, the least faithful and the most controversial. I like the first episode the second-most. The second is the best and most engaging. The third re-writes an entire character arc, removing most if not all of the tension or involvement to the rest of the overall story, and ruins Frank and Bobby as characters for me. The game: - The subtext of romance gave the two characters romantic symbolism. A meaningful amount of love, without it being the forefront of the, pardon moi, fucking shit in the end of the shitty world. The subtext gave flavor to the characters, without it coming off as tasteless, as the show has presented it. The show doesn't value the subtext enough to compartmentalize the "Two dicks, one love" mentality. We know. They're gay. They kissed one another. We get it. We don't need to be reminded every five fucking seconds. - Bobby being an asshole is more or less the same, but the show doesn't give enough credence to Bobby's anti-human sentiments in the game. In the game, we aren't shown an incessant amount of human empathy or compassion or romance. We only know that he's alive-- someone else isn't-- and he probably has a cornucopia of personal experience regarding humans wanting to harm him and his own. But the show fails to elicit this expectation of danger, by not only minimizing his entire character to a boy-toy, or a sex object of gay fanservice. But it doesn't capitalize off the human cruelty. The show makes Frank's death ultimately meaningless, because it's not BOBBY'S fault that he dies. In the game, they have a lover's spat and this results in Frank doing something rash. This is so much harder, romantically, to get correct, because it not only puts Bobby's love in a position to be challenged, but Frank's death is so much more impactful BECAUSE Bobby is the direct cause. Bobby's response would feel more organic, because he'd have a strong reason to be hateful, vengeful and even extremely disillusioned, even depressed, on account of his own actions having real consequences. The show removes all consequence in favor of an ideal world. A world where they don't fight and they don't go too far. And that's why I can't get over that episode. Bobby's asshole character just stops mattering and doesn't carry the weight of an actual consequence. He and Joel don't get to SHARE half an arc, with Bobby FINDING OUT that Frank died because of him, or MOURNING Frank's death while helping out Joel. I don't hate episode 3, but this is why I don't respect Druckcuck. He doesn't approach sexualization in an organic way and it shows in how he highlights 'gay' or 'abnormal' themes in a way to pander. The episode felt overall jarring. - The gay-glorification ruined the third episode for me, critically speaking. You can be gay and not make it the end-all of everything. You can have any character be anything, but still make them organic and alive outside of their sexuality. The 'Survivalist' aspect was underdeveloped and Bobby only really used it for thrill-killing, but never showed us how his traps would fail-- and how he'd improvise. I guess shlongs are more important.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

If you think that the game portrayed a better relationship between Bill and Frank than the show did then we clearly did not play or watch the same things. I never cared for Bill in the game, not his fault really he was just a 2 dimensional side character which is fine. Here they fleshed out his character and created a wonderfully romance story in story about love. Either that one of us was viewing through a lens. I'll let you decide who

[@UndergroundRose]

I pretty much agree with all you said. The biggest problem for me in this episode, was how Bill and Frank were able to live in this world for 17-20 years without any interference/raids. There was that one raid party of a few people, (the worst scene in the episode) they were utterly retarded, running into the electric fence and triggering every fucking flamethrower there was. It was pretty comical that whole thing. Bill stood out in the middle of the street like a fucking idiot, (with a SNIPER!) gets shot in the gut, but doesn't die somehow. And that was it, never any marauders or any kind of disturbance again, it basically ruined this world, which is supposed to be incredibly cruel and harsh with danger around every corner. But nah, we just get to live in out little gay utopia, lol. This episode also made me quite a lot more nervous about the future of this adaptation, cause you know there's a golf club waiting there...

[@McSnezzly]

Gay glorification lol. Just say you’re a homophobe and go. Gay people deserve beautiful love stories too.

[@UndergroundRose]

​@@McSnezzly Just say you're a retard that loves to strawman any opposing arguments and go.

[@HaroldTheWizardCat]

I agree with nearly everything you said except for putting Arcane on a pedestal. Arcane had lazy writing and static uninteresting characters. The only people that actually think it’s good are those that play league all day

[@tkdmike9345]

Nothing like pushing disgusting political opinions in TV.

[@AFlyingWalrus]

I'm sorry, but you have failed the vibe check. You may try again in 2 years time

[@J0HnNyX]

@@AFlyingWalrus so, how is he wrong when the directors, specifically, Peter Hoar, want to trick us with a gay romance, especially when he, himself is gay? That is political, LGBTQ propaganda.