Film adaptations of video games are notorious for being hot dumpster fires. So, when HBO announced they were producing a The Last of Us show adaptation, I was more than just a bit skeptical. 

  The last two video game adaptations in recent memory, Resident Evil on Netflix and Halo on Paramount+, were both terrible pieces of trash that took any respect these two franchises had left and rubbed them through the dirt. Both shows took the characters and setting of the game they were adapting and then completely abandoned the story and lore that had been established in the game series. I am not a big fan of either Halo nor Resident Evil, so I was not too upset by these abysmal shows. 

  However, I consider The Last of Us to be one of my favorite games of all time and one of the best games ever created. I was incredibly anxious that HBO would do what Netflix and Paramount+ did with their adaptations and completely ruin The Last of Us’s reputation. 

  But, to my surprise, The Last of Us show (so far at least) has been true to the game and you can feel the passion and love that the creators have for the game. I was so overjoyed when I watched the first episode and saw that they were actually sticking to the story established within the game. In some ways, the show has executed aspects of the story even better than the game did.

  The show, of course, has differences from the game., I mean you can’t expect them to make a one to one recreation. But all the changes they make feel natural and don’t compromise the main story. The biggest change they made, and one I really appreciated, is the way they altered Bill’s story. [Spoiler Alert!] In the game, when Joel and Ellie, the main characters, go to Bill’s home, Bill is still alive and he helps the two main characters secure a car after fighting through an infested school. Frank, Bill’s lover, had left Bill and hung himself. The show, on the other hand, has Bill dying with Frank in a beautiful love story before Bill can even meet with Joel and Ellie.

  Along with slight differences, the show expands a lot on lore where the game had not. For example, the show explains where the fungus had originated from and how the fungus was able to spread as quickly as it did. 

  The acting is, as expected, incredible. Pedro Pascal, who plays Joel, does a perfect job playing the role of the reluctant adoptive father. Bella Ramasey also does a great job in her portrayal of Ellie. The chemistry between Pascal and Ramasey is perfect, and it really feels like the relationship that Ellie and Joel had in the game. 

  The aspect I love the most about this show is the little details the creators put in. For example, in episode four, Joel tells Ellie to help him get into a room, and Ellie and Joel move an office desk that covers the door so Joel could get in. The way in which they move the desk is exactly like how Joel and Ellie move obstacles in the game and I absolutely loved seeing this. It’s these tiny aspects that fans of the game, like myself, love to see within the show. 

  However, there is much less combat in the show than there was in the game. The show has cut a lot of conflicts that Ellie and Joel have with the infested. I understand why the show has to do this in order to keep each episode only an hour, but the combat was one of my favorite aspects of the game, so it’s a shame to see so little of it in the show. 

  The Last of Us show has been better than I had expected, with many positives and few negatives.  The show seems to be on a good path, with each episode being better than the last. If you are a fan of the games you should try the show out. If you haven’t played the game yet, the show is a perfect way to experience the story of The Last of Us.