HBO's The Last Of Us: 10 Things We Need To See
"Save who you can save."
The news that HBO would bring Naughty Dog's genre-redefining installment The Last of Us to life with a television series, was met with an blazing wildfire of fanbase anticipation.
The Last of Us and its sequel are both acclaimed as one of the greatest video games franchises ever conceived, a thought invoking, heartbreaking masterpiece set against the deadly backdrop of a world decimated by a pandemic. Praise for the stunningly immersive, grounded gameplay was only exceeded by the devastating emotional impact of its story and the rich, layered nature of the characters.
Excitement was already at an all-time high for an on-screen take on this video game series before Pedro Pascal - the star of Star Wars smash-hit The Mandalorian - was announced to be stepping into the role of Joel, with Game of Thrones fan favorite Bella Ramsey following as Ellie. Despite this writer quietly hoping for Dafne Keen - known for her turns in Logan and His Dark Materials - to take on Ellie's role, it is difficult to imagine a pair better suited to step into the boots of the iconic duo.
HBO have a lot of hopes and pressure riding on this one. Failure to do the legendary game's story justice would be regarded as the most egregious of sins amongst The Last of Us' notoriously die-hard fanbase. For those unfamiliar with the heartrending saga, be warned.
"You have no idea what loss is."
Be warned, there are significant spoilers ahead for The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II.
10. Joel and Tommy's origin story
While this subplot is unlikely to be given the amount of time it deserves due to the impending arrival of Ellie on the scene, one origin story that audiences are particularly desperate to explore is that of Joel and his brother Tommy. The games leave the events of the 20 years between Sarah's death and Joel meeting Ellie untouched.
Joel was a compassionate, gentle man before his daughter Sarah died in his arms. While obviously retaining these qualities, it is not until Ellie arrives on the scene and gradually melts his icy exterior that they resurface. Players are initially confronted with a hardened survivor, a man who embraced his inner savagery in order to outlast the game's apocalyptic events. As Pedro Pascal fiddles with Sarah's watch in the trailer, his haunted expression is all audiences need as confirmation that HBO will bring this iteration of Joel to life.
While Sarah's death was obviously the flashpoint that precipitated this personality transition, audiences are dying to see some more of the unseen events that turned Joel and Tommy into a pair of ruthless killers. 20 years is a long time and this blank canvas is simply too large and too promising for the showrunners to skip over its entirety with a time jump. Who doesn't want to see Joel's hunter origin story or the sequence of events that led to Tommy joining the Fireflies?