The Pain of Love, Letting Go, and the Human Condition.

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR SEASON ONE AND THE START OF SEASON 2. While both the game and the TV show have their strengths, The Last of Us show delivers on many of the same raw emotions that I experienced in the game, from unadulterated laughter to crying in a way where I felt like I couldn’t catch my breath.  This show brought the game to life in a substantial, tangible way that spoke depth. While there were obvious changes that were made, some for the better, and some that didn’t capture some key elements of the game, the show took the game and added new things to it that provided more meaning to parts of the story, and added more weight to some of the characters.  Different platform, different voice:             The structure of a game is VASTLY different than the structure of a TV show, the way the story is paced, the way characters are written, even the way environments feel and look. The changes made to The Last of Us to fit the flow of a television show weren’t changes that corrupted the soul of the game; it was still The Last of Us, same tears, same humor, but a different feel to it that was formatted for TV. It simultaneously brought out more of the game's humanity, but also held back in certain key emotions and character connections that made the game what it is.             The relationship between Dina and Ellie, for example, is incredibly different in how it feels/is in the game versus the show. In the game, you see this natural progression of two people falling in love with each other, in season two (so far at least), it’s very fast and loses a lot of the power that it held for me in the game.  I know this is TV, and things have to be changed to fit a time slot, but it is possible to create a bond with characters that lasts, and it's also possible for the characters to be put in the same pacing and style that the game's story conveys. Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Battlestar Galactica, and even Game of Thrones created lasting bonds between the viewer and characters. Slow and steady wins the race, and I feel The Last of Us Season 1 took its time, whereas the second season is so far rushing through key emotions that were in the game. I hope throughout the show's time it builds on characters like Abby (instead of just showing her as the villain), and tells important stories like Lev’s, which are crucial to the world of The Last of Us. Change is only good if it adds to what made the game good: When we look at trying to keep the sanctity of the world of the game alive, again, we have to look at how media translates across the board. The fact that the clickers were so well done, and how the emotion from both games was kept where it mattered, and then some, is shocking to me. Bill's story, having more added to it in episode three, was the best narrative change I've ever seen in a game-to-TV adaptation. It was raw, real, and gripping. It made me fall in love with Bill as a character even more, and showed a realistic scenario of what could happen in that sort of circumstance. There were so many layers to that episode, from the joy of Bill being on his own/being a hermit that only had to care about himself, to then finding love unexpectedly. Then the fear of losing that love comes into play when control is taken away because of life's greatest equalizer. That episode, along with little moments added in from the game like Ellie smelling Joel's jacket after he dies, and Joel's death itself, was, I would say, even more emotionally impactful because it's not just seeing pixels on a screen. This time, the emotion is connected to actors playing a very difficult, emotional scene. While personally, I'm team Abby, that scene will always be difficult for me to watch. It felt like it did when I first played The Last of Us Part 2. I knew it was coming, but the crying made breathing difficult, and seeing how well the actors carried out that scene made it ten times more impactful. While the change of Dina being there instead of Tommy was strange, the feeling was still the same. Season two is such a mixed bag, while yes, there are moments that I screamed with joy "THAT'S FROM THE GAME!", there are also moments of wait...that never happened in that way. Like the town Hall meeting to decide if a group of people should go to exterminate the WLF, or how Tommy didn't come by Ellie's room after Joel had died, or the infected attack on Jackson. Season one had its changes, like infected attacking the Capital Building instead of FEDRA, and the major one, Bill's entire story, but the changes made more sense in season one than they have so far in season 2. One of the biggest changes is Seth getting his good guy arc in helping both Dina and Ellie leave Jackson to find Abby. Not having an exact copy of the game in a TV show format is fine and expected. While some changes are more jarring than others, it's interesting to see how the game is being adapted for audiences who might not want to, or might not have the time to, dive into the game. In the end, I'm excited to see how the show continues and how the story of The Last of Us brings new depths to the game and new conversations in the fanbase.