The last of us guardian review

A triumphant tale about humanity, or a zombie-lite ruining of the video game?

This desperately moving drama set in a zombie-ravaged US is a phenomenal blend of horror and heart, with a cast that could not be more perfect. The Last of Us recap episode one — welcome to the mushroom apocalypse! That is the terrifying premise of The Last of Us, another post-apocalyptic prestige drama in a TV landscape that, for understandable reasons, is stuffed with game-over scenarios. Much has been made of its origins as a video game, in part because the source material looked as if it might offer the best chance yet of a convincing transition from console to screen. Thirty years on, the Super Mario Bros film is still cited as a cautionary tale. But The Last of Us games provide more than a stylistic blueprint.

The last of us guardian review

The horror sequences are more vivid, the storytelling explores new worlds and it turns a familiar tale into something that grips you all over again. W hen it comes to video-game adaptations, TV and film producers have historically had an unfortunate habit of using the game as a kind of Mad Libs prompt for something completely unrelated. The Last of Us was always a good candidate for TV. Moments for which we are absent in the games are seen in detail here. The third episode is essentially a short film about a character named Bill who appears only briefly in the game, and it is powerfully good. I am easily disturbed; I confess that I had to play most of the original Last of Us with a spoiler-free text guide from GameFAQs, so I knew when the zombies were going to attack and could steel myself for the terror. I have always been gripped by paralysing dread in the presence of the jerking, screeching clickers — former humans whose fungal parasitic infection is so advanced that it has taken their eyes, leaving them lurching towards every slight sound in search of a fresh host — but at least in the game I could smash their bulbous heads in with a brick, or hide from them under a table. More than anything, the TV series captures the austere, devastated beauty of the game, and the mood of it. Looking out at the skeletal remains of collapsed skyscrapers from a hotel rooftop, Ellie cracks jokes while picking her way across an open stretch of former city with Joel — amid moments of tension and horror so intense that they give you heartburn. It gave me nightmares, honestly. This article is more than 1 year old.

Between contractions, she managed to hold off the monster, reach for her knife and kill it. She starts off unlikable and brash but becomes fiercely powerful and a strong character all on her own. This adaptation does not reinvent its source material, but why would it when the source material was so complete?

Spoiler free. It is difficult to explain how exactly it does this without robbing players of the chance to experience it for themselves, but I will say this: no video game has ever gone to these lengths to humanise the enemy, or to interrogate the violence that it asks the player to perform. Since the events of The Last of Us , she has been living in a stable community of survivors, making friends, learning the guitar, kissing girls at dances. But a traumatic event drives her to leave the relative safety of Jackson on a revenge mission that takes her to the remains of Seattle. The city has been ravaged first by the military, then by the infected, and finally by nature.

Our heroine goes on a zombie killing spree while this lavish-looking sequel attempts to address gun violence. Only pockets of survivors are left, living in fractious scavenger communities. The game sets various new high-water marks in terms of its spectacular production. The crumbling vistas, exquisitely rendered faces and memorable action set pieces all dazzle, while the poised dialogue casts a lingering spell. But the central message, which hinges on the kind of structural conceit of a boldness and invention almost never seen in this category of big budget crowd-pleasers, is less readily convincing. During the course of the game Ellie kills hundreds of zombies and humans from different hostile factions — a particularly American conception of human survival: gun-toting and ravenously dog-eat-dog.

The last of us guardian review

S et 20 years after a horrific fungal contagion causes the downfall of society, The Last of Us is a gritty survival drama filled with desperate, flawed and — above all — human characters. As the gruff Joel, much of the game involves guiding the young and vulnerable Ellie to safety. Travelling across a ruined America, Joel and Ellie encounter many other survivors, some of whom present a greater threat than the monstrous infected. Each conflict is tense — you'll be overrun if typical "action shooter" tactics are attempted. Caution, stealth, listening and forethought are the key weapons. The relationship between the co-leads is the crux of the game, while moments of violence are designed to shock rather than serve as adrenaline-rush exploitation. It is a harsh world players are cast into, one demanding reflection on the brutal actions they'll be forced to undertake. Between its stunning visuals and emotional core, The Last of Us may prove to be the finest game released this console generation. The Last of Us: 'Caution, stealth, listening and forethought are the key weapons. This article is more than 10 years old.

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What you get is a compelling mix of stealth and all-out action, and at the end of each stage, you can upgrade weapons and items. Pedro Pascal is Joel, a Texan construction worker in his 50s and a semi-outsider in the Boston quarantine zone, where he does grim maintenance jobs and has a sideline in the hidden market. This beautifully realised post-apocalyptic drama is a huge show that revels in small, human moments. Moments for which we are absent in the games are seen in detail here. A triumphant tale about humanity, or a zombie-lite ruining of the video game? Published: 9 Jan Those not acquainted with the game, however, should feel confident about entering this world. A perfect ending to a near flawless series. Published: 23 Jan How are you going to make it past without ending up as human tartare? Second, how would a vaccine even work? Published: 13 Mar

The Last of Us finale recap — what a brutal, sadistic triumph of television. In an absolute gut-punch denouement, Joel and Ellie reached their destination — then much blood was shed and they movingly shared their truths. Published: PM.

Pascal is great, but Ramsey is phenomenal. Comments … Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion. Reuse this content. Humans truly are the most terrifying monsters. That's not to say the story spares us the usual tropes — a virulent infection has decimated the population, degenerating it's victims into mindless ravening lunatics and bringing civilisation to its knees, pretty much exactly as it has a thousand times before across every possible media. Second, how would a vaccine even work? As they hiked the last part of the way, Joel talked about Sarah in a way he never has before, telling Ellie all about her and imagining just how the two girls would have liked each other. Comments … Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion. Most viewed. Melanie Lynskey appears as a rebel leader in Kansas City, where we also meet a young man on the run with his kid brother. Given the plethora of zombie-based games released in recent years, it would have been easy to see this as Naughty Dog just jumping on the bandwagon and making Uncharted: The Walking Dead. The Last of Us review — one of the finest TV shows you will see this year.