The Last of Us Season 1

Creator(s) - Neil Druckman and Craig Mazin (Chernobyl, Scary Movie 3)

Starring - Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent), Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones, The Worst Witch), and Melanie Lynskey (The Frighteners, But I'm a Cheerleader)

Release Date - 2023

Genre - Horror

Tagline - "When you're lost in the darkness, look for the light"

Format - UHD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Many of you know how much I love horror and exploitation. Horror, especially indie horror, along with the many sub-genres of exploitation are a big part of my life. However, another big part of my life that I rarely get to share with you is gaming. I grew up with the original Nintendo and Sega Genesis. As I got older I found myself migrating to the newest consoles of the time and after the PS2 I moved to Xbox, Xbox 360, and finally Xbox One before switching to PC. You may have noticed that I became an Xbox fan after the PS2 and a big reason for that was Halo and Gears of War. Sadly, I’ve missed a few PlayStation exclusives because of that. One of those is the critically acclaimed The Last of Us and it’s follow up game. I was able to add it recently to my Steam library but I haven’t made the time to play it. I was excited for the television adaptation but my original plan was to play the game first and then watch the show. However, when an opportunity to review the UHD release of the film presented itself I decided to go ahead and check it out. I’m glad I did because it was phenomenal. 

      The series follows Joel, a smuggler who is tasked with taking a teenager to a resistance outpost after the fall of civilization. A good deal of humanity was wiped out when a fungus mutated to the point it could grow inside of the human body. Now, those infected are controlled by the fungi and will stop at nothing to spread it to other survivors. The young girl, Ellie, that Joel is tasked with taking across the ravaged United States is immune to the disease and hope for a cure lies within her. 

      I’m going to go ahead and state the obvious before I get comments and messages from butt hurt horror fans. This review is strictly for the television adaptation and I will not be making notes of the differences between the game and the show. With that being said, this first season is fucking fantastic. I found myself wanting more as the credits on the last episode began rolling. I’m seriously looking forward to the next season and before the year is out I will at least play through the first game fully. The acting in this one is unforgettable. Pedro Pascal has become the internet’s daddy the last few years and is a fantastic actor. His chemistry with everyone on screen is perfect and he demonstrates a wild range of emotions. Honestly, he’s getting the recognition now that he truly deserves. Bella Ramsey is just as amazing as Ellie. In my mind she is this character and I couldn’t see anyone else portraying her. She does everything right and is a scene stealer. We also get some unforgettable performances from the likes of Nick Offerman, Anna Tory, Melanie Lynskey and many more. This show has a lot of great performances and memorable scenes that the cast goes above and beyond to bring to life. The story for this one feels like something done before but it’s the way this show goes about it that makes it feel different and have a different impact on the viewer. We’ve had several shows featuring a small group of survivors as they brave the new world after it is destroyed by a viral outbreak or something along those lines. We’ve seen them fight zombies, vampires, and so on while fending off other humans. There is nothing new here. Hell, if you watched The Mandalorian then you’ve seen Pedro Pascal portray the same character. He’s someone tasked with delivering a child safely to a destination but has a change of heart. What makes this show stand out to me was the random episodes where we get backstories to several characters. It brings the viewer into their lives and you build an emotion connection with them. I loved that this wasn’t just a straight forward adventure show. It’s an emotional rollercoaster that works. Finally, the film has some amazing practical effects. I loved the make-up designs for the infected. Each one looked completely different than the other and the make-up effects are fucking top tier. The show has some blood and a lot of set design but it’s not as gory as I was hoping for. With that being said, I was not disappointed with the effects. Overall, The Last of Us Season 1 is a fantastic show. While I can’t talk on the faithfulness to it’s source material, I can recommend it from a horror standpoint. It’s a show that I can’t recommend enough. Check it out.