The Last of Us
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Examining the corpse of an infected woman confirms that her worst nightmare is coming true.
Its awful, but who can argue with it?
Its what has to be done, right?
The Boston Quarantine Zone is a success but only in the strictest definition.
It might be a functional society, but who would want to live there?
Its a sentiment that echoes throughThe Last of Us, too.
(And if you havent seen HBOs recent adaptation of the novel, check it out.
Its excellent and a fine companion piece toThe Last of Us.)
It wont be easy.
Ellie wakes up to a reminder that her very existence makes others suspicious.
How come she hasnt turned?
Why didnt Marlene kill her?
She doesnt know that either.
And as she steps out to use the bathroom, Joel isnt so sure all this is worth it.
Better her than them, right?
She might be disrespectful, but she doesnt want to die.
Its like a fucked-up moon, Ellie observes upon seeing the crater.
But its stranger than that.
Theres an eerie beauty toThe Last of Uss post-apocalyptic future.
(Its reminiscent, at times, of the old History Channel seriesLife After People.)
She also makes an odd look when Tess asks if she has a boyfriend.
She doesnt want to tell them everything, and they dont want to tell her everything, either.
They seem to know something shes better off not knowing.
Not that they have a lot of time to explain things to her anyway.
In the distance, they hear the ominous sound of something thats not quite human stirring.
He admires her knife.
She asks where he and Tess are from (Texas and Detroit) and whether theyre together.
He doesnt feel like sharing that.
Joels not that invested in Ellies future.
He sees her as a package to deliver and to be done with.
Unfortunately for Tess, it wont take much time for this bit of foreshadowing to bear fruit.
But first, the trio has to make its way through a museum covered in cordyceps outgrowths.
Theyre bone dry, which means this might be a safe place.
A fresh corpse provides the first indication that theyre not alone in the museum.
Then the clicking begins, a sound that Joel and Tess know means theyre among the Infected.
As in the game, this is where the episode starts to getreallyscary.
Ellies bitten again and resists infection again as well.
Can you do that?
Shes come to believe in the mission and not just the payday at its end.
Ellie is the real thing and the best hope for, well, everybody.
And that makes Tesss choice to sacrifice herself even more of a no-brainer than it might have been.
It works, despite a lighter that fails to light until the last possible moment.
As flames engulf the Statehouse, Joel and Ellie begin the next phase of their journey.
Infectious Bites
It looked like Tess would be around for the whole journey, didnt it?
Alas, this is the end of the line for the character.
Speaking of, this episode features the first scene of Ellie and Joel alone together.
They dont really know what to say to one another at this point, and why should they?
Not only are they separated by a generation, but the generation gap between them is also a chasm.
Joel watched the world he knew fall apart.
Ellie knows no other world than the post-cordyceps wasteland.
What do they have to talk about?
That said, Ellie does know the world of before, if mostly from books.
Much of the pre-Infected world is made up of places and things shes never experienced firsthand.
In a way, this museum to Statehouse trek is like a high-school field trip from hell.
Christine Hakim, who plays Ratna, will likely be unfamiliar to most viewers outside of Indonesia.
Shes been a big star there since the 1970s, however.
These early episodes are understandably keeping the core creative staff at the wheel of the ship.
If you havent seenStation Eleven, do check it out.
There are no rampaging zombie-like creatures, but it shares a lot of themes withThe Last of Us.
(The books great, too.)
And it looks like all ofLife After Peopleis available on the History ChannelsYouTube page for the show.
Its filled with its eras cheesy editing techniques but still pretty hypnotic.
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Correction: This article has been updated to reflect the name of Christine Hakims character.
