Even if the series version of “The Last Of Us” changes, omits or adds a few things (especially in the wonderful third installment just released), one can certainly say: no video game adaptation has probably come so close as to fit the template .
Not only does Season 1 follow the entire storyline of the first Last Of Us game from start to finish (and quite consistently to the end, as we can confirm after watching all episodes), lots of locations, dialogue, musical themes, and even settings adopted one on one. And finally, numerous Easter eggs help capture the spirit of the template. However, a very special one did not make it to the final version of the adaptation…
Familiar view from the window
As “The Last Of Us” creator Neil Druckmann and his co-showrunner Craig Mazin (“Chernobyl”) in the current episode of the official companion podcasts revealed about the series, they had originally planned to start each episode by looking at a window next to which – at least in the streaming version of the episodes – a button should appear that says “press play”., similar to the “skip intro” button on many streaming series. And only if you press here again will the episode begin.
Fans of the video game template will, of course, immediately recognize the reference: the main menu of the first “The Last Of Us” also presents us with a slightly open window with the curtains blowing gently in the wind, along with the “press any button” prompt.
In the end, however, this reference was waived because it never would have made sense to the two creators in the end – even though they filmed many different window views for these entrances, each depicting some aspect of the accompanying episode.
Leftovers in Episode 3
But even if this concept didn’t work out in the end, the Easter Egg has made its way into the series in a more subtle form. In the very last shot of the current third episode, we get to see such a view from the windowwhich, in its perspective and its entire style, is deliberately reminiscent of the game’s home screen, here and there exuding a very special sense of loss, longing, but also hope.
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And Mazin and Druckman probably made the right choice here. As fun as the window idea may seem on paper, it may have seemed a bit too forced and gimmicky in the series. The “Last Of Us” series finally manages to do justice to the game without having to directly imitate the idiosyncrasies of the video game medium itself.
You can convince yourself of this again next Monday, February 6, 2023, when the fourth episode of “The Last Of Us” will appear on the Sky streaming service WOW in this country.