Something about The Last of Us hits different than other popular zombie shows like The Walking Dead

Submitted by sankalp89 t3_11wavg9 in television

I don't really know what it is but I felt more invested in the show than TWD. Maybe its the anticipation of the end goal that Joel has to take Ellie to the Fireflies so that they can make the cure. Maybe it was the character development. There were too few characters to care about. Maybe it was the cinematography. And I never even played the video game. What do others think what made this show an instant hit?

My favorite scenes in the season were the car scene in episode 1 and Ellie's birth scene in the finale.

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mickeyflinn t1_jcymmxb wrote

There is no big mystery to it. The Last of Us was a better show.

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Roook36 t1_jcy1yqd wrote

I stopped watching The Walking Dead because it felt so hopeless. Just death after death. No hope for a cure. The world was ugly and grotesque and lacked any beauty or compassion

The Last of Us is a post apocalypse zombie story with an overall theme of "Love". Love between siblings, between mother and child, between father and daughter (adopted or otherwise) between men, between women. All of it. The beauty, the tragedy, the heartbreak, betrayal, forgiveness, sacrifice.

It focused on the humanity and compassion that people can show even when the world has ended for them (physically or figuratively) it was about hope overcoming despair and the beauty of the world peeking through the ugliness of death and violence.

As someone who was burned out by generic zombie shows loaded with intestines being pulled out of people's guts and brains being splattered onto walls, it was a breath of fresh air for me.

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OPMajoradidas t1_jcz6y4n wrote

Lol cure? U must have stopped in season 1. Walking dead definitely had some last of us type moments.
The downside of last of us is that it was too short for what kind of thing it was going for they had 3 episodes out of 9 that weren't even the Main characters and then they are like .....now she's his daughter. They travel cross country in 6 episodes then it's over 😒

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S-ClassRen t1_jcxl5yn wrote

that's because the later seasons of the walking dead had too many people for you to be invested in one goal. The first season hit insanely hard.

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Airrows t1_jcx9p9b wrote

Well yea they didn’t do the same shit every episode, I wonder why it hits different

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dantemanjones t1_jcxtf9w wrote

The biggest differences are budget and number of episodes. TWD really had to cut corners, especially after season 1, and they were hampered in the number of locations they could use and what they could do. Also, TWD ran for a long time and had a few creative valleys in there. I rank the best few peaks of TWD way above TLOU, but the low points of TWD probably are making you forget how great it could be.

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Virtual-Evidence6562 t1_jczw44e wrote

Exactly, I hope there is more risk taking next szn with tlou, granted they don’t have as much source material maybe but twd wasn’t afraid to risk looking shitty, thats what maybe can give us the great parts of its story. The highs and the lows.

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Elothar_ t1_jcx6sqk wrote

First 3 seasons of TWD were much better than TLOU in my opinion. Sure the actors and the production design are incredible but the pacing is horrific and the lack of infected is an issue even though it’s centered around human psychology. I personally gave it a 7.5-8 out of 10 while TWD was easily a 9 at first It dips quickly to a shit show though aha

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johnsmith4000 t1_jcxkhq7 wrote

To me TWD Season 2 succeeds in a lot of ways TLOU somewhat failed. Season 2 was a slow burn full of character intrigue and, crucially, enough infected to remind us of the ever-present danger lurking around every corner. This culminating in the horde scene in the season finale was perfect build-up. TLOU’s problems are definitely partially a result of the small number of episodes and the over-focus on side stories (I liked episode 3 and 7 quite a bit but in retrospect they wasted time there).

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Dear-Ad1180 t1_jcx6zzp wrote

TWD is as generic as it gets. TLOU is already better than any walking dead season without any doubt

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pragmatick t1_jcxcm9f wrote

TLOU is not a zombie show, it's a show about love in a post-zombie world. TWD was much more of a zombie show and I enjoyed it for it. But I didn't expect TLOU to have a lot of infected as in the game you need stuff to shoot at between the story while in the show you can concentrate on the plot. FWIW they said season 2 will have more infected.

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jteg9 t1_jcxgo5p wrote

“a show about love in a post-zombie world”

I hope thats not the point of the show because thats fucking stupid

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sara-ragnarsdottir t1_jcxl9nq wrote

This is simply the plot, the relationship between Ellie and Joel is the focus. But fans downplay the zombies part a lot. The gameplay is all about shooting the infected (and sometimes human) or trying to escape from them. They are a big part of TLOU and survival is not a minor issue in the game.

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jteg9 t1_jcxoglf wrote

Its really frustrating how the show and its fans try to distance themselves from the zombie aspect almost like they are embarrassed of it. This isnt some literary masterpiece it is a video game adaption about the zombie apocalypse just fucking own it

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sara-ragnarsdottir t1_jcxq3ys wrote

It's a ridiculous attitude and it comes from the (unfortunately) evergreen idea that genre fiction is just cheap entertainment and can't have anything, even remotely, interesting to say about the world etc.

The Last thing of Us IS an action/adventure game in third person where you have to hide from enemies or face them using firearms, and most of these enemies are zombies/infected. This is not an opinion, it's literally a fact. It's also the story of Ellie and Joel traveling together, through a world that is actively trying to kill them, and becoming each other's family. People who are saying otherwise need to get off their pedestal and admit that GASP they've been loving an action videogame where zombies play a pivotal part

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onex7805 t1_jd6lf7b wrote

They did not capture the horror thriller or apocalyptic elements of the story that made their journey feel so dangerous. In the game they are pushed to the limits and that experience makes their bond so much stronger.

The danger, outside of the first clicker and the one swarm with the bloater, comes almost entirely from the other very few humans in the show. That is not in balance with the game. As a result Joel saving Ellie at the hospital didn’t have the same emotional effect the game had.

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onex7805 t1_jd6l0lz wrote

The Last of Us is a zombie show lmao. Like, that's the whole point of the vaccine. If the world is not dangerous, why civilization couldn't thrive?

The infected barely feel like a threat 90% of the time so a cure feels a lot less urgent. If they had invented it, they'd still be dealing with almost everything they're dealing with now.

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gordosport t1_jcykwmy wrote

It is because Walking Dead is boring as hell. Slow zombies do not work. I have never understood why people watch the show.

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Virtual-Evidence6562 t1_jczvp6y wrote

Because walking dead is a far more realistic apocalyptic situation than tlou. Rebuttal if I’m wrong but after twenty years of collapse, i feel there would be no quarantine zones that would remain standing, especially with five different types of zombies that hunt yo ass down lolll. Also some ppl care more about this but tlou characters look so groomed and hygienic, after 20 years? Hahaha for a budget like tlou I would enjoy some more grit and grossness ALONG with its centeal theme of love and beauty and whatever yall continue on about. Also I feel ppl miss the mark with twd. Its extreme yes, but thats the point. In life when we feel that ALL is lost and hopeless, there are still slivers of beauty and hope, again I think twd and tlou do this well.

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Mei_iz_my_bae t1_jcx7ljb wrote

I liked the last of us but the game is just so much better IMO

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SteelmanINC t1_jcyd3je wrote

It’s arguably not a zombie show. It’s a character drama with the occasional zombie in it.

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Pilpus t1_jcyfs51 wrote

It doesn’t even hit that different from TWD. The Last of Us started great but unfortunately in my opinion as the season went on it fell into very similar traps as TWD. For example spending way too much time on side stories and characters instead of what the show is actually about (Joel & Ellie in TLoU and Rick in TWD).

Sorry but I just didn’t give a fuck about Kathleen or even Ellie’s backstory because we know all the important bits already. And then because we spent so much time on flashbacks and side stories, the Joel and Ellie relationship felt rushed and the finale, although executed well, didn’t have nearly the emotional impact it should’ve had.

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ozgun1414 t1_jcxdxf1 wrote

if only we coulve seen a bit more infected but still it was good. especially second half for me.

i watched the game play after and it was great too. if not better. series tried to get deep on secondary characters but game did it with less scenes and with more infected. they didnt lose time with seconday characters much. series tried to connect us with character we wont see another episode. i rather watch more joel and ellie dialogue.

still i enjoy it very much. we re lucky to have this great adaptation. if only witcher and henry couldve been that lucky.

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Monkeyspazum t1_jcxyjn4 wrote

I struggled to finish TLOU but managed to get through a few season of TWD before giving it up. I doubt I will watch another season of TLOU, it is fucking boring.

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Calm_Memories t1_jd0cvav wrote

Joel and Ellie have a great dynamic. I can't recall TWD grabbing my heart as quickly but I also gave up somewhere around S5.

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Season8isGreat t1_jd0wo3k wrote

It's like a zombie show without zombies. A post apocalyptic show where people live in resorts and want to redecorate so that they can have guests over for dinner parties.

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Pretty_Garbage8380 t1_jcz2x6x wrote

Something about TLOU just hits harder...like a nine-iron. So glad this show isn't a gore fest! Really loving Pedro in this, he really carries the show for me.

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