Ellie and Dina venture into Seattle in the latest episode of HBO’s The Last of Us, delivering some of the standout moments of the series so far – along with some wobbly fan-favourite recreations.
This review will contain some story spoilers.
'Day One' opens up with a flashback introducing Isaac, the elusive eventual leader of the W.L.F. Played by Jeffrey Wright, who also played him in the game, it’s interesting to get a bit more background to a character who ultimately wasn’t in the original version of the story all too much.
As you would expect from the Westworld alum, Wright has an intimidatingly quiet presence about him, and while we hope the show doesn’t explain too much about his story, we’re looking forward to seeing his involvement in the show more as it progresses. Mazin and co. are setting the stage for the war between the W.L.F. and the Seraphites, and Wright's performance tightens the tension a little more.
However, Ellie and Dina are the focus of this episode, and if you’ve been reading our weekly reviews, you’ll know we think the couple’s chemistry is one of the strongest aspects of the HBO version of this tale.
Isabela Merced’s understanding and cautious Dina plays off excellently with Bella Ramsey’s brash Ellie. One is trying to get their revenge, the other trying to keep them alive. It’s a nice dynamic that’s laying the seeds for what’s to come.
There is some fun post-apocalyptic eye candy in this episode, as the two explore dilapidated streets and rundown record stores. There’s a particularly cool tank almost entirely covered up by moss, that we really loved. HBO is flexing its budget muscles with its set design.
'Day One' comes with a number of key moments from the game, and like any other episode some of them just don’t hit on the same level. We worried in past episodes about this version moving characters around, and how that would impact later moments in the story. Ellie and Dina approaching a TV Station is the first time we’ve seen those worries crystalised.
Without getting too spoilery for either version of the story, Ellie and Dina following in the wake of another character as they approach the TV station in the game gave it a whole other level of tension and bravura. While it has a shock factor element to it here, the underlying tension isn’t quite the same, meaning the whole thing sort of collapses for us.
Thankfully, things do improve (and drastically so) in the latter half of the episode. Ellie and Dina making their way through a subway station is one of the most intense scenes of the show so far, with excellent set direction. We were sat on the edge of our seats for this entire scene, which only ramps things up even more as the two make their way above ground.
For us, this is one of the first times that the show surpassed the game. The changes to the infected and the reactions from certain characters, have elevated an entire section of the story in a way that we adore. It’s great stuff that we just wish the show could maintain.
We’re eager to see how the rest of the season progresses, although HBO has a tough job ahead of it, with just three episodes remaining this season. While we’re not entirely convinced yet that the show will stick the landing, with each new episode we get just a bit closer to believing that it can.