Topic: The TV Show Thread

@LN78 Didn’t even think about the ‘discourse’ starting again. God, that was tiring. I didn’t even really like The Last of Us but the ones banging on about Neil Druckmann were almost as irritating as Gamergate.

@Jimmer-jammer Perfectly fair counterpoints, and I’m in agreement with you all around, the only deviation being the visuals and graphics. I’ll be interested to see the bloaters and get more time with the clickers and the general aesthetic, but I do feel slightly disappointed with the overall look. And “too clean” is a sound descriptor, as the clickers heads in the game were always random and natural appearing, like a sprouting fungus with some unrefined variance and it seemed like the TV costumes were fairly symmetrical and had a synthetic or non-organic feel to them.

As for the acting performances, I think it’s a decent balance between imitation and doing a fresh take. Both Ramsey and Pascal have been performing well and I think the balance is good. The actress that plays Tess is the most differing take so far, such that to me she hardly feels like the same character as the game. I have no issue with the performances, only that there’s an uncanniness about them due to conflicting with my own memory. I do think they are playing up the moral grayness of Joel and Tess which I don’t remember feeling in the game (probably in anticipation of part 2). Joel’s loneliness, bitterness, and unresolved grief has yet to be showcased and he seems more selfish and seedy… to me at least. But I’m certainly analyzing it way too deeply! 😅 Especially for only two episodes.

It’s a good point about the music too. I appreciate the commitment to keeping with the game’s score which is great in its own right, but it feels like there’s a lot of silence without background music and maybe that leads to the sterile feeling of the scenes.

@Th3solution A little bit… like maybe too bright and clean. I didn’t think they were bad though.

watching the last episode of Season 1 of Switched at Birth on Hulu. then i need to finish off Season 4 of Stranger Things.

just wish the episodes of Stranger Things season 4 werent so damn long

@XandertheWise
With that season of Stranger Things I had to break my cardinal rule of always finishing episodes of a show in one sitting no matter how long. That season finale has to hold some kind of Guinness record for longest episode of a show ever.

Finished watching season 2 of Yellowstone last night. Another great season! Although the finale was kinda underwhelming.

Contemplating now whether to continue with season 3 or start up a new show on SkyShowtime since I only have one week left of my subscription. Even though I've really enjoyed Yellowstone so far, it's starting to lose its grip on me. So I think I might need to watch something different and get back to it at a later point.

@LtSarge
I would personally recommend Penny Dreadful. Though I doubt a week would be long enough to finish it.

@PegasusActual93 Oh wow, I looked it up on there and it actually looks quite interesting! Can't believe I haven't heard of it before. Even if I don't have enough time to watch through it, I'll definitely add it to my watchlist. Thanks for the recommendation!

Glad I gave TLOU another shot, that episode finally proved why the show exists. While I’m sure the deviations will be controversial, for me it was a million times better than the equivalent in the game.

@LN78
It's the same people who had a meltdown because Ellie was in a same sex relationship in the second game even though it was completely clear in the first game she was especially in the DLC. In the first game Bill explicitly told Joel that Frank was his partner. It's their fault they don't pay attention.

@LN78 I’ll be curious your take on Episode 3. Of course the IGN gamer dude reactions are ridiculous and can be ignored, but I continue to be slightly disappointed by the show in general. Not for the reasons that the IGN crowd are, mind you, but just other unmet expectations. It’s not a bad show. In fact it’s quite good. But if it was a little off before, now it’s even more off. Instead of The Lord of the Rings it’s heading toward The Hobbit, if you catch my drift.

If you’ve seen the comments over on IGN (I’m not going to take my chances and look over there for sake of my own sanity) and elsewhere then you know the basics of this episode, and although the storyline is basically intact, the liberties taken with the plot are pushing it, imho. I liked this episode if it were it’s own standalone thing, but not necessarily in the context of the retelling of TLoU.

I do agree with @nessisonett that the story in the TV show would not have been a very good game story, and as ness says it gives the TV show a reason to exist I suppose. Playing a game based on episode 3 wouldn’t work very well, at least in the context of a survival horror game, so if this storyline was Druckmann‘s intent I can see why he cut this part of the story out of the game. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that’s why this version wasn’t portrayed this way in the game. Nevertheless, it’s got me thinking what else going forward will be sacrificed in the name of making it TV-friendly. Most of Part I should be smooth sailing, and I can’t imagine they change the ending, which is my favorite part… actually one of my favorite endings in all of gaming, but I do think Part II’s story is ripe for a lot of changes when adapted to TV, seeing what they did in this episode. For good or ill, I think any retelling of the second game will end up in a lot of retcons like this episode has.

I haven’t seen episode 3 yet (this evening can’t come quick enough) but I had heard prior to episode 1 even being aired that episode 3 was the first truly outstanding instalment.

As far as the elaboration on the source material that I’ve seen thus far (in eps 1 & 2) it has only served to greatly enhance the viewing experience.

@LN78 You’ll probably end up enjoying it more without the background hype, to be honest. With proper expectations it’ll end up being a pleasant surprise.

And to be clear, the addition of added story content to enhance an already slim plot isn’t necessarily issue for me, rather other changes. (Being vague to avoid spoilers… which that should tell you enough right there that there now exists “spoilers” in a show for which you know the story backward and forwards).

@LN78 Yeah, the fact that Ellie accidentally kills Joel in this episode and Bill becomes her new father figure for the rest of the journey is just a ludicrous deviation from game’s plot. Druckmann just loves to drop surprises. 😉

@Jimmer-jammer Agreed. I remember that being a weak point for you and I specifically paid attention in Epi 3 and it was much better. Especially how music was used not only to heighten the emotion response to the tragic parts but also the whole piano sequence which tied into the closing scene of the cassette tape in the car.

Also, to be fair to the show since I’ve been pretty critical, shout out to the aging and deaging visual effects. Quite well done.

@Jimmer-jammer I think those are astute thoughts about the respective portrayals of Ellie and Frank, although I didn’t initially get that vibe, at least not with the Ellie scene. Curious that she didn’t tell Joel about the interaction. I saw it as more of a curious thing where Joel is already showing to be so overprotective and strict with her that she’s being a teenager and living on the edge, with a little bit of anger toward Tess’s recent death and her recent attack and 2nd bite from the infected.

But it does work well as a juxtaposition with Frank personality. The controversy in my mind was obviously the double suicide. I can see how that’s maybe a better TV outcome, as it ramps up the drama… but even then I’m not sure. I think it may have been more telling to see a bitter, hardened, distraught Bill alive and grumpy again and let Ellie meet Bill. Then play off that interaction as a way to further form Ellie’s evolving state of mind about this world she’s living in and ultimately set to be the savior for. To simply read the suicide note and never see the bodies, it cheapens the effect on Ellie, I think, despite it making for a more powerful effect on the viewer. Since Bill and Frank will never be a part of the story again, it’s more important to cultivate the effect of the world on Ellie and Joel. A mad and miserable Bill makes for a more lasting impression on young Ellie. You see her in the show immediately just giddy with taking all of Bill’s loot and his car, rather than emotionally wrought by watching a man fall apart from the tragedy of the apocalyptic world. Granted, she’s got plenty of events and people coming up to serve that purpose, but still.

And on the subject I don’t remember if the game said why Frank committed suicide. He hung himself, right, but was it because of some unrelated neurological disorder? It’s been so long since I played the first game, but I thought he was either a casualty of the infection or had gone mad or depressed at the helpless state of the world. Perhaps I just assumed and I can’t remember if Bill ever says why he died.

I kinda feel mixed about episode 3. It was a good episode, and I liked the story arc, but I'm a bit sad we didn't get to see Bill and Ellie interact. I also don't think they needed had to have Bill to spell out his plans. Discovering it through the letter would've been enough. But I get the feeling that they don't think the audience is smart enough. The subtle story telling from the game is nowhere to be seen in the show and that's unfortunate.

I do like that we get to see more background story for some of the characters. But that also makes it feel like a complementary show to the game, instead of something that is its own show. I have played the game several times, but I can understand that the way these episodes are told may be a bit weird if you don't know the game.

Bella's acting also wasn't anything special I feel like, she was a lot better in the first episode. The one liners worked for in-game banter, but they can sort of feel out of place in the show. It's a bit much, I feel like it's most of the interaction between Joel and Ellie.

It also felt weird to see them walking around in the countryside. It made me realise that all of the game took place in towns and cities to funnel the gameplay, and also prevent the levels from becoming too big. So I associate TLOU more with dense post apocalyptic cities rather than the open countryside, that opening scene with Joel and Ellie felt more like something out of The Walking Dead.

@Jimmer-jammer don't know how much "slow" you can tolerate but I highly recommend Station Eleven. Slow and a tad quirky but very rewarding. Plus it's only like a 10 episode mini series I believe.

Also if you're at all a sports fan you can't miss Winning Time. I love the Lakers so I'm definitely biased here but even my daughter, who knows nothing about basketball, loves the show.

@Octane really agree with you on all fronts there.

@Th3solution I'm definitely blaming the b-movie look on the lack of a softer film-grainy look. Like the FX in my mind are actually quite good, they just look too crystal clear and sharp. It looks like cosplay. The whole show does. It's why cosplay looks like cosplay. When things look too true to life, it looks fake.

I've come to pretty much accept everyone's performances except Ramsey. And at this point I don't think it's gonna happen. Really a bummer honestly. Definitely wrong to doubt Offerman. Just didn't think I could shake the image of W Earl Brown but Offerman was really good. Even Pascal is admittedly a capable Joel. Still think they could do better but he works. This Ellie though. Sigh.