I thought this was the weakest episode of the season so far. The adaptation choices are throwing me off, both what they choose to cut and condense. Even with clunky exposition, there's a lot of visual clues and character motivations that probably go over the head of most viewers that haven't played the game.
Cutting out the various skirmishes with factions of WLF, Seraphites and infected might seem like an obvious thing to omit for TV, but it also robs the audience of seeing Ellie and Dina being competent and ruthless. So far, every violent encounter they've had has had them scrambling and on the back foot. Ellie's waffling also feels wrong, like she's exhibiting too much self awareness for where her emotional state should be.
And cutting Hillcrest has made their time in Seattle feel incredibly rushed. Having another guitar scene felt like overkill, especially when there will probably be another one before the end of the season. There's also a distinct YA vibe that is throwing me off, as I never felt that way about the game. Maybe it's the age of the actors, of their childish behavior, but it feels more like The Hunger Games than The Road.
I did like the opening scene a lot, though, and seeing the spores in live action was cool and spooky.
