Horror 'The Last of Us' HBO Series

[Man in the Suit]

Shout out to Ali Abbasi for directing this, it felt so much like the game even more than the other episodes. I hope they bring him back for season 2.

YES. The tone was perfect. It had the grit that's been missing. He also directed the finale, it's going to hit hard.

 

[Kane52630]

'The Last of Us' Episode 8 Ratings: 8.1 Million Viewers - Variety

The penultimate episode of “The Last of Us” Season 1 reached an impressive 8.1 million viewers on Sunday night.

According to Warner Bros. Discovery, that makes Episode 8 the series’ most-viewed thus far. Previously, that title belonged to Episode 3 with 6.4 million viewers, though the company did not make data available regarding the audience size of Episodes 4-7.

This also marks a 74% increase from the viewership of the series premiere, which drew an audience of 4.7 million people
.

It's on the level of GoT/HotD

 

[Iceman]

'The Last of Us' Episode 8 Ratings: 8.1 Million Viewers - Variety



It's on the level of GoT/HotD

Wow, I was hoping it would be big but didn’t expect it to be that big.

 

[Iceman]

YES. The tone was perfect. It had the grit that's been missing. He also directed the finale, it's going to hit hard.

Good news. Need someone who won’t hold back for that.

 

[KaijuDude1992]

'The Last of Us' Episode 8 Ratings: 8.1 Million Viewers - Variety



It's on the level of GoT/HotD

Awesome news and here's to hoping that finale hits those double digits, because this show deserves it. Hopefully, this season ends on a high note because I want them to maintain that goodwill going into Season 2.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Man this episode was intense. David was suitably creepy, and I love that he used the same reveal here as in the game over the fire. Some tense moments for Joel also but we finally got to his violent nature and the things he will do to protect. Good to see Troy Baker also.

But man, it can't be said enough, Bella Ramsey is an absolute acting powerhouse. Can't wait to see what she does with Ellie going forward.

 

[Still Wynning]

So, I just watched the part of Reel Rejects reaction to this episode where they discuss spoiler-y stuff regarding connections and allusions to things that will happen in Part II, and it made me remember some things I forgot to mention in my review. One that wasn’t so obvious to me initially, and a couple that are a bit more obvious:

Spoiler

-The one thing I didn’t catch initially, and what Greg Alba pointed out in the video just mentioned, was the girl being angry at Joel for killing her dad and calling for his head. Already, they are setting up the idea of someone out for revenge of a loved one being killed at Joel’s hands. I can’t believe I didn’t catch that before, so good on Greg for pointing that out.

-One that I caught immediately was how they handled Ellie’s killing of David in this episode. Not only is her extreme brutalization of David foreshadowing her rage and violent tendencies she will display in Part II, but this scene also acts as a mirror to her final confrontation with Abby at the end of that game as well.

Both scenes have her engaged in furious violence against another character without anybody else to stop her. Also, are there is an elemental quality to each one. In the scene with David, she is surrounded by fire. In the scene with Abby, she is surrounded by water. Fire obviously symbolizes a sort of perverse baptism of her becoming a new person by losing her innocence and giving into her dark side. The water symbolizes her giving up her revenge and letting Abby go. There’s other stuff I could mention, but you get the idea.

-This one is the most obvious, but this section of the show in this episode and the section of the game where Joel is killed by Abby both take place during winter. Both are pivotal events that dramatically alter her life forever.

-Also, I remember hearing this in a podcast but, with the three month time jump from when Henry and Sam die, they mention something about how Winter could symbolize being frozen in place emotionally and mentally. With that in mind, it’s interesting that the two most traumatic events in her life take place surrounded by snow, which is just frozen water. It could symbolize her being defined by those events for so long and being emotionally stunted or frozen. When she’s finally able to “forgive” Abby, she is surrounded by water, which could symbolize her finally being able to move on.

Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but I thought it was an interesting observation and I just wanted to point it out.

 

[Drizzle]

'The Last of Us' Episode 8 Ratings: 8.1 Million Viewers - Variety



It's on the level of GoT/HotD

Wow, I was hoping it would be big but didn’t expect it to be that big.

The game has a pretty big fanbase but I didn't expect the show to do this well. I'm loving it because I was spouting off to all my coworkers leading up to the premiere about how good it was going to be and that was only based on how good the game was.

Awesome news and here's to hoping that finale hits those double digits, because this show deserves it. Hopefully, this season ends on a high note because I want them to maintain that goodwill going into Season 2.

I don't know how much the Oscars airing at the same time will affect the finale but I doubt it'll be by much since ratings for the awards have dwindled in recent years. Moving the show out of the way of the Super Bowl made sense but I don't think they're scared of the Oscars. If anything there'll be plenty of people like me who'll watch both but pause the Oscars at 9, switch over to TLOU and then switch back.

 

[Arachnerd]

So, I just watched the part of Reel Rejects reaction to this episode where they discuss spoiler-y stuff regarding connections and allusions to things that will happen in Part II, and it made me remember some things I forgot to mention in my review. One that wasn’t so obvious to me initially, and a couple that are a bit more obvious:

Spoiler

-The one thing I didn’t catch initially, and what Greg Alba pointed out in the video just mentioned, was the girl being angry at Joel for killing her dad and calling for his head. Already, they are setting up the idea of someone out for revenge of a loved one being killed at Joel’s hands. I can’t believe I didn’t catch that before, so good on Greg for pointing that out.

That's what I pointed out in my reaction post to episode 8.

Spoiler

Also keeping Kathleen in mind, they have established the concept of someone seeking vengeance for the death of a loved one and being consumed by it very well. That girl was 100% meant to foreshadow Abby's arrival.

Speaking of which, I'm 50/50 on whether we'll see her in the season finale, if only very briefly. Her dad will definitely be featured though.

 

[Iceman]

The game has a pretty big fanbase but I didn't expect the show to do this well. I'm loving it because I was spouting off to all my coworkers leading up to the premiere about how good it was going to be and that was only based on how good the game was.


I don't know how much the Oscars airing at the same time will affect the finale but I doubt it'll be by much since ratings for the awards have dwindled in recent years. Moving the show out of the way of the Super Bowl made sense but I don't think they're scared of the Oscars. If anything there'll be plenty of people like me who'll watch both but pause the Oscars at 9, switch over to TLOU and then switch back.

Resident Evil, Assassin’s Creed, Uncharted, Tomb Raider and Final Fantasy also had big fanbases. Making a top quality film or show that has some faithfulness to the game is important. I doubt this would have done as well with Tom Holland or Marky Mark as Joel.

 

[squeekness]

'The Last of Us' Episode 8 Ratings: 8.1 Million Viewers - Variety



It's on the level of GoT/HotD

 

[Still Wynning]

That's what I pointed out in my reaction post to episode 8.

Spoiler

Also keeping Kathleen in mind, they have established the concept of someone seeking vengeance for the death of a loved one and being consumed by it very well. That girl was 100% meant to foreshadow Abby's arrival.

Speaking of which, I'm 50/50 on whether we'll see her in the season finale, if only very briefly. Her dad will definitely be featured though.

Like I said in a previous post, this entire season is just Mazin and Druckmann sharpening the knife right in front of us.

 

[Boom]

Does Season 2 carry on with the storyline for the first game or are we jumping straight into Game 2?

 

[Arachnerd]

Pretty sure we're jumping right into Part 2 with the second season.

 

[Iceman]

Yeah, the end of the first game sounds like it’s going to be the finale of the first season. What happens then when they run out of material? (like with Game of Thrones)

 

[Arachnerd]

I'd assume that, should a third game get made, it'll be released long before they start filming a hypothetical season 3. Also assuming they don't always go with the concept of splitting Part 2 into two seasons.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I'd assume that, should a third game get made, it'll be released long before they start filming a hypothetical season 3. Also assuming they don't always go with the concept of splitting Part 2 into two seasons.

Apparently they're looking at 2026 for the 3rd game. That's why I think they will do 2 seasons out of the 2nd. Although I think they could do 3 seasons personally.

 

[DarkShadow10]

I thought the episode overall was a good pit stop and it's main goal is to have bonding time with Joel and Ellie.

Looking through how much time we have left for the season, I can only imagine it going this way:

Spoiler: Game Spoilers

Episode 5 is going to show us the entire arch of Joel/Ellie and Henry and Sam in a shorten way and they're finally gonna show us the bloater.

Episode 6 is going to reunite Joel with Tommy and introduce Maria and possibly take us to the University of Colorado

Episode 7 is probably going to be similar to episode 3 where we get the Ellie and Riley flashback with Joel being injured in and Ellie finding medicine.

Episode 8 is the cannibal episode in winter

Episode 9 is the highway underpass horde and of course the big hospital scene ending.

4 for 5 so far, but…

Spoiler: Spoilers for Episode Nine Preview clip

Judging by the below preview clip for next episode, the underpass scene may now be entirely replaced by Anna’s pregnancy scene.

 

[Neno_Kos]

I'd assume that, should a third game get made, it'll be released long before they start filming a hypothetical season 3. Also assuming they don't always go with the concept of splitting Part 2 into two seasons.

I have good feeling they will split Part II in two seasons. There is too much ground to cover.

Spoiler: Part II game

You have POV from Ellie (just her rampage through all locations, all character dynamics, flashback with Joel - dinosaurs and space museums can be stand alone episode also), POV from Abby (all her friends and her side of story), whole WLF/Scars conflict (two new big groups introduced), possible Tommy's quest in Seattle (stand alone episode which you didnt see in game), California part. I mean you can have just whole episode of Ellie on ranch if you Mazin or Druckman wants to. There is no way in hell you can put all that in 9 episodes. As much part II is Ellie's story it's Abby's story as well or even more.

 

[Kane52630]

Literally hell

 

[Drizzle]

Apparently they're looking at 2026 for the 3rd game. That's why I think they will do 2 seasons out of the 2nd. Although I think they could do 3 seasons personally.

So in theory if Part III comes out in 2026 and season two is out in either late 2024 (and that's at the absolute earliest) or early 2025 covering half of Part II, with season 3 coming out in 2026/2027, they definitely wouldn't need to worry about moving ahead of the games.

 

[Holy Slapper]

One thing irked me in the episode. Why would you show a montage of hard wintery conditions, wind and showfall, then later on say it's easy to track her footprints on the snow? Uh, you don't, because they're gone. So probably should've left that out. Also, as someone who did his Finnish army service in the winter, you don't shoot barehanded in -17°C conditions. You wear gloves. Bare finger on steel trigger? That's big no.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

So in theory if Part III comes out in 2026 and season two is out in either late 2024 (and that's at the absolute earliest) or early 2025 covering half of Part II, with season 3 coming out in 2026/2027, they definitely wouldn't need to worry about moving ahead of the games.

That's if the game comes out 2026. We all know the delays these AAA go through. It's why I think they should do 3 seasons out of part 2.

Ellie's story
Abby's story
And all the flashbacks

That's enough to cover 3 seasons for me, especially if they expand on some stuff like they did this season.

 

[Drizzle]

One thing irked me in the episode. Why would you show a montage of hard wintery conditions, wind and showfall, then later on say it's easy to track her footprints on the snow? Uh, you don't, because they're gone. So probably should've left that out. Also, as someone who did his Finnish army service in the winter, you don't shoot barehanded in -17°C conditions. You wear gloves. Bare finger on steel trigger? That's big no.

To that, I don't believe it was shown to be snowing from the time David met Ellie until the time they tracked her to the house the next morning.

 

[Holy Slapper]

To that, I don't believe it was shown to be snowing from the time David met Ellie until the time they tracked her to the house the next morning.

They showed it before he arrived with the deer and said the line. I checked.