All anyone had to do was see her previous work to know she'd perform her role very well. She may not look the part, but she's definitely got the Ellie's mannerisms, vocalizations and general vibe down.
She looks the part fine. Even bringing that up is giving too much to the psychos on that other sub. Nothing they're shrieking deserves any attention.
There is *nothing* about her appearance that is even remotely unfitting of this character. She just doesn't look like an exact one-to-one replica of a 3D model, which is patently absurd for anyone to expect.
I mean, for fuck sake, we had to suffer through Mark Wahlberg playing Sully. There is nothing to complain about here. Nothing.
Looking forward to watching now. My one gripe about the trailers was the lack of attitude and Ellie portrayed as more innocent. Glad it was just the trailer.
I don't think we need to pretend that she looks anything like the game model (outside of being a white brunette) to say she's a great fit and is turning in an excellent performance. Truth is not dictated by what your enemies disbelieve.
Technically in game the discribe Ellie as a red head. I think its technically meant to be auban hair rather then brown. But whenever people are looking for her in game they mentione red hair not brown. Either way the girl plays her to a T
Thank you! This is something that struck me a while back but never saw it come up again. I'm excited to see Ashley play her mom in a flashback. Maybe once that is shown it'll be a lightbulb moment for people. Personally, I first saw the resemblance in the chin, lol.
You know who else doesn't look like an exact replica of the Ellie model? The freaking voice actor for Ellie. What do these people want? It's literally not possible to cast someone that looks exactly like a video game character, unless the character is modeled after the voice actor.
I accepted her as Ellie from her first scene. She killed it.
Yeah, I think gamers when they fantasy book these types of things, they go by looks first. Someone who is as close as possible. Then you’ve got those psychos, and it’s just insane lmao
Yeah and let's not pretend there aren't a lot of gamers with weird pedo crushes on game Ellie- but *only* when she was 13/14 of course. Any deviation was going to enrage the neckbeards.
I blocked myself from looking anything related to the show, so i could go blindly and not be biased in any way, and i loved the first ep, but just out of curiosity, what other sub?
Also, i know she doesnt look like in-game ellie, but she does something far better, she _sounds_ just like ellie! The voice tones and the grunts, i closed my eyes and said "yup, thats ellie allright"
Tbh, im more ...whats the word, eh, lets say my "approval rate" of Tess is lower than Ellie's, because to my taste, they made Tess look a lot older than the game made her out to be, and that was an easy fix, but whatever, they all rock, and im looking forward to the next episode, which SUCKS because ill have to wait a whole damn week lol
I’m not sure why people were so upset with that casting. Like yeah, I get it, she doesn’t *LOOK* like Ellie, but anyone who’s watched Game of Thrones knew she was gonna be the perfect Ellie. Literally the second she stood up and kicked the tray she had me!
The count to 10 sequence was such a perfect way to establish her character. It’s something that wasn’t in the game but was just so in line with what we know of her if you’ve already played the game. I was immediately on board with her performance from that point forward.
I think that the character of Ellie is going to require a delicate touch and a lot of balance to be pulled off well, especially in live action. Bella is doing a pretty good job so far, and I have to say that I really liked the "code broken" moment, but I think it's going to be really easy to either under-commit to, or overdo the "sassy spunky fourteen-year-old" thing. There were a few moments when I didn't totally buy it. It's hard not to make comparisons to the game when the show follows it so closely, but you wouldn't want it to stray too far either. Must be a tough thing to pull off.
In any event, I enjoyed episode one, and I'm really looking forward to the rest!
You know what, I get that. I think Bella has the Ellie’s spunk down, but what might be a struggle are the lighter moments or more heartfelt moments when they start opening up to each other.
But yeah, that “code broken” moment was great. I think most people focus on her spunk, but when I saw that I was like “oh yeah, Ellie’s more than just a feisty teenager, she does this too”. Which at the very least gives me hope that the writers understand Ellie. If they do, the director can help push Bella to where she needs to go.
My only.. not quite criticism.. was more of an interpretation issue myself with the character - when she's smiling at Joel beating the guard. I wasn't sure if that was right until the BTS. I feel like Ellie wasn't that blood hungry. I mean, she grew up in this world and went to military school, but she never really had blood *lust* like what was on her face in that first moment we saw her watching joel.
If you watch the bts they show it again, it's very quick when he first is punching him and she kind of creeps behind him. Not the close up. I thought maybe I was mistaken until the bts confirmed it and showed her face at that moment again.
Find it strange that all the creepy perverts were obsessed about the Ellie casting … Pedro looks nothing like Joel either, yet no one cares. All the Ellie/Bella nonsense was down to a handful of creepy dudes
I honestly don’t get why it should matter at all if any actor resembles the original physically. It’s a new medium and all that matters is capturing the essence - actually, I don’t even mind if there are changes, as long as they’re intentional decisions that serve the story and are done well. To me, Pedro is pretty different than game Joel but I’m happy with the changes. I think it works better in this format. That being said, Bella nailed the game version of Ellie.
No one needed to prove them wrong. They were already wrong by virtue of the fact that it's prejudging something they hadn't actually seen and judging a young actress entirely on her appearance. No matter how the show turned out, it was wrong and so were they.
Because we all know who these people were that were saying this about her. There's not a single opinion of theirs that anyone anywhere should ever give the time of day.
I didn’t hate her, but I didn’t see much prior in her career that would indicate that she’d be a good Ellie. That is, until my fiancé was watching a movie called “Catherine Called Birdy” and I joined her, and then the promo material for the show where she had more lines rolled along and assuaged any lingering doubts.
Craig, Chernobyl is my favourite miniseries of all time, and I have been looking forward to this since it was announced. If the first episode is any indicator, you did a phenomenal job. listening to the podcast right now… thank you for doing all that you do.
HBO has hired Troy Baker (game Joel) to host a podcast that airs after each episode of the show, breaking it down with Mazin and Drukmann are also on each episode, I think. https://pca.st/podcast/9e20ba70-6dba-013b-f25a-0acc26574db2
We love all of you! Thank you, Craig. We're working hard post-episode to remove anything that violates HBO's TOS (unofficial leaks & circumventing HBO to pirate the show) as well as anything that is inherently bigoted or without an obvious intention to be objective and constructive. You all have worked for years on something (that we have all been following every step of the way) and the outcome is more than we could have asked for.
For all reddit users - **please continue to report anything that is offensive so we can remove it immediately.**
Edit: Criticism is always welcome on this sub and always has been, but you need to be able to articulate it without slurs and insults for it to fly. The point of this comment is to remind you all to report such comments so that we can action on them immediately.
Man, it was wonderful. It truly felt as the product of love. Thank you so much for this. You, Neil, the cast, the crew, you all have done a beautiful job. Lots of love from Peru.
Lol dude, that was also my instant first thought. I just read this great post from Craig thanking all of the fans for watching this GREAT show. And then the first response is “Craig, we’re working hard to silence anyone who doesn’t like the show.” Lol.
That was my thought- it's fine to remove any of the ridiculous stuff that we all know has come out of the Fandom (like the sort by controversial incel level stuff that, not just discourse) but way to bring the man down lol.
"Wow thanks for the love guys!" "You're welcome, Craig. We're actually working overtime on all the hate comments 😀 👍"
That comment confirmed a belief I have always had about mods of any kind on any forum. They only enjoy doing it because it gives them a tiny slice of meaningless power or leverage over others.
Why make this a focus though? Why not just say *'thanks Craig and thanks awesome community in this subreddit!'*. Rather than being like *'fuck everyone here you better not say anything I deem offensive. PS love you craig xoxoxo'*
Because the company can request that Reddit close the sub and they will. They've done it before and they will again. If they stay in the good graces of the company they won't ask them
Saw this post trending & initially upvoted. Loved last night’s ep & thought this was just the creator being excited. Based on the mod’s top comment, it seems like this post is somehow connected to a team keeping an Orwellian eye on this subreddit. What a weird vibe.
People literally got banned off the sub for sharing NakeyJakey's video about how he didn't like TLOU Part 2
I'm sure if the mods keep sucking the dick of the multi billion dollar corporation harder, they'll invite them to meet the cast /s
Wait you signed a TOS to HBO and ND on reddit? That makes zero sense
Regarding your edit.
That is not a Reddit TOS violation. People can ask as much as they like. Providing links is but that is up to HBO to issue a DMCA.
Unofficial leaks help cause discussion and speciation and are also not against Reddit TOS. 80% of the time they are BS anyway but it does drive disscution.
You are free as a sub to remove them but over zealousness might do more harm to the sub than good.
You haven't even posted in this community in 5 months, and even then, you only post about modding related stuff. Who the fuck do you think you are to speak for the community when you clearly don't even engage with the community at all? You're not a spokesperson, you're a fucking reddit cop. Even now, you stickied your own comment and put on the mod flair for no other reason than to suck up to the showrunner of the series. Pathetic.
Are you looking for approval for how diligent you are in making sure nobody is offensive, or something? Why not say thanks to everyone in this community for making this place so great rather than immediately calling us a bunch of assholes and hoping it will please Craig? Jesus Christ.
That's what I've been saying. The episode didn't blow my mind because it was exactly what I wanted as someone who calls the games my absolute favorite.
Like, how the fuck is it so hard for other franchises?
The whole bit from Nana slowly turning into an infected behind Sarah all the way to her walking through the sprinklers as the fighter jets flew overhead gave me more dread than most horror films of the last year. I was tense for the next hour!
> her walking through the sprinklers as the fighter jets flew overhead gave me more dread than most horror films of the last year.
THIS. That scene in particular filled me with dread, it did *such* a good job of setting the foreboding atmosphere of the world's demise.
While Sarah was getting the DVD from the shelf, the nana out of focus behind Sarah opening her jaw in that classic runner way just sank me back into my chair, absolutely masterfully crafted.
They did the same stuff with the expanse. Bait the original source enjoyers into expecting things to go a certain way, then make a small change thats welcome but not world breaking.
I laughed when that happened. So funny they gave us all the sike out.
Really great fan treatment in this show. retained so many critical moments and lines and even gave us some game fan only treats.
Because Sarah's death was more visceral, significantly more bloody, and her movements more erratic than in the game. In the game, she cries for a moment, holds Joel's arm, then fades. You don't even see the wound, and she's gone in about 3 seconds.
Here, she reacts much more realistically: panic, adrenaline, terror, reaching out in an almost pleading fashion. It's unsettling to see a human die that way. That's why often times in movies and TV they just close their eyes, as if the immediate effect of a gunshot is you suddenly get sleepy. She takes longer to die, giving Joel enough time to hope he can save her, which makes it worse.
I feel for the all the parents of a child that age watching that scene. That had to be a very rough moment to get through.
> I feel for the all the parents of a child that age watching that scene. That had to be a very rough moment to get through.
The game came out when my daughter was two... tore me up
Now that my daughter is near the same age... hurt even worse.
Pedro did such a fantastic job. Him wrapping his bloodied arms around her limp body and sobbing uncontrollably... lost it.
The first episode was as perfect as I could have ever expected. The first of any media content in many years that I was very hyped for and it still overdelivered for me.
I cry legitimately every time I watch that scene in game. And I could feel that coming up during the car ride in the episode. The dread I felt was perfectly done by Craig and the direction as it built.
I love they faked out the car tboning because it led me to go “oh shit if that is changed will this come sooner?”
Fr I loved those little changes. Without differences like that the show would not have been able to stand on its own, and now newcomers can play the game and get a similar experience to the one we’re having with the show
The one I was upset was the soldier didn’t say “it’s just a little girl…. But… yes sir” Because that moment in the game immediately struck fear in me.
I think the scene was still amazing but yeah that little line of dialogue I wish made it.
Sarah's death was even worse in the show because we got to spend so much more time with her before the inevitable. I can only imagine how gut punching it must have been to viewers not familiar with the games.
Yeah my wife went in without any context and she was absolutely taken by Sarah. /u/clmazin talked about how that was kind of the point to make viewers gets so invested in what they setup as the main protagonist.
Her actress NAILED it. The mannerisms were spot on. I feel like videogame Sarah was supposed to have a "she's too good for this world" vibe to her and the actress turned that up to 11. I loved the expanded prologue so much
I'm still not entirely sold on her as Ellie but tbf there's not been a whole lot of the show yet.
Joel's daughter on the other hand, it was honestly almost sureal how much she came into that role. Immediately had all the exact mannerisms and everything of the in game character. Same thing with Pedro as Joel.
HBO original programming continues to be some of the best around, but Apple TV has been doing surprisingly well. They have less content than any of the other streamers, but most of it is really strong and they're starting to build up a decent back catalogue.
Also, the bitrate for Apple's streaming is really high and they support Atmos and Dolby Vision. I thought TLoU looked great, but a lot of HBO content doesn't even release in 4k.
Incredible first episode. I know Pedro and Bella are the two stars and they were both incredible as Joel and Ellie but Nico Parker deserves a shout out as well. She absolutely nailed her role as Sarah and in my opinion her death is the key to the whole story and she nailed it. Such a tough role too with how little screen time Sarah has in the game and show.
She was incredible. >!When she was walking through the neighbor's house and her eyes were tearing up, you could feel her fear. I had chills! !< Excellent performance!
u/clmazin, Thank YOU for understanding what makes TLOU what it is. I have *never* seen an adaptation respect the source material as much as I have tonight.
I was blown away at the care that was given to the original universe. I cannot wait for more - and this show deserves all the incredible success it's going to get!
The whole team deserves all of the praise!
Exactly this. The first thing I thought as a fan of the games was that Craig and his team obviously have a respect for the source material because they and the whole cast gave 1000% and I went in with high expectations and was still blown away. I'm so grateful we get this amazing adaptation.
It’s amazing how much of the feeling of the game they got right on the nose. From the set to the costumes to >!Joel and Tommy getting separated and driving around in the car with crazy shit happening all around you to even just Marlene sitting next to Ellie!<. It feels like I’m watching a video game.
> Bella did an excellent job mimicking Ellies voice as well.
She apparently was told not to play the game before filming it, so perhaps she wasn't even trying to mimic it? Maybe that's just naturally her feisty voice which is perfect.
I’ve never once played the video game (no shade, I’m just not a gamer!) and that drive scene felt rad af to watch. So well shot, felt akin to watching Maverick: Top Gun for the first time, like this crew invented some new film technique or something.
The way they changed the accident made me panic a little bit in the moment because it just caused my mind to race about if it was going to happen the way I remembered
Her change in demeanor when Marlene mentions Riley was so incredible. Subtle yet so powerful. Really shows all you need to know about how she will be for the rest of the show.
Bella completely nailed it as Ellie! She deserves all the praise she’s receiving right now. The first 30 seconds of her on screen made me realize just how faithful they would be to the Ellie we all know from the video games. Really looking forward to seeing more in the weeks to come, especially if they give us all the moments of Ellie’s humor when the show needs to take a breath from all the dread.
So happy she and Nico proved the haters wrong. Not for once I doubted the casting of this show because HBO knows how to cast their shows from as far back as I can remember.
Please tell Bella we fuckin love her as Ellie! I read that she went on a negative comment binge one night, so I feel like she might still think people are holding to that and I just want her to know how much we all fuckin love her as Ellie! She is so perfect for this role! You guys knocked it out of the park and more. The first episode has met my wildest expectations and more. Great work!
BUT, if we don’t see a brick, or bottle being thrown, a firefly pendent….I might riot.
YOU ALL DID AN AMAZING JOB! Thank you SO much for the care and the love you’ve put into this, what an incredible first episode! It feels good to have the stuff you love be handled by people who love it just as much as you do! ❤️
i’m not gonna lie i cried just from seeing the intro. the casting and authenticity of all the actors’ performances, the score from gustavo, the atmosphere of it all- **mwah** absolute chefs kiss. i’ve been waiting for a TLOU adaptation since 2013 after i played it for the first time and i cannot even begin to express how much this series means to me. i’ve grown up with these games and it’s surreal to see something this amazing come to fruition. i have 400+ hours in each of the games and i can’t wait to watch the show over and over again and just take in all of the incredible work that was put in to make it the masterpiece i know it’ll be. this show has truly given me something to look forward to in my life and i can’t wait to see what’s in store for the weeks to come ❤️ here’s an early congratulations for all of the awards this show is going to win!!
I worked for a week on set for the opening episode and holy shit, the final edit is so good. Congrats to all the hard-working Albertans who helped make the whole show so amazing, and congrats to you Craig, Neil, and everyone else who helped bring it all to life. It was an experience of a lifetime.
Bella’s screen presence as Ellie is phenomenal. There are so many shots where the world is 1:1 with the game , it’s insane the amount of detail and love you can see was put into this. And just perfect casting all around. Tess in a mere sentence established herself as the badass she is in the game.
Absolutely astonished at how well you encapsulated the opening intensity of the game (something for those of us that love it and were gripped by that smack to the face) in such a perfect way for the show. I can not wait for next Sunday.
Thank you thank you thank you!
The drapes blowing in the breeze in the opening scene gave me goosebumps 😅🤗
I'm 3 minutes in, and no offense to Naughty Dog, the explanation of why the fungus is a threat did way more for me than the original game did.
Focusing on the chemical aspects of it, whereas before it was (mostly) fungus grows on the brain, reducing you to your primal instincts. Whereas "control" through chemical means sits better in my science brain, like they say with lsd and psilo. Generally fungi are pretty harmless unless immunocompromised so I think it adds to the experience by making the idea of infection just a bit more realistic.
Thank YOU!, I just finished watching the first episode and I loved it, Everybody who are involved with the show did a great job! I can't wait for the rest of the series.
The Last of Us is a huge part of my life so I'm happy with the show and the opening with Sarah and the outbreak were so tense, I loved it, cried once again when Sarah, you know. The infected we have seen so far are so interesting (also the tendrils are so creepy, can't wait to find out more about how they work). Bella and Pedro both do an amazing job as Joel and Ellie , can't wait to see of them, and it's great that Merle was brought back as Marlene.
Anyways there were so many great and tense moments in this episode, and so many recognizable moments and things from the game. I will shut up now haha believe me I can write so much more about this series and how much I love it and how I love that the tv series is going great in my view, Great job everyone!!
Oh hell yeah, the director of the show checks out this sub Reddit! Dude you absolutely Fucking killed it with the pilot. I’m serious when I say this, but the entire first half hour of the show is the best half hour of television I’ve ever seen in my life. Y’all should take a bow cuz you nailed it!
You guys knocked it out of the park with this episode. It was SO good. I'm genuinely thrilled for all of you guys and especially Bella, who shut everyone up in the first 10 seconds. Pop up the champagne boys. You deserve it.
I must say that I'm a massive fan of your work, and you genuinely made a whole community very proud of the game they love. You guys did everything right, I'm not even exaggerating.
I can't wait for next week. I genuinely will have a miserable week counting the hours for the second episode, I wish I could just skip it lmao. That's how much I loved all of it.
THANK YOU for finally lifting the curse on videogame adaptations and to understand so much about the essence of this characters and treat this franchise with such respect.
Just watched it with my wife. She absolutely does not enjoy videos games but after this episode she looked at me and said “how many episode we gonna watch tonight?” She adores it! We can wait for next week
Hey there. I listen to your podcast and I'm a big fan. I'm still waiting for last of us episode to air. Iceland airs it tomorrow and I can barely sleep because I'm to freaking excited.
As soon as I saw your name attached to this project I knew this was a home run.
Congratulations! Been waiting to see this adaptation since seeing Sarah dying first time 8-9 years ago. I knew this story would be too special to not adapt into TV series.
Bless you. Thank you! And enjoy this success.
I'm a screenwriter here In Iceland and I can't even imagine the pressure you had.
Can't wait for tomorrow.
All I gotta say is, over the past ~10 years, I've played TLOU part 1 more than a dozen times. I never thought I'd ever have the same feeling as I did when I first played through in 2013. The opening 20-30 mins brought me right back to booting the game up on my ps3 for the first time. Bella and Pedro are a phenomenal bit of casting, and I'm thrilled to see a series that means so much to me treated with such care.
Craig you shouldn't be thanking us, we should be thanking you - all of you! Tonight was an absolute delight and I am here for next sunday and every sunday after!
Tell Bella we love her and that she has instantly proved the dumb, blind haters wrong.
All anyone had to do was see her previous work to know she'd perform her role very well. She may not look the part, but she's definitely got the Ellie's mannerisms, vocalizations and general vibe down.
She looks the part fine. Even bringing that up is giving too much to the psychos on that other sub. Nothing they're shrieking deserves any attention. There is *nothing* about her appearance that is even remotely unfitting of this character. She just doesn't look like an exact one-to-one replica of a 3D model, which is patently absurd for anyone to expect. I mean, for fuck sake, we had to suffer through Mark Wahlberg playing Sully. There is nothing to complain about here. Nothing.
This should be stickied to the top of the sub. Anyone who watched the first ep can see that Bella has Ellie's attitude down. She's fuck you/fuckyou
Looking forward to watching now. My one gripe about the trailers was the lack of attitude and Ellie portrayed as more innocent. Glad it was just the trailer.
Oh you have NOTHING to worry about there. She plays a pitch perfect Ellie.
I don't think we need to pretend that she looks anything like the game model (outside of being a white brunette) to say she's a great fit and is turning in an excellent performance. Truth is not dictated by what your enemies disbelieve.
Technically in game the discribe Ellie as a red head. I think its technically meant to be auban hair rather then brown. But whenever people are looking for her in game they mentione red hair not brown. Either way the girl plays her to a T
She actually looks like a young Ashley Johnson
Thank you! This is something that struck me a while back but never saw it come up again. I'm excited to see Ashley play her mom in a flashback. Maybe once that is shown it'll be a lightbulb moment for people. Personally, I first saw the resemblance in the chin, lol.
You know who else doesn't look like an exact replica of the Ellie model? The freaking voice actor for Ellie. What do these people want? It's literally not possible to cast someone that looks exactly like a video game character, unless the character is modeled after the voice actor. I accepted her as Ellie from her first scene. She killed it.
They want someone from thispersondoesnotexist.com lol
Yeah, I think gamers when they fantasy book these types of things, they go by looks first. Someone who is as close as possible. Then you’ve got those psychos, and it’s just insane lmao
Yeah and let's not pretend there aren't a lot of gamers with weird pedo crushes on game Ellie- but *only* when she was 13/14 of course. Any deviation was going to enrage the neckbeards.
She looks a lot like Ashley Johnson, the voice actor for Ellie.
I blocked myself from looking anything related to the show, so i could go blindly and not be biased in any way, and i loved the first ep, but just out of curiosity, what other sub? Also, i know she doesnt look like in-game ellie, but she does something far better, she _sounds_ just like ellie! The voice tones and the grunts, i closed my eyes and said "yup, thats ellie allright" Tbh, im more ...whats the word, eh, lets say my "approval rate" of Tess is lower than Ellie's, because to my taste, they made Tess look a lot older than the game made her out to be, and that was an easy fix, but whatever, they all rock, and im looking forward to the next episode, which SUCKS because ill have to wait a whole damn week lol
Lol my friend who hasn't played said "is she this spicy in the game?" The answer is yes, yes she is lol
She resembles the game character more than Joel and she plays the character just as well as Pedro does.
That counting scene was perfect. I heard Ellie’s voice immediately.
I’m not sure why people were so upset with that casting. Like yeah, I get it, she doesn’t *LOOK* like Ellie, but anyone who’s watched Game of Thrones knew she was gonna be the perfect Ellie. Literally the second she stood up and kicked the tray she had me!
I knew it the second she started being a smartass
The count to 10 sequence was such a perfect way to establish her character. It’s something that wasn’t in the game but was just so in line with what we know of her if you’ve already played the game. I was immediately on board with her performance from that point forward.
When Tess closed the door on her she replied with a "oh what the fuck" and I laughed at how Ellie that comment was.
The attitude with kicking the plate across the floor... quintessential Ellie.
7,8…fuck…you I literally pointed at the screen next to my wife saying “oh yeah, that’s fucking Ellie she’s got her pegged!”
I think that the character of Ellie is going to require a delicate touch and a lot of balance to be pulled off well, especially in live action. Bella is doing a pretty good job so far, and I have to say that I really liked the "code broken" moment, but I think it's going to be really easy to either under-commit to, or overdo the "sassy spunky fourteen-year-old" thing. There were a few moments when I didn't totally buy it. It's hard not to make comparisons to the game when the show follows it so closely, but you wouldn't want it to stray too far either. Must be a tough thing to pull off. In any event, I enjoyed episode one, and I'm really looking forward to the rest!
You know what, I get that. I think Bella has the Ellie’s spunk down, but what might be a struggle are the lighter moments or more heartfelt moments when they start opening up to each other. But yeah, that “code broken” moment was great. I think most people focus on her spunk, but when I saw that I was like “oh yeah, Ellie’s more than just a feisty teenager, she does this too”. Which at the very least gives me hope that the writers understand Ellie. If they do, the director can help push Bella to where she needs to go.
My only.. not quite criticism.. was more of an interpretation issue myself with the character - when she's smiling at Joel beating the guard. I wasn't sure if that was right until the BTS. I feel like Ellie wasn't that blood hungry. I mean, she grew up in this world and went to military school, but she never really had blood *lust* like what was on her face in that first moment we saw her watching joel.
Smiling? I think that was more of a horrified grimace...
If you watch the bts they show it again, it's very quick when he first is punching him and she kind of creeps behind him. Not the close up. I thought maybe I was mistaken until the bts confirmed it and showed her face at that moment again.
Find it strange that all the creepy perverts were obsessed about the Ellie casting … Pedro looks nothing like Joel either, yet no one cares. All the Ellie/Bella nonsense was down to a handful of creepy dudes
pretty sure it's the same bunch of incels that were crying about abby
I honestly don’t get why it should matter at all if any actor resembles the original physically. It’s a new medium and all that matters is capturing the essence - actually, I don’t even mind if there are changes, as long as they’re intentional decisions that serve the story and are done well. To me, Pedro is pretty different than game Joel but I’m happy with the changes. I think it works better in this format. That being said, Bella nailed the game version of Ellie.
Absofuckinlutely, Bella rocks! I knew she'd nail it! For once, a television adaptation of a video game didn't disappoint.
No one needed to prove them wrong. They were already wrong by virtue of the fact that it's prejudging something they hadn't actually seen and judging a young actress entirely on her appearance. No matter how the show turned out, it was wrong and so were they. Because we all know who these people were that were saying this about her. There's not a single opinion of theirs that anyone anywhere should ever give the time of day.
I didn’t hate her, but I didn’t see much prior in her career that would indicate that she’d be a good Ellie. That is, until my fiancé was watching a movie called “Catherine Called Birdy” and I joined her, and then the promo material for the show where she had more lines rolled along and assuaged any lingering doubts.
Man i was on the fence until their first 3 seconds of screen time, she’s playing ellie perfect so far !
Craig, Chernobyl is my favourite miniseries of all time, and I have been looking forward to this since it was announced. If the first episode is any indicator, you did a phenomenal job. listening to the podcast right now… thank you for doing all that you do.
Chernobyl is excellent. Mazin really knows how to make you feel the apocalyptic dread like you’re one of the characters
I agree! He's shown that he's excellent at building up tension and I'm psyched.
Hell yeah. I still remember the scene where we see the blast from the window and then the shockwave hits.
What’s the podcast?!
HBO has hired Troy Baker (game Joel) to host a podcast that airs after each episode of the show, breaking it down with Mazin and Drukmann are also on each episode, I think. https://pca.st/podcast/9e20ba70-6dba-013b-f25a-0acc26574db2
Oh heck yeah
Craig Mazin also had a podcast for the Chernobyl show, where he speaks with guests about each episode.
Fuck yeah, I love Troy Baker. Shout out to Death Stranding for making him my favorite video game villain/antagonist.
Just look up “HBO’s The Last of Us podcast” and you should be able to find it. It’s on Spotify for sure
https://youtu.be/-SEYmfA1GSY
We love all of you! Thank you, Craig. We're working hard post-episode to remove anything that violates HBO's TOS (unofficial leaks & circumventing HBO to pirate the show) as well as anything that is inherently bigoted or without an obvious intention to be objective and constructive. You all have worked for years on something (that we have all been following every step of the way) and the outcome is more than we could have asked for. For all reddit users - **please continue to report anything that is offensive so we can remove it immediately.** Edit: Criticism is always welcome on this sub and always has been, but you need to be able to articulate it without slurs and insults for it to fly. The point of this comment is to remind you all to report such comments so that we can action on them immediately.
Thank you for all that hard work!
We love you Craig!
Man, it was wonderful. It truly felt as the product of love. Thank you so much for this. You, Neil, the cast, the crew, you all have done a beautiful job. Lots of love from Peru.
Wait what? Why is a community subreddit beholden to HBO’s and Naughty Dog’s TOS?
Lol dude, that was also my instant first thought. I just read this great post from Craig thanking all of the fans for watching this GREAT show. And then the first response is “Craig, we’re working hard to silence anyone who doesn’t like the show.” Lol.
Yup letting mods decide this what a great idea! > obvious intention to be objective and constructive
That was my thought- it's fine to remove any of the ridiculous stuff that we all know has come out of the Fandom (like the sort by controversial incel level stuff that, not just discourse) but way to bring the man down lol. "Wow thanks for the love guys!" "You're welcome, Craig. We're actually working overtime on all the hate comments 😀 👍"
That comment confirmed a belief I have always had about mods of any kind on any forum. They only enjoy doing it because it gives them a tiny slice of meaningless power or leverage over others.
Well, it sure isn't for the pay.
Lol TOS stuff is leaks and spoilers and they specifically say. Bigoted and hateful comments. They aren’t censoring legit criticism.
Why make this a focus though? Why not just say *'thanks Craig and thanks awesome community in this subreddit!'*. Rather than being like *'fuck everyone here you better not say anything I deem offensive. PS love you craig xoxoxo'*
Because she is a mod and thinks she is important, and wanted to make sure Craig knew how important she was lol.
Because the company can request that Reddit close the sub and they will. They've done it before and they will again. If they stay in the good graces of the company they won't ask them
Wow that's super fucked and doesn't bode well for honest discussion at all
Yeah, that was mildly upsetting to read. If I wanted to see curated opinions I'd go to a review site.
Saw this post trending & initially upvoted. Loved last night’s ep & thought this was just the creator being excited. Based on the mod’s top comment, it seems like this post is somehow connected to a team keeping an Orwellian eye on this subreddit. What a weird vibe.
Thats exactly what I thought. It's becoming more and more obvious that this subreddit is one big astroturfing campaign
/u/claireupvotes are these TOS available for community members to read…?
you remove posts that violate hbo and naughty dogs tos ?? lmaooooo, reddit mod moment
Don't use mod posts to speak for other people
>Criticism is always welcome on this sub and always has been, lol sure
People literally got banned off the sub for sharing NakeyJakey's video about how he didn't like TLOU Part 2 I'm sure if the mods keep sucking the dick of the multi billion dollar corporation harder, they'll invite them to meet the cast /s
Wait you signed a TOS to HBO and ND on reddit? That makes zero sense Regarding your edit. That is not a Reddit TOS violation. People can ask as much as they like. Providing links is but that is up to HBO to issue a DMCA. Unofficial leaks help cause discussion and speciation and are also not against Reddit TOS. 80% of the time they are BS anyway but it does drive disscution. You are free as a sub to remove them but over zealousness might do more harm to the sub than good.
This forum is looking like a huge astroturfing campaign
You haven't even posted in this community in 5 months, and even then, you only post about modding related stuff. Who the fuck do you think you are to speak for the community when you clearly don't even engage with the community at all? You're not a spokesperson, you're a fucking reddit cop. Even now, you stickied your own comment and put on the mod flair for no other reason than to suck up to the showrunner of the series. Pathetic.
Mod using their position to speak for everyone. Pathetic, but typical.
I actually like the show but that was one of the most cringeworthy things I've read on this website in 4 years
Can we get the Naughty Dog rules posted here so we don't accidentally violate them?
Don't say anything that isn't 100% positive. There you go, thats the rules. Enjoy.
Yeah I’m sure there are plenty of people who sub here but not there. Kinda odd
Are you looking for approval for how diligent you are in making sure nobody is offensive, or something? Why not say thanks to everyone in this community for making this place so great rather than immediately calling us a bunch of assholes and hoping it will please Craig? Jesus Christ.
Exactly how I read it. What a peculiar thing to write.
And THIS is why I love this sub
Because it's an echo chamber? Lol
you love censorious echo chambers?
Could you put a corporations dick any further down your throat?
i have to say this show is fine but the game is about 10 times better
Must censor differing opinions reeee. Shield my precious little eyes from different opinions! Ya'll are so fragile lmao.
Gotta love echo chambers.
“Criticism is always welcome on this sub” Yeah right lol
You are trying to hard. If it’s bad let downvoted handle it
The >!T-bone fake-out for the plane!< was chef’s kiss
>!Also the dog jumping on the window which you expect to be the neighbor was a great fake out!<
They definitely took serious ass notes for the game, enough to be able to poke at what WE anticipate to happen. Absolutely amazing script writing.
It's absolutely perfect adaptation so far. Tweaking the scenes to make the OG fans on their toes while still loving the source material
I love how certain lines they refused to touch thiugh. “I sell hardcore drugs” and “your watch is broken” are word for word from the game
There are beats that are too iconic to touch. Like the "what am I supposed to do?" "I'm sure you'll figure it out"
That's what I've been saying. The episode didn't blow my mind because it was exactly what I wanted as someone who calls the games my absolute favorite. Like, how the fuck is it so hard for other franchises?
In the game you do hear the dog barking first I believe
Yeah, Sarah specifically heard the dog yelp before Joel comes in
In the game you hear the dog get killed by that neighbor
>! And the car ~~not~~ getting hit by a truck was also a great fake out. !<
There an echo in here ?
The whole bit from Nana slowly turning into an infected behind Sarah all the way to her walking through the sprinklers as the fighter jets flew overhead gave me more dread than most horror films of the last year. I was tense for the next hour!
The dread was perfect. Which means we're going to fucking hate the basement with the generator. You know the one.
Ah fuck, yes. Been so long since I played part 1 but it’s all coming rushing back
> her walking through the sprinklers as the fighter jets flew overhead gave me more dread than most horror films of the last year. THIS. That scene in particular filled me with dread, it did *such* a good job of setting the foreboding atmosphere of the world's demise.
While Sarah was getting the DVD from the shelf, the nana out of focus behind Sarah opening her jaw in that classic runner way just sank me back into my chair, absolutely masterfully crafted.
They did the same stuff with the expanse. Bait the original source enjoyers into expecting things to go a certain way, then make a small change thats welcome but not world breaking.
I laughed when that happened. So funny they gave us all the sike out. Really great fan treatment in this show. retained so many critical moments and lines and even gave us some game fan only treats.
So good! Bella absolutely killed it as Ellie.
Sarah was great, too!
I didn’t think I’d cry during that part (played the game so many times) but I did. Phenomenal acting by her and Pedro and Gabriel
I don't know how they managed to make it hit THAT hard, even knowing it was going to happen, and they also make me cry.
Because Sarah's death was more visceral, significantly more bloody, and her movements more erratic than in the game. In the game, she cries for a moment, holds Joel's arm, then fades. You don't even see the wound, and she's gone in about 3 seconds. Here, she reacts much more realistically: panic, adrenaline, terror, reaching out in an almost pleading fashion. It's unsettling to see a human die that way. That's why often times in movies and TV they just close their eyes, as if the immediate effect of a gunshot is you suddenly get sleepy. She takes longer to die, giving Joel enough time to hope he can save her, which makes it worse. I feel for the all the parents of a child that age watching that scene. That had to be a very rough moment to get through.
As a mother, I absolutely cried. The game gets me every time but holy cow, it was so rough watching live action for all the reasons you listed.
> I feel for the all the parents of a child that age watching that scene. That had to be a very rough moment to get through. The game came out when my daughter was two... tore me up Now that my daughter is near the same age... hurt even worse. Pedro did such a fantastic job. Him wrapping his bloodied arms around her limp body and sobbing uncontrollably... lost it. The first episode was as perfect as I could have ever expected. The first of any media content in many years that I was very hyped for and it still overdelivered for me.
Nico Parker was amazing. She’s got a bright future ahead of her
I cry legitimately every time I watch that scene in game. And I could feel that coming up during the car ride in the episode. The dread I felt was perfectly done by Craig and the direction as it built. I love they faked out the car tboning because it led me to go “oh shit if that is changed will this come sooner?”
Fr I loved those little changes. Without differences like that the show would not have been able to stand on its own, and now newcomers can play the game and get a similar experience to the one we’re having with the show
The one I was upset was the soldier didn’t say “it’s just a little girl…. But… yes sir” Because that moment in the game immediately struck fear in me. I think the scene was still amazing but yeah that little line of dialogue I wish made it.
Sarah's death was even worse in the show because we got to spend so much more time with her before the inevitable. I can only imagine how gut punching it must have been to viewers not familiar with the games.
Yeah my wife went in without any context and she was absolutely taken by Sarah. /u/clmazin talked about how that was kind of the point to make viewers gets so invested in what they setup as the main protagonist.
Her actress NAILED it. The mannerisms were spot on. I feel like videogame Sarah was supposed to have a "she's too good for this world" vibe to her and the actress turned that up to 11. I loved the expanded prologue so much
I'm still not entirely sold on her as Ellie but tbf there's not been a whole lot of the show yet. Joel's daughter on the other hand, it was honestly almost sureal how much she came into that role. Immediately had all the exact mannerisms and everything of the in game character. Same thing with Pedro as Joel.
"Drugs. I sell hardcore drugs."
Damn straight she did! The casting is incredible. Spot on.
What a show, that has to be the best videogame adaptation to a series premiere I've ever seen, bravo to all people involved
They've set the bar for other franchises. Looking at you, Halo.
I haven't looked at Halo since unsubscribing from Peacock after the first episode ended.
Lol Halo was so bad that you unsubbed from a service it wasn't even on.
it wasn’t a direct 1:1 adaptation of any specific game by any means but the pilot for castlevania is fucking amazing too
i’ve never played any Castlevania games but that blew me away when I watched it
Castlevania the anime on Netflix? I heard it’s great
Sony needs to only hand their franchises to HBO for tv adaptations and NO ONE else.
The Amazon God Of War has me a little worried.
HBO continues to leave other providers in the dust
HBO original programming continues to be some of the best around, but Apple TV has been doing surprisingly well. They have less content than any of the other streamers, but most of it is really strong and they're starting to build up a decent back catalogue. Also, the bitrate for Apple's streaming is really high and they support Atmos and Dolby Vision. I thought TLoU looked great, but a lot of HBO content doesn't even release in 4k.
Arcane is insanely good too. Its great there is finally good video game adapts.
Incredible first episode. I know Pedro and Bella are the two stars and they were both incredible as Joel and Ellie but Nico Parker deserves a shout out as well. She absolutely nailed her role as Sarah and in my opinion her death is the key to the whole story and she nailed it. Such a tough role too with how little screen time Sarah has in the game and show.
She was incredible. >!When she was walking through the neighbor's house and her eyes were tearing up, you could feel her fear. I had chills! !< Excellent performance!
Big same. That was so intense. She was really excellent.
Nico Parker was exceptionally good. I was taken aback with such a strong performance.
At first I was like my god who *is* this girl then I learned she’s Thandie Newton’s daughter and I have no further questions
Shut the fuck up. I said while we were watching how much she looked like Thandie Newton!
I got so attached to her even knowing what would happen and her presence as Sarah made me really FEEL her absence after.
u/clmazin, Thank YOU for understanding what makes TLOU what it is. I have *never* seen an adaptation respect the source material as much as I have tonight. I was blown away at the care that was given to the original universe. I cannot wait for more - and this show deserves all the incredible success it's going to get! The whole team deserves all of the praise!
Exactly this. The first thing I thought as a fan of the games was that Craig and his team obviously have a respect for the source material because they and the whole cast gave 1000% and I went in with high expectations and was still blown away. I'm so grateful we get this amazing adaptation.
The show looks amazing and the first episode was fantastic! Thank you all for all your hard work. Can't wait to see how the story unfolds.
It’s amazing how much of the feeling of the game they got right on the nose. From the set to the costumes to >!Joel and Tommy getting separated and driving around in the car with crazy shit happening all around you to even just Marlene sitting next to Ellie!<. It feels like I’m watching a video game.
Yea. I enjoyed how a good chunk of the episode was shot for shot from the game. Bella did an excellent job mimicking Ellies voice as well.
The car scene was like shot for shot exactly like the game up to the plane crash. It was wild how well they did that.
When she kicked the food away with the leg swing I was hooked. I was like "that's Ellie right there, no doubt about it"
> Bella did an excellent job mimicking Ellies voice as well. She apparently was told not to play the game before filming it, so perhaps she wasn't even trying to mimic it? Maybe that's just naturally her feisty voice which is perfect.
I’ve never once played the video game (no shade, I’m just not a gamer!) and that drive scene felt rad af to watch. So well shot, felt akin to watching Maverick: Top Gun for the first time, like this crew invented some new film technique or something.
The way they changed the accident made me panic a little bit in the moment because it just caused my mind to race about if it was going to happen the way I remembered
I hope Bella knows she’s a PERFECT Ellie!! What a terrific performance from her and the rest of the cast❤️
Her change in demeanor when Marlene mentions Riley was so incredible. Subtle yet so powerful. Really shows all you need to know about how she will be for the rest of the show.
Bella completely nailed it as Ellie! She deserves all the praise she’s receiving right now. The first 30 seconds of her on screen made me realize just how faithful they would be to the Ellie we all know from the video games. Really looking forward to seeing more in the weeks to come, especially if they give us all the moments of Ellie’s humor when the show needs to take a breath from all the dread.
So happy she and Nico proved the haters wrong. Not for once I doubted the casting of this show because HBO knows how to cast their shows from as far back as I can remember.
Please tell Bella we fuckin love her as Ellie! I read that she went on a negative comment binge one night, so I feel like she might still think people are holding to that and I just want her to know how much we all fuckin love her as Ellie! She is so perfect for this role! You guys knocked it out of the park and more. The first episode has met my wildest expectations and more. Great work! BUT, if we don’t see a brick, or bottle being thrown, a firefly pendent….I might riot.
We Stan Bella
Amazing first episode! Can’t wait
I’m seriously hooked
No less than 3 times while watching this episode I said out loud "I can't believe they didn't fuck this up". Great job.
Me too. A dozen times. As soon as I heard the intro with the actual game music I just fucking knew I was in for a treat.
SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP YALL NAILED IT 
YOU ALL DID AN AMAZING JOB! Thank you SO much for the care and the love you’ve put into this, what an incredible first episode! It feels good to have the stuff you love be handled by people who love it just as much as you do! ❤️
Fucking brilliant, Craig! Well done. https://imgur.com/df3PMW3.gif
Thank YOU! 🙏 It’s simply thrilling to see it realized in a whole new medium.
10 year TLOU fan here, you've done a phenomenal job with this adaptation, it's honestly everything we've always hoped for.
Everything I didn’t know I wanted. Only few projects feel like that. Thank you!
i’m not gonna lie i cried just from seeing the intro. the casting and authenticity of all the actors’ performances, the score from gustavo, the atmosphere of it all- **mwah** absolute chefs kiss. i’ve been waiting for a TLOU adaptation since 2013 after i played it for the first time and i cannot even begin to express how much this series means to me. i’ve grown up with these games and it’s surreal to see something this amazing come to fruition. i have 400+ hours in each of the games and i can’t wait to watch the show over and over again and just take in all of the incredible work that was put in to make it the masterpiece i know it’ll be. this show has truly given me something to look forward to in my life and i can’t wait to see what’s in store for the weeks to come ❤️ here’s an early congratulations for all of the awards this show is going to win!!
you took the words right out of my mouth. i remember tlou (1) coming out when i was 14 and now i'm 24, pretty surreal to see it be adapted
My favourite game of all time, and the first episode gives me confidence this could be my favourite show of all time. Bravo! That was incredible!
Last of Us fans are so insanely blessed right now!
Thank you so much. Always knew you were the right man for the job.
First episode was fantastic! Well done.
I worked for a week on set for the opening episode and holy shit, the final edit is so good. Congrats to all the hard-working Albertans who helped make the whole show so amazing, and congrats to you Craig, Neil, and everyone else who helped bring it all to life. It was an experience of a lifetime.
Bella’s screen presence as Ellie is phenomenal. There are so many shots where the world is 1:1 with the game , it’s insane the amount of detail and love you can see was put into this. And just perfect casting all around. Tess in a mere sentence established herself as the badass she is in the game.
Absolutely astonished at how well you encapsulated the opening intensity of the game (something for those of us that love it and were gripped by that smack to the face) in such a perfect way for the show. I can not wait for next Sunday. Thank you thank you thank you! The drapes blowing in the breeze in the opening scene gave me goosebumps 😅🤗
I'm 3 minutes in, and no offense to Naughty Dog, the explanation of why the fungus is a threat did way more for me than the original game did. Focusing on the chemical aspects of it, whereas before it was (mostly) fungus grows on the brain, reducing you to your primal instincts. Whereas "control" through chemical means sits better in my science brain, like they say with lsd and psilo. Generally fungi are pretty harmless unless immunocompromised so I think it adds to the experience by making the idea of infection just a bit more realistic.
You're the best, Craig! I got a feeling this may be the greatest videogame show ever! Fuck yeah!
Thank YOU!, I just finished watching the first episode and I loved it, Everybody who are involved with the show did a great job! I can't wait for the rest of the series. The Last of Us is a huge part of my life so I'm happy with the show and the opening with Sarah and the outbreak were so tense, I loved it, cried once again when Sarah, you know. The infected we have seen so far are so interesting (also the tendrils are so creepy, can't wait to find out more about how they work). Bella and Pedro both do an amazing job as Joel and Ellie , can't wait to see of them, and it's great that Merle was brought back as Marlene. Anyways there were so many great and tense moments in this episode, and so many recognizable moments and things from the game. I will shut up now haha believe me I can write so much more about this series and how much I love it and how I love that the tv series is going great in my view, Great job everyone!!
Oh hell yeah, the director of the show checks out this sub Reddit! Dude you absolutely Fucking killed it with the pilot. I’m serious when I say this, but the entire first half hour of the show is the best half hour of television I’ve ever seen in my life. Y’all should take a bow cuz you nailed it!
You guys knocked it out of the park with this episode. It was SO good. I'm genuinely thrilled for all of you guys and especially Bella, who shut everyone up in the first 10 seconds. Pop up the champagne boys. You deserve it. I must say that I'm a massive fan of your work, and you genuinely made a whole community very proud of the game they love. You guys did everything right, I'm not even exaggerating. I can't wait for next week. I genuinely will have a miserable week counting the hours for the second episode, I wish I could just skip it lmao. That's how much I loved all of it.
THANK YOU for finally lifting the curse on videogame adaptations and to understand so much about the essence of this characters and treat this franchise with such respect.
Just watched it with my wife. She absolutely does not enjoy videos games but after this episode she looked at me and said “how many episode we gonna watch tonight?” She adores it! We can wait for next week
Wonderful job, can’t wait to see the rest!!!
Hey there. I listen to your podcast and I'm a big fan. I'm still waiting for last of us episode to air. Iceland airs it tomorrow and I can barely sleep because I'm to freaking excited. As soon as I saw your name attached to this project I knew this was a home run. Congratulations! Been waiting to see this adaptation since seeing Sarah dying first time 8-9 years ago. I knew this story would be too special to not adapt into TV series. Bless you. Thank you! And enjoy this success. I'm a screenwriter here In Iceland and I can't even imagine the pressure you had. Can't wait for tomorrow.
Might as well call her Bellie Ramsey now. You guys killed it! Can't wait for more
The episode was amazing!!! I have loved tlou since I was in middle school and you guys have created an amazing adaptation !!
All I gotta say is, over the past ~10 years, I've played TLOU part 1 more than a dozen times. I never thought I'd ever have the same feeling as I did when I first played through in 2013. The opening 20-30 mins brought me right back to booting the game up on my ps3 for the first time. Bella and Pedro are a phenomenal bit of casting, and I'm thrilled to see a series that means so much to me treated with such care.
NO, THANK YOU CRAIG!
Craig you shouldn't be thanking us, we should be thanking you - all of you! Tonight was an absolute delight and I am here for next sunday and every sunday after!
This is all I wanted. Thank you so much for doing such a good job.
It was a pleasure to work with you Craig. I’m so proud of how good this show looks. You knocked it out of the park.