For now, here’s a round up of what other critics are saying.
IGN - 7/10
It was always going to be a challenge to adapt The Last of Us Part 2’s sprawling, twisting story into a television show across multiple seasons, and at the halfway point, the jury is still out on whether it will ultimately work. Season 2 of HBO’s Naughty Dog adaptation is not bad television, far from it. It’s incredibly well-made, often looks gorgeous, and is packed full of stellar performances. But the storytelling devices and choices made in terms of pace and placement for key events bump up against what works, ultimately not delivering the striking effect this story’s undeniable shocking events should. It’s good, just not a patch on its stellar source material (or its first season) so far.
All this is compounded by an entirely believable, staggeringly well-crafted immersive universe. The cinematography leans heavily into the game’s inherent cinematic qualities; the soul-tingling music from Gustavo Santaolalla summons an eerie elegance; the production design finds corresponding beauty and horror in nature, in its creeping ivy and fungal splendour. The world in The Last Of Us is full — of cruelty and community, hope and hopelessness, life and death. It’s all there.
Mostly, though, it’s the lack of Ellie and Joel that keeps the season, while still strong overall, from hitting the heights of that first year. In the style of the Bill/Frank romance that won Nick Offerman a guest actor Emmy for the first season, there’s an episode that reveals much of what Joel and Ellie were up to during that five-year gap. It’s a helpful change of pace for a season where a good chunk of the episodes cover a span of only a few days. And it’s a superb showcase for Pascal and Ramsey — maybe too superb. As good as all the newbies are, as tense and scary and thrilling as many of the set pieces are, it’s hard to come away from the flashback episode wanting anything other than as much of those two characters in close proximity as possible.
Time - No Score
Dever, Wright, and O’Hara are predictably wonderful, though I wish we got to see more of them. Amid goofy fan service like Twisted Metal and The Witcher, it’s still the best video-game adaptation on TV. Yet to pretend that The Last of Us completely transcends its original medium would be to ignore the hole at the center of the show where insight and complexity and rich supporting characters should be. What fill out the episodes instead are extended zombie-battle scenes and long, silent sequences where people explore gorgeously decaying spaces. At those moments, you might as well be watching someone play a video game.
HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2 will premiere on 13th April on HBO in the United States and Sky in the UK. Are you looking forward to these new episodes? Putt your opinion in the comments section below.
