Episode 2 (Fan Creations)

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Monday, January 23, 2023, 19:04 (680 days ago) @ Cody Miller

First of all, one thing I find fascinating is in the final scene. In the game, Tess orders Joel to go, and he and Ellie both go willingly (After they leave, Ellie briefly chastises Joel for leaving her to die, but quickly moves on). In the show? Joel drags Ellie away with her literally kicking and screaming. She doesn't want to leave Tess. It's kind of a change I can get behind, as right now you want Joel and Ellie on different pages yeah? So they can come together later.

I'm watching a show that for all intents and purposes is nailing it. Nearly all of the choices are solid (dunno about the 'kiss' though…), and they are crafting moments of tension, levity, understanding, and somehow managing to exposit in a way that doesn't bog anything down. The walk and talk, while fine in a game can get too much on the screen, but it was kept to a minimum. As cheapLEY mentioned to me, in the game the explanation for the clickers is just a popup, where here we learn more naturally.

So I can't say if it's just that I know what's happening because I've seen these images and this story before, but it's not affecting me as strongly as when I played. In particular I remember being more attached to Tess. In the show it feels like I didn't really get to know her as well as I'd have wanted, and then she's gone. In the game, I think we spent more time with her and I noticed the difference, especially in understanding her relationship to Joel.

She could've used more screen time, but overall I thought Anna Torv did a great job with a character that was more complex than in the game. I thought I understood her relationship with Joel just as well if not better. (There's less ambiguity about their physical intimacy, for one thing.) The way she talked him down about Robert! Chef's kiss. And speaking of kiss. I was ambivalent, too. I've never seen a runner do anything other than wildly attack and bite you, even in the show. Helluva visual, though. The clickers were great, except, did they bite you in the game? I thought they just ripped your head off. I want to know if viewers new to this guessed that Tess was bit. In the game you knew exactly when it happened, in retrospect. One more thing: Love every nuance Bella Ramsey is bringing to Ellie, but I haven't liked the fake twitch since I saw it in the teaser. I don't think, given her experiences, she would make that joke. Really looking forward to the next episode, given what I've heard.

One thing you inevitably lose is the sense of travel. The show give you a glimpse, but the video game lets you feel the distance they are traveling because you traverse it all more or less. The show does it fine, but the game does it better.

And yet it managed to surprise me with little moments that would not have fit in the game. The VFX hold up incredibly well; 1000x better than Halo's. I guess it helps that most of the CG is inanimate buildings rather than animated aliens, but you'll believe 97% of it.

P.S. Detroit represent