Sacred Symbols+, Episode 266 | The Last of Us (HBO) Review Discussion and Spoilercast (Season 1, Episode 4)
Added 2023-02-07 17:00:05 +0000 UTCThe fourth episode of HBO's rendition of The Last of Us is a little slower and frankly less notable than what preceded it. But that doesn't mean it isn't great television in its own right. By leaving a coastal, occupied city and entering the barren interior of the United States, Joel and Ellie open themselves up to an entirely new brand of fundamental danger: Other survivors. The so-called Infected are the least of their worries. This episode also allows the pair to explore their increasingly fond friendship, and introduces a couple of vital characters from the game as well. Dagan and Micah join me (Colin) to chat in great detail about Please Hold to My Hand, which brings our protagonists to western Missouri, where things are both entirely different and very much the same as in dystopian Boston.
Comments
Hey Team, I'm not sure if you guys remember, but in one of the early LoU gameplay previews it shows an enemy begging for his life while Joel stands over him after being disarmed. I felt like that scene when Ellie saves him was a nod to that. -Mavizzle
Mavizzle
2023-02-15 13:45:36 +0000 UTCSo a few things 1. I heard maybe like 3 people total talk about episode 3 in a bad way. To point this out is making a deal out of nothing considering 98 percent of people thought episode 3 was great. It’s like taking a few Twitter comments and making an article about it and blowing it up into more than it was. 2. I liked Kathleen’s right hand man. He’s a cool character. I just was not buying Kathleen being in charge. She doesn’t seem like she has much presence, doesn’t seem particularly tough or anything she is really adding to the group that someone else couldn’t do. 3. while I think Joel is adapted well and gets his tone and mannerisms down well, I just really feel like they have made Ellie was too harsh. While she has moments like that in the game, she wasn’t as much of a jerk.
PairOfShuse
2023-02-15 04:38:37 +0000 UTCIndeed. Gameplay is the padding of a game like this, so it's going to move.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:21:13 +0000 UTCI'm excited to see more.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:21:00 +0000 UTCYes, this is the 50th comment to say that. ^_~
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:46 +0000 UTCIndeed.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:39 +0000 UTCYeah, it's fucky.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:34 +0000 UTCGlad you're gonna play.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:28 +0000 UTCThank you. You will.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:20 +0000 UTCYeah, would have loved to see more of the traps.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:14 +0000 UTCHe got owned.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:20:02 +0000 UTCHe kinda sucks.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:56 +0000 UTCAgreed.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:49 +0000 UTCGotcha.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:44 +0000 UTCTime will tell.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:40 +0000 UTCYeah, that's neat.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:33 +0000 UTCThat's so strange.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:27 +0000 UTCI totally disagree, I think her casting is great.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:20 +0000 UTCThanks!
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:12 +0000 UTCI think you will. =)
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-12 18:19:08 +0000 UTCI agree that the pacing is an adjustment. I just watched episode 5 and it is alarming how quick this is going. Without gameplay, stealth specifically, this is the right pace though. I’m amazed at the quality, still. A deep level of thought seems to have gone in to every decision. The game’s foundation takes you so far, but there has definite been a convergence of genius in this adaptation.
Greg Hommel
2023-02-11 19:34:00 +0000 UTCSome genuinely funny stuff here. The expression on Joel’s face when Ellie told the mermaid joke killed me. Love watching their relationship flourish. Great chemistry. Good, heartwarming stuff. Joel sacrificing his sleep to watch over her especially. Have to say the “raider” that almost took out Joel didn’t look up to par. Joel could’ve wiped the floor with him. Wonder how the hospital scene will be adapted. If he has a difficult time with that dude how is he supposed to wipe out a swarm of fireflies.
Nikitas Gagas
2023-02-11 00:16:39 +0000 UTCSurprised no one mentioned Jeffrey Pierce as Perry. He is the actor that originally voiced Tommy in the game.
Thomas Adamson
2023-02-10 23:31:53 +0000 UTCI always thought the jump from Summer to Fall in the game, from Pittsburgh to Wyoming, was super odd. Really did feel like a ton of stuff would have happened between those two points in time.
Zack E
2023-02-10 01:54:54 +0000 UTCI've been having a problem with the HBO app on PS5 as well. Everytime a show or movie starts subtitles are on. They are off in the settings bur I have to select on then off for them to go away. Just annoying
Clint
2023-02-10 00:01:28 +0000 UTCThe show finally got me to pull the trigger on Part 1. Not necessary sure, but man it is awesome.
Noah Friscopp
2023-02-09 19:47:16 +0000 UTCI avoided the promotional stuff, but that's what I think it is as well. I feel like they're changing the extremely scary moment of trying to jumpstart a truck at Bill's and running from infected to running from them here instead.
Lou & Rei Loper
2023-02-09 17:12:49 +0000 UTCLMFAO I couldn't believe it either but it was so awesome that he did fall for it 😂😂
Lou & Rei Loper
2023-02-09 17:10:36 +0000 UTCThis trifecta is way underused. We should get more of Micah and Dagan on other stuff. Both very insightful in analyzing fiction.
Alex Watson
2023-02-09 15:27:46 +0000 UTCI fully reject the homophobia thing. It's an easy accusation to make, but I just think that making the relationship the entire focus of the episode and then killing them off before Joel and Ellie get there wasn't the best. Sure, have a relationship building episode, but then keep them alive and have them forward the plot in a way that's more similar to the game. The episode wasn't bad, but the sheer adulation is something I don't quite understand.
Max Stahl
2023-02-09 15:24:00 +0000 UTCMy only issue with episode 3 was the fact it was such a long episode and they stripped us of the action that was bills town. Then they killed both the characters stripping us of any interaction between Ellie and bill. That was my favorite level in the game and I would have disliked it if it was a heterosexual relationship they showed. But I didn’t hate it at the same time. Definitely not “best episode ever on television.” Probably 7/10. Then they have a 48 minute episode the following week where they could have done a little more with action sequences. But I’m still loving the show.
Cody Mahoney
2023-02-09 07:49:14 +0000 UTCCan’t believe Dagan fell for that. What a burn. 😂 Ep 4 was my favorite so far for the connections, although the new rival “gang” left much to be desired. Chef Boyardee.
NeO JD
2023-02-09 05:40:14 +0000 UTCShapiros reviews are only getting better. Him hating Glass Onion because a murder mystery had misdirection in it, is fucking hilarious
Simon
2023-02-09 01:58:56 +0000 UTCDagan was on fire this episode
Evan Erickson
2023-02-09 01:15:25 +0000 UTCChiming in to say I've been saying jawn since at least 2009.
Dylan O'Brien
2023-02-08 15:32:11 +0000 UTCThere are some cracks in the “Craig Mazin is the best screenwriter of all time” armor. Chernobyl - one of the greatest miniseries of all time - is not a critique of socialism according to Mazin. I’m hoping he doesn’t fumble the pivotal themes of what makes TLOU so great.
DeucesBruh
2023-02-08 14:55:51 +0000 UTCI don't know when you guys noticed also but I thought it was a nice touch that they used the same song when they where driving in the episode as the song they used in the cinematic trailer released for the first game all those years ago https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETsBuTu8HIc!
Nathan Migom
2023-02-08 11:56:04 +0000 UTCI think the lack of bombastic violence is to just show how flat and empty the violence in this world is. People just die like it’s nothing.
Cai
2023-02-08 09:26:28 +0000 UTCFun fact, I actually had a “just me” problem on my PS3 with the original Last of Us! Ended up having to send the console to Sony and have it replaced. We’d tried at least 5 copies of the game and the furthest I managed to get before it crashed was Joel’s car being hit in the intro!
Cai
2023-02-08 09:17:00 +0000 UTCI think Kathleen is the first miscast of the show so far, I like the actress in yellow jackets but I just don't believe the performance that this soft spoken suburban lady is the leader of this group. It would be one thing if it was played cleverly but it's played completely straight IMO. Still looking forward to see how this new character plays out though.
Doug Abaire
2023-02-08 02:50:42 +0000 UTCSorry if someone mentioned it (I didn't hear it). But the guy who played Kathleen's right hand man actually voices Tommy in the game. I love seeing these actors show up. Loving the weekly discussions
Ryan Zimm
2023-02-08 00:54:16 +0000 UTCI'd like to see more brutality and gore in the show.
Mark Horner
2023-02-08 00:14:35 +0000 UTCI’m assuming what’s under the concrete is a bloater and a hoard of clickers. We see a bloater pulling itself up from under some concrete in some of the very first promotional materials, and they teased a bloater in the next episode.
John
2023-02-07 23:10:08 +0000 UTCMan, the action feels so weak in this. We don't see any bullet impacts, the truck shootout felt empty, Ellie runs away when Joel kills the momma's boy, and basically every kill has been off-screen so far (aside from Ep 2's clickers). For a game like TLOU and a network like HBO it feels extremely tame. Some great attention to detail with the old school Doritos logo in the store, though.
Hidari Shotaro
2023-02-07 22:43:41 +0000 UTCHa!
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:32 +0000 UTCLOL.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:30 +0000 UTCDefinitely.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:25 +0000 UTCI'll look into that.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:21 +0000 UTCThat's a bummer.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:16 +0000 UTCI like them both, I'm really digging the performances.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:12:12 +0000 UTCIndeed.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:59 +0000 UTCBorn and raised.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:52 +0000 UTCShe got him.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:48 +0000 UTCNice.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:43 +0000 UTCEpisode 3 wasn't slow, it was deliberate.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:37 +0000 UTCWe are also excited.
Colin Moriarty
2023-02-07 22:11:28 +0000 UTCNo joke I honestly thought that was Abby at first 😂
Travis Martin
2023-02-07 21:20:39 +0000 UTCWhile the idea of the Kathleen character is super cool, I had a hard time taking the actress seriously because I instantly recognized her as one of Charlie Sheen's girlfriends in Two and a Half Men lol.
Josh Gamez
2023-02-07 21:13:00 +0000 UTCMicah stole the entire episode with her joke
Kenneth Koepnick
2023-02-07 20:36:16 +0000 UTCGreat episode. If you like Melanie’s acting/character in this you should check out the show Yellowjackets that she’s in. That show and her performance is awesome. The show is a mix of Lost with lord of the flies
Kenneth Oms
2023-02-07 20:07:26 +0000 UTCThe set designs have been incredible, but I noticed cars that are definitely newer than 2003. That just seemed weird to me when there is very close attention to detail everywhere else.
Daniel
2023-02-07 19:14:12 +0000 UTCWhile lacking in the action moments from the game, they’re absolutely nailing Joel and Ellie’s chemistry. I’m really buyin Joel starting to be trapped by this girls charms. But man I wish they’d get someone to do the action a little better. I don’t need John Wick shit obviously, but something more like True Detective episode 4. That one shot scene escaping from the neighborhood. I’m still holding out hope they get that director for Hillcrest in Season 2.
Bogey Zero
2023-02-07 18:30:50 +0000 UTCFYI, that grizzled guy with Kathleen is the original Tommy from the game.
Ray
2023-02-07 18:19:04 +0000 UTCWest Philly representative here. Jawn has been around since at least the 90's maybe even late 80's.
Russell Robinson
2023-02-07 17:59:57 +0000 UTCThe 'joe mamas house' joke was seriously so wholesome and perfect it literally made my day already. Thank you lol
Jason
2023-02-07 17:23:12 +0000 UTCThe fact Joel is now more vulnerable is more accurate to my grounded play through
Cai
2023-02-07 17:11:39 +0000 UTCSlower? Did you not watch episode 3?
Cory Knudsen
2023-02-07 17:05:18 +0000 UTCFirst! Good episode, glad we got the porn mag scene, looking forward to Fridays episode with Sam and Henry.
Mateusz Kuklinski
2023-02-07 17:01:11 +0000 UTC
