The Last of Us. Damn, this series has finally come to an end. Nine weeks. I was itching weekly to watch this show for nine weeks, from the 1st episode to the last. Being in Egypt while episode 3 aired, I had to fight through the shitty hotel Wi-Fi to watch it on my phone (despite bringing my firestick). I haven’t been addicted to watching a show for the longest time. It has been years since I have watched a show weekly back-to-back with excitement.

Initially, I planned to do a weekly review of every episode of the series. However, I only got around to doing the first two, and I scrapped the weekly reviews due to not being motivated to do so, to be completely honest.

As I stated in my review of episode 1, I was utterly hesitant about the show being made. I was hesitant because any TV/Film adaptations of video games have never been good; in fact, 9/10 times they have been terrible – and history has proved it – they never work out. The Last of Us changed this for me. From episode 1, any doubt I had about it was gone.

The series took the viewers on a beautiful, emotional journey. Every emotion you have in your life will be exposed while watching this show – feelings you never knew you had will appear.

I am the type of person that it takes a lot to get any form of emotion from me. This series is probably the one that has continuously drawn emotion from me – so much emotion that I was emotionally and slightly mentally drained. Not even people in my personal life have been able to draw all the emotions from me that this series has – and that is a true testament to the show’s story, direction, writing and performances.

Even though it appears to be a post-apocalyptic story, the true essence and meaning of the story are of two people who have lost everything and everyone they loved and cared for and finding one another – watching time pass by and their relationship builds from being strangers to a father and daughter type relationship. From the start, you feel the awkward tension, and over time you can see and feel the ease between the two characters as they feel comfortable and trust develops between them.

The story in The Last of Us game was solid, strong, and powerful. It was a story that drew emotions from you, depending on the type of person that you are. The story in this series has the same plot, but the impact was 1000x more. Frame by Frame, the series follows the game from episode 1 to episode 9, yet massive differences between the two made the series even better than the game, in my personal opinion.

The series adds new dynamics, stories, and characters at times we didn’t know we needed. As a fan of the video game, I thoroughly enjoyed the added extras, explanations, easter eggs and surprises that came into this show – it made me broaden my expectations and view of what to expect and what could happen while watching. 

The show did excellent service by paying respect to the original video game actors as they were given solid roles within the show, adding their unique style to prominent characters. Week after week, I was satisfied with what the show provided and what the show gave – I couldn’t have asked for more.

The series did everything and more than it needed to – catching the eye of new fans/viewers due to the story and serving the game’s fans. People tend to nit-pick and find ways to complain about the show, and if I am honest, I can understand where they are coming from. But I also know what for a 9-episode series – what was delivered was outstanding compared to other series. People should be happy with what was given –a great adaptation that brought new eyes to a beautiful story.

I don’t want to drag this review on – I recommend anyone and everyone to watch the show; take any time you have to watch it – I guarantee you will love it. It serves everyone, from those who like horror, those who love the idea of love, those who are fans of the game and those who are lovers of great storytelling – The Last of Us has all of those.

This is just a brief series review. I usually would rate anything out of 5, but I will change it for this series.

Rating: 10/10