I was already worried about how The Last of Us season 2 would handle the game's story, and episode 3 confirmed my fears
The Last of Us season 2 has been in a weird spot lately. Finally premiering on April 13, 2025, on Max, the show returned with its second season, and this time it is adapting the story of the second game, The Last of Us: Part II. While the first season faithfully adapted the story of the first game, with a few changes here and there, season 2 of the show feels like it's a battle with itself.
Before the premiere of The Last of Us season 2, a major concern surrounding it was exactly how the story would be portrayed here. The reason The Last of Us: Part II's story works is that it is set in the medium of video games, and it gives it the flexibility to tell an ambitious and expansive story.
However, if you take it out of that medium and present it in a linear fashion, it loses so much of its appeal, and that's a major issue with the show right now. Not to mention, it just feels like an inferior version of its source, and episode 3 (titled The Path) of the season, which just premiered today on April 27, 2025, confirmed my fears.
Note: The opinions mentioned here are those of the writer and don't reflect Sportskeeda's stance as a whole.
The Last of Us season 2 doesn't know how to adapt its source material
When looking at television or film adaptations of books or video games, a few changes are going to arise here and there, which will be polarizing for a few, and may be appealing for many others. In the case of The Last of Us season 2, the show seems somewhat confused about how to adapt its source material.
After a stellar first season, the second season not only fails to understand its characters but also lacks a sense of urgency. What made The Last of Us: Part II work is that it treated its audience with respect. Not every part of its story was explained out loud by the characters, and motivations and character emotions had a subtlety to them.
In the show, all that is thrown out the window, and the audience is spoon-fed every detail of its story. Of course, the story is in a show format here, and the writers will retrofit the original story to fit the new medium. However, in this case, it just makes the entire thing seem like an inferior version of the original story that is trying to recapture those big moments from the game.
The Last of Us season 2 tries to force a reaction out of its audience
All of this just leads to a major issue with the show - it tries to forcefully elicit a reaction out of the audience. With the previously mentioned subtlety of the original game, every major moment in season 2 seems to be heightened to make those scenes stand out more. For example, Ellie's reaction to Joel's death or Abby's monologue before she starts torturing her father's killer.
It just makes these scenes seem so inauthentic compared to how they were portrayed in the original game. There is not much restraint here, and it feels like the audience is being guilt-tripped into feeling bad about these events, rather than being allowed to feel these emotions naturally.
The upcoming episodes of The Last of Us season 2 may still deliver those emotional heights, but for now, my expectations are certainly lowered.
For further updates, stay tuned.
