I played the game years ago, and while I don't remember a lot of the specifics, I recognize that so much of the show as basically a copy paste of scenes from the game. The bits that are added do well to expand on the world and the stories it's telling which helps make up for some of the missing gameplay sections. The acting across the board is terrific, the effects and locations are great, and the pervasive sense of desperation is palpable. A few episodes in I was ready to join the online masses in declaring this not only the best video game adaptation, but the best show on right now.

But as the show progressed I started to notice there were big chunks of connective tissue missing. The quiet moments in the game where you walk around an abandoned city were gone and it started to feel like watching a supercut of all the dramatic scenes. There were great moments and great episodes, but it wasn't coming together to form a cohesive, great season and I can't help but think a couple more episodes would have really helped with pacing. I can't give specifics without spoiling anything, but as an example the effects of trauma are quickly pushed aside as the characters push on when it really should have been dealt with over time. And I have to point out the ending, the same as the game's, which completely undermines everything that came before it.

A lot of people have praised the game for its effective storytelling and moral philosophy, and I always got hung up on that ending as the wrong way to wrap up this story. We have spent so much time with these people, particularly Joel, and watched him change and grow, so to throw all that away sours the entire experience. Having lived through a pandemic now, it's even more frustrating that I suddenly hated the character for his selfishness. I don't know where in the creative process that ending came to them, but in the course of writing the story, they didn't take the time to earn it.