We don’t see Joel or Tess wearing gas masks in these photos, so it doesn’t look like this is one of those aforementioned hotspots filled with spores in the air. Ellie doesn’t wear a mask either, but since she’s the only known person to be immune to infection, she doesn’t need to protect herself from the spores.
What’s especially interesting about these photos, though, is the way they show us just how bleak and gruesome the world of the show will be. While no one was under the impression that this series would contain a surprisingly upbeat story in a bright and promising vision of the apocalypse, it is certainly fascinating to see the show’s interpretation of how the Cordyceps fungus has physically changed the world. It looks just as gruesome and scruffy as comparable areas in the game, which is really as big a compliment as we can give the show at this point, given how visually impressive those games are.
While the fungus in these photos understandably attracts the most attention at the moment, some fans also theorize that the shot of Tess and Joel yelling at each other might suggest that the scene in those photos is essentially a recreation of one of the most important narrative moments from the original The last of us. While everything we’ve heard about the show’s story right now indicates that it will borrow liberally from the games’ plot, this certainly looks like the first time we’ll be reprising one of the game’s key narrative moments. made in the show.
We’ve talked about this before as well, but the show’s characters seem to look good. There’s always a risk that everything in this kind of adaptation will come across as little more than an elaborate bit of cosplay, but for what it’s worth right now, Joel, Ellie, and Tess are all looking at what you’d expect them to look like.
We look forward to telling you more about HBO’s The last of us ahead of the series’ (hopefully) 2022 premiere date.
