Early Access: The Last of Us 2x1 - Uncut
Added 2025-04-14 20:53:04 +0000 UTCLink to uncut on website: https://thenormies.com/the-last-of-us/
Edited reaction will be on YouTube later today!
Comments
Spoilers I fully expect Joel’s death to happen next episode. It’s the inciting incident. You can’t delay that. And Druckmann and Mazin have shown no inclination to not stick to the story of the games.
Ren Davis
2025-04-15 17:42:09 +0000 UTCIdk why all the game players don't recognize the Stalker? They've been around since the first game. And TLOU2 in particular used the Stalkers way more. The behavior here is their normal behavior in both games. It's my favorite infected variant so I'm a bit offended by it 😆 I was sad we didn't see any in the first season, but like that they're branching out their variant as a separate evolution. Them being the middle stage between a Runner and a Clicker, behavior-wise, never made sense. It was the only thing that bugged me about them. So this sets that right and makes them a bigger deal. Love that.
Steve Rivera
2025-04-15 17:10:59 +0000 UTCI suspect they're purposely delaying and orchestrating Joel’s death as a way to divert the inevitable backlash aimed at Kaitlyn Dever. Introducing Abby so early might have been a misstep—it could’ve been an electrifying debut that shocked audiences—but it seems this decision was made to soften the blow in response to the toxic reactions seen when the game first came out. Overall, the episode was strong, and I’m genuinely excited for the season, especially considering Dina’s standout performance. The episode is packed with memorable moments. Ellie still has some of her loud, brash traits from Part II, perhaps intentionally hinting at the intensity that will soon unravel. One particular scene that really struck me was the therapist session: watching Joel tear up, visibly shaking as he struggles to admit he “ended the world” just to say, “I saved her” was absolutely phenomenal—a true high point of the episode. There’s also a mysterious intrigue surrounding Eugene; although it’s implied Joel had to kill him due to an infection, his background as a Firefly suggests there might be a deeper story at play. The adaptation has taken bold creative risks, altering several elements from the game while retaining enough of the original to stay satisfying. The party and supermarket scenes were executed remarkably well—each bringing its own unique flair, with the supermarket sequence effectively introducing the stalkers, and the party scene capturing the spirit of the original material. A daring choice was made by revealing what appears to be the key motivation behind Abby within the first 30 seconds, which, while it might diminish some suspense, adds a new twist. Overall, I’d rate the episode around 8.5 to 9 out of 10, with clever touches like the cameo by Gustavo and Crooked Still at the dance, the quirky dog employee feature, and impressive settings like Greenplace Market making it a truly engaging watch.
Yhwach
2025-04-15 13:06:40 +0000 UTCOMG I just realized. Was Ellie washing her bloody knife the cause of Cordyceps growing in the sewers?
Infinite tsukuyomi (he him)
2025-04-15 07:47:14 +0000 UTCI really hope the thing happens I wanna see the thing, it’s gonna be a hell of a time.
TrixieTurner
2025-04-15 06:08:23 +0000 UTCLmao that stalker attack had me looking at the show funny, when it bit Ellie it looked like it bit her right on the cooter.
TrixieTurner
2025-04-15 06:05:22 +0000 UTCIt’s wild how much of a difference going from a game to a show makes, without being the player character as Ellie I’m actually not a fan of her here. The show actually got me against her which is so different from the game.
TrixieTurner
2025-04-15 05:26:21 +0000 UTCAnd Mel (Ariela Barer) was Gert in The Runaways/Marvel 🤗
Ren Davis
2025-04-15 04:34:34 +0000 UTCYou got Danny (Falcon - MCU), Pedro (Reed Richards - F4/MCU) & now Isabela (Hawkgirl - Superman/DCU) 🤗
Zee
2025-04-15 03:42:14 +0000 UTCAnd the stalkers were the bane of my existence x.x
Smash Bran'Discootch
2025-04-15 03:18:03 +0000 UTCAppreciated the splitting the couch + the gamer discussion at the end too! Also y'all might recognize Isabela Merced (Dina) from Alien: Romulus recently . Spoilers: I think *the thing* might happen next episode, and I bet the season ends on the POV change (or shortly after it) with season 3 being that part of the game. If they do IT next episode (or early on in 3) they can still sprinkle in a lot of flashbacks throughout the season. The chat at the near end about finding Euguene's stash might've been a spoiler for non-game Normies b/c that scene happens the same time that Joel meets Abby.
LASmeenk
2025-04-15 03:10:45 +0000 UTCI would recommend to not watch the behind the scenes features. They tend to get a little spoilery. I think it’s best to maintain The Last of Us purity of the non-gamers. Spoilers: Also you should Google Rat King if you want. It’s a fun time 😏
Ren Davis
2025-04-15 00:54:11 +0000 UTCSuraj is right. Season 1 ends on Ellie’s face just like in the game. They added in the part where we see them walk off in the beginning of the episode so that we could see Joel’s reaction. They had filmed it last season to see different perspectives on the scene, but decided against using it. They decided this episode was the perfect time to bring it back.
Ren Davis
2025-04-14 23:46:19 +0000 UTCSpoilers: I have some problems with Abby’s introduction being altered as I think it (potentially) dramatically undercuts the story, but I’m willing to go with it. I understand the concerns that the game’s structure might not work for television as it could put too much distance between the audience and the story. However, I do think that structure was vital for the story. In anyway, I still think they can pull it off even with the minor tweaks so far.
Ren Davis
2025-04-14 23:03:57 +0000 UTCYou’re correct. It’s a flashback at the end of the game. And quite frankly it works best at the end of the story. Happy they didn’t show it here. It needs to be at the end.
Ren Davis
2025-04-14 23:01:34 +0000 UTCSpoilers: I like the change that Dina mentions watching Curtis and Viper 2 with Joel. It adds in more of a relationship between Dina and Joel, which deepens her motivation throughout the season. Plus, I like the dichotomy between Joel’s positive relationship with Dina and his negative one with Ellie. Given Joel’s therapy session, it’s very intentional as he mentions that Dina shows him affection while Ellie acts like he’s a stranger. It creates a nice dynamic that tugs on the heartstrings even more. Also nice touch with that scene between him and his nephew. It achieves a similar effect as Joel and Dina. This parallel between Dina and Ellie in relation to Joel will add such a complex dynamic before Joel’s golf tournament.
Ren Davis
2025-04-14 23:00:14 +0000 UTCRegarding the conversation Joel and Ellie have, I believe they flash back to that porch scene at the very end of the game. I'm pretty sure it's the last thing we see in the game. Very bittersweet scene from what I recall, a tear jerker for sure lol. Also, I think the stalker enemy type was in a decent amount of Part 2, and boy did I hate every single encounter with them lmao. Always dreaded those parts.
Anthony Day
2025-04-14 22:57:23 +0000 UTCDina's a ROD
kandii
2025-04-14 22:10:27 +0000 UTCThey did stalk in the game, lol. 'Stalkers'.
kandii
2025-04-14 22:05:32 +0000 UTC😂
Zeee
2025-04-14 21:06:39 +0000 UTCThought the first episode was just cool, interested the structure and how the rest is formatted.
Zeee
2025-04-14 21:06:28 +0000 UTCMan, having Joel being the one who killed Eugene was an interesting wrinkle. I've got a lot of love for Eugene as his box of porn containing one titled "Smash Brandy's Cooch" is what created my screen name.
Smash Bran'Discootch
2025-04-14 21:00:00 +0000 UTCI didn't even know the new season of The Walking Us started, that's awesome.
Michael Acuna
2025-04-14 20:56:54 +0000 UTC
