SERIES REVIEW – Thanks to Hungarian HBO Max, I got to check out the season premiere months ago (much appreciated!), and despite my anticipation, that first episode was such a letdown I couldn’t bring myself to continue until recently. Usually, I don’t work this way, but this is a video game adaptation—and after 35 years of gaming journalism, I have a soft spot for this franchise. So, how does the whole season fare? Well, things did improve after that initial trainwreck, but honestly, disappointment still lingers. Let me break down why…

Ever since The Last of Us Part II landed back in 2020, debate hasn’t let up about Naughty Dog’s polarizing sequel. Some see Ellie’s quest for vengeance as shattering tragedy, while others dismiss it as senseless brutality that drags a former icon into antihero territory. I can’t get behind the latter crowd, but there’s real boldness in a game that lets its story breathe and gives players space to draw their own lines. Contrast that with the HBO adaptation, which is so terrified of being misunderstood that it spoon-feeds every plot twist and motivation, almost as if grown-up viewers need their hands held throughout.

Beating Every Point Into the Ground

If you missed the PlayStation 4 original, Season Two of The Last of Us probably feels just like the first: all the polish and prestige TV trappings, but emotionally flat, with every theme hammered home until it’s numb. Season one already had plenty of Pedro Pascal (Joel) staring soulfully at the camera to explain to Bella Ramsey (Ellie) how he’s rediscovered fatherhood. This year, the writing is even more determined to tell you exactly how to feel, so you never get a chance to process the story for yourself—explanations always beat your own reactions to the punch.

One of The Last of Us Part II’s biggest assets—its subtlety—has vanished without a trace. Every emotion and motivation gets shoved front and center, so the audience never has to actually think. Abby (played by Kaitlyn Dever), whose arc in the game unfolds slowly and with nuance, delivers her entire backstory in a single monologue early on, just before things get messy. So, the show ditches the player-character tension that made the game memorable, instead holding the viewer’s hand at every turn, never trusting us to read between the lines.

And it’s not just Abby who suffers from this over-explanation: Ellie loses all her mystique, too. In the game, you pieced together her motives and trauma through layered clues and flashbacks. Here, every feeling is spelled out, with nothing left for viewers to infer. HBO squeezes the story that could have filled two seasons into a single year, apparently convinced audiences couldn’t handle the slow burn that made the game’s 25-hour journey so compelling. The result is a hastily assembled, chaotic narrative where every dramatic beat is narrated like a YouTube explainer. Ramsey and Pascal’s performances feel weaker as a result, but it’s hard to tell whether to blame the actors or the clunky, overcooked script they’re saddled with.

Compromises and Declawed Drama

Honestly, it’s understandable that the showrunners didn’t want to throw The Last of Us Part II’s thorny story at mainstream audiences without sanding down the edges—even though it’s widely hailed as an all-time great, the revenge-driven narrative is still a lightning rod for controversy. The most toxic fans went so far as to threaten Laura Bailey (the original voice of Abby) and her family, and Kaitlyn Dever needed extra security on set as a result. With that kind of toxicity swirling, there’s no way the series would ever risk the raw, brutal honesty that made the game so special. But the very things HBO chose to soften—misunderstandings, lack of empathy, and the endless violence—are what set this universe apart in the first place.

Instead, the series is allergic to silence and ambiguity, terrified you might come away with your own interpretation. Where the game trusted players to untangle dilemmas for themselves, the show spells out every emotion and motivation, just to make sure the “big message” lands: everyone is guilty in this grief-fueled cycle of violence. Not only does the season force empathy for both Ellie and Abby, but it also lectures you about whom to pity and whom to blame. The show’s mind is already made up—and the dialogue is so painstakingly overworked, any spark of originality is smothered.

Summing Up the Game—And Losing Its Soul

What made the original game remarkable was all it communicated without saying a word—the glances, the silences, the subtext. That’s gone now, replaced by sterile, consequence-free compromises. There’s more action, sure, but the big infected horde scenes just feel like TV spectacle, not genuine adrenaline rushes. Even though Isaac, leader of the Washington Liberation Front (again played by the fantastic Jeffrey Wright), gets a bigger spotlight, his scenes drown in exposition. Isabela Merced (Dina) could have been a real breath of fresh air, but the show never gives her the room to develop—something the game delivered through its quieter, more introspective moments.

There’s a reason I’m dodging spoilers—some episodes will actually surprise newcomers. But the big picture is inescapable: this season is a safe, toothless, compromise-ridden imitation of a story that, in game form, forced us to confront our own messy emotions. That risk-taking, uncomfortable honesty is what made the original so polarizing and powerful. Here, HBO serves up a high-level summary—like a TV-ified Wikipedia entry, entertaining enough, but not remotely as thought-provoking or lasting.

Plenty of people have called The Last of Us a “movie in disguise,” but Season Two proves the story is more than just flashy cutscenes and shootouts. The deliberate distance the game maintains between you and Ellie, Abby, and Joel simply doesn’t work when you’re just a passive viewer. Without decisions to make, you’re never forced to face uncomfortable questions. The Last of Us Part II has always been more than the sum of its parts—and honestly, only those who’ve played it through can judge it fairly. The show loses that extra layer, and I doubt the next season will find it again. If you really want to know what makes this story special, do yourself a favor and play the game.

-Gergely Herpai “BadSector”-