One of the most oppressive elements of the game is finally about to appear in season 2 of The Last of Us. The next episode will undoubtedly be action-packed.
Spores finally included in the series
In episode 4 of season 2 of The Last of Us, released this Monday, May 5, Ellie and Dina finally arrive in Seattle, determined to hunt down Abby and her group. While HBO is following the main plot of the video game The Last of Us Part II, it allows for a few deviations to unfold the central theme of its plot. Game director Neil Druckman and director Craig Mazin, both co-creators of the series, have, for example, chosen to create new scenes (the introduction of Isaac) and to shift certain sequences from the game to make a greater impression on the viewers (the love scene between Ellie and Dina).
The two showrunners of the project still have many surprises in store for us, including for players of the Naughty Dog game, who know how this story of revenge will end. The Season 2 trailer teased the inclusion of a key element of the game, just to build up the hype among viewers: the famous spores as a vector for the Cordyceps virus.
Until now, Mazin and Druckman have been careful not to include this narrative element that would allow us to understand the intensity of Cordyceps and how it spreads. We then expected the cartridge to be used, but when? Taking a look at the trailer for Episode 5, we understand that it will be for next week (the episode is expected Monday, May 12 on the Max platform). Ellie discovers the walls of a building covered in fungi and an infected person gradually consumed by the virus (the same images as in the official trailer for the season). It is also through this consumption that the fungus releases the toxic spores.
Why only integrate the spores now?
Remember that in the game, this mode of transmission appears from the first hours. Joel and Tess inspect a building in Boston and then wear a mask to avoid contamination. In the HBO series, the spores have been replaced by a network of mycelium that serves as a connector between infected people. A purely narrative and visual choice, explained Neil Druckman at the time.
So why finally integrate them into this season 2? When asked about the subject, the two creators of the series were keen to make the threat of Cordyceps more and more impactful. An escalation in the representation of the virus and the infected is supposed to mark the viewer. A way to explore a new dimension of the infection while remaining faithful to the source material. In the game, Dina and Ellie also navigate a structure plagued by spores.
It is also during this sequence that Ellie confesses to her friend her immunity to Cordyceps. Her mask breaks. She then removes it to prove that the infection isn't reaching her. Since HBO hasn't yet played the spore card, the network opted for a different approach.
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