The Last of Us has a special place in gamers hearts for a variety of reasons one of which is that it is arguably one of the most cinematic games ever created.
When HBO announced that the game would be adapted for television then fanbase naturally had several questions.
Is it really necessary to adapt a game that is already so cinematically rich to screen? Will the new actors live up to the original cast performances? Will the original story be altered as a result of the new format?
According to the first episode of HBO The Last of Us fans have nothing to worry about — except for the infected fungal monstrosities that lurk around every corner in this refreshingly faithful adaptation.
Episode 1 covers the game infamous prologue and the 20-year time jump that follows in Joel's story and the introduction of The Last of Us unique brand of dystopia as longtime fans might expect.
While it isn't a beat-for-beat recreation of the game first act and the story changes and additions are tasteful in some ways and improve on the original.
Much has been made of its beginnings as a video game, partly because the source material appeared to offer the best chance yet of a convincing transition from console to screen.
The series was created by the game's creator Neil Druckmann and Chernobyl's showrunner and Craig Mazin, a pairing that suggested it might deviate from the trend of video games being reworked into other formats.
However, The Last of Us games offer more than just a visual template. They are terrifying, emotional, profound and action-packed.
Fans of the franchise will recognise familiar scenes, locations and even dialogue. This adaptation does not reinvent the source material but why would it when it is so complete?
Those who are unfamiliar with the game, on the other hand should feel comfortable entering this world.
The series begins by presenting the parasitic fungus scenario as a hypothetical, discussed by pundits on a 1960s talk show before shifting to 2003 when that worst-case scenario is tearing society apart by the second.
For the first half hour it's a self-contained disaster film that reminded me of 1990s end-of-the-world blockbusters like Deep Impact, Armageddon and 12 Monkeys.
The focus then shifts back to 2023 and the aftermath. What is left of society is in the hands of an authoritarian military regime fighting terrorist-designated rebel groups, and things are looking grim.
Pedro Pascal plays Joel, a Texan construction worker in his fifties who works grim maintenance jobs and has a side hustle in the hidden market. Life is harsh and unforgiving.
He eventually meets Ellie (Bella Ramsey, another Game of Thrones exile), a 14-year-old girl he must transport west across the devastated United States. She could be the world's long-awaited savior.
The Last of Us is violent and melodramatic. It depicts a world where people are doing everything they can to survive with varying degrees of horror at times, encountering the fast-moving, fungus-dangling infected doesn't seem like the worst thing that could happen.
Later in the series the one terrifying episode that men not monsters, demonstrate that they are capable of cruelties far beyond the distressing onslaught of zombie attacks.
Its smaller storylines may not reach those heights, but they broaden its scope and enrich our comprehension.
Melanie Lynskey appears in Kansas City as a rebel leader, where we also meet a young man on the run with his younger brother.
We see how Ellie got to where she is in an episode rife with nostalgia, and we see attempts to create utopias in a dystopian environment.
It dares to hope in small pockets. I liked how it balanced horror and heart. It burrows beneath the skin and will not leave.
Peace if possible, truth at all costs.