Movies - TV
The Last Of Us Season 1 Kind Of Wasted Its Fungus Zombies
By RAFAEL MOTAMAYOR
Spoiler Warning!
This story contains spoilers for
Season 1 of “The Last of Us.”
The post-apocalyptic world of HBO’s “The Last of Us” is intricately built to feel unique within the landscape of zombie shows and movies. The detail-rich sets and grand vistas of decayed buildings add to the decayed look of the show, and the well-rounded characters help the story feel grounded in emotion — yet the show completely wasted its scary zombies, the Infected.
The Infected appear in less than half of the episodes, often for just a scene or two. Joel, Tess, and Ellie don't know there are different types of Infected, but other than a few seconds of fear, they barely react to the appearance of bloaters and clickers. The show also does nothing with the fact that the Infected are able to communicate through Cordyceps vines spread out through cities.
Showrunner Craig Mazin explained this neglect in a virtual press conference, sharing, “There may be less action than some people wanted because we couldn't necessarily find significance for quite a bit of it.” Though he teased more and different kinds of Infected in Season 2, that doesn't take away from the missed opportunity in Season 1.