The pacing was again off. The first act was slow, making the climax feel rushed. The writing was lazy and cringeworthy in parts - David's villain monologue was full of cliché (honestly, how many times has a TV bad guy said "you remind me of myself"?). His character was generally overdone - he was wholly "bad", an aberrant evil that was too cartoon-like to be fully scary. The suspension of belief was also a little much. Somehow Joel goes from semi-comatose to disarming and killing multiple men and torturing two (adrenaline doesn't quite cut it, let's be real lol). Has Ellie never had a single vaccine in her entire life? She knows how to draw the needle but injects it directly into the wound? Why didn't Ellie use Joel's spike of adrenaline to quietly sneak them both out on the horse? Why did the townspeople do absolutely nothing while a building was set alight and their leader killed?
Also, it's a shame the show fell into the old rape trope. Why, why, why do showrunners think it's necessary? What lazy writing to lean into the destruction of women and girls. The scene with David was gratuitous. Finally, there isn't a single infected. The show can only ride so long on the premise that "this is ultimately about how people are bad!! This is about human relationships not zombies!!". There is zero sense that they are an actual threat. The show relies on gamers' nostalgia and emotional investment but as a standalone media it's just patchy.
Also, it's a shame the show fell into the old rape trope. Why, why, why do showrunners think it's necessary? What lazy writing to lean into the destruction of women and girls. The scene with David was gratuitous. Finally, there isn't a single infected. The show can only ride so long on the premise that "this is ultimately about how people are bad!! This is about human relationships not zombies!!". There is zero sense that they are an actual threat. The show relies on gamers' nostalgia and emotional investment but as a standalone media it's just patchy.