As usual, this time the episode starts with a brand new sequence in which we learn the violent story of the city’s upheaval and the idea that sometimes a “revolutionary” as a cure for a “tyrant” is just as cruel and destructive as the original “tyrant”. . Here it is concretely illustrated by the FEDRA military units who tyrannized the city with their brutality for many years, only to be subsequently overthrown by the resistance movement, showing exactly the same signs of cruelty not only in the elimination of soldiers, but also in the “court” of all ordinary people who something hurt the soldiers they helped.
cursed city
The introduction describing the history of Kansas City is again a rather interesting insight into what the fall of human civilization looked like after the rise of the plague. Of course, this is a pretty predictable pattern, but it’s probably because the human desire for dominance hasn’t changed much over the past few centuries, especially in a situation where resources are scarce and need to be taken care of. their loved ones. After all, this theme returns in the series even more often than in the original, until I find it somewhat tiresome how the creators constantly remind us that “a person is capable of the worst things for the sake of love or family.”
Since this is our last episode in Kansas, we also get a full explanation of local resistance leader Kathleen’s backstory—among other things in the form of a rather spasmodic exposition as she confesses to her bodyguard in the nursery where she grew up. Unfortunately, I have to admit that this newly introduced character didn’t really win me over – he seems conceited and stupid. However, one thought was strong enough to support Kathleen’s position as the leader of the resistance: although her brother was a great man who was loved by all…he didn’t change things for the better. It takes someone like Kathleen to do it.
Henry and Sam
Connoisseurs of the original knew very well that we were in for one of the crudest passages in an already dark story when the two brothers appeared at the end of the previous volume. In an effort to add variety to the cast of characters, Craig Mazin came up with the idea of making Sam deaf. While this in itself isn’t harmful and made for some interesting passages, it unfortunately had a huge impact on a key scene at the end of the episode, but okay, we’ll get to that in a bit.
Oddly enough, one of the best parts of the episode is when the two couples discuss the terms of their partnership and then plan their next steps in a dusty office meeting. The rhythmically pulsing music and the summary of the risky plan do a great job of creating tension here, and I found myself leaning forward and completely absorbed by the atmosphere and pacing of the narrative. This quality was preserved both during the underground passage and during the passage with a sniper attack. But as soon as the main action of the passage began, willy-nilly, I had to shake my head at the stupidity of many involved and downright fabulous invulnerability of key characters in the midst of ridiculous chaos. In any case, the effect of the appearance of monsters was excellent and the creators justified their bet here on specially trained actors in practical costumes (instead of digital monsters).
“Why aren’t you afraid at all?”
The episode’s ending is one of the most powerful scenes in the entire video game. It’s likely that newbies will be as impressed with the design as they are with the game. However, as someone who has played the game many times over the years, I can’t help feeling that some of Ellie’s and her character’s best character defining dialogue is somewhat hesitant here – in part simply because the words are written instead of actual conversation. . I also didn’t like Bella’s variation on the scorpion joke – if you play it in the game, Ashley Johnson’s performance there is infinitely more natural, as is the rest of this conversation.
The plausibility and emotionality of the strongest scenes often depend on small nuances, it can be a second frame, a separate phrase, or a grimace. Bella made amends for me with her reaction at the end of the whole scene, because her scream was exactly the mixture of horror and despair that perfectly conveyed her shock and sadness to me. I would be very interested in what acting techniques they used to get such a reaction from her. However, this was helped by the atmosphere of the last minutes of the episode, returning to a more internal and better built position – where, among other things, Joel begins to understand that if he cannot protect Ellie, then he will most likely ruin him for good.
Unfortunately, we can only look forward to the sixth episode next Monday, February 20th.
Source :Indian TV
