The brain-eating mushrooms taking over TV screens

Chapman students talk about zombie media and how the new HBO show "The Last of Us" resonates with the living. Photo collage by SIMRAH AHMAD, staff photographer

Every Sunday evening, senior screenwriting major Tosca Johnson settles in for her weekly tradition. She turns the lights off and hides under multiple blankets in order to fully immerse herself whilst watching her new favorite show. Along with her girlfriend and roommate, they bundle up on the couch and watch the latest episode of HBO’s newest hit show, “The Last of Us.” 

“It's one of those shows that gets really hyped, and if you look on Twitter, everyone's talking about it,” Johnson said. “Every Sunday, you get really excited because the episode comes out and you watch it with your friends and that's really fun. It's nice to have a show that you can stream and get excited for every week.”

On Jan. 15, the first episode of “The Last of Us” debuted on HBO Max, and introduced the audience to a post-apocalyptic world focused on Joel (played by Pedro Pascal), a middle aged man whose main focus is to find his brother after not having any contact for a few weeks. His companion, Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey), is a young girl whose survival might be key to saving humanity. 

These characters are brought together under unusual circumstances, and due to the stubbornness of both of them, the audience watches them butt heads before finally settling into a more heart-warming father/daughter dynamic.

“The Last of Us” is based off of a popular video game, using the same story in a different medium in order to gain popularity with a wider audience. Luckily, HBO has seemed to crack the code, with reaching nearly five million viewers when the first episode aired, HBO’s third highest viewer debut. 

With this obvious success, The Panther is eager to understand why people find it easy to resonate so much with zombie media, whether it’s through video games or other shows such as “The Walking Dead.”

“I thought the pilot episode was one of the best pilot episodes of TV I've ever seen,” Johnson said. “I thought it was just really really good. But my favorite episode has to be the third. I don’t want to spoil anything, but it’s a love story that had me uncontrollably sobbing by the end. I just think all of the characters are amazing.”

The third episode took a break from following Joel and Ellie, and instead focused on two new characters, Bill and Frank, and their love story. It showed them growing together throughout the previous years and ending their story in the present day, leaving many viewers reaching for a tissue or two. This episode garnered quite a bit of buzz online, with Esquire calling it “a TV moment we will never forget.”

Johnson, who usually turns her nose up to Sci-Fi television, told The Panther why she believes this show has captivated her and grown so popular with a wide audience. 

“Basically (the show) gives scientific backing for how (the zombie apocalypse) was even able to happen,” Johnson said. “I think anytime you're dealing with post-apocalyptic stuff, if you back it up with science, it makes it genuinely scarier for everyone else because it makes it a little bit more realistic.”

Junior creative writing major Jules Raymond told The Panther how “The Last of Us” cracked the code for creating this perfect adaptation from a video game to television show. 

“I think here we're seeing an example of a production crew and a creative team that’s taking it really seriously and really going above and beyond to bring the (video game) to life,” Raymond said. “I think it's a good example for future projects that it can be done well if the right amount of effort and passion is put behind it.”

Although the show is centered around characters going through a zombie apocalypse, a genre that may not appeal to everyone, Raymond said it seems the core story is resonating with people regardless. 

“Being post-pandemic had an impact on the way I was thinking about the show,” Raymond said. “During the first episode, I was like, ‘Oh, wow. We've been through a pandemic as a collective people, so (the show) is a little bit too real.’ And now I (ask myself), ‘How did I react to those circumstances?’ I think it's interesting to speculate about how people react to these sorts of extremes.”

This is not the first time a zombie infested series captured the hearts of its audience. “The Walking Dead” is another piece of zombie media that gained a lot of popularity at the time of its release back in 2010. 

Senior graphic design major Max Collins said he is an avid watcher of both shows and shared what makes him love each one. 

“'The Walking Dead' primarily focused on survival from the zombies in the beginning and trying to actually maneuver a way around all the craziness, whereas 'The Last of Us' already established what happened within the first episode. And it also dives into the more emotional state of characters,” Collins said.

According to Eben Bolter, cinematographer for “The Last of Us,” the cast and crew are not allowed to use the “z word” on set. The “z word” being zombie. Rather, the zombie-like creatures in the show are referred to as the Infected. Although it’s mostly a joke, the goal is to separate themselves from the narrative associated with being a zombie show. 

As zombie media continues to gain a larger audience, Johnson said she believes it is important to recognize that although zombie related shows are a frivolous topic, paying attention to the deeper nuances can be very powerful. 

“The nature of zombie shows and media can seem really silly, but I look forward to continuing to watch the show every week to dive deeper into the emotionally charged characters and see how their relationships continue to grow," Johnson said.