Fans have shared their praises for the new series The Last Of Us on social media after it made its television debut over the weekend.
On January 15, the HBO adaptation of the acclaimed 2013 video game premiered and it is set in a post-apocalyptic world that has been invaded by a zombie-like fungal plague.
The show focuses on a smuggler called Joel (played by Pedro Pascal) as he is assigned the task of accompanying a teenager called Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) across the country.
The first episode - which was set 20 years before the main story begins - displayed Joel's home life with his teenage daughter Sarah (played by Nico Parker).
For those who haven't seen The Last of Us trailer, you can watch it below:However, the father and daughter duo's hometown is quickly plunged into disarray and chaos after the fungal outbreak begins to rapidly spread.
They then managed to run away from several infected people before coming across a police officer who fires at them. Tragically, the bullet hits Sarah who ends up dying in Joel's arms.
According to the Independent, after 30 minutes into the pilot episode, a heartwrenching plot twist arrived which left many viewers that haven't played the video game stunned.
Many people quickly took to their social media pages to describe the first episode as "perfect" and share their excitement about the rest of the HBO series.
One excited user wrote: "God damn HBO nailed the premiere of The Last of Us, literally perfect."
Another person shared: "The Last of Us opening with Joel and his family trying to take Highway 183 to get out of Austin is 1) PERFECT and 2) a cool homage/parallel to Zombieland where Columbus, UT student, is doing the same thing (he actually makes it)."
A third user chimed in and commented: "The Last of Us couldn’t have been any better. THAT is how you start the series and honor the award-winning video game it’s based off of. PERFECT. #TheLastOfUs."
Lastly, a fourth person said: "Today I watched The Last of Us and all I can say is HBO...well done. Absolutely spectacular. Everything was incredible from the casting to the scenes to the locations to the music...just perfect. Well worth the wait to watch. Can't wait for the next episode."
The show creators Neil Druckmann - who also co-directed the games - and Craig Mazin have also reacted to the delighted responses towards the first episode.
Sharing a picture of the actors and the creators on Twitter, Druckmann wrote: "And exhale! Pedro, Bella you had big shoes to fill. You delivered and then some!"
"Couldn’t be prouder! Craig… you’re okay, I guess (thank you, thank you, thank you… ). And thank you all for the kind words. We read everything! The journey is just starting! #TheLastOfUs," he added.
It’s not just viewers who have been drawn into the show as it has already drawn outstanding reviews from critics and even set a record for video game adaptations on the website Rotten Tomatoes.
New episodes of The Last of Us will air each Sunday evening at 9 pm on HBO.
