The Last of Us: American Dreams

I have yet to play “Bioshock Infinite,” “Saints Row IV,” “GTA V,” or “Assassin’s Creed IV,” but if I had to pick my game of the year right now it would be “The Last of Us.”  Not only was it a beautifully rendered post-pandemic world where the new brutality required to survive was brilliantly integrated into the gameplay, it also showed that developer Naughty Dog could utilize all of the tech and underpinnings of their “Uncharted” series and create something that played similarly but with a completely different feel.  There was also that final gut-wrenching sequence and ending which showed us that the “hardened survivor learns to care again” trope can become quite chilling instead of heartwarming.

Prior to the game’s release, Dark Horse released a four-issue prequel comic that introduced the game’s world and one of its protagonists, the teenaged Ellie.  While these kinds of things are usually very hit-or-miss, this one had a couple of things going for it.  Not only was it co-written by the game’s director Neil Druckmann, Faith Erin Hicks was the other co-writer and the artist on the title.  As you all know, I think anything by her is worth checking out.  Hicks’ work here shows that she can rein in her comedic side in service of the narrative, and though the tone is considerably darker than her past work I did enjoy the book.  Even if it did feel a bit slight in the end.

That’s because not a whole lot happens in this story.  We’re introduced to Ellie as she’s being bused in to a military school where she manages to get in a fight, get sent to the principal’s office, and then find out that her walkman has been stolen in the process.  Fortunately she knows that the other girl she met, Riley, did it and while that could’ve made them enemies for life Ellie soon finds out that the older student knows how to sneak out of the school at night.  It’s on this midnight stroll through the city that Ellie finds scenes of wonder and horror along with an encounter by the Fireflies that will wind up changing her life forever.

She doesn’t know that though, that’s something anyone who has played the game will realize after reading it.  Fans of the game will also find the world of “The Last of Us” faithfully represented here from the clashes between the Fireflies and local security, to the murderous thugs who will gun down anyone who gets in their way, and the reminders of the world gone by that are alien to kids like Ellie and Riley.  Hicks and Druckmann also preserve Ellie’s defiant and sarcastic personality here, so there’s nothing that feels out-of-place in this story.

Even though humor has been a very large part of Hicks’ style, that’s dialed way back here as there’s very little that’s funny about Ellie’s situation or her world.  We see that right away in the bravura “silent” three-page sequence that opens the story and chronicles Ellie’s arrival at the school.  It sets up the fact that this world is a very scary place where human liberty is not a given thing while also establishing Ellie’s curious nature and determination to not let this world get the better of her.  

It should be mentioned that Hicks doesn’t go in for the ultra-detailed photo-realism of the game in her art.  In fact, her style is almost diametrically opposed to what we see in the game itself.  That may be an issue for some people, and I truly feel sorry for them.  Hicks’ work here and throughout the story is phenomenal at illustrating the characters’ emotions on their faces and through their body language as well as the ruined look of the many artifacts of the past on display in the city.  There’s also an encounter with the infected in the third issue where we see that she can pull off a suspenseful action sequence as well.  I would’ve liked to have seen her illustrate more than one type of infected in this story, but that’s not something that was necessary here.

In fact, giving us more infected would’ve made this story feel more slight than it already is.  Though Hicks and Druckmann do some neat things with the space that they’re given, by the end of the volume you’re left with the feeling that not a whole heck of a lot happened here.  Yes, Ellie met Riley and the Fireflies as well, but there’s nothing here that isn’t covered in more detail by the game itself.  I was actually expecting the story here to show us the scene Ellie describes to Joel at the end of the game since it felt like that would make for a great lead-in.  We don’t get that here, though the indication that this is “volume one” on the book’s spine leaves me hopeful that we’ll see it if Dark Horse continues publishing these comics.

The bottom line here is that “American Dreams” isn’t an essential read even if you’ve played “The Last of Us.”  If you liked the game as much as I did, you will find its spirit preserved here and some interesting background on one of its protagonists.  I’ll certainly be back for the next volume, so long as Hicks remains involved, and I hope we get a meatier story for the next go-round as well.