Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal in Neon's new series The Last of Us.
Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal in Neon's new series The Last of Us.
The Last of Us
(Neon)
The PlayStation game that this series is based on is regarded as one of the greats. It’s held in such high regard that the co-creator of this HBO premium series described it as “the Lawrence of Arabia of video games”. So it’s fair to saythat the show has a lot to live up to.
On paper, it sounds like just another zombie outing In a post-apocalyptic setting; Joel, a battle-hardened survivor plagued by the death of his daughter brings Allie, a young teenage girl, under his protective wing as they trek across the States and try to avoid the hordes of roaming zombies. So far, so every zombie show/movie ever.
However, The Last of Us is much greater than the sum of those tired parts. It’s intense and unnerving and digs deep into the relationship between its unlikely heroes.
Fan favourite Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) and Game of Thrones’ Bella Ramsey lead the cast and have completely won over critics. Sitting on a plump Rotten Tomatoes score of 96 per cent, one reviewer raved calling it “a stunning accomplishment that once again has HBO raising the bar on what television can do”.
Things got ugly for the beautiful game in 2021 when a conglomerate of the world’s most powerful football clubs banded together to form their own super league. The formation of this breakaway league, which had the backing of super clubs like Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, would have been disastrous for the European and UK premierships. They would have lost their most popular players and teams and would have split the fanbase.
Stars like Lionel Messi could find themselves locked out of Champions League play if UEFA decides on strict punishment for the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus. Photo / Photosport
When the news of the Super League broke, it was greeted with fury by just about everyone, fans, players and commentators alike. And while the rogues gave it everything they had, they just couldn’t get their idea into the back of the net.
This four-part docu-series charts the high-stakes battle, showing how the idea came about, how it was presented and, ultimately, given the red card as many of those involved, from club owners, league presidents and players, tell their story for the first time.
Streaming from tomorrow.
Break Point
(Netflix)
With tennis on everyone’s mind right now, the timing for Netflix’s new behind-the-scenes docu-series really couldn’t be better. The show follows a group of tennis players, including now-stars Nick Kyrgios and Ons Jabeur, as they volley their way to the top, one serve at a time.
Ajla Tomljanovic in Netflix docu-series Break Point. Photo: Netflix.
The series gets up close and personal, sticking with its chosen players for a whole year as they train and train and train in preparation for tournaments that could literally change their lives forever.
Even if you’re not a huge tennis fan Break Point is worth your time due to its heavy focus on the personalities involved. It focuses on both their mental and physical preparation and the toll performing at the highest level takes.
No less than Sports Illustrated described the show as, “quite good, dazzlingly so at times”.
