The Last of Us viewers can’t decide how they feel about the lack of infected in season 1

gamesradar.com:

The Last of Us season 1 has now come to an end with a blistering final episode of the game adaptation. While reviews as a whole have been overwhelmingly positive, some fans have been sharing their thoughts on the moments that didn’t make it in.

While the infected did make an appearance in the show in some truly terrifying sequences (we’re still thinking about that bloater), many of the moments they featured in were cut. For example, in The Last of Us episode 8, Ellie and David’s confrontation with them in Silver Lake wasn’t adapted. Then in the season finale, a whole section where Ellie and Joel battle through clickers, runners, and bloaters before reaching the hospital was cut.

Fans of the TV show have been very split on what to think about this following the finale airing, and it’s sparked quite a debate on Reddit (opens in new tab). "Kinda disappointed they didn’t put in the final confrontation with the infected in the tunnel before being picked up by the Fireflies like in the game,” wrote one. "Would have been nice to see them evade or fight a bloater, though they made the bloaters overpowered in the show."

"They removed half the series' atmosphere with this, I felt less fear for the characters overall, and I was fine with it but the 'it's about the people' to me, is an excuse for budgetary restraints," another pointed out. "[That’s the] only reason I can think we didn't see much of them. The next season will probably be no different."

"I get that some people say that they encountered them off-screen... but putting most of the infected encounters off-screen makes the audience forget the infected were ever the problem, making the cure less significant," a third argued.

However, others have been defending what the HBO