>On the standalone side, why so saccharine? Why not have more fun with this kind of deviation from the plot? As far as re-creating the beats of the game, why not follow a more interesting path?

...fundamentally this article's take is just "been done before, I wanted something different." It comes across as contrarian for its own sake.

Why not saccharine? A sweet love story that shows what motivates someone isolated and closed off to open up to caring is very relevant to the overall plot and Joel's arc. Yeah, it could have been goofier or more fun and less sad. That isn't automatically better, nor does citing a very different episode of "The Magicians" prove "it's been done before" just because it also involves gay men.

Hell with that logic, why make the show at all? It's a sad zombie apocalypse show, why not make something more fun that hasn't been done before?