If you mess with these fungi, they become truffles.
Editor’s Note: The article below contains spoilers for the first episode. Last of Us.
Episode 1 of HBO Max Last of Us It proves why the series (and the game) is a success. In just over an hour, you’ll meet layered characters on their personal journeys, witness a terrifying zombie outbreak, be haunted by the death of a young girl, and understand the complex fabric of the series’ post-apocalyptic world. .
It is no exaggeration to say that the first episode Last of Us It accomplishes more in one episode than most series in an entire season.but there is another reason Last of Us It’s a very exciting show. While most zombie outbreak stories focus on viruses that spread like the flu or her COVID, Last of Us Blame the Apocalypse on fungi, more specifically cordyceps, and the realistic way these fungi are introduced makes them more terrifying than your average virus.
What is Cordyceps?
Cordyceps is a genus of fungi consisting of over 600 species. What most of these species have in common is a parasite, which grows inside the host’s body until it eventually kills it. It’s because of
Cordyceps usually attaches itself to another creature and slowly replaces its tissues, altering the neurological behavior of the victim. For example, when Cordyceps infects worms, they take over the body and convince them to seek higher places where they can spread their spores and infect even more worms. part of the biological imperative that ensures the continuity of But for cordyceps, the results are horrific. Last of Us We are aware of the uncomfortable truth of Cordyceps and ask what happens from human infection with these parasites.
Why are fungi so important to The Last of Us?
So far, humanity has been saved from Cordyceps infections. Because these fungi cannot survive in the body of warm-blooded organisms. The human body is too hot to sustain the fungus, so Cordyceps prefers worms.However, evolution has a way of slowly changing species over time, and mutations that are better adapted to the environment keep the fittest alive. Mutations that make species more heat tolerant make them more adapted to their environment as the average temperature of the earth is rising. yes, Last of Us considers the possibility that global warming could lead to the emergence of cordyceps that actually infect humans.
In a normal zombie invasion, a virus erases human minds and turns them into savage beasts.of Last of UsHowever, the human neurology is also altered to make the host more aggressive and more likely to bite the fungus and spread it to new victims. The process is more frightening because it erodes from the inside out.in episode 1 of Last of UsA large number of amputees have been seen in Boston’s quarantine area. This is because people are willing to amputate their limbs to prevent the fungus from spreading inside.
in the meantime Last of Us is laudable for its human drama, but Cordyceps helps the franchise outperform other zombie-focused horror works. That’s why.
new episodes of Last of Us Come to HBO and HBO Max every Sunday.
