The Last of Us's advantage is that you don't have to be too adamant to take a look into its world. The program started off with an explanation of how a massive fungal infection might be spread, which has since been verified by real-world experts.
With the excellent third episode, "Long, Long Time," survivalist Bill and his partner Frank, the audience picked a bone to pick, which concluded with an all-time TV show tearjerker. Much of the episode was set in Bill's compound, with him fortifying the road he lives in from wandering infected and raiders.
King enjoyed the episode, but refused to believe that this scenery was a 10-mile walk out of Boston:
The simple reason is that it doesn't appear like Massachusetts because it isn't, but where is it?
Three shooting locations for 'The Last of Us'
The Last of Us was shot entirely in Canada, making it the largest television production in Canadian history. It's estimated that the program costs between $10 and $15 million per episode, with the money very much visible on the screen. Most of The Last of Us' interiors are shot on sound stages, though there's also a fair amount of location filming.
Joel and Ellie went hiking through some beautiful, deserted countryside in the first part of the episode, which was shot near Sheep River Falls near Calgary.
At the end of this sequence, they crossed a bridge, which in real life is the Shannon Terrace bridge in Calgary's Fish Creek Provincial Park.
Bill's real-life story behind his compound
Bill's idyllic escape from the chaos has a fascinating history. Beachwood Estates in High River, Alberta, was erected between 1990 and 2002, but the province was struck by a devastating flood in 2013, which forced many Albertans to flee their homes. Recognizing the floodplain was no longer safe, the province purchased the 94 properties and relocated the residents.
The area has been abandoned since then. Seth Lawless, a YouTuber, visited the area in 2017 and documented it in a documentary aptly titled "The Creepiest Neighborhood in the World."
The atmosphere at Bill's compound in The Last of Us was a surprise, considering that previous residents are unconcerned about the backdrop of the apocalypse. Ryan White said he regretted leaving his tattoo shop in 2013.
What does the future hold?
The Last of Us has six episodes left in its first season, so we're hoping to see many other cool real-life locations throughout the series. We doubt whether any of them will have a similar background as Beachwood Estates, but the program's location specialists are certainly proving their worth in discovering locations like this.
As the show progresses, we anticipate more ruined-yet-weirdly-elegant scenes and locations.
The Last of Us airs on HBO Sundays.