Costuming? Check. Set design? Check. Soundtrack? Check. Casting? Check-in with me later.
Being an avid Fallout New Vegas and Fallout 4 player and a massive fan of Bethesda games, I was very excited following this show’s announcement. Getting the invite to see the first two episodes of this long-awaited series in a cinema turned that excitement into a fever!
But don’t worry; you don’t need to have played the game to enjoy this series. I’ve only seen the first two episodes; they know how to boil a frog. Rather than throw the viewer into the belly of the beast that is Fallout’s desolate world, we kick off in pre-apocalypse. It does a great job of showing what was there before the wastelands. Giving the audience perspective on the radiant nuclear paradise, with nuclear being the primary power source, there is plenty of technological innovation. While the introduction scenes are set in the 1940s, the costuming was fantastic—stunning subtle detailing. Here, we also fall in love with who will be The Ghoul in the wastelands, but here is cowboy Hollywood star Cooper Howard, played by Walton Goggins. We, the audience, get to see the warmth and depth of his character from the outset. The splendid disaster that follows sends us hundreds of years in the future.
We then get introduced to the happy, cohesive environment that is Vault 33. This bomb shelter was manufactured by Vault-Tec, a company that sought to “protect America’s future” through the apocalypse. It sold places within vaults at a premium and plans B-D to those who could not afford one (you’ll find out what those are in the future). We are introduced to our protagonist, Lucy Maclean, whom we can control in the game. Ella Purnell is the perfect casting for this character. With the catchphrase “okie-dokie”, she takes adversity on the chin with a grin. How we are introduced to Lucy paints a picture of what life is like in Vault 33. Lucy is applying to reproduce; she’s sharing her accolades to make her the ideal candidate. The humour and light brought to this scene are down to Purnell’s perfect delivery of blissful innocence. The setting of Vault 33 is a cohesive and collaborative environment with cheerful decor with cold and bleak undertones. The costuming is spot on, with a vault-dweller jumpsuit sporting the classic blue and yellow. And I loved Lucy’s Dad, Hank Maclean, played by Kyle MacLachlan, Overseer of Vault 33. Kyle is a fantastic choice for this role, but I might be biased as a major Twin Peaks fan.
We are then introduced to the Brotherhood of Steel’s training grounds, centred on our potential companion, Maximus, played by Aaron Moten. It’s also our first introduction to the desolate wasteland that remains after the bombs dropped, and all that the eye can see is the sand and ruins of a once-established civilisation. It’s clear from the outset that the Brotherhood is not a place for the weak, with indoctrination and the dark underbelly being shown early. Moten does a great job of showing the emotional turmoil Maximus has been through and the clear idolisation of the knights of the Brotherhood adorned in Power Armour. There is a specific one-on-one with a cleric of the Brotherhood that clearly references the intricate dialogue options and how they impact outcomes.
I’m looking forward to Maximus embracing his turmoil as Moten shows his incredibly strong will and willingness to do anything to reach his desired position.
As a fan of the games, I found the show’s pacing slow. However, the clear references to the game world kept me intrigued. I’m eager to see more of the game’s iconic atrocities and how they are portrayed in the series. It’s important to remember that this is a show made for a broad audience, so I’m looking forward to the rest of the series and how it balances game references with its own unique narrative.
Now available to watch the entire season on Prime Video.
