Fallout Season One Early Review

The following is a spoiler-free review of the first season of Fallout, premiering all 8 episodes tonight on Prime Video

Fallout, the classic post-apocalyptic video game franchise has entertained audiences for nearly 30 years, offering players a seemingly endless wasteland for them to wander through and explore, encountering plenty of unsavory characters and unsightly creatures along the way. There’s a simple solitude to them, with that simple relationship between characters and the wasteland making for even more engrossing journeys that are easy to lose time in. When it comes to adapting the game franchise into a television series, the solitary nature of the game is not exactly the most conducive for a series so it has to find a way to maintain the essence of its source material while still giving viewers an engaging narrative to tie it all together. Though not without flaws, this first season definitely has a lot on its plate and suffered from a rough start because of it. Balancing multiple characters and subplots, the story comes off as fairly disjointed before somewhat evening out over the remainder of the season. Fans of the video game franchise should feel right at home here, featuring plenty of little familiar tidbits to keep them engaged, but any knowledge of the source material is not necessary to get into this series. Leaning heavily on countless post-apocalyptic film and television works, this one is ultimately no different.

Boasting the team of Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy (Westworld) as executive producers (Nolan also directed the first three episodes), their influence could be felt throughout (as was Westworld composer Ramin Djawadi’s powerful score). The inherent nature of adaptations of popular IP means that Fallout will inevitably not be for everyone as its fate lies on the strength of the connection between viewers and its story. With Bethesda Game Studios’ Todd Howard serving as another executive producer should also help ease any possible apprehension. The story follows Lucy (Ella Purnell), a free-spirited and headstrong Vault-dweller who has only known life underground in a vault where her people have lived for generations, forming a self-sustaining community fueled by a sense of unity and void of war where all dwellers had was one another. One day, that peaceful dynamic was put to the test as the community of Vault 33 was attacked by a group of raiders who then kidnapped Lucy’s father and the Vault overseer Hank (Kyle MacLachlan). Literally living sheltered lives, their fearfulness of whatever waited for them on the surface made the remaining vault leadership group reticent to open their door and go after them but their true reasoning was more than mere cowardice. Suspicious, Lucy’s younger brother Norm (Moises Arias) embarked on his own investigation.

Though unlike her people, Lucy was willing to go where they would not and venture out in the wasteland to find her father and bring him back to their vault. Little did she know, living a sheltered life made her blatantly unprepared for what awaited her on the surface. Her principles had no place on the surface and in order to survive she should need to learn to adapt but that naivety left her open to be taken advantage of. On the other hand, Maximus (Aaron Moten) was an aspirant in the Brotherhood of Steel, a faction that sought to bring law and order to the wasteland, who looked to rise up the ranks and in the hopes of becoming a Knight and getting the accompanying power armor to exact revenge on the people that hurt him and left him an orphan. Often looked down upon and getting the brunt of the harassment from his fellow aspirants, it was a goal that appeared unlikely. However, he suddenly saw a quick rise up the ranks to a Knight’s squire and was given his first mission where he was put to the test. Little did they know, Lucy and Maximus were essentially on the same mission, they just didn’t know it yet. Facing their own adversity along the way, it was only a matter of time until they found each other.

Lurking over Lucy and Maximus was The Ghoul (Walton Goggins), an infamous, and morally-flexible, radiation-stricken bounty hunter for whom played major role in history of the new world. A character whose tragic backstory could be traced back to the origin of the wasteland 200+ years prior, the season weaved in a series of flashbacks that shed a light on his part in those events as a vehicle for the backstory of how the world of Fallout came to be, as well as the vaults themselves. Holding onto 200+ years worth of pain and trauma and still moving forward despite the difficulty of his current condition, one might not agree with all his actions but they could see where he’s coming from. Fueled by revenge against those who destroyed his life (and the world), he persisted and that persistence paid off as he just happened to come across Lucy and Maximus while on the same mission. The three were intertwined as all roads led to the notorious Moldaver (Sarita Choudhury), the leader of the group of the raiders responsible for the attack on Vault 33 and the kidnapping of Lucy’s father. After such an arduous life-and-death journey, Lucy was faced with the revelation that there was much more to that story than she thought she knew (Norm also came to that conclusion through his investigation). In the end, it was all connected, which should come as a surprise to no one as the season became less and less disjointed once its pieces started to come together. However, those looking for finality will have to wait because as far as the story was concerned, it was only the beginning, setting up an inevitable season 2.

On a technical level, the series spared no expense in recreating the esthetic of Fallout. From the confined vaults to the epic wasteland featuring several locations that be familiar to fans of the video game franchise, it beautifully captures the look and feel of the video game through stellar production design and strong cinematography. A common issue with the games for many was how the drabness of the wasteland could look repetitive. In the case of this series, it injects some more life visually to keep itself engaging to the eye, offering viewers a compelling landscape to explore. Meanwhile, emulating those solitary moments listening to one’s pip-boy radio, the season is chalk full of needle drops of the same classic music soundtrack of the games throughout. Not just about wandering and political intrigue, there was also a fair share of action to be had. Finding the right balance with the story, it may not be a plentiful as some might expect but it is well done and shows all the main characters in action. And like the games, the action was as brutal (befitting the series’ TV-MA rating). Finally, a series as ambitious as this one could not work without VFX. The various wasteland creatures and select environment work fit right in nicely.

Ultimately, what tied Fallout together was its performances. Purnell, Moten, and Goggins led the way but everyone else, including some surprises, were all at the top of their game here. The sheer charisma and likeability of Purnell made Lucy the perfect window into the world and experience the wasteland for the first time as she did. Her arc over the course of the season, as her personality and perspective slowly evolved along with her new experiences, was one of the biggest highlights. She was a blast to watch. Moten was a surprise as Maximus, bringing charm on his way to making him another rootable character who saw a similar arc that saw him truly come into his own. The excellent chemistry of Purnell and Moten only added to the dynamic of Lucy and Maximus and the fun moments coming from their wide contrast in principles and experiences and how it narrowed. Goggins has an uncanny ability to take whatever role he is given and absolutely rock it. In what was another showcase of his range, as The Ghoul (with the help of sensational makeup and prosthetic work), he was a badass on one side and on the other, tempered it with the emotion of the weight of the trauma that plagued him.

At the end of the day, Fallout is a fateful adaptation that may not be without flaws but still delivers an ambitious yet compelling adventure led by stellar performances.

still courtesy of Prime Video

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.