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Fallout - Worth The Fire

 Well, it's been a long time. Over the last 7 months or so, I've watched a whole lot of everything, but honestly, I was just tired. I was tired of basically writing the same reviews for all the new movies out there. I felt like my keyboard was stuck with only certain words available to describe the current media. Words like "WOKE", or "Weak" or "Missed opportunity" and several other lets say not pleasant words. Then we come to the release of Fallout. I adore the Fallout series of games (Yes all of them, even 76 [which was better without settlers in the Wasteland. I will die on that hill]). Just something about the dark humor mixed with what could be (to an extent) real world events. Especially seemingly how we're been headed as a society in the last few years. But, was I worried when I heard there was a show being developed not only now but by Amazon Studios, nah, why would I ever be worried that Amazon would ruin and alienate an existing fanbase *coughs (Rings of Power). Yes, I was terrified at the prospects of something that was so dear to me being transformed into some kind of political statement about sexuality and/or feminism. And for once in the last few years, I was wrong to be scared.

Image by Deadline
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As soon as the series began, I knew I was in for a treat. The set designs are amazingly crafted to look visually appealing but also sticking the landing when it comes to game accuracy. Is there Easter-eggs, well yeah. It's Fallout. The games themselves off Easter-eggs, so why would the show be any different. With a small error in the timeline regarding a city in the Fallout: New Vegas game, the rest of the series seemed very accurate to the esthetic as well as the lore of Fallout. The error previously mentioned in the end may not even be an error depending on how you interpret how the information was being portrayed, but none-the-less, they did a fantastic job of selling the Wasteland. You feel that grittiness from the games and the dark humor is right on point. Not too much and not missing. They walked the line almost perfectly. As for what I mentioned earlier, is there a trans character in the show? Yes, and they have a purpose, they're well scripted and well rounded. I didn't feel like they simply checked the box for them. Lucy, the vault dwelling protagonist kicks ass whenever she can. However, she earns it. Hollywood should really look at this character and write some of their women better. The show shows Lucy training, so it explains why she's fairly tough and knows how to fight when she needs to. However, she fights a much larger male character at one point and she gets literally man-handled. I'm not saying anyone should be treated like this, but it was a more believable scene because it happened. Lucy even gets really hurt in that fight, and has to use her brain as well as her physique to come out victorious. It was never handed to her. She earned it. Just like Ripley, or Sarah Conner. These characters were great because they were real women that overcame the obstacles, not by waving an imaginary wand and somehow being able to be better than everyone. By actually being a person and making up for their inadequacies in alternative ways. Bravo to Amazon for this. I wish every "Strong Female Lead" character were written with such finesse.

Image by Collider


For those of you that don't know what Fallout is, I won't get into the specifics, but the world in Fallout takes place in an alternative timeline to the real world where advanced Nuclear technologies were invented after World War 2 (Without the transistor somehow?) and the esthetics are forever stuck in the '50s. During this time, the Great War happens. Basically, the USA and China go to Nuclear War over resource shortages. What remains is the Wasteland. Typically, in the games you play as a Vault Dweller of sorts. Vaults were underground, well, vaults, designed to allow a small civilization of people to live...indeterminate amount of times. You see, the one thing that no one really knew about the Vaults was, they were really a place to conduct social, economical and physical experiments on humans, without their knowledge. Yikes. The series does delve into this a bit, but could have easily gone further.

Image by Geek Culture

Is it all rainbows and sunshine for Fallout the series? Well, of course not. Nothing is perfect. With only 8 episodes, you can't really get a full picture of the world and all the story lines that can lie within it. I think the series did a great job of choosing to have 3 protagonists(ish) rather than focus only on one story. This really made the series feel similar to the games where you have multiple ways to play and the game will end differently depending on the choices you make. There was an easily noticeable lack of creatures present in the series, which I'm sure is due to money and time. The ones that are there are fairly well done, although still different from the games, but there has to be some leniency there for creative writing. I'd hope to see a lot more in a season 2 for sure. The costumes are just awe inspiring. The Brotherhood of Steel technology and Power Armor are almost perfect. I say almost because there are a few scenes here and there where certain things happen that just don't quite make sense based on the games. Like in dark areas, the suits don't turn on their head lamps and for some reason also don't have their infrared vision attachments I guess? Also, creatures that I would never had expected to worry a Knight in Power Armor, seemingly do, and with good reason in the show.

Image by Business Insider

\All in all, my largest complaint was that it was over in 8 episodes. I would have easily watched another 10. Hopefully, if there is a season 2, they will make it run longer and really give the show time to explain and show the world. There's just so many nuances that they can touch on, and so many ways the show could go. For the first time in a long time, I'm optimistic about a future project based on a video game. Having said that, I also can't say the show will be for everyone. If you're easily offended or can't handle gore then this show definitely isn't for you. This show (thankfully) does not cater to the non-existent "Modern Audience", and is outstandingly better for it.

Image by Bethesda Studios

Overall score: 8.5 out of 10 stars


Pros:
- Nailed the lore and esthetic
- Humor was spot on 
- Told a great story within the Fallout universe 

Cons:
- Season was very short
- Due to the short season, we don't get to really flesh out any of the locations or people. Some, but not fully
- If you're completely new to the Fallout series, you may be a bit lost for the first few episodes as they easily cater to their built-in audience

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