Fallout, the best-selling role-playing video game, comes to life in Prime Video’s large-scale live-action adaptation. Helmed by Westworld creator Jonathan Nolan and writers Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner, the series explores a future United States ravaged by nuclear war from three very different perspectives. Together, these individuals’ worlds collide as they all attempt to not lose their heads.
Episode one entitled “The End” places viewers in the future – 2077 Los Angeles with a Tomorrowland aesthetic – the exact moment the world changed. A family celebrates their son’s birthday with friends with a Western-themed party. A hired hand named Cooper Howard is the entertainment, performing rodeo tricks on horseback with his daughter Janie as his assistant. Despite the joyous occasion, there’s a sense of foreboding underneath the surface. Background news segments mention an absent President and rumors of nuclear war.
As the party moves inside to watch television, Cooper and his daughter prepare to depart when a cloud of smoke mushrooms in the distance. Stuck in a standstill, Cooper realizes the plumes are the aftermath of nuclear bombs exploding in downtown LA. Soon, the hilltop home is a scene of hysteria as parents and children rush to escape the toxic blast.
We fast forward 219 years later, centering on Lucy McClain, a Vaulter living a sheltered and privileged life in underground bunker 33. The daughter of the vault’s overseer, Lucy is undergoing an open interview, listing her hobbies, various accomplishments, and sexual history. It’s revealed she’s being vetted for an arranged marriage with the sole purpose of exchanging financial assets and procreating. Her groom-to-be is a hunk named Monty from neighboring vault 32. After being fitted for her dress, the wedding begins in a cornfield recreated like a movie set. Much like the previous celebration, the idyllic ceremony is hiding a sinister secret. Once this secret is violently revealed, Lucy is forced to do the unthinkable – travel to the surface.
Up above the Vault-dwellers’ heads, we meet Maxmius, a young cadet of the militaristic, quasi-religious faction, the Brotherhood of Steel. Their sole purpose is to enact law and order throughout the land. An easy target of hazing, Maximus seeks to prove himself amongst the ranks. His one space of solace is his friendship with fellow cadet, Asperen Dane. That is until the day Dane is promoted as squire, accompanying one of the silver-toned mechs for patrols in the field.
Days before Dane is set to leave, someone sabotages their boot with a bear trap, leaving them severely injured. Maximus is questioned about the attack and swears he is not responsible. However, he admits he wanted it to happen. He’s told an attack on a fellow brother is a sign of weakness. When asked if he is weak, his response is “I don’t wanna be.” He then thanked the cleric as “he had no place in the world.” Somehow, this reasoning satisfies the interrogator. Maximus is rewarded with Dane’s position as squire. He’s told of his first mission: securing an apparent denizen causing trouble.
The episode closes with three bounty hunters seeking a suspect in a dark cemetery. There seems to be a bit of confusion on whether their target is dead or alive, as they have been told to retrieve the remains from underground. Sure enough, they lift a coffin that reveals a peculiar character named The Ghoul. The lead hunter proposes he assists them in catching someone on the run headed to California. He briefly mentions how Cali is the Ghoul’s old stomping grounds. Just as the three think they have the upperhand on, The Ghoul murders each assailant within seconds. He observes while they hunt for a prize, The Ghoul does “this shit for the love of the game.”
This first episode is a violently humorous introduction to this take on dystopia. Directed by Nolan and written by Wagner and Robertson-Dworet, “The End” adapts the source material’s satirical drama quite well. The production is top-notch, making this retro take on the future look nostalgic and new, simultaneously. One little annoyance is the overuse of 50’s music, a bit too on the nose at times. The performances are strong, especially from our three leads – Walter Goggins, Ella Purnell, and Aaron Moten. Goggins is great in the opening as a man struggling to keep a happy face for his daughter. Viewers gather an immediate sense of his strong character and heart. Purnell, best known for playing queen bee, Jackie, in Yellowjackets, is more Cady Herron as Lucy, a naive but capable damsel that inverts the distress trope. Moten’s Maximus may have the most interesting arc to come, as his blinding focus on revenge and need for belonging may place him in situations that betray his moral code.
A strong setup for all three characters and how their paths will intertwine in this fantastically fun and damaged world.
Rating: 8/10