Fallout Review – Dystopia Is Rarely This Fun!
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Creators: Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Graham Wagner
Some stories begin with the end, especially the post-apocalyptic kinds, like the 2024 series “Fallout”, which is based on the popular video game series of the same name. Fans of the game might be thrilled with this live-action series, as the eight-episode season packs in a lot of violence, gore, twists, and just enough of a sprinkle of comedic moments to keep it from being depressingly dark. For viewers like me, who haven’t played the games, an elevator pitch for the show would be – “The Walking Dead” meets “The Boys”, minus the zombies and superheroes, but with its own unique set of monsters and fighters.
Set in the 22nd century, two hundred years after a nuclear war wipes out organized nations, the surface world in “Fallout” is a wasteland inhabited by bandits, ghouls, and cults, while a significant number of wealthy survivors live in luxurious network of underground vaults to protect themselves from radiation, plunderers and monsters. The series primarily follows three protagonists, all of whom are looking to get their hands on a wanted man, who is in possession of a game-changing “relic”.
Titled “The End”, episode one starts with the day when the world went to shit after the devastating nuclear war. Viewers are then transported two centuries ahead, where we encounter Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) from Vault 33, who is poised to marry someone from Vault 32. Her introduction scene quick gives a lowdown on the organized hierarchical life in the vaults, its denizens completely disconnected from the harsh realities of surface life. But Lucy’s vault is brutally attacked by raiders, her dad, the leader of the vault, is taken away by the plunderers and Lucy for the first time in her life, sets foot outside the bunker to find her father. Out in the wasteland, Lucy meets a mysterious doctor, who can help lead her to her dad, but as it turns out, a lot of dangerous people are after the doctor too. The other two protagonists are swiftly introduced as well: Maximus (Aaron Moten), an ambitious member of a warrior cult called “The Brotherhood,” who aims to become an armored knight. Walton Goggins brilliantly portrays the show’s meanest character – The Ghoul – a once-famous Hollywood actor mutated by radiation into an undying cowboy. His flashbacks unveil a complex family man with clear political views, a low tolerance for nonsense, and a hopeful outlook for humanity, however, as the ghoul, he embodies every human’s worst nightmare.
Over the next few episodes, the characters embark on a wild ride to acquire the “relic” and leverage it to their advantage. Lucy needs it as a bargaining chip with the ruthless raider Lee Moldaver (Sarita Choudhury), who kidnapped her dad. Maximus seeks it to gain favor with the Brotherhood, while the Ghoul pursues it for the hefty bounty. Ella Purnell’s portrayal of Lucy MacLean easily makes her my favorite character in “Fallout” – a naive, privileged Vault dweller with a mild “savior complex”, who learns the ugly realities of surface life in vibrantly visceral ways. Every second person she meets in the Wasteland, tries to rob her, kill her or worse.
The cinematography for “Fallout” is just super freaking fun to watch, especially due to its retro-futuristic theme, which is vividly brought to life in each frame. So a scene will have a talking robot who can perform medical operations, while the humans watch black-and-white movies via DVDs on analog TVs. The actions scenes are a total blast for action fans, with savage scenes popping out unexpectedly throughout the episodes. The violent sequences have a video-game like touch to them, the special effects team has pulled out all stops for this series. “The yesteryear music, spanning from jazz and blues to early rock and roll, hilariously clashes with the scenes, adding an extra dose of whimsy to the overall atmosphere.
What “Fallout” does best is tie up all its primary characters’ paths and histories with each other in a twisted way. The Ghoul’s connection with the vaults is darkly hilarious at first glance but also somewhat tragic in retrospect. While the primary focus is on Lucy’s misadventures on the surface, another sub-plot focuses on the life in vault 33 post the ghastly attack and her brother Norm MacLean’s (Moises Arias) private investigation into how the raiders where able to get into their high-security underground dwelling. Moises Arias’ Norm shows immense character growth in the series, from starting out as a coward who hides in the bushes when his near and dear ones are getting massacred, he displays significant courage, grit and intelligence in finding out how/why vault 33 was compromised.
“Fallout” is filled to the brim with wit, dark humor, violence, morally gray-and-black characters, it’s everything you’d expect from a post-apocalyptic tale, and more! The season finale of episode eight delivers a few more twists, including the onset of a war, leaving viewers with plenty to anticipate from this franchise. I thoroughly enjoyed this series!
You can watch “Fallout” on Prime Video.
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