Thumbnail Credit: Inkl

By Carissa Leong, intern

Amazon Prime Video’s newest hit is Fallout, an adaptation of the popular post-apocalyptic video game series. Joining the ranks of hit adaptations such as HBO’s The Last of Us and Netflix’s Arcane, Fallout was lovingly crafted by fans as filmmakers, creating an absorbing world that stays true to the aesthetic of the games while expanding on the lore in its own self-enclosed, well-woven story that culminates in a rewarding finale.

Delving into the plot, Fallout revolves around the storylines of three characters. Lucy (Ella Purnell) is a positive, all-American vault dweller who exists with the sole belief that her purpose is to help repopulate the Earth following nuclear disaster. Maximus (Aaron Moten) is an aspiring member of the Brotherhood of Steel, a military organization that accumulates post-War technology, after they rescued him from the ruins of a bombing when he was a child. And The Ghoul (Walton Goggins) is ravaged by radiation and has survived as a ruthless bounty hunter in the wasteland, stifling his shrouded past.

Set in Los Angeles, the series takes place two hundred years after The Great War, a global thermonuclear war between China and the United States in 2077. It’s retrofuturistic, mashing the 1950s aesthetic from the peak of America’s fear of the Cold War and Communism with the destruction of nuclear fallout, which is especially enhanced by a nostalgic soundtrack. Interspersed with bleak, black humor situations and dialogue; dynamic, gory action sequences; and characters all across the spectrum of morality, the show’s atmosphere is easy to like.

Following a marriage between members of different vaults gone wrong, Lucy ventures out into the wasteland in pursuit of her father, Hank (Kyle MacLachlan) who had been kidnapped by the leader of raiders Moldaver (Sarita Choudhury). Out there, every faction including the Brotherhood of Steel and independent forces like The Ghoul are tracking a scientist who supposedly has the key to controlling the future of the wasteland, and it’s something that Lucy pursues so she can bargain with Moldaver for her father. In her absence, her brother Norm (Moises Arias) begins to uncover the sinister origins of Vault-Tec, the company behind the vaults that they live in, and he starts questioning the legitimacy of the entire life that they lived.

Throughout the series, Lucy is an extremely strong protagonist whose naivete and positivity becomes exposed to the wasteland. Instead of breaking her, she adapts to its brutality and can always do what’s needed to stand up for herself yet ultimately remains true to her morals. In contrast, Maximus isn’t the easiest to like, but it’s understandable to see why he’s the way he is, as he was a child drawn directly into a military organization, thus retaining some childish mentality. The Ghoul is among the most interesting of characters, the villain but not completely, and it’s investing as we unravel his past and when we catch a glimpse of humanity behind his ruthlessness. And CX404, the dog companion in a role consistent with the video games, undoubtedly brightens every scene she’s in.

Though a blasted environment of irradiated sand, the wasteland in Fallout feels well-lived. The desert is full of random encounters that feel like the games with a mixture of surviving loners or people loyal to various factions, all with an equally lacking sense of trustworthiness. As Lucy gets to know the wasteland, she gets to know its people, and it’s jarring to think of how their long lives can be so different from her limited perception of society and the world.

Apocalyptic media always operates as insightful commentary on the lengths that humanity would go to survive. Of note, what people are driven to do–because everyone loses their humanity when their other option is dying–only pales in comparison to those at the top of the food chain with their vantage of power. Right through the finale, Fallout operates as a keen critique on capitalism and lends suspicion to any promise of utopia offered in the midst of devastation.

Ultimately, Fallout is among the ranks of the best video game adaptations and is a worthwhile series to invest time in. Riddled with call-backs to the games, the series stays true to its tone, accompanied by likable characters and a tense plot that lends itself toward a second season with leagues of lore to keep building on in the future. This journey across the post-apocalypse is among the must-watch releases of 2024 and its success speaks to the possibility of other sci-fi/fantasy adaptations such as Bethesda’s Elder Scrolls series and even the popular online push for the Mass Effect trilogy to find further success in television.