Fans of the Fallout video game franchise have responded positively to the adaptation of their beloved characters and world into a TV series, and the success of the show has unsurprisingly meant a desire for more. Like other such properties like The Last of Us, a particular viewer’s enjoyment of this show – and the potential for disappointment – will be enhanced considerably by a familiarity with preexisting characters and storylines. Fortunately, while its universe is clearly so expansive that this show hasn’t even begun to touch on a significant portion of it, there’s so much to it that is wildly appealing and enthralling that anyone watching should find it nearly impossible to stop or even to look away.
Among the welcome enhancements in season two, building off an already strong first outing, is the pairing of the lead characters. Lucy (Ella Purnell) and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins) couldn’t be any more different, and it’s great fun to see them team up and spend so much time together. The Ghoul can’t stand Lucy’s do-gooder attitude, which has somehow survived her transition from the safe space of a carefree vault to a truly terrible world with many bloodthirsty, despicable people willing to kill for very little, and he’s barely able to tolerate her plucky tendency to shoot those shooting at them in non-fatal areas. Lucy gets to go a bit out of her comfort zone as well, and audiences are treated to plentiful flashbacks that reveal The Ghoul’s past as movie star Cooper Howard which continues to make him more sympathetic.
While those two do get to share many scenes, the rest of the show isn’t quite as cohesive, but there’s still much to appreciate about the distinctly separate storylines. After an enticing tease of an appearance in the pilot episode, Lucy’s father Hank (Kyle MacLachlan) was largely absent from the rest of the season, but he’s back in full force in season two. MacLachlan has a unique talent for making his oddness disarmingly charming, and as he did to a lesser extent in his recurring arc on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., he leans into the joy of being a bad guy and holding himself to high standards in his presentation and pursuit of his lofty goals. More MacLachlan is always better, and this show delivers a major showcase of the actor this season.
Arcs involving Maximus (Aaron Moten) trying to find his place on the right side of things and Norm (Moisés Arias) struggling to survive life in the vault are worthwhile and interesting, and the true comedic highlight of the season is the power trip that vault resident Reg (Rodrigo Luzzi) goes on as he’s allotted an impressive snack budget for a support group for the children of inbreeding, a startlingly large and opinionated percentage of the population. The addition of noteworthy actors like Justin Theroux, Kumail Nanjiani, and Macaulay Culkin to the cast are best experienced without any previous knowledge of who they play.
Since this show is sure to continue for a long time given its popularity and marketability, it does sometime feel as if it doesn’t have any one particular destination in mind, and that certain plot points might remain dormant and unexplored for a considerable amount of time before being eventually revisited episodes or seasons down the line. But because it’s such a staggeringly impressive visual feat and a true delight to watch, a sense of endlessness isn’t actually a demerit. There are those who might find things about this show and its world off-putting (Lucy’s unfortunate purchase of a bowl of “flea soup” that involves the seller shaking her infested hair into the bowl is one such moment), but everyone behind this show knows that it’s not trying to target them. Those who sign up for Fallout are fully on board for the ride and will not find this latest rollercoaster lacking.
Season Rating: 8/10
