I haven't played Fallout, but I'm fairly familiar with the lore, and my brother is a HUGE fan, so I've absorbed some of it. To me, Fallout feels like a special franchise with a lot of cool ideas.. I went into Fallout expecting the worst given that it's a 2020s era adaptation AND a streaming show (this time, on Amazon Prime).
I'm happy to say this thing really won me over. It took an episode or two, but man, I left this first season of Fallout feeling like this was quite possibly the best video game adaptation ever made. It actually makes me optimistic for the future of adaptation; if more movies and shows could do what Fallout did, I don't think audiences would be (as) miffed. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Fallout is so good that it almost seems effortless. Not only is the world building absolutely excellent, with the show drip feeding information at a perfect pace, but it LOOKS awesome too. Multiple times while watching this I jokingly said, "this place would be perfect for the Amazonworld theme park that's inevitably in the works." That's how good so many of these sets were.
The show is excellently paced; it doesn't feel like it's dragging its feet and while it's fairly obvious what the final episode will entail, Fallout manages to keep things fresh and exciting, going in directions I didn't expect. There's about four major storylines and they all intersect from time to time, in a logical and fun way that I felt was a masterclass in storytelling.
It also nailed its tone and never wavered from it, even when it got more intense and dramatic towards the end. It's overall a very funny show that doesn't take itself too seriously, but when it does, it really hits. I think it deftly manages comedy, horror, drama, and suspense really, really well and kept me engaged the entire time.
The characters are also great here, buoyed by some really great performances. Walter Goggins as The Ghoul is undoubtedly the show stopper of the season. He manages to be intimidating, but not comically, and a cold, brutal man who still want to see succeed. I love how by the end of the season, he's not changed all that much, but the context about him has and that makes you, the audience, see him in a new light.
Ella Purnell is also FANTASTIC as Lucy. I'd only seen her in Zach Snyder's Army of the Dead in a truly hilarious role, so I didn't have high expectations. But she's such a perfect and effective protagonist, with her naivety leading to some of the show's best moments. She grows a lot through the course of the show, yet, similar to The Ghoul, still retains what makes her the character we came to love. I also really liked Aaron Moten as Maximus; he has a nervous energy that I felt worked very well. He can be competent and capable, but not so much so where it feels alienating. He really is the closest to a "normal" person we meet the entire show, which might not be the highest praise, but I was always rooting for him.
There are just so many great choices in this series. I love how each of the three protagonists represents something about humanity: Moten's Maximus the well meaning everyman who, like most of us, will do bad things if it means survival. The Ghoul represents humanity lost, and the result when pure self-interest and cynicism take over. And Lucy idealism and civility; tested, of course, but still there at the end of the day.
Then there's the litany of fantastic side characters and bit roles; the amazing 50s aesthetic and music, the compelling mystery and oh, I didn't even mention Moises Arias and his excellent arc and character, Norm. (After the first episode, I kinda hoped that was the last we'd seen of the vaults, but man, they were some of the best stuff from this season) The whole mini story in Vault 4 was phenomenal; it's was a masterclass in foreshadowing and exploring theme, whilst giving us some hilarious moments and great relationship building for Lucy and Maximus.
As for complaints, I do think some of the CG is a bit shody. I didn't love how the Knights of the Brothers of Steel looked and there some moments of rubbery, ugly CG that took me out of the show. I didn't love Maximus's storyline by itself, but I found it left A LOT of room for more in the future.
Yeah, watch this thing. Just watch it. It's excellent. It won me over, and it makes me want to play the games. What higher praise for a video game adaptation is there?
I'm happy to say this thing really won me over. It took an episode or two, but man, I left this first season of Fallout feeling like this was quite possibly the best video game adaptation ever made. It actually makes me optimistic for the future of adaptation; if more movies and shows could do what Fallout did, I don't think audiences would be (as) miffed. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Fallout is so good that it almost seems effortless. Not only is the world building absolutely excellent, with the show drip feeding information at a perfect pace, but it LOOKS awesome too. Multiple times while watching this I jokingly said, "this place would be perfect for the Amazonworld theme park that's inevitably in the works." That's how good so many of these sets were.
The show is excellently paced; it doesn't feel like it's dragging its feet and while it's fairly obvious what the final episode will entail, Fallout manages to keep things fresh and exciting, going in directions I didn't expect. There's about four major storylines and they all intersect from time to time, in a logical and fun way that I felt was a masterclass in storytelling.
It also nailed its tone and never wavered from it, even when it got more intense and dramatic towards the end. It's overall a very funny show that doesn't take itself too seriously, but when it does, it really hits. I think it deftly manages comedy, horror, drama, and suspense really, really well and kept me engaged the entire time.
The characters are also great here, buoyed by some really great performances. Walter Goggins as The Ghoul is undoubtedly the show stopper of the season. He manages to be intimidating, but not comically, and a cold, brutal man who still want to see succeed. I love how by the end of the season, he's not changed all that much, but the context about him has and that makes you, the audience, see him in a new light.
Ella Purnell is also FANTASTIC as Lucy. I'd only seen her in Zach Snyder's Army of the Dead in a truly hilarious role, so I didn't have high expectations. But she's such a perfect and effective protagonist, with her naivety leading to some of the show's best moments. She grows a lot through the course of the show, yet, similar to The Ghoul, still retains what makes her the character we came to love. I also really liked Aaron Moten as Maximus; he has a nervous energy that I felt worked very well. He can be competent and capable, but not so much so where it feels alienating. He really is the closest to a "normal" person we meet the entire show, which might not be the highest praise, but I was always rooting for him.
There are just so many great choices in this series. I love how each of the three protagonists represents something about humanity: Moten's Maximus the well meaning everyman who, like most of us, will do bad things if it means survival. The Ghoul represents humanity lost, and the result when pure self-interest and cynicism take over. And Lucy idealism and civility; tested, of course, but still there at the end of the day.
Then there's the litany of fantastic side characters and bit roles; the amazing 50s aesthetic and music, the compelling mystery and oh, I didn't even mention Moises Arias and his excellent arc and character, Norm. (After the first episode, I kinda hoped that was the last we'd seen of the vaults, but man, they were some of the best stuff from this season) The whole mini story in Vault 4 was phenomenal; it's was a masterclass in foreshadowing and exploring theme, whilst giving us some hilarious moments and great relationship building for Lucy and Maximus.
As for complaints, I do think some of the CG is a bit shody. I didn't love how the Knights of the Brothers of Steel looked and there some moments of rubbery, ugly CG that took me out of the show. I didn't love Maximus's storyline by itself, but I found it left A LOT of room for more in the future.
Yeah, watch this thing. Just watch it. It's excellent. It won me over, and it makes me want to play the games. What higher praise for a video game adaptation is there?