Fallout (Amazon Prime) (1 Viewer)

[Walter Kittel]

It was also used in the intro to Fallout 3.

It has been way too many years since I played F03 (on Xbox 360). I have forgotten a lot of that game, although I still recall some things (such as how creepy the darkened subways were in that game.)

- Walter.

 

[Philip Verdieck]

The ‘Fallout’ TV Series Isn’t Trying ‘To Please The Fans’ According To Jonathan Nolan

Jonathan Nolan isn't trying to please any fans other than himself. But at least he's a fan of the games.

www.forbes.com

At the end of the video it says all eps released on 4/11

Edit: the video was posted on 3/7

 

[joshEH]

 

[joshEH]

 

[Philip Verdieck]

Early Release of Series!!!

‘Fallout’ Series Gets New Release Date on Prime Video

Prime Video has announced that the 'Fallout' series adaptation will premiere on April 10 at 6 p.m. PT.

variety.com

Tonight at 18:00 PST/15:00 EST

 

[Philip Verdieck]

Second Season Greenlighted?

Amazon’s ‘Fallout’ to Film Second Season in California With $25 Million Tax Credit

Amazon will move 'Fallout' to California for its second season, thanks to $25 million from the state's tax incentive program.

variety.com

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Just finished watching the pilot, which was directed by Jonathan Nolan. It really nailed the aesthetic and tone of the franchise.

Ella Purnell is a plucky delight as our vault-dwelling protagonist Lucy. When we meet her, she is the very model of what a young woman of the 1950s should be, with the addition of a handful of useful extracurricular activities. Kyle MacLachlan is very much in Dale Cooper territory as her father, the longtime dedicated leader of Vault 33. Moisés Arias is withdrawn but perceptive as Lucy's brother Norm, half a foot shorter than her and seemingly also metaphorically in her shadow.

Walton Goggins is terrific in a dual role, as a b-list celebrity before the bombs fell and the ghoulish gunslinger he has become in the centuries since.

We get glimpses of the alternate history of this universe, with the drawing of the canton of the American flag on the classroom chalkboard reflecting the thirteen commonwealths rather than the fifty states and the televisions of 2077 sleeker versions of the black and white cathode ray tube televisions of the fifties. The history of the Fallout universe and our history are pretty much the same (with some largely inconsequential differences) through VJ Day in 1945. But after that, technology and culture advanced in a very different direction. Nolan described the post-war America of the Fallout universe to GameSpot as follows:

"The world of America in the games is that exceptional America, the kind of Eisenhower era of America that never had a Watergate, never had a Vietnam, never had a Woodstock ... It never had a conversation with itself about its own sins and transgressions and just kind of blustered forward through another American century--another 100 years of this swagger in America that then comes to a grisly end."

The 2077 of the Fallout universe is more akin to what space age science fiction imagined that the future would be, instead of how it has actually played out. The transistor isn't invented until well into the 21st century, but robots are commonplace in government agencies, private corporations, and upper middle class households. Atomic energy is far more advanced, in response to a prolonged energy crisis in a world that never invented fracking.

The video games covered the following geographic regions and time periods:

• Fallout: Southern California in the year 2161 (84 years after the bombs), protagonist from Vault 13
• Fallout 2: Oregon in the year 2241 (164 years after the bombs), grandchild of protagonist from first game
• Fallout 3: Washington, D.C. in the year 2277 (200 years after the bombs), protagonist from Vault 101
• Fallout: New Vegas: Mojave Desert in the year 2281 (204 years after the bombs), protagonist a Mojave Express courier
• Fallout 4: Boston, Massachusetts in the year 2287 (210 years after the bombs), protagonist from Vault 111
• Fallout 76: West Virginia in the year 2102 (25 years after the bombs), protagonists from Vault 76.

The pilot is primarily set in Los Angeles in the year 2296, 219 years after the bombs and nearly a decade after the events of Fallout 4. Already, the Brotherhood of Steel feature prominently while the Enclave gets a mention.

 

[joshEH]

^ Also, Fallout 2 covers northern Nevada (New Reno), plus you can return to southern California and revisit several locations from Fallout 1 (including Vault 13).

 

[Philip Verdieck]

^ Also, Fallout 2 covers northern Nevada (New Reno), plus you can return to southern California and revisit several locations from Fallout 1 (including Vault 13).

Fallout2 takes place in CA (San Francisco, Navarro) as much as NV and OR.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x02 - "The Target"
This episode felt very much like the start of a Fallout game, with the protagonist wandering around aimlessly in the wasteland until she came across a fortified settlement with opportunities for trade and commerce. Filly reminded me a lot of Megaton in the Capital Wasteland of Fallout 3.

The violence is interesting, in that it is somehow both cartoonish and extremely gory.

All of our main characters are now more or less familiar with one another, and Lucy's mission puts her at odds with both Maximus and the Ghoul.

The bulky crashed Soviet satellite was another fun bit of worldbuilding. In the Fallout timeline, the Soviet Union didn't collapse in the early nineties, surviving all the way until the bombs. But the China of the Fallout timeline experienced a similar economic miracle to our timeline and had eclipsed the USSR as the United States's main political, military, and economic rival on the world's stage by the early 21st century.

The final beat of this episode radically changed my assumptions of where this season is headed.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Viewed episode one earlier today, the oddly and yet appropriately named episode "The End".

The first thing that jumped out at me was how well the tone and aesthetic of the game was captured (as Adam mentioned in his post about the premiere). There were so many callbacks to the game that just really enhanced my immersion in episode one. Fallout has always kind of been an unusual mix of advanced and retrograde technology combined with a kitsch sensibility with regards to the design of the everyday objects that comprise the environment of the vaults. The show captured this perfectly.

I really enjoyed the first episode and liked the idea of the various elements of this world being introduced. In the game Fallout 4 (at least until you get to Nuka World) the raiders are just so much fodder to be dispatched, so I will be curious to see how the series develops that faction; as clearly the leader of the one of the raider gangs, Moldaver, is a known entity and not just a faceless antagonist.

I enjoyed the casting of the series, and was pleased with all of the roles established in the premiere. Walton Goggins was probably the standout in some ways with both his pre and post roles in episode one. The pre segment really captured the feeling of the game prior to the bombs dropping. Ella Purnell was very effective as one of the series' protagonists and I really enjoyed her performance. (I found her name to be momentarily distracting, but perhaps the writers are trying to communicate that she will be as resourceful and determined as the father of the character whose name she carries.)

Very enjoyable first episode with props to the costuming, set and production designers.

- Walter.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x03 - "The Head"
In the past, we learn how Cooper Howard became the face of Vault-Tec. In the present, Lucy struggles to survive in the wasteland, while Maximus adapts to his new circumstances.

“The wasteland has its own golden rule. Thou shalt get sidetracked by bullshit every goddamn time.”

Ain't that the truth.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x04 - "The Ghouls"
Lucy discovers what it takes to survive in the wasteland, and must decide which of her values she will refuse to give up on. Her brother Norm investigates the mysteries of Vault 32, which leads him to an even bigger mystery.

This was the first episode not directed by Jonathan Nolan, and the first not written by the showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet & Graham Wagner. While episodes 3 and 4 didn't take the big swings of episodes 1 and 2, I can't say that I've noticed a drop in quality.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x05 - "The Past"
Lucy learns that history repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. Maximus's motivations become more clear. Norm begins to suspect that Vault 31 holds an insidious secret, as Vault 33's new overseer announces ambitious plans for Vault 32.

Really enjoying the worldbuilding, and how we're getting information about things that we only got bits and pieces of in the games. In the original Fallout, Shady Sands was a small fenced-in settlement with a handful of buildings, and some modest agriculture. In the years between that game and this series, it grew into a metropolis that in turn faced the same fate as the cities destroyed in the Great War.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x06 - "The Trap"
As Lucy grows increasingly uneasy with their new hosts, Maximus enjoys the comforts of civilization. Meanwhile, the Ghoul encounters an unexpected blast from the past.

The flashbacks to Cooper Howard's time as Vault-Tec spokesman provide insights into the looming doomsday:

Spoiler: 1x06

Anyone who's played the games knows that all vaults weren't created equal, and that quite a few were used to conduct experiments. But I don't think it was ever laid out so clearly the degree to which crony capitalism was the cause of the Great War of 2077. Vault-Tec in the world of Fallout makes Amazon looking like small peanuts. But like any corporation, it has a fiduciary responsibility to maximize value for its shareholders. To do that, it needs to keep selling vault residences. And to do that, it needs to keep the American public terrified about the end of the world. And so it actively lobbies against peace talks to defuse tensions, because international tensions are good for business. And over time, the government of the United States gets weaker and weaker and the executives of Vault-Tec get more and more powerful.

Chilling stuff. And the ongoing dispute between Howard, who believes that the American ideals he fought for in Alaska should mean something, and his wife, who takes the pragmatic stance that it's better to be on the inside looking out than the outside looking in, hint at why he had to worry about alimony payments when the bombs fell in 2077.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x07 - "The Radio"
Thaddeus has a fateful encounter with a snake oil salesman. Lucy and Maximus lay their cards on the table, and decide what kind of people they want to be. The Ghoul follows a lead, with deadly repercussions. Norm lets his curiosity get the better of him.

Spoiler: 1x07

Didn't expect Fred Armisen to pop up as the DJ of the radio station for the Los Angeles wasteland, who plays only fiddle music and violently confronts the critics of his taste in music.

Leslie Uggams has had a phenomenal career, but this might be my favorite role of hers yet. She imbues Betty with ironclad self-control and quiet menace.

The alternate history of the Fallout universe involves some pretty specific rules. Pre-war monuments like the Griffith Observatory exist in the Fallout universe too, while post-war landmarks like the Capitol Records building do not.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

1x08 - "The Beginning"
In the past, Cooper Howard learns the truth about Vault-Tec's expansion plans. In the present, Norm discovers the truth about Vault 31 while Lucy discovers the truth about her father's kidnapping. Allegiances are tested, and new quests begin.

Spoiler: 1x08

This did a good job of resolving the season-long arcs, while laying the groundwork for an even more intense and engaging second season. It looks like we're headed back to New Vegas, which should be fun.

I didn't expect so many answers about Vault-Tec and the origins of the Great War. In the games, the devastation of the world is a simple fact of existence and mostly unquestioned in day to day scramble for survival.

But many of our characters this season are intimately involved in the events and decisions that led to the Great War, and the struggle for what has come after it. The season as a whole amounts to a repudiation of Ayn Rand's romantic view of titans of industry as heroic beings, and their productive achievement as the noblest of activities. The executives of Vault-Tec are smart enough and driven enough to achieve their goals, but foolish enough not to see the utter insanity of what they are pursuing.

At the same time, the show is not entirely bleak. Vault 4 was one of the more fucked up experiments conducted by Vault-Tec and its corporate partners, but the survivors of those experiments transformed it into something decent and noble. Shady Sands, before Hank nuked it, was proof of the irrepressible human spirit.

And Vault-Tec might actually be easier to stop now than it was before the bombs. Before the bombs, it was a vast international conglomerate with operations across the country and the globe. Cut off one head, and others will rise to take their place. But now, Vault-Tec is just several dozen executives who have survived through stasis or other means, in a finite number of locations protected from the ruination that they unleashed.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

I've never played any Fallout games before, but have been enjoying this series immensely. Terrific world building, the violence and gore balanced by generally effective pitch-black humor, plenty of action and some intriguing mysteries sprinkled here and there.

So far, it's a lot of fun and one wild ride. Halfway through now, four more episodes to go. Trying to savor it, as we're not likely to get S2 for quite a while.

 

[Philip Verdieck]

This series was everything I wanted and a bit more. It was virtually an immaculate adaptation.

They nailed the feel and aesthetic of the game. The callbacks and elements of the old game (foods/magazines/terminal interface) which players/fans recognize were done with a deft subtle touch which didn't bog down new viewers. They perfectly nailed the stylized violence of the game.

The plot was very well written and furthers the lore of the game. While at first I thought the interconnected vaults was a non-canon misstep, it fits in perfectly, once you know what is going on. The only thing I could point as being wrong is the flight ability of the power armor and shady sands looking like a nuked modern city.

 

[Philip Verdieck]

1x05 - "The Past"
Lucy learns that history repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. Maximus's motivations become more clear. Norm begins to suspect that Vault 31 holds an insidious secret, as Vault 33's new overseer announces ambitious plans for Vault 32.

Really enjoying the worldbuilding, and how we're getting information about things that we only got bits and pieces of in the games. In the original Fallout, Shady Sands was a small fenced-in settlement with a handful of buildings, and some modest agriculture. In the years between that game and this series, it grew into a metropolis that in turn faced the same fate as the cities destroyed in the Great War.

Yeah, I think the screwed that up.

It was implied it became a city with skyscrapers given the blast point and the surrounding buildings

They screwed that up. They couldn't have been pre-war buildings because Shady Sands was in the middle of nowhere, not created in an old metropolis. In 3 generations (Vault Dweller -> Vault Dweller grandchild) the difference between Shady Sands was size (one map -> 4 maps) and nothing exceeding a couple stories or build out of anything more than bricks and stone (and other low tech building materials).

No where in the Fallout games are any places building old world buildings like that. Its really impossible given the full redevelopment of the tech base required (smelting steel in foundries/creation of construction materials/heavy construction equipment/sub surface foundations/et al.) You could postulate that if they had an army of robots they could do more, but its still not really feasible. At no point in the games are the survivors/surface dwellers capable of recreating the old tech base, but instead limited to utilizing surviving facilities. The most advanced was the Institute in F4, but they never lost their facilities. All other locations were surviving outposts that had an inventory of pre Great War tech.

_______


I loved the usage of the same songs from F3. I imagine they will use some of the western songs form FNV in S2 given where we heading (for at least parts of the story).