TV and film adaptations of video games have always been a sore spot in media. It has become commonplace for most adaptations to fall short of their original material, often leaving fans and non-fans alike disappointed. “Fallout”, released and produced by Amazon Prime, finally feels like a step in the right direction. It is a love letter to the Bethesda developed “Fallout” games it’s based off of, and offers a well-written and well-directed show for anyone.
“Fallout” is a popular video game series and, as the name suggests, it’s all about a post-apocalyptic United States, hundreds of years after the country was ravaged by nuclear warfare. The nation splits down two directions. Many people put their trust in a mysterious company called “Vault-Tec,” opting to hide in self sufficient vaults made all around the states to keep the human race alive centuries after the bombs. Those who didn’t make it to the vaults risked the nuclear wasteland, leaving them to adapt to the new way of life. The games focus on exploration of the wasteland throughout different parts of the US, each of the titles letting you explore a different place, from California to Virginia.
The TV show reflects the sentiment of the “Fallout” games perfectly, while still creating a show anyone can enjoy. It focuses on three characters leading vastly different lives in the post-apocalyptic world. Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) was born and raised in the vault, soon to be hit by a rude awakening by the world above. Maximus (Aaron Moten) was found and taken in at a young age by the Brotherhood of Steel, a group of settlers with a goal to recover and preserve the tech of the pre-bombed world. The Ghoul (Walton Goggins) is a skilled killer, his body mangled and soul hardened by the world. Every character was newly created for the show, all with different and unexplored stories within the “Fallout” universe.
The show is able to balance the devastating impact of a world ravaged by nuclear warfare, with a variety of comedic moments in the light of dark times, perfectly showcasing the two primary aspects of the “Fallout” game. Each protagonist is driven together through the rough and gory life a post apocalyptic wasteland California deals them. Their pasts are connected by the mystery of Vault-Tec and their future is determined by a piece of perplexing technology with a large bounty. Every episode manages to leave suspense and make viewers wonder what is happening behind the scenes, and what twists they will see next.
“Fallout” doesn’t just exemplify its mastery of adapting the games to TV through its excellent direction and writing, but from its visuals too. Each setting feels well crafted and meticulously detailed. The vaults look lived in and aged, the desert of a destroyed city is filled with ruins and rusted materials, and the towns look shabby and deconstructed. Each area feels developed and real, and very close to how the games look. Every person feels detailed too, different props and outfits to fit wherever the other actors are. The world feels infinitely more lived in with each person looking rugged and worn out, everyone scavenging to survive.
“Fallout” takes its settings seriously. While much of the show was filmed in the US, scenes of the desert or the towns out in the wasteland were filmed in Kolmanskop, Namibia, an area on the south Atlantic coast of the African continent. Namibia added the desert wasteland feel, as well as the overgrown tropical areas the show needs to shine like the game did.
The show also reflects the gameplay well. The “Fallout” games have a large focus on gun fights, mutant creatures, and huge mech suits. Frequent, well-stylized gun fights against other wastelanders, huge monsters, or giant suits of armor add to the appeal and excitement of the show.
It is all tied together by the cinematography, providing the perfect look into each scene, showing exactly what needs to be seen, and at the perspective that best fits. Viewers can see the love and effort put into the show, and the strides the production, and visual effects team took to make it faithful to lovers of the game and the newcomers alike.
“Fallout” has broken boundaries in the TV landscape, it shows the correct way to adapt a phenomenal game series into a phenomenal TV series. Each character is fleshed out and interesting, and the script balances intrigue with humor. Every scene feels designed to perfection, and every battle, every moment is well crafted. The direction style, the way it’s filmed, ties each aspect of “”Fallout”” together to provide a fun, crazy outlook on the apocalypse. I thoroughly enjoyed every part of the show, blown away at the scale it took to make it and the effort that was clearly put in, “Fallout” is the easiest five stars I have ever given to a show.