🔗 Share this article

The Fallout TV show has come back to its platform, and it's safe to say that audiences were delightfully shocked by the caliber of its initial run. By portraying the retro-futuristic, post-apocalyptic United States through the eyes of three different characters, it managed to capture various facets of the player's experience.

We followed vault-dweller Lucy, striving to uphold her morals and learning that the wasteland made that very difficult; Brotherhood initiate Max, the Brotherhood of Steel new recruit, who begins to question his faction's authority and causes a lot of havoc in powered exoskeleton; and the Ghoul, a fan-favorite figure who has completely shed any moral compass out in the irradiated wastes.

Setting the Stage for a New Chapter

The show's first season ending unveiled crucial details about who helped cause the atomic conflict that trapped a group of people in underground vaults for an extended period. It also left several enigmas unresolved for the next installment – and, now, hopes are considerably elevated.

“We’ll take ‘pretty good’ – let’s get that on a poster,” says one of the series creators.

“Starting the initial season, everyone’s like, ‘Just get it right’,” states a key figure from the games. “We’re over the moon with the reception to the show, so now people are arriving with more enthusiasm and different expectations.”

A New Vegas Vibe for Season Two

The new season is located in the neon-lit city, the setting of the 2010’s game Fallout: New Vegas, which is widely regarded for having the most compelling narratives and characters in the franchise, even if it was a bit broken at launch.

“It embodies a desert vibe, a Southwestern essence, that’s so essential to that game,” notes the co-creator. “That dusty, desolate iconic highway aesthetic of the game is so much fun to bring into the show.”

In the show's timeline, a significant amount of time has passed since the events of the New Vegas game by the time the characters make their way there. However, the creators indicate that it does reference the gamer's experience.

Crafting a Tangible World

The Fallout TV series is notable for its tangible quality – its production team ensured real props and sets were constructed, mirroring the improvised nature of the towns in the games.

“Being a genre enthusiast, so many productions I watch, I’m aware that they’re all filmed against a blue screen,” comments another of the showrunners. “The key objective of an translation, especially of a video game, is to seem like it’s authentic.”

In fact, pretty much every element you see on-screen is real, including the notoriously frightening mutated beasts known as the apex predators. In the show, they are brought to life with practical effects, and were apparently quite terrifying up close.

A Labor of Love

The Fallout series resonates because it is developed by skilled directors who are also dedicated players, in collaboration with the original creators behind the source material. This shared passion for the universe is evident in the final product.

The second season is launching on a episode-by-episode basis rather than as a all-at-once release, offering a different experience from the first season. This format will allow for a new weekly discussion, something the showrunners themselves are excited to engage with.

“It has more depth, it’s more expansive, it’s wittier, it has a lot of twists,” promises Howard. “I’m looking forward to seeing what people think.”