Exploring the Fallout Universe, the Gaming World’s Most Surprising Television Success
The Fallout TV show has made a triumphant return to streaming services, and it's accurate to state that fans were pleasantly surprised by the quality of its first season. By depicting the retro-futuristic, nuclear-ravaged United States through the lenses of three separate characters, it effectively portrayed multiple facets of the gamer's journey.
We followed Lucy the vault dweller, striving to do the right thing and learning that the wasteland made that incredibly hard; Max, the Brotherhood of Steel rookie, who starts doubting his cult's dogma and unleashes a lot of havoc in robotic power armour; and Walton Goggins's character, a fan-favorite figure who has completely shed any sense of morality out in the irradiated badlands.
Building Anticipation for the Second Season
The show's first season finale disclosed a major secret about the culprits behind the global annihilation that condemned a population in bomb-proof bunkers for hundreds of years. It also raised plenty of questions unanswered for the next installment – and, this time, hopes are significantly higher.
“We’ll take ‘pretty good’ – let’s get that on a poster,” remarks Jonah Nolan.
“Heading into the initial season, people were 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 bringing more eagerness and new expectations.”
The Mojave Beckons for Season Two
The second season is set in New Vegas, the location of the beloved game Fallout: New Vegas, which is widely regarded for having the most compelling narratives and personalities in the franchise, even if it was technically flawed at launch.
“It embodies a arid atmosphere, a Southwestern essence, that’s so essential to that game,” explains the co-creator. “That dusty, blasted-out Route 66 vibe of the game is so much rewarding to incorporate into the show.”
In the series narrative, a significant amount of time has passed since the events of the New Vegas game by the time the characters make their way there. Yet, the creators suggest that it does reference the player’s journey.
Crafting a Tangible World
The Fallout TV series is notable for its tactile feel – its production team prioritized authentic items and sets were constructed, echoing the makeshift nature of the outposts in the games.
“As a sci-fi fan, so many shows I watch, I’m aware that they’re all standing in front of a green screen,” says another of the showrunners. “The key objective of an adaptation, particularly of a video game, is to appear as if it’s real.”
In fact, almost every element you see on-screen is physical, including the infamously terrifying mutated beasts known as Deathclaws. In the show, they are brought to life with puppets, and were by all accounts rather intimidating up close.
A Labor of Love
The Fallout series works because it is made by talented film-makers who are also dedicated players, alongside the visionaries behind the video games. This common understanding for the world is clear in the finished show.
The second season is launching on a episode-by-episode basis rather than as a binge-able batch, marking a change from the initial release. This schedule will create a altered audience reaction, something the team themselves are looking forward to witness.
“It's richer, it’s bigger, it’s more humorous, it has a lot of revelations,” says Howard. “I am excited to seeing what people think.”