🔗 Share this article

The Fallout TV show has come back to Prime Video, and it's safe to say that viewers were agreeably astonished by the quality of its initial run. By depicting the atomic-age, nuclear-ravaged United States through the eyes of three different characters, it managed to capture various facets of the player's adventure.

There was vault-dweller Lucy, striving to uphold her morals and finding that the barren landscape made that exceptionally challenging; Max, the militant faction new recruit, who begins to question his faction's leadership and unleashes a lot of havoc in mechanized battle suit; and Walton Goggins's character, a standout performance who has long since lost any moral compass out in the contaminated wastes.

Building Anticipation for a New Chapter

The show's first season finale disclosed key information about the culprits behind the global annihilation that condemned a group of people in underground vaults for centuries. It also raised plenty of questions open for the upcoming chapter – and, this time, hopes are much greater.

“We'd gladly accept ‘not terrible’ – let’s get that on a poster,” quips one of the series creators.

“Heading into the initial season, everyone’s like, ‘Just don't mess it up’,” states a key figure from the games. “We’re over the moon with the feedback to the show, so this time people are arriving with more excitement and altered expectations.”

The Mojave Beckons for Season Two

The second season is set in New Vegas, the location of the 2010’s game Fallout: New Vegas, which is often praised for having the sharpest dialogue and characters in the franchise, despite the fact that it was a bit broken at launch.

“It has a desert vibe, a Southwestern essence, that’s so integral to that game,” notes the co-creator. “That dusty, desolate Route 66 aesthetic of the game is so much fun to incorporate into the show.”

In the series narrative, a considerable period has passed since the events of the New Vegas game by the time the characters arrive there. Nevertheless, the creators indicate that it does reference the fan's adventure.

The Importance of Physical Sets

The Fallout TV series is notable for its physical authenticity – its production team ensured real props and sets were constructed, echoing the improvised nature of the outposts in the games.

“As a sci-fi fan, so many productions I watch, I’m aware that they’re all filmed against a green screen,” says another of the showrunners. “The whole point of an translation, especially of a interactive medium, is to feel like it’s real.”

Indeed, virtually everything you see on-screen is real, even the legendarily scary radioactive creatures known as Deathclaws. In the show, they are brought to life with animatronics, and were apparently pretty frightening up close.

Made by Fans, for Fans

The Fallout series succeeds because it is crafted by talented film-makers who are also longtime fans, with the help of the game developers behind the franchise. This shared passion for the lore is clear in the finished show.

The second season is being released on a episode-by-episode basis rather than as a binge-able batch, representing a shift from the previous season. This format will foster a different weekly discussion, something the showrunners themselves are eager to engage with.

“It's richer, it’s bigger, it’s funnier, it has a lot of surprises,” teases Howard. “I can't wait to seeing what people think.”