Starring: Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten and Walton Goggins
Rated: TV-MA
Runtime: 475 minutes
Amazon
TV Show Score: 4 out of 5 Stars
4K Score: 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Imagine an alternate reality where humanity doubled down on nuclear, where the Atomic Age never left us. Cars, appliances, helper robots and everything in life was powered by nuclear energy. Now imagine that the bombs did fall. Not only is that the world of “Fallout,” but “Fallout” takes place hundreds of years after thermonuclear war. The remnants of society live in an absolute wasteland, permeated with grotesque creatures, factions of humanity, and a chance of death at every twist and turn. But underneath all that are the Vaults.
The TV show “Fallout” not only takes the skeleton of the game’s lore, but takes us on a journey with Lucy Maclean (Ella Purnell), a vault dweller. These vault dwellers believe that one day they will go to the surface to help repopulate and make society in their Democratic, utopian vision. Only problem, the stink, corruption and evil of the wasteland above can’t stay outside those vault doors forever. The first episode of the Amazon TV show has a group of Raiders not only come in and nearly commit genocide on the tiny Vault enclave, but they take Lucy’s dad alive, leaving a mystery for her to solve in the world above as she seeks to rescue.
Parallel along this journey is Norm Maclean (Moises Arias), Lucy’s brother. He’s left to pick up the pieces of a devastated vault, but must uncover an even worse secret that the attack has exposed. Then there’s Maximus (Aaron Moten), a grunt in the Brotherhood of Steel, a paramilitary organization that is trying to rule and control the wasteland through violence. There’s also the Ghoul, played by Walton Goggins. This irradiated creature used to be human, but now roams the wasteland as a bounty hunter.
Each episode reveals another layer and set piece to this world gone mad. Every character is interesting in their own right, which makes their time apart just as interesting as when their storylines collide. If there is one complaint I have about the first season of this Amazon show, is that it spends a bit too much time setting everything up and teasing its end of the season reveal. In a lot of ways, it plays more like a prologue than an opening shot in a war torn world.
It has the issue that the first season of “Twisted Metal” had; it’s a fine adaptation, but it makes you yearn for more and finally flirts with you about that yearning in it’s waning moments. With the second season just months away at the time of this writing (December 2025), now is a good time to catch up on this dense, yet fun, wild, darkly comedic world.
4K Features
Commentary: For those looking to get some in-depth analysis of the show, or simply some fun banter, the commentary is up your alley.
Animated Content: Vault-Tec executive Bud Askins, a character in the show, gives you a step-by-step walkthrough on what really matters to the corporate overlords at Vault-Tec.
Becoming the Ghoul: Easily my favorite feature because we get hear from Goggins himself. He breaks down his performance.
Console to Camera: If you were curious about what went behind adapting the highly popular video game, this feature is for you.
Creating the Wasteland: The VFX team shows the digital and practical ways they brought the Fallout world to life.
Inside Season One: This is a bit of a generic behind-the-scenes making of the tV show’s first season.
Meet the Filmmaker (and fanatic) Jonathan Nolan: I wish this feature was a little bit longer, but I enjoyed what little I got from Nolan.
Prosthetics & Makeup Gone Nuclear: This is easily a feature that could have gone hand-in-hand with Goggins, but we get a look at more than just the Ghoul when it comes to the creatures, blood and guts in this show.
Safe and Proud: The music of the show didn’t necessarily stick out to me as much as the video game soundtrack, so I wasn’t as interested in this feature.
Set Your Sets on 2296: This is another feature that could have gone with another feature, such as the VFX or Nolan’s, but I suppose Amazon needed to pad things out a bit.
The Costumes of Fallout: Costumes aren’t necessarily interesting to me, but for those who are curious, this is an adequate feature.
Welcome to the World of Fallout: The third (but who’s counting) feature on this 4K release that could have been lumped in with another or even absorbed another.
Writing for the Wasteland: I really wish this feature was longer, but I do enjoy hearing about the creative process behind “Fallout.”