Fallout Season 2 Episode 4 might be one of the most fun episodes of the season so far, like they realy found their groove with mixing humor, action and that weird wasteland chaos that makes the show work so damn well, although it seems many Fallout fans havent like Season 2 as much and I guess its always the same problem where characters do not stick to the lore, but in my opinion as a regular viewer who have never play the games, everything just clicks togeather in a way that keeps you wanting more without feeling like they are trying too hard. Right from the start with that Alaska flashback showing Cooper in busted T45 power armor getting saved by a death claw of all things you know this episode is gonna throw some crazy shit at you and it does not disappoint at all, the entire opening was intense showing Cooper stuck in malfunctioning armor, getting attack by Chinese soldiers who were mocking him about how faulty his gear was and then a death claw shows up and rips them apart before just walking away from Cooper like he wasnt even worth the effort because the death claw did see him but for some reason decided not to attack him. The whole Lucy on buffout thing made me laugh my ass off because finally we get to see her break out of that vault golden rule role and just let loose, shooting up those Elvis gang ghouls like she has been waiting her entire life to pop off, when The Ghoul says "thats them drugs talking ....and I like it", the scene where she goes full Rambo mode with that lever action shotgun while Cocaine Blues plays in the background is probably one of the best action sequences the show has done so far, not necessarily because the action was intense but how everything come together, the shooting, the music, Lucy having a great time, everything works. Sure the drugs are doing the talking but sometimes thats exactly what a character needs to evolve and watching her go full wasteland badass while hopped up on steroids feels earned after three episodes of her trying to be the moral compas in a world that does not give a fuk about morals, she even gives Cooper a thumbs up after shes done unloading on those ghouls.
- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18177528/
- Platform: PRIME VIDEO
Now the part that annoyed me AF and I really though the series was past it, I got to admit it did improve but the Maximus storyline sometimes pulls me back into hating his character because of how weak he is, although got way more interesting with him trying to overthrow Quintis but not being able to go through with killing him, that whole scene really showed how he is stuck between wanting to be good like his father wanted and dealing with the rigid bullshit rules of the Brotherhood, he literally had the guy at gunpoint and just couldnt pull the trigger because deep down Maximus aint a killer unless its absolutely necessary. Then you got Thaddeus pretending to be the Commonwealth envoy while barely being able to walk in power armor and the chaos that follows when everything goes to hell at the meeting, just peak comedy mixed with real stakes as all the Brotherhood elders start stabbing each other and shooting up the place once they realize someones been playing them all along, the civil war that breaks out feels earned considering how much tension has been building between all these different chapters who all want control of that cold fusion core. But the real star of this episode is that death claw taking over the strip, the thing looks absolutely terrifying and the fact that one also showed up in the flashback makes you wonder what the hell is really going on with these creatures, like were they always this dangerous or did something change after the bombs dropped that made them even worse. Episode 4 nails the balance between moving the story forward and letting the characters breathe, plus it actually made me laugh multiple times which is always a good sign when a show can mix humor with serious moments without one overtaking the other, the whole thing just flows so naturally that you dont even notice how much ground they cover in just one episode.
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The Alaska flashback at the beginning realy sets the tone for everything that comes after because it shows us a different side of Cooper, back when he was still human and still believed in doing the right thing even if it meant sacrificing himself for his squad, his power armor keeps glitching out and sparking all over the place witch makes sense considering he complained about it in season one to that West Tech guy who designed them. Charlie shows up in his own busted armor trying to find their missing squad mate and Cooper lies to him about retreating just so he can save his friends life, witch is wild considering how ruthless the Ghoul is in present day, its crazy seeing how much the war and everything that came after changed him into what he became, the scene where the Chinese soldiers are about to execute him but then get torn apart by the death claw was brutal and showed just how powerful these things really are. What gets me is that the death claw doesnt attack Cooper after it kills the soldiers, it just sniffs him and walks away like it recognizes something about him or maybe it was programed not to attack people in US military gear, either way that moment is gonna come back later when he faces another one at the end of the episode and you can see the fear in his eyes because he knows what these things are capable off. The whole backstory about how death claws were created by the US goverment as bioweapons to replace human soldiers is messed up but also very on brand for Fallout, like ofcourse the people who were supposed to protect everyone ended up making the most dangerous predator in the wasteland, thats the whole point of the series showing how corporations and governments fked everything up for their own gain.
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The vault storylines this episode were kinda meh compared to everything else but they still serve a purpose in building up the bigger mystery, Regs inbreeding support group is thriving because people just want free snacks and a place to hang out witch is hilarious but also shows how desperate everyone is for any kind of normalcy. Betty is dealing with the water shortage and trying to keep things under control but Reg is starting to undermine her by being more popular with the rest of the vault members, theres definitely gonna be some kind of power struggle between them down the line. Norm and the Vault 31 people are still wandering around outside trying to figure out what to do next, Ronnie mentions something about phase two and Future Enterprise Ventures witch spells out FEV if you take the first letters, thats the forced evolutionary virus that creates super mutants so maybe Thaddeus is actualy turning into one of those instead of a ghoul like everyone thinks, but the truth behind all this people who got out is that Norm knows nothing about it and its why now Ronnie is like testing him to really understand how much he knows, Norm only wanted to get out of there reason why got everyone out of their crio pods. Steph over in Vault 32 is being her usual shady self, wanting Hanks keepsake box in exchange for water witch makes you wonder what the hell is in that box thats so important, probably something that ties back to Vault Techs original experiments or maybe proof of what Hank was really doing before the bombs dropped. The whole vault storyline feels like its building toward something big but right now its just a lot of setup without much payoff, yes some tense conversations happening but the end of each of them is like "will continue soon", hopefully the next few episodes give us some answers instead of just more questions.
The ending in New Vegas is where everything realy comes together and sets up what should be an insane next episode, Lucy and the Ghoul finally make it to the strip but instead of finding a thriving city they find a dead wasteland with broken Securitrons and no people anywhere. The Ghoul knows something is very wrong because this place should have defenses and systems in place, Mr House built Vegas to survive the bombs and kept it running longer than anywhere else so seeing it like this means something catastrophic happens that took down all his protections. After Lucy took down that entire Elvis Ghoul gang, she and The Ghoul walk deeper into the strip and you can see all the abandoned casinos and clubs that used to be full of life, the Ultralux, the Tops, the Gamora, all empty and covered in dust and radiation, witch is the first thing that The Ghoul though about, its like walking through a graveyard of the old world. Then Lucy still all hype up because of the drugs picks up what looks like a giant egg, joken its from a chicken but thats where it click for The Ghoul and they hear this roar and the death claw bursts out of the Brimstone nightclub looking like it just crawled out of hell itself, the thing is massive and terrifying and for the first time all season you see genuine fear on the Ghouls face because he knows what these things can do. Lucy being high and overconfident says they can take it witch makes the Ghoul look at her like TF you crazy now and going to get us kill, then she realizes how fked they are and just says okie dokie in the exact same way Cooper did back in Alaska when he was about to die, that callback was perfect and shows how much these two have rubbed off on each other over the course of the season. The episode ends with them staring down this death claw with no way out and no plan, just two people who are way in over their heads but have no choice but to deal with it, its the perfect cliffhanger that makes you desperate to see what happens next.
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