Fallout: Season One (2024) Cre: Graham Wagner & Geneva Robertson-Dworet
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There has been a huge amount of buzz surrounding this new Amazon Prime original series, from creators Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet, and based upon the hugely popular, and highly acclaimed, video game franchise from Bethesda. Although, admittedly, I had never played the games, I was still very excited for the show, considering how beloved the games are.
I adored the soundtrack. It evoked nostalgia, and juxtaposed the events of the series very satisfyingly. It was also still very much in-keeping with the traditional nuclear age aesthetic of 50's and 60's suburban America. This was mirrored stunningly with the aesthetics of the prologue and flashback sequences.
I thought the set and costume design was magnificent, especially with the knight suits, which looked incredible. The whole aesthetic of the show was as marvellous as it was impressive. The series mixed retro with futuristic so succinctly and smoothly, that none of it felt at all out of place.
I found the editing interesting, in all honesty. Most of the time it was fine, but sometimes they cut from scenes slightly too early for my taste. It seemed to be a creative choice, though not one I particularly appreciated. That said, the rest of the editing was pretty solid.
Themes of capitalism versus socialism, ethics, morality, survival, future versus tradition and war, guide this show through some truly interesting and thought provoking scenes, which use both the past and future to challenge the present. As such, the series still has a lot to say about the current climate, particularly in terms of war and morality, giving the shoe a surprisingly relevant feel.
One of the elements of the story I appreciated the most was its overarching structure. The main protagonists journey, change and application is very well illustrated in the eight episodes. The events of the narrative also work well, and provide stakes, danger, mystery and some very well-revealed twists.
The show was very humorous, and offset this often silly comedy with its more serious and violent aspects, of which there were also many. I certainly enjoyed the balance between these two aspects a lot, particularly in how it was used to engineer and emphasise more dramatic scenes.
I loved Ella Purnell from the moment she stepped on screen. She was hugely likable and easy to root for as a character. I thought the way she portrayed her character's naivity and subsequent learning was really quite effective.
Walton Goggins was utterly brilliant in both aspects of his role. I thought his voice intonations were sublime at times, and he showed his class time and time again. I thought he was definitely the most interesting actor on-screen whenever he appeared.
Aaron Cliften Moten was yet another actor who I very much enjoyed. He really nailed the comedy elements of his role - his timing, in that respect, was excellent. Not only this, his more serious acting was also on-par with those around him, and he established himself well in the second half of the season I particular.
Moisés Arias was the best of the supporting cast, in a role that was quietly very intriguing, from both a storyline and acting perspective. In regards to the rest of the cast, the standouts were Michael Emerson, Leslie Uggams, Kyle MacLachlan, Dave Register, Zach Cherry and Xelia Mendes-Jones.
Overall, I was very impressed with this debut season, and I'm definitely glad to see that the show has been renewed for a second season, especially with a lot of the narrative arcs that were set-up by the end of this first season. In my view, this is a must-watch show, regardless of whether you have played the games or not.
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