Fallout TV series Season 1, Episode 7 review — The highs, the lows… the mids

Considering how shockingly the last episode ended, it’s kind of nice to have this one open to a bunch of boring sand. There’s also an amazing reference to New Vegas here with two folks in NCR Ranger gear searching for bottle caps with a metal detector. Things heat up when they get back to the house and find Goggins’ Ghoul eating at their table, with another relative not in sight. At least everything ends up fine when she strolls up with a drink, but the tension continues to build as they know more than they’re letting on, mainly, the location of Moldaver (the antagonist that took Hank in the first episode).

Cutting to the past, Cooper Howard is asked by the opposition to Vault-Tec to spy on his wife. Seems she has a little more involvement in some of the scheming behind the vaults, and I’m sure we’re soon to see that outcome. Cooper doesn’t want to be a part, but you can see the toll all of the conspiracy around him is taking on him.

There are more scenes with Goggins, both in the past and present, but it feels like something is missing. The steps we’ve taken towards his denouement awkwardly halt in this episode, lending to things feeling like walking toward your next mission marker with no fast travel. Goggins’ bombshell fell in the last episode, so getting him to the finale makes sense, but I’d love to see a bit more energy in that journey.

With all of the insanity at Vault 4 coming to a head, Lucy figures it’s time to get while the getting is good (even if it doesn’t happen exactly in that manner). Maximus decides to follow, but only after taking one more quick bite of popcorn. There’s an elaborate ceremony by Vault 4 and everything, which is honestly hilarious. We’re treated to a wonderful musical montage with tons of misunderstandings, exactly how you’d have expected it to have gone. After a debate on the looting of a fusion core and a beautiful moment between Lucy and Maximus (who shares his secret), it’s back to the races for our duo to find the package, then ultimately to track down Moldaver and Hank.

During the festivities, we see a fantastic shot of the Red Rocket gas station with the squire (Thaddeus) that has the package from episode 5 heading that way with Wilzig’s dog in tow. Again, this show continues to do its callbacks to the game correctly, without having to interrupt the show with them – it’ll be fun to watch this a second time to find all the bobbleheads, lunch boxes, and other Easter Eggs. Thaddeus isn’t doing so hot after Maximus broke his foot/ankle, and with the dog not leaving him be, he thinks it’d be better to get rid of the extra weight, dog included. After stowing “Dogmeat” in a rusty Nuka Cola cooler, he’s back on the run to get the package to the Brotherhood.

It’s not going that great for him though, dragging a leg and not being able to find the radio signal to contact the Brotherhood of Steel. He happens to run into the weirdo doctor from Episode 2, who is still as kooky as before. Somehow his elixir works, but I’m curious if our not-so-friendly squire hasn’t been drugged into thinking so. In any case, once Thaddeus makes his way to the pick up spot for the Brotherhood (after an enchanting conversation with the radio station keeper of the antenna he needed for contact), Lucy and Maximus finally reach him. Unfortunately for dear Thaddeus, sometimes a cure in the wasteland isn’t exactly a cure, and he’s not willing to take a chance of the Brotherhood killing him if they find out.

While I somehow like the turn things take as Maximus does the right thing in giving Lucy the package while faking another to take to the Brotherhood, I’m still not convinced they should have kissed. I get it, the romance adds more stakes and emotion to play with, but I just don’t think we needed it. Even so, they sell their connection very well, and you can feel the chemistry between Purnell and Moten’s Lucy and Maximus. They have arguably the most impactful part in this episode, with a meaningful arc that gets an equally meaningful resolution.

Back in Vault 33, some strange happenings have led to the initiation: Vault 32 is to be repopulated. Fresh starts are appreciated by some, and not so much by others, with a few not wanting to abandon what they’ve built, a handful ready to build anew, and a short list of folks wanting to find the truth. Norm. It’s Norm. The whole list is Norm. He’s the only one who really cares at this point.

It’s tough watching the transfer occur, because you can feel the experimental nature of the Vaults lying under the surface. It feels wrong, and Norm is going to get to the bottom of it. I love how they treat us to another callback with the computer hacking mini-game as Norm infiltrates the Overseer’s computer, and it leads him in an intriguing direction.

This might be the only episode where it’s felt like the pacing has been a bit too slow. We know a lot of the endgame, so I’m confused as to how the show will manage to resolve all of these plot points in a single final episode. We’ve largely hopped from character to character and felt satiated by the incoming details, but I feel like we knew most of what was coming our way this time. Vault 33’s narrative is the only one that feels like it’s arriving at the end, with the lead characters still arriving at their last stops. Here’s hoping for a real barn burner of a finale (protip: it is).

You can read our review for the Episode 8 finale here.

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