Fallout TV Season Two, Episode 3 “The Profligate” review

The first two episodes of Fallout’s second season have been fantastic, but a tad long in tooth at setting up the stakes for this part of the saga. With the full picture now in view; Hank studying the brain computer interface, Lucy and The Ghoul still hunting him, the Brotherhood and Maximus looking to start a war for power, Norm figuring out how to leave Vault 31, and more, it's time to get down to brass tacks. Does Episode 3 start building off of them? Or is it just more exposition?

After watching it, Episode 3 is more about escalation. We know what each party is up to finally, and now it’s time to raise stress levels. Unfortunately, there are a lot of moments where the pacing is off, jumping from faction to faction and somewhat dampening the impact of what’s going on. This is even while skipping visits to Vault 32 and 33, along with Norm's re-surfacing from 31. There are some phenomenal scenes, but things don’t come to a head in satisfying ways, leaving us to wait for Episode 4’s “mid-season” to set up where we’re heading from here. It’s like we’re on a side mission – Fallout often has outstanding ones, but sometimes you want to see the story progress.

This episode's cold open is hilarious, which lightens up the somber mood this season has brought with it. Thaddeus (who you’ll remember as the ghoul-ified former Brotherhood Squire) is now running a caps sweatshop. Set in a former Sunset Sarsaparilla factory, he’s having kids who are becoming ghouls open the bottles to make bank. There’s a sweet moment where he talks to a little girl who hasn’t changed appearance yet who is being made fun of, which eventually has me laughing as Thaddeus insults other kids. By the time you get to the end of the episode this scene makes a lot more sense, and Thaddeus’ character is a welcome addition to Season Two.

Moving onto Lucy, the shadowy figures who captured her and her freshly rad scorpion-rescued friend are indeed Caesar’s Legion (or they might be Caesar’s Legion…depending on your pronunciation). They take Lucy and the girl to their encampment, and instantly kill the girl. So much for being a good person, eh Lucy? Even being a part of the beginning, Lucy doesn’t get much focus in this episode, which may be part of why this one is a tad distracted.

Here, we’re also introduced to McCaulay Culkin for the first time, and he’s part of the Legion, speaking for Caesar. Another hilarious note was Lucy and his banter about the proper pronunciation of Caesar, something that Fallout fans will certainly enjoy. While his time on-screen doesn’t help us learn much about his character’s place in the overall story, I’m glad to see him in something again. That, and he provides several tremendous lines of dialogue that hit home.

The Ghoul gets a big share of this episode, and it pays off handsomely. This is one of the best parts of this episode, watching him recover from his rad-scorpian wounds, talk with Dogmeat about how he doesn’t like Lucy but needs her, find a solution to get her out of The Legion’s clutches, and then act. Seeing him access his Cooper Howard side, how it ties into his experience during the Alaskan War (via more flashbacks as he attends a veteran’s fundraiser and awards ceremony) is all very touching, especially in the culmination of freeing Lucy and making his way back to a few friends I won’t spoil here. Goggin’s Ghoul is a reason to watch Fallout, if not THE reason. The depth they’re creating for his character is impressive, as is his performance delivering that depth – something made all the more impressive when you find out that he’s not played the game.

Maximus has the other standout scenes for Episode 3. While I’m still questioning his motives at this point – where he wants to take life with the Brotherhood as a Knight – that gets to be thrown out in favor of him having fun with the new Paladin, Xander Harkness (played by Kumail Nanjiani). This dude is more classic Brotherhood, hoping to appeal to that side of Maximus and coax him into assisting him in not only keeping civil war from arriving, but also getting his hands on the cold fusion for the Commonwealth. 

He does this by taking him on a trip in his vertibird, and after chatting they go after a few rogue robots. These are dysfunctional securitrons – yes, Mr. House’s metal security force – who immediately try to take on Maximus and Xander. It obviously doesn’t go well for the securitron, as two power-armored Knights with weapons aren’t exactly a fair fight. Listening to the two yelling in delight as they smash through metal is just awesome, and exactly how I’d feel in that situation. We even get to see a classic Super Sledge power hammer in action!

There are two twists that hit pretty hard, Maximus and Xander’s discoveries along their adventure, and in The Ghoul’s liberation of Lucy. One is extremely telegraphed, and the other hits hard. Both have major implications for how the story of this season will continue, so I really hope they not only land, but with only four episodes left, get the time they deserve to be explored. The wasteland is about to get much more chaotic, that’s for sure.

As per usual, Fallout continues to nail it in their respect to fan service and the games that came before. Seeing Caesar’s Legion in all its splendor is a treat. The Legion’s garb is absolutely incredible, exactly what I remember from New Vegas. There’s one specific guy who has the full set of armor and helmet on, but with aviator sunglasses. It’s perfect. 

Xander wields the aforementioned Super Sledge, and it’s as epic a weapon on the screen as it is in game. The Ghoul also runs into Victor as he searches an abandoned facility, and it's a worthy inclusion, with Victor getting deserved limelight and dialogue. Fallout’s references go hard every week. The only area that seemed a bit lax was the soundtrack; I only remember Hot Dog Buddy Buddy by Bill Haley & His Comets at the very end. Even if there were more tracks, they weren’t inserted in places that made them memorable.