Fallout

Available on Prime Video

If The Last of Us offered hope for video game adaptations, Amazon’s big-budget reworking of Bethesda’s acclaimed Fallout series emphatically reaffirms it. 

While my experiences with the games are fleeting in comparison to those of its die-hard contingent, I can confidently say that the tone of this slick eight-part series is in keeping with the offbeat humour and worldview that makes them such a distinctive playing experience. For that, showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner deserve plenty of credit, as do co-producers Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy.

Indeed, Fallout has a lot in common with Nolan and Joy’s other small screen adaptation Westworld, in the sense that its futuristic setting, epic landscapes, and morally compromised characters make the potential of the show feel almost limitless. That being said, Westworld’s dramatic decline in quality after its stellar first season means that Fallout enthusiasts should approach its already announced second season with caution.

For the time being, it’s thumbs-up all around for those involved in the making of this post-apocalyptic romp, with this maiden voyage providing a potentially star-making vehicle for Ella Purnell, who excels in the lead role. While I admittedly didn’t care much for its barely plausible finale, there’s enough to like about this first iteration of Fallout to be excited for what comes next, especially when that seemingly includes more of Walton Goggins’ scene-stealing Ghoul.