‘Fallout’ Episode 3 Review

Episode three of Prime Video’s ‘Fallout’ show gives some good character development and
backstory to the main cast.

The most interesting of these is a flashback to the 1950s where Cooper Howard (Walton
Goggins) is acting in a Hollywood western. He’s upset because his character is supposed to be
a moral character, a respected sheriff, and the script has his gun down an unarmed man rather
than just arrest him. It shows how movies were changing, but also how the USA was
undergoing vast change as it dealt with the Cold War and the problem of communism.

It’s also intriguing that Howard stars in an ad campaign for Vault Tec, becoming the company’s
poster boy of a smiling figure in a blue jumpsuit giving a thumbs up, suggesting he has personal
reasons for hating Vault Dwellers..

After Wilzig dies at the end of episode two, Lucy cuts off his head and continues on her way to
find Moldaver who she hopes will trade it for her kidnapped father, only to lose it to a mutated
monster in a lake. The scenes where the Ghoul uses her as bait shows how relatable she is as
a character, desperately trying to hold on to the things she’s been brought up to believe and not
willing to give up the chance of saving her father, even though things are desperate and she’s in
constant danger on the surface.

Maximus has more to do here than in past episodes. After stealing the identity of Knight Titus,
he’s sent a new squire who happens to be Thaddeus, one of the guys who bullied him in the
Brotherhood, and he takes every opportunity he can to get even, making him do difficult and
dangerous things and treating him no better than Titus would have. He’s still the worst
developed character, but there is some change starting to show, and he does save Thaddeus’s
life at one point. Most importantly, he finds the head of Dr. Wilzig, which puts him in direct
competition with both Lucy and the Ghoul, unless he can return it to the Brotherhood before
either of them find him.

For the first time since episode one, we get to see what’s happening back at Vault 33. Both
Norm and Chet are punished for helping Lucy leave the vault. More importantly, there are
definite cracks appearing in the vault’s harmonious society, with Hank MacLean’s absence as
overseer being felt, and the anger and grief at the Raiders’ attack pushing everyone to breaking
point, with Norm even suggesting that they should execute the prisoners, something that goes
against all their morals.

This is a strong episode that gives some interesting backstory to the Ghoul’s character and
gives us a look back at Vault 33, which provides a stark contrast when switching between the

clean, organized life there and the harsh, dirty world above ground, and adds another storyline
that will be interesting to see play out.