History Series / Fallout2024

* CallBack: When the Ghoul [[spoiler:is pursuing Moldover to the Griffith Observatory, he and Dogmeat camp outside the same Hollywood Forever mausoleum where he met her prior to the war.]]

** The Enclave is shown to [[JokerImmunity still exist]] despite all of the setbacks done to them from ''VideoGame/Fallout2'' and ''VideoGame/Fallout3'', and is clearly far more than a vestige of its former self like they were in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' (which also briefly mentions an outpost in Chicago) by having a fully dedicated research facility and clearly up to ''something'' with fusion technology, but their actual capacity to be a major factor and their overall role in the current timeline beyond Wilzig defecting from them is glossed over in the first season.

*** In episode 4, Betty tells Norm that "when clever boys like you are angry... you're lucky not to have seen where that can lead" and seems shaken by the memory of something. [[spoiler: She may be referring to when "clever" Hank "got angry" when Rose refused to return to the Vault and nuked Shady Sands out of spite.]]

* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: The series shakes up ''Fallout'' canon in a big way. [[spoiler:The New California Republic, a major power player in the west since ''Fallout 2'', was violently dismantled and its remnants wiped out by a resurgent Brotherhood of Steel. New Vegas has long since been abandoned sometime between its titular game and the series, and Vault-Tec is confirmed to have been pulling the strings on everything since ''before'' the Great War, firmly cementing themselves as the true BigBad of the entire franchise]].

* ShaggyDogStory: The series retroactively shows that [[spoiler:the entirety of ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'''s core plot point, the acquisition of New Vegas itself, is made moot in the long run as the city has seemingly collapsed by the time of the show alongside the NCR.]]

* WhamEpisode: [[spoiler:The entire series is one for the ''Fallout'' franchise as a whole. At least one major faction on the West Coast (the NCR) has been effectively wiped off the map. New Vegas has seemingly been abandoned and fallen into ruin. Vault-Tec is revealed to be (one of) the true mastermind(s) behind the Great War and have actually survived said apocalypse, with them having been secretly campaigning against ''anything'' resembling civilization in the Wasteland so their chosen subjects can inherit the earth. NothingIsTheSameAnymore doesn't even begin to describe the ramifications of this series]].

** Downplayed concerning the Brotherhood of Steel. They are morally grey and self-serving in the first two games (along with both ''4'' and ''76'') with only WhiteSheep Elder Lyons and Nolan [=McNamara=]'s brotherhoods from ''3'' and ''New Vegas'' being more overtly heroic, especially the former. However, even in the earlier games, the Brotherhood avoided killing civilians when they could help it, whilst in this series they have no qualms about slaughtering locals if they refuse to get out of their way. It's noted in-universe, however, that they've lost their way [[spoiler:and Maximus becoming a Knight officially by the end along with being tasked by both Moldaver & Elder Quintus to become an InternalReformist hints [[RayOfHopeEnding that they might improve]].]]

* AbortedArc: Vault 33's water chip is revealed to be broken in a nod to the first game's plot but, aside from a short background mention of a water crisis, it plays no further role in the story. However, it is possible that this was invoked InUniverse: [[spoiler:[[EngineeredHeroics engineering an easily solvable crisis]] is the go-to strategy for Vault 31 transfers when it's time to get themselves elected as Overseers.]]

* AbortedArc: Vault 33's water chip is revealed to be broken in a nod to the first game's plot but, aside from a short background mention of a water crisis, it plays no further role in the story. Possibly invoked: [[spoiler:[[EngineeredHeroics engineering an easily solvable crisis]] is the go-to strategy for Vault 31 transfers when it's time to get elected as Overseers.]]

** Continuing the trend set in ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', "The Ghoul" is easily the best looking of his kind in any ''Fallout'' media. Other than his baldness and lack of nose, he barely has any signs of the radiation-induced decay that most other ghouls have had in the games, with perfectly normal teeth and eyes and skin that looks merely aged and leathery, not outright rotted. According to Nolan, they "hired [[Creator/WaltonGoggins the actor]] for a reason", and as such the typical ghoul characteristics are dialed back so the actor can emote properly through the makeup. Other ghouls look similar, if slightly worse. {{Inverted}} in one case in the final episode: a far more rotted ghoul that is barely more than a skeleton with (some) skin appears but barely moves because Moldaver has restrained it to a chair.

* AdaptationalExplanation: The reasoning behind Vault-Tec's experiments is finally explained. [[spoiler:The experiments acted as tests to create new societal templates, as the current one was viewed as a failure. All this with the end goal of re-conquering the surface, eliminating all other factions, and uniting the world under Vault-Tec]].
* AdaptationalHeroism: The New California Republic aka NCR in contrast to the Brotherhood (who get AdaptationalVillainy) are largely treated as unambiguously good and heroic in their efforts to get the Cold Fusion to restore power to the Wastes [[spoiler:and ultimately succeed -- at the cost of their lives.]] In ''Fallout 2'' and ''New Vegas'' the NCR are portrayed as rather incompetent and very corrupt especially in the latter game, quite unlike their more idealistic portrayal here, where they're easily the most heroic faction between Vault-Tec and the Brotherhood of Steel.

** Downplayed concerning the Brotherhood of Steel. They are morally grey and self-serving in the first two games with only WhiteSheep Elder Lyons and Nolan [=McNamara=]'s brotherhoods from ''Fallout 3'' and ''New Vegas'' being more overtly heroic, especially the former. However, even in the earlier games, the Brotherhood avoided killing civilians when they could help it, whilst in this series they have no qualms about slaughtering the locals of the Super Duper Mart. It's noted in-universe, however, that they've lost their way [[spoiler:and Maximus becoming a knight officially by the end hints [[RayOfHopeEnding that they might improve]].]]

** [[spoiler:Vault-Tec themselves are subject to this. While they were certainly evil in the games they were ultimately just government contractors in it for the money and the experiments were set up at the behest of the government, with President Richardson stating the experiments helped the Enclave survive on their oil rig in some unspecified fashion. Here it's revealed that they started the entire nuclear war themselves (or were at least planning to do so) in order to remake the world in their image, which is [[{{Expy}} remarkably similar]] to what happened to the Umbrella Corporation in [[Film/ResidentEvilTheFinalChapter that series' movie adaptation.]]]]

** The Ghoul indicates that he was a former Marine who served on the Alaskan front. All previous references to that campaign have generally indicated that it was purely an Army affair, with no Marines involved.

** The Ghoul represents a bad karma protagonist being cruel and merciless [[spoiler:though he used to be a good man]] and gets the CanineCompanion.

** Despite being some of, if not ''the'' most iconic ''Fallout'' monsters, Deathclaws and Super Mutants get cameos as corpses--a giant, green-skinned corpse covered in a sheet is seen at the Enclave stronghold at the beginning of Episode 2, as well as a wanted poster in Sorrel Booker's headquarters, and a horned, reptilian skull is seen [[spoiler:at the outskirts of New Vegas]] in the Finale.

** In the first episode Monty doesn't say much at the wedding and evades questions about his sperm count, but also forwardly asks Lucy to show him their new home and is very quick to drop his pants once they're alone. [[spoiler:He's not nervous or embarrassed at all. He's actually a surface-dwelling raider who'd have no idea what the right answers would be and probably wanted to both end the questions and sleep with her before the killing started]].

* LiveActionAdaptation: The series serves as the first live-action adaptation of the ''Franchise/{{Fallout}}'' franchise which has largely lived in the VideoGames medium until then.[[note]]There were previous plans for a [[VideoGameMovies film treatment]] of ''Fallout'' but those fell through. It wasn't until the success of ''Series/TheLastOfUs'' that Creator/PrimeVideo decided to greenlight this project.[[/note]]

** A lot of heartache could've been avoided had she taken a more diplomatic approach to kidnapping Hank (who clearly didn't recognize her) and not gotten vicious Raiders involved. If anything, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard had she not been so brutal and clouded by revenge, she probably could've gotten the cold fusion device sooner and avoided the Brotherhood destroying her base and killing her]].

* RaceLift: [[spoiler:Robert House]], at least according to the photo on his screen, is a Caucasian man. In the show, he is played by Rafi Silver, who is of Arab descent.
* RayOfHopeEnding: [[spoiler:Nearly every member of the main cast is worse off from where they began at the end of Season 1: [[BreakTheCutie Lucy is heartbroken]] after learning that her father was a [[EvilAllAlong genocidal monster]] who had a direct hand in ending the world, murdered ''thousands'' by nuking Shady Sands, and subjected her mother to a FateWorseThanDeath, rendering every (sometimes reprehensible) single thing she did to save him pointless; Maximus, after finding something that makes him happier than his pursuit of glory in the Brotherhood of Steel and wanting to live peacefully with Lucy in her Vault, misses his chance to follow her after nearly getting killed by Hank and then unwillingly becomes a FakeUltimateHero after he's falsely credited with killing Moldaver; and Norman is caught in a MortonsFork after being trapped in Vault 31 by Bud, forced to choose between either dying of starvation or going into [[HumanPopsicle cryo-sleep]] with no way of telling his fellow VaultDwellers about the AwfulTruth behind who Vault 31's residents really are and the role they played in the nuclear apocalypse. The only silver linings are that the wasteland now has an infinite source of power due to Moldaver successfully activating her cold fusion reactor before her death, even if it is in the Brotherhood's control, and that Lucy and the Ghoul are on track to finding the ones responsible for bringing about the end of the world as they pursue Hank across the wasteland.]]

* TheReveal: The series reveals [[spoiler:the truth behind the Great War: the first nuke wasn't launched by either the American or Chinese governments, but '''Vault-Tec''', who deliberately instigated the war with the end goal of [[TakeOverTheWorld conquering whatever's left of the surface]] in the aftermath. It is also revealed that the New California Republic has been decimated by a nuclear assault on their capital, leaving California in a worse state than even the original ''Fallout'' game.]]

** In the first episode, when Vault 32 residents arrive to send a resident to marry Lucy, her father, Vault 33 Overseer Hank [=MacLean=], is suspicious when he meets the Overseer of 32, [[spoiler:Lee Moldaver]]. Initially, it's assumed this is because [[spoiler:Moldaver and the Vault 32 residents are actually raiders in disguise]] and Hank seemingly senses something off about them. However, later it's revealed [[spoiler:during the last episode that all Vault 32 and 33 Overseers, including Hank, are cryogenically frozen Vault-Tec assistants from ''before'' the Great War]]. It's easy to infer that Hank was suspicious because [[spoiler:he doesn't recognize Moldaver as one of his fellow employees, who would have been frozen with him in Vault 31]].

* ShownTheirWork: ''Fallout'' fans have noticed that the series is full of small details that even some of the most ardent players would likely not notice or think about when playing the games. The various sets of armor (including the iconic T-60c Power Armor) and weapons used by the Brotherhood of Steel are consistent with those found in the games, what's shown of Vault 33 is consistent with the designs & layouts from those found in ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', and even the medical supplies used by the Mister Handy robot look like the various chem/drug containers & jars found in-game.

* StealthSequel: The series is revealed to be [[spoiler:connected more to the classic setting of the series on the West Coast, following the events of ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' more than [[VideoGame/Fallout3 the East]] Coast [[VideoGame/Fallout4 games]] with some continuation of about the fate of the NCR, New Vegas, and so on beyond the game they were focused in.]]
* SuperWristGadget: The Pip-Boy 3000. It's a GPS system, communications device, video game console, personal computer, flashlight and Geiger counter all in one. No Vault dweller should leave home without it.
* TitleThemeDrop: [[spoiler:The ''Fallout'' theme plays when Lucy discovers an NCR flag in a classroom in Vault 4.]]

* WarForFunAndProfit: It's made apparent that Vault-Tec and the other [[MegaCorp Mega Corps]] of the pre-Wasteland world are perpetuating the ongoing conflicts between America and her rivals to line their pockets, from stalling peace talks to smothering a cold-fusion project that could resolve the resource wars in an instant. [[spoiler:Then comes Episode 8, when it's revealed they may have had a direct hand in the nuclear apocalypse itself in order to create a world completely free of political regulations that they could endlessly control and profit off of]].

* WhamEpisode: [[spoiler:The entire series is one for the ''Fallout'' franchise as a whole. At least one major faction in the west (the NCR) has been wiped off the map. New Vegas has been abandoned and fallen into ruin. Vault-Tec is revealed to be the true mastermind behind the Great War, and have been secretly campaigning against ''anything'' resembling civilization in the Wasteland so their chosen subjects can inherit the earth. NothingIsTheSameAnymore doesn't even begin to describe the ramifications of this series]].

* {{Zeerust}}: Deliberately invoked. When it comes to the pre-collapse world (and its artifacts), the [[RaygunGothic "1950's space age"]] look from the video games is faithfully depicted.

*** In addition to the above snarl, [[spoiler:the fact of there being three Vaults constructed around Los Angeles and all seem perfectly intact by the late 2200s raises concerns over how they could have possibly evaded discovery by The Master in ''VideoGame/Fallout1''. To note, The Master and his Unity were raiding and collecting Vault Dwellers to make into Super Mutants in California for years. The interconnected Vaults starting with Vault 33 are in a major urban center, with the blast door entrance out in the open for anyone to see, unlike Vaults 13 and 15. One would think that made them easily discoverable by super mutant scouts hunting for repositories of pure human DNA. That they all seem to have survived without incident up to the present day implies either The Master never investigated them, gave up trying when he couldn't break into 33 like he did the demonstration Vault, or just by sheer luck the Unity never discovered them.]]

*** In addition to the above, [[spoiler:the very placement of the newly introduced Vaults in LA raises many concerns over their lack of discovery by The Master in ''VideoGame/Fallout1''. The Master had been raiding and collecting Vault Dwellers to make into Super Mutants. Vault 33 is in a major urban center, out in the open with its door there for anyone to see, unlike 13 and 15. Easily discoverable by scouts. This implies either he never investigated, couldn't break into it like the demonstration Los Angeles Vault, or just by sheer luck never discovered it.]]

* AbortedArc: Vault 33's water chip is revealed to be broken in a nod to the first game's plot but, aside from a short background mention of a water crisis, it plays no further role in the story. Possibly invoked: [[spoiler: [[EngineeredHeroics engineering an easily solvable crisis]] is the go-to strategy for Vault 31 transfers when it's time to get elected as Overseers.]]

** [[spoiler: Vault-Tec themselves are subject to this. While they were certainly evil in the games they were ultimately just government contractors in it for the money and the experiments were set up at the behest of the government, with President Richardson stating the experiments helped the Enclave survive on their oil rig in some unspecified fashion. Here it's revealed that they started the entire nuclear war themselves (or were at least planning to do so) in order to remake the world in their image, which is [[{{Expy}} remarkably similar]] to what happened to the Umbrella Corporation in [[Film/ResidentEvilTheFinalChapter that series' movie adaptation.]]]]

* BombproofAppliance: The flashbacks to Maximus as a kid surviving the nuclear bombing [[spoiler: of Shady Sands]] in a fridge.

*** In addition to the above, [[spoiler: the very placement of the newly introduced Vaults in LA raises many concerns over their lack of discovery by The Master in ''VideoGame/Fallout1''. The Master had been raiding and collecting Vault Dwellers to make into Super Mutants. Vault 33 is in a major urban center, out in the open with its door there for anyone to see, unlike 13 and 15. Easily discoverable by scouts. This implies either he never investigated, couldn't break into it like the demonstration Los Angeles Vault, or just by sheer luck never discovered it.]]

** During the Vault meeting, one of the technicians comes in and says that the Vault's water-chip is broken, just as they are discussing what to do with the Overseer [[spoiler: now being gone and kidnapped]]. After this, [[spoiler: the Vault opts to hold elections for Overseer, where Betty, a former Vault 31 resident, wins by a landslide]]. It's later revealed that [[spoiler: Vault-Tec ''specifically wants'' former Vault 31 residents to serve as overseers for 32 and 33, so the broken water-chip likely was set up to allow Betty to swoop in and "save" the Vault]].

*** During a Vault 33 meeting regarding [[spoiler: the imprisoned raiders]], Norm brainstorms that [[spoiler: they should PayEvilUntoEvil with the raiders and [[MurderIsTheBestSolution kill them]]]]. Everyone else dismisses this notion in disgust, and even Norm has second-thoughts... but Steph [[spoiler: agrees with him (since they killed her husband), and states that his father Hank would "do the right thing"]].

*** During a Vault 33 meeting regarding [[spoiler: the imprisoned raiders]], Norm brainstorms that [[spoiler: they should PayEvilUntoEvil with the raiders]]. Everyone else dismisses this notion in disgust, and even Norm has second-thoughts... but Steph [[spoiler: agrees with him (since they killed her husband), and states that his father Hank would "do the right thing"]].

** During the Vault meeting, one of the technicians comes in and says that the Vault's water-chip is broken, just as they are discussing what to do with the Overseer [[spoiler: now being gone and kidnapped]]. After this, [[spoilers: the Vault opts to hold elections for Overseer, where Betty, a former Vault 31 resident, wins by a landslide]]. It's later revealed that [[spoilers: Vault-Tec ''specifically wants'' former Vault 31 residents to serve as overseers for 32 and 33, so the broken water-chip likely was set up to allow Betty to swoop in and "save" the Vault]].

*** [[spoiler:Second, when filming raps, Bud Askins introduces himself and mentions that in his prior job at West Tek, he oversaw the rollout of T-45d Power Armor for the military. Cooper mentions that the design flaws on the T-45d got a lot of Americans killed during the war. Come episode 8, he confirms that the T-60c models share some of the same weaknesses as the T-45d when he wipes out a whole squad of armored Brotherhood Knights.]]

*** In addition to the above, [[spoiler: the very placement of the newly introduced Vaults in LA raises many concerns over their lack of discovery by The Master in ''VideoGame/Fallout1''. The Master had been raiding and collecting Vault Dwellers to make into Super Mutants. Vault 33 is in a major urban center, out in the open with its door there for anyone to see, unlike 13 and 15. Easily discoverable by scouts. This implies either he never investigated, couldn't break it in like the demonstration Los Angeles Vault, or just by sheer luck never discovered it.]]

*** In addition to the above, [[spoiler: The very placement of the newly introduced Vaults in LA raises many concerns over their lack of discovery by The Master in ''VideoGame/Fallout1''. The Master had been raiding and collecting Vault Dwellers to make into Super Mutants. Vault 33 is in a major urban center, out in the open with its door there for anyone to see, unlike 13 and 15. Easily discoverable by scouts. This implies either he never investigated, couldn't break it in like the demonstration Los Angeles Vault, or just by sheer luck never discovered it.]]

* BombproofAppliance: The flashbacks to Maximus as a kid surviving the nuclear bombing [[spoiler: of Sandy Shades]] in a fridge.

** The scene where a homesteader and his son arrive at their cottage to find the Ghoul sitting at their table eating their food is an homage to the opening scene in ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest'', with the Ghoul taking Frank's role from the film.

** Vaults 31, 32, and 33 are interconnected with each other, the first example of this happening in any ''Fallout'' media. Vaults 32 and 33 swap residents periodically to maintain genetic diversity. Curiously, Vault 31, only ever ''sends'' residents to the other two vaults, and no one from those two vaults has ever visited 31, with those that immigrate from 31 remaining rather tight-lipped about life there. Former Vault 31 resident Steph only states that the one thing she misses from that Vault is that the mashed potatoes tasted better than in 33. [[spoiler:Vault 31 serves as a cryogenics facility for pre-war residents, but nothing more, so it'd be hard to describe what life was like in the vault since former residents were frozen during their stay. And of course food pre-war would have tasted better]].

* BreatherEpisode: While it still has its fair share of big revelations, Episode 7 is considerably LighterAndSofter compared the rest of the series. There's more comedic and lighthearted moments, including:
** [[spoiler: The Vault 4 Overseer dramatically sentencing Lucy to death... by banishment, awkwardly trying to cut away her restraints with a ceremonial scimitar, and sending her out with 2 weeks worth of provisions]].
** [[spoiler: Maximus' RoaringRampageOfRescue quickly results in him apologizing after Lucy clears the air that she's okay]].
** [[spoiler: Woody having a freak-out in front of everyone and trying to run back to his home in Vault 33 just before Betty sends him and everyone else chosen to settle into Vault 32]].

* RoaringRampageOfRescue: PlayedForLaughs in episode 7, when [[spoiler: Maximus steals Vault 4's fusion core to power up his T-60c Power Armor and comes to Lucy's rescue. He ends up destroying the two weeks of provisions the overseer had provided for Lucy, throws a Nuka Cola vending machine across the room, and knocked out an innocent dweller before Lucy reveals that she's alright and there's no need for alarm. He immediately apologizes for overreacting]].

* HollywoodHacking: [[spoiler:Downplayed. While the traditional hacking minigame does appear as part of an extended sequence, it only allows Norman direct access to the Overseer's terminal. To actually ''break into'' Vault 31, he has to social engineer their Overseer [[TheCon by pretending to be Betty and egg them on about be the mission being compromised to be allowed entry]].]]

* AuthoritySoundsDeep: Brotherhood T-60c power armor has a vocal modulator that produces a deep, booming voice that sounds little like they do when out of it.

** The ''Prydwen'' makes a dynamic entry at the unknown Brotherhood base, escorted by vertibirds, bringing with it Knights in PoweredArmor and a mission based on intel from "the highest clerics in the Commonwealth". The Commonwealth is the main setting of ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' (known pre-war as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), and the ''Prydwen'' was the Brotherhood's headquarters in the game, where it ''also'' made a dynamic entry.

* ZeppelinsFromAnotherWorld: The ''Prydwen'', the massive airship constructed and used by the Brotherhood during ''Fallout 4'' in the Commonwealth, reappears in the first episode, now under the command of Elder Cleric Quintus and reinforcing the New California chapter of the Brotherhood on the West Coast.

*** [[spoiler:First, the couple he talks two, Lloyd and Cassandra Hawthorne, mention living in Vault 4 as a community of scientists. Next episode shows them being devoured by one of their experiments, who rebelled against their MadScientist creators and ended up turning the vault into a nice place to live.]]

** As far at the denizens know, Vaults 31, 32, and 33 all work together to thrive. [[spoiler:What the dwellers of the latter two Vaults don't realize is that Vault 31's sole purpose is to serve as a repository for Vault-Tec's hand-picked Overseers for Vaults 32 and 33, all comprised of pre-war Vault-Tec upper brass kept in cryogenic stasis until needed. When the denizens of Vault 32 discovered the truth, they descended into chaos, murdering their Overseer before turning on each other and themselves. Lucy [=MacLean=]'s father, Hank, is one of them.]]