History Series / Fallout2024

** The Brotherhood is a xenophobic technocratic order that enforces strict hierarchies among its members. That doesn't stop them from seemingly being perfectly accepting of the non-binary Squire Dane, even using their pronouns correctly.

** Lucy the Vault Dweller represents a good karma protagonist, who grows tougher over the course of the story.
** Maximus represents a neutral karma protagonist and is the one who gets PoweredArmour and becomes a Knight of the Brotherhood of Steel.
** The Ghoul represents a bad/evil karma protagonist, being cruel and merciless ([[spoiler:though he used to be a good man]]) and getting the CanineCompanion.

** Upon arriving at Vault 4, the Overseer tells Lucy to never visit Level 12, but doesn't bother to explain why. Of course, once she starts being weirded out by the local culture he also didn't bother to describe and now curious, she immediately goes there to understand what's going on, resulting in a huge misunderstanding that could have ended very badly.

* 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. [[note]] The good news is that this will likely be resolved alongside other plotlines in Season 2, as some things were left to be solved [[SequelHook in the next season]]. [[/note]]

* 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. [[Note]] The good news is that this will likely be resolved alongside other plotlines in Season 2, as some things were left to be solved [[SequelHook in the next season]]. [[/Note]]

* 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.

* ShaggyDogStory: It turns out that whoever won The Second Battle of Hoover Dam doesn't particularly matter because they were unable to maintain control of the region for any length of time, with the NCR collapsing, the Legion presumably pulling out, and Vegas falling into ruin. This renders the main story of ''Fallout: New Vegas'' pointless, but it [[HollywoodProvincialism conveniently lets the show runners set the story in their home city of Los Angeles]] without having to deal with any baggage from previous stories (LA is also Interplay Entertainments' home city, so naturally that's where they set all of their games too).

* ShaggyDogStory: It turns out that whoever won The Second Battle of Hoover Dam doesn't particularly matter because they were unable to maintain control of the region for any length of time, with the NCR collapsing, the Legion presumably pulling out, and Vegas falling into ruin. This renders the main story of ''Fallout: New Vegas'' pointless, but it [[HollywoodProvincialism importantly lets the show runners set the story in their home city of Los Angeles]] without having to deal with any baggage from previous stories (LA is also Interplay Entertainments' home city, so naturally that's where they set all of their games too).

* ShaggyDogStory: The show dodges around [[CuttingOffTheBranches canonizing an ending to ''New Vegas'']] by showing that whoever won was unable to maintain control of the region for any length of time, with the NCR collapsing, the Legion presumably pulling out, and Vegas falling into ruin.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fallout24_2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''[[Music/NatKingCole ♫ I don't want to see tomorrow...\\

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fallout24.png]]

** [[spoiler:Vault-Tec as a whole are subject to this. While they were certainly evil in the games (how evil depends on the game, they range anywhere from corner-cutting but non-malicious to cartoonish sadists) 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 that the experiments were designed to help the Enclave survive on their oil rig in some unspecified fashion (the original concept was that the experiments were studying the effects of multi-generational space travel, but this never actually made it into the games). Here it's revealed that Vault-Tec 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]]), and many of the experiments were actually set up by them and other {{Mega Corp}}s with the goal of creating the ideal society via [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinism]].]]

** [[spoiler:Vault-Tec as a whole are subject to this. While they were certainly evil in the games (how evil depends on the game, they range anywhere from corner-cutting but non-malicious to cartoonish sadists) they were ultimately "just" government contractors in it for the money and the experiments were set up at the behest of the government, with [[VideoGame/Fallout 2 President Richardson]] stating that the experiments were designed to help the Enclave survive on their oil rig in some unspecified fashion (the original concept was that the experiments were studying the effects of multi-generational space travel, but this never actually made it into the games). Here it's revealed that Vault-Tec 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]]), and many of the experiments were actually set up by them and other {{Mega Corp}}s with the goal of creating the ideal society via [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinism]].]]

* ShaggyDogStory: The show deftly avoids [[CuttingOffTheBranches canonizing an ending to ''New Vegas'']] by showing that whoever won was unable to maintain control of the region for any length of time, with the NCR collapsing, the Legion presumably pulling out, and Vegas falling into ruin.

* ShaggyDogStory: The show deftly avoids having to choose a canon ending to ''New Vegas'' by showing that whoever won was unable to maintain control for any length of time, with the NCR collapsing, the Legion presumably pulling out, and Vegas falling into ruin.

** [[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 many of the experiments were only set up at the behest of the government, with President Richardson stating that some of the experiments helped the Enclave survive on their oil rig in some unspecified fashion (with the experiments as a whole being mostly designed by hired scientists like Dr. Stanislaus Braun). 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]]), and many of the experiments were actually set up by them & other {{Mega Corp}}s with the goal of creating new societies via [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinism]].]]

* ShaggyDogStory: The show deftly avoids having to choose a canon ending to ''New Vegas'' by simply having the entire region collapse into ruin shortly after the events of that story.

** Caesar's Legion was a major player in the region, but they're apparently long gone 14 years later to the point that they too don't get a mention.

* OutOfFocus: China's status as the other major belligerent in the war (and by all in-game accounts the one that launched the nuclear first strike, although it technically was never 100% confirmed) is completely unmentioned in the show, despite the presence of flashbacks where this information would still be relevant. It avoids being a RetCon since the show skirts the topic completely, but there are some signs that imply the war was against the Soviet Union (which does exist in Fallout but was on friendly terms with the US according to [[VideoGame/Fallout1 the first game]]) and the WhamEpisode suggests that [[spoiler: America was nuked by ''its own corporations'']].

* OutOfFocus: China's status as the other major belligerent in the war (and by all in-game accounts the one that launched the nuclear first strike, although it technically was never 100% confirmed) is completely unmentioned in the show, despite the presence of flashbacks where this information would still be relevant. It avoids being a RetCon since the show skirts the topic completely, but there are some signs that imply the war was against the Soviet Union (which does exist in Fallout but was on friendly terms with the US according to [[VideoGame/{{Fallout}} the first game]]) and the WhamEpisode suggests that [[spoiler: America was nuked by ''its own corporations'']].

* OutOfFocus: China's status as the other major belligerent in the war (and by all in-game accounts the one that launched the nuclear first strike, although it technically was never 100% confirmed) is completely unmentioned in the show, despite the presence of flashbacks where this information would still be relevant. It avoids being a RetCon since the show skirts the topic completely, but there are some signs that imply the war was against the Soviet Union (which does exist in Fallout but was on friendly terms with the US) and the WhamEpisode suggests that [[spoiler: America was nuked by ''its own corporations'']].

* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** During the Birthday Party in the intro-scene, one of the party guests asks Cooper Howard if he could give the thumb-pose for a photo since that's what he's famous for, but he refuses. He also describes its meaning to his daughter when she asks. [[spoiler:It is revealed in another flashback that Howard was a spokesperson for Vault-Tec, and that his thumb-up pose was the basis for the company's iconic "Vault Boy" mascot, where Vault Boy would hold up his thumb. Also, Howard had a major falling out with Vault-Tec after learning the truth behind their plans, so he refuses to be associated with them]].
** 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]].
** Ma June points out the ways that it's obvious that Lucy is a Vault Dweller: good hair, nice teeth, all ten fingers... Later in her journey, Lucy's hair [[WildHair becomes messier]] and [[spoiler:the Ghoul chops off one of her fingers. Though a Mister Handy [[DismembermentIsCheap gives her a new one]], it is discolored, becoming a permanent reminder of how much the Wasteland has changed her.]]
** 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 [[ExactWords 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]].
** While testing out his newly appropriated power armor, Maximus witnesses a vendor beating up another man and promptly intervenes, shoves the culprit into the ground, letting the victim run away. It is only afterwards that he finds out the "victim" was an animal abuser, and the "culprit" was simply protecting his chickens. Maximus diving into impulsive heroic acts without fully assessing the situation first will come back multiple times this season, including one personally dramatic incident in the finale.
** The Gulper with what appears to be human fingers in its mouth. It also has several oddly-human features, such as arms reminiscent of human arms and blue eyes with white sclera. [[spoiler:It turns out that the gulper is in fact the result of the Vault 4 experiments to study mutations on the human body, including those when crossed with animals and creatures]].
** 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]].
** There are hints towards [[spoiler:Hank's true nature as a villain]]:
*** [[spoiler:When Hank gives his speech at Lucy's wedding, he talks about how the three vaults are the best hope for the world. But when he discusses the survivors on the surface, he only describes them negatively as desperate, violent, and lawless people, and states he sometimes fears the "mean old world" will change the vault-dwellers for the worse]].
*** During the attack on Vault 33, while all the residents defend themselves with clear amateurish-ness and panic, Hank whacks [[spoiler:Monty]] with [[ShovelStrike a shovel]] before drowning him, maintaining a cold-fury but blank expression. [[spoiler:That's not just Hank being a PapaWolf, that's showing that he is far more used to violence than most 33 residents]].
*** 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"]].
*** 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.]]
*** When Lucy finally provides her name to the Ghoul, he's surprised by her last name being "[=MacLean=]". [[spoiler:This is because back before the war, before Cooper Howard became the Ghoul, he learned about Vault-Tec's true nature shortly after he met Lucy's father Henry "Hank" [=MacLean=], who was then a junior executive with the company. Sure enough, when they meet again during the final episode, they recognize each other]].
*** In a pre-war flashback Cooper [[spoiler:receives a phone call from "Henry", a Vault-Tec employee]].
** In episode 4, Lucy is drugged and captured by Snip-Snip the Mr. Handy in the Super-Duper Mart. While she is semi-conscious and immobile, she has a flashback of her mother. [[spoiler: However, this flashback occurs while Snip-Snip is rolling her past a group of imprisoned ghouls, some of whom are feral. Lucy's Mother is revealed in the last episode to have been turned into a feral ghoul herself]].
** When Norm and Chet explore the Vault 32 [[spoiler: and see it long-abandoned and full of corpses, they come across [[CouldntFindAPen blood writings on the wall]] done by several of the residents. One of them writes "Death to Management"]]. It turns out [[spoiler: that "Management" is part of Vault 31 Overseer Bud Askins plan to control the vaults and the post-nuclear world. Back before the war, and even when Norm confronts him as a brain on a small robot, Bud always stated that the fate of the world will be decided by "Management".]]
** In episode 5, after Lucy asks Maximus about what happened in the last 200 years, [[spoiler:he replies that he was a child when the bombs fell which would not make any sense given his age. She later learns he was a survivor of the bombs that destroyed Shady Sands.]]
** In episode 6, the flashback to the Vault-Tec advertisement Cooper films has two bits that become significant later on:
*** [[spoiler:First, the couple he talks to, Lloyd and Cassandra Hawthorne, mention living in Vault 4 with a community of scientists. The 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.]]
*** [[spoiler:Second, when filming wraps, 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 episode 4, Lucy is drugged and captured by Snip-Snip the Mr. Handy in the Super-Duper Mart. While she is semi-conscious and immobile, she has a flashback of her mother. [[spoiler: However, this flashback happens while Snip-Snip is rolling her by a group of imprisoned ghouls, some of whom are feral. Lucy's Mother is revealed in the last episode to have been turned into a feral ghoul herself]].

* GreaterScopeVillain: [[spoiler:The cabal of corporate representatives, including Vault-Tec, RobCo, REPCONN, and Big MT, are shown to be the main antagonist of not just the show, but the whole ''Fallout'' setting as they are revealed to be the masterminds of the Great War in their gambit to TakeOverTheWorld after cleaning the slate of the Old World and their politics. On a more personal level, the series goes through a whole BigBadDuumvirate before settling on Lucy's father as the BigBad, Hank [=MacLean=], who is revealed to be a massive BitchInSheepsClothing who is directly responsible for the current state of California by obliterating Shady Sands, effectively signing the NCR's death warrant, as well as pushing Vault-Tec's agenda forward.]]