Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout Season 2 does not waste any time setting the tone for its world. The first episode of the series, titled “The Innovator,” kicks off with some explosive violence as Lucy (Ella Purnell), along with The Ghoul aka Cooper Howard (Walton Goggins), plans an ambush attack on a group of Khans. This action-packed opening immediately sets the tone of the series while indicating that some time has lapsed since the events of Fallout Season 1.
As Fallout makes its way back into the TV conversation and edges closer to the 2026 television landscape, it is clear that the series is setting up its core conflicts: Lucy’s impending showdown with her father, Hank, the secrets involving Vault-Tec, and then, of course, the long-promised journey to New Vegas. While the carnage was expected, even welcomed, the biggest shock of the premiere was not in the death toll but in what was learned about Lucy.
Lucy’s optimism survives the Wasteland
The initial strategy for the premiere involves Lucy pretending to be a bounty hunter by betraying The Ghoul in order to trap the Khans. However, since Cooper Howard is ready to massacre them all, Lucy has second thoughts. Instead of pulling the trigger, she decides to be honest with them, hoping that it will lead to a diplomatic solution. Of course, that doesn’t work.
Then follows a massacre—but an uneven one. While The Ghoul slaughters without hesitation, Lucy chooses to incapacitate her victims with non-lethal shots. She later verifies that she tried her best not to kill anyone, holding on to her hope that people can still be good, even in the Wasteland.
This is especially important considering how the end of Fallout Season 1 went down. Lucy was still reeling from finding out Hank was directly responsible for the nuclear devastation of the world, which had removed her famous smile from her face. The start of Season 2 shows that she definitely hasn’t turned completely hard yet.
Hank’s cruelty might be too much for her
This optimism is put to the test in a dark sequence in an abandoned Vault. Following the trail of Hank, Lucy and The Ghoul find one of Hank’s twisted experiments: a mind-control device planted in a Wastelander, set to send a warning message to Lucy. After the message has been conveyed, the subject’s head explodes.
Lucy’s response is significant. She is shaken, angry, and definitely much more open to The Ghoul’s deadly philosophy. However, in a preview later on in the episode, it becomes apparent that conflict still exists, as Lucy wonders if Cooper Howard’s lost family would understand who he has become.
It seems like Fallout Season 2 is going to delve into whether Lucy will toughen up or if she’ll soften The Ghoul. Either way, the moral conflict between the two could be more explosive than any shootout. Fallout is available on Prime Video, with fresh episodes dropping on December 24.
