S01.E03: The Head

[paulvdb]

Quote

The Wasteland's got its own Golden Rule...

Premiere date: April 10, 2024

[AnimeMania]

The "Big Gulp" was a Newtant.

[thuganomics85]

Cooper Howard a.k.a. The Ghoul being the loose inspiration for the Pip Boy face was unexpected but awesome.  Makes even more sense why they got Walton Goggins: along with his other numerous talent, he certainly has the face/teeth for that role!  Curious to see what will come out of the flashbacks.  He is going to go from someone who didn't even want to kill people in movies to.... well, what we see now.  Safe bet is that something will probably happen to his daughter that will change him (sounded like he and his wife had already split up in the pilot, but he still seemed like a decent fellow.)

Glad that we are still going to revisit the Vault and follow things through Norm/Lucy's brother's eyes.  Right now, it feels like they are directionless without a firm Overseer and it will likely cost them.  I get that just straight-up killing prisoners isn't not a welcomed idea, but trying to rehabilitate this lot is probably a losing strategy.  But it looks like both Norm and Stephanie/Lucy's friend might not be down with the way things are going.  Hmm...

Thaddeus/Maximus' bully being his new squire has a lot of potential.  Maximus was clearly enjoying the power trip, but he did seem to soften a bit and even saved his life.  I imagine this will all lead to the eventual moment when Thaddeus finds out who he is really squiring for!

I have to imagine all of this contact Lucy has had with various radiation will not be healthy for her.

[Ottis]

Wow, only 2 comments? This show is better than that.

Yeah, agree that Coop being the inspiration for the logo was a nice connection.

This show is beginning to resemble my issue with the game… it’s just depressing. Not as funny as Borderlands. 

[paigow]

I did not play the game... Why does Lucy carry the head by its hair instead of putting it in the black zipper bag?

[Sakura12]

3 hours ago, paigow said:

I did not play the game... Why does Lucy carry the head by its hair instead of putting it in the black zipper bag?

You don't carry anyone's head in the game. Mostly you kill people and loot all their stuff. It's a first person game so all you see is your hands and your weapon. 

I guess she didn't want her bag to smell. That's where she keeps her food. 

[shrewd.buddha]

I'm sure the showrunners put time and effort in finding all those ironically used "oldies" music choices .. but it is annoying now. 
If it were toned down a bit it could work - but there is nothing subtle about this show.

On 4/13/2024 at 9:59 AM, Ottis said:

This show is beginning to resemble my issue with the game… it’s just depressing.

The show is a depressing dystopian comedy of errors with characters who aren't very bright, barely managing to stumble from one situation to the next.  
  The return to Lucy's brother and the vault dwelling community is setting the stage for their naive and petty idiocy leading them to slaughter. Like 'The Office'  - but with violent murders. How did these people manage to survive this long?
  The flashbacks to the Ghoul's life before the apocalypse are the only scenes with a sense of normalcy instead of absurd wackiness. 

But, respect for the set designs and cinematography.. Well done, there.

Now I understand why Amazon dumped the entire season online at once.  My appetite for more is quickly diminishing.  
But what do I know?  I'm older and not hip to current trends - - this could be just the type of thing the kids crave these days.
 

Edited April 14 by shrewd.buddha
Grammar

[Sakura12]

15 minutes ago, shrewd.buddha said:

I'm sure the showrunners put time and effort in finding all those ironically used "oldies" music choices .. but it is annoying now. 

The music is from the game. It's what plays on the radio. I always turn off any radios I come across. It was annoying there too. But I appreciate the showrunners staying true to the game. 

Lucy I get being naive, she grew up sheltered in a vault. She's the player discovering everything for the first time. Maximus I have no idea why he is struggling. It seems like he was trained by the Brotherhood since he was a kid.  He should have a higher skill set. He seemed to have put all his skill points into luck. 

[catherinejane]

I love the game. I am enjoying this. It does not make me want to binge it. 
 

I am waiting for a death claw to appear. Or a beomoth? Been ages since I played the 4th game. I want a ghoul tower! 

[PurpleTentacle]

Shitter doesn't seem to be a very well thoughtout job. If you feed pigs, they produce shit for the flies and on top of that you can butcher them for meat after a relatively short time. Also couldn't they find one fat actor in Hollywood, if this guy is supposed to be fat?

Was that water thing a mutated Axolotl? I guess they are meat eaters.

[Jack Shaftoe]

This show is too full of people quite literally too stupid to live. There should have been a lot more vault dwellers wanting the execution of the raiders, ideals about reforming prisoners tend to become rather unpopular when so many of your friends and family are brutally murdered.

And it's not quite darkly funny enough to justify the endless "Oops, I am being an idiot" moments. A Fallout show should be funnier or alternatively have an actual plot worth that name rather than a series of wacky misadventures with lots of gore. Visually, it's pretty awesome, so I will keep watching but I sure hope the writing improves.

I kind of hate Cooper in the present because I am tired psychopaths with sob stories but the flashbacks with him are very well done.

[peridot]

It's interesting that Maximus recited his brotherhood creed, when he clearly shows he's not a hero.  I thought Wasteland people are more self-aware.

I'm glad to get that view of the Vault people too.  The morons who are running the vault now are just going to get the rest of their people killed.  And now they are running low on water and everyone knows it. 

The backstory on the Ghoul is interesting.

[MrWhyt]

On 4/15/2024 at 4:37 AM, PurpleTentacle said:

Shitter doesn't seem to be a very well thoughtout job. If you feed pigs, they produce shit for the flies and on top of that you can butcher them for meat after a relatively short time.

That would require you to actually have pigs.

[PurpleTentacle]

18 hours ago, MrWhyt said:

That would require you to actually have pigs.

Considering they still have chickens I don't see why they wouldn't have pigs.

[tennisgurl]

Poor Lucy is just not having a good time of it, she's trying her best but she whole "gee whiz" attitude is getting her into real trouble. 

Interesting seeing more of the Ghouls backstory, him being the inspiration for Pip Boy is a fun choice. He's certainly got those big teeth! I am really interested in how he went from a nice family man who didn't even like pretending to kill someone to...The Ghoul. It seems like it involves his wife, who it sounds like he was already separated from by the time of the war, and him apparently not being so keen on Vault-Tech by that time, considering how uncomfortable he was about doing his signature thumbs up at the party.

I'm glad we're still checking in on life in The Vault, its my favorite set of the show, which is saying something because every location is great. Looks like Norm will be taking over as our main viewpoint character there, so is he going to take matters into his own hands with regards to the raiders?

Councillor: "Are you aware that every job you've ever had has reviewed your performance as "lacks enthusiasm"?"
Norm: "No, but that sounds accurate."

[Ottis]

On 4/14/2024 at 9:56 AM, shrewd.buddha said:

The show is a depressing dystopian comedy of errors with characters who aren't very bright, barely managing to stumble from one situation to the next.  

And yet somehow a number of them survived for a long time after the bombs fell, which makes me wonder how (beyond the cryo beds).

On 4/14/2024 at 9:56 AM, shrewd.buddha said:

But what do I know?  I'm older and not hip to current trends - - this could be just the type of thing the kids crave these days.

You could well be right. The show is pretty and has some moments of humor or narrative clarity, but it isn't consistent and has no direction so far except getting characters from point A to B. I have found that many viewers today are fine with that, and some honestly don't understand when you try to explain narrative direction and themes. I see this a lot in sci fi, where characters act in inconsistent ways ("but it's funny!") or there is no consistent internal logic ("what do you mean?"). 

On 4/15/2024 at 1:22 PM, Jack Shaftoe said:

I kind of hate Cooper in the present because I am tired psychopaths with sob stories but the flashbacks with him are very well done.

This is the only character where I see the beginnings of meaningful development, going from disillusioned and bitter to caring about something. Maybe. Lucy is going the other way, but that's less character development than simple survival.

On 4/16/2024 at 12:04 PM, peridot said:

I'm glad to get that view of the Vault people too.  The morons who are running the vault now are just going to get the rest of their people killed.  And now they are running low on water and everyone knows it. 

I view those morons as analogous to corporate life. You get people at the top who don't deserve to be there but who are ambitious and think they got there on their own (instead of being someone else's cannon fodder pawns). Everyone else suffers for it, but to the person truly at the top, that doesn't matter. 

[Anela]

I liked ghoul’s wife.  That was a cute scene.  The rest just reminded me that I don’t think he wanted to kill the dog.  I wonder if the dog will show up again.  He didn’t seem to be aggressive with everyone, and protected Lucy.  
it is gross, though. I was busy last weekend, and then wanted to watch something lighter.  
 

I think Amazon put it all up at once, because it has so many fans. They got their renewal notice within a week.   

[dovegrey]

On 4/13/2024 at 10:41 PM, Sakura12 said:

You don't carry anyone's head in the game. Mostly you kill people and loot all their stuff. It's a first person game so all you see is your hands and your weapon.

Well, you can carry someone's head around, if you really want to, and you can switch into third-person view... 😆 Cutting off someone's head and delivering it was also a New Vegas fetch quest.

I really enjoyed this episode; it's back on track for me. Good pacing and some interesting developments and character dynamics.

Lucy and Coop are an interesting pair, and I wonder how or if they'll influence each other. I like Lucy and am invested in her personal journey, but I really want to see more of how Coop lost himself in the Ghoul. He reminds me a bit (a tiny, tiny bit) of Arlen Glass from FO4.

What does Coop really want with the head? Is he that interested in caps as a bounty hunter? He doesn't seem the type or really have a huge need for money/caps.

Maximus is a walking, stomping bad sitcom (soooooooo many bad decisions, Bud) - but I finally warmed up to him after he decided to be a better Knight than Titus. Let's see if he waffles.

I'm really interested in what happens with the Vault 33 social situation; these are 100% sheltered people who've been told for generations that they're the saviors of humanity. If they can't save these Raiders or decide to kill them, then what does that mean for their worldview, their purpose, and the social fabric of their Vault? They're in a no-win situation.

I just want someone to adopt the dog. Please.

Edited April 24 by dovegrey

[Hanahope]

how did bottle caps become currency?  its an interesting form.

[Affogato]

On 4/13/2024 at 10:41 PM, Sakura12 said:

You don't carry anyone's head in the game. Mostly you kill people and loot all their stuff. It's a first person game so all you see is your hands and your weapon. 

I guess she didn't want her bag to smell. That's where she keeps her food. 

I wondered that too, since she could have found something to put the head in, like she could have made a bindle out of the guy’s shirt, since he was no longer using it. If everyone is looking for the head, just dumb.

[Danny Franks]

Pretty gross monster. I'm not sure I remember them in Fallout 4, but it's been a long while since I played it. Mouth fingers are a great, body horror visual.

Still not entirely sure which way Maximus is going to go. He enjoys being praised and kowtowed to way too much, but he did seem to forge a genuine connection with his squire. And he did save him.

I'm sure Cooper is a fan favourite already, but I find him incredibly tiresome. As @Jack Shaftoe said, psychopaths with sob stories are so overdone, and so fucking tiring. Everyone died and he survived, boo hoo. He's clearly spent most of the two hundred years since ensuring lots of other people die, in horrific ways. 

Lucy has only ever known the communal, mutually supportive environment of the vault (which seems like it was being monitored by outsiders, and may still have been a huge social experiment), and doesn't seem to have grasped yet that it's completely different on the surface. 

Speaking of the vault, the two would-be overseers are setting up another disaster, by the sound of it. Norm is obviously right, those raiders cannot be rehabilitated to live in the vault. I'm guessing Norm will end up leading a faction that opposes the status quo, for better or worse.