Fallout’s goofy apocalypse gets serious in season 2
TL;DR
Fallout season 2 expands the world and tackles deeper themes, but risks losing the balance of grim and goofy tone that made the first season successful.
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The most impressive thing about Fallout's first season was how well it nailed the tone. The games are a mix of grim and goofy, a postapocalyptic story in a bleak world that's also full of crude jokes and ridiculous characters. It's a tough balance to get right - too serious and it's a miserable place to be; too silly and it renders the whole thing meaningless - but the Amazon Prime Video series struck the right balance. It was even accessible to viewers who had never played the games. With the scene-setting out of the way, the show's second season makes a push to expand Fallout's world and tackle headier subjects. But in doing so, it loses s …