The Fallout TV Show Trailer Makes The Apocalypse Funny And Weird
Just like superhero movies, the post-apocalypse is kind of overdone. Given our current dystopian landscape, it makes sense that Hollywood has quickly embraced the post-apocalypse, delivering wave after wave of dour, grim movies that sell a rather depressing view of the future — not without reason, of course.
After a while, however, post-apocalyptic movies — zombie or otherwise — become too close to home to feel fun at all. "Mad Max: Fury Road" managed to overcome some of this by focusing on its high-octane, dangerous stunts that gave everyone anxiety. But after the huge success of "The Last of Us," we're risking seeing hopelessness and human horror become the end-all-be-all of post-apocalyptic stories. Or at least we would be if it wasn't for "Fallout."
The TV adaptation of the beloved games by Bethesda Game Studios promise to continue the trend of successful TV adaptations of video games by doing two things: not adapt any game directly but instead place an original story in the canon world of the games, and capture the cuckoo bananas post-apocalyptic fun of the originals.
The latest trailer is all about this juxtaposition (you can watch the first trailer here), as we are introduced to a world that is incredibly bleak and violent but also stupidly fun. What else is one to do but laugh in the face of nuclear armageddon?
I don't want to set the world on fire
From the get-go, the new "Fallout" trailer instantly transports you to the world of the game, capturing the iconography and the tone "Fallout" is known for. We get the classic "I Don't Want to Set the World On Fire" song prominent in the games, and we see a laser gun (the prop looking incredible), and even a yao guai. At first glance, the visuals are stunning and they faithfully bring "Fallout" to life.
Most importantly, however, the trailer is FUNNY. There's a dark humor to the story and the world that the trailer conveys which sets it apart from other post-apocalyptic stories. Sure, things are bleak, and our main character (played by Ella Purnell) meets nothing but people and robots that want to kill her or steal her organs, but they all sort of laugh maniacally as they do it. The mix of violence and grim comedy is a staple of "Fallout," and it is a relief to see that be a prominent part of the trailer.
Bringing animated (or digitally rendered) characters to real life is a tough ask — just look at "Avatar: The Last Airbender" and how it loses the essence of the original, for instance. With any luck, "Fallout" will join "Arcane" and "The Last of Us" as proof that video game adaptations can thrive on TV.