Fallout: Season One - 4K Blu-Ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Fallout: Season One Steelbook



Movie:
4K Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:



AV NIRVANA is member and reader-supported. When you purchase an item using our links, we might earn an affiliate commission.
​

Movie
When Amazon announced that they were adapting the Fallout video games into a TV series, most of us were a bit skeptical. Was this going to be another The Last of Us: Season One? Or would it be the train wreck that is Resident Evil, the Netflix show, bad? Video game adaptations can go either way without even a hint of notification, so we were naturally on the reticent side to check it out. However, early this year, I paid attention to what was coming out when I noticed Walton Goggins had been cast as the ghoul Cooper Howard, and the positive reviews followed soon after. Knowing that this was one of the few Amazon/MGM released shows coming to home video, I stuck my fingers in my ears and ignored every spoiler I possibly could in hopes of undergoing my maiden voyage watch when the 4K UHD discs came out. Well, lo and behold, the stars have aligned to where Warner DID get the physical release, and have graced us with both the regular 4K set as well as an Amazon exclusive steelbook as well (which is what we have here today).

Now, I’m going to admit that I’m only a casual Fallout gamer, so I’m not the person to come to when it comes to comparing minutia between the series and the games. I played the first game back in 97 or 98, and I played the 3rd one and New Vegas mildly as well, so I’m not up to date with the most recent ones. That being said, I have to say that the series seems to have captured a lot of the game's tone and feeling, even if it’s not directly tied to any overarching story from the games (except loosely). The story follows several people from the various clans and factions in the world of Fallout, starting 219 years after a nuclear holocaust wiped out most of humanity in an alternate 1950s timeline. The first episode acts as a groundwork laying episode, introducing us to Lucy (Ella Purnell) the rich and privileged vault dweller who has never seen the outside world, Cooper Howard (Walton Goggins), a mutant “ghoul” who was alive from before the bombs dropped over 200 years ago, and Maximus, member of the Brotherhood of Steel who takes on his master’s Mech-Armor after a mutated bear attack gone awry. Each of the three main protagonists is after one man, Siggi Wilzig (Michael Emerson, of Person of Interest fame), who happens to have something embedded in him that can change the fate of the world forever.

The world building in the series is heavy and layered, with only 8 episodes of runtime, but enough back story to fill up several movies (which is understandable as each episode can be over an hour each), and just saturates the entire vibe of the movie with an over the top 1950s retro futuristic texture that delves into both the sincere and the absurd at the same time. The show includes fan favorites like the vault dwellers, ghouls, mutant animals, scavengers, and the Brotherhood of Steel Knights, each fitting into this post-apocalyptic western with relative ease.

The one factor that fits the games so incredibly well is just how delicate the balance between absurdist humor and sincere drama is, sometimes in the very same scene. The show winks and nods at all of the 1950s upbeat optimism of the Vault Dwellers, while slathering the screen with over-the-top gore and brutality. Somehow, none of this feels odd, despite the juxtaposition of these various tonal changes. One minute you’re chuckling at Lucy talking about sex like it’s a textbook scenario, to watching Walton Goggins blasting someone’s leg off in a second’s notice. While I can’t verify that this is accurate for every game in the Fallout franchise, I will confirm that it seems to be one of the most accurate renditions of a video game show to date, even eclipsing The Last of Us for accuracy. Now I just have to impatiently wait for December for the second season to kick off, cuz I want MORE, MORE, MORE!




Rating:

Rated TV-MA by the MPAA




4K Video:

You’re not going to find any complaints here from me. This 2.39:1 HEVC encoded show is simply reference material from beginning to end. Whether it’s the slightly diffused “before” shots to the sun-drenched world of America post-nuclear war, it all looks amazing. The fine details are just absurd, blending CGI, practical effects, and real-world shots to make for what appears to be a seamless presentation. Colors are bright and vivid, contrasting with the dusty western world, with splatters of rich red blood, brown clothing, and shiny silver armor equally luscious to the naked eye. Black levels are deep and inky, and I could find no instances (at least majorly) where artifacting cropped up. Basically, this is one beautiful-looking image that should please just about anyone.









Audio:

The Dolby Atmos track is right on par with the video score, making for a reference-quality track that just brings the goods. Right off the bat, I have to take note that this is a widely dynamic track that runs the gamut of said dynamics from start to finish. The show can be quiet and soft, with low dialogue and mild ambient background noise, all the way up to explosive and wildly kinetic in the action sequences. The gunfight near the end of episode 2, where Ghoul Howard yanks out this six-shooter to lay waste to the town folk, is jaw-dropping. Tons of bass, great surround and overhead usage, and pinpoint precision in where objects are coming from. Simply put, this is just pure auditory perfection.







Extras:

• Audio Commentary (exclusive to the physical release)
• Animated Content – A step-by-step career walkthrough with a focus on what really matters, produced by Vault-Tec executive Bud Askins.
• Becoming The Ghoul – Award-winning actor Walton Goggins plays not one but two central characters in Fallout. This in-depth look highlights the dichotomy of The Ghoul and Cooper Howard, and their long journey from past to present.
• Console to Camera – The Fallout universe has a rich legacy with tens of millions of fans around the world. Go behind the scenes of Prime Video's new series and explore how and why, after nearly three decades, it was the perfect time to make the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. leap from game to screen.
• Creating the Wasteland – The VFX team for Fallout breaks down the various ways, mostly practical, they brought the Wasteland to life.
• Inside Season One – Go inside the making of Season One.
• Meet the Filmmaker (and fanatic) Jonathan Nolan – Todd Howard and Bethesda Game Studios waited over 25 years to find someone with the 'Profile' to bring their iconic universe to life.
• Prosthetics & Makeup Gone Nuclear – Let's face it – when it comes to Prosthetics and Makeup design in Fallout, Gore and Ghouls go hand-in-hand.
• Safe and Sound – Composer Ramin Djawadi and the team behind the sounds of Fallout reflect on the many musical notes of Season One.
• Set Your Sets on 2296 – Inside the cinematography and production design for Fallout, and how Jonathan Nolan and team achieved a very specific (and unforgettable) look for post-apocalyptic Los Angeles
• The Costumes of Fallout – Costume designer Amy Westcott and the Fallout producers unpack how they brought the Fallout factions to life.
• Welcome to the World of Fallout – An atomic past creates wild new futures. The cast and filmmakers of Fallout discuss the unique tone, characters, and vast world of the post-apocalyptic sci-fi, based on the beloved video game franchise.
• Writing for the Wasteland – Showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner describe how they created the ultra-unique tone of Fallout.

Final Score: ​

As you can tell, I had a blast watching Fallout: Season One. I personally don’t feel it was the “perfect” video game show, as some of the reviews I’ve read seem to imply, but overall, I felt this was one of the better video game shows by a very large margin. Amazon/MGM stuck the landing with this one, and I can’t really complain too much either. It was a good show with a great cast (Walton Goggins is an amazing character actor), and the 4K UHD Steelbook release is fantastic. The discs sport great video and audio, some REALLY solid extras, and the steelbook itself comes with some art cards as well as the classy steel case. So all in all, this gets a definite thumbs up from me.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten, Walton Goggins, Michael Emerson
Created by: Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Graham Wagner
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Core), French, Spanish DD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
Rated: TV-MA
Runtime: 450 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: July 8th, 2025

Recommendation: Great Watch