‘Fallout’s Lucy and Maximus Are Unlike Any Other Couple on TV

Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for Fallout.

While video game adaptations have been growing increasingly popular in recent years thanks to the success of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, The Super Mario Brothers Movie, Arcane, Uncharted, and HBO’s award-season darling The Last of Us, the notion of an adaptation of Fallout has always been treated with some skepticism. In addition to establishing the extensive worldbuilding required to make a Fallout series a reality, the show could struggle to develop new characters, as the original Fallout is a role-playing game with no identifiable protagonists. However, showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet made the intelligent decision to create a new story set within the Fallout universe that focuses on original characters, among them Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) and Maximus (Aaron Moten). While they serve as a stand-in for the various characters that gamers have played over the years, Fallout’s Lucy and Maximus are unlike any other couple on television.

Fallout

In a future, post-apocalyptic Los Angeles brought about by nuclear decimation, citizens must live in underground bunkers to protect themselves from radiation, mutants and bandits.

Release Date

April 11, 2024

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

Seasons

1

Creator(s)

Graham Wagner , Geneva Robertson-Dworet

Producer

Lisa Joy, Jonathan Nolan

Streaming Service(s)

Prime Video

Lucy and Maximus Invert Gender Stereotypes in ‘Fallout’

At the beginning of Fallout, Lucy resides in the isolated community of Vault 33, where she and her family have been living to escape the perils of the ravaged surface. While she is entirely devoted to her father, Hank (Kyle MacLachlan), who serves as the Vault’s overseer, Lucy has an enthusiasm and sexual independence that is rare among female characters. Although the residents of Vault 33 are preparing to make an exchange with the inhabitants of Vault 32 by marrying Lucy to Monty (Cameron Cowperthwaite), her excitement about the situation is not just because it will satisfy her father’s political goals; she’s genuinely excited to be sexually intimate with Monty, wanting to take ownership of her body and future. While the notion of arranged marriages is common in genre stories, particularly Game of Thrones, Fallout manages to spin it in a direction that gives Lucy autonomy.

If Lucy is confident and proud of the future that she thinks awaits her, Maximus is deeply fearful and conflicted about the oath of loyalty that he swore to the Brotherhood of Steel. While genre stories traditionally present male protagonists with fully realized intentions and ethical standards, Maximus agrees to follow the regulations of the Brotherhood because he finds himself without a purpose; the speech that the Brotherhood’s Elder Cleric Quintus (Michael Cristofer) gives him isn’t exactly inspiring, but he is even more fearful of trying to act out on his own. This isn’t just a great depiction of male insecurity, but a compelling way of setting up Maximus’ character arc; after his Knight, Titus (Michael Rapaport), is taken down in battle with a mutant bear, Maximus is forced to take his identity and assumes the responsibilities of his new titles.

While he is certainly more empowered when he meets Lucy and helps defend her from The Ghoul (Walton Goggins), Maximus is still deeply insecure about sexual intimacy. Lucy has become aware of the importance of preserving the human race since her youth, and she also expresses excitement about sexual activity; comparatively, Maximus was denied any knowledge about human reproduction and expresses fear when Lucy suggests they take their relationship to the next level. It’s a great inversion that reflects Fallout‘s forward-thinking approach; the series has no shortage of action but manages to become a romantic comedy every once in a while.

Lucy and Maximus Question Their Loyalties in ‘Fallout’

Lucy establishes herself as a strong female character when she sets out into the wasteland to rescue her father. While she certainly has more confidence in her quest than Maximus does, Lucy is forced to question her assumed truths upon the revelation about how Vault-Tec caused the Great War. It’s revealed to Lucy that the communities in Vault 33 and Vault 32 were designed to be “breeding pools” meant to preserve the human race; while realizing that she is a pawn in a larger scheme gives Lucy a crisis of confidence, it also allows her to take ownership of her future by trying to find Hank in Las Vegas. Lucy shows that she has no qualms about working with potentially dubious characters when she forms a temporary pact with The Ghoul in order to find her father, and potentially his family as well.

Comparatively, Maximus lacks Lucy’s clarity of intention. He has grown to question what the goals of the Brotherhood of Steel actually are, and realizes that the group is somewhat ineffective in thwarting the conspiracy linked to the Enclave. While his promotion to knighthood does instill him with confidence, his persona of being a seasoned warrior is built on a lie; the other members of the Brotherhood falsely assume that it was Maximus who killed Moldaver (Sarita Choudhury). Seeing Maximus face the trauma of being falsely hailed as a hero, all while he questions whether he will ever see Lucy again, makes for a much more sensitive depiction of masculinity than what is often seen on television.

Where Will Lucy and Maximus Go Next in ‘Fallout’?

Although they both end up finding a new purpose in the first season’s finale, Lucy and Maximus may be on different paths in Fallout Season 2. Lucy appears to be on a new mission with The Ghoul, and although she whispers to Maximus’ unconscious body that she will find him, he wakes up with no idea where she is. Whether he will retain his rank within the Brotherhood or remain loyal to Lucy is certainly one of the biggest unanswered questions that the second season of Fallout will need to address; even though the two characters are set up on interesting paths of self-discovery, the first season was at its best when they were together.

Fallout is one of the most ambitious programs in the history of Prime Video, and the strong reviews suggest that a second season is imminent. It’s refreshing to see how Fallout tactfully draws inspiration from the games to create original characters whose relationship reflects forward-thinking gender roles. Its success speaks to just how radically the video game adaptation genre has evolved in recent years.

Fallout is streaming on Prime Video in the U.S.

Watch on Prime Video