Fallout has portrayed Stephanie Harper, the current overseer of Vault 32, as someone not to be trifled with. Her demeanor could have been chalked up to what we now know as her ties as a Vault-Tec executive. However, in “The Handoff,” she might not necessarily toe the company line.
Harper has an interesting backstory. It explains her tough demeanor caused by a tragic past, and also explains how she became involved at Vault-Tec. The penultimate season two episode strikes a different tone in the Vaults. It’s more tense and serious compared to the absurdity of the in-breeding support group. The darker shift helps the viewer take more notice as the finale approaches. Harper provides a level of unpredictability considering her motives are still unclear, but it seems a little off base how quickly she gives up and loses control of the situation. For someone who has endured so much and worked hard to get into power, you would expect more fight.
Despite the darker tone, Fallout still delivers some lighter moments. The entire daddy-daughter interactions between Lucy and Hank are amusing. The dinner, the classic TV wardrobe, and particularly the rite of passage of learning how to drive feel sweet on one level with these two doing “normal” family things. You can’t lose context of their entire complicated relationship so it makes it all feel more twisted. But it’s also a good match of mental chess. Lucy feigning turning to her father’s side of thinking in order to catch him off guard. Quite the counter punch after Hank’s manipulations and fake submission in the previous episode.
The season as whole has done a great job running parallel scenes between the main characters, and “The Handoff” is no exception. The form of storytelling makes them feel interconnected even when apart. The ending has both Lucy and the Ghoul taking similar paths with significant reveals. Having the pair linked make the impact of the cliffhanger that much bigger.
Not exactly the same, but as impactful, are the past and present narratives surrounding the cold fusion. The smirk on the Ghoul’s face is priceless hearing Maximus talk about good people. Little did we know that Cooper Howard put his trust in “good people” and the clues say it was a big mistake. Although, it’s not so easily straightforward and it takes some camera tricks to establish that we same the person pre and post apocalypse. The phrase “You always end up back where you started” relates not only to Maximus but to the Ghoul.
This week’s Fallout has good character work and big reveals that help set the stage for the upcoming season finale.
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