The Past

There is a one particular, short scene, in which, Hank's son and Lucy's younger brother, Norm "ambushes" Stephanie, and corners her into answering anything, only so he can confirm that anything, and make it all look even more conveniently same between the three Vaults, to prove a point to Chet, with whom he had a conversation about that particular matter moments ago. And did Hank ever talk about mashed potatoes? Maybe. Probably not.

Also the fact that Stephanie first answered with the question, means they (Vault 31) don't have prepared answers, or that she wasn't in/fell out of the loop, or simply Norm's ambush caught her by surprise, cause "Vaultdweller Sheep should not behave like that"..

Greatly written scene that tells a little bit about Vault Tec (Bud's Buds) and Stephanie herself, also sets up "a little bit" with Chet for the future, and says lots about Norm and how he can be a menace in his own way, when he decides to, or deems necessary..

Most funny part is that "Mashed Potatoes" is all that some got from that scene..

Jokes aside, entire show is like that, requires paying attention and perceptiveness..

About halfway through this episode I realized why I liked the previous one so much; because Maximus wasn't in it. Not that he's a bad character, it's just difficult to feel bad for him when he is the cause of all his own problems. Every time something happens he either lies or doesn't say anything at all. If he simply used his words his life might be considerably better and he wouldn't be a pariah with his own people. Idiots don't get redemption arcs in fiction.

Also, why would you design a suit of armor that can be deactivated from the outside, quickly and easily? That's happened twice now and is more than a little silly.

Having said all that, the mystery behind vaults 31 & 32 was the highlight of this episode, despite them forgetting about 33 running out of water. I know nothing of the game but I'm looking forward to more of this show. Cheers.

This was probably my least favorite episode so far in the series. It was still good enough to watch but it kind of felt like a filler episode. What it did well was push the Vault 33 story along quite nicely and now has me even more intrigued about what's going on in Vault 31. But the pacing overall seemed super slow and just didn't have the spark that the other four episodes had. Especially in the wasteland it seemed like there wasn't much going on except for a bridge standoff. This one could have been ten minutes shorter and that's saying something since it's the shortest episode to date. I'm still looking forward to the rest of the series though. 3.5/5 stars.

Still an excellent series but I can't help but feel this episode was a bit of a letdown compared with the amazing run they've had so far.

The theme of this episode is Who Can You Trust? Which also plays into the overarching theme of restoring America. Really what they're talking about is restoring a society where the trust each other enough that they're willing to accept the results of a democratic election.

From the flashback scenes with Cooper, to the scenes with Lucy and Maximus, to the election in the vault, everyone is struggling with the issues of trust here. It's an interesting juxtaposition but it does slow the action down a bit.

In episode five, the story progresses further and the relationships between characters become more complicated. Emotional moments and tensions are well blended, with performances remaining strong. The set design and lighting effectively enhance the post-apocalyptic mood.

The mix of suspense and deep emotions keeps viewers fully engaged. Characters feel more real and relatable as they face crises. Attention to small details in the scenes helps make the environment feel more natural.amirhosseinahg.