#maxdane

• as cooper turns back to observe this vertibird continuing to be on fire. there's a. a sound. a very strange sound. like an animal call. there's growling, there's roaring. of course cooper has not heard this on the battlefield before. it's night, it's alaska in winter, he's in the woods, and the only light is this torched vertibird. cooper is very alarmed. the image of a creature emerges from the fire but then there's g unfire. chinese soldiers have arrived. • as they appear to come from one of the sides of cooper, he is practically ambushed, his visor still up, the leg of the power armour sparking and malfunctioning, it seems. the s hots make the power armour crumbles in a heap to the ground as cooper calls the failing power armour a piece of shit. • in mandarin, a femme soldier appears to tell them to stop shooting. her name is wenjie. [google is telling me “wen” means literature, culture, writing, or gentle and “jie” can mean outstanding, heroic, remarkable] she is wearing an unshanka hat. two other masked chinese soldiers walk over to a downed cooper as he struggles to get the power armour to move. wenjie crouches down and taunts cooper a little. cooper is completely at these chinese soldier's mercy. “wow, buddy. what did they put you in? the future is here. i’m serious. the generals will be making us wear these too, before long. rock to spear and so on. and when our commanding officers tell us to put these on, we’ll say the exact same thing this poor guy did. “okie dokie.””

• so much to unpack from this speech actually! first, i think it's interesting how people talk in this universe. it's very cutesy, 1950s, kitsch. a little hard to explain. but even the chinese soldiers say “wow buddy”. in charlie whiteknife's speech, he acknowledged these soldiers were probably told the same things, the same orders, the same type of training and thought they were doing what was right, too. so wenjie telling cooper they'd probably be in the same power armour is both interesting and disturbing [the armour would probably malfunction too]. “the future is here” line kinda spooks me and idk if i have the writing space to say why. • but the most fascinating part of what wenjie said was the fact that regardless as soldiers, they'll go along with it. and practically with a smile. “okie dokie”. now i wonder if hank saying “okie dokie” which is something lucy got from hank is actually some military or corporate culture thing. i mean, i could be overanalyzing [[this is why you're reading this, come on now!]] but irl nobody knows the origins of where “ok” actually came from so i can't really lean into that for this but isn't it somethin' this phrase came back up? on tumblr i was seeing how some people think cooper probably gets the thousand yard stare every time lucy says it. i wonder if “okie dokie” is something people are often saying in a dutiful, loyal type of way. like in a way that people are just lying down and taking it. it's so interesting how hank used it in a resigned fashion for his crimes whereas lucy used it in a “i must accept my circumstances” way idk! but i must move on, i fear i have a tennish page limit on these notes lmao

• as this speech is happening, cooper notices this big ass creature in the back, stomping out of the fire of this vertibird approaching the four of them. he cannot move, it's dark, it's cold, and i think it's clear he probably doesn't speak or understand mandarin. he's also probably frozen in fear. so cooper doesn't really say anything. • the creature swipes the first two soldiers before turning to wenjie. she is slain in one swipe. i am realizing that cooper had to watch as all three were mauled right in front of him, their screams and the creatures noises trembling through the night, again only illuminated by this burning vertibird. • this creature is so close to cooper, it's breath is bearing down on his limp body as he struggles with terror in this immobile power armour. cooper is face to face with the beast as it decides to quickly slink away from him, g unshots continue to whizz by in the distant dark. at full height, the creature is almost as tall as the trees in this forest. cooper is basically in shock, he hasn't said a word since he fell over in the power armour. •”whitehorse 21, this is catf. it appears the reds are in retreat. the island is secure. congratulations, soldiers, you did it.” command radios over. “we didn’t. it wasn't, it wasn’t us. it was something else.” cooper finally says, breathlessly as this creature known as a dea thclaw roars into the night. • me, slamming my fist on a table: you cannot convince me the government didn't damn know that de athclaws was out there because they sent them! they sent d eathclaws to push the reds back in the battle of anchorage and that's one of the reasons why the one cooper saw didn't harm him, d eathclaws are government and enclave inventions! • one of the best episode intros to date for me

• next direct scene is the aftermath of maximus ending that fuckass harkness man, mirroring cooper's military flashback and the use of the power armour quite a bit. anddd his own chapter of the brotherhood of steel tracked max to that sunset sarsaparilla plant 😭 • vertibirds can be heard outside as thaddeus makes the declaration that he's getting back to work lol. “they tracked me” maximus realizes. “ok, yeah. great seeing you, but, uh, you know, you should probably go. i think you should get out of here. just gotta… you gotta… go, go, go!” “i’m sorry. i’m sorry, you have to come with me.” maximus says apologetically as he exits the power armour. a mess! lmao • maximus tells thaddeus he has to come with him and of course thaddeus resists that “he was an emissary from the commonwealth. If they find out he’s de ad…” and the camera pans over and boy is he d ead! [harkness' power armour sparks a little but barely anything is happening to it after the helmet part has been caved in, compare with the malfunctioning pre war power armour in cooper's flashback] • ”you wear the armor. your name’s xander. you’re from the commonwealth.” "max, look at me, ok? the brotherhood has a policy about people with wrinkly skin." "look, if they come in here, they’re gonna tear this place up, kill half these kids, and enlist the rest." this entire first part of the exchange very much hurt, like oh my god, we don't even know if thaddeus is turning into a ghoul. just having “wrinkly skin”, a skin difference is enough. and maximus extends to thaddeus the reality of what the brotherhood of steel would do to the kids with different skin, too. • "yeah, y-you’re not wrong. but hear me out, ok, i’m great at running away. i’m… i’m great. i love it. i like it. start fresh, no big deal." thaddeus really thought he had no choice last season, huh? •"sometimes running away is the best thing you can do. sometimes it’s not." almost felt like maximus was talking about not only thaddeus here but himself, too. • “the elder cleric’s pissed you guys took off like that. you’re in deep shit, golden boy.” one of the guys who was playing with a live grenade in area 51, knight gnatius, says to maximus as maximus exits the sunsets sarsaparilla plant with uh thaddeus attempting to leave the building too but unable to duck as he is inexperienced in power armour [😭] • as maximus conveniently tells knight gnatius their vertibird broke down, thaddeus in the power armour struggles to out of this damn door. “ow! one leg at a time. you got this, good. alright, here we go. okay. one leg, two leg, one leg. at ease, everyone. what’s up, big boy? alright, let’s get out of this shit hole. dust ’em up, spit ’em down. whoo! lock and load, bitches!” thaddeus talks himself through it pretending to be xander harkness as maximus gives an uneasy expression as they leave to go back to their brotherhood of steel headquarters •[the scene of thaddeus in that power armour struggling to get through the door as maximus stares in the direction of knight gnatius trying to keep it together is easily one of the cleverest and funniest scenes this episode and season lmao]

• next, we are greeted with the sight of lucy awakening as she's been given an iv while she is laying down. an empty chair can be seen in the shot. she is confused but captain rodriguez approaches and calmly tells lucy they gave her medicine “we gave you some meds, so you should be feeling a lot better than when your friend brought you in. though i’m not sure a friend is the right word.” • let me start by saying what buffout is. of course one of the many chems [drugs] in the fallout series. introduced in the first game and being in all of them since, it's a type of steroid that increased reflexes, endurance, strength. used by pre war athletes, soldiers. and is addicting as hell. on one hand, i know exactly why lucy went on a fun little rampage on the ghoulified kings, it was easy on buffout. but on the other? why some old ncr rangers got that shit lying around omg 😭 [it almost dawned on me that maybe cooper had it on him? he's the drug keeper] • ok let me circle back to “...when your friend brought you in. though i’m not sure a friend is the right word.” because ghoulcy nation has been fried over this one. what did captain rodriguez mean by this? we'll never know [i love this “something else” relationship that walton was saying cooper and lucy have bye] • lucy was so unwell from enduring the telephone pole crucifixion that she needed buffout for two days :/ • lucy wakes up like she is confused and doesn't know what has happened in between leaving the caesar's legion camp and being at the ncr camp, discussed with a mutual and lucy basically being unconscious implies cooper probably carried her at some point there goodbye

• do you think lucy lost consciousness, cooper had to carry her, cooper and the ncr rangers let her rest but were getting concerned because she was in such a bad state that buffout was the best option and she'd be way worse off had she not been given it? lucy was given so much, she was having withdrawals, she must've been near d eath for sure 😞 • ok but as captain rodriguez makes the “friend” comment, it pans over to cooper in another chair with dogmeat propped up, as if waiting for lucy to get better. i'm kinda feeling unwell right now so give me a second 😭 • lucy thanks captain rodriguez as we get another load of our precious biff feeding this caged squirrel. [pieces of his armour appear to be taped and cobbled the together, i just noticed] • lucy asks who they are and captain rodriguez introduces themselves as the ncr. “and is this all that’s left of you?” lucy asks. biff answers quickly “no, there’s tons of us. we’re just not here right now.” he gives a peculiar expression. “uh… you’ve been to shady sands? that’s where we come from.” “sorry” lucy sheepishly responds. • biff is right! we'll see more ncr and ncr idealized people later. i really feel like that level of hope and optimism will appear again. idk about a whole army or anything but the ncr is prolific. • “some asshole saw the first sign of civilization taking shape on the wasteland in over 100 years, chose to burn it all down.” captain rodriguez rightfully and tensely adds as lucy knowingly and visibly gets uncomfortable. hank, when we catch youuu

• “ well, the past is the past. ain’t that right?” cooper finally quips. my interpretation of him saying this is a mix of wanting to be on a fresher slate in a way for the treatment of lucy, after the encounter with caesar's legion, he probably doesn't want any more issue to come toward her like that, like lucy almost d ied and he felt the need to escalate a civil war over it but also i kinda feel like he said this because he also knows and saw how awkward lucy got as she realized these two people are from where hank obliterated. [cooper could've also said this to stir the pot, i won't hold my breath on it lmao] • lucy is ready to get out of there so she starts getting her stuff “well, we should, uh, probably be going. thank you again, truly. we’ve met our fair share of people on the road from los angeles, and, truth be told, most of them are fudging awful. so, meeting you guys has been a welcome change of pace.” biff thanks lucy back 🥹 he almost looks like he hasn't heard anything like that in ever, bye • ”well, if you ever want to trade up the company you keep… the ncr always welcomes new recruits.” as captain rodriguez offers this to lucy, cooper is seen smiling at this. [he is very smiley this episode btw lol] “ i would, but, uh, i’m looking for someone.” “common story around here. someone you care about or someone you hate?” • “ooo, what a great question. what say you, miss maclean?” cooper inquisitively asks, gazing at lucy as she attempts to find the words to describe someone so evil as hank in so few words. i have like, a lot to say about this scene where cooper calls her by her name [for like, the third time total maybe in the show? at least a part of her real name, it seems he's said her whole name before in season one and her first and last name separately so far in season two] but idk if everybody needs to hear those ghoulcy thoughts so maybe i'll just say he's being much softer here. a whole honorific. he's sitting down so everyone else including lucy is in an elevated position for blocking, that's an interesting mise en scene choice to me. you can see walton's eyes and eyelashes here so clearly, it's kind of outrageous but i'll be moving on gdlfgdl • “someone who hurt a lot of people.” lucy implies, fidgeting in this scene to the point where we see the corpse finger clearly glide through her hair. i love noticing!

• "what do you plan to do to him when you find him?" captain rodriguez asks lucy. "i’m gonna bring him to justice." as lucy responds with this, cooper is shown absorbing the conversation once more, a very subtle grin forming on his face. perhaps he wants hank brought to justice too, maybe he likes that lucy is like this, maybe he thought lucy and the ncr remnants should meet idk "well, that’s what the new california republic was meant to be about. bringing justice to the wasteland. we almost did." captain rodriguez says, carrying some supplies as it pans over to poor old biff. i hope he's taking his pet squirrel with him. • captain rodriguez tells lucy they're not going to bring everything as they leave so lucy could take some supplies. lucy is then shown as cache of blickys by captain rodriguez. [theorizing that captain rodriguez and biff are leaving because cooper did tell caesar's legion about them even with the diversion but i still feel like he only told them there were probably only a few of them left in that region idk but once again, military tactician cooper. he would not be doing all this if he didn't believe in them or at least care about them, i'm sorry! man is full of hope! he's just not good at showing it] • “they seemed nice.” lucy adorably, cutely, and sweetly says. “ you think they’d be nice to you if they find out what your daddy did?” cooper questions lucy [as if captain rodriguez probably wouldn't not go out of her way to help her find hank but whatever lgdlgf] “ i wasn’t gonna stay, if that’s what you’re worried about. all i saw in there was more matching jackets.” • [i'm just going to say, if there are any non ghoulcy readers of these things at all, i'm sorry! but what do you expect me to do!? 😭 because why did the writers make lucy say “i wasn’t gonna stay, if that’s what you’re worried about” like excuse me? not cooper have companion anxiety and lucy immediately shutting it down like damn cooper, she wasn't going over there no ways thanks to you and the hilarious “matching jacket” faction discourse as you're clearing rubbing off on her but lucy shutting down joining the ncr in at least to make sure she gets to hank is truly somethin' lol i also noticed the directors let lucy bump into cooper a little here like ok, again, love noticing as a #nooticer] • lucy calling the ncr “matching jackets” [when cooper believes in them and never called them that!]

• the song that plays in the next scene is “rum and coca-cola” by the andrews sisters and the lyrics are quite something to read. it has social commentary. about soldiers coming into native places and harming the indigenous femmes there essentially. very interesting song choice for a vault 33 scene • in one of reg's events, on the wall is a poster that says “products of the inbreeding support group” and there's a few people eating, drinking, talking. what is generally considered to be having a time. • a masc credited on the wiki as vault 33 neighbor #1 starts a conversation with another vault dweller about how they think their aunt and uncle were related and that it impacted him. lmao at first i was like, “this conversation is silly lgdfl” but then i looked deeper! was thinking maybe he meant they were more related than siblings usually are. but he also said something i just now picked up on that's a bit alarming: he said he was very thirsty. i thought it was alcohol at first but he was actually drinking water. i think this means they were already rationing water by a lot. because the next moment is a femme credited on the wiki as vault 33 neighbor #2 going “the water cooler’s empty.” to reg • reg says he'll take care of it and of course goes right on down to betty with the water jugs. reg passes by a sign that reads “stay hydrated” hmph • ”reminder: water rationing remains in effect until further notice. please limit showers, hand washing, and water consumption to your allotted one liter per day. reminder: water rationing remains in effect until further notice.” a vault 33 announcer says over the intercom as reg totes these water jugs towards betty. in between are scenes of faucets dripping, what might be plant scientists or farmers or some kind trickling water onto wilting plants and completely dried leaves being taken off plants. and here comes reg trying to get some rations for his little parties • “where are you going with that? we can’t be wasting resources on your little club right now.” betty confronts reg .“you signed off on our food and beverage budget. and i’ll have you know, my little group is growing in numbers every week, unlike your approval rating.” "because i put austerity measures in place and you’re giving extra rations!” here is where i bring back up reg having a phd in event planning and the fact i think him knowing how to throw a good party portends him using this as a type of social capital if you will. i feel like this confirms a theory that through mass dehydration and reg probably taking advantage of betty being unpopular because she's trying to save the vault that reg, who wanted to be overseer anyways but lost, might try to usurp betty or something idk but him bringing up approval ratings is crazy ldfldlg • reg saying “or it’s because the products of inbreeding community hasn’t had a voice until now. we’re a distinct subculture.” feels like he would've been the worst overseer imaginable. they would've started eating each other at two weeks because of him. why is he ignoring the clear implications of using rations for parties for his club? he's very fucked up for this. perhaps most vault residents are not getting it because everything is always comfortable in this vault but this is sure to bite reg in the ass later? maybe • “you’re a snack club!” betty is so riled, she's practically yelling. i think she can't believe it. “you’re not taking this from me. our snack budget is baked into the charter. sorry.” as reg upholds his position on this, betty narrows her eyes realizing who she is dealing with here. betty is soon to find out just how many people are turning, if you will.

• hey! so! lucy is experiencing chem withdrawals and doesn't even know it lmao she's itching and scratching and hyper and touchy and impatient as she's walking with cooper in the hot mojave sun. “ just me, or is the air extra itchy today, and heavy? the air’s itchy and heavy. you ever feel like that? and also, like, hungry for not food?” “yes, i am very familiar with that feelin’.” lmao whewww • “what the fudge are you stopping for? sorry. whew. gosh, why am i suddenly so grumpy? am i, am i dy ing? ” cooper thinks this shit is kinda funny lmao. poor girl thinks it's over 😭 “you ain’t dyin’. you addicted to drugs.” cooper unfortunately informs lucy lgdgld. lucy can't believe it. “two days on a steady drip of buffout’ll do that to a body.” two whole days, cooper was probably worried sick • “well, then i… hereby quit drugs. there. what you got there? oh, gosh, it didn’t take. i’m still addicted to drugs. what do i do?” lucy asks all this while cooper has already stopped at a random car to take out some more buffout to give to her. “well, there’s two schools of thought. one, you muscle your way through it. a lot of pain, vomiting. can’t do much but just lay there and ride it out.” “how long does that take?” “four or five days.” “in my experience… the alternative is the only way to go.” “what’s the alternative?” ”do more drugs.” lmao please? • “fudge. well, i know this isn’t good for me, but stopping my dad from doing whatever he’s doing is for the greater good, so even though i want it, i’m mostly doing it for other people, so that’s what i’d want others to do for me. so, give me the drugs.” lucy's justification is crazy but cooper tosses her a bottle of buffout

• as maximus returns to the area 51 base trying to keep up appearances, dane confronts maximus telling him elder cleric quintus is looking for him. “the elder cleric’s looking for you. things were already pretty tense around here with that xander guy showing up, and then you just, what? disappear with him? the hell, man?” yeah like the entire optics of this in general probably inadvertently caused what happens later anyways kinda? everything was boiling over, all these factions tusslin' was inevitable • so dane looks over. at the vertibird. and uh notices. “what did you do?” dane accusatorally asks maximus, noticing the person in that power armour is not that fucking harkness guy. “i did the right thing, alright? but now xander’s d ead.” maximus has to tell dane • “ the commonwealth are gonna kill us all.” dane realizes with such urgent dread, i can feel it through the screen. personally! i think everybody in this scene is talking too loudly! but anyways lmao • “unless i can stop it.” “how are you gonna do that, max? hey! when you tell quintus that you k illed the emissary to the commonwealth… he’ll slit your throat himself.” “i have a plan for that. but first, i need you to get all the kids and take ’em somewhere safe.” “why? what are you gonna do?” “k ill quintus.” • hey ok so i love maximus! and dane! maxdane. • but yeah so ok maximus wanting to get all the kids and stuff out of there to save them from the violence and all this conscription. maximus is so beautiful for that. i could tear up, truly. at first, i was thinking dane couldn't possibly be right, would elder cleric quintus really k ill his “son”, someone he's groomed to be in a high position, someone he claims he saved? but then again. this is the brotherhood of steel. so. • and that's what makes maximus' plan to k ill elder cleric quintus all the more insane and hilarious too. i was skeptical but rooting for him nonetheless. i mean. maximus gets proven right in this show so much, it's nauseating

• next scene is defrosted super manager pete from vault 31 saying some shit like “ you know, i’ve come to prefer the pasta uncooked.” lmaooo • norm has successfully lead an expedition to uneaten, unirradiated presumably two hundred year old food stuffs from a rusted truck. some of them are eating blamco mac & cheese • norm utilizing his leadership skills says “listen up! conserve as much as you can, everyone. we don’t know how long it’ll be before we find more food.” norm walks over to claudia who is staring at a bridge and mentions that it must be a lot to take in. “i drove down across that bridge a week ago.” “where were you going?” “a job interview at vault-tec.” • many suggestions here. was vault tec so desperate in the last week before the b ombs dropped to get everything all organized, they just started doin' shit and put all these candidates in here and the process was streamlined? or does it simply feel like a week to claudia [well, obviously] and they cryogenically froze her well before that anyways and all these people in here might not even know each other like that. man, realizing you're going to have someone in a two hundred year experiment is crazy on its own but wanting to be a part of said experiment might be even crazier • ronnie is going to be a problem “hey, boss, now that we’ve found food, it’s time for phase two?” “i decide the next steps up here, ronnie.” “i know, yeah, you’re the, you’re the boss. i know you call the shots. just thought i’d introduce myself, ’cause i was bud’s personal assistant.” “hm, so?” “so, uh, let’s just say i was the guy who took the lunch orders when bud was meeting with the vault investors. “future enterprise ventures”? the whole plan for vaults 32 and 33?” “what do you know about that?” “like i said, i was just the guy who got the lunch orders, but i do know that phase 2 was very important to the experiment. it’s time to get going, yeah?” “lead the way then, ronnie.” • yeah so i'm thinking ronnie is probably going to try to take over and/or possibly accidentally get some people ki illed out here. he might try to even end norm. ronnie definitely doesn't take norm very serious. but it's spooky he was involved in something called “future enterprise ventures”, fev! i wonder if this was an easter egg or full blown cover for actual fev being shown in the show. like ok do other vault 31 dwellers have knowledge like ronnie does? do they have an inkling about anything to do with the vault 31, 32, 33 experiment? and what the hell is phase two? this seems to be something beyond just simply doing reclamation day. if they dropped a nod to fev, this might be some type of foreshadowing for super mutants and maybe dealing with phase two, right? idk spooky though • hey! i noticed there's heart graffiti in this scene too! i thought only really the ghoulcy scenes had them in there but this one with norm and the vault 31 people also does! i wonder if this is somehow a tangential reference to norm and claudia? hmmm lol

• woody, like davey, is having a hard time navigating vault 32 and gets a bit turnaround which the unlabeled corridors. woody accidentally stumbles upon davey in his quarters reading a book but davey says “she’s such a tart.” as he noticed woody coming in? gldlfdl what's that about “ who amongst us hasn’t mixed up their lefts and rights before?” davey relays to woody • “yesterday, i walked in on the women’s mensroom. there was nobody in there, but had there been, oh.” lmao is davey all there? he's funnier than he needs to be • “empty. you’re positive?” steph asks betty in the intervault spaces as they have a secret overseer meeting. “evacuated cryo pods. no sign of norman. my god, steph. i found bud askins upside-down in a mop bucket.” betty doesn't mention if that cyborg fuck is still alive but she did find him ☝️ • also, this is what betty [and by association, steph] gets for covering up norm disappearing thinking someone with high lock picking skills wouldn't be able to escape a random situation. like this whole vault 31 experiment at least on that side is sooo over. •” so, 31 has been abandoned. it’s just you and me now, bets.” “i suppose it is. a brave new world. so, we need to cooperate. the water crisis in 33 is getting worse.” “if i give you access to our vault’s water supply, it would taint the work we’re doing here.” “bud is dead. what work are you talking about?” the way betty vested power in steph and look what's happening. same thing with reg. • "the same work we’ve always been doing, betty. trying to survive. we’ve always had different ideas on how to do that. but i’d be more than happy to discuss a triennial trade over telegram, as per tradition." "i appointed you overseer based on the understanding that we would support each other, perhaps better than we’ve supported each other in the past." "and as a gesture of gratitude, i agreed to meet you here in person. but i have to think about my baby now, betty. [called it "baby" because she's still not named it adequately!] it’s all that matters." "i woke up 40 years ago, and i’ve learned a lot in that time. what matters, what doesn’t matter. the company we work for isn’t coming to save us. this community and how we conduct ourselves in it… that’s all we have." a lot of people in this vault are under a grave illusion. it'd be a miracle if there's significant vault tec influence outside of vaults like these. betty is appealing to rationality and everyone is closing their ears.

•”there’s a keepsake box. something from before the war that hank brought with him to vault 31. it’s locked, but if you bring me that box, i’ll consider giving you access to our water.” “what’s in it?” “it’s something… personal.” ok so thinking on it now, i wonder if the keepsake box had the canadian license that chet eventually find that she put in the drawer? that's probably two different things because it's not entirely obvious steph received the keepsake box from betty directly after this conversation. but i could make some guesses that it may be related to what's inside the keepsake box perhaps • woody has gotten lost again but this time in the intervault space. he... heard way too much of this conversation. • “oh, so you’re holding us hostage.” betty realizes. now i really want to know what's inside that keepsake box “hostage is an overused word.”“i don’t think you appreciate how bad things could get down here.” “with all due respect, betty, you’re from solvang. you have no idea how bad things can get. now, if you’ll excuse me, i have a lot of work to do.” “steph, if you don’t help us, there won’t be a vault 33 anymore.” “the experiment’s over, betty. we have to make our own decisions now.” • and see, if betty now decides to not help vault 32 when they need it, she'll look like the bad guy. has everyone gone mad? even if the experiment is over, how is not helping each other going to work out? one of vault tec's random experiments is once again failing and it'll undo two hundred years of meticulous planning. it's crazy how a good portion of the people born and raised in the vaults were raised a certain way but it seems the pre war vault dwellers are descending into “every man for themselves” territory. i really feel for betty in this situation. everybody is going to be upset at her when she's trying to do what is best in a water crisis. and she'll probably be demonized for it. because of this exchange, i am going back to the theory they may send someone to go out in the wasteland to look for a water chip like the first fallout game

• as cooper and lucy stand on the precipice of the entrance to new vegas, cooper finds the surrounding area a bit strange to him. lucy is right beside him fidgeting, feining--- if you will • cooper admits with suspicion “something’s off.” “expecting a welcoming committee?” lucy kind of sardonically replies. “yes, i was.” cooper one hundred percent says being serious with her. cooper uses a spyglass to peer over to see how things are going over in new vegas. it doesn't look good. • cooper observes what appears to be a broken securitron and a few kings faction members shambling around. they are ghoulified. they don't exactly look all there. “hmm. well, shit.” cooper says clicking the spyglass closed. “what?” lucy impatient says as she knocks an arm into cooper “what? sorry.” the buffout is making her so touchy ldhfllh [also, i wonder if cooper, when he was saying he was expecting welcoming committee meant the kings or deathclaws or maybe both] • “it’s gonna be a little hard to explain. we should go in through the east side of town. place called freeside. good place to stock up on supplies. only about a half-day’s detour.” cooper says all this as he decides to gather his stuff and just keep it simple. cooper for the first good time has absolutely decided to steer lucy away from a direct path of danger. even going so far as to be willing to take a half a day's detour. he literally didn't have to do that. like, sure, one can believe the “having lucy on drugs to make her pliable” agenda but damn, he wasn't trying to have her be caught up in new vegas mess so quickly • “no, no! my dad is right there! i am done with all of the sidetracks and the detours. i say we just run on through. who fudgin’ cares.” and lucy wastes no time marching on, damn near leaving cooper behind her as she does. kind of funny that this “i am done with all of the sidetracks and the detours.” feels straight out of the games, lucy is has had enough of side quests and wants to actually get to the main quest for a change gldgldl 🤭 • “that’s the drugs talkin’!” cooper yells up ahead to lucy just as she looks back at him, blicky in tow with dogmeat scampering behind her. “truth be told, i like what they’re sayin’.” cooper says under his breath in a tone i can only describe as provocative [sorry! lmao]. • some of the kings are disturbed from their sandy filled slumbers and get up to greet this duo. lucy is uh smiling as she walks into the elvis inspired nightmare with cooper behind her. i didn't even realize until reading later that it shows him reaching for his g un as she closes in on the ghoulified kings. he was ready to pull out that big iron to protect, goodbye • “so, hear me out. my partner and i [record scratch--- partner?! “traveling companion” to “partner” ok], we’re just gonna go on through. and we don’t want any---” and before lucy can even attempt to do a speech check, one of the ghoulified kings rushes her and lucy has no choice but to blow one them guy's legs clean off. three things happen at once after this: vocalist yodeling returns, lucy looks back at cooper in shock, and cooper winks at her [clutches my pearls]. “whoa” lucy says. uh oh gldglgfl • a song called “cocaine blues” by roy hogsed starts playing lmao

• lucy gets a music number as she begins to slaughtered every last one of the ghoulified kings in the vicinity. as she turns around [how she know they was behind her 😭] she blows one after another away. cooper was about to catch some of them near the car he was leaning on but lucy is fast as hell suddenly lol cooper's expression as lucy uses this g un like she was the one who made it is incredible, like a mix of concern and intrigue • lucy walks up to one of the ghoulified kings bumping around in a rusted car and blasts them straight in the face. another one jumps on top of her trying to choke her and she glocks that mothafucka quick. lucy is again smiling. oh no, she's got a taste for blood, everybody step back! • “ well, i’m good for heads!” lucy says, cooper gives her the ok signal. “they’re just ghouls, right?” lucy continues to say, as cooper's expression changes slightly at that. ouch. • maximus having to break with the brotherhood of steel stirring one side of a civil war over not k illing a group of ghoulified children versus lucy telling cooper the ghoulified feral kings she's eviscerating that “they're just ghouls” • reading where someone on twitter i think said lucy is having moments related to the humanity of ghouls because she's struggling with mercy k illing her mom and this makes so much sense, she's not handling anything, i think she's bottling it all up

• the last ghoulified and apparently feral king lucy k ills looks an awful lot like the king himself, at least from behind. lucy delivers the final blow and the bullet is shown spiraling very coolly. this was all insane. glhdflfl • cooper seems thrilled and lucy turns around and smiles. lucy gives a thumbs up lmao. like approval seeking, i'm sick • “got any cigarettes? i’d like to try one.” lucy decides to asks. • “one addiction at a time” being said by exactly who you think to exactly who you think ooo fallout writers i swear to god--- • old married couple allegations are hitting 🚬 • lucy being high as the fuck on buffout and getting rid of them ghoulified kings like it was nothing, buffout is used so much by players in the games lmaooo makes you have withdrawals though • cooper being like “what if we did the safe and sane thing instead?” and lucy is like “what if we did the dangerous and insane thing actually”, the world is topsy turvy, help! • cooper wanting to go around to the other side of freeside so lucy wouldn't get harmed [any further btw!] and lucy jumping into the kings territory because of buffout • they're calling it “freakside”, god i love this silly ass fandom help • after the rampage, lucy's hands are shaking and it's the hand with the corpse finger. “welcome to the strip” is what we see as cooper and lucy are right in front of the entrance to new vegas • scene where people fucking d ied violently and cooper had nothing to do with it, all lucy lgdfld • buffout making lucy loosen up so much she starts touching and cursing at cooper in a friendly, joking way. like?? • the parallel of lucy maxed out on buffout lightly shoving cooper in this episode versus her punching him out of a window with a power fist in another • cooper willing to share the precious and rare commodity that is chems with lucy without a single thought about it, whew • drugs really do bring people together 💀

• thaddeus back at area 51 in the power armour “oops, uh… didn’t see you there. xander. xander. xander. your name is xander. xander. you got this. alright, buddy, you got it. no big deal. you belong here. you are loved. ok, you know what? this is a bad idea.” thaddeus mutterings to himself in the power armour not seeming to know everybody and they momma can hear him in this mess hall • catching thaddeus telling himself “you belong here” and “you are loved” as he poses as someone as important as harkness knowing he's been rejected or will be rejected for whatever condition he has going on :/ • this is where shit starts going off the hinges. “emissary.” the yosemite elder suddenly materializes in front of thaddeus. “emissary. uh… yeah, yeah, that’s me!” “i’m elder mcrae. yosemite chapter.” and we finally have a very clear name, elder mcrae 😌. “yeah, uh, obviously.” “can i get a word?” “uh… a-absolutely?” thaddeus pretending to be harkness is not prepared for this conversation 🙏 • meanwhile! dane has dutifully acquiesced maximus' instructions to move the young ones to a safer location. “don’t come out until the sh ooting stops.” dane must tell these children. a young aspirant from a few episodes back is shown. pair this situation with the child workers thaddeus was over having to witness harkness try to k ill them and then having to have his block knocked off in front of them. • maximus walks into elder cleric quintus' meeting quarters and closes the door behind him as elder cleric quintus dismisses what looks like other clerics he was speaking with. oh, the tension is rising. • so! i watched a video on the map that's in this room that i did not notice at all on the first watch and there's a lot going on. apparently it was adapted from a fan made map. i think i'll try to be as simple as possible about it. to me, things are bit confusing because it's just not clear enough for me to interpret just from the episode [i hope there's a full high definition picture of it eventually] but it definitely showcases the brotherhood of steel tracking other factions' movements. a lot of cities and faction holdings are shifted around and some factions that had territory before don't seem to be acknowledged at all or have territory moved [not retreated or expanded if you get what i mean]. there's some inconsistencies and apparently inaccuracies in sizes and locations on the map that i am not too sure if there is purpose or in universe explanation so i'm going to let the fallout map aficionados handle this one, they would know more on this one

• noticeable in the scene is a statue of augustus called “augustus of prima porta”, crafted around the 1st century ad. as you know augustus is the first emperor of rome. behind it, there appears to be a “venus de milo”. behind quintus appears to be a greek statue of sophocles, a greek tragedian. very interesting stuff here that caesar's legion would never be in possession of, funny • what did you do?” elder cleric quintus asks accusatorally much like dane did maximus before. “i ki lled the emissary from the commonwealth.” maximus states plainly as he reaches for a gu n. “and now? you intend to k ill me, hm?” elder cleric quintus says as he attempts to take a sip from his cup. • elder mcrae beings to attempt to have a conversation with thaddeus disguised as harkness “as you’re probably aware, there’s an ideological gap between my chapter and quintus.” “uh huh?” ”so, even if you weren’t here, i would have nothing to do with quintus’ little insurrection.” “uh, no, i bet.” “but if you were to promise…” and you know what? i completely understand elder mcrae trying to save her and her faction's asses here. they're all pretty weak apart and she clearly stated as soon as harkness landed and the commonwealth chapter found out about the meeting, she was out. she knows what the brotherhood of steel is capable of. • the fuckass coronado elder interrupts elder mcrae “what are we talkin’ here? she making deals? you know, coronado chapter can make deals, too.” not him thinking he's so smart lmao not • “oh, yeah. oh, i bet. coronado, you guys are, mm!” thaddeus is sweating inside the power armour. this charade is getting to him. “we’ll give you quintus’ head on a spike today if you guarantee us 300 fusion cores.” the coronado elder declares without hesitation, speaking to incitement immediately. [i'm blaming this guy on why civil war escalated btw] “yosemite chapter will do it for nothing. all we hope is that elder maxson will remember us better in the future.” elder mcrae counters. • “see? that’s what happens when you negotiate with women. that’s why coronado doesn’t even let ’em in their ranks. that’s how you know you can trust us.” “i’ll stab you in your mouth, you keep talking.”--- so first of all, again, why does the coronado elder think he's so smart and why is he upset elder mcrae is a better negotiator? she don't damn like the insurrectionist elder cleric quintus no damn way, why are you upset her chapter don't even need terms to light up elder cleric quintus' ass? personally, a few episodes back i would've chopped the coronado elder into little bitty pieces with some scissors and started a gender war but that's just me! anyways! thaddeus is about to lose it.

• dane finds the cold fusion asset unattended [!] and takes it. this kind of sparked uncertainty but had dane not taken it, someone from another faction would have. and maybe given it to the commonwealth. the brotherhood of steel is to not be trusted. and not with no infinite energy. • “i found you in the ruins of shady sands. k ill me, and the world will continue just, just as you see it. a world of anarchy. of horror. a world i would bring order to. order. cruel and necessary to rebuild civilization. to change this world. ki ll me, that change will never come.” does this confirm the theory that it was elder cleric quintus who personally saved maximus in those shady sands scenes? some were saying perhaps he merely gave the order. either way, he's definitely been using that over maximus to manipulate him for sure. elder cleric quintus sounds so much like hank here. hmph • the coronado elder reveals swiftly “look, i got two squadrons out there ready and my guys came here to fight. it’d be a shame to disappoint ’em. just say the word. “you think we came here empty handed? we’re ready for war!” elder mcrae practically yells. sorry, but if i was in this dining hall and i heard this shit? my ass would be out of there, these people are mad, mad, mad lmao • thaddeus, with the weight of the world on his shoulders reaches his breaking point--- “wow. yeah, guys, okay. i think i’m having a panic attack.” 😭 [thaddeus is so real omggg] “what the fuck’s a panic attack?” the coronado elder blurts out like a wwi soldier or somethin'. “you know, when you just, when you can’t breathe, but also, you can’t stop breathing, and your heart is running away from you, you’re gonna d ie, kind of thing, panic attack?” hey. i bet thaddeus had these every single day while being in the brotherhood of steel. i hate you, brotherhood of steel 😭

• the coronado elder is like “sounds like a coronary. just walk it off.” and excuse me? they be walkin' off heart attacks in this mothafucka? lmao man what. elder mcrae, thoughtfully asks to lift thaddeus pretending to be harkness' visor up. “ no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” thaddeus says, in the peak of a freakout. elder mcrae and the coronado elder unfortunately make eye contact. elder mcrae states again to lift the visor but more demanding this time. “ no, no! no, no, no! no, no!” thaddeus continues to say, in the throes of panic. he's said no a lot today 😞 it's also crazy how he didn't even think to idk defend himself. he's been clumsy in this power armour suit but he probably knows it's such a bad idea to do anything to these elders even at the cost of his safety. oh, thaddeus. putting his life on the line twice in one season already. • maximus has been holding a gu n toward elder cleric quintus most of this time and this is what elder cleric quintus says as he slowly approaches maximus, not seeming to fear the weapon “tell me, maximus, tell me. what world will you build? when you lead, tell me, what will you do when your people are starving?” “i don’t want that.” “then, what is your great plan?” “there was no plan. i don’t have a plan. you have plans. but out there, you can’t. i don’t choose to do the things i have to do. they just keep happening.” maximus delivers the most potent and emotional line he probably ever has, near tears. once again, another story line dealing with him has me on the edge of my seat, hurt. aaron's acting is phenomenal • “my son. my son. tell me what happened.” elder cleric quintus manipulates, like he actually cares. “i ki lled xander because he was gonna k ill some kids.” maximus finally reveals to elder cleric quintus. and fellas! it's all downhill from here. maxmius is trying to maintain his resolve holding the gu n why elder cleric quintus seems confused before maximus reveals the final nail in the coffin on this one. because maximus knows the brotherhood of steel. “they were ghouls”

• elder cleric quintus' face changes sharply. “wh-what? no.” “young ghouls. i mean, they were fucking kids.” quintus is unfortunately not having it. “no, no.” “he was gonna k ill them, and i couldn’t let him do it” and we are so proud of you maximus 😭 • “abominations! abominations!” elder cleric quintus shouts, hobbling back toward the meeting table, aghast at what maximus has revealed to him. “children!” maximus pleads back, begging elder cleric quintus to open his eyes. but they are closed shut. “ghouls! to be exterminated!” elder cleric quintus cruelly and devotedly rages back. “i know” maximus says in the most haunted way possible. getting teary writing this, can you imagine? • maximus knows that he was supposed to ruin his own humanity by k illing those kids and being the bloody hand that reaches across the mojave to inflict evil at the behest of old men who are out of touch and demented. but maximus will never be the monster the brotherhood of steel desperately tried to indoctrinate him to be. and this is why elder cleric quintus had so much resolve when deciding what to do next. • “first rule of our order. oh, this is my fault. i should never, never, never have shown mercy to you. never. never!” and the look on maximus' face. i know this was crushing. this man calls him his son and the moment he is disappointed in him, he says the most hurtful thing he can say to someone in this environment. • maximus almost lowers his firearm to say something [god, i wonder what he was going to say?? i just realized this] but before he can, elder cleric quintus decides he's had enough of this heretic and gets his own g un he has stashed and sh oots without a thought. [indiscriminately, i might ad. i wonder if he know how to actually use it or] • maximus didn't have it in him to end this fucked up old man but he definitely s hot back, atta boy! they are fuckin' every single artifact in this room up btw as papers and and wood and metal fly everywhere

• before thaddeus can be exposed, the grand canyon elder busts in the dining hall with “hey! hey! so, the relic was stolen, huh? i wanna know which one of you backstabbing motherfuckers is behind it!” i notice in this scene as the fuckass coronado elder is radioing to his chapter [seeing as he's got them armed and ready for war] he tells them “suit up. the artifact is missing.” preempting an attack. it happened so fast the first time, i didn't catch what was even said. all i heard was elder mcrae as she stabbed his bitch ass in the face. i am still celebrating rotfff • “double crossing motherfucker” elder mcrae plunges her knife in the coronado elder's mouth to the amazement of the grand canyon elder “ fuck! that was, that was cool.” lmao nobody liked coronado elder, hilarious. coronado elder's tongue is falling out his mouth. what a poetic and beautiful [hopeful ending] sendoff to a man who should've fucking been mu rdered like three episodes ago <3 • the grand canyon elder sh oots in the direction of elder mcrae and the coronado elder. then he aims at the ceiling. it's a brawl in there now, folks. thaddeus is freaked the fuck out and tries to slip out of there. ok, but being in power armour is coming in handy forreal this time • as maximus attempts an escape from this meeting room, elder cleric quintus shouts “heretic, heretic” at maximus. any lingering goodwill [if there ever was any to begin with] is undoubtedly severed here. maximus must leave the brotherhood of steel. • maximus chains elder cleric quintus in the room as he seems the uproar that's started after the cold fusion asset is taken. then dane finds maximus “max! did you do it?” ”i couldn’t do it, i’m sorry. i’m so sorry.” “hey, you do not have to apologize for not k illing someone.” 😭 • pair lucy's “i’m not gonna apologize for not mur dering people.” in episode one of season two to dane's “you do not have to apologize for not ki lling someone.” • it's like maximus doesn't want to disappoint anyone else and dane is so compassionate and sweet, a lingering shred of humanity in a hellhole that creates monsters. maximus could never disappoint dane this way, i think •”here. get that as far away from here as you can.” dane hands maximus the cold fusion asset. “why me?” you’re the only person here who’s not a total asshole.” and it's true! dane will always see the good in maximus. can't even trust anybody else in this damn faction. • as a maxdaneist, i wanted them both to kiss here but i am realistic ok and the hug was enough for me--- maximus worries for dane and dane tells them they are survivors. thaddeus busts through a door “hey, guys? can we go now? come on!” 😭 • as maximus and thaddeus trail off into the mojave sand dunes, all the adjoining factions have started blasting at each other in their airships. in fact, so much so, an airship is shown crashing to the ground as maximus and thaddeus narrowly escape the fuckery that is the west coast brotherhood of steel civil war

• “well, uh, as you know, the, the, uh, vault tec handbook mandates that, that any violations, particularly those that may put intervault security at risk, be immediately reported to the, to the overseer.” woody stumbles into revealing to steph. after steph asks who violated it, woody further reveals “uh… well… well, it appeared to me that, um, that you did.” chet is listening now, honey! • “thank you for reporting this, woody. you have followed protocol to the letter.” “ok, yeah, ’cause i’ve, i’ve never had to report a violation to the person who committed it before, so i’m just, i’m not really sure what happens next.” “i’ll be sure to escalate your report immediately.” “escalate to whom?” “the overseer.” “but that’s, uh, but that’s you.” “well, that makes it easy, doesn’t it?” lmao brother--- giving “can i speak to the manager?” and they are the manager • chet start digging around in a chest of drawers after discovering some type of compartment while doing this laundry. • woody asks why was steph in the intervault space [but not also betty? hmm] and steph responds with telling woody that it's best if he calls her overseer harper now, actually lol “optics” lmao steph's training is too funny • steph canadian reveal •” i’ll be sure to let you know what my report finds. thank you for stopping by.” steph replies to woody. there's no oversight for overseers huh? scary • chet puts that shit right back in that drawer as woody tells chet “chet? i hope you’re adjusting okay to all the changes lately.” then the camera peers over to a very annoyed [overseer] steph. “you know what they say. wherever you end up, it’s where you belong.” chet, resigned to his fate, seems to relay back to woody. he don't belong there! but! anyways! • before woody goes, he asks steph one more question “overseer harper, when you said “experiment” to betty, what were you talking about? “overseer stuff.” i fear for woody's safety. he has opened steph's book wide open and she's onto him. might fear for chet too. because now he has to know norm was right about everything. • handsome man being held hostage by an evil woman, you don't see that a lot gdfllf

• it's night time in new vegas as cooper, lucy, and dogmeat walk through it. and also so eerily quiet, one can hear a pen drop. this is not good. • “aren’t there supposed to be people here?” lucy inquires with cooper. “uh huh. we should go to freeside. somebody there’ll be able to tell us what’s goin’ on.” and they really should have. a quiet mojave is probably a dangerous mojave. • lucy dismissing cooper shouts “dad!” like hank was standing around the corner or somethin' gldgld she's really fearless on buffout •[her yelling here probably alerted the you know what to them if you know what i meannn] • abandoned looking but the lights are still on everywhere hmm • even before the biggest reveal yet, cooper's eyes are increasingly becoming wider and wider. lucy stumbles upon some type of huge empty eggs. the geiger counter is going off. “radiation” cooper murmers to himself. • “hey! hey, look at this! how big do the chickens get out here? huh? bawk bawk!” “those aren't chickens”--- lucy making silly jokes to get cooper to laugh meanwhile she's unknowingly handling something related to the worst thing the united states government ever created like please!? • a roar thunders across the illuminated plaza. “well… whatever it is, i think we can take it. oh, yeah. we got this. in fact, i think it’ll be easy.” lucy so boldly states to cooper, emboldened by him and buffout. cooper is looking around frozen almost. whewww • ok y'all so this d eathclaw like? opens the door? like it's a person? and rips the doors of the gomorrah. while this de athclaw rises to its full height, lucy looks at cooper and they both look like they've seen ghosts. cooper is speechless. and lucy once again, as is her catch phrase says “okie dokie”. you can bet your ass cooper howard is reliving two hundred years ago in the battle of anchorage.