Fallout Season 2 Has The Opportunity For A Crossover With This Sci-Fi Dystopian Show

Summary Fallout's second season could introduce Synth characters, bringing a new layer of intrigue and potential conflict to the post-apocalyptic drama.

With Synths being Fallout's take on androids, the show can explore themes of sentience and ethics similar to HBO's Westworld.

The potential for a meta-crossover with Westworld in Fallout's self-aware and dark humor style could add a fun twist for viewers.

Known for its off-beat humor, the Fallout series is perfect for meta in-jokes and crossovers. In its first season, the Amazon Prime Video show boasted tons of Easter eggs and references to Fallout games. Now that viewers have a sense of the series' peculiar tone, the post-apocalyptic drama can execute one of the greatest crossover moments in its sophomore season — thanks in large part to its storied creative team. Taking inspiration from the canonical Fallout timeline, the show chronicles the story of Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell), a bright-eyed Vault Dweller who ventures into the Wasteland.

Lucy isn't the only main character in Fallout's arsenal of distinct personalities.

However, Lucy isn't the only main character in Fallout's arsenal of distinct personalities. There's Maximus (Aaron Moten), a squire of the Brotherhood of Steel faction who becomes one of Lucy's only comrades, and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins) — a radiated gunslinger who was alive when the bombs dropped 219 years earlier. In the show's 8-episode season 1, Fallout's cast of characters run into all sorts of interesting personalities, creatures, and monsters, from feral ghouls to mutants. Even with everything that's packed into the first outing, Fallout season 2 has the opportunity to introduce yet another fascinating being: the Synths.

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Fallout Season 2 Can Introduce Synth Characters

Synths Are Fallout's Take On Androids

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While Fallout season 1 introduced plenty of mutant creatures from the games, the sophomore season still has a lot of ground to cover. Short for synthetic humans, Synths are essentially Fallout's version of androids — robotic and biomechanical beings that are nearly indistinguishable from blood-and-flesh human beings. While Fallout 3 features a side quest called "The Replicated Man," Synths take on a more prominent role in Fallout 4. Notably, Synths were developed by the Institute, an elusive scientific society that hails from the Boston-based Commonwealth. With the slogan "Mankind Redefined," the Institute itself is foreboding enough.

Amazon Prime Video's Fallout TV show takes place the furthest in the future of the main-line Fallout stories...

To make matters more suspect, the Institutes third-generation Synths, which were conceived in the 2220s, are so human-like that they're used for espionage purposes. Given that Amazon Prime Video's Fallout TV show takes place the furthest in the future of the main-line Fallout stories, it seems likely that these devious human replicas will appear in future seasons. With their interest in preserving technology, the Brotherhood of Steel is particularly skeptical of Synths in the Fallout games, giving the TV show a built-in dynamic that's well worth exploring in detail.

Related The World Of Fallout Explained In celebration of Fallout's release on Prime Video, here's Screen Rant's complete guide to the franchise's characters, locations, lore, and changes.

Fallout’s Synths Are Reminiscent Of Westworld’s Hosts

Both Beings Are Very Life-Like Biomechanical Humanoids

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If Fallout's Synths sound familiar, it's probably because androids are a dime a dozen in sci-fi stories. From sentient computer programs like Battlestar Galactica's Cylons or Blade Runner's bioengineered Replicants, there's something deeply unsettling about beings that look human. However, when it comes to pop culture's most recent android characters, HBO's Westworld delivers some of the most compelling. In Westworld season 1, viewers are introduced to a technologically advanced Wild West-themed amusement park, which is populated not by human employees, but by androids. Known as "Hosts," these androids allow guests to indulge in violent and wild fantasies.

Westworld HBO’s Westworld is a dystopian science fiction western that is based on the Michael Crichton-directed film, Westworld. The series centers on high-paying guests who visit a western theme park full of human-like androids to live out wild fantasies. Westworld would later introduce a futuristic mid-21st century where the world is run by an artificial intelligence called Rehoboam. The series was incredibly popular during its four-season run but was canceled by HBO in November 2022. Cast Anthony Hopkins , Evan Rachel Wood , Shannon Woodward , Ed Harris , James Marsden , Jimmi Simpson , Jeffrey Wright , Tessa Thompson , Thandie Newton , Rodrigo Santoro Release Date October 2, 2016 Seasons 4 Network HBO Max Streaming Service(s) Max Writers Jonathan Nolan , Lisa Joy Showrunner Jonathan Nolan , Lisa Joy

There's clearly a strong potential for sentience among the Hosts...

The park's creators clearly didn't consider the ethics of Hosts being punching bags. Programmed to never harm humans, Hosts are powerless to stop their abusers. Much like Fallout's third-generation Synths, Westworld's Hosts are biomechanical robots that are indistinguishable from humans. Delos, the company that manufactured the Hosts, believes their creations can't feel pain. However, there's clearly a strong potential for sentience among the Hosts — something that Evan Rachel Wood's Dolores makes clear when she defies her programming and harms Delos' leading scientist. While Fallout and Westworld tell very different stories, there's no denying the intriguing Synth-Host overlap.

Related Westworld's "Final Game" Would've Completed The Show's Redemption Westworld was ready for full redemption via "one last game” in season 5, but the show’s unexpected cancellation after season 4 changed everything.

Fallout’s Self-Awareness & Dark Humor Are Perfect For Making A Westworld Reference

Jonathan Nolan & Lisa Joy Can Connect Their Two Shows Using Synths

What really fuels the connection between the dystopian science fiction Western television series and Fallout is that both owe a lot to the creative minds of Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy. Before teaming up to work on Fallout, Nolan and Joy translated Michael Crichton's Westworld novel to the screen. Although the four-season HBO series received mixed reactions at times, Westworld endures because of its inventiveness. Despite Emmy wins and critical acclaim, Westworld was canceled before a planned fifth season. To make matters worse, HBO removed Nolan and Joy's series from Max.

Fallout is the perfect series for paying tongue-in-cheek homage...

That said, a meta crossover or Westworld cameo moment in Fallout would be the perfect way to send off the HBO series. In fact, Fallout is the perfect series for paying tongue-in-cheek homage to another property. Like Vault-Tec's Vault Boy mascot, Fallout isn't afraid to wink at the viewer or make fun of itself. Fallout season 2's potential use of the Synths opens the door to a wonderful Westworld crossover. Even just casting a notable Westworld actor as a Synth would do the trick, bringing some meta levity to an already thrilling series.