I'm Not Super Familiar With The Fallout Games - Tumblr Posts

Gosh, someone probably already said this so much better than me, but I absolutely love what Fallout did with the character of Barb Howard. She's this sort of subversion of both the doting 1950s housewife and the archetype of the wife who dies as character motivation, and you think that's the direction the series is going, but then you get to see bits and pieces of her outside of her marriage to Cooper.

Like these archetypes, she loves her family fiercely, but that love pushes her into an active role, not a passive one, and is one that encourages her to distrust humanity. Throughout the series, there's this ambiguity as to how much she's being manipulated by Vault-Tech and how much she's an active power player, especially when she suggests dropping the bomb in the first place. Maybe a combination of both?

I don't know, I generally dislike comparisons between Fallout and The Last of Us, because they go in very different directions outside of the general concept of a Western set in the apocalypse. However, Joel Miller and Barb Howard both embody this idea of love pushing us to be selfish, not selfless. It's a neat reversal of the theme of love as a source of redemption, and more as a love that alienates us from the rest of humanity.

ALSO, the choice of costumes and color for Barb's wardrobe! She wears these soft pinks that eventually transition into oranges, both shades that feel conventionally feminine, yet vibrant and powerful. The contrast between her dress and the meeting room in episode 8! Thank you, Frances Turner for bringing this character to life! Thank you, Amy Westcott for the costumes!

I'm crawling up the walls for a scene of the separation and divorce in S2. I want Barb Howard to be waiting for her moment in one of those cryogenic chamber thingies. Still in a very cool 1950s dress.