Fallout Season 2 Episode 3 Introduces One of the Franchise’s Most Notorious Factions

This article contains spoilers for “Fallout” season 2, episode 3.

Looking back, the Roman-themed Caesar’s Legion was always going to be a part of it. With Robert House (Justin Theroux) is a major new player in ‘Fallout’ season 2his presence has always hinted that various factions from the video game “Fallout: New Vegas” could also make an appearance. It wasn’t our only clue either. The trailer for “Fallout” season 2 had already confirmed that the Legion Militant would play a role in the debates.

The Legion and their helmet plumes parade to the forefront in Season 2, Episode 3, as Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) finds herself in one of their work camps and quickly (and correctly) points out how ridiculous it is for a group of grown men to dress up as Roman soldiers in the post-apocalyptic wasteland. Unfortunately for her, the Legion may seem silly, but she’s far from being a pushover. In “New Vegas,” the faction is a powerful and dangerous conquering force, infamous for enslaving people and using its Roman themes to enhance the power of its dictatorial leader, the dangerous Edward “Caesar” Sallow (John Doman).

With the events of the series taking place 15 years after “New Vegas”, a lot has changed for the Legion since its appearance in that game. As this episode reveals, Caesar is now dead and his remaining troops have split into two groups, themselves stuck in a stalemate over the question of leadership. This also puts the Legion in a truly interesting position: while its members currently seem content with violence and infighting, the unification of these two camps could once again make them a force to be reckoned with.

Beautifully, much of the episode’s Legion-centric story involves Lucy’s training partner in these scenes, who also happens to be the show’s most ingenious example of stunt casting: the Lacerta Legate, played by none other than Macaulay Culkin. The “Home Alone” star plays the soft-spoken but ruthless Legion high-ranking officer with a smug detachment that proves to be an excellent foil to Purnell’s increasingly offended and exasperated character. Hopefully we’ll see more of this horrible, horrible guy.

There’s also a more serious side to the Legion’s situation in “Fallout” Season 2. The way the faction split into two opposing camps with their own Caesars reflects a very real situation in history – namely the final years of the fourth century, when the real and hopelessly exaggerated Roman Empire split into the Western and Eastern Roman Empires. It’s a surprisingly deep cut for a series as gleefully ridiculous and indifferent to actual historical events as “Fallout.” But then again, it’s also precisely the sort of thing you’d expect from a series that delights in transforming an obscure video game substory into a key plot element.

Season 2 of “Fallout” is streaming on Prime Video. New episodes come out on Wednesdays.