At the start of Fallout, origin stories held equal importance to the post-apocalyptic events. When we met Lucy McLean, we quickly discovered what life in the vault was like and how it began. When we met the Ghoul, it wasn’t long before we learned about Cooper Howard’s past life before everything occurred. However, the third main character, Maximus, a squire for the, was introduced without much context. While we learned about the general nature of the Brotherhood, the origins of Maximus – and the Brotherhood itself – had to be waited for until Season 2.
In Season 2 Episode 2, we finally witnessed a flashback to Maximus’ youth and how he survived the massacre of Shady Springs. But in Episode 3, we learn more about the origin of the Brotherhood itself, including its founder, Roger Maxson. But for fans of the games, this name is quite familiar. But who is Roger Maxson, and what does his inclusion as Fallout canon signify for the future of the show?
In Fallout Season 2 Episode 3, the Brotherhood is on the verge of a momentous decision: with the help of the cold fusion reactors, the San Fernando chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel could stage an uprising against the powerful Commonwealth faction of the Brotherhood. However, everything changed when Xander Harkness, liaison for the Commonwealth, arrived and immediately quashed any rebellion.
After that, Elder Cleric Quintus is faced with a dilemma: if he kills Harkness, as Maximus suggests, then he’ll surely start a major conflict. But if he doesn’t, then the other factions are certain to abandon the cause. In a last-ditch attempt, he mentions the foundation of the Brotherhood itself. “An ordinary captain was sent to a research center in California. Roger Maxson. And when he saw what they were doing there, depraved experiments on human subjects, well then, Roger Maxson had to ask himself who he served: his God or his government? He chose his god.”
This is more or less precisely what happened in the Fallout game world as well. Faced with what the military was doing, Maxson staged a mutiny and founded what would later be known as the Brotherhood of Steel. He doesn’t actually appear in the Fallout games, but his voice can be heard in holotapes throughout Fallout, Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, and especially Fallout 76. “I declared ourselves seceded from the union,” he says in one holotape in Fallout. “They remember Jefferson Davis. What will history say about me?”
Apparently, he’s going down in history with a better reputation than that guy, at least. But now that Maxson is canon, what’s next? Unlike the games, the series has the ability to flash back to whenever is appropriate, so this mention could actually result in a major appearance in the future.