Fallout Season 2 Episode 4: Deathclaws' Pre-War Origin Revealed

Warning: The following article contains SPOILERS for Fallout season 2, episode 4.

Fallout season 2, episode 4, "The Demon in the Snow," opened with a pre-war flashback of Cooper Howard's military service. In this case, "pre-war" refers to the time before the bombs fell, as in this scene, Walton Goggins' Howard is in active combat on the Alaskan Front. This short battlefield scene is loaded with important context as the TV series continues to build on the franchise's lore.

For starters, the scene shows Howard and his buddy Charlie Whiteknife struggling with their faulty Power Armor, speaking to its flaws, especially in its earlier versions. The short-lived battle also confirmed in no uncertain terms that the "Reds" and "Communists" that America was fighting before the war were indeed the Chinese. But the appearance of a Deathclaw is the most noteworthy thing about this moment.

Fallout Season 2, Episode 4 Finally Introduces Deathclaws To The Show

Some of the Fallout games' other most fearsome creatures have already made an appearance on the show, like the Yao Guai that Maximus and Knight Titus come up against in season 1, and the Radscorpion Lucy and the Ghoul recently encountered. But none compare to the Deathclaw, which had been absent from the series until now.

Cooper Howard, alone and restricted in his locked-up Power Armor, seems to be moments away from defeat at the hands of the Chinese soldiers who drastically outnumber him — until a giant monster rises up behind them. The Deathclaw takes out all the enemy forces, gets face-to-face with Howard, and spares him.

"The Demon in the Snow" comes full circle when Lucy and the Ghoul finally reach New Vegas, only to find it deserted, in disrepair, and pulsing with radiation. It's the Ghoul who's first overcome with fear when a Deathclaw steps out of the Gomorrah casino.

What Fallout Season 2's Alaska Flashback Means For Deathclaws In The Show

Fallout's monsters are generally victims of some level of radiation mutation: the Radroach and Radscorpions are greatly enlarged, while the Yao Guai is an extra-deadly irradiated bear. This makes it a natural assumption that all of these creatures — including the Deathclaw — are a result of the nuclear fallout of the bombs.

But this episode's Alaska flashback reveals that Deathclaws were around before the bombs ever fell, and their existence is no accident. The sudden appearance of a Deathclaw on a battlefield in Alaska, its swift elimination of a slew of enemy soldiers, and its calculated decision to spare American soldier Cooper Howard are all more than a coincidence.

It's the TV series confirming an old piece of Fallout lore: Deathclaws were genetically engineered by the U.S. government to use as weapons in battle. They've since gotten loose and plague the Wasteland as an apex predator. When playing the Fallout games, they're best avoided altogether.

"The Demon in the Snow" finally shed some light on a concrete enemy that the country was indeed facing before the Great War, but in the same breath continued to hold Fallout's America accountable. From dropping the bombs to creating humanity's biggest threat, the Fallout series continues to point to America's responsibility for the state of the Wasteland.