Prime Video’s first season of Fallout has defied fan expectations. In a world with more bad video game adaptations than good, it stands as a rare gem – even if some angry fanboys disagree.
The rest of us, much like The Ghoul, are just here along for the hijinks, the violent shenanigans, and the oh-so-frequent Fallout homages. So far, the series hasn’t dropped many sneaky characters in (except for those fantastic references in the final episode) but that hasn’t stopped certain short-lived introductions from lingering.
Knight Titus might not be from any Fallout title, but Michael Rappaport’s contribution certainly left an impression on viewers, and gamers couldn’t help but draw parallels with their own Fallout experiences during that Yao Guai beatdown.
Who is Knight Titus?
Knights might not be the highest order in the Brotherhood, but they are the first real step of power for initiates after obtaining the rank of squire. The title is the first that comes with any sort of privilege, and that T-60 armor makes them look like the embodiment of chivalry.
But they say “never meet your heroes” for a reason. Titus might look like someone worthy of hero worship, but he quickly reveals that he’s definitely not that guy. War never changes and neither does the incompetence of people who manage to fail upwards – or the brutality of the Wasteland. Titus quickly reveals that he has little love for his new aspirant Maximus, and his attitude makes you wonder just how many squires have served him – and how many pieces they’re in now.
Titus’s willingness to send his over-burdened, under-equipped companion into danger is a great way to show how little anyone cares about one another in the Wastelands, but it’s also a clever nod to how some players tackle Fallout’s many monster-filled nooks and crannies.
It’s never easy to guess just what nasty critter is tucked back in an ominous cave, but just as Titus tries to coax Maximus to explore, players have the option to send in their own trusty companion (one is usually hilariously overburdened) into the fray in their stead.
The expletive-laden retreat hits way too close to home; running in terror is just Wasteland life, baby.
While I’m all here for the meta-conversations and acknowledge how much lore director Johnathan Nolan packed in every drop, it seems more likely a way to showcase the problems with the Brotherhood.
Titus is a coward with too much power born into an organization that does more to protect toaster ovens than its members. Whether he learned his bad attitude from his knight or just decided to adopt all of the characteristics of a cactus on his own, we’ll likely never know. Knights still have plenty of room to grow in the Brotherhood’s ranks, but Titus’s age (sorry, Mr. Rapaport) suggests he’s been stuck in his position for some time.
He’s tired and jaded, more than willing to get his squire killed whether by the hands of an enemy or by the Brotherhood. Worse, as he lies there, dying from his own incompetence, he shifts the blame to someone he was meant to protect with that nearly indestructible armor.
Maximus says it best when he chides the dying man by saying, “You don’t deserve that armor.” Maximus might spend season 1 cosplaying as his former Knight, but we have high hopes that season 2 will see him done his own armor soon enough.
