In the fourth episode of Fallout Season 2, a life-saving medical treatment leaves Lucy MacLean with a dangerous new problem. As she and the Ghoul finally reach the ruins of New Vegas, her altered state leads to a violent confrontation and a cliffhanger encounter with one of the Wasteland’s most fearsome creatures.
The episode, titled “The Demon in the Snow”, aired on Prime Video on January 7, 2026. It advances the journeys of all major characters, but the most shocking development centers on Lucy’s drastic change in behavior.
How Lucy MacLean Became Addicted to Buffout
Lucy’s troubling actions have a clear medical cause. After being rescued from crucifixion by the Ghoul, she wakes up at a camp of the New California Republic (NCR). To help her recover from severe trauma and injury, the NCR rangers put her on a steady, two-day intravenous drip of a medicine.
That medicine was Buffout, a powerful, performance-enhancing drug familiar to players of the Fallout video games. The Ghoul informs Lucy that the treatment has left her physically dependent on the substance. He presents her with a brutal choice: endure four to five days of intense withdrawal sickness or continue taking the drug to manage the symptoms. With their mission to find her father, Hank, in New Vegas still urgent, Lucy reluctantly chooses to keep using Buffout.
Ella Purnell, who plays Lucy, skillfully portrays the character’s shift, pivoting “nearly instantly from declaring an attempt to go cold turkey to a slightly fevered” request for more drugs.
Lucy’s Drug-Fueled Attack on the Ghoulified Kings
The effects of the Buffout become dangerously clear when Lucy and the Ghoul arrive at the main gate of the New Vegas Strip. The Ghoul senses something is wrong and suggests they find another way into the city through a district called Freeside. Lucy, feeling impatient, irritable, and overconfident from the drugs, ignores his advice.
She approaches the gate, which is guarded by feral ghouls dressed as Elvis Presley impersonators—a nod to the “Kings” gang from the Fallout: New Vegas game. In a sudden and uncharacteristic move, Lucy shoots one of the ghouls in the leg, triggering a full attack. She then “gleefully” and ruthlessly guns down the entire group.
This violent spree marks a major departure for Lucy, who once held firm moral ideals. The Ghoul watches with a mix of amusement and unease, particularly when she dismisses her victims by saying, “They’re just ghouls!”. The scene is a stark illustration of how the Wasteland and her addiction are corrupting her former principles.
The Cliffhanger Standoff With a Deathclaw
After the fight, Lucy and the Ghoul venture onto the Strip and find it completely deserted. As night falls, Lucy’s Pip-Boy begins clicking, warning of high radiation levels. She discovers a large, cracked eggshell, and ominous roars echo through the empty streets.
From the ruins of the Gomorrah casino, a Deathclaw emerges. This gigantic, horned mutant lizard is one of the most iconic and deadly creatures from the Fallout games, making its first full appearance in the television series. The episode ends on this tense cliffhanger, with Lucy and the Ghoul frozen in fear, facing the monster.
The episode’s cold open also featured a Deathclaw, showing a pre-war Cooper Howard encountering one during the Sino-American War in Alaska. This scene confirms the creatures existed as pre-war military experiments before the nuclear apocalypse.
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Other Major Stories in “The Demon in the Snow”
While Lucy’s addiction drives her story, other characters face escalating crises. Maximus deals with the fallout after killing Commonwealth Paladin Xander Harkness. To cover up the murder, he convinces the ghoul Thaddeus to impersonate Xander by wearing his Power Armor.
The ruse quickly falls apart at the Brotherhood of Steel’s Area 51 base, leading to a chaotic internal shootout among different Brotherhood chapters. Maximus confronts Elder Quintus and confesses he killed Xander to save ghoul children. When Quintus reacts with disgust that the children were ghouls, a firefight breaks out. Maximus and Thaddeus ultimately flee the base with a valuable Cold Fusion relic.
Back in the vaults, a political struggle over resources intensifies. Vault 33’s water chip is broken, leading to strict rationing. Overseer Betty discovers that Vault 31 has been completely emptied. She meets with Vault 32’s Overseer, Steph, who refuses to share water unless Betty retrieves a mysterious keepsake box that belonged to Hank MacLean.
Norm, leading a group of thawed Vault-Tec managers through the Wasteland, has his authority challenged by Ronnie, who claims to know the secret “Phase Two” of Bud Askins’ vault experiments.
The episode sets the stage for major conflicts in the season’s second half, with Lucy’s addiction adding a volatile new layer to her quest.
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