Unfortunately, based on Bethesda’s track record of long development cycles, Fallout 5 is likely years away at this point. However, there is still a silver lining. Since the Prime Video series is canon to the franchise, there is still plenty of time for the second season to answer the many questions that were left unanswered by the end of the first season. The show stars a handful of characters who are full of mystery, but the biggest questions lie with Moldaver. Before Fallout 5 sees the light of day, the Fallout show needs to reveal what has kept her alive for so long in the wasteland.
Moldaver’s Survival Raises Many Questions
First introduced as the show’s main antagonist, Moldaver was quickly revealed to actually be fighting for good the entire time. Her life’s work was focused on succeeding in cold fusion in order to harness free energy for the masses, which she finally accomplished before her death during the season finale.
One of the show’s biggest twists revealed that Moldaver was actually alive when the bombs dropped in 2077, meaning that she had been alive for 200 years. Before the Great War, Moldaver was a scientist who was correctly wary of Vault-Tec’s power, but it’s unclear how she lived as long as the cryogenically frozen Vault-Tec employees.
Moldaver Theories Try to Solve the Mystery
One of the more prevalent theories about Moldaver, and probably the most accurate, is that she was also cryogenically frozen in order to survive into the future. This is likely the case, but the main question persists about which vault she was from, if any. Although she mentions to Cooper Howard pre-war that Vault-Tec bought every company she has worked for in the past, it’s unlikely that she would be in a vault like Vault 31, where Hank and his fellow Vault-Tec coworkers were frozen.
The vault that makes the most sense for Moldaver to be from would be Vault 4, as it was reserved as a vault fully governed by scientists. Moldaver’s work and passion for science would naturally land her in this camp, especially if she was still unwillingly working under Fallout‘s Vault-Tec due to the company buying up smaller operations.
This also seems to go against Moldaver’s ironclad moral code. Even if she was given a place in Vault 4, it seems shocking that she would take it, given her hatred of the company. Rather, she could have seen it as a means to an end to succeed in her pursuit of cold fusion.
Answers Before Fallout 5
Although it’s pretty clear that Moldaver likely froze herself to stay preserved for the future, there is the mystery of how. The answer could just be lent to theories, but the method in which Moldaver froze herself gives great insight into her character. Either she swallowed her pride and accepted her place in a Vault-Tec vault, or she figured out how to make her own cryo-chamber in spite of Vault-Tec. These two options offer compelling moral choices that really illustrate Fallout‘s deeper themes.
What’s even more intriguing is that Moldaver could have even found a third option to keep her alive all this time that no one is aware of yet. Since the series is canon, future Fallout seasons could greatly affect the lore, and it would be exciting to get some sort of concrete answer about Moldaver’s insanely long lifespan, so it can help inform the next Fallout game and its overall story.
