Warning: Spoilers for Fallout season 1

A major cameo in Fallout season 1 could hold the explanation for the mystery surrounding Moldaver in the series. Played by Sarita Choudhury, Lee Moldaver was the subject of several pressing questions stemming from the show’s story. Surprisingly, the series seemingly killed her off before it could fully reveal where Moldaver fits into the picture.

In spite of all the reveals in Fallout season 1’s ending, a great deal of confusion remains regarding her character. Specifically, there’s the issue of how she was even alive at this point in the Fallout timeline. Like The Ghoul, Moldaver has a presence in both eras depicted in the series. Yet, the show paid no attention to the significance of this detail. However, that could easily change in Fallout season 2, which could put renewed focus on it in Cooper Howard’s next flashbacks. The prospect of that happening is supported by teases from the season 1 finale, including a shocking cameo from a Fallout: New Vegas character.

Moldaver And Mr. House Could Have Been Allies In Fallout

It’s possible that at some point before the first bombs dropped, Moldaver made a secret alliance with Mr. House. An important character in the story of Fallout: New Vegas, Robert House was the ruler of the titular settlement and the CEO of Rob-Co. Mr. House made his live-action debut in the Fallout season 1 finale as the Rob-Co representative attending the Vault-Tec meeting. While he was treated as an ally in their endeavors, House’s apparent skepticism of Vault-Tec’s ideas suggested he wouldn’t be a fully cooperating partner. This idea is reinforced by his independent nature in Fallout: New Vegas, which could be used to lead into a team-up between House and Moldaver.

Thanks to what season 1 established, a reason for that to happen already exists. Apparently, Moldaver was a scientist whose research into cold fusion grabbed Vault-Tec’s attention. But instead of building on it, Vault-Tec tried to ensure it was never furthered, which essentially made her an enemy of the company. That development could serve as the basis of a partnership with House, who could have had strong interests in her cold fusion ideas. It’s known from Fallout: New Vegas that Mr. House was a meticulous planner who went to a lot of trouble to prepare for Fallout’s apocalypse. Because of his goals, it’s easy to imagine House seeing value in Moldaver’s work.

House was intent on ensuring that New Vegas would be a sufficient stronghold for him and a place where he could lead the rebirth of civilization. It may be that there was a time when House considered cold fusion energy as a way to strengthen or power New Vegas. If that’s the case and he somehow learned of Moldaver’s technology, he could have persuaded her to work with him. Her ideals would almost be guaranteed to clash with Rob-Co’s, but it could be that she overcame the issue if she saw his resources as a means to oppose Vault-Tec later on down the road.

Moldaver May Have Used New Vegas’ Cryo Technology

If it’s true that Moldaver worked with Mr. House behind the scenes, such a reveal could be used to explain how she survived for so long. Rob-Co was heavily involved in developing cryogenic technology, especially since his own survival was one of his main goals. Theoretically, Rob-Co’s research could have culminated in Moldaver acquiring a cryo-pod for herself as part of whatever bargain they may have made with one another. That makes sense, considering that the use of a cryo-pod is the most plausible explanation for Moldaver appearing to be the same age in both of the show’s two main time periods.

Mr. House and New Vegas having something to do with Moldaver being alive in 2296 is made even more likely by a tease in the Fallout season finale’s credits. A billboard seen immediately after the end of the episode advertised “cryo suites” at The Tops, a hotel in New Vegas. This proves that Cryo-Tec certainly was available in some capacity in New Vegas, making the city an obvious destination for Moldaver if she wanted to survive the apocalypse. Through it, she could have gained a way to keep the fight with Vault-Tec going and an ally in her future efforts simultaneously.

Why Moldaver Is Likely To Return In Fallout Season 2, Despite Dying

Although Moldaver is presumed dead after Fallout season 1, the mystery of her survival presents the show with a loose end that needs to be tied up before it can move on from her altogether. And based on her connection to Vault-Tec and Cooper Howard, the series shouldn’t struggle to work the resolution of this mystery into its narrative. After all, the events of the finale put her in position to have more interactions with Cooper when his flashback storyline continues. He didn’t seem receptive to her ideas when they spoke, but what he overheard in the Vault-Tec has a good chance of changing his mind about associating with Moldaver and her “communist” group.

Clearly, Cooper Howard’s flashback story isn’t over. Since he was divorced in the opening scene, it can be assumed that several more developments happened in his life between the meeting and the start of the Great War. By having Moldaver play a role in opening Cooper’s eyes to the horrors of Vault-Tec, the show set up Moldaver to be a recurring character for the time being, regardless of her death. Her role could be even more crucial to the story if it encompasses a Mr. House connection to boot.

Mr. House Is The Best Way To Conclude Moldaver’s Story

Not only would a Moldaver-House team-up be mutually beneficial and a smart move for both characters, but it would also be in service to season 2’s story. As the ending of season 1 all but confirms, New Vegas will be central to what comes next. With that in mind, it stands to reason that Fallout season 2 will look to streamline its stories by finding a way to juxtapose Cooper’s flashbacks with what’s going on in New Vegas. That strategy could account for why the show chose to bring Mr. House into the equation. It could easily use his appearances in the flashbacks to provide background on the construction of New Vegas.

With Moldaver and now Mr. House both having a presence in the flashback plot, the setup is there is for their stories to converge. Were that to occur, Fallout season 2 could answer multiple questions at once. What it reveals could deepen Mr. House’s link to the show’s story and make him a meaningful addition to the narrative and bridge between two franchise installments.