One of the biggest differences between the Fallout show and the gamesis the kind of vaults that are represented. Amazon Prime Video’sFalloutseries opts for the interesting new idea of combining multiple vaults into one society on top of having characters explore individual vaults spread throughout various locations.

Vault 32 is not the main focus of the TV series in the way Vault 33 is, at least initially. But at a certain point in the show, you start to realize that not all is as it seems with Vault 32, and the Overseers are hiding a much darker secret. What is it?

What Was The Purpose Of Vault 32?

Vault 32 isone vault in a series of three interconnected vaultsthat form a tripartite society in the Fallout TV show. It’s a new style of vault that’s not been explored in the games and special to a Vault-Tec project known as ‘Bud’s Buds’ developedbefore the Great War.

Vault 32 functions as a sister vault to Vault 33, where every couple of years (typically no more than three), members of Vault 32 and 33 would trade each other for necessary supplies and other materials, while alsomarrying off their members to ensure future generations of Vault Dwellers are born.

Both Vaults 32 and 33 lead a life of cultivation, particularly corn, and aretaught to await Reclamation Day,which is propaganda taken from Fallout 76’s storylineand is the day the dwellers would finally exit the vault and return to the surface world to bring it back into a superior and utopian society than it was pre-war.

In all actuality, Vaults 32 and 33 serve a much more sinister purpose.‘Bud’s Buds’ is using pre-war employees and executives from Vault-Tec, keeping them frozen in cryogenic pods over the centuries, and being unfrozen by original mastermind Bud Askins (who’s now literally a Brain-on-a-Roomba) to assume Overseer positions and marry and breed.

The ultimate goal of this all was that generations of Vault-Tec loyalists wouldgrow to outlive everyone on the surface and hold a monopoly over restarting civilization, and, boy, the lengths Vault 33 would go to continue deceiving its Vault Dwellers into thinking this.

What Did Vault 33 Think Happened To Vault 32?

The Fallout show begins witha marriage ceremony between Lucy MacLean,one of the main characters and daughter of 33’s Overseer Hank MacLean,to a chosen male from Vault 32. But you soon discover not all is as it seems.

The group from Vault 32 turns out to be a Raider partyin disguise that infiltrates the wedding to slaughter 33’s members in a surprise attack. They’re led bythe leader of the New California Republic, Lee Moldaver, in an effort to kidnap Overseer Hank MacLean, which proves successful.

The majority of residents of Vault 33 survive the attack and believe the same fate befell 32, with everyone dead since the Raiders breached through that vault and put on their clothing. But if you were also dismayed about this (like why did the clothing not appear bloodied at all then?), you’re onto something like Norm.

What Actually Happened To Vault 32?

Lucy’s brother Norm MacLean and his crime-solving partner, cousin Chet, uncover the sinister secret behind the devastation of Vault 32 —the Vault Dwellers died much earlier than when the Raiders came.

Thebodies have decomposed to such a state that only the skeletons remain, which shouldn’t take a pre-war forensic pathologist to tell you they’ve been dead a long time, said to be at least two years.What concretely took place still remains somewhat of a mystery, even though there’s enough evidence to have you draw your own conclusions.

There wascivil unrest that led to an uprising in Vault 32. The writings in blood on the wall of “We Know The Truth” and “Death To Management,” as well as how some of the deaths occurred, such as by suicide, torture, murder, cannibalism, and starvation also further imply that 32 found out that the ‘Bud’s Buds’ experiment was a lie.

As for if they also found out about what happened to Shady Sands as a result of 33’s actions, that remains to be answered. However,the Overseers are privy to the program being run by Bud, as we know Hank and Betty Pearson are aware of everything and help Bud’s agenda.

Seeing as the dwellers had a lot of animosity toward Vault 32’s Overseer and quite possibly subjected them to torture, you bet they probably got answers, enough that theycouldn’t live with themselves in the end. Those who survived tried getting into 31 and eventually resorted to cannibalism.

Playing on the TV inside the room where a Vault 32 member died by sticking a fork in a toaster is a documentary about a rodent colony.

It describes how it’s a “mouse utopia” that can quickly get overpopulated and have mice kill each other for space, even turning to cannibalism to survive. This is an eerie parallel and foreshadowing to what took place in Vault 32.

What Was The Status Of Vault 32 By The End Of Season One?

Miraculously,Vault 32 was able to continue its operations. Norm MacLean made it very obvious to Betty that he figured out what happened in 32, so she somehow quickly managed to get things back in working order off-screen for 32 to ward off any suspicions from the rest of 33.

When the dwellers of Vault 33 go on a tour, everything looks as good as new with a fresh coat of paint and updated decor. The bodies andthe tragic and gruesome sight of all the death and destruction have disappeared.

After Betty is elected as the new Overseer of Vault 33, she begins herresettlement of Vault 32 to restart the interconnected vault society relations. Many people from Vault 33 get relocated there to begin life anew, including Lucy’s friend Stephanie and cousin Chet.

This can also be seen as astrategic move to isolate Normand remove him from everyone he knows, especially his closeness to Chet. But, Norm ends up getting stuck in Vault 31 at the end of the season anyway, so it’s a win-win for Vault-Tec and Overseer Betty.