it’s hitting a big old reset button on a post-post-apocalyptic city with running water, electricity, paved roads, medical care, food production, electoral politics and laws

It's fucking stupid because a post-post-apocalyptic city setting is excellent -- you could throw in parts of the show where the MC explores the wastes or something. It would give it more depth, but Bethesda loves an unrealistic, unchanging wasteland for some silly reason.