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[Havoc2049]

This TV show is garbage. Almost all the characters I like in the game and the books are unlikable now. The Master Chief has done more to hurt humanity than help it. So far, he has committed insubordination numerous times, had sex with a POW and showed an enemy spy around Reach. I'm just watching it now because it's so bad that it's almost laughable.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

Do you know what it entails to be an art director? His opinion holds more weight whether something comes off as Halo or not.

I know an art director has an important role, but the fact remains he is not a writer, was creative lead on Reach alone (the game that would trigger the most limitations in storytelling freedom because of existing fiction) and in his responsibilities, he has not been responsible for the majority of the underlying storytelling foundations and characters and extended fiction of Halo. It's literally not his responsibility. People who are still at 343 DID have that role and have had it since the Bungie years also.

And if we're being technical, Reach the game introduced some things that many people who follow Halo fiction considered somewhat of a retcon of sorts regarding the whereabouts of the pillar of autumn, how it was still on reach, and how exactly the first Halo was located. The Cortana fragment created a lot of divisiveness. People were like "where the fuck this Cortana come from!?" There was a lot of finessing to make that work with the ultimate end goal of the Pillar of Autumn evacuating with Chief and making its way to the first Halo ring.

Imagine that one, a story introduced a number of changes we had zero prior knowledge of till they revealed them, lots was different from what we knew. Nobody thought the Covenant invasion was somehow already ongoing so soon at a time when Reach supposedly had not been breached just yet. If the game HE led can clearly make changes that require fans to suspend disbelief a little and give the writers creative freedom to bring it all back, to finesse in lost details that were never explained in Fall of Reach and never suggested anywhere else till that game, then surely a TV series has license to do the exact same. A series where it's already understood in advance it follows a separate timeline that will in no way upend the game and extended halo lore canon established in short series, novels, comics, audio based media etc., just while sharing major characters, events, details and many origin elements.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

This TV show is garbage. Almost all the characters I like in the game and the books are unlikable now. The Master Chief has done more to hurt humanity than help it. So far, he has committed insubordination numerous times, had sex with a POW and showed an enemy spy around Reach. I'm just watching it now because it's so bad that it's almost laughable.

Right, cause REAL Master Chief would have totally killed that innocent teenage girl Parangosky ordered him to kill. And while completely in a position to save a fallen Spartan II, would TOTALLY leave them for dead.

The only reason humanity has any understanding or heads up of the artifacts at all is due to the Master Chief's actions. And I never saw Master Chief commit multiple insubordinate actions. Refusing to hand over Cortana to be destroyed after being given multiple direct orders to do so, leaving Infinity after knowing the ranking officer doesn't want him to, going awol with a squad of spartans in Halo 5, attacking another squad of Spartans who are on direct orders to retrieve him and Blue Team. I can go on and on. Chief wasn't even suppose to be on the ship chasing after the covenant at the end of Halo 2.

 

[Codes 208]

This pretty much sums up how i feel.

The halo subreddit has already dubbed this universe’s chief as Jimmy Rings the Master Cheeks and i find that incredibly accurate for the amount if character assassination theres been.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

This pretty much sums up how i feel.

The halo subreddit has already dubbed this universe’s chief as Jimmy Rings the Master Cheeks and i find that incredibly accurate for the amount if character assassination theres been.

*sigh* Right... because the game trailers show Admiral Parangosky... and go all the way into Chief's past and what was done to all the children down to the level of specificity shown in the show. Those same trailers also detail Keyes' culpability.

At any rate. Keep watching folks cause you're all secretly must be enjoying it if you're all still watching. I can't wait for the season finale and for season 2 to return next year. This is what I refer to when I say nitpick for nitpicking sake.

Who cares if they call it "Reach City" Does it really matter to the integral storytelling of Halo? Of course it does not, but people have to whine about something.

 

[Codes 208]

Who cares if they call it "Reach City" Does it really matter to the integral storytelling of Halo? Of course it does not, but people have to whine about something.

Um. Yes, it does matter, it goes to show how little they cared to learn the actual names of cities in reach. They couldve used some from the EU like Manassas, Quezon and Ezhtergom, or even the pivotal city from the damn game: New Alexandria

Reach city is just lazy writing.

 

[Ulysses 31]

I know an art director has an important role, but the fact remains he is not a writer, was creative lead on Reach alone (the game that would trigger the most limitations in storytelling freedom because of existing fiction) and in his responsibilities, he has not been responsible for the majority of the underlying storytelling foundations and characters and extended fiction of Halo. It's literally not his responsibility. People who are still at 343 DID have that role and have had it since the Bungie years also.

And if we're being technical, Reach the game introduced some things that many people who follow Halo fiction considered somewhat of a retcon of sorts regarding the whereabouts of the pillar of autumn, how it was still on reach, and how exactly the first Halo was located. The Cortana fragment created a lot of divisiveness. People were like "where the fuck this Cortana come from!?" There was a lot of finessing to make that work with the ultimate end goal of the Pillar of Autumn evacuating with Chief and making its way to the first Halo ring.

Imagine that one, a story introduced a number of changes we had zero prior knowledge of till they revealed them, lots was different from what we knew. Nobody thought the Covenant invasion was somehow already ongoing so soon at a time when Reach supposedly had not been breached just yet. If the game HE led can clearly make changes that require fans to suspend disbelief a little and give the writers creative freedom to bring it all back, to finesse in lost details that were never explained in Fall of Reach and never suggested anywhere else till that game, then surely a TV series has license to do the exact same. A series where it's already understood in advance it follows a separate timeline that will in no way upend the game and extended halo lore canon established in short series, novels, comics, audio based media etc., just while sharing major characters, events, details and many origin elements.

He was tasked with visualizing the mayor story beats, moods, atmospheres, themes and ideas. Even if he didn't write any of it, he's still very familiar with the storytelling. So again, his opinion on the matter has more weight.

 

[Halo is Back]

Right, cause REAL Master Chief would have totally killed that innocent teenage girl Parangosky ordered him to kill. And while completely in a position to save a fallen Spartan II, would TOTALLY leave them for dead.

The only reason humanity has any understanding or heads up of the artifacts at all is due to the Master Chief's actions. And I never saw Master Chief commit multiple insubordinate actions. Refusing to hand over Cortana to be destroyed after being given multiple direct orders to do so, leaving Infinity after knowing the ranking officer doesn't want him to, going awol with a squad of spartans in Halo 5, attacking another squad of Spartans who are on direct orders to retrieve him and Blue Team. I can go on and on. Chief wasn't even suppose to be on the ship chasing after the covenant at the end of Halo 2.

Master Cheeks have literally committed treason multiple times by either threatening to kill Halsey or trying to do so. We are talking about the head of the Spartan Program, one of the most powerful and influential people in the Halo universe. Not to mention, he has just risked the security of Reach by fucking sleeping with a traitor of all things and showing her the planet like some other civilian. Everyone already hates the dog shit story in Halo 5 so idk why you would use that as a reference lmao.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

I'm just hoping for action for the final episode, don't give a rats ass about any of the story or characters in this show.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Master Cheeks have literally committed treason multiple times by either threatening to kill Halsey or trying to do so. We are talking about the head of the Spartan Program, one of the most powerful and influential people in the Halo universe. Not to mention, he has just risked the security of Reach by fucking sleeping with a traitor of all things and showing her the planet like some other civilian. Everyone already hates the dog shit story in Halo 5 so idk why you would use that as a reference lmao.

Killing Halsey would not be treason. A crime yes, but killing a scientist is not treason.

 

[Alex11]

I understand the need to change a few things because it fits a movie better,but why do you need to change so much.And then,if you change it so much,why not make into something than stands on its own.Why take an established universe,from a video game where the main focus(obviouslly) is shooting aliens (also unraveling the mysteries) ,and then have full episodes with little to no action,and no said aliens?

If this wasn`t meant for the Halo fans,then there was no need for the names,locations etc. that we all know,it could`ve been named "That sci fi show",make it original ,with some inspiration from Halo universe,and I think no one would have had any problems.
Then again,if it`s meant for the Halo fans,who wants to see a sad MC all the time,who is more times but-naked than kicking alien ass?

 

[Fbh]

I'm just hoping for action for the final episode, don't give a rats ass about any of the story or characters in this show.

I'm scared about the lack of Kwan in the last episode.
Last time she missed an entire episode we got a whole 50 min of her the next week.

Of course MC won't miss the end of the season but somehow I wouldn't be surprised if we get Kwan for a third or more of the finale.

 

[Halo is Back]

Killing Halsey would not be treason. A crime yes, but killing a scientist is not treason.

She is head of the Spartan program and one of the most valuable assets to the UNSC. That ain't no petty crime that's for sure.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

I'm scared about the lack of Kwan in the last episode.
Last time she missed an entire episode we got a whole 50 min of her the next week.

Of course MC won't miss the end of the season but somehow I wouldn't be surprised if we get Kwan for a third or more of the finale.

Nothing surprises me about going the mediocre route character drama focus with this show. For me only 20 minutes of solid action packed into this episode positioning the entire season 2 for Chief/Halsey/Cortana/Halo/Covies in a massive way would be any sort of redeeming quality or ending for season 1.

Season 2 needs to course correct fucking hard. I'm just hoping we actually get some Halo vistas, a space battle, Chief/Spartan actually fighting an enemy for more than 2 mins and really getting out of the humanity focused in fighting all the time. It has become 343's go to plot in so much media, especially the games and it's fucking time to bring the sci-fi and action. You know actually Halo the fans fell in love with under Bungie.

 

[Dr. Claus]

*sigh* Right... because the game trailers show Admiral Parangosky... and go all the way into Chief's past and what was done to all the children down to the level of specificity shown in the show. Those same trailers also detail Keyes' culpability.

At any rate. Keep watching folks cause you're all secretly must be enjoying it if you're all still watching. I can't wait for the season finale and for season 2 to return next year. This is what I refer to when I say nitpick for nitpicking sake.

Who cares if they call it "Reach City" Does it really matter to the integral storytelling of Halo? Of course it does not, but people have to whine about something.

You seriously will defend the worst of shit in order to defend your little favorite brand, won’t you? Good lord you need serious psychological help.

 

[Fbh]

Nothing surprises me about going the mediocre route character drama focus with this show. For me only 20 minutes of solid action packed into this episode positioning the entire season 2 for Chief/Halsey/Cortana/Halo/Covies in a massive way would be any sort of redeeming quality or ending for season 1.

Season 2 needs to course correct fucking hard. I'm just hoping we actually get some Halo vistas, a space battle, Chief/Spartan actually fighting an enemy for more than 2 mins and really getting out of the humanity focused in fighting all the time. It has become 343's go to plot in so much media, especially the games and it's fucking time to bring the sci-fi and action. You know actually Halo the fans fell in love with under Bungie.

This is why I continue to think animation is the best way to adapt most videogames.
While good animation is expensive, making live action scenes with crazy sets, locations and action scenes is exponentially more expensive. So they can only afford a couple of cool big setpiece moments and need to fill up the rest of the runtime with people standing in rooms talking or Kwan in the boring desert world of chevy tahoe.

This show reportedly cost around $200 mill to make. Meanwhile if you look at Arcane, while your enjoyment of the story and writing on that show might vary, for literally half as much money they delivered a way more visually striking show with tons of great looking locations, more interesting cinematography, great art direction and plenty of good looking action.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

This is why I continue to think animation is the best way to adapt most videogames.
While good animation is expensive, making live action scenes with crazy sets, locations and action scenes is exponentially more expensive. So they can only afford a couple of cool big setpiece moments and need to fill up the rest of the runtime with people standing in rooms talking or Kwan in the boring desert world of chevy tahoe.

This show reportedly cost around $200 mill to make. Meanwhile if you look at Arcane, while your enjoyment of the story and writing on that show might vary might vary, for literally half as much money they delivered a way more visually striking show with tons of great looking locations, more interesting cinematography, great art direction and plenty of good looking action.

I would be so happy with a H2A treatment as a full season or movie. It gives creative freedom to what they can achieve.

If they just had to stick with live action why didn't we get things on this level -



The iconography of these 2mins and how much "Halo" is stuffed in there is insane. The attention to detail on that sword Elite attacking, the Spartan's armour variants, the weapons, the Banshee agility/speed, the coolness of the jetpack getting it done, the pacing and audience build up to the bomb blowing the hell out of the ship, the grittiness, the music being evocative etc etc. It's far better built than the action in this series and sticks to being Halo.

How about character drama on a budget?



This short is so good with the age juxtaposition, a quick story that is meaningful and heartfelt while keeping the budget to a core set piece or two and delivering a cornerstone feeling what ODSTs experience and live through.

I could do this all day with the older media and universe. It's better built, more meaningful and what fans fell in love with. There is very little iconography and memorable moments in this show. More often than not I'm left going WTF with this show but by comparison to these other media elements I'm left with the impact not the lacking in execution feeling.

Take even Chief getting hit with no helmet over and over. Just a blood nose. Kai was knocked out easily. It just takes you out of it and it's shit writing, while making a shit fight. The Cortana hog control thing was cool but overall that action last episode was pretty shit and off brand IMO. Spartans are also supposed to be fast as fuck, why didn't they have some brilliant director of photography do some cool cinematic shit with slightly speed up footage to achieve Spartan like IRL hand to hand combat? Fuck all budget required, just skill and attention to detail for established lore.

And for the love of the Spartans where the fuck are the pithy one liners in this show? Halo always had comedy. This show has basically none of that. Clearly Joe Staten wasn't involved with this show enough.

 

[Havoc2049]

Right, cause REAL Master Chief would have totally killed that innocent teenage girl Parangosky ordered him to kill. And while completely in a position to save a fallen Spartan II, would TOTALLY leave them for dead.

The only reason humanity has any understanding or heads up of the artifacts at all is due to the Master Chief's actions. And I never saw Master Chief commit multiple insubordinate actions. Refusing to hand over Cortana to be destroyed after being given multiple direct orders to do so, leaving Infinity after knowing the ranking officer doesn't want him to, going awol with a squad of spartans in Halo 5, attacking another squad of Spartans who are on direct orders to retrieve him and Blue Team. I can go on and on. Chief wasn't even suppose to be on the ship chasing after the covenant at the end of Halo 2.

First of all it was bad writing ordering the Chief to kill Kwan. Second, he could respectfully refuse the order to kill her and just turn her over to the UNSC. The Chief was about to turn her over to the UNSC anyways. You would also think that ONI would want to debrief her before killing her since she was the daughter of the insurectinist leader on Madragal and had fought the Covenant. Instead the Chief steals a UNSC Pelican right before it lands on Reach, goes AWOL with a POW, steals the first artifact and causes a massive power outage on the Planet Reach and for whatever goofy reason, the UNSC can't even follow him (bad writing strikes again) to The Rubble.

Then he disobeys a direct order from Dr. Halsey to bring the Artifact to the spaceship (looks like an ONI Prowler). His actions lead to the failure of the mission and the second Artifact falls into enemy hands, which is another major failure by the Chief.

Then the whole Cortana back story isn't canon and the Chief hates Cortana, hates Dr. Halsey and commits another crime with attempted murder against Halsey. Total character assassination on the parts of the writing staff and they ignore the back story of how well the MC got along great with both Halsey and Cortana, and how the Spartan IIs viewed Dr. Halsey as a mother figure.

Then the Chief takes an enemy POW/Spy on a tour of Reach and then basically commits rape of a POW in her prison cell. What is even worse is the Command Staff is all aware of it and lets it take place. Then they are all like WTF, she is an enemy spy and killed a spaceship full of humans. Man, everyone on Reach must feels like a bunch of dupped fools.

As a Halo fan, this show is horrible.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

15 mins into the final episode and I'm fucking hating what I see already. I'll calm down and finish it up in a bit then post some positives and negatives.

 

[Havoc2049]

I'm going to bail after this season. I don't like the strong arm tactics that CBS/Parmount is using on some of the Halo fans/content creators on YouTube that are criticizing the show. Screw them and their crappy show.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

Ok watched the rest of it. I can confidently say what the fuck is this show. Who the fuck wrote it. Who the fuck approved it.

I'm unsubscribing from Paramount today. I don't have it in me to support this show with a season 2 and the lobotomy required to even enjoy just the action parts.

Over a decade plus for this shit to come to fruition. What could have been man. Disappointing doesn't express how I feel enough. Marcus Lehto said it best -

Not the Halo I created.

 

[Lukaku's First Touch]

Ok ending, but why the fuck wouldn't they shoot those priests? Also maybe now we get a decent master chief that leaves his helmet on sometimes. And what was up with the CGI on that covenant planet, horrible.

 

[JimmyF]

I gave this show a fair shot, each week I recoverd from the last episode to stomach the next. The final was mostly shit, some good action here and there, the cgi took a nosedive this episode. Entire season was a 4/10 i don't think I'll be returning for next season. Enjoy the next season for those who liked it.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

First of all it was bad writing ordering the Chief to kill Kwan. Second, he could respectfully refuse the order to kill her and just turn her over to the UNSC. The Chief was about to turn her over to the UNSC anyways. You would also think that ONI would want to debrief her before killing her since she was the daughter of the insurectinist leader on Madragal and had fought the Covenant. Instead the Chief steals a UNSC Pelican right before it lands on Reach, goes AWOL with a POW, steals the first artifact and causes a massive power outage on the Planet Reach and for whatever goofy reason, the UNSC can't even follow him (bad writing strikes again) to The Rubble.

Then he disobeys a direct order from Dr. Halsey to bring the Artifact to the spaceship (looks like an ONI Prowler). His actions lead to the failure of the mission and the second Artifact falls into enemy hands, which is another major failure by the Chief.

Then the whole Cortana back story isn't canon and the Chief hates Cortana, hates Dr. Halsey and commits another crime with attempted murder against Halsey. Total character assassination on the parts of the writing staff and they ignore the back story of how well the MC got along great with both Halsey and Cortana, and how the Spartan IIs viewed Dr. Halsey as a mother figure.

Then the Chief takes an enemy POW/Spy on a tour of Reach and then basically commits rape of a POW in her prison cell. What is even worse is the Command Staff is all aware of it and lets it take place. Then they are all like WTF, she is an enemy spy and killed a spaceship full of humans. Man, everyone on Reach must feels like a bunch of dupped fools.

As a Halo fan, this show is horrible.

Debrief her for what? They have far more knowledge on the Covenant than this girl could ever hope to possess. She's a scared ass girl who got saved by the Spartans. She has zero information of value that they would want. She also threatened to spitefully sabotage UNSC efforts to get outer colonies to see reason by lying about who really killed everybody. She was seen as more of a liability than a useful asset. She, however, does now possess valuable information after learning what she has back on Madrigal. It has other secrets the covenant and UNSC clearly did not find.

And that was all made possible because Master Chief saved her and brought her to Soren. Chief wasn't thinking about stealing a damn artifact, he was thinking about saving a young girl's life. And because he did, there's a major opportunity for humanity as a result of Chief's actions that could end up being a major victory. Kwan's father was of no damn significance to the UNSC in that moment now that he was dead. The covenant are the bigger priority.

They weren't able to initially follow because he deactivated the beacon.. pay attention. Also, they were able to follow him still. Riz walked up to Vannek and Kai and told them that they got a read on his slipspace jump traffic, and that they won't have his exact location, but they will be close. They were going after him, and did. They were in a UNSC Frigate - Stalwart Dawn.

People are so intent on hating this show they aren't even paying attention to the most basic details. They found the condor dropping out of slipspace into an asteroid belt. Are you REALLY watching the show, or just repeating what others have said without actually looking for yourself? Here are pictures of them tracking him. They knew where he exited slipspace. He was successfully tracked.

So please tell me again how they weren't able to track Master Chief.

Disobeying a direct order to save another Spartan who was in danger? Are you even seriously using that as a reason the show is bad? Master Chief wouldn't risk it all to save a Spartan if he could? If there's no hope, there's no hope, but there was no reason for him to just leave her for dead like that. He saved her life. And because he saved her life, all their lives were saved in the season finale. So he lost the artifact, failing the mission at that time, a mission they were ONLY one in the first place because of Master Chief's own actions to seek out the truth. They would have never found that second artifact if not for the Chief. Halsey is shown as someone willing to sacrifice their humanity to achieve a greater objective. Master Chief has shown himself to be someone who is not willing to lose his humanity and sacrifice comrades in order to achieve a mission objective, but he is certainly willing to sacrifice himself to save comrades regardless of the mission objective. Which was demonstrated perfectly in the season finale.

Having seen it all collectively now, it only looks more impressive with a rewatch, which I will certainly be doing. The early episodes look even stronger now when viewed as a collective season. You aren't enjoying it, but I'm loving every moment and can't wait for Season 2 because Season 1 ended amazingly.

 

[ManaByte]

Um. Yes, it does matter, it goes to show how little they cared to learn the actual names of cities in reach. They couldve used some from the EU like Manassas, Quezon and Ezhtergom, or even the pivotal city from the damn game: New Alexandria

Reach city is just lazy writing.

This isn't the same universe as the games. They've explained that multiple times, and at this point people are just ignoring it to troll for clout on social media. It's the same as the Marvel comics vs the MCU.

 

[Codes 208]

This isn't the same universe as the games. They've explained that multiple times, and at this point people are just ignoring it to troll for clout on social media. It's the same as the Marvel comics vs the MCU.

Being a different universe isnt an excuse for lazy/shitty writing or complete character assassination in attempt to make change just for the sake of it.

Halo 5 had a better plot than this season and that campaign was a 4/10 *at best*

This is not like comparing marvel to mcu, the mcu at least has excellent writers/directors for their more pivotal movies. this is more like giving a beloved franchise to a group of people who have no idea why the series was so beloved in the first place. Like when toho gave the rights of godzilla to sony/tristar so they could make godzilla ‘98.

 

[cormack12]

I know we saw these earlier in the season, but what is that little circle room where they put the little circle discs on their head? Was Keyes spying on Miranda or was Keyes imitating Miranda?

 

[SenjutsuSage]

This isn't the same universe as the games. They've explained that multiple times, and at this point people are just ignoring it to troll for clout on social media. It's the same as the Marvel comics vs the MCU.

Yep, a different timeline basically, but people don't seem to be getting that. In those alternate timelines many details are indeed shared. For example, Soren does kill his father in this show just like in the books. Soren WAS shot down by the UNSC in his attempt to escape. That's all intact. In the books, though, no body is found and his whereabouts unknown. This show maintains much of that, but with the added bit that Soren mentions he was shot down and had to survive on berries and other things evading the UNSC for months before he got away. So they keep many things from the fiction, novels and games consistent. Chief will eventually make his way to that first Halo, because of course he has to. What goes down on that Halo, we shall see, but presumably it will lead to the flood being set free and the ring being destroyed? We shall see. I'm okay with this show taking its own MCU like approach to the original games and novel lore.

They told us there would be twists and divergence from the original Halo Timeline, even if there are still lots of similarities, such as Keyes' role in helping Halsey pick the candidates for the Spartan Program, and what they ultimately did to those candidates. Parangosky is intact, Lord Hood is intact, Miranda is intact even if there is subtle change there, I see what they are doing, and it contrary to all negativity, it works. We are seeing a great deal of that with this finale. Silver Team's relationship and bond has been captured VERY well this season. They've successfully established a bond I would associate Master Chief having with his original Blue Team. Them focusing on Chief learning the truth, and the rest of Silver Team doing the same was very, very important moving forward. I'm going to give this series all the patience and opportunity in the world to fully expand upon and execute on its ideas, because I want this show to have a long, very successful run. I've been waiting too damn long for a Halo TV Series or movie, and I finally got it and it's been awesome. Bring on season 2. For the people who don't like it, there are other shows out there!

 

[SenjutsuSage]

I know we saw these earlier in the season, but what is that little circle room where they put the little circle discs on their head? Was Keyes spying on Miranda or was Keyes imitating Miranda?

It's an observation room. Think like a double sided mirror in police interrogations where the person being interviewed can't see who is on the other side. Keyes was watching Miranda speak to Halsey.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

Being a different universe isnt an excuse for lazy/shitty writing or complete character assassination in attempt to make change just for the sake of it.

Halo 5 had a better plot than this season and that campaign was a 4/10 *at best*

This is not like comparing marvel to mcu, the mcu at least has excellent writers/directors for their more pivotal movies. this is more like giving a beloved franchise to a group of people who have no idea why the series was so beloved in the first place. Like when toho gave the rights of godzilla to sony/tristar so they could make godzilla ‘98.

Couldn't disagree with you more. I actually quite enjoyed Halo 5, and even know this is nonsense. For one, you can't compare a damn videogame for a first person shooter and how it tells its story to how a proper big budget TV series must.

In what world is killing an important character such as Jul just like that after all the work that was put into developing his character in the books good or better writing than what this TV series has demonstrated? That alone stretches your credibility by saying so. This show offers additional and important insights and valuable context into characters that Halo 5 simply tried to slap on towards the very last moments of the game as Cortana was going through each member of Fireteam Osiris, addressing each one by one and revealing things about them. They touched on it some at the start of the Blue Team mission, when Fred and members of Blue Team expressed concern for how the Chief had been pushing himself too hard since Cortana, and they were worried about him.

 

[Shtef]

I don't know about you but I liked the series. Its a nice sci fi show in halo universe. Not everything has to be same as in the games. He removed the helmet oh the horror.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

I don't know about you but I liked the series. Its a nice sci fi show in halo universe. Not everything has to be same as in the games. He removed the helmet oh the horror.

Yep, and let's stop and think for a minute. Let's remove ourselves from our attachment to the videogame universe. Is it THAT odd if we knew not a damn thing about Halo that Master Chief, a soldier, got intimate with a female who appears to share such a strong bond and similarity with himself?

 

[Guy_who_thinks_hes_cool]

that reminds me, I think Season 1 just ended, so am gonna binge it this weekend

 

[FunkyPajamas]

He removed the helmet oh the horror.

The problem with a soldier removing their helmet during pivotal moments in battle should be obvious to anyone that's not an imbecile. Kai took her helmet off after she got in Halsey's ship which allowed Halsey's minion to get the drop on her, and subsequently gave Halsey a window to escape. These are supposed to be trained super soldiers and they keep making these mistakes over and over. Like someone said above, they literally had the three prophets, the heads of the Covenant structure, hovering right above them, and they didn't think of firing on them even once? It's just lazy shoddy inept writing.

The show is FILLED with terrible writing like that, all around. I don't care if you liked the series but to dismiss valid complaints regarding shitty characterization and writing is idiotic at this point.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

The problem with a soldier removing their helmet during pivotal moments in battle should be obvious to anyone that's not an imbecile. Kai took her helmet off after she got in Halsey's ship which allowed Halsey's minion to get the drop on her, and subsequently gave Halsey a window to escape. These are supposed to be trained super soldiers and they keep making these mistakes over and over. Like someone said above, they literally had the three prophets, the heads of the Covenant structure, hovering right above them, and they didn't think of firing on them even once? It's just lazy shoddy inept writing.

The show is FILLED with terrible writing like that, all around. I don't care if you liked the series but to dismiss valid complaints regarding shitty characterization and writing is idiotic at this point.

You do realize that if people didn't take chances, make mistakes or do things they weren't suppose to do there would be no TV series or movies at all? They would just end before they ever got a chance to be interesting. I didn't see Chief remove his helmet during any pivotal battle moment. He removed his helmet once there was no longer any threat. He's a Spartan with a highly advanced piece of armor that gives him all kinds of information, plus he has superhuman reflexes. I think he knows when it's safe to take off his helmet.

And it's not unreasonable Kai took her helmet off to address Halsey. She has only been like a mother to her and the other Spartans since like the age of 6, and she's now confronting her about nearly causing Silver Team to kill one another, especially Chief. So yea, I do think she wanted to look her in the eye and have a serious talk. It's obvious she has been dying to learn the full truth about herself and the others. And again, if she doesn't remove her damn helmet how the hell do either of those two stand a chance in hell against Kai? Wanna bet she doesn't make that mistake again?

How would they know what the hell the prophets are? It might very well be their first time seeing them. Also, they were kinda occupied with more pressing matters. Why fire a shot at the ones not trying to kill you rather than all the ones who are? And Chief is in trouble, and the prophets aren't the ones who put him in that vulnerable state. It was Mackee. I get making complaints and giving critiques, but so much of it feels like a hard reach to find anything to hate.

That said, I've said enough. I'm going to do my season re-watch at some point today when I finish work.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

You do realize that if people didn't take chances, make mistakes or do things they weren't suppose to do there would be no TV series or movies at all?

It's one thing for characters to make believable mistakes and another thing entirely for writers to create brain-dead characters. In the example I gave before, Halsey is supposed to be a smart person: they could have written her to have a smart contingency plan to deal with a "rogue" Spartan, not just hoping that the Spartan is dumb enough to remove their helmet in the middle of a fight.

I didn't see Chief remove his helmet during any pivotal battle moment.

I wasn't talking about Chief, I was talking about Kai. But since you you want to talk about Chief, here it is:
Episode 1. Chief takes helmet off in front of an armed enemy combatant pointing a rifle at his head.
Episode 2. Chief is without helmet while in an insurgent base.
Episode 5. Chief takes his helmet in front of Makee literally seconds after a fight with the Covenant, without knowing who she is or whether she poses a threat.
Episode 8. Chief wanders around without suit and decides to go fight two Spartans in his pajamas.

And it's not unreasonable Kai took her helmet off to address Halsey. She has only been like a mother to her and the other Spartans since like the age of 6, and she's now confronting her about nearly causing Silver Team to kill one another, especially Chief. So yea, I do think she wanted to look her in the eye and have a serious talk. It's obvious she has been dying to learn the full truth about herself and the others.

If Kai had not gone all emotional (again, shitty writing having the "emo chip" in an easily accessible part that Spartans can remove at will), she would have been able to capture Halsey and deliver her for interrogation, having their "serious talk" as you put it. But they wanted their soap opera drama moment and I can see why, there's obviously people loving it.

And again, if she doesn't remove her damn helmet how the hell do either of those two stand a chance in hell against Kai?

See first reply. If the writers didn't appeal to idiots with their shoddy work, Halsey could have been written like an actual smart woman and had a contingency plan to lockdown Mjolnir armor, which would have given her enough time to leave the ship without depending on irrational decisions made by others. Kai is supposed to be a soldier and yet is unaware that Halsey's minion is flanking her? Like, did she not see two people in there?

How would they know what the hell the prophets are?

They're enemies, they are obviously leading the ceremony (Kai had direct line of sight to the ceremony with her sniper rifle), AND they're just hovering above them. In this "universe" they know about Elites, they know about Grunts, they know about Brutes (when Chief looks at not-Tartarus, his HUD shows "Jiralhanae" which means they had already identified the species before) and yet somehow they don't know about Prophets?

I get making complaints and giving critiques, but so much of it feels like a hard reach to find anything to hate.

You know, in this thread I've seen you dismiss people's complaints of the crappy writing and characterization by saying "this tells me you probably don't read the books" (https://www.neogaf.com/threads/halo-tv-series-discussion.1633126/page-6#post-266002546), well let me tell you, I HAVE read the books and I think the characterization, plot, writing is all garbage.

I have also seen you try to derail this thread by bringing console warring into it while again dismissing concerns by acusing people of being fanboys (https://www.neogaf.com/threads/halo-tv-series-discussion.1633126/page-7#post-266050464).
So you know, you can fuck right off.

That said, I've said enough.

I do hope that's the case. I'm done addressing you anyway.

 

[Wimbledon]

4/10 show overall below average

But for this episode especially!

That last sequence was the dumbest thing i've seen. A.I helped advance spartans abilties on the field, in the TV show they show that she could litterally put chief in a comotose state , she is basically injected into him like magic. But she also can transfer between terminals access archives do damn near everything EXCEPT give him the advantage in battle in that last sequence HE HAD TO BE BEATEN NEAR DEATH OR IN A COMATOSE STATE for her to take control for some unknown reason that was the only way................WTF kind of writing is that.

Holy shit she could've taken control of the pelican when they were discovered provide cover fire air support while they were being attacked. That way all spartans can handle the small squad of brutes, ALSO what about 3 prophets floating overhead in the same room that bunkered down in your telling me that no SPARTAN COULD GET A SHOT OFF REALLY!!?!?!? Chief could've better handeled those brutes with her help!

I just saw Kai run like the god damn flash to get on Halseys ship your telling me she couldn't move fast enough, none of them to rush to kill those prophets, they could've ended all the COVENENT RIGHT THEN AND THERE, come on man.

I sat threw all 9 episodes of this shit and I was willing to give some parts a pass but this show is dog shit.

 

[gatti-man]

I’m really liking this show more and more. It was bad at first but I feel like it’s catching it’s stride. It’s at its best with just the Spartans hopefully 2nd season is mostly just them.

The first person action alone is godlike. Atleast they are taking chances and it’s something new.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

Let me give this another try with my less knee jerk reaction.


THE GOOD -

• The mini Spartan conflict to resolve Chief in command of silver team and Halsey's betrayal. This should have been handled before the final episode though.
• Kai running after Halsey's ship is well done, cool to see Spartans in action.
• Creeper dude getting his comeuppance was a nice moment, as is Kai's micro-emotional reaction to death up close after she does it.
• Kai climbing out of the wreckage Chief style was a good throwback to the games.
• John working with Cortana to semi-discover the planet with glass shards leads. Spartans are supposed to be super smart as well, good lore continuity for change with this show.
• Chief suiting up for the mission was solid, should have come earlier when the base went to shit though.
• Conversation between Keyes and Chief was handled well, should have been in an earlier episode though.
• Halsey flash clone was a nice switch up surprise and handled pretty well, like Miranda picked up on that and the little flashback. Better writing here.
• The trailer money shot of "on me" Chief and silver team orbital drop sequence was amazing. Great repeat of Osiris moment from Halo 5. Lovely single shot well executed.
• Sleeping grunts "good afternoon" on landing was a good shot of humour from the games.
• Slipspace traversal in a pelican was cool AF, nice throwback to established lore about Spartans being able to handle slipspace without large craft.
• Kai shooting Makee to get Chief back was well written and executed.
• Riz having exposed damage and Cortana doing what was needed to save her was well done.
• The pelicans look awesome, inside and out.

THE BAD -

• Chief doesn't immediately suit up on base, he stays in his undersuit.
• The base not going into immediate lock down is dumb, as is Makee being able to get into a Phantom and take off as well as not be chased at all. How about a tracker being on the most important artefact humanity has come in contact with?
• Kai taking her helmet off to question Halsey and getting hit in the back of the head is just dumb and not believable for a Spartan at all.
• Helmets are off for the whole of silver team while their pelican is travelling slipspace and they're saying she's not going to hold and grenades are falling out of lockers.
• Chief space magics a slipspace path with low odds of survival perfectly. At least hint to some innate power being awoken or domain connection or something.
• Spartan is on overwatch sniping enemies and has all 3 prophets in her line of sight for 5 mins but never shoots at them even once. Chief and Cortana-Chief are both at times directly below the Prophets and never go for a kill or hostage type deal.
• 250 elites attack from the same exact vector.
• Too much hand to hand combat, Spartans avoid this mostly. More stick and move would be better written.
• The classic Halo music was too muted when the match up of Chief vs Brute guy's hero moment. Really need the full classic sounds and therefore just made the overall moment feel lacking.
• Gravity hammers with no "gravity effects" was a bit jarring.
• Why are there no heavy weapons in these battles? Spartans head to a Covie world for the most important objects in the universe but we just bring rifles and pistols?
• Spartans continue to fight out in the open in a standing fixed position, repeatedly.
• Makee magic touch the space thingy to save the situation again is just rehashed and reused plain dumb writing.
• John being "shut down" in the middle of battle, yet again. It just gets annoying, like Halo 3 > Cortana mission > Cortana overlays annoying.
• Why is John trading the battle and war and his Spartans to just chat with Makee again? This makes zero sense.
• Another solo pelican magically shows up, without the need for Chief or Cortana's space magic Sherpa guidance, and saves the day at the last minute of the show. Wimbledon has a far better idea of Cortana taking control of the pelican for the same purpose.
• Chief willingly "kills" himself dismissing his decades of experience and training to be replaced with an unproven AI who has shut him down before. Again shits on Spartans trained to complete missions and sacrifice at high costs when necessary. Could have made a nice segue from S1 with Silver and S2 with Blue, had they written such a nice idea up front.
• Cortana takes over Chief to win the battle and with zero battle experience and is somehow the penultimate Spartan immediately. This just cheapens the whole idea of Spartans and Mjolnir completely, makes them obsolete even and it's this sort of change that frustrates Halo fans so much. Why wouldn't Halsey just create a robotic Mjolnir with Cortana. She has multiple clones and obviously made Mjolnir suits en masse. It makes zero sense to have Cortana made to take over Chief when it would be cheaper and more effective and specifically "more direct control" for Halsey, whom so desperately drives for control at every turn during this whole show.
• There are no air defences or aircraft such as banshees or phantoms etc to detect or even chase the artefact being stolen by the demon. Missed opportunity for a quick little space scene as silver team escaped a larger unbeatable force or a shot in the back of high charity or covie ships...something large scale that Halo is known for.
• Still no fucking Halo in a Halo show. It's teased but it's not part of the show.
• No humanity levels of extinction explained at all in this show. Nothing. No Halo threat, no Covie threat, no Flood. Nada.
• Why no parts of the games where Chief has a lull in battle to enter mysterious Halo control rooms, receive exposition from a monitor and general sci-fi awe to behold? Where is the Halo parts of this show?

The reason I cannot come back for season 2 is the direction 343 has taken Halo games and the direction they have taken this show. By comparison to what could have been made, told and ultimately experienced this show is a 3.5/10 for me. Shocking what they've done to Halo. There are some wonderful skills and production quality on display in this show. The actual changes, events and execution from the writing in this show completely shit on what I'm a fan of with Halo. Same goes for most of Halo Infinite. What a gargantuan wait and disappointment for Halo Infinite and this Halo TV show to arrive only to do away with the core tenets of what made Halo so great.

 

[Thaedolus]

Yeah the decision to remove helmets all the time is dumb but I get why they do it for dramatic acting scenes and shit. There’s just endless dumb stuff like that which I’m fine ignoring. Overall this was one of the best episodes, the show is definitely better when it’s the spartan action hour. The first person sequences are still a bit cringe.

Hey I’ll be back for Season 2, why not? I didn’t like Makee anyway

 

[SenjutsuSage]

It's one thing for characters to make believable mistakes and another thing entirely for writers to create brain-dead characters. In the example I gave before, Halsey is supposed to be a smart person: they could have written her to have a smart contingency plan to deal with a "rogue" Spartan, not just hoping that the Spartan is dumb enough to remove their helmet in the middle of a fight.


*WARNING PROGRESSING, NO NEED TO PROGRESS ANY FURTHER*

Smart Contingency for a rogue spartan you say? Like the Soren protocol revealed by Parangosky in Episode 1? But that's Parangosky, so we need to focus on Halsey, correct? How about the Zed Protocol she invoked Episode 8 where she directly had two other Spartans neutralize Kai-125 at the first sign of rogue behavior? Or maybe the contingency plan she used in episode 5 where she had Cortana shut down Master Chief's neural bridge, knocking him unconscious before he caved in her face? Or well before that, how about the emotional regulator pellets she had installed in the lower back areas of all Spartans to better control and regulate their behavior, thus having the effect of leading to less "rogue" Spartans. How about those memories of theirs she wiped in an effort to prevent "rogue" behavior?

Oh, that's right, Kai not only both removed her emotional regulator pellet like Chief, she also knows the truth about what Halsey did. Oh, it might also help you to know Kai removed her pellet while Halsey was away with Master Chief, causing her to not be aware of a single thing. Not the best circumstances when Halsey just had two of her fellow Spartans attack her and come close to killing her. And of course Halsey couldn't properly observe her Spartans since returning from the mission with Chief because she was sidelined immediately by Parangosky.

Everywhere you look at these silly nitpicks, the show, more often that not, already offers up answers, even though it's not required to provide them all right away, much less in the same season.

And you said Chief is wearing his Pajamas?

And you wonder why I sometimes call out the books when people say things indicating they haven't read the books. If you did, you would know that what Master Chief is wearing ain't "pajamas" but a crucial component of the Mjolnir combat exoskeleton system. It's actually an armored bodysuit, but that's an oversimplification.

The inner skinsuit is made of a moisture-absorbing synthetic material linked to an environmental control computer and the occupant's neural interface. It controls the suit's temperature and actively changes how the suit fits the user.

and it's coated by... a hydrostatic gel layer that can be pressurized to various levels to potentially save the wearers life should the wear be subjected to what? High G forces or a high velocity impact... sounds like maybe what fighting 2 Spartan IIs might be like?

• Hydrostatic gel:

On top of the inner skinsuit is a gel-filled layer, which regulates the temperature of the suit and can change its density to conform to the wearer's shape. The temperature inside the suit is controlled by the moisture-absorbing cloth suit underneath the hydrostatic layer. The hydrostatic gel layer can also be pressurized to various levels to potentially save the wearers life should the wearer be subjected to high G forces or a high velocity impact; however, overpressurizing this layer can cause nitrogen embolisms

What else was Chief going to do when he knew they were coming after him? You think he can activate his mjolnir armor like Tony Stark does his Iron Man suit? He's supposed to run? He's their leader. He isn't afraid to face them. So let me repeat this again, and I'll say it to you for the last time. Having read the books will better inform you about what is actually taking place in the show. The one thing I'll give you is the knowledge of the prophets, which I think may have even been mentioned in one of the episodes. But considering the situation they were in, it made more sense to attack the immediate threats. Wanting them to kill the prophets then and there is like asking why the bad guy in movies don't ever kill the hero when they have them dead to rights. It just happens.

Kai's initial positioning was based on a stealth approach. The Spartan's were infiltrating using stealth. It wasn't until the two keystones were connected with one another that Master Chief lost control of himself and wondered into the enemy's line of sight, blowing their cover. Once their cover was blown, Kai shot the grunt that revealed them. Stealth approach gone, Zealots immediately start moving out in front of Prophet's position, Prophets begin moving out of line of sight. When Kai starts firing at the zealots, the prophets are already gone. Pictures to show the sequence of events. If they were using a stealth approach till spotted, firing at the prophets was counter-productive to that goal. When they learn of how many enemies there are, Kai turns her head before completely turned her attention to defend against the hundreds of enemies coming from behind. You see the location to her back by the end. All this nitpicking over the tiniest of things OMG.

Anyway, we done. Can't wait for season 2.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

Oh, and the gravity hammers, do have the gravity effect. It's just apparently not always triggered. Chief blocks an attempt to use it on him, and then redirects the impact into the ground.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

HiddenXperia says it all - My pessimist side response basically.




Greenskull going positive for S2 - My optimist side response basically.



I just do not understand this show or the decision behind the silver universe at all. So you have a new show, you gain a new fan and then what? Said fan is supposed to buy a Halo book or game and dive into a totally different universe? Imagine playing Halo CE if your introduction to Halo was this TV show. What an ass backwards experience that is literally just going to confuse, be reductive for the TV show experience and likely not persuade a new fan to continue through the games and books as they're unrelated to the show. None of that would be explained to a casual viewer or gamer, they're simply not going to be aware of silver vs alpha universes.

So flip that coin over and think existing fans. Why would you ditch 20 years of fans and lore in favour of this show? Batshit insane and Xbox/Phil should have stepped in and curtailed 343 on this shit. Bonnie, Frankie and all the management how do you warrant this show at all?

I just do not understand the reasoning behind this show. Seeing all 9 episodes and one has to wonder why this was picked up for another season already. It needs a massive shake up and some serious writers that know Halo. Fucking bring in Staten and Nylund big time. Oh for the love of Halo bring fucking Marty back for season 2, musically you missed the bar hugely with this series. Space opera wise you missed the bar massively. Doing the Spartans justice you also missed that bar. The production quality, casting lighting, set piece design, with the exception of the rubble all the costume/suit/weapon/vehicle design etc is very much on point. Huge respect for those areas. Now do it justice and use what was great and loved about Halo. Bring Halo to this show with S2. Fuck the character drama, it's shit. It was shit in games and it's shit in the show. Chief/Spartans. Cortana/Halsey. Action. Space. Bad Ass. Comedy. Aliens. Mystery. Pin it to every desk in the office, razor focus S2. Nothing short.

 

[IYAOYAS2019]

This isn't the same universe as the games. They've explained that multiple times, and at this point people are just ignoring it to troll for clout on social media. It's the same as the Marvel comics vs the MCU.

It is a "different timeline", universe or whatever. That does not mean we are not allowed to critique thew quality of the show. Unlike the Marvel comics vs the MCU, this show lacks quality on multiple fronts and YOU are ignoring that.

 

[Vasto]

Overall I loved the show and cant wait for Season 2. The Quan Ha side story stuff just needs to go away. It's boring and does not connect with the main story. The show also needs a higher budget because it can look cheap at times.

4/5

This is the Halo show that I have always wanted. Would have been a 5/5 if every episode would have been about Chief.

 

[Thaedolus]

HiddenXperia says it all - My pessimist side response basically.




Greenskull going positive for S2 - My optimist side response basically.



I just do not understand this show or the decision behind the silver universe at all. So you have a new show, you gain a new fan and then what? Said fan is supposed to buy a Halo book or game and dive into a totally different universe? Imagine playing Halo CE if your introduction to Halo was this TV show. What an ass backwards experience that is literally just going to confuse, be reductive for the TV show experience and likely not persuade a new fan to continue through the games and books as they're unrelated to the show. None of that would be explained to a casual viewer or gamer, they're simply not going to be aware of silver vs alpha universes.

My dad, who’s almost 70, just enjoys schlocky sci fi and watches this every week and asks me what I thought about the last episode every time I go over to his house. He’ll never play the games but he’ll keep paying for Paramount+ for this and Star Trek. That’s gonna be a significant part of the audience

 

[deriks]

Episode 9: good, but not much
- while episode 1 and 5 have Halo scenes, this was a very Halo episode
- nice twist with Halsey
- bad ending with Halsey. I mean, it doesn't add nothing what she says
- why they still keep taking their helmets off? They could while they're together in a comfy place, like the ship, but not to confront Halsey, dumb director
- if Cortana could control the ship, why she takes too long to do it?

Overall season: weak
Who approved this should be fired. It's too amateur in direction. Has a lazy writing with lot's and lot's of cliches. There's too little from the games and too much from soap operas - romance and sex with Master Chieff?! Bitch, no. Where the fuck is Sargent Johnson? and WHY THE FUCK DO THEY TAKE THEIR HELMETS ALL THE TIME? I'm sure even a prostitute takes more time to undress

 

[Dr.Morris79]

I wish they'd stop destroying things.

 

[Lukaku's First Touch]

Episode 9: good, but not much
- while episode 1 and 5 have Halo scenes, this was a very Halo episode
- nice twist with Halsey
- bad ending with Halsey. I mean, it doesn't add nothing what she says
- why they still keep taking their helmets off? They could while they're together in a comfy place, like the ship, but not to confront Halsey, dumb director
- if Cortana could control the ship, why she takes too long to do it?

Overall season: weak
Who approved this should be fired. It's too amateur in direction. Has a lazy writing with lot's and lot's of cliches. There's too little from the games and too much from soap operas - romance and sex with Master Chieff?! Bitch, no. Where the fuck is Sargent Johnson? and WHY THE FUCK DO THEY TAKE THEIR HELMETS ALL THE TIME? I'm sure even a prostitute takes more time to undress

yep, pathethic recurrence where she takes of her helmet to the get bashed in the head lol... she just had her face knocked in in the previous episode by her teammembers.

 

[Ozzy Onya A2Z]

Best comment I've seen so far...

At least Chief kept it real and went AFK on his fireteam.