Since even before it was rebranded from CBS All Access, Paramount + has sought to expand its subscription base by tapping into previously successful franchises: Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone, Yellowstone spinoff, 1883, and numerous Star Trek projects. With Halo The Series, the streaming service will attempt to do what few have ever done and successfully adapt a video game property. Not only that, but they choose to do so with arguably the Muhammad Ali of first-person shooters and one of the most lucrative, popular, and critically acclaimed franchises of this century.
The FPS genre is not known for rich story telling but Halo is an exception. Through the cutscenes of a half dozen core games, a series of novels, and previous animated adaptations, developers, Bungie, have crafted a galaxy of war, intrigue, and mystery rivaling that of George R R Martin. This allows for great potential but unique challenges for Amblin television’s showrunners.
With 20 years of fandom and fable in stock, Halo The Series does depart slightly from the original canon and this could possibly irk some who may be as faithful as The Covenant. It does present an easier “jump on” point for casual viewers, though, and the luxury of being able to put the horse before the cart certainly helps with a more traditional story sequence. The audience isn’t left wondering who the characters are or what the Macguffin is for very long (or certainly not until the second or third “game.”)
This is the story of Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 (Pablo Schreiber, American Gods) a super soldier “Spartan” protecting humanity’s survival and the interests of the United Nations Space Command (UNSC) in the 26th century. Think of Kurt Russell in Soldier meets Robocop for frame of reference. To his credit, Schreiber is able to break from his comfort zone of charismatic yet amoral characters such those he’s played in Orange is the New Black and Lights Out to become the stoic and almost wooden (due to psychological and chemical conditioning) Master Chief. Along with the actors portraying the other Spartans, they replicate the swift and efficient movements, ambling walk, and concise speech patterns from the games. The viewer doesn’t necessarily need exposition or flashbacks to the SPARTAN-II project that selected and augmented them. We can get a sense that they are regimented and reigned more than their fellow military men and women just through the performances and delivery. And, in a slight spoiler, yes, the helmets do come off.
In a reversal from playing a video game, the battlefield is on the back burner. Through the first two episodes, we spend far more time learning about this universe and the people in it. The conflicts are on every scale from micro to macro. The UNSC is frustrated by outer world colonists seeking independence while being threatened by the allied alien races of The Covenant and become known for using the Spartans to combat both. Indeed, all three factions are shown to have the capacity for ruthlessness, even selecting the same shocking target at times. Passive-aggressiveness abounds within The Covenant’s prophets, UNSC protocol is challenged for the purposes of funding and favor, and the frontier rebels are viciously territorial amongst themselves.
Californication’s Natascha McElhone nails the role of UNSC scientist, Dr Catherine Halsey, and the unique “surrogate mother/prize pupil” relationship she has with John. This is in stark contrast to the aloofness Halsey shows to her estranged family and her political obstacles. Outlaw king, Soren (Bokeem Woodbine of Queen & Slim) has a unique relationship with John that tells of Master Chief’s inner conflict and shows how humanity may be destined to stay fractured.
Production quality is high. Not quite Dune but well ahead of SyFy fare, it rests comfortably in the Starship Troopers to Snyderverse range. This should be expected as it would be impossible to pull of the setting with anything less.
The first two episodes are close to seamless and it may be best to watch them together or at least rewatch previous episodes going into new ones as there’s literally a galaxy’s worth of ground to cover in each installment. Longtime fans already speculate as to how this first season might progress or even end but Master Chief is in not-entirely-charted waters here. Those of us who have married to the franchise for these past 20 years may find it best to get that ring before getting caught in a flood of emotions.
