a brutal blockbuster in which Paramount and 343 Industries redraw the Master Chief

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like John-117 under the helmet and without his armor, in halo, the series you’re going to get stuffed Not only in terms of his appearance, but also the hero and the person behind the myth of the Master Chief. Paramount and 343 Industries humanize the greatest Xbox standard bearer and take the fan to a universe very different from that of video games, comics and other adaptations. With successes and resounding setbacks, but keeping the essentials: It’s pure television science fiction.

A production that takes the aesthetics and setting of video games seriously and knows how to wink at fans of the saga based on tributes, small details and sequences inspired by plays and moments from the Xbox Game Studios saga. And yet, he brazenly distances himself from the figure that has accompanied us for more than 20 years.

halo, the series hides behind the fact that it takes place in the Silver Time Line, a reality parallel to video games. And that has consequences, nuances, generates new opportunities and on more than one occasion will manage to draw a huge disapproving face from the Master Chief’s fan. But, of course, it is a new entertainment format and that, with very few exceptions, implies that we come across licenses. That the project bears the name of Steven Spielberg (yes, as an executive producer) was already an unequivocal clue.

From here it is time to address the great unknown: the Halo video game series has a superb background and has been designed so that the action is omnipresent. How has that material been poured into the nine one-hour episodes offered by the inaugural season of halo, the series?

The ultimate Spartan confronts the Covenant threat and his mysterious past

It’s the year 2552. The human being has begun to inhabit distant planets, although, as a species, he continues condemned to not understand each other and deal with self-destruction. War and conflicts of interest reach an interplanetary scale. In the meantime, the covenant, A powerful threat born from the alliance between alien species, he brings destruction with him, laying waste to the worlds he passes through.

Now, humanity is not defenseless against the Covenant. Los Spartanssuper soldiers of the UNSC Navy whose individual combat prowess equals that of a hundred armed men, they take part in conflicts and decide the outcome. However, there is a latent and justified suspicion with them: are the Spartans a weapon against enemies or a force of repression of a militarized society?

In this delicate context, a squadron of Spartans led by John-117 (played by Pablo Schreiber), better known as the master chiefmakes a discovery on the planet Madrigal. After repelling a Covenant assault in which only one human survivor remains, John-117 stumbles upon a mysterious object that awakens a series of visions upon contact. Sealed memories of his former life, or a sign of something even more important?

Despite the enormous discipline of the Spartans, the Master Chief makes a drastic decision and decides to deviate from the instructions given. However, from the planet Reach they are fully aware that something has stimulated their body and mind, and they initiate the process to eliminate any unnecessary risks or surprises.

The Dra. Halsey (Natasha McElhone), The creator and head of the Spartans has developed an artificial intelligence system that will turn super-soldiers into humanity’s ultimate weapon. Or, at least, that’s the plan presented to the council.

Meanwhile, the Covenant launch their own plan to recover the mysterious item found in Madrigal: Market (Charlie Murphy), a human direct and collateral victim of the actions and decisions of the UNSC and protected by the alien races, will initiate a series of processes that will destabilize the plans of Reach and, later, will put the Master Chief himself in check.

Halo, The Series: pure science fiction television

The Paramount production bears the Showtime channel’s hallmark printed throughout every minute of footage. Is about a powerful television display that moves in the curious budgetary limbo that the channel normally shuffles with its science fiction series: superior to most serials for the small screen and with lots of special effects, but that plays in a different league from the big ones film projects.

In this regard, the production of the nine episodes of the first season of Halo The Series, They are comfortably up to par and playing along the same lines as the recent Disney+ Star Wars series or the great Netflix projects, but without that excellence that is usually found in the most careful HBO productions. Another thing is wanting to measure what is shown with the video games on which it is based.

As we mentioned at the beginning, the history of halo, the series It takes place in a parallel reality to the one we have experienced on Xbox or PC. It is neither a sequel nor a prequel and it reorganizes the elements at its convenience and without regard, capriciously introducing elements with a purpose that becomes very clear from the second episode and is manifested shamelessly in the final two chapters: humanize the Master Chief.

The idea has its foundation and logic, since in video games it is sought that we embody the ultimate Spartan. But the result that is obtained is bound to divide opinions, putting John-117 in situations that have little or nothing to do with the video game saga and, ultimately, making decisions and actions that do not correspond to the character himself.

Causing a very curious sensation: the armors are exactly the same as those seen in the games, but the protagonist doesn’t have much to do with the Master Chief. And as the season progresses, the distance between the two central characters becomes more and more distant in a constant effort to show the audience the most human and vulnerable facet of the man under the helmet.

The dilemma is clear: it is no longer about halo, the series whether it is a good adaptation or a bad adaptation, but the use that is given to the context and the characters during its development. Without going any further, Marcus Lehto himself has not had any qualms about expressing his discontent and indicating that not the halo he created. And that the series offers a technical and visual display that really shows that a lot of resources and time have been invested in offering what is manifested on the screen.

The action scenes, the choreography of the battles and the setting are very successful. They even seek to genuinely recreate video game moments with scenes whose development breaks the rules of television composition and are based on how the sequences are manifested in video games. What’s more, there are no qualms about taking the action to the first person from time to time.

Which makes us think that, perhaps, it would have been better to spend some of that time giving fans more joy in terms of the script than sticking to the essential structures of television series.

Preserving the essence of what the Master Chief is and should symbolize, with his touch of mystery and unwavering will, rather than making someone who comes from the video games, novels, comics and everything related to the main Halo universe question almost by inertia what is produced during season one beyond the battles and a television science fiction setting that, for all intents and purposes, is exceptional.

This is the Blu Ray edition of Season One

halo, the series officially launched on March 24, 2022 through Paramount+, Paramount’s own Streaming platform. And not only that: Xbox promoted the premiere by offering a subscription through Game Pass rewards. The bad news is that in Europe there was no way to access the series or the promotion. At least, until now.

In the absence of offering its digital platform, Paramount has published halo, the series in Blu Ray format. An edition made up of five discs with two episodes per disc (with audio in Spanish 5.1) plus the corresponding behind-the-scenes episode for each one (subtitled) with up to 20 additional minutes of curiosities and anecdotes on video.

And beware, despite the fact that the fifth Blu Ray brings only one episode, we come across ten extras full of content about production, creation and anecdotes from the shooting. For reference, this is over 5 hours of bonus content between the five discs.

In this regard, the treatment he receives halo, the series When it arrives in the domestic format, it feels like a special edition, and that its price is quite tempting for fans of the Master Chief (34.99 dollars). Especially if you’re an Xbox or PC gamer: our copy came bundled with a month of Game Pass Ultimate. A great detail.

iGamesNews’s opinion

halo, the series It’s a risky bet to take on for a fan of the Xbox saga, but -with its flaws- it also means a brave foray into the universe beyond consoles and PCs. Paramount addresses the challenge by sticking to core concepts while reinterpreting the essence and nature and identity of the main character.

Hiding behind the fact that it is an alternate timeline does not minimize that impact on some final episodes complicated to process. Even starting from the fact that 343 Industries, currently responsible for the saga, have participated in the development of the series.

The objective is clear from the beginning: to reinterpret the video game icon. Humanize him and give a different background to the Master Chief we all know. Redraw it for all purposes for those who do not know it. And that, logically, has consequences. But, of course, the format of television is very different from that of video games. Especially if we are talking about a first person shooter.

The result sheds new light on the franchise and, ultimately, reduces everything to a common denominator: offering a sci-fi universe with gunfights, explosions and, ultimately, emerging without the ties of what has already been seen, an inner conflict in the ultimate super soldier.

Being superficial more than necessarybut avoiding being a disappointment as a series based on contributing the special.

Because, as we discussed, halo, the series clings to the essential concepts of the saga: action and science fiction through the helmet of John-117. Although, we are not going to deny it, we would have liked that mystery and solemnity that it has in video games to have remained on the screen.

Halo, The Series, took too long to come to fruition. The project had been around for almost a decade and it comes just when all the great video games are making the leap to movie theaters and Streaming platforms. From Uncharted to Fallout, going through The Last of Us, Cyberpunk 2077 and even Cuphead.

However, the journey does not end here, it is only the beginning. The second season is confirmed. Perhaps it is a different Master Chief than the one that fascinated us on Xbox, and halo, the series It does not reach the podium of the best video game adaptations of 2022. A very good year in that regard, for the record. But -with its defects- we have already made a place on the shelf for the next season among our Blu ray. And despite its stark differences from the Master Chief saga, that site isn’t too far from our collection of games.