Halo: The Series Discussion Thread

[Jaysee1983]

So I'm pretty new to the Halo games. Don't know much about the lore. I will say, the series got me interested in the games and I have been playing my way through them. I read somewhere that the developers of the show wanted to use aspects of the game but didn't want to just tell the same story over again. So from that perspective I can appreciate the show apart from the game. I actually really like it. Me and my friend recently joined the forums here because of it.

As a fan of Star Wars and a member of several Star Wars costuming clubs, I view new content as a way to keep what I love to do alive. I don't like every Star Wars film or show. But, the fact that they keep making them gives me an opportunity to go out in costume and do events in the community because new content keeps the franchise relevant for the general public and the casual viewer/fan.

I thought the acting was great. The costumes were on point, even for the background characters. I thought the characters were written in a way that a wide variety of audiences could relate to the story.

 

[SgtSaint]

Just started a rewatch because why not? Since they knew they were going to have a second season, I wish they had spent more time establishing a positive relationship between John and the UNSC. It would have made the betrayal a little more significant and given us some more awesome fight scenes. I wish shows (in general) didn't start off with ground-shaking conflict like this because it just isn't as compelling, and gives the show a negative tone instead of a positive one. I always felt like Halo was a very positive tone with dark themes hiding in the background. I also feel like the covenant war would have been a good enough conflict to make season 1 exciting without all this John self-discovery and UNSC betrayal stuff.

I get where you're coming from. In a way, I don't envy the production staff. They had to thread a really small needle between how much was too much back story on a franchise with 100,000+ fans, and enough backstory for new people to get on board.

I think there might also have been some apprehension about starting too slow. The Expanse is totally amazing and accurate sci-fi. World building and they took the time to get you invested in the all the characters so even when "throw away" characters died it was emotionally shocking. They also suffered from having audience drop the show after 2-4 episodes because it seemed boring. If you stuck with it to about episode 6 you were hooked, but lots of people didn't.

I imagine Paramount didn't want to make that same mistake. So... build up the Spartans almost like Terminators with that card table scene then jump into a big battle to grab the audience. If they had done something slower I think they worried about loosing new people due to sloth and existing fans due to redundancy.

Totally agree with putting off the road to self discovery until season 2. The problem with revealing so much so fast is they are going to run out of original material and story line inside the first 3-4 seasons.

 

[FalseShepherd]

I get where you're coming from. In a way, I don't envy the production staff. They had to thread a really small needle between how much was too much back story on a franchise with 100,000+ fans, and enough backstory for new people to get on board.

I think there might also have been some apprehension about starting too slow. The Expanse is totally amazing and accurate sci-fi. World building and they took the time to get you invested in the all the characters so even when "throw away" characters died it was emotionally shocking. They also suffered from having audience drop the show after 2-4 episodes because it seemed boring. If you stuck with it to about episode 6 you were hooked, but lots of people didn't.

I imagine Paramount didn't want to make that same mistake. So... build up the Spartans almost like Terminators with that card table scene then jump into a big battle to grab the audience. If they had done something slower I think they worried about loosing new people due to sloth and existing fans due to redundancy.

Totally agree with putting off the road to self discovery until season 2. The problem with revealing so much so fast is they are going to run out of original material and story line inside the first 3-4 seasons.

I mean the other side, to agree with your point, is people suck and don't want to put time and effort into a slow building show. I look at Star Trek for most of my comparisons for sci Fi. So Deep Space 9 had a remarkable world built around it and rich, well developed characters and plenty of conflict and dark stuff going on too. BUT it has like 8 seasons and each season has like 20-30 episodes. Shows aren't made like that anymore and so the production team can't take the time they need to build. I think they could have done all that stuff you talked about for episode 1 bc they need to introduce the Spartans and the fact that they are fighting the rebels. I thought that was all great but Chief's profound experience with the artifact is somewhat meaningless to us bc we don't know anything about him or his character - other than what we draw from the games/other halo content and that's shaky ground bc the show is a different universe basically.

 

[Project0762]

I heard about it for a while. I've never been able to watch it myself and I've heard a not very good view on it from family. but, the reviews are still very mixed and not everyone will like it. So, someone might just wanna try it out and if it's not for them, thats completely fine. i might try it when given the chance, see if i do like it myself.

 

[FalseShepherd]

I heard about it for a while. I've never been able to watch it myself and I've heard a not very good view on it from family. but, the reviews are still very mixed and not everyone will like it. So, someone might just wanna try it out and if it's not for them, thats completely fine. i might try it when given the chance, see if i do like it myself.

Yeah a lot of people here didn't like it but I did. I have things I would change but I actually loved what they did with it.

 

[SgtSaint]

{...} was all great but Chief's profound experience with the artifact is somewhat meaningless to us bc we don't know anything about him or his character - other than what we draw from the games/other halo content and that's shaky ground bc the show is a different universe basically.

Exactly. It lacked *context* for those that are tuning into the franchise for the first time via the show: Like myself. I am fortunate that my {adult} son has played Halo since H1 and I have learned a lot just through osmosis. Then when the show got close I pretty much devoured all the on-line content, back story explanations, primers etc. that I could. I feel I got a pretty solid general background without actually playing my way through hundreds of hours of game play. (Will probably install the Master Cheif Edition game back here shortly but I don't want it to distract from costume building)
But I completely agree that without the context of showing a *before* state for MC and the rest of the Spartans you don't grasp the significance of the *after* state as affected by the artifact. You pick up on it along the way because you see the contrast between 117 and the rest of the team. But its more of a slowly acquired understanding instead of a "Oh sh*t moment" of before/after.

I heard about it for a while. I've never been able to watch it myself and I've heard a not very good view on it from family. but, the reviews are still very mixed and not everyone will like it. So, someone might just wanna try it out and if it's not for them, thats completely fine. i might try it when given the chance, see if i do like it myself.

I know I've said this before but will throw it out again - The show producers had a small needle to thread and I do not envy them. With like 30 years of game history there were bound to be a number of people not happy with anything done for a show. Starting with the basics, in the game 117 doesn't talk and doesn't show his face because the player is meant to be MC. Well it doesn't translate to a show when the star doesn't talk and doesn't have a face: The audience is not controlling the show's star's behavior. Its a passive medium not interactive. So right there you have a difference in feel and expectations. Then compound that with needing it to be both new so game players don't say "I know what's next, I'm bored" yet familiar so they feel a connection. It needed to happen fast enough to not bore people that know the history and slow enough to pick up new audience. Honestly I think its a tough, narrow set of parameters to have to meet while under the pressure of several million dollars of expenses riding on your shoulders basically over your guesswork of what the wider audience demographics and acceptance will be; and I think they did a decent job of it. Like anything and everything these days there will be a batch of people that complain about it not having enough blahblah, too much wonkwonk, not close enough to canon, not brave enough to go out on its own, graphics looked too cheap and game-like, graphics didn't look enough like the game etc. but none of those people were tasked with putting their careers on the line for their thoughts. They are armchair quarterbacks having the luxury of critiquing anonymously after the fact. I agree with Project0762 that it has to be up to the viewer to decide if they like it on its own merits. Personally I feel there's not enough sci-fi out there and Halo season 1 was a welcome cool drink in an arid desert of reality TV programming.

 

[Axeofares76]

I've watched Season 1 twice and will a third time before Season 2 is done. It's not the games, but I like most of it. They said different timeline than the game, and that's cool with me. My only issues? No ODST's and no Sgt. Johnson. I really wan a live action Sgt. Johnson for this. as long as they keep his persona right.

 

[LesChriserables]

I've watched Season 1 twice and will a third time before Season 2 is done. It's not the games, but I like most of it. They said different timeline than the game, and that's cool with me. My only issues? No ODST's and no Sgt. Johnson. I really wan a live action Sgt. Johnson for this. as long as they keep his persona right.

I'd love both of those things. Like you said, if they do it well

I'm gonna rewatch the show a third time before season 2. It's so easy to miss things on a first watch!

 

[Axeofares76]

I'd love both of those things. Like you said, if they do it well

I'm gonna rewatch the show a third time before season 2. It's so easy to miss things on a first watch!

Yes it is..I noticed things on my second watch, sure I'll notice more

 

[Shadowpi3]

I've watched Season 1 twice and will a third time before Season 2 is done. It's not the games, but I like most of it. They said different timeline than the game, and that's cool with me. My only issues? No ODST's and no Sgt. Johnson. I really wan a live action Sgt. Johnson for this. as long as they keep his persona right.

Im in a similar boat def needed the odsts and johnson, But ya overall I enjoyed it but it took me a little time the wrap my head around its not the games, still felt the relationship stuff was unnecessary even tho ik its not based off the games like idk I'm here for the Spartans XD The world was amazing everything looked halo and worked well so I am hyped for S2 but I think there's some room from improvement as with most things.

 

[Invidiax4fan]

The show lacked the numbers of spartans needed to a Reach era story imo. I dont see how they will do the fall of reach and have it be impactful or like Halo Reach. I get that it would be wasteful to make spartan armor for a 10s screentime characters but hopefully they use CGI to atleast make the numbers of spartans on screen larger than what we got for S1, which was only 5 total. I'd cry to see noble team on screen, but it will probably not happen.
Still excited to see where this story goes despite some of their very questionable decisions so far.

 

[SgtSaint]

I can't argue with the sentiment of needing to see larger numbers. Still the capital invested for a first season clearly wasn't insignificant. They may have just hit a price-point for a first season. For all we know, there could be dreams of an expanded universe. It seems like every franchise wants to do what MCU and Star Wars has done. There's even rumors of a Firefly return done by the team from The Mandalorian, in order to make it a multi-show expanded franchise. Star Trek is now something that love it or hate it, runs 5 shows at a time each with their own style and feel. Its not a far stretch to see Halo taking place in 3-5 shows of different places and times. Even Chicago Fire/Med/PD and Law&Order are all in the same reality. But of course it would have to get the viewer numbers and reduced b•tching by the fans to show there is enough support to justify a few more seasons let alone expansion.