Halo “Halo” Review

Season 2 Episode 8 – The climactic battle for the Halo begins. John makes a fateful choice. Soren and Kwan undertake a rescue mission. Halsey and Miranda unleash an ancient horror. Season finale.

Please note, our reviews are based on likes and dislikes. These contain significant spoilers. If you haven’t already watched the episode, we recommend that you click off the article and come back once you have watched the episode. Enjoy!

What I Liked

1. Parangosky tries to tell Chief to ignore the Fleet and get to the Halo despite the fact the current Fleet out there is getting wiped out easily by the Covenant. Chief finally explains over the intercom that he’s done taking orders. He shuts the intercom off seemingly to make his own decision. I’m happy to see this will be the beginning of the downfall for Parangosky.

2. As the Spartan 3’s and Kai struggle to intercept the ship, Chief makes his call. He ignores Paragosky’s pleas, walks to the end of the ship, and puts his helmet on. He looks like a badass at the same time. I’m so happy to see the suit back.

3. What in the Resident Evil is this?? The way these people are turning into these zombie monster-type creatures is terrifyingly creepy.

4. Cortana is back with John once and for all. It feels like it’s been an age. It appears now the AI is stored within the suit to make it easier to communicate. This is what I’ve known from first playing Halo 3 all of those years ago.

5. Parangosky sees her end. The parasite Miranda has been investigating harbors something far more sinister. Almost resembles something from Resident Evil and the Peacemaker series. Ultimately though, I’m glad Parangosky is done.

7. Master Chief vs Arbiter now. What a fight. What a scene. Arbiter initially gets the upper hand until Chief tells him he’s not done. A bit like Rocky 5. Master Chief then batters him leaving him helpless. There is a dislike here which I’ve put further down but ultimately that was a good fight.

What I Disliked

I was kind of hoping we’d see Chief and Arbiter team up like in the games but Chief puts the laser sword straight into his chest. That was one of the things I thought the season was building up to but seemingly not.

Favorite Moment

Chief making the save for the 3’s and Kai was fantastic! The music is sending chills up my spine. What a moment this is. I love how flawlessly he takes out the aliens, it’s just so damn easy for him. The best scene of the episode.

Standout Character

It’s going to be Master Chief. The episode centered itself around him in the finale and the fight scenes he was in were beautifully done. The fight with Arbiter and the Kai save on the ship. I am intrigued to see where they take the character more than anything moving forward.

Verdict

A solid finale by all means but still overshadowed by the Reach episode earlier in the season. That was a high bar to live up to. This season did finish on a cliffhanger which means a season 3 is highly unlikely although unconfirmed at this stage. The season started slow but got better as it went on with the peak being Reach but still maintaining a high level of story flow and action throughout. Well done Paramount.

Rating 9.3/10

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