While Episode 1 brings viewers up to date with everyone’s current situation, the return of Halo gets off to a promising if slow start. While Season 2 doesn’t entirely reboot, it does rework some of the elements from Season 1 that weren’t successful.
Even if some of the loose ends from the first season will have to be removed, this is a necessary change. The removal of Cortana from Master Chief’s/John-117’s skull, which allowed Chief to return from death largely undamaged (though he did occasionally hear voices), is the first of these alterations.
UNSC marines assisted by Silver Team (John-117, Riz-028, Vannak-134, and Kai-125) on Sanctuary assist in evacuating villages from the Covenant’s destructive route. The village chief won’t go, claiming the UNSC has already dispersed their people, and the marine commander, Shepard, isn’t being tactful.
A radio alert stating that a Covenant vessel is on its way to “glass” (orbitally bombard) the planet makes the situation serious.
Recap
Chief uses a grapple straight out of Halo Infinite to scale a cliff to save a troop of marines after being dispatched via a communications relay. He connects with Corporal Talia Perez-led Bravo Team, the Marines. Their vision is obstructed by the fog, and a marine claims to have seen something within it.
He’s disregarded, but all of a sudden, Chief and Perez are being picked out by Sanheili warriors (Elites) wielding energy swords and active cama. Chief throws them into a frantic action sequence. Chief gets knocked down and Perez is hurt. Many Sangheili brandish their blades, but they are stopped by an enigmatic figure.
As the Covenant fleet launches plasma beams that glass the planet, the Sangheili and their leader—possibly Thel ‘Vadamee/The Arbiter—disappear into the mist. As Perez and the Silver Team manage to flee, many more perish in a graphic demonstration of the Covenant’s lethality. It’s an excellent place to start.
Upon returning to Reach, Admiral Keyes briefs the Silver Team, revealing that the Covenant had destroyed multiple other space colonies, including Kwan’s residence, Madrigal. Oh no. Nevertheless, while the briefing goes on, a man enters and pays attention.
When Kai-125 asks him to identify himself, the man replies that his name is James Ackerson. James Ackerson is a minor adversary who was first mentioned in the novel Halo: The Fall of Reach. He works for the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI). He once tried to assassinate Master Chief when they were in training.
He now holds the role of Chief of the SPARTAN program, replacing Doctor Halsey, and argues that the conflict with the Covenant should be contained in the Outer Colonies, far from Reach, where people feel comfortable. This doesn’t convince the Silver Team, and their first encounter with their new boss is cold.
Chief and Ackerson have a one-on-one back on Reach. Ackerson gains the Chief’s respect by disclosing that he was in the army at one point.
After Cortana is taken, Chief tries to tell him what he witnessed at the communications relay on Sanctuary, but he is ignored, leading Ackerson to wonder about Chief’s mental condition.
Ackerson is only justified in grounding Silver Team till Chief improves when Chief becomes defensive. Chief leaves and goes to the barracks. He sees Ackerson lying to the audience on TV, declaring that Master Chief is fighting and that the war against the Covenant is going well.