Halo (Paramount+)

[Drunken Monk]

Pablo Shreiber steps into the iconic Master Chief suit next year... 

 

[laagi]

Halo was one of the first games I played on my Xbox, which coincidentally was also the first console I bought myself. And while my memory regarding these days are fading I do remember me and my friend playing and finishing Halo 2 in coop mode through an entire night. Those were the days LOL.

So much for my nostalgia and walk down memory lane. Having watched episode one I feel probably best summed up "confused".

I really like Pablo Schreiber and he is great as Master Chief. Although we don't really get a lot of time to spend with him and this is already one of the problems I can foresee as the series progresses.

The first episode starts pretty bloody and surprisingly gory which surprised me and yet I kind of appreciated. Also we get a good look at the armor of Master Chief and his Silver Team. They look pretty damn sweet so props to the costume designer. So does the weaponry. It all has a very tactical military kind of look and yet enough SciFi induced into it to make it seem futuristic.

Speaking of looks for the most part the CGI which understandably makes up a large portion, is well done. There are some weak shots here and there where it doesn't blend in well with its natural surroundings. Other than that hats off to the VFX team.

Now very unfortunately for the rest it's really a bit of mess. The story is all over the place. Not to mention the actors really don't perform too well. This is probably also due to some weird and poor dialogue, which basically comes down to bad writing.

For a first it's gonna be a very hard sell for future episodes not to mention future seasons. I don't know I'll give it a chance and keep watching but this might end up being dead on arrival. Unfortunately! as there are glimpses of really interesting things.

[Koravec]

Cant believe I just saw a trailer for this in the movie theater. Made look heavily like a Mandolarian wannabe show. Is that what it is? 

Only have so much time, only so many movie and tv platforms Im willing to add to my billing subscription.

[Drunken Monk]

2 hours ago, Koravec said:

Cant believe I just saw a trailer for this in the movie theater. Made look heavily like a Mandolarian wannabe show. Is that what it is? 

Only have so much time, only so many movie and tv platforms Im willing to add to my billing subscription.

It definitely isn’t a Mandolorian wannabe. It feels very, very different. Whether it’s worth a watch is up to you since I’ve read mixed reviews so far. Me? I like it. It’s certainly not blowing my socks off but it’s an interesting slice of lightweight sci fi. Game of Thrones in space it ain’t.

[Koravec]

@Drunken Monk Yea definitely am interested in seeing it. Much less that its a mando wannabe, I didnt even get around to boba fett series after getting sick of that stuff (yet still thoroughly enjoying it). Ive even been interested in checking out all the halo film and tv content thats been made.

Really is many shows Id like to check out just cant bring myself to getting around to them, I find the whole episode after episode thing tedious to keep up with. Annoys me how series are the preferred medium in this age. This is a lot of good to be said about series though Ill admit, but just as much bad.

[laagi]

6 hours ago, Drunken Monk said:

It definitely isn’t a Mandolorian wannabe. It feels very, very different. Whether it’s worth a watch is up to you since I’ve read mixed reviews so far. Me? I like it. It’s certainly not blowing my socks off but it’s an interesting slice of lightweight sci fi. Game of Thrones in space it ain’t.

This pretty much sums it up. Although episode 2 took one hell of a nosedive. It was pretty awful!? I'm glad episode 3 recovered some of it and the series does have some momentum back. There's just one too many sidestories and I doubt they could wrap it all up in a satisfying way. At least a season 2 is on the horizon but with all the negative press this has been getting I'm not even sure it's happening.

[Koravec]

Whats the jist? Mostly focus on the original storyline (halo 1 or 2) Id imagine? 

Only campaign I played was 4 or 5, it was pretty out there. General grieves looking lava monster things lol

[Drunken Monk]

The last episode didn’t do my big for me and I’m beginning to think twice about continuing to watch. It’s not bad per se. It’s just offensively lukewarm and not a lot is going on. I don’t want to sound like a Neanderthal but there isn’t enough action. It’s all side plot this, side plot that.

Again, none of this is BAD. It just doesn’t elicit excitement. We need a few more big, interesting moments.

[laagi]

11 hours ago, Drunken Monk said:

The last episode didn’t do my big for me and I’m beginning to think twice about continuing to watch. It’s not bad per se. It’s just offensively lukewarm and not a lot is going on. I don’t want to sound like a Neanderthal but there isn’t enough action. It’s all side plot this, side plot that.

Again, none of this is BAD. It just doesn’t elicit excitement. We need a few more big, interesting moments.

Assuming you're talking about epsiode 4. I actually liked it! I thought the entire set up with Master Chief had a suprising amount of emotional depth. Not cheesy or anything but it actually made me care for him.

As for the rest. Kwan needs to go! Not only is she increasingly annoying but her entire story arch is utter nonesense. 

If they put the focus more on Silver Team, Master Chief, The Covenant and Artifact. I don't mind the absence of action here and there. But I'll be honest some good action scenes would certainly help elevate the entire series.