We review the second season of the Halo TV series

While many others have been quite harshly critical of Paramount's seemingly controversial portrayal of Master Chief and the Halo universe, I have, from the outset, been a relatively strong supporter of the creative risks taken with the source material to ensure that the story is as exciting to follow in passive form as it has been to interact with characters, Forerunner artefacts and Needler weapons through Master Chief's iconic Mjolnir visor.

It certainly hasn't been convincing all the way through, and pacing issues in particular have haunted the scenes across both the first and this now completed second season. It also means that Halo isn't what looks like a perfect interpretation of the colourful universe Bungie and 343 has shaped, but I still think it works most of the time.

This second season has had the difficult task of giving us an interpretation of one of the more seminal events from the Halo game series, namely the fall of the planet Reach, the transition from more passive shadow warfare to a more direct confrontation with the Covenant, and of course, ultimately, the actual discovery of the first Halo ring. Those in the know know that it's the landing on this ring, better known as Installation-04 or "Alpha Halo" (one of seven in total), that marks the beginning of Halo: Combat Evolved, so the pressure has been on.

And perhaps it's worth stating from the outset that Halo continues to struggle with particular issues around maintaining a specific pace, without overly confusing and jarring fluctuations in the form of either narrative peaks or valleys. Just as Halo gains momentum, the series always seems to puncture its own wheels or trip over its own feet, dwelling a little too long on personal stakes and motivations, losing focus on the broader whole. That happens less here compared to the first season, but they haven't quite got rid of the unevenness that plagues the episodes before and after the breathless invasion of Reach, which continues to stand as a shining example of how good the show can be when it takes the time to explore warfare and, in particular, Master Chief's unique position as a leader and icon.

It's the supporting cast of characters that mostly do the self-sabotaging, such as Makee, who seems to have lost her influence and proper role within the wider framework, and the same can be said for Kwan Ha, who becomes little more than a glorified plot device. The same goes for Soren and his wife. Halo has a good central crew, but too often weaves in extras in a frantic desire to present a Game of Thrones tapestry of unique personalities, and it doesn't need to.

The effects are usually better than expected, the music always complements the given scene and Pablo Schreiber remains an excellent anchor, the right man for the job, and he also gets a bit more flexible scenes to show his range here. I don't think we should dwell too much on whether he's wearing his armour enough or not. I agree with Schreiber's central argument that Halo could easily be an interpretation where Chief is positioned more as an emotional anchor, and that he should therefore be seen without his helmet on more often. It's also much easier to forgive when Schreiber really adds depth. At the same time, I admit that Halo's second season lacks action, spectacle and... well, Mjolnir armour, which is limited to just a few scenes across the entire season.

There are plenty of issues to address, but overall, I still think that this particular team of showrunners, a good portion of the overall cast, the visual aesthetic, is pretty close to how I imagined a large-scale series interpretation of this sprawling universe, and more than anything, I hope that the team is allowed to continue, that they get the funding they need to realise the vision, and that they take feedback on board. Because Halo's second season is a marked improvement, and quite often it's also good television. That's not to say that you don't throw in a jab or two, you have to, but the framework works. And I'm pretty happy about that.