After getting bogged down by bureaucratic conspiracies, clichéd human dramas, and stretched-out subplots that serve no major purpose for the majority of the second season, Paramount+’s cosmic warfare saga Halo finally seems to be veering towards sci-fi intrigue, following the direction of its source material. Previously, a vicious attack by the Covenant fleet resulted in the fall of the planet Reach, and ONI’s betrayal led to the loss of numerous lives, including Spartan Vannak’s. Thanks to Kwan and Laera’s timely arrival, Soren, Riz, Master Chief, and Dr. Halsey managed to escape from the planet and arrive at the mining planet of Aleria. An injured Riz undergoes surgery, and after grinding through her fair share of physical and mental affliction for so long, she decides to quit the Spartan life. A distraught Master Chief pledges to bring Vannak’s killers to justice—the ones who left the Spartans without any means to protect the people—Ackerson and Parangosky.
On the other hand, Makee is shown to be at the mercy of the Sangheili Elite Leader Arbiter, whom she misguides with Cortana’s help by showing a vision of the Ringworld, which leads to the Arbiter defecting from the commands of the Covenant Hierarchs. Soren and Laera learn that UNSC has abducted their son, Kessler, and leave Aleria along with Halsey, Chief, and Kwan in search of him. Kai is shown to be in the UNSC settlement of Onyx, and she is training a new group of Spartans under the command of Colonel Ackerson. The sixth episode shifts the momentum forward to address the larger world-building still unexplored in the series, although it still isn’t free from its fair share of shortcomings.
Spoilers Ahead
Did Kai Learn About Ackerson’s Truth?
At the beginning of the episode, viewers are introduced to a POV-driven scenario of the new-generation Spartan III Javelin team’s assault on a Covenant Corvette ship. We learn it’s an integrated simulation drill to make the new recruits battle-ready, and the operation is overseen by none other than the second-in-command of the Silver Team, Kai, the only active Spartan of the main team other than Master Chief. Corporal Perez, one of the few survivors of the Reach invasion, is a member of the team, and by the end of the simulation, she turns out to be the only survivor. However, Kai’s stringent stipulations result in Perez getting eliminated at the last moment, regarding which the duo later get into an argument. It is clear that Perez has little to no respect for Kai, as she was not present in the Reach along with her comrades when they needed her the most—and even though Kai laments the fall of the Reach, her determination to become a good soldier has led her to be misguided by Ackerson.
Meanwhile, ONI has successfully given the Fall of Reach a narrative spin of their own to bolster the image of UNSC, effectively making Master Chief a martyr and using his legacy to recruit more marines into the Spartan program. Kai is well aware of the fact that these new recruits aren’t even close to being ready to take on Covenant forces, but Ackerson insists on rushing them as his tendency to instill false hope continues. Later, Parangosky informs Ackerson about the possible sighting of Master Chief and Halsey near the UNSC settlement in Onyx, much to the Colonel’s disbelief.
Master Chief and co. reach the nearby wilderness of the UNSC settlement and conveniently split up into three groups. Kwan gets guided by a vision of the priestess of Sanctuary, which leads her to fall down a well. Her fall is broken by a Forerunner artifact in a subterranean cavern, and she meets Halsey, who is already exploring her way through the underground tunnel network. Chief and Soren speculate whether Kessler has been abducted by the UNSC to be made into a Spartan, just like they were in their childhood. The speculation leads Soren and Laera to venture further inside the UNSC settlement in search of Kessler, while Chief prepares to take on a troop of UNSC marines to buy them some time. A cool action sequence follows as Chief Ragdolls multiple marines but ultimately surrenders after the opposition forces continue pouring in. A captive Chief is brought inside UNSC base, from where he manages to escape by incapacitating multiple marines once again. Ackerson shows the video footage of the incident to Kai, as he wishes to poison her mind against Chief by making her believe that Chief has defected to the Covenant forces. Chief’s past revelation to Kai about seeing Makee in Sanctuary makes her consider Ackerson’s claims somewhat believable.
Ackerson reveals that Visegrad in Reach was attacked by the Covenant to obtain one part of the Keystone, which they did as well, but another part of the Keystone was taken by the UNSC to Onyx, which is why Chief has attacked this base and is fighting against the UNSC. Tricked by Ackerson, Kai apprehends Chief, but gets shocked after Chief details how Vannak’s death and all the tragedies during the Reach invasion were caused by ONI’s deliberate manipulations. However, she is still suspicious about the chief’s state of mind and wants to restrain him as per her orders. Chief refuses to fight and tries to appeal to Kai’s humanity. He provokes her by reminding her of the life she lost the moment she became a Spartan—something she is still doing despite having the freedom of choice. Chief’s words sting Kai beyond measure as she brutally beats Chief down to a pulp, but at the same time, she has come to realize the gravity of Ackerson’s treachery as well. With an unsaid mutual understanding, Kai knocks Chief out to still appear to be the obedient soldier Ackerson/OONI wants her to be.
Did Master Chief Find Halo’s Location?
Elsewhere on the Arbiter’s ship, a Sangheili priest starts questioning the Arbiter’s loyalty to the hierarchs and blames Makee for clouding his judgment. Makee somehow salvages the situation but realizes it will be impossible for her to protect herself amidst hierarchical loyalists if she isn’t able to find the location of the Halo soon enough. A desperate Makee asks Cortana for help, and she tricks her into letting her get connected with the Covenant tech to send a relay to Onyx. Now, Cortana is able to channel herself to the Onyx UNSC base and gets attached to Master Chief’s neural link once again.
On the other hand, Kwan continues to get visions of the priestess inside the cavern system and guides Halsey to an underground research facility, where we meet Dr. Miranda Keyes for the first time in the second season, and it is revealed she was working on a Forerunner artifact using her mother’s research. Soren and Laera are unable to find Kessler, but Soren seems to have an idea as to where UNSC might have taken him, as he mentions Thermopylae in the proverbial passage, which in this case seems to be a Spartan base.
Kai confronts Ackerson about his treachery, about the heinous conspiracy of ONI, and their wilful inactivity, which resulted in all the death and destruction in Reach, but realizes he is gone too far down the path. At Arbiter’s ship, the Sangheili priest gets to know about the transmission and tries to kill Makee as the prime suspect, which leads to Arbiter trying to protect her and start a bloodbath among Covenant forces. Cortana guides Chief to the Keystone hidden at Onyx UNSC base, as more delay will result in the Covenant reaching the Halo, and just as Chief touches the activated Keystone, Makee touches its counterpart in Arbiter’s ship. The episode ends with finally making progress toward the Halo story arc, as in the upcoming two episodes of Secrets of the Ringworld, the true purpose of Halo will be highlighted in a proper way. Although Chief’s infiltration and Keystone obtainment have given Ackerson more chance to elaborate on UNSC propaganda, this time, Kai is by Chief’s side, and a glorious showdown is about to commence.
