Spoiler Warning: Halo Season One
TheHalofranchise is one of the most beloved in the entire video game spectrum, and they have a loyal fan base the size of an ocean to prove it. Master Chief, the main character of the franchise, is likewise considered one of the most famous protagonists in the entertainment world, with seldom a person not having heard of him in some capacity. The franchise blew up in 2001 with the release of the first game, and, after a bit of a stumble withHalo 4andHalo 5, it has roared back to life with the open-world video gameHalo: Infinite.
The successful return to the video game world isn’t the only reasonHalofans are more hyped than ever. The newHaloseries on Paramount+ is playing a significant factor. The series has alreadybroken viewership records for the streaming serviceand was renewed for a second season before the first episode even aired. These are all signs pointing toward the series being around for quite some time.
With that in mind, the series isn’t the same as the video game. The producers and writers have made that perfectly clear with their words in interviews and the subject matter of the show, which has unfortunately displeased some longtime fans of the franchise. Namely,the decision to have Master Chief (Pablo Schreiber) remove his helmetin the first episode has been met with some minor backlash – but here’s why it’s actually a good thing we saw 117’s face.
Mystery Doesn’t Always Work in TV
One of the biggest reasons whyMaster Chief doesn’t take his helmet off in the video games(even though he has on a couple of occasions) is because the purpose of the games is to leave a little mystery between the player and Master Chief. This allows the player to truly feel as iftheyare the one inhabiting the Spartan suit. Unfortunately, this shock-and-awe mystery factor doesn’t translate well to television shows, especially shows that studios hope will be around for a long time.
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TakeThe Witcher,for example. The main villain of the planned seven-season series was revealed at the end of season 2 when in the books, the villain isn’t revealed until almost the very end of the series. Why did the producers of the show change it? Because waiting seven seasons to see who the protagonist is up against becomes insanely boring, and audiences won’t stick around longer than a couple of seasons to find out.
Avoided Being a Mandalorian Copycat
So Master Chief never taking off his helmet wouldn’t work for a television show – did they still have to have him take off the helmet in the first episode? In short, yes. With the plans for Master Chief to take off his helmet being firmly set on by the show’s producers, it only makes logical sense that such a big reveal would either occur in the first episode of a season or the last episode of a season. IfHalohad decided to do the reveal during the last episode of season 1, some viewers might have accused the show of just being aMandaloriancopycat.
The popularStar Warsshow revolves around a character whose entire religion stems around not removing his helmet. Yet, he must have his helmet removed in the last episode of the first season to save his life. Since Spartans aren’t in any way forbidden to take off their helmets, and it doesn’t go against any religion that they have, it makes the Mandalorian’s reasons for keeping his helmet on more meaningful and, therefore, would evoke a more powerful response than ifMaster Chief had similarly waited an entire seasonto take his helmet off.
Humanizes the Character
As previously stated, most of why the video game version of Master Chief doesn’t take his helmet off is to keep some mystery between the protagonist and the player. When it comes to a television show, mystery between the protagonist and the audience is one of the last things you want. Fans need to know who they’re rooting for (or against) when it comes to a television show. SinceHaloisn’t meant to be a mystery-thriller, the audience needs to find out within the first episode who Master Chief really is to root for him. Taking off his helmet went a long way towards that.
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With Master Chief taking off his helmet, he was able to simultaneously make Kwan Ha Boo (Yerin Ha) and the audience trust him. Taking off the helmet humanized John and made fans understand that the series isn’t going to mimic the games and be about rooting for a killing machine with a number. We’re going to be rooting for a human being with a heart and a backstory. Master Chief might be known as the greatest Spartan of all time, but theHaloseries is delving further intowho the character really is underneath his Mjolnir Armor– and true fans know that that’s a good thing.
