Watch The First Episode Of Halo Right Here
That's right, you can watch it here!
This article is more than 2 years old
It’s understandable if you want to check out the new Halo TV series but don’t want to dole out the monthly subscription to Paramount+. In spite of a whole lot of video game adaptations coming from major studios both for the big screen as well as for major video streaming services, video game adaptations still don’t have the best track record. Presumably to convince any apprehensive fans that it will be worth the price of admission, Paramount+ has released the entire first episode of Halo online for free.
Episode 1 of Halo, “Contact,” premiered on Paramount+ last Friday. The series is part of a different timeline from the games’ storyline — a so-called “Silver timeline” — in which Master Chief’s relationship with the UNSC (United Nations Space Command) proves more complicated. You can see what we mean, and everything else in the first episode, below. But first a warning: while it should go without saying if you’re familiar with Halo, this show is pretty violent, particularly the first 20 minutes.
So far, critics seemed a bit mixed about Halo. The series shows promise, but it’s not perfect. Its adherence to source material is often noted as impressive, though reviewers aren’t quite so happy with some of the CGI. Some sites, like Den of Geek, call the digital artistry “lackluster.” Other critics have called it a lesser clone of The Mandalorian. It feels a little early for that to be an fair comparison, however. There are unavoidable similarities between the two — both are science fiction and both feature protagonists who rarely, if ever, remove their helmets — but otherwise there’s an entire season to come.
Speaking of Master Chief’s helmet, it’s provided one of the biggest points of contention among dedicated Halo fans. Or, more to the point, the helmet’s absence is what’s caused the issue. Toward the end of the premiere episode, Master Chief (Pablo Schreiber) removes his helmet, in spite of never doing so in the games.
Regardless of any complaints, Halo is definitely stirring a lot of interest. The day after its premiere on Paramount+, as reported by Deadline, the streamer announced Halo had already become a record breaker. Those who watched the first episode made it the most watched episode on Paramount+ within the first 24 hours of release. The record had previously been held by the popular Yellowstone spin-off 1883.
It didn’t take long for Paramount+ to show their confidence in Halo. The premiere weekend ended with the announcement that season 2 of the series had been given the go ahead. According to Schreiber, the second season will begin filming some time this summer.
Halo‘s second episode “Unbound,” began streaming on Paramount+ this morning. There are ten episodes in all planned for the inaugural season, with each new episode released on a Friday. If the free episode above has you willing to consider paying the extra dough for the rest of the series, you can subscribe to Paramount+’s Premium plan for $9.99 per month (or $99.99 per year). Alternatively, you can pay $4.99 per month (or $49.99 per year) for a subscription with limited commercial interruptions.
