The Halo Series Is Being Called A Lesser Clone Of Another Sci-Fi Show
Well, that's not good.
This article is more than 2 years old
Here’s a trivia question for you — What show is based on a hugely popular sci-fi franchise, is set in space, has a badass protagonist with cool armor and a cool helmet they almost never take off, and they travel with a small, inexperienced companion? Did you guess The Mandalorian? Well, now you can guess the Halo TV series and you’d technically be right too.
The Halo series has just started, but critics are already quick to draw comparisons between the video game adaptation and the Star Wars spin-off show. While the comparisons are certainly warranted, critics also agree that one show is doing the Lone Wolf and Cub shtick better than the other. While Halo has a lot of the hallmarks of The Mandalorian that made people fall in love with Din Djarin and his little pal Grogu, it lacks the charm and the stronger story to stick the landing.
The Halo series stars Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, who actually is seen without his helmet way more than Pedro Pascal. While there’s nothing that inherently states that Master Chief can’t take off his helmet, it’s something that never happens in the games. Thus, it doesn’t really seem like a necessary element, and it definitely rubs fans of the source material wrong. On the flip side, Din Djarin is an original character in The Mandalorian. They could have opted to have him take off his helmet often, but instead, they made it part of his Mandalorian religion that he can’t take it off around other people. Thus, when he actually does take off his helmet in rare scenes, it has much more of an impact.
In short, it seems like Halo has a little bit of an identity problem right out of the gate. The show has a massive budget, and it certainly looks like a high-end production, but it’ll have to do some story and character work if it wants to pull away from the inevitable Mandalorian comparisons and forge its own path. Of course, audiences frequently disagree with critics, so everyone will have to make their own decisions. The creators of the show have made it known that the show won’t be following the exact path of the game, so at least fans will have some surprises to look forward to. However, if fans were hoping for a 1:1 adaptation of the story in the games, they’re probably going to be a little disappointed. Still, it’s hard to believe that the show won’t get a lot of viewers, since the built-in audience is so massive. Plus, even if the first season doesn’t quite give audiences what they want, they can always try again with Season 2. Surprisingly, the show was already renewed for another season before the first episode even airs.
In addition to Pablo Schreiber, Halo also stars Natascha McElhone, Yerin Ha, Bokeem Woodbine, Jen Taylor, Shabana Azmi, Olive Gray, and more. You can check the series out for yourself when the series premiere hits Paramount Plus on March 24.
