Halo S2 E1: Sanctuary

[LITTLE LEVEL]

                                                                                                       Warning, this post contains spoilers for the Halo TV show 

S2 E1: Sanctuary

Key Characters: James Ackerson, Master Chief, Kai, Vannak, Riz, Captain Keys, the Arbiter and Cobalt team

Key Locations: The Rubble, Reach, and Sanctuary

Important Media: 

[LITTLE LEVEL]

Recap:

Cortona:

If you remember, last season Chief was severely injured Cortona was forced to take over the Chiefs body, but this isn't a sustainable state. In the start of the episode the Chief awakens to a special medical procedure to remove Cortona. Now the Chief has full control over his body and is ready to get back into action but Cortona mysteriously disappears. 

Operation Shepherd:

The covenant is making an advance and is planning to glass Sanctuary. In the Cross fire stands thousands of innocent civilians, so Master Chief and silver team are tasked with evacuations. Though complications arise when multiple civilians refuse to leave the planet. They claim to have deep connections with the planet and they will not stand to lose another planet to the covenant. Refusing to move Chief confronts the colonies leader, but leads to nothing. As time runs out Vannak and Kai notice a flickering light in the fog. Curios, the Chief investigates the disturbance, discovering that communications in this area are suffering from significant interference. After encountering a group of Marines who were stationed at the communications outpost, they are snatched through the fog one by one by an invisible enemy until only the Master Chief and a young woman (Corporal Perez) are left.

Suddenly large amounts of Sangheili attack Perez and Chief catching them off guard. In an intense battle, the Chief fights off large groups of Sangheili but suddenly a strange figure appears in the distance and the elites retreat. 

After grabbing Perez the glassing starts and Sanctuary erupts in a fiery flame. Civilians  are evacuated to Condors, but the Mother (the leader of the outpost) leaves the chief with an ill omen about  how his fate and that she has seen his death coming soon.

Ackerson:

Back on Reach at the FLEETCOM headquarters, Silver Team debriefs with the recently promoted Admiral Jacob Keyes who informs the Spartans that Covenant attacks have been increasing across the Outer Colonies, though Master Chief insists this case was different due to the covenant already being present. While the Chief is voicing his concerns a new face enters the room: James Ackerson the new director of the spartan program. Shocked by the news Silver team is critical of Ackerson and how he will fit into the spartan program as a whole. 

After the debrief the Master Chief decides to visit Ackerson in his office and discuss his suspicions about Sanctuary as he feels that there is more at play. When he gets there he addresses his concerns. He feels that the covenant were on Sanctuary for training, though he doesn't exactly know what they were training for. Ackerson though doesn't believe the chief and brings up the chiefs mental health. He believes that Cortona being implanted in the Chief could have negatively impacted him mental health and is damaging the Chief as an asset.

Cobalt Teams Mission:

Silver and Cobalt Team banter back and forth but the Chief catches something in their conversations. Cobalt team seems to be escorting a tech team to a damaged comms relay. Seeing the Similarities between this mission and Sanctuary the Chief feels he needs to voice his concerns to Ackerson yet again. He feels Cobalt team should know what they are getting into and that Cobalt team should be made aware about the events on Sanctuary. 

Ackerson then throws the Chief’s mission report into doubt, questioning how he could have prevailed against so many Sangheili warriors alone who then disappeared, portraying the Spartan as a victim of Halsey’s experiments that have compromised him, meaning that he cannot authorize them for combat missions. The Chief relents, but asks that Ackerson just tell Cobalt Team what they’re walking into.

After the confrontation with Ackerson, the Master Chief heads into the city, but on his way he meets Margaret Parangosky, who is no longer serving as an admiral following the events of Season One. She wants Master Chief to go and collect evidence about possible Covenant activities and bring it to her. The Chief accepts and takes a tracking device given to him.

Soren's Obsession:

On the Rubble, a network of habitable hollowed-out asteroids where piracy thrives, Soren and his wife observe an event for refugees to become indentured servants. One refugee catches Soren's attention though. It seems he may know the location of Dr.Halsey. Though Soren acts like he doesn't care he sends one of his men to go and speak to the refugee.

Upon returning home, they find their son Kessler playing with a toy of the Master Chief. Laera criticizes Soren for playing the role of pirate king dreaming of bringing Dr. Halsey to justice while the galaxy burns around them. Laera says that the other syndicate families don’t fear Soren the way they used to and suggests that the three of them should go away, but Soren insists that they don’t run.

Soren meets with Felix and departs with his crew, the Harvest refugee relates a story about a salvage job where he saw a cryo tube containing Dr. Halsey when a side panel fell off a crate before the ship went missing, with Felix being the only one who knows the course it plotted. An alarm interrupts them as they find the wrecked remains of the ship, and Soren orders Felix to accompany him alone to investigate.

As Felix recounts his knowledge of Halsey’s actions and questions Soren’s past as a Spartan, he surmises that the pirate leader’s investment in capturing her isn’t about the money but what she did to him. Upon finding the crate that Felix claimed held Halsey’s cryo tube, Soren begins questioning Felix’s story, only to see his crew steal his ship and jump out of the system, stranding him. Finding the crate empty, Soren is the surrounded by troops that were hidden in the room and Felix states that he is under arrest for the crimes of piracy, kidnapping, extortion, and treason.

Stories collide:

After conversing with an AI that takes on the form of Cortana and Dr. Halsey, the Chief fears that a piece of him is missing now and recalls seeing the figure of Makee on Sanctuary, saying to him “You should have stayed with me.”

As Soren’s crew returns to the Rubble, Laera sees that Soren is not among them and fears that her husband is either lost or dead.

A Sangheili observes a vast fleet of Covenant ships rising through the clouds, prepared to embark on their next conquest.

Kessler enters an asteroid cavern where he is greeted by Kwan Ha, who tells him about an ancient monster that is coming—markings on the cavern wall showing a circular maw…

Edited March 30, 2024 at 04:23 AM by LITTLE LEVEL

[CAPT N Reibach]

They sure like returning to the Ruble. I really want to know what are some of the opinions of people who have not played the game. Dissecting the summary I have 3 questions for you!

1. How does the Chief's relationship with AI, particularly after Cortana's disappearance, evolve, and what impact does it have on his view of AI-human relations?
    
2. The mysterious figure causing the Sangheili to retreat introduces an enigmatic layer to the conflict. Who could this figure be, and what are their intentions?
    
3. Given Ackerson's skepticism of the Chief's mental health and the implications of Cortana's integration, how does this tension reflect on the broader scrutiny and ethics of the Spartan program?

I didn't watch the show but really don't mind diving into the spoilers. I will probably watch it when I can make some time in April.

[LITTLE LEVEL]

On 3/31/2024 at 10:36 PM, CAPT N Reibach said:

• How does the Chief's relationship with AI, particularly after Cortana's disappearance, evolve, and what impact does it have on his view of AI-human relations?
   
• The mysterious figure causing the Sangheili to retreat introduces an enigmatic layer to the conflict. Who could this figure be, and what are their intentions?
   
• Given Ackerson's skepticism of the Chief's mental health and the implications of Cortana's integration, how does this tension reflect on the broader scrutiny and ethics of the Spartan program?

1. They don't really dive much into AI in the series. After that encounter with the fake Cortana you don't see much AI.

2. Makee again. She somehow survived, and her intentions are to get to the Halo ring.

3. It reflects on Ackerson wanting to make the spartan program his own and invest in the Spartan 3 program. If you remember Ackerson is actually a character in the books and his goals in the show align (mostly) with what he wanted in the books. Ackerson does actually take a more ethical approach to spartans and cares for them, that is why he doesn't want chief running rampant (and for another reason I will reveal in a later recap.)

On 3/31/2024 at 10:36 PM, CAPT N Reibach said:

I didn't watch the show but really don't mind diving into the spoilers. I will probably watch it when I can make some time in April.

Well I'll have the episode 2 and maybe 3 recap coming tomorrow so be ready for those. 

[ADM S Osman]

Thanks for doing this truly, as I mentioned before I really have no intention of supporting the show by watching it but I am indeed very curious as to what is happening and how other people are still watching.