Developed by Kyle Killen and Steven Kane
Written by Justine Juel Gillmer and Steven Kane
Directed by Roel Reiné
Starring Pablo Schreiber, Yerin Ha, Danny Spani, Natascha McElhone, and Jen Taylor 
New episodes airing Thursdays on Paramount+

by Emily Maesar, Associate Editor, TVJawn

This week, Master Chief, Dr. Halsey, and Adun (Halsey’s weird assistant) finally make their way to Eridanus II, John’s home before he was drafted into the UNSC. They’re hoping to find the other half of the artifact from Madrigal, which John had visions of when he touched the smaller half. Cortana is able to reconstruct John’s childhood home and help unlock the memories of his parents and his life before Halsey. Although, it’s clear from John’s reaction to Halsey being in one of memories on Eridanus II, that she has been lying to him about when she came into his life. Regardless of if the repressed memories happen because a child is dipped in trauma or from an adult actively trying to hide how they traumatized that child… they are equally dark.

Back on the ship and following in John’s footsteps is Kai, Spartan 125. She saw him rip his emotional suppressor pellet out with a knife in the last episode, an action that Cortana was ordered to allow. And with no AI plugged into her brain, she has done the same for herself in episode four. Without the suppressor, Kai is able to finally feel and make choices for herself. Which includes dyeing her hair with some pink/red streaks - which look bad, a fact that Kai and Miranda discuss while they start to form a friendship.

And that’s something I really enjoyed about this episode. Miranda Keyes, as young as she is in the show, is an important part of the mythology of Halo, and as part of Dr. Halsey’s legacy. She is her daughter, after all. But without a real connection to her mother, Miranda is left floundering and locked away from Halsey’s greatest achievements. Including the Spartans. So, her slowly building a relationship with Kai, and learning Sangheili (the Covenant’s language) from the Spartans is a really nice and much needed element of character exploration. It’s something I think the show is doing pretty well, considering how quickly everything else is moving without a lot of discussion. 

Meanwhile on Madrigal, we follow Kwan and Soren as they attempt to reconnect with the resistance fighters that once followed Kwan’s father. There are traitors at every turn, though, and Vinsher Grath, the new UNSC-supported governor of Madrigal, seems hell bent on squashing Kwan under his boot. (With many, many shots of Burn Gorman’s butt, if that’s something you’re into - like I am.) I don’t know that I love the way this particular storyline is actually playing out, because it feels like it’s moving too quickly, but the characters are interesting enough and I care about Kwan and Soren in ways I wasn’t expecting - so it remains to be seen how it’ll wrap itself into the main plot. 

All-in-all, we’re moving ever forward in the story and toward the “Sacred Rings” that the series is named after. I’m still taking bets on where the season will end, since we’re almost half-way through the nine-episode first season. My best guess is that we’ll see one of the Halos, probably from orbit - but maybe they’ll surprise me and we’ll hit a ring in the next episode. With the way the series is paced out, anything is possible - and it’s one of the most fascinating things about this adaptation. 

And it’s in this adaptation that repression is a massive underpinning in the universe and story in Halo on TV. It mostly stems from actions carried out either by, or in the name of, Dr. Halsey - but so many of the leads are dealing with trying to break through the barriers that the good doctor has put up for them. At some point all Halsey’s war crimes will be out in the open, though given how slowly everything is happening on that front… I don’t think it’ll be for a while. Bigger fish will need to be fried once we actually make it to a Halo ring, after all.