With Master Chief back in action, Silver Team are detailed to cover an evacuation mission on Sanctuary. What the Chief sees there sets a clock ticking. One only the Chief seems to hear…

I enjoyed the first season of Halo a good deal but this is a step up in every way. The first hint of that you get is a moment of jet black humour as the Chief is sent to investigate why a communications array has gone silent. Shrouded in fog, he watches as two unseen assailants fire at him. Neither come close. The Chief, shaking his helmeted head in disappointment, is more emoting than Pablo Schreiber was allowed to do in entire episodes of the first seasom, and it’s not even the first joke we get here. Kai, the always excellent Kate Kennedy, bonds with team mate Vannak (Bentley Kalu) over his newly removed emotion inhibitor. He’s really into wildlife documentaries as a result and the combination of the cheery Kai and the super intense Vannak discussing animals is odd, funny and very endearing.

This newfound heart is reflected in Soren too. Bokeem Woodbine was fun last season but here he gets some really interesting stuff to do, balancing fatherhood, running his ‘business’ and dealing with the war and clearly working hard to do all of it. Soren’s plot sometimes felt tacked on last season and I can see some issues with that recurring here but it’s all fun, well written, well acted material that gives us a welcome different perspective on the war. It complements the arrival of Joseph Morgan as Ackerson, the new officer in charge of the Spartans. Sounding uncannily like Matt Smith, Morgan is an instant intellectual threat, menacing in a very different way to the colossal Spartans he’s been put in charge of. He’s also a welcome consequence of the Chief going off book so often last season and adds a level of uncertainty at the worst possible time for the UNSC and a great time for the show.

Because something terrible is coming, and this episode makes that very clear. That opening fight at the relay is fluid, inventive, brutal action and the escalation it closes with is a truly jaw-dropping moment that haunts us and the Chief alike. The Covenant feel visceral, real and very nearby this season and Silver Team are on the backfoot without even knowing it. They’re also caught in a situation that’s much more complex than they’re used to, a fact embodied by Cristina Rodlo as Talia Perez, the marine Master Chief saves at the Sanctuary. Made the face of the ‘victory’ by Ackerson she’s as troubled by the events there as the Chief and looks set to be a major player this season.

Verdict: This is the exact season opener the show needed. There’s a new sense of purpose, a new focus and a tangible sense of everyone pushed to the limit and beyond. Tense, confident military science fiction, and a massive step up in quality from last season already. 9/10

Alasdair Stuart