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Without screaming, “OMG Master Chief is on my PS3!”, we are having a look at the Blu-Ray edition of Halo: Legends, a collection of short animation films put together in one viable package.
Let the Review Begin
Usually when it comes to matters of cinema, I keep my opinions to myself. However, since we are dealing with a film (or several short films) about a video-game property, I feel it necessary to input my two cents. 'Halo: Legends', distributed by 'Warner Brothers' is a collection of eight short films (one is split into two parts) put together with some documentary, and commentary tracks to sweeten the deal. The subject matter is everything Halo, and not just what you have seen in the games. 'Halo: Legends' branches out to give more depth to the property than if you simply playing the games.
If you have regularly been checking 'Halo Waypoint' via Xbox Live, then you have likely watched a few snip-its that have been presented online. If you are unfamiliar with 'Halo Waypoint', it is your Xbox source to get up-to-date news about 'Halo', download extra content, and see your stats on all the Halo titles. The version I will be looking at is the Blu-Ray edition, which is the same as the 2-Disc special edition with a few extras. The standard release is just the film, which won't be the first pick for a true Halo fan. Halo fans will want to go with the SE (special edition) or Blu-Ray edition, which means you can have 'Master Chief' on your Playstation 3. Hmm, who would have thought, a Halo product would ever be playing on a Sony machine.
After the surreal nature of having two competing brands running together subsided, I dug into Halo: Legends. The content on the disc is a lot darker than the games, and even though the games deal with “some” of the same material, Halo: Legends heads to a darker space. This disc might appeal to many youngsters who look up to Halo: Legends, but I would have to put some advisory with the product. Death is a strong topic throughout all the films, and is can be graphic in some scenes. Mature gamers, you have nothing to worry about, and Halo: Legends never gets too outrageous, or strange.
I watched each tale in order that they appear on the disc, and with minimal spoilers, I will give you a short run-down on each episode.
- Origins
Studio 4°C | Aprox run time -credits 10minutes
Origins is split into two parts that has a raw animation style which was produced by the Japanese animation studio, Studio 4 °C (The Antimatrix, Batman Gotham Knight). Their animation might not be the flashiest, but the content makes up for a lack of visual impact. The story is narrated by the Cortana (Master Chief’s A.I.), and tells the tale of Halo’s history. This starts with the parasitic race called the flood feeding off all sentient life to become stronger. To fight the flood, the ancient advanced race called the Forerunners create the Halo array to destroy all life in order to cut the Flood’s food source, therefor killing the infectious parasites, and thanks to a little pre-planning, the Forerunners collected DNA, and took it upon themselves to repopulated each world they abolished.
- Origins II
Studio 4°C | Aprox run time -credits 12minutes
The second half of the story feels a little more ambitious, as more action has been added, and more depth has been given into the Spartan-II program that was developed to combat the new threat of the Convent. This section gets a little deep as it reflects on humanities affliction for war. This includes some horrific images of bloodshed across our planet, included the dropping of the atomic bomb. Human nature is not always pretty, which leads us to developing an improved space program so we can colonize the galaxy.
The story continues to look at Humanity’s savage nature, until we are threatened by a new threat, the Convent, a group of alien races bent on destroying Humanity, and claiming the Forerunner technology as their own. In a shared goal, Humanity bonds together to fight off the invaders. This conflict awakens the flood, and now the tables turn, and we have to unite with the enemy to save both our species. Both Origin tales are an excellent introduction to the series background, and will interest anyone who wanted to learn more about the Halo Universe.
- The Dual
Production I.G. | Aprox run time -credits 16minutes
The Dual is produced by 'Production I.G' (Ghost in the Shell, Batman Gotham Knight) displays an interesting art style that almost looks like a washed out paintbrush. ‘The Dual’ is by far the most “artistic” short out of the bunch and one of the most interesting. This tale follows a Arbiter named 'Fal' who stands up against the Covenant religion, and has to defend his homeland against an attacking troop of soldiers. This includes a deeper look into the belief systems of the other races including relationships, religion, and war. Yes, this is another deep perspective from the Halo-verse. After a bloody twist (which I won’t spoil) a dual is set and in a final showdown, you see the Arbiter stand his ground, but at what price. The Dual is a little heavy for most, straying further away from the typical Halo storyline that we have seen before.
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