Here’s why the Halo TV series revealed Master Chief’s face

The first episode of the Halo TV series was the most-watch premiere in the short history of Paramount Plus. Near the end of the show’s initial episode, Master Chief removed his helmet. The move proved controversial, as the Halo protagonist has never removed his helmet in a game. Alex Wakeford, a community writer for 343 Industries, explained the move in a post recapping the series premiere.

“Television, of course, is a totally different medium to video games. The participatory, interactive aspect that defines gaming is not there, which—much like the books, comics, and other media over the last twenty years—brings its own challenges and opportunities for telling a great Halo story and a great drama,” said Wakeford.”

“Revealing the Chief’s face was one of those things. A moment like this is not a plot point or even explicitly a ‘reveal’ of what he looks like, but a means to tell his story. It had to be a moment that was earned and meaningful. This is also part of why it happens in the first episode: it’s not a twist, it’s a mission statement.”

It seems that the reveal of Master Chief’s face was more of a way to tell a narrative than anything else, at least according to Wakeford.

Wakeford also highlighted that Master Chief has removed his helmet in the expanded universe of Halo, such as in The Fall of Reach. While not a full face reveal, you can see Master Chief’s eyes for a moment if you complete Halo 4’s campaign on Legendary.

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