Halo Season 2 Episode 4 'Reach' Recap (Spoilers)

Halo Season 2 has been building to Episode 4, "Reach", from the moment it began. The Covenant have infiltrated the human metropolis that is Reach, and nobody in UNSC command or ONI believed Master Chief John-117 (Pablo Schreiber) in time to stop it. 

Halo Season 2 Episode 3 ended on a thrilling cliffhanger with Master Chief and his new ally, Corporal Talia Perez (Cristina Rodlo), being at ground zero of the first Covenant attack – and Episode 4 did not waste a second before getting us right into the trenches of the fight! 

Halo Season 2 Episode 4 "Reach" SPOILERS Recap

The Bowery King of Reach – The episode opens on a serene and peaceful note of Spartan Silver Team member Vannak-134 (Bentley Kalu) climbing onto the roof of a building to feed his pigeons. "Benny, Jenny, Lenny, and Keith" don't get a chance at a final meal, as Vannak witnesses Covenant attacks causing massive explosions across the city. 

Family Matters – Master Chief and Perez are hauling it through the main streets of the city, as Perez leaves the chapel they were talking in and tries to make it back home. Tragically her entire neighborhood block is annihilated by an explosion as she approaches it. Perez is left floored by the blast, and in deep shock; she cannot process that her family (who we met in the previous episodes) has been vaporized and is gone. Master Chief forcibly restrains her from running into the inferno, and then motivates her to follow him back to the headquarters so that then can get in the fight for real. 

[Opening Credits Play]

Hell In A Cellmates – Soren-066 (Bokeem Woodbine) is seen to be still in the company of his nemesis Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey (Natascha McElhone), inside the holographic jail cell that ONI Col. James Ackerson (Jospeh Morgan) put them in. Soren notices the impacts of the explosions getting closer; Halsey knows the war has come to Reach. Soren quickly refocuses on his longstanding thirst for vengeance against Halsey, who plays up the loving 'mother' persona by telling Soren she's glad to see he's alive. Soren is thrown by this, admitting that Halsey is "smaller" than the monster he remembers. The tension is cut when another set of bomb explosions wreck the cell's holographic projections. Despite warning from Halsey, Soren tests out the door to the cell and finds out it's also de-powered. He and Halsey become unlikely cohorts in escaping. 

No Training For War – Perez stops to take a breather and process her loss. She accuses Master Chief of not "getting it," insinuating that he has no emotion or compassion; Chief forges ahead toward his ultimate goal, with Perez right on his heels. In a main square, they spot two cloaked Covenant Elites hiding in plain sight amongst the crowd; a brutal hand-to-hand fight takes place, with Master Chief and Perez killing one Elite, while the other flees. The two soldiers keep booking it towards the command center. 

Know Where You're Going – Halsey and Soren end up in a red-lit hallway, and get to a fork in the road. Halsey wants to go left, but Soren wants to go right. Halsey insists she knows the ONI facility they are in and how to get out. She confidently states that she knows the right way, and starts heading in that direction. Soren's bluff gets called, and he ends up hustling after her. 

Old Things Matter – Master Chief and Perez run and find cover inside a small shop. Perez is amazed at how Chief fought the Covenant Elites with no fear; Chief confesses to Perez that he's always had a sixth sense assuring him that he won't die in battle – illustrated by Chief being able predict coin flips before they even land. Perez thanks that's a nice gift to have – Chief assures her that it's not, because he still has to watch his friends and comrades die. That deep conversation is broken up by the shop owner blasting off a shotgun and missing any target by miles. The shopkeeper reveals herself to be an antiquities dealer – and she refuses to leave her home. Perez has a full meltdown, pleading with the old woman as if she's delusional, saying old objects don't matter. The old lady doesn't agree with that view at all; Master Chief ultimately pulls her away, fully understanding the old woman's resolve to die in the same place she lived her life while serving the same purpose that defined her. 

Soren's Origin Re-Explained – Along the way, Halsey explains that they are in an ONI black site, and tries to get to know Soren better, asking about his son Kessler. Soren refuses to bond with Halsey, who expresses to him how happy she is that he has a son, as it is a major milestone for her Spartan enhancement process. They discover a room of ONI guards searing from plasma blasts and realize that the Covenant is in the facility with them. 

Taking it to the Streets – Master Chief and Perez link up with a unit fighting for position in a main thoroughfare that's lousy with Covenant forces. Chief finds his fellow Spartan Riz-028 (Natasha Culzac) leading the forces stationed in the street, along with her friend/mentor, former Spartan Louis-036 (Marvin Jones III) and his partner Danilo (Christian Ochoa Lavernia). Louis insists on being in the fight (despite being blind), and the crew of warriors lay down cover fire, and move into the building alongside the street. In the hallways of the building, they are attacked by a squad of elites; Chief and Riz battle their way through to an upstairs level and lead the group out a window onto a rooftop. In the mad dash Riz spots Danilo dead on the ground, just before she leaps out the window. She has to break the tragic loss to poor blind Louis in the middle of escaping; Louis immediately turns and advances holding some explosives, for a last stand against a Covenant Wraith tank. His sacrifice takes out the enemy; Riz is blown back by the blast, but gets hit even harder by the impact of losing the two pivotal friends she had just made. There's little time for emotion, though: Chief, Riz, and Perez run even faster toward the UNSC command center. 

"The NOC List Is Out In The Open!" – Halsey leads Soren to the room in the facility where the ONI was secretly storing both one of the Keystone artifacts, as well as the AI entity Cortana, that used to be bonded to Master Chief. When Halsey comes to free Cortana, she finds she's a step too late: the Covenant "Blessed One" Makee (Charlie Murphy) appears and takes Cortana, unleashing a Covenant Elite to kill Halsey. Soren saves the doctor by dropping a grenade he picked up along the way – although the force of the explosion knocks him and Halsey into a wall, incapacitating them both. 

Toldja So! – Master Chief, Riz, and Perez finally reach command and Chief parts ways with Perez by giving her his flipping coin for some luck. Silver Team reunite – minus Kai -125 (Kate Kennedy), their sniper and Chief's closest comrade who is conspicuously missing. Chief thinks Kai is off hunting Covenant and wants to join her; Vannak informs Chief that their Spartan armor is missing and Chief knows that Ackerson is responsible. Chief approaches Major Jacob Keyes (Danny Sapani) who begrudgingly gives him the needed apology for doubting his warnings. Keyes and Master Chief speculate about why Ackerson, ONI, and the higher-ups in command of the UNSC are leaving Reach and its people (and Spartans) to die. Keyes doesn't need answers – he needs to keep his soldiers fighting for every inch and every minute, it takes to evacuate the planet. He proposes the kind of battle tactics used by the Spartans in 300, with Master Chief and his team applying the "choke" to the "chokepoint." 

A Kid's Story – With Soren and Halsey back on their respective feet, the former cannot get past the latter mentioning that she originally staged his escape from the Spartan program. Halsey is more focused on the danger of the Covenant possessing Cortana, but she quickly dumps a bunch of game-changing information on Soren to seemingly prove her version of events. Soren is clearly rattled by this switch in perspective, but they also have to survive the attack, so rejoins the escape effort with new vigor. 

Cancelling The Apocalypse! – Perez is traumatized and frozen watching the wounded and dead being brought into the command center until a doctor yells for her to lend a helping hand. The Spartans and UNSC troops gather for Admiral Keyes to give a final speech – and it's one hell of a speech. Keyes is honest with his troops that they are laying down their lives to help the people of Reach escape; he brings Master Chief up to the podium as a symbol, so the troops can recognize him without his armor, and feel inspired to fight. Keyes tries to join the Spartans on the battlefield, but Master Chief won't have it – he knows the civilians and the UNSC command need Keyes to live beyond this battle. The Spartans help the UNSC Marines fortify a main bridge between the city and the command center – complete with a Scorpion tank. The soldiers get ready for the big fight that's headed their way. 

Family Reunion – Halsey and Soren make it to the command center, where Halsey has an awkward reunion with her ex-husband, Admiral Keyes. It gets even more awkward with Soren there as an obvious third wheel. Soren wants an escape route; Admiral Keyes is skeptical about a pirate qualifying for a ride on a civilian transport. 

The Main Battle Begins! – On the bridge, the Spartans can't pinpoint the Covenant movements until Master Chief has the Scorpioin tank shoot at a flare. A frightening horde of Covenant forces are suddenly exposed, and the bullets and plasma start flying. 

Last Ship Out – Keyes, Halsey and Soren are having some pretty awkward tension riding the elevator to the upper deck and the escape ships carrying the Reach civilians. Halsey updates Keyes with the facts that Cortana has been taken by the Covenant, and that Makee was the one who took it – proof that Makee is not dead, just as Master Chief claimed. Before they can get too deep into that problem, the docking bay is overrun by Covenant Jackals (Kig-Yar). 

Down With The Ship – Keyes calls the Spartan Silver Team for backup, and Master Chief, Riz, and Vannak move to answer the call. The civilian transport Keyes and Perez are trying to get people out on has fuel lines connected, preventing lift-off. Admiral Keyes goes out himself to fix it, but is surrounded by the Jackals; he pops the fuel line loose, and tells Perez to ignite the engine, causing a massive explosion in the hangar as the ship takes off. Outside the hangar, Halsey, Soren, and Spartan Silver Team are all floored by the explosion. Halsey stares at the empty space where the dock used to be, in deep shock at the loss of her former love. 

Deadly Arbitration – There's not a second to mourn before the remaining Spartans and marines have to fight for their lives against a squad of Covenant Elites and Jackals in a brutal close-quarters combat. Makee's personal Elite bodyguard (The Arbiter?) shows up for another round, and Master Chief leaps into combat with him. The two top dogs have a brutal fight with guns and Covenant swords, but without his armor, John-117 doesn't have the necessary edge. The duel is interrupted when another Elite injures Chief with a blast – but Makee stops her bodyguard's hand just before he delivers the killing blow. Vannak jumps in with a Covenant Needler weapon trying to take out Chief's rival, but the Alpha Elite simply takes one Needler shard in hand and stabs it into Vannak's chest, where it explodes, killing him instantly. 

The episode ends on the remaining Spartans dragging the injured Master Chief to safety, while Vannak lies dead, staring up through a hole in the ceiling at a bird circling in the sky. 

MORE: Check Out our Halo After Show & Interview with Vannak actor Bentley Kalu on ComicBook Nation! 

Halo Season 2 releases new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+.