Reach (TV show)

Reach is a planet on the Paramount+ television series, Halo. It is part of the UNSC territory and serves as the home for their FLEETCOM operations. It is the largest and most prominent of Earth's colonies. The Reach Military Complex is a network of weapon satellites and warships that forms the most extensive line of defense in human space.

Overview[]

The largest and most prominent of Earth's colonies, reach was the first extrasolar world to be settled by humans, and was invaluable for late colonial expansion due to its confluence of slipspace routes and habitability. The majority of the its population is of Eastern European descent, primarily Hungarian and Romanian. In addition to being a key mining world, Reach supports the most significant shipyard outside the Sol system. The Reach Military Complex is a network of surface fortifications, weapon satellites, and patrolling warships which form the most extensive line of defense in human space.^[1]

History[]

UNSC Presence[]

Earth colonized the extrasolar war and began with Reach. The generations that came after the colonization only continued the evolution of laws, articles, technology, and more. It is the most advanced known planet. It became the UNSC's largest naval base, strategic headquarters, and one of the largest population centers. Reach is also the birthplace of the Spartan Program.

In 2440, the success of Reach led to the creation of the Reach For Life program, which sought to make uninhabitable planets safe for new generations of humanity. Teams of UNSC biologists, botanists, and geophysicists designed and built the installation as a self-sustaining ecosystem. Their goal was to seed life on otherwise barren planets and hence to extend the reach of humankind in the galaxy. Reach For Life ultimately failed.

The Fall of Reach[]

Attack on Visegrád Relay[]

“The Covenant is on Reach.”

— Master Chief^[3]

Before the discovery of the Covenant invasion force, Cobalt Team was sent to investigate a signal blackout at the communications array outpost of Visegrád Relay. Their deployment was kept a secret and no official record of their deployment was made.^[3] When they arrived at the sector they were ambushed by an elite team of Covenant forces and were killed in action.^[4] The Covenant made contact on Sword Base and slaughtered UNSC soldiers on the orders of Makee to gain access to the keystone being guarded on the sector.^[3] Master Chief grew suspicious of Cobalt Team's disappearance and frustrated over the lack of answers. He illegally deployed Silver Team to Visegrád to rescue Cobalt Team. They discovered the base had been seemingly abandoned. The ONI covered up the death of Cobalt Team. Ackerson marked them as MIA despite their corpses being brought back to Reach. He ensured that a flight plan was entered for Cobalt Team that put them somewhere else to call into question the mental stability of Master Chief.^[4]

First Departures and Attacks[]

Ackerson and the ONI knew the Covenant were on Reach and deemed it inevitable. They developed a plan to evacuate emergency personnel instead of warning the people. He wanted to save as many people as possible, but also knew the Covenant were stronger and the UNSC had to live to fight another day. Admiral Keyes refused to leave the planet or abandon his people. Ackerson evacuated Reach on a transport. The first wave of Covenant attacks began that night.^[4]

Government[]

Defenses[]

Reach is one of, if not the most important headquarters for the United Nations Space Command as well as the main supplier of military and civilian spacecraft, and the location of the UNSC's largest and most active shipyard. FLEETCOM and the Marine Corps maintain headquarters on Reach, along with other members of Naval Intelligence. All programs are overseen by a committee that vote on large issues.

Locations[]

• United Nations Space Command Headquarters, FLEETCOM
  • Miranda Keyes' Testing and Evaluation Lab Kappa
  • Dr. Catherine Halsey's Lab
    • Cortana's pod room
  • Landing zones
  • Military bases and weapons caches
• UNSC Spartan Training Center
• Reach Transport Portal
• Tchakova Park
• Reach Naval Academy
• Manassas
• Visegrád Sector

Known Residents[]

• Admiral Margaret Parangosky
• Dr. Catherine Halsey
• Captain Jacob Keyes
• Commander Miranda Keyes
• Adun
• The Spartans
• Makee (Temporarily)
• Marine Talia Perez
• Perez Family
• Louis-036
• Danilo

Appearances[]

• Season One
  • Contact
  • Unbound
  • Emergence
  • Homecoming
  • Solace
  • Allegiance
  • Transcendence
• Season Two
  • Sanctuary
  • Sword
  • Visegrad
  • Reach

Behind the Scenes[]

• Most of the scenes on Reach were shot on-location in Amsterdam or on CGI sets.
• The planet is based on the video game planet of the same name, Reach.

Gallery[]

Sources[]