This is one of those cases where the story behind the series is so much more interesting than the actual series. I think (not having seen the series, disclaimer) that a lot of difficulty with adapting Halo into a non-game medium is that outside of the specific experience of playing the game, it's not *that* singular and unique, and its deep lore is inherently difficult to translate into a series narrative (not to mention making an intentionally blank-slate protagonist like Master Chief into a compelling lead character -- William C. Dietz in Halo: The Flood attempted this to mixed results, and notably added a *lot* of stuff that wasn't John-117). By your account here, it seems a lot could have been helped by just picking one approach and sticking to it.

I have heard Callery's score, and it's probably the score I've most said "yeah, about what I expected" about in my recent memory lol. It's exactly the sort of music that emerges from an environment with producers that are simultaneously panicking and playing it safe. Mostly sound-of-the-moment with a couple fanservice theme quotes. No ding on Callery, he was clearly beholden to mandates. There's solid highlights in there, but maybe only 20 minutes of distinctly enjoyable stuff.

I'd be really interested in hearing Sparks & Shadow's score, I'd imagine McCreary's style would fit well into the Halo universe. (And that title theme is well done!)

(Side note, kinda wanna hear Badelt's Halo: Nightfall score)

This has been such a fun series, can't wait to hear your closing thoughts!