Last time - Halo 3: ODST - https://www.filmtracks.com/scoreboard/forum.cgi?read=142626

This time - “You bitch any louder and this place will be crawling with Covenant.”

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Essentially the Halo franchise’s version of The Animatrix, the anthology film Halo Legends had Microsoft teaming up with various anime production houses. The two-hour, seven-segment film was well-received but - in perhaps a sign of the limited audience it was catering to - went straight to DVD. 55 minutes of music made its way onto an album that at first seemed like a curious beast but turned out to largely be a welcome surprise. Of its 30 tracks, 21 contain 44 minutes of arrangements (or in a few cases totally new variations) of tracks O’Donnell and Salvatori wrote for the first two games, courtesy of a team of seven arrangers who gave many of these pieces surprising new depth or instrumental color. A tip of the hat is also owed to the Halle State Orchestra which played with marvelous vigor and expressiveness.

Two segments opted for original compositions by Yasuharu Takanashi, Naoyuki Horiko, Tetsuya Takahashi, and Eiko Konoo (the latter is mentioned in the film credits but has no tracks with his name on the album), and it’s here that the work will likely let you down. Takanashi’s music for The Duel segment is closer to East-West orchestral fusion than anything in the saga; expect the six minutes from it that made the album to be pleasant but unremarkable. The score for the segment The Package sounds entirely sampled and honestly like it could’ve come from any old Saturday morning cartoon; that music should be avoided at all costs. Still, if you focus on the new takes on legacy material you’re in for a treat.

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Legacy arrangements: **** - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5dQ125vF8Q78885qG2YWou (redundant tracks removed)
The Duel: **˝ - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5UwZeW3pem7n3oTiMgRHdT
The Package: *˝ - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7sawRXauxAkF4payTn4Pch
Overall rating: ***˝ - https://open.spotify.com/album/3WjOCGX1nWpEQs1WEUBcXk

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Next time: “Our enemy was ruthless. Efficient. But they weren't nearly fast enough.”

Not much to say to this one other than a big yup! Effective and engaging rearrangements (shout out to Sacred Icon Suite 2 for blowing 15-year-old me's mind) with generally fun shorts. I should revisit this collection, see how they've held up. Indeed, "The Duel" is probably the weakest spot in music and storytelling, with pleasant but unmemorable music and a story that doesn't add a lot to the Sangheili, on top of the truly bizarre decision regarding the Arbiter's wife. (Later listening made me realize how much it sounds like bits of Naruto, which is probably Tananashi's most notable work.)

It's overall a fun project with interesting additions to the Halo story (Homecoming, Babysitter, Prototype and Odd one Out being the highlights). I have warm memories for sure! (Also, damn I need to see The Animatrix)

Loving this series!

> Not much to say to this one other than a big yup! Effective and engaging rearrangements (shout out to Sacred Icon Suite 2 for blowing 15-year-old me's mind) with generally fun shorts.

The name of that track is quite puzzling, as it genuinely feels like its own orchestral variation of several tunes rather than an adaptation of any tracks from that suite.

Great write-up! I never got around to watching all of the Legends shorts, but I did listen to the album quite a bit on streaming in college, and I found it to be a nice surprise! I have a few qualms about some of the arrangements (for example, Earth City is at too slow of a tempo for my liking), but they're more than made up for elsewhere. I especially love the cool rearrangements of 'High Charity Suite 2' and 'Sacred Icon Suite 2', the arrangers remixing the themes of both tracks in new exciting ways, especially in the latter case. I wish the rearrangements for the two Anniversary games had been handled more like this one...

> I have a few qualms about some of the arrangements (for example, Earth City is at too slow of a tempo for my liking)

That’s the one that bothered me a bit too. Weirdly low energy. Did Jeb Bush arrange it?

I don’t know what scene(s) they used it for. It’s possible adaptation is to blame rather than anything musical.

Also, as part of this effort I learned this piece was originally written for the game’s May 2003 E3 demo, meaning folks heard Marty’s new themes for the Chief and the Covenant a year and a half before the game came out.