Sergeant Avery Johnson

Lore & Background

Avery Johnson is a Marine sergeant major who leads human forces throughout the Halo series. He survives the destruction of Installation 04 alongside a few other Marines and is rescued by Cortana and the Master Chief during the novel Halo: First Strike. In Halo 2, Johnson plays a larger role, joining forces with the Arbiter to stop Tartarus from activating Installation 05. In Halo 3, the Covenant attempt to use him to activate the Halo Array, but are foiled; when the Master Chief decides to activate the local Halo to stop the Flood infestation, the Forerunner construct 343 Guilty Spark kills Johnson to prevent it. Johnson is featured in The Halo Graphic Novel story, "Breaking Quarantine," and is a main character in the 2007 novel Halo: Contact Harvest. He is also featured in the real time strategy game Halo Wars 2, as a playable leader for the UNSC. In many ways similar to the stereotype of charismatic black Marines found in other science fiction (such as Sergeant Apone in Aliens whom Johnson was partially based on), some critics found Johnson a flat character. Joseph Staten admitted that Johnson was static in Halo: Combat Evolved, and that despite the character's potential, "he sort of inherited those caricature aspects [from Halo]." Contact Harvest was a chance "to do right" by the character. Luke Cuddy identified Johnson's character arc as closely tied to the series' themes of struggle and sacrifice. He has been included in critic lists of the best black video game characters.

In Their Own Story

Johnson and a few other Marines survive the destruction of Installation 04 and are rescued by Cortana and the Master Chief during the novel Halo: First Strike. Johnson plays a larger role in Halo 2, joining forces with the Arbiter to stop Tartarus from activating Installation 05. In Halo 3, the Covenant attempt to use him to activate the Halo Array, but are foiled; when the Master Chief decides to activate the local Halo to stop the Flood infestation, the Forerunner construct 343 Guilty Spark kills Johnson to prevent it.

Reader's Guide

Avery Johnson is a Marine sergeant major who leads human forces throughout the Halo series. He is voiced by David Scully in all Halo media until 2013 following the actor's retirement, with Keston John succeeding him for Halo: Campaign Evolved. Johnson survives the destruction of Installation 04 and is rescued by Cortana and the Master Chief during Halo: First Strike. In Halo 2, he joins forces with the Arbiter to stop Tartarus from activating Installation 05. In Halo 3, the Covenant attempt to use him to activate the Halo Array, but are foiled; 343 Guilty Spark kills Johnson to prevent the Master Chief from activating the local Halo. Johnson is a main character in the 2007 novel Halo: Contact Harvest and appears in The Halo Graphic Novel story "Breaking Quarantine." He is also a playable leader for the UNSC in Halo Wars 2. Critics have compared him to Sergeant Apone from Aliens, and some found him a flat character; Joseph Staten admitted Johnson was static in Halo: Combat Evolved, but Contact Harvest was a chance "to do right" by the character. Johnson has been included in critic lists of the best black video game characters.

Did You Know?

• Johnson was voiced by David Scully in all Halo media until 2013, after which Keston John took over for Halo: Campaign Evolved.
• He survives the destruction of Installation 04 and is rescued by Cortana and the Master Chief during the novel Halo: First Strike.
• In Halo 3, the Forerunner construct 343 Guilty Spark kills Johnson to prevent the Master Chief from activating the local Halo.
• Johnson is a main character in the 2007 novel Halo: Contact Harvest, which Joseph Staten said was a chance 'to do right' by the character.
• He is a playable leader for the UNSC in the real time strategy game Halo Wars 2.