[quote]3.) Who is a better captain of the INFINITY Lasky or Del Rio? (Regardless of attitude Del Rio had)[/quote] Lasky, quite undoubtedly, but to explain why at some length seems prudent... Because I [i]loved[/i] that Del Rio was such an antagonistic figure and not an inspirational captain, that was actually a break from the norm for Halo. [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/62230587/0/0/0/0]And LoA has made his own thread on the topic as well.[/url] Some people complain about Del Rio’s role, but when you’ve got a story which revolves around one or two characters, as was the case in Halo 4 with John and Cortana, all the other characters are there to play off of them - to illustrate something (new) about main leading characters. So yeah, we can quite easily define Del Rio as a character who was there to demonstrate John’s moral superiority over even officially superior officers. To highlight his commitment to Cortana over the orders of his superiors, and, most importantly, to show that John is not just a machine reacting to things that happen, but somebody who actively has wants and agency as well as the drive to pursue those things. And at the same time you can’t [i]entirely[/i] fault Del Rio for his reaction to Cortana’s rampancy, considering that her outburst had her establish herself as a threat to the Infinity - [i]"I will not allow you to leave this planet,"[/i] she screams at him. From our point of view, Cortana is a beloved character and we're going to pretty much automatically side with her because we know the larger implications of her struggle and what she’s going through. But, objectively, Del Rio isn’t entirely in the wrong. But then you’ve got the additional layer where Del Rio was never truly meant to captain the Infinity indefinitely - he was always considered to be a [i]manager[/i] rather than a leader. Just as John has never defied an order from a superior before, Del Rio has probably never had a soldier disobey him before either, and that's frighteningly new for him. Having a living legend on board that everyone respected more than him, who also questioned his orders on multiple occasions served as something of a breakdown to the sense of ‘order’ Del Rio has lived by throughout his career in the UNSC. John’s very presence on his ship introduced a previously unencountered element of 'chaos’ to Del Rio’s perfect little world, and it’s pretty clear what this represents for both of these characters. This is why Del Rio’s character works on multiple levels, because he’s also a foil for Lasky and brings out the qualities in him that illustrates why Lasky is a far stronger captain. Lasky is a leader, and he’s willing to get creative with the rules - willing to defy orders if he disagrees with them. That’s a character trait of a leader, one who takes charge of the situation rather than letting others take charge of them, and was probably why the Del Rio was initially chosen over Lasky - because Del Rio was predictable, easily controlled. Sure enough, in Spartan Ops we see Lasky in open defiance against his superior’s orders because he disagrees with them on a moral basis. Whereas Del Rio would have just accepted the assassination order against Halsey without paying it a second thought. Andrew Del Rio is a rather brilliant means through which 343 illustrates the major differences between a person who is defined [i]by[/i] the uniform, and a person who [i]defines[/i] the uniform.