I haved loved them ever since I can remember them (Halo 2). I have been told many times that they were in Halo1. I don't remember. But I have loved them ever since I saw Johnson and John in the HEV before Delta Halo.
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I remember seeing them for the first time in Halo 2, they looked bad-ass and epic. I always tried to make them live through the entire level :P.