Summary
- The Terminator franchise has had its highs and lows, with the first two movies being iconic and the later sequels struggling to find their footing.
- Terminator Salvation offered a unique change of setting by taking the action to the future, but the lack of success prevented a follow-up.
- Terminator: Dark Fate's portrayal of the T-800 as a "good guy" and his contrived reprogramming is a disappointment, pushing the idea too far.
The Terminator franchise is one marked by a series of ups and downs. Centered around the basic premise of a robot assassin being sent back in time to kill the leader of a human resistance movement to ensure the dominance of an artificial intelligence called Skynet, the Terminator movies are known for their approach to violence, groundbreaking special effects, and themes of free will and fate. Spanning six movies, one television show, various comics, and a few (now-defunct) theme park attractions, many creative minds have had their hands on one of science-fiction and action's most successful film series.
Beginning in the hands of James Cameron, who directed and co-wrote the first two movies, the series got off to a great start, with both movies having their array of iconic moments and quotable lines that left a large impact on pop culture. After those two, the series has struggled to find its footing, with the later Terminator movie sequels often either rehashing the aforementioned moments and lines for nostalgia bait purposes or introducing nonsensical plot twists and contrivances in halfhearted efforts to give the franchise some new energy. As a result, the Terminator series is responsible for some of the greatest highs in pop culture as well as its most desperate lows in the post-Terminator: Judgment Day franchise sequels.
12 Down: Talk To The Hand
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
A more underrated aspect of the first Terminator is its understated attitude toward humor; the T-800's blank and violent disposition towards the surrounding situations created a darkly comedic disparity. T2 was even bolder with its fish-out-of-water jokes. This, however, was taken too far in T3, where the creators indulge in an out-of-place moment of camp where the T-850 takes the clothes of a male stripper. What ensues is a groan-worthy imitation of the series’ past humor as the T-850 ignores the stripper's request to "Talk to the hand," and the filmmakers dare to call back to it later as if it were a clever reference.
11 Up: A Change In Setting
Terminator Salvation
One of the few interesting decisions made in the movies following T2 is the change of setting in Terminator Salvation. Rather than focus on people from contemporary times evading the deadly path of a Terminator, Salvation transports the action to the future where Skynet has destroyed human civilization. Following the path of the partially robotic Marcus Wright and John Connor as the fully-fledged human resistance leader the rest of the series has hinted towards, Salvation offered an idea of a Terminator movie that was closer in line with a war movie. The only downside is that the movie’s lack of success meant that audiences never saw a follow-up.
10 Down: The T-1000 Is Easily Destroyed
Terminator Genisys
When the trailer for Terminator Genisys dropped, it seemed to promise multiple Terminator mayhem, as the T-800 from The Terminator, the T-1000 from T2, and an all-new Terminator were given the spotlight. What audiences ended up getting was more disappointing, as those first two Terminators are killed off in the first 30 minutes before they do much of anything. This was especially a betrayal of the power of the T-1000, which was a truly relentless and nearly indestructible killing machine in T2. In retrospect, it cheapens the threat of the liquid metal menace and makes him seem like he could’ve been easily dispatched with some simple strategizing from our protagonists.
9 Up: No Fate But What We Make
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
While the first Terminator posits a closed-loop approach to time travel, the second breaks from this notion to offer a far more optimistic view of how people can control their destinies. In this famous scene, the reprogrammed T-800 and John Connor bond while Sarah Connor narrates her realization that people's actions do matter. This, along with a nightmare about the incoming Judgment Day, makes her reconsider her plans to flee to Mexico and fight for a better future while there is still a chance. Without this moment, the film would not only lose direction but also succumb to futility, which would be too depressing for a blockbuster like this.
8 Down: The T-800 Reprograms Himself
Terminator: Dark Fate
Of all the ways to bring back Arnold Schwarzenegger for another round as a "good" Terminator, this must be the most contrived. Terminator: Dark Fate exists in a continuity that ignores the previous three entries and opens with a new T-800 killing John Connor. Because Terminator: Dark Fate's version of the T-800 is never destroyed, he roams and eventually learns to become a "good guy", somehow adopting his own family in the process and alerting Sarah Connor to the presence of other Terminators. While it is in line with T2 that he can adapt to humanity, this goes way too far in pushing that idea, especially without the constant presence of someone “good” around him.
7 Up: T-800 Is Revealed As A Good Guy
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Had one been so lucky to have not seen the trailer for T2 before sitting down in the theater, they might not have known that the T-800 in this one was reprogrammed by the future resistance fighters to defend John Connor. The way the film is edited in the lead-up to their meeting, cutting between the perspectives of the T-800, the T-1000, and Connor, gives no indication that this Terminator is there to protect him. When the moment finally does come and the roses fall to reveal the shotgun, it still isn’t clear until he blasts the T-1000 away, securing this moment as one of the greatest in cinematic badassery.
6 Down: John Connor Is A Terminator
Terminator Genisys
Around the halfway point of Terminator Genisys comes what the protagonist thinks is a sight for sore eyes: John Connor himself has traveled back in time to meet them in 2017. But not all was as it seemed; the T-800 in this movie quickly reveals that Connor has been turned into a magnetic Terminator himself. While this may seem like an interesting twist, it does next to nothing to serve the drama and is never really developed. Also, what little dramatic intrigue this twist carried was washed away because of the second trailer for Genisys, which spoiled that Connor had become a Terminator, much to the chagrin of the director and writers.
5 Up: Sarah Connor Crushes The T-800
The Terminator
After spending an entire movie being ruthlessly hunted down by this mechanical nightmare, Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese engage the metal endoskeleton of the T-800 in one last battle to the death in a factory. It's simple, direct, and brutal, everything a fight with the T-800 should be. While Reese dies in this fight, his sacrifice makes Connor's ultimate victory mean more; she's avenging him and saving the future. When Connor lures what's left of the menace into a hydraulic press, it's satisfying to watch that piece of junk finally get crushed into a useless scrap of metal, and her iconic line of "You're terminated, f*cker" is well-earned.
4 Down: John Connor Is Killed
Terminator: Dark Fate
As mentioned above, Terminator: Dark Fate opens with a T-800 killing John Connor. While the filmmakers respectfully do not have this affect Skynet's destruction, making the conflict about a different AI entity coming to power, killing the young Connor off is an unnecessary move that does not go anywhere interesting. Instead of focusing on the loss and giving it time to develop, the film is more interested in exploring a set of characters new to the franchise, leaving Sarah Connor to be little more than just another version of herself from T2.
3 Up: "I'll Be Back"
The Terminator
Perhaps one of the most iconic quotes in all movie history comes in The Terminator. Having tracked Sarah Connor down to a police station, the Terminator says "I'll be back" to the front desk police officer when told he cannot yet see her. What makes this line truly memorable, however, is the way he comes back, crashing a car through the front of the station, which immediately kills said officer. After that, he begins a rampage, shooting the officers in the station one by one in a ruthless killing spree. This makes him even more threatening to the protagonists and cements his place as one of the great movie villains.
