The Terminator series has run out of steam? Not at all! The new Netflix series called Zero provides the best proof
Almost 40 (!) years ago, James Cameron let the T-800 stomp across the big screen for the first time and wrote film history. But today we can say with a clear conscience:There are more lousy Terminator films than really successful ones.
Part 1 and 2 are of course beyond reproach and the TV series The Sarah Connor Chronicles definitely deserved more than just two seasons. But Terminator 3 Genisys and Dark Fate were almost as devastating for the franchise as the Day of Reckoning was for humanity.
As an outrageously broad Austrian has often promised, Terminator is now back.Yes, again. But not with a new movie(James Cameron himself is working on it), but with an anime on Netflix.
Before you roll your eyes in annoyance (GameStar readers are not exactly known for their love of anime), let me assure you:Terminator Zero may not quite come close to Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, but it’s damn close!
If you love the veteran sci-fi series, you should definitely give this brand new animated series a chance. Starting today, August 29, 2024, the eight episodes of Zero will air on Netflix. But what exactly makes the Terminator comeback so good?
What is Terminator Zero about?
Terminator Zero doesn’t mess around with its plot:Once again, a deadly killing machine is sent through time. Once again, it targets a scientist working on artificial intelligence. Once again, a soldier of the Resistance follows on the heels of the Terminator to fight for the future in the past
But don’t worry: although Zero picks up on many familiar ideas and themes from previous Terminator productions – especially from Parts 1 and 2 – it doesn’t degenerate into a nostalgia firework display without its own identity.Quite the opposite.
What makes Terminator Zero so special?
The Netflix series is bursting with original ideas and creative tricks that captivate Terminator veterans and amateurs alike. At the same time, it does not neglect its own roots and greatest strengths. So if you like seeing a T-800 roaring around on a motorcycle with a shotgun, Terminator Zero won’t disappoint.
The biggest innovation is undoubtedly the unused setting:Terminator Zero takes place in the Japanese capital Tokyo and this has forcedseries creator Mattson Tomlin to rethink. For example, how do you defend yourself against an unstoppable and murderous robot in a country where firearms are virtually non-existent?
Not only the resistance soldier Eiko (Sonoya Mizuno) has to get creative here, but also the Terminator (Timothy Olyphant) himself.Without giving too much away:The artists from Production I.G. don’t hold back and stage the action absolutely uncompromisingly and sometimes even really hard.
For example, one of Skynet’s infiltration units mows its way through a base of desperate survivors in the distant future of 2022, without stopping at women and children. But don’t worry:Terminator Zero doesn’t just rely on the shock factor.
Instead, violence is not always explicit, but sometimes only hinted at. Both work just as effectively and make the Terminator more terrifying than he has been allowed to be for 30 or 40 years.
Even apart from the action and atmosphere, Terminator Zero knows how to inspire.Because the Netflix series even manages to trigger philosophical and ethical discussions without forcing a final answer on me. Instead, Zero leaves me to my own thoughts and conclusions, but at the same time doesn’t remain too vague when it comes to nails on the head
The eight episodes, each up to 30 minutes long, fly by. If I had to criticize something about Terminator Zero, it would perhaps be that Malcolm Lee, one of the most important and interesting characters, doesn’t really get to do anything until quite late in the film.
However, this is cushioned by a whole range of exciting last-minute twists and turnsand the numerous complex supporting characters. The only thing I personally didn’t warm to until the end was Kenta, but if only one out of a total of three children is really annoying, that’s actually a pretty good balance in my eyes
All in all, Terminator Zero has managed to do something I wouldn’t have thought possible:rekindle enthusiasm for a sci-fi seriesthat has been bobbing along for decades – with the exception of Terminator: Resistance or The Sarah Connor Chronicles, of course.
Not unlike Cyberpunk: Edgerunner, Terminator Zero not only fits seamlessly into the existing canon, but also brings completely new facets to it. Both anime are true enrichments for their respective franchises, and I definitely wouldn’t want to be without them.
If Netflix gives well-known series new series, then please do the same!
