"I'll be back," wasn't just a throwaway line in James Cameron's original Terminator movie. Ever since Skynet first sent time-traveling robots back to solve that pesky human problem, the Terminator franchise has returned time and time again with various evolutions that shift and change like a T-1000.
Recent entries have failed to match Cameron's early success though, despite a reboot and even the return of Linda Hamilton with Arnold Schwarzenegger in tow as the original Terminator himself. Five years on from the muted response to Terminator: Dark Fate, Netflix is returning back to where it all started with Terminator Zero, an anime series developed by Mattson Tomlin, co-writer of Robert Pattinson's The Batman 2.
The aptly named Terminator Zero is largely set in 1997 just days before Judgement Day itself, the moment when Skynet became sentient and destroyed humanity in a nuclear holocaust that paved the way for machines to take over. Except, this time around, the story isn't just limited to the US.
Judgement Day was a global event, after all, so in Zero, we're introduced to a scientist named Malcolm Lee who's developed a different AI named Kokoro to stop Skynet before the apocalypse begins. As you might expect, it's not long before he and his three children are pursued by a Terminator as well as a soldier named Eiko from 2022 who's traveled back in time to stop it.
It's not just the ‘90s we've come back to though. With Terminator Zero, the franchise also makes a welcome return to the terror of Cameron's first movie, which was essentially a horror in all but name (albeit in a sci-fi setting). The new Terminator this time around is another unstoppable villain in the vein of Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees while Eiko is our new Sarah Connor, embodying the final girl archetype in her battle against AI (a more relatable fight than ever in this day and age).
Terminator Zero wastes no time in establishing this horror. Via a cold open set in an apocalyptic 2022, Eiko watches the Terminator casually crush a person's head underfoot in search of her hiding place. Dead bodies are stacked up everywhere and the body count doesn't let up once we reach the 90s either. Necks snap, limbs tear, and skin melts away throughout all eight episodes of Terminator Zero, channeling the original's R rating when it comes to both gore and tension.
One scene even goes so far as to recreate the iconic police station assault where the first Terminator, played by Arnie, decimated an entire squad of cops in their place of work. Yet aside from this and the scares that movie brought, Terminator Zero is also evocative of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, a deeply underrated show that expanded the usual chase into a longer narrative, just as Tomlin does here.
The result is a deeper dive that thematically explores new territory for the Terminator franchise, such as the idea that Skynet might be onto something with the extinction of the human race. As the Kokoro AI points out while discussing our fate, humanity's greatest achievements always prioritize people over the planet, and they each end up being used as weapons in some shape or form, regardless of their original purpose.
Philosophical quandaries such as this and questions around what it means to be human have always been a part of Terminator, but with more time to tell the story, there's also more scope to develop these discussions further, especially in the back-and-forth Malcolm shares with his new AI creation. Production IG Studios, the team behind Zero, are no stranger to such concerns. In fact, this metaphysical approach to sci-fi forms the synthetic backbone of their entire Ghost in the Shell series, one of the most influential anime franchises ever made.
Terminator's obsession with robotics and the nuclear holocaust are a natural fit for anime given Japan's preoccupation with both. In hindsight, it's strange that it took so long for a Terminator story to end up here, so it's reassuring that Zero incorporates the specificities of Japanese culture in organic, meaningful ways that are so much more than just mere window dressing.
Malcolm's apocalyptic nightmares draw direct parallels to the real-life atomic bombings that Hiroshima and Nagasaki endured at the end of World War II. And it's no coincidence that Hiroshima's A-Bomb Dome, ground zero back in 1945, briefly appears when explosions begin to light up the sky above Japan. Reference is also made to 1995's Tokyo subway sarin attack where 13 people died in an act of domestic terrorism, providing a real context to the state of the world, and Japan especially, in 1997.
Beyond this uniquely Japanese perspective, Terminator Zero also toys with other new elements such as the multiverse and even the supernatural, which sits surprisingly well alongside the regular building blocks that have come to define Terminator as a sci-fi saga. It's a perfect blend of the signature elements fans have come to expect alongside new ideas that reinvigorate the franchise in ways we've never seen before in live-action.
The unexpected also arrives in the form of multiple plot twists that will knock you sideways faster than a T-800 barreling down the highway. Some are minor, little surprises to keep you on your toes, while others build on earlier twists, snowballing into a climax that leaves zero room for air. They're genuinely quite surprising too, although a rewatch will certainly reveal clues laid out in the open for you to spot early on.
There's a lot happening then, and by the end, Terminator Zero can verge on being too convoluted, much like the Terminator timeline at large. But the characters go a long way to ground all this grandiose sci-fi horror, including Eiko's stoic time traveler, an increasingly desperate Malcolm, and the enigmatic housekeeper, Misaki, in charge of Malcolm's not-too-annoying kids.
The main Terminator this time around isn't as charismatic as past incarnations, although we're basing this off the work of the original Japanese voice cast (who are otherwise excellent throughout). For those keen to hear these characters speak via English dub, you're in for a treat with heavy hitters like The Mandalorian's Timothy Olyphant, Ahsoka's Rosario Dawson, and The Handmaid's Tale star Ann Dowd all working their magic in the booth.
Visuals are especially important in animation, and for the most part, Terminator Zero is just as impressive on that front too. The action sequences are alternately chilling and thrilling, pushing the gore in ways live-action often holds back from, while gorgeous character design, especially when it comes to Kokoro's physical manifestation, lend the series more visual flair than Terminator fans are used to seeing.
Transitions between the past and the future are also inventive in scope, although occasional moments where the CGI jars will pull you out thanks to some surprisingly ropy animation that'll have you wishing for more traditional artistry at times. It's easy to forgive these little blips though, because this is the first time since Cameron stopped directing these films that The Terminator has made us truly excited for where the franchise is heading next.
That's especially true following the show's final sequence, which simultaneously wraps things up while still hinting that there's more story to tell. And that's a story we absolutely want to see more of. As John Connor once said, "The future has not been written," but with Tomlin keen to make a second season, let's hope he starts writing new episodes soon because more than ever, it's time for the Terminator to fulfill that eternal promise and come back again.
Terminator Zero is out on Netflix now. For more, check out our guides to the best anime, all the new anime that should be on your radar, and the best Netflix shows.
