Terminator Zero

There's been a lot of build-up for Terminator Zero on Netflix, with its big-name cast (Rosario Dawson and Timothy Olyphant being the standout draws, which is kinda funny as I'm watching the latter in another Deadwood binge). Early trailers shows that Japanese studio Production I.G. were bringing their A-game to the visuals, effortlessly capturing the dystopian, gritty feel that makes Terminator what it is. Essentially it only had fans to lose once it started airing.

I covered the first episode in my First Thoughts series over on Anime Independent, where I noted that the first episode was a strong statement of intent, pulling from some of the original mythos and story elements from the first two films, while retaining its own approach. Despite some daftly improbably action scenes, the story was beginning with some intriguing ideas, including the creation of a second AI to combat Skynet.

Over the course of eight episodes, I have to admit that I was thoroughly engaged with Terminator Zero. The story, which starts with a scientist named Malcolm Lee working on his Kokoro A.I. and using logical arguments to sway the intelligence rather than coding diktats for his creation to slavishly follow, is both fresh and quite timely given where we are in 2024. Credit to Andre Holland for his thoughtful and mature delivery that keeps these scenes interesting, his desperation to win the argument kept in check, save a few moments where his fear comes to the surface. He has a family of three children (who he rarely sees), cared for by a nanny named Misaki, who may also be more than she appears. Their vulnerability is a major driving force in the story, and it's played perfectly for tension.

In the future, a resistance fighter named Eiko is sent back through time to prevent Kokoro being allowed online, since the result is even more catastrophic than Skynet acting alone. This leads to lots of conversations about the nature of time travel, and while a lot of people online have commented on how "clever" this is, it's really just the Back to the Future logic repurposed for the Terminator universe. Yes, it adds a new spin, but only within the confines of the franchise.

Regardless, the series races along with plenty of homages to the first couple of films (because real fans know there were only 2 anyway). You have a Terminator dressed as a cop, a police HQ shootout, a helicopter shining a searchlight into an office building... it's all there and it feels comfortable while retaining much of its own identity. The most interesting aspects of the show are less the action set-pieces and more the thoughtful moments, such as Lee's conversations with his creation, Misaki's journey and the frequent little plot-twists that keep you guessing. The drama feels earned, perhaps moreso than the very brutal action.

Iconic imagery abounds across the series, but it never feels like a pale imitation

Also worthy of praise is the soundtrack by Michelle Birsky and Kevin Henthorn- it main theme hints at the original score but segues into a dystopian but highly hummable repetition before bringing back the industrial drumbeat of the main series. It's very clever and plays at moments within the series that really stick with you largely thanks to the gravitas of the music. You can listen to the soundtrack at most major online outlets such as Youtube Music.

Ultimately Terminator Zero is arguably the best Terminator we've been given since 1991's Terminator 2. That's a hell of an achievement given how broken the franchise is, but shows the true power of the underlying concept. If even The Terminator can be salvaged from the trainwreck of recent years, with its bizarre narrative twists, stupid character deaths and unintelligible time-travel plots that don't even make sense within their own narrative framework, then anything is possible. All it takes is time.