2022. Mankinds war
against Skynet continues with no end in sight.
1997. Scientist Malcom Lee, plaguged by apocalyptic visions, conceives a
specialized computer that could avert the future. Skynet sends a new Terminator back to the
past in order to stop Lee and ensure it’s own existence. A lone resistance fighter named Eiko has
fought against this type of monster before and volunteers to stop another from
destroying the future. With mere days
before Judgement Day arrives, the final battle for the future begins.
Are we really in need of a Terminator Anime at this
point?
Ask anyone and they’ll say the
franchise rightfully so topped out at T2: Judgement Day.
Except maybe for The Sarah Connor Chronicles
TV Series, any subsequent sequel afterwards has failed to reach the heights of
the first two legendary films and the failure of Terminator: Dark Fate seems
enough to put the franchise out to pasture for good.
Yet we now have a Terminator Anime to try and
redeem the franchise one more time.
It’s
a new story, new cast, as of the first episode no ties to John Connor or Arnold
Schwarzzenegers’s iconic T-800.
It’s
completely fresh.
So is it enough to get
invested in the Terminator one more time?
The intro is pretty good.
Production I.G. is running point on this and man, a Terminator Anime
should look to impress but it has no right looking this damn good.
But then again of course the studio that’s
worked on Ghost in the Shell and Psycho Pass can make a Terminator look like
the scariest thing in the world again.
Not only is Eiko’s face off with the T-800 tense and action packed, it
also has a lot of blood and gore that’s been missing from most of those
aforementioned Terminator sequels.
I.G.s
not holding back with how efficient a Terminator can be, I mean the job is in
the name.
Most of the premiere is focused on Malcom Lee in
1997.
I’ll admit, most of this section
bored or annoyed me.
Lee is your
stereotypical distant father who’s sole focus is on saving the future at the
cost of neglecting his three kids and leaving them in the caring hands of their
housekeeper, Misaki.
It doesn’t make Lee
endearing but kind of a dead beat Dad.
Doesn’t matter if he’s trying to save the world if it means the kids are
gonna hate him when they need him most.
The most fascinating part of the 97 sequences is seeing humanoid
machines being integrated into human society.
It gives off vibes of the Animatrix Two Parter, The Second
Renaissance.
It should also be noted
that the setting is perhaps hours before Judgement Day is set to kick off.
Point is, past character, kind of dull but
wow the plot is cutting it awfully close to the end of the world (guess that’s
why they call it Zero?).
Better than necessary animation and some good old
fashioned ultra violence the franchise is known for make the first episode of
Terminator Zero look like an appetizing visual treat.
The promise of true chaotic robot vs. Human
action has its appeal but the Human characters, especially Lee, need to give
more of a reason to care besides generic plot devises and motivations.
It’s only an 8 episode watch so it might be
worth continuing (or even reviewing maybe).
Whether or not this…side story…prequel…sequel?
Whatever, whether this Terminator Anime
deserves to stand on the same stage as T1 or T2 or at least above the
lackluster sequels remains to be seen.
Perhaps it’ll defy the fate of its predecessors.
“For after all, There is not Fate but what we
make for ourselves.”
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