By Nick Nitkowski

Everyone knows James Cameron’s “Terminator” film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It’s essentially the movie that catapulted his career. It is considered still to this day very iconic. That is until James Cameron graced us with a sequel “Terminator 2: Judgement Day.” A sequel that many, myself included, consider to be better than the original that came before it. It was a megahit and even more iconic. When discussing the name “Terminator” it is more often than not the sequel that pops into one’s head. But then James Cameron left the franchise in the hands of others which started from mediocre at best with “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” and got progressively worse with “Terminator: Genisys” being at the very bottom of the barrel. They tried revamping the franchise with “Terminator: Dark Fate”, but sadly it still couldn’t fully satisfy audiences even with James Cameron having a hand in the story. 

Now we have a new and unusual addition to the franchise in the form of an anime series releasing on Netflix entitled “Terminator: Zero.” With the name “Terminator”, an anime series was never something that I thought would be amongst the franchise. Could this anime series be the saving grace for “Terminator”? Or is “Terminator” just destined to succumb to its own Judgement Day?

Fortunately, I can easily say that this is the best thing under the “Terminator” name that we’ve gotten since “Terminator 2” and I promise that isn’t an exaggeration. This series was very well animated. The series provides a blend of 2D anime styles along with some 3D animation. Mainly for the machines, but I did notice it being used on a couple of human characters. I do wish that those particular characters stayed in the 2D style, but this is just a tiny nitpick. Aside from that, it is so beautifully animated.

 But I think the most impressive feat of this series is the writing. I was not at all expecting the writing of this series to be as good as it was. A lot of the dialogue and topics of discussion between certain characters were very compelling and thought-provoking. So much so that I could not wait to start the next episode once one was finished. This is the kind of writing that the “Terminator” franchise has been missing for a very long time. I would love to elaborate more, but I think it’s best to just experience it for yourself. 

If I had to say that the series was lacking in any aspect, I would say it’s voice acting. Specifically, the English dubbing of the series. Not to say that the voice acting was bad, in fact, a lot of it was very good, I just felt that certain scenes presented throughout the series needed just a little more emotion from the voices. It didn’t ruin anything or take me out of any scenes, but it was noticeable enough for me to make note of it. Some of the voice talents include Rosario Dawson, Timothy Olyphant, André Holland, and more. Rosario Dawson is my personal favorite in the series. 

Overall, “Terminator: Zero” is a very welcome surprise addition to the franchise. One that I greatly enjoyed and one that I can’t wait to see more of should it get renewed for another season. It’s wonderfully animated, and compellingly written, and manages to hold your interest as the story progresses. It looks like “Terminator’s” Fate isn’t so dark after all. While many additions have strayed far from its Genesis, this new series has given rise to something new and has thus far forgone its grim Judgement Day.

4 ½ stars