Terminator Zero

I have been buzzing for this for 6 months, and I hoped it wouldn't be another case of having my hopes dashed. It wasn't. This was really really good. I watched it in one go, 4 hour binge, and at points I did wonder if I could watch it serialised. But that maybe says more about binge culture than it does the show. There were some good twists and turns, a tense atmosphere and well developed characters. Loved this, I want more already. There was more existential naval gazing than I'd usually put up with, butI enjoyed this more than I usually would. I enjoyed the Japanese setting, and the artwork felt rich to me.

I enjoyed this anime series. Fans of the Terminator lore will find a lot to appreciate here. I was hoping Eiko would be a more developed character as her intro was so awesome... but she unfortunately ended up being more one-note. I will say though, this series has one of the best explanations on time travel that I've ever heard from a sci-fi property. It does away with the whole premise of time travel in the mainstream Terminator franchise; where there is one timeline and going back to the past can change the events of the future. Instead, this series takes, I think, a more MCU approach in which every travel to the past creates a new timeline, one where the future is uncertain. I would be interested in a sequel.

The problem for the real, die hard, fans of Terminator is that no instalment has ever made us feel the emotion that both T1 and T2 gave us. Every film since, even with Arnold involved, has lacked something. It's almost like the writers/directors never understood what made those films so popular and important in the first place. They cheapened the films with silly comedic moments, they removed human connection, they stopped exploring SkyNet and the future wars. They turned John Conner into a robot!! (Awful).

This latest instalment is set at the same time as T2 and is a refreshing take on the development of the technologies, it explores the flaws of humanity, it keeps the horror element that was so well done in T1 whilst exploring the connections that was perfectly done in T2.

Will we ever get back to the heights of T2? No, we won't, Arnold was too pivotal in those films and Hollywood wasted his involvement in further films with weak scripts. However, this show, albeit animated will give you something, it will stir those dying embers of a loved story, even if just for a moment.

As we know, Terminator movies have been declining over time but this series gave hope to its fans. The story is very creative and imaginative and the new characters are interesting. I think the best thing of the series is the the struggle of ideals because it always makes you question who the real hero is. The animation was very good although the cgi was a little questionable. The only part of the series I didn't like was the ending of the show because it was a little confusing and the main character is not so great; she's just ok.

In summary, this show was good but it could be have been better if it had twelve or even ten episodes.

The Terminator saga has seen many glories but also many defeats and in recent years we say that it did not go great, but the courage to bring a content anime is not everyone but in this case came out an excellent product. The anime tells a story quite original with some hints from past films with also some nice memorial quote, the soundtrack always gets in the head with some quotes, the action scenes are masterfully managed and above all (not a little thing) It does not bore, but let's go into more detail. As for the plot is very smooth despite often in TV series or anime there are episodes we say boring, in this case there are, Every episode has a twist that is small or big but each episode reveals something and it's what I think many TV series today lack. It's an original plot with some very nice references to previous films with the last 2 episodes that are from "out of your mind", continuous twists and turns and a not excessive violence but there is. As for the soundtrack is very nice and honestly sometimes even goosebumps especially in the final fight against the machine with those strong sounds and decided when the car sferrava the blow, really very well done soundtrack. It is a anime that does not bore and that manages to entertain all the time, there is only one thing I regret and that is the fact that (at least here in Italy) of this anime is not talked about, and it's a shame because it would really make the fans of a saga so happy that is not going well anyway. I highly recommend the view to fans of Terminator and anime.