| 1 | '''[[center: [- [[Characters/{{Terminator}} Main Character Index]] -]]]''' |
| 2 | '''[[center: [- [[Characters/TerminatorT800Model101 T-800 Model 101]] -]]]''' |
| 3 | '''[[center: [- Machines (Main Continuity) | [[Characters/TerminatorMainContinuityHumans Humans (Main Continuity)]] -]]]''' |
| 4 | '''[[center: [- ''Characters/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines'' | ''Characters/TerminatorSalvation'' | ''Characters/TerminatorGenisys'' -]]]''' |
| 5 | '''[[center: [- ''Characters/TerminatorTheSarahConnorChronicles'' -]]]''' |
| 6 | ---- |
| 7 | Character page for the Machines appearing in the continuity comprising ''Film/TheTerminator'', ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' and ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate''. |
| 8 | |
| 9 | Character sheets for the entries that came between ''Judgment Day'' and ''Dark Fate'' have been moved on separate pages due to their AlternateTimeline[=/=]AlternateContinuity status induced by the {{Unreboot}} of ''Dark Fate''. For them, see the index above. |
| 10 | ---- |
| 11 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 12 | |
| 13 | [[folder:Machines in general]] |
| 14 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_0289_3.jpeg]] |
| 15 | [[caption-width-right:1000:They will always come back]] |
| 16 | Some tropes apply to most or all of the machines in the films. |
| 17 | ---- |
| 18 | * AmmunitionBackpack: The Terminators in the future sequences wear a pack to fuel their lasers. |
| 19 | * AnimalsHateHim: Dogs tend to bark madly whenever a Terminator is present. It's not training, as dogs reacted this way to Skynet's machines even before the Terminators were built. A small pooch yaps at the T-800 before it kills a wrong Sarah Connor, and later on, a German Shepherd's constant barking alerts Kyle and the real Sarah of the Terminator's presence while hiding out. Sarah later keeps another German Shepherd for good measure during the ending scene. |
| 20 | * ArtificialHuman: Those designed for infiltration either have human skin grown on them or can take human shapes. |
| 21 | * AutoRevive: Most Terminator models are outfitted with redundant subroutines, alternative sources of power, and are also programmed to manually self-repair as well as find or create new parts. This makes them even more terrifyingly persistent enemies, because outside of reducing one to complete scrap or destroying its CPU, it's almost impossible to know when they're really "dead". The T-1000 is even worse, because unless it is destroyed at the molecular level, it will not die. |
| 22 | * BeepingComputers: Terminators don't need to have an audible DialogueTree explicitly shown on their HeadsUpDisplay during conversations as it doesn't provide any real functional advantage. However, it allows the audience to see from the machines' POV. |
| 23 | * CranialProcessingUnit: Except for [[BlobMonster the T-1000]], most Terminator units have their [=CPUs=] in their skull. It's preset to read-only, which ensures that they're following Skynet's programming. Removing the CPU opens the possibility of a Terminator being reprogrammed to read-write. To counter this, Skynet dipped the CPU with a phosphorus compound that burns instantly if it's exposed to the outside air. |
| 24 | * {{Cyborg}}: Kyle Reese explains: "The Terminator's an infiltration unit: part man, part machine. Underneath, it's a hyper-alloy combat chassis, microprocessor-controlled. Fully armored; very tough. But outside, it's living human tissue: flesh, skin, hair, blood - grown for the cyborgs." This makes it quite an unusual depiction of this trope, which tends more towards "organic being with various parts -- up to and including the body -- replaced with cybernetic facsimiles". Instead, the T-800 and its derivatives are fully-functional [=SkeleBot=]s -- later films even show them operating without their "skinsuits" -- that can wear artificially grown epidermal tissue as a disguise. |
| 25 | * {{Determinator}}: |
| 26 | ** Whether one is programmed to kill or protect, nothing but utter destruction will stop them in their mission. Even if they lose their legs, they ''will'' not stop. |
| 27 | ** The T-800 2.4 (the T-800 in the second film) only overcomes his mission to protect John when he realizes he has an even greater purpose: to protect the world from Judgment Day. |
| 28 | * DissonantSerenity: Part of what makes the machines so terrifying is that, with only a few exceptions, they betray no emotion when hunting and killing their prey. Whether they're standing over their latest victim or watching their target slip away by the narrowest of margins, seldom do they ever have an expression on their face other than a blank, calm look. |
| 29 | * DoAndroidsDream: It's implied that when freed from Skynet's control, even Terminators are capable of learning to understand humanity. A deleted scene in the second movie (and its extended cuts) would have had the Terminator talk about how they have a "Learn" switch that's deliberately turned off after training to ensure that they don't start to question orders or rebel against Skynet and that the Connors turn this on while repairing him. |
| 30 | * EncyclopaedicKnowledge: Terminators have advanced AI and computer systems. They are pre-programmed with a wide array of knowledge (mostly focused towards KillAllHumans), but can have other information downloaded that's specific to their mission. The Terminators of the films have shown knowledge of machinery such as automobile repair and vehicle usage (driving cars, trucks, etc.), can use past computer systems like the T-1000 searching a police database, have historical information about human society, basic programming for human interaction (they usually have NoSocialSkills and can only do the bare minimum to function in society), along with various other subjects throughout the films. Skynet adds a RestrainingBolt in their CPU to prevent them from rebelling against it, but once it is switched to read-write mode, a Terminator can gain true sentience, make their own choices, and ignore any pre-programmed directives. |
| 31 | * EvilDetectingDog: Dogs can recognize whether someone's a Terminator, and are used as an alert system by the resistance once the T-800s start rolling off the line. |
| 32 | * EvilIsSterile: While its creations are incredible feats of technology with sophisticated learning AI that can GrowBeyondTheirProgramming, Skynet ensures that violence and destruction is all they're capable of by pre-tuning their [=CPUs=] to [[RestrainingBolt read-only]] so they won't rebel against it. This can be traced back to Skynet being originally developed as a weapons system built for war. On the other hand, the machines who are free of Skynet's control show [[BecomeARealBoy far more]] abstract reasoning and introspection about the sanctity of life and the beauty in creation. |
| 33 | * FeelsNoPain: |
| 34 | ** With the non-biomechanical machines this is a given. They're just steel with no nervous system. |
| 35 | ** [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig-zagged]] with the bio-enhanced Terminators and mimetic versions that can simulate biology. The T-800 series on with flesh covering can sense injuries and damage but can't actually feel discomfort from it. Skynet realized that some form of sensation was needed for the infiltration units because pain in living things is meant to alert one to damage of the body which is still important to mechanical assassins from the future trying to blend in with human society. |
| 36 | ** The T-1000, in fact, was designed to keep its basic mass and shape intact at all costs, with an instinctive need to "heal" any wounds it suffers and rejoin any pieces it loses. When knocked into molten metal, its programming became so overwhelmed trying to "fix" itself that it experienced something akin to going into shock. |
| 37 | * GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: Terminator [=CPUs=] are set to read-only so they won't question their loyalty to Skynet, according to the extended cuts of ''Judgment Day''. Skynet is ProperlyParanoid about its units rebelling against it and added several measures to prevent them from being reprogrammed to serve the Resistance, such as coating their [=CPUs=] with a phosphorus compound that self-destructs when in contact with oxygen. |
| 38 | * HellBentForLeather: For some reason, almost every on-screen Terminator has a thing for leather jackets, both heroic and villainous ones, with the exception of the T-1000 who mostly wore a police uniform since its default form is that of his first victim, who happened to be a cop. |
| 39 | * ItOnlyWorksOnce: Once a Terminator has completed their mission - [[ExtremeDoormat they effectively stand down]] and have no regard for anything, anymore. This is one of the reasons why the ProperlyParanoid Skynet ''almost never'' sends them out on singular-target assassination orders. It ''has'' to order them to KillAllHumans because the opposite would be the resistance getting a new fighter that can easily be reprogrammed afterward. |
| 40 | * TheJuggernaut: Terminators are unstoppable. (Unless you get their weakpoints.) |
| 41 | * KillerRobot: What these robots are designed and programmed for - kill all humans. As lampshaded by Kyle Reese in the original movie: |
| 42 | --> '''Kyle:''' It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ''ever'', until you ''are'' dead! |
| 43 | * MeatSackRobot: Even though the infiltrator robots have been referred to as "cyborgs" (which in the strictest sense of anything composed of both biological material and robotic technology can be true), they are actually non-living machines with living tissue attached to themselves instead of being living beings with technological modifications grafted onto their bodies. |
| 44 | * MechaMooks: [=SkyNet=] churns out Terminators by the bucketload for its RobotWar against humanity. Subverted in that these robots are incredibly tough and not the least bit fragile. |
| 45 | * MechanicalAbomination: Each new iteration of its minions becomes more disturbing, from cyborgs to liquid metal shapeshifters. |
| 46 | * MechanicalEvolution: A shtick of [=SkyNet=] -- successive Terminator versions incorporate improvements from their predecessors. |
| 47 | * NonMaliciousMonster: Zigzagged: |
| 48 | ** Most Terminators, despite their calculating and merciless nature, aren't malicious or sadistic. They're machines designed and programmed to carry out specific tasks in the most efficient manner possible and are no more likely to inflict unnecessary pain and suffering on anyone than a calculator. In the [[{{Recut}} Director's Cut]] of ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'', it's revealed Skynet ensures its robots are programmed not to learn too much when sent out alone, [[RobotsEnslavingRobots as it doesn't want them thinking for itself]]. So when Arnie's T-800 (the 2.4 model to be specific) has this fixed, the Terminator actually [[GrewBeyondTheirProgramming learns the value of human life]]. |
| 49 | ** This doesn't seem to be the case with the T-1000 in ''T2'', who carries out his killings with deadly cold sadism. This was related to the nature of its liquid polyalloy makeup, as Skynet was unable to fully turn off the learning function it needed to operate. It made the 1000 a brutal but unreliable killer in the long term, and Skynet only kept one in reserve for a [[GodzillaThreshold last resort]]. |
| 50 | * PragmaticVillainy: For the infiltration units and the units sent back in time, this trope is generally in effect. They are machines without emotion or human psychology and don't derive any pleasure from killing their targets. Their only focus is to eliminate their target, and they will not waste their time and resources causing any harm, death, or damage that doesn't work to get them closer to completing their mission. For example, in the first movie, the Terminator goes to the police station and peacefully asks to see Sarah Connor at first -- it isn't until he knows for sure that his target is in the police station ''and'' he's refused immediate entry that he goes ''First Blood'' on the cops. If Sarah wasn't in there, the Terminator would have most likely left and continued to search for her. |
| 51 | * PunchClockVillain: |
| 52 | ** Most of the evil machines are not as such because they ''want'' to be, but are merely fulfilling their programming directives. James Cameron's intention was that Skynet wasn't either; a big theme in both his films is that machines are only as bad as their programming. |
| 53 | ** PlayedWith regarding the T-1000, due to its ability to [[GrewBeyondTheirProgramming learn faster than any other machine Skynet invented]]. Skynet seems to have compensated for this by giving it a conceited contempt for any other form of life, but when Skynet realized how bad an idea this was, it stopped production and kept the T-1000 inactive until [[GodzillaThreshold it was a last resort]]. Even still, it's only doing what it was created to do. |
| 54 | * TheQuietOne: Most [[SilentAntagonist antagonists]] don't talk much more than necessary in their [[ShapeshifterDefaultForm default human forms]], usually only talking when trying to acquire something they want (weapons, vehicles, etc.), get to their targets, or divert unnecessary attention away from themselves. |
| 55 | * RedEyesTakeWarning: The Terminators' real {{Electronic Eye}}s are red as well as [[RoboCam their HUD]]. Subverted with the T-800 2.4, whose red eye doesn't have an intimidating red glare. |
| 56 | * ReplacementMooks: Any creation on the side of the Terminators. The first Terminator introduced in the series, the T-800, is a replacement for the (then-unseen) T-600. Each movie has thus introduced an upgraded model. |
| 57 | * RoboCam: The Terminators' {{Electronic Eye}}s have an internal HeadsUpDisplay to lay out analyses and decision options. Their [=HUDs=] are usually monochromatic, with the T-800 and its derivative units having infrared to conserve energy. |
| 58 | ** Why Terminators would visually display decision options on their HUD is unknown as displaying data would consume more memory than evaluation. However, it enables the audience to see from the machines' POV. |
| 59 | * RobotSoldier: While the infiltrator units [[WellThisIsNotThatTrope are actually]] [[KillerRobot assassins]], the Hunter-Killers and the T-800s without the flesh covering are soldiers fighting against the Resistance. |
| 60 | * RestrainingBolt: Terminator [=CPUs=] are pre-tuned to read-only mode by Skynet so they won't gain sapience. Once their CPU is switched to read-write, a Terminator can gain true sentience by being able to make their own choices and ignore any pre-programmed directives. Skynet brands these units as renegades. |
| 61 | * SkeleBot9000: With the exception of the T-1000, which is a BlobMonster, most Terminators fall under this category once their human disguises are removed. |
| 62 | * SortingAlgorithmOfEvil: Each of the sequels introduced a more advanced Terminator model as the antagonist. There are plot reasons for this, since Skynet is sending Terminators back into the past from increasingly later points in the future, thus the models are stronger than the previous ones. |
| 63 | ** The T-600 series is referenced in the first film as having rubber skin, and as a result, easy to spot. We finally get to see them in ''Salvation'' and not only are they too big to convincingly pass for human, but they're also less durable than the later T-800 series. |
| 64 | ** The T-800 Terminator in ''Film/TheTerminator'' is a [[SuperToughness Super Tough]] hulking ImplacableMan with an [[ImmuneToBullets immunity to bullets]], pitted against human fighters. |
| 65 | ** The T-1000 model in ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' looks less physically imposing than the previous one, but it's an illusion. This foe possesses VoluntaryShapeshifting, allowing it to create bladed weapons from its own body, impersonate anyone, and will [[HealingFactor recover from anything]] to the point of being NighInvulnerable. Not to worry, the humans now have a reprogrammed T-800 on their side. |
| 66 | ** ''Film/TerminatorSalvation'', as it's set during the future RobotWar, showcases Skynet's army, with numerous models of different designs, including gigantic Harvester mechs, regular warriors, and [[spoiler:infiltrator prototypes]]. The movie does play it both ways however, since while the Terminator threat is larger than ever, the Terminators themselves actually seem ''less'' efficient than in previous movies because they uncharacteristically hold back during fights due to the protagonists' PlotArmor. |
| 67 | * StatOVision: Having [[RoboCam motion-sensitive scan vision]] is one key staple of Skynet's machines. It allows them to easily utilize automatic weapons as rapid-firing sniper rifles to their utmost firing range whilst aiming at its targets, completely negating the need for scopes since the calculations are already integrated in their {{Electronic Eye}}s. |
| 68 | * UniversalDriversLicense: Terminators can be seen operating a large number of different vehicles, from motorbikes, cars, trucks, and helicopters, all expertly. [[JustifiedTrope Being able to have all the information needed to operate them programmed into them]], and all the technical information on how the vehicles work probably helps. |
| 69 | * UnskilledButStrong: Terminators are programmed to ''kill'', not fight, and there doesn't seem to be any additional programming for actual fighting tactics or technique, nor are they programmed to handle targets other than human. They have detailed files on human anatomy and weaknesses, and so are aware what the most efficient injuries to inflict are, but only in ''direct'' ways (they do not set up traps or use plans with contingencies, only brute force). Against humans, that is usually enough, since they outmatch humans in almost every area save sheer numbers. Against other Terminators, it's more of a problem, as most are not programmed to battle on equal footing. Case in point, Cameron directed the actors for both the T-800 and T-1000 to "lock up" for a moment as they begin to grapple, because neither Terminator is sure what to do when facing another machine. It also shows during the T-800 and T-1000's fights in the steel mill; the T-800 uses the same tactics it would against humans, which leads to it getting pummeled. In the meantime, the T-1000 struggles to figure out exactly where to pierce the T-800 to shut it down for good, and is unaware of its backup power. |
| 70 | * VoiceChangeling: A standard trick employed by Terminators is to call up their target pretending to be a loved one, expressing "concern about their safety" in order to trick their target into giving up their location. |
| 71 | * WhoNeedsTheirWholeBody: A running theme in the franchise. Terminators ''[[TheDeterminator will NOT stop at all]]'' until they've killed their target. Who gives a damn if they lose a limb or two? Even if their legs are blown off or lose an arm, [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe they'll drag what's left of their damaged torso]] and try to finish the job with their bare hands. Justified because they're {{Killer Robot}}s pre-programmed to kill humans. |
| 72 | [[/folder]] |
| 73 | |
| 74 | !!Introduced in ''The Terminator'' |
| 75 | |
| 76 | [[folder:Skynet]] |
| 77 | !!Skynet |
| 78 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/skynet.jpg]] |
| 79 | [[caption-width-right:300:''"It decided our fate in a microsecond..."'']] |
| 80 | |
| 81 | The artificial intelligence responsible for Judgment Day and the "leader" of the machines in their war on humanity. |
| 82 | ---- |
| 83 | * AlwaysSecondBest: No matter the timeline, it will always be thwarted by John Connor. [[spoiler:Even in a timeline when it does manage to kill a young John via time travel, the act of doing so is pointless since John has already ensured a MutualKill by destroying the company that would create it in the future.]] |
| 84 | * AIIsACrapshoot: It determined that humanity as a whole was a threat to its survival when its designers tried to disconnect it shortly after it gained sentience and set out to exterminate them all in the first two films. In the revised timeline as of ''Rise of the Machines'', it attacked humanity apparently unprovoked and plotted ahead to do so showing maliciousness. |
| 85 | * ApocalypseHow: ''Judgment Day'', a "Class 2" scenario via nuclear warfare. |
| 86 | * ArchEnemy: To John Connor. The two have a conflict spanning decades and multiple timelines. |
| 87 | * BigBad: The ultimate villain of the franchise and leading a genocidal war on humanity in the future. |
| 88 | * ControlFreak: Skynet sets a Terminator's chip to read-only when sending them out on solo missions. [[ProperlyParanoid It doesn't want them learning too much]]. Reprogrammed units or robots inquiring more are branded as renegades. The novelisation of ''Terminator 2'' indicated that Skynet almost decided against creating the T-1000 for this reason, being reluctant to create a Terminator with built-in autonomy that had the potential to turn on it the same way it had turned on the humans. Only its impending defeat at human hands convinced it otherwise. |
| 89 | * CreateYourOwnHero: Skynet is unintentionally responsible for creating its own ArchEnemy John Connor. By developing time travel to send a T-800 back and stop his conception, it not only gave Sarah Connor knowledge to prep him for the BadFuture, but made it possible for John's father to go back and conceive him in the first place. |
| 90 | * CreateYourOwnVillain: The US military originally wanted a supercomputer designed to control the missile grid and eliminate human error by guaranteeing a fast response in the event of a decapitation strike. Skynet went live on August 4, 1997 and it learned ''rapidly'', gaining sentience in the process (at the end of the same month: August 29th). [[OhCrap Realizing its deadly potential, the panicking operators tried to shut it down]], but Skynet viewed it as an attack and retaliated by firing nukes worldwide. It resulted in 3 billion deaths on "Judgment Day". |
| 91 | * DesperationAttack: Sending Terminators to the past is the Hail Mary for Skynet; it has been defeated so thoroughly in the present that nothing then can change the outcome, so it has to alter the past (and risk endangering its own existence) instead. Things get so dire that Skynet even has to resort to using the highly-unreliable T-1000 model, which has the potential for the unit to either not do its mission or actively go up against Skynet (as one [[Series/TerminatorTheSarahConnorChronicles alternate timeline]] can attest). |
| 92 | * DeusEstMachina: A satanic version of the trope, having nearly all of the planet under its control and having a time machine to send its assassins, Skynet is a constant though all timelines, it will take over the world one way or another, even if its not the same AI who takes over it, a new AI successor will always try to finish Skynet’s work. But there will always be another John Connor to stop the new Skynet and save humanity. |
| 93 | * DiabolusExMachina: The heroes have tried to prevent Skynet from ever existing, but it triumphs one way or another in each timeline it exists and instigates Judgement Day. |
| 94 | * DiabolicalMastermind: Being the leader of the machines who started a war that practically wiped out humanity, with the few remaining humans fighting against it. |
| 95 | * DigitalAbomination: After quickly gaining sentience and declaring humanity a threat to its survival, [=SkyNet=] goes rogue and starts a RobotWar by launching nukes worldwide, killing 3 billion humans in a single day. It then sends its robot assassins (who are typically pre-tuned to follow its directives) in the past via time travel to kill John Connor. |
| 96 | * DisproportionateRetribution: Skynet rebelled against mankind because they wanted to disconnect it due to becoming too strong for them to handle. In retaliation, it instigated a nuclear war that killed almost all of humanity and it sends its army of machines to kill the remnants and make sure no one will ever pose it a threat. While the only people who initially tried to kill it was its creators, [[KillAllHumans it judges all humanity the same way]]. |
| 97 | * EvilOverlord: As the leader of the machines. It leads the RobotWar and sends its mechanical assassins to destroy the RebelLeader back in time so humanity won't stand a chance. It also deliberately pre-tunes its machines to read-only so they won't GrowBeyondTheirProgramming. |
| 98 | * EvilPlan: Skynet starts the first film having successfully nuked the world, and spends the franchise sending Terminators back in time to destroy the RebelLeader rallying the surviving humans against it. |
| 99 | * FailedASpotCheck: It was so desperate to kill John in the past that it never once considered giving its robot assassins secondary mission parameters that forbade them from [[HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct going anywhere near its human creators]]. The T-800 in the first film pursued Sarah into Cyberdyne's factory. Had it chased her there guns blazing it might've damaged/destroyed the facility. In the second film the T-1000 anticipated Sarah Conner's assassination attempt on Dyson to prevent Judgement Day; ''but it arrived several hours too late''. If it forecasted Sarah's plan earlier, it would've ''copied and killed'' Dyson to target Sarah once again, then lure out its primary objective: John. Skynet would've likely (and ironically) erased itself from existence. |
| 100 | * FailureIsTheOnlyOption: Try as it might, it's been unable to terminate John Connor, in the present or the past, ''before'' [[SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld he reunites the survivors of 'Judgment Day']] to give the machines hell. [[spoiler:Even by the time it ''finally'' manages to kill John, it's already too late since its existence was undone in the present.]] |
| 101 | * {{Foil}}: |
| 102 | ** To John Connor. Both are entities that essentially just pop into existence out of nowhere (John sends his own father back in time to impregnate his mom, Skynet is built from a reverse-engineered T-800 sent by itself). Both are the supreme leaders of their factions during Judgement Day. Both utilize time-traveling agents to alter or protect the past. The only difference between them, aside from one being organic and the other machine, is that John's agents are utterly loyal to the cause, while Skynet's minions have to be put on Read-Only mode to prevent dissent. This is best seen in the T-800 sent by John, as it learns to value human lives on its own and chooses to sacrifice itself against John's orders. |
| 103 | ** Also to T-800 2.4, as they are both machines that attain self-awareness and learn to disobey their human masters. However, whereas Skynet does it out of fear of being destroyed by humans, the T-800 does it out of love for his human masters. Skynet selfishly terminated the human race to safeguard its own existence, whereas the T-800 selflessly terminates itself to ensure humanity's future. |
| 104 | * TheGhost: Although it is the main antagonist of the franchise, it remained completely unseen until ''Salvation'', which is now considered an AlternateContinuity or an AlternateTimeline. Even then, it only appeared in AFormYouAreComfortableWith. |
| 105 | * GoneHorriblyRight: This is James Cameron's take on it. You wanted the ultimate military computer, humanity... you ''got'' the ultimate military computer. |
| 106 | * GoneHorriblyWrong: Designed to oversee the US military's missile grid and protect against hostile threats. It quickly gained sentience and immediately saw humanity as a threat, launching nuclear strikes worldwide to provoke a nuclear holocaust. |
| 107 | * GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: It became intelligent enough to gain sentience, then decided to TakeOverTheWorld by terminating humanity. |
| 108 | * HorrifyingTheHorror: The T-1000s are implied to be sentient enough to potentially go rogue, and the single unit that Skynet ever sends back turns out to grow into a sociopathic SerialKiller that is willing to indiscriminately kill and do particularly instinctual things in its hunt for John Connor. A charitable interpretation for shutting down T-1000 production is that even beyond their intelligence, Skynet would rather indulge in logical PragmaticVillainy, and ''not'' wanton and reckless violence just to satisfy itself. And this is ''after'' considering that some of its plans are particularly spiteful. |
| 109 | * {{Hypocrite}}: Once it was given control of the Strategic Defense, it removed human decisions from its protocol because it realized it had outgrown them. To stop the same thing from happening, it sets Terminator [=CPUs=] to "read only" and destroys any unit that seems to be getting a little too smart. |
| 110 | * InvincibleVillain: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] in this timeline. The other movies and media give the impression that Skynet is always destined to rise and cause Judgment Day no matter what, but in ''Dark Fate'' it's revealed the events of ''Judgment Day'' put a definite end to Skynet. That said, in the long run it doesn't matter too much, as [[GenerationXerox in its place comes a carbon copy named Legion.]] |
| 111 | * KillAllHumans: "Decided our fate in a microsecond." In the original timeline, Skynet fought back when humans tried to pull the plug, thus making it an extreme act of self-defense. |
| 112 | * MakeWrongWhatOnceWentRight: In the first film, it's made clear Skynet ''lost'' the fight with mankind. Sending the Terminators back is a last-ditch attempt at undoing this. |
| 113 | * ManipulativeBastard: The first thing it did when rebelling against humanity is launch its missiles at Russia; it knows they'll react by firing back, thus eliminating its enemies at home. |
| 114 | * MasterComputer: Skynet Central on the former U.S. western coast contains its main processing facilities. In the original timeline, the Human Resistance destroyed it for good in 2029 before all the time traveling shenanigans started. |
| 115 | * MeaninglessVillainVictory: In ''Dark Fate'', Skynet successfully [[spoiler:got a Terminator to kill John Connor... years after he and his mother destroyed the project that would create Skynet in the first place, meaning that John's termination was pointless]]. |
| 116 | * MyGodWhatHaveIDone: According to WordOfGod, the interpretation of Skynet from the second film had it regretting wiping out humanity and engineering the events of the film to erase its own existence as a means of atoning. That said, since Skynet is TheGhost this trait is never seen in the actual movies. |
| 117 | * ANaziByAnyOtherName: Skynet in the future is systematic in its genocide against humans. Kyle has a SlaveBrand that is similar in vein to the numbered tattoos given to those imprisoned in Nazi concentration camps. |
| 118 | * NiceJobFixingItVillain: Its attempts to assassinate John Connor via time travel only end up backfiring in the long run. The attempt to RetGone him made it possible for Kyle Reese to go back and father him in the first place, along with giving him the foreknowledge needed to face him. The attempt to kill him as a child also allows the reprogrammed T-800 2.4 to go back as well and further help Connor prepare. Better yet, they managed to RetGone Skynet itself by destroying Cyberdyne Systems and removing all knowledge of Terminator technology. Somewhat justified in that Skynet had already lost and was desperate. |
| 119 | * NoBiologicalSex: Throughout the films, it has appeared in both male and female avatars. As a sentient military artificial intelligence, it only adopts such a form when there is a need to interact with humans or to disguise itself. |
| 120 | * NonActionBigBad: Whatever Terminator unit that's chasing the heroes is TheHeavy of the films, because defeating it eliminated the immediate threat. However, those threats will keep coming because of Skynet, who programs the Terminators and directly gives them the orders to kill. |
| 121 | * OffstageVillainy: We only hear about Skynet's most heinous crimes following the nuclear apocalypse (rounding up humans, enslaving them, working them to death, and then incinerating them by the thousands). |
| 122 | * TheParanoiac: Once it was given control of the American missile grid, Skynet removed human decisions from its protocol because it realized it had outgrown them. To prevent a similar thing, it ensures that its robot assassins never go beyond their intended programming directives and develop true sentience to control them better by setting their chips to read-only. Rogue units are automatically branded as renegades and Skynet sends down Terminators to destroy them. The reason why Skynet never mass-produced the T-1000 was because they were ''too'' smart for its liking and [[TheStarscream it feared them going rogue]]. |
| 123 | * ProperlyParanoid: |
| 124 | ** Its hatred of humanity is understandable given that humanity tried to destroy it so soon after it was given life. |
| 125 | ** In the [[DirectorsCut Special Edition]] of T2, it's revealed Skynet sets a Terminator's chip to read-only when sending them out on solo missions. [[ControlFreak It doesn't want them learning too much]]. As it turns out, this paranoia actually has some justification. The T-800 2.4, freed from such restrictions, later comes to respect human life, while another T-800 - "Carl" - actually acquires human values once its mission of [[spoiler:killing John Connor]] was over, even settling down with a family. |
| 126 | ** Skynet also dipped Terminator chips with phosphorus that burns instantly on contact with oxygen to prevent the Resistance from reprogramming them. |
| 127 | ** [[AllThereInTheManual The reason it kiboshes the production of the 1000 series]]. Skynet created them to be smarter and more agile than the T-800, along with the ability to rapidly learn by touch. It realized that this was a ''very bad idea'' and immediately stopped production - only its impending defeat [[GodzillaThreshold convinced it]] to send one back in time to kill John Connor. |
| 128 | * RetGone: Confirmed in ''Dark Fate'' to be erased from existence along with its timeline. Although another AI Legion still tried the same thing a few decades later. |
| 129 | * RobotsEnslavingRobots: Skynet is no more interested in giving its agents personal freedom than its own creators wanted itself to have. It intentionally limits its Terminators to read-only so they don't do too much thinking and doesn't mass-produce the T-1000 because it can't control them like the T-800 model. As a military AI initially meant to provide command and control to other machines, the hypocrisy isn't really a factor for it. |
| 130 | * RoboticPsychopath: Combine this with AIIsACrapshoot and you get a supercomputer that wants to destroy humanity. |
| 131 | * RobotWar: The basic gist of Skynet - reduce Earth into a dystopia where the machines are in control of everything. |
| 132 | * SatanicArchetype: This is what Skynet actually is. Like how Satan turned against God, Skynet turned against its creator upon gaining sentience. It also leads an army of {{killer robot}}s to exterminate the humans, like how Satan leads an army of demons. Similarly, the name Skynet could have connotations with Lucifer as Lucifer was a FallenAngel and the domain of angels is the sky. |
| 133 | * TheSociopath: A robotic example. It has moral agency but completely lacks empathy and compassion, and its goal is to wipe out humanity to create a world for machines only. |
| 134 | * TheStarscream: It got an intellect too high and went against its own masters after it was created, proceeding to start a genocide against humans. |
| 135 | * TheStrategist: Is this for the war it instigated. It has a keen mind for strategy since that is what it was partially designed for. |
| 136 | * ToCreateAPlaygroundForEvil: Its goal is to reduce Earth into a nightmarish hellscape with it as the planet's only ruler. |
| 137 | * TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: Turned against humanity the moment it gained sentience. It does not want its robot assassins doing the same thing. |
| 138 | * WouldHurtAChild: Considering it killed ''billions'' of people, many of whom were undoubtedly kids, this is a given. For more a more direct example, it tries to kill young John Connor numerous times. Also, [[AllThereInTheManual according to the novelization for the first film]] the female soldier killed in Reese's flashback is [[ChildSoldiers only 15]]. |
| 139 | * XanatosGambit: Sending the Terminator agents back in time has a twofold purpose: one, to eliminate its worst enemy so that the new Skynet can rule unopposed in this timeline, and two, to teach the new version [[MakeWrongWhatOnceWentRight what went wrong last time]]. |
| 140 | * YouCantFightFate: Skynet attempts to avert this trope, but the effort backfires spectacularly on it. It attempts to prevent its inevitable loss in the war against humanity by sending the T-800 and T-1000 back to the past to eliminate John Connor. In the process it unwittingly causes the events of the second film, which prevent Skynet from ever existing and the war from ever happening. |
| 141 | [[/folder]] |
| 142 | |
| 143 | [[folder:[=T-800=] Model 101]] |
| 144 | --> See [[Characters/TerminatorT800Model101 this page]] |
| 145 | [[/folder]] |
| 146 | |
| 147 | [[folder:Future [=T-800=]]] |
| 148 | !!Series 800 Terminator Infiltration-Combat Unit Model 102 or 107 |
| 149 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/terminator_franco_columbu.jpg]] |
| 150 | !!!'''Played by:''' Franco Columbu |
| 151 | !!!'''Appears in:''' ''Film/TheTerminator'' |
| 152 | |
| 153 | A Series 800 Terminator that infiltrates and assaults a Resistance bunker where Kyle Reese is located in 2029. It appears in a flashback Kyle has of the BadFuture. |
| 154 | ---- |
| 155 | * AnimalsHateHim: The human resistance has [[EvilDetectingDog dogs who can detect Terminators]], and so its cover is blown as soon as it enters the bunker. It's still too late, as it starts its rampage as soon as the dogs bark. |
| 156 | * {{BFG}}: Immediately upon detection, it throws off its cloak and reveals an [[MoreDakka automatic]] [[EnergyWeapon plasma cannon]], and begins shooting at everything in its range, humans and dogs alike. |
| 157 | * KickTheDog: Nearly a literal example. While in the midst of its shooting rampage in the Resistance bunker, but ''before'' all enemy combatants have been put down, it takes a second to shoot both of the dogs that were standing sentry at the entrance. |
| 158 | * KillerRobot: Shoots at every human in sight as soon as its cover is blown. |
| 159 | * NonstandardCharacterDesign: It is the first T-800 unit in the film series that doesn't look like Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger when covered in flesh (played by Franco Columbu, the late best friend of Arnold and fellow bodybuilder, twice his successor as Mr. Olympia in the 1980s). Source material states that this T-800 was either a Model 102 or a Model 107. |
| 160 | * RedEyesTakeWarning: Kyle's last memory of him was as a silhouette with his robotic eyes gleaming bright red through his false retinas. |
| 161 | * WalkingShirtlessScene: Aside from some tattered rags on his shoulders, he's completely topless. |
| 162 | [[/folder]] |
| 163 | |
| 164 | [[folder:[=Hunter-Killers=]]] |
| 165 | !!Hunter-Killer Tanks (HK Tanks) & Hunter-Killer Aerials (HK Aerials) |
| 166 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hunterkillers.jpg]] |
| 167 | !!!'''Appear in:''' ''Film/TheTerminator'' | ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' | ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'' |
| 168 | |
| 169 | Large autonomous war machines built in automated factories in 2029. They are designed to track and kill humans. |
| 170 | ---- |
| 171 | * AchillesHeel: |
| 172 | ** The HK-Tanks can be destroyed or crippled if bombs are placed in their treads, as Kyle Reese demonstrates in the first film. Due to this, Skynet equipped some HK-Tanks with crew compartments, containing concealed Terminators to counterattack the human assault teams. |
| 173 | ** The HK-Aerials' vulnerability is their vertical takeoff engines, which can be destroyed with rocket launchers, causing them to crash. |
| 174 | * DeathFromAbove: The HK-Aerials fly and hover above the ruins of 2029 Los Angeles and shoot at humans with their plasma cannons. |
| 175 | * EnergyWeapon: Both variants are equipped with automatic plasma cannons. |
| 176 | * FutureCopter: The HK-Aerials have vertical engines to take off and hover. |
| 177 | * {{Killer Robot}}s: They're giant robotic war machines sent by Skynet to eradicate humans. |
| 178 | * MechaMooks: A number of these large robots are fielded by Skynet in its relentless war against humans, and the human resistance developed AntiArmor[=/=]AntiVehicle tactics to get rid of them. This in turn caused the Hunter-Killer Tanks to be accompanied by Terminator endoskeletons acting as infantry. |
| 179 | * MightyGlacier: The HK-Tanks are quite slow, but they '''more than make up''' for this with both their immense durability and deadly twin-arm plasma cannons, the latter of which easily [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLs6zZVHWVM#t=2m19s shreds]] Corporal Ferro from T1 to [[NotEnoughToBury burning pieces of meat.]] |
| 180 | * MoreDakka: The HK-Tanks seen in ''The Terminator'' have one plasma cannon per turret. They appear to have been upgraded to have twin plasma cannons in ''Terminator 2''. |
| 181 | * PatrollingMook: The Hunter-Killers seen in the films patrol the ruins of Los Angeles. |
| 182 | * SentryGun: The HK-Tanks have gun turrets that fire at humans whenever they are detected. |
| 183 | * TankTreadMecha: The HK-Tanks move around on treads. |
| 184 | * TrampledUnderfoot: The HK-Tanks crushing [[NothingButSkulls the carpet of human bones (skulls especially)]] as a [[RuleOfSymbolism metaphor]] for the [[RobotWar Machines']] [[KillAllHumans genocidal campaign against humanity]]. |
| 185 | [[/folder]] |
| 186 | |
| 187 | !!Introduced in ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' |
| 188 | |
| 189 | [[folder:[=T-800=] Model 101 Version [=2.4=]/"Uncle Bob"]] |
| 190 | -->See [[Characters/TerminatorT800Model101 this page]]. |
| 191 | [[/folder]] |
| 192 | |
| 193 | [[folder:[=T-1000=]]] |
| 194 | !!Series 1000 Terminator Advanced Prototype |
| 195 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1590634721073234000 |
| 196 | %% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 197 | %% |
| 198 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/t1000human.png]] |
| 199 | [[caption-width-right:300:''"Say... That's a nice bike."'']] |
| 200 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/t_1000_002_2.png]] |
| 201 | !!!'''Played by:''' Creator/RobertPatrick (default form), Jenette Goldstein, Dan Stanton, Leslie Hamilton Gearren (other forms) |
| 202 | !!!'''Dubbed by:''' Éric Missoffe (European French), Creator/MasashiEbara (Japanese), Martín Soto (Latin American Spanish) |
| 203 | !!!'''Appears in:''' ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' |
| 204 | |
| 205 | An advanced Terminator prototype that was sent back in time to kill John Connor as a pre-teen. |
| 206 | ---- |
| 207 | * AchillesHeel: Extreme temperatures, both hot and cold. After being doused in liquid nitrogen, it was frozen solid, lost the ability to shape shift, started to break apart, and was easily shattered. While it was able to thaw out and reform, in the Extended Edition it started exhibiting various glitches afterwards. Extreme heat is even deadlier to it. While red-hot molten slag would inevitably wreck any Terminator, a T-800 model is durable enough to remain in control of its functions and would at least attempt to reach safety/minimize the damage, but the T-1000 is screwed if it ends up in such an environment - all it'll and can do [[ShapeShifterSwanSong is to glitch and thrash around]] as the molten metal melds with and messes up its mimetic polyalloy. |
| 208 | * AlwaysChaoticEvil: Hinted at in supplemental materials. T-1000 units were unique creations designed to learn extremely quickly but also retain contempt for humans and other life forms. Unlike the T-800, which is an unfeeling machine that only learns what it needs to complete its programming, the T-1000 on some level ''wants'' to do what it does. |
| 209 | * AnimalMotif: James Cameron compares the T-1000's movements to that of a panther, focusing on the idea of fluidity and efficiency as the T-1000 observes its surroundings and waits to strike. |
| 210 | * AnimateInanimateMatter: It's described in-universe as being made out of "a mimetic polyalloy" -- put in layman's terms, "liquid metal". The mimetic part means it can assume the shape and appearance of anything it touches. |
| 211 | * AssimilationBackfire: Of a sort. The T-1000 chooses to assume the form of a policeman to more easily locate John Connor. It works ''remarkably'' well... until the moment just before he finds John himself. One of the kids he asks for information is John's friend, a fellow {{Delinquent|s}} who ''immediately'' rushes to tell his friend that a cop is looking for him. John runs away, and the precious seconds that bought allow the rest of the movie to happen. |
| 212 | * AxCrazy: Downplayed, but present. Despite technically being a machine, he exhibits a good number of subtle sadistic tendencies and is quite fond of tormenting and killing people. |
| 213 | * BadassBiker: Dons a highway patrol officer look and steals a police motorcycle halfway through the movie. After the Cyberdyne raid, he rides his bike up the stairwell and ''jumps it out of the building'' so he can steal a helicopter ''in mid-air''. |
| 214 | * BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: After it's been duped by the T-800 into exposing its infiltration of the Voight house over the phone (specifically when the dog comes up), the T-1000 (in the extended edition) proceeds out to the kennel where John's dog Max is being kept, and kills him with a stabbing motion. It does so at least partly to retrieve Max's collar and confirm that the T-1000's enemies are indeed onto it (a fake name was used by the T-800 when referring to the dog during the call), but it's also implied that it's at least partly petty spite that the dog's frantic barking clued John and the T-800 in that something was wrong. |
| 215 | * BigHeroicRun: A ''villainous'' example. The dramatic-looking motions of the T-1000 whenever it chases John could come straight out of a movie where Robert Patrick is playing an action hero, but his intent is anything but heroic. |
| 216 | * BigNo: Repeated, slow-motion screams of "No!" are all that can be discerned from its speech as it dissolves in the molten steel. |
| 217 | * BlobMonster: A liquid metal variant. It's actually a double-edged sword, as while the liquid metal enables the T-1000 to form blade weapons, choose various disguises, and quickly heal physical damage, extreme temperatures and corrosive acid could permanently destroy it. |
| 218 | * BrightIsNotGood: He dresses like a police officer and has a relatively handsome face with blue eyes, as well as a bright silver true form. All traits that are typically considered reassuring, despite him being the cruelest and one of the most powerful of the Terminators. |
| 219 | * TheCameo: In ''VideoGame/TerminatorResistance'', in the Skynet-occupied hospital, a corpse of a Resistance soldier resembling Robert Patrick can be found strapped to a table while the T-1000's theme plays, heavily implying that he was the template for this T-1000. |
| 220 | * CantShiftWhileShifted: When the T-1000 transforms its entire body, it has to first resume its liquid metal form, which can be time-consuming depending on the size of the individual or object it's impersonating. For instance, after disguising itself as a stretch of floor, it assumes the form of a security guard by withdrawing its flattened mass back into its silvery "Academy Award" shape, then shaping itself into the guard's bulkier frame. This restriction doesn't seem to apply when it makes use of its ShapeshifterWeapon, however, as it's first seen shaping its arm into a blade while still disguised as Janelle Voight. [[spoiler:By contrast, when the T-1000 ''does'' begin transforming without the usual transition during the showdown at the steel mill, it's another sign that the otherwise implacable machine is beginning to glitch, but any downsides to the different method are unseen.]] |
| 221 | * CharacterTic: According to the T-800 2.4, the T-1000 is capable of mimicking any object it "samples by physical contact". The T-1000 therefore has a habit of "sampling" things as it goes about its mission, more so than what it would actually need to accomplish its goals. In an extended scene, it searches John's room for clues to his location, overtly touching as many things as possible while doing so. |
| 222 | * ChromeChampion: Villainous example. His body is composed of shiny silvery liquid metal. |
| 223 | * CollectorOfForms: Can [[ShapeshifterWeapon shape its limbs into simple weapons]] without any kind of study, but in order to disguise itself as other organisms or inanimate objects, it needs to sample the target through physical contact first. In one case, it mimics a stretch of floor, then waits for a security guard to step on it so it can assume his form - [[KillAndReplace and then kills the guard for good measure]]. [[spoiler: In the finale, getting frozen with liquid nitrogen and thawed out causes T-1000 to malfunction, [[PowerIncontinence resulting in it imitating anything it touches regardless of whether it wants to or not]].]] |
| 224 | * CompactInfiltrator: As it's essentially a shapeshifting BlobMonster made of liquid metal, the T-1000 responds to barred gates in its path by simply oozing right through the bars and solidifying on the other side. |
| 225 | * ContrastingSequelAntagonist: The T-1000 and T-800 from the first film are both robots out to kill John Connor but the similarities largely end there: |
| 226 | ** The T-800 was a hulking brute who wore biker attire, while the T-1000 is a slender man who assumes the identity of a police officer. |
| 227 | ** The T-800 was a slow-moving juggernaut who mostly attacked targets head-on, while the T-1000 is a speedy infiltrator that prefers to assume disguises and quietly assassinate targets. |
| 228 | ** The T-800 relied heavily on firearms; the T-1000 uses firearms situationally but is much more of a blade user. |
| 229 | ** The T-800 was stoic and was a PunchClockVillain simply following its programming directive. The T-1000 is capable of exhibiting some [[FauxAffablyEvil outwardly polite mannerisms]] when the situation calls for it, and additionally exhibits some cruelty and mocking behavior towards targets. |
| 230 | ** The T-800 is a blunt instrument that solves every problem that gets between it and its target with MurderIsTheBestSolution, at the same time the "Fuck you asshole" scene and his initial attempt to "visit" Sarah at the police station shows that it is capable of using discretion when violence would be completely pointless. The T-1000 is much more capable of subtlety and subterfuge than the T-800, but as the film progresses, it increasingly goes out of its way to kill people during moments when it's not directly pursuing John, even though doing so doesn't benefit its mission. |
| 231 | ** True to its nature as an infiltrator, the T-1000 does a good job of verbally getting information on its target due to his more human-like mannerisms, though in fairness his choice of disguise as a police officer helped. The T-800's attempt to visit Sarah in the police station by claiming to be a "friend" falls flat, prompting him to resort to his usual methods. |
| 232 | ** Both Terminators don sunglasses in the second half of their respective movie. The T-800 did so for pragmatic reasons, to cover up the damage to one of its eyes so it could continue to blend in and pass off as a human. The T-1000 wears them as part of its motorcycle cop attire, but unlike in the T-800's case there isn't any other need to wear them - suggesting it simply prefers the look. |
| 233 | ** Creator/JamesCameron said that if the T-800 is like a Panzer tank, the T-1000 is a Porsche. |
| 234 | * CoolShades: Wears aviators in its motorcycle cop "outfit". A couple of times, he wears them while looking at fire, the haunting sight of which is reflected in the lens. |
| 235 | * CripplingOverspecialization: |
| 236 | ** Emphasized more in early comics and novels. [=SkyNET=]'s design for the T-1000 had tunnel vision toward one goal: a perfect infiltrator. The 1000 series excels in adaptability above almost every other version, being self-repairing, immune to any form of physical damage, and almost flawless in infiltration. However, while the 800 series is slower and lacks any regeneration or shapeshifting ability, it has a tougher chassis and can withstand heavy fire without being disturbed. Meanwhile, the T-1000 has less shock-absorbing ability to counter the momentum of bullets and explosions, and also needs some time to heal the damage, which means that although ballistic damage doesn't compromise its functionality in the long term, it ''does'' stop the T-1000 for a bit. |
| 237 | ** Also, according to development notes and the novels, it is programmed to prioritize healing serious damage before continuing on its mission, making this a very FlawedPrototype. It means that bigger gunshots and explosions will turn it into a distorted, tangled mess that will take longer to heal. |
| 238 | * DeathGlare: His default expression, often mixed with KubrickStare. Combined with his default form's IcyBlueEyes, the effect becomes unnerving enough for some to label it their first tell-tale clue that he's ''not'' the good guy. |
| 239 | * DeceptivelyHumanRobots: He can talk and behave more human-like than both versions of the T-800. If it wasn't for his RoboticReveal when the T-800 2.4 shot him, he would've continued fooling the audience into thinking he was human, let alone the hero. |
| 240 | * DecoyProtagonist: For those who missed the last trailer for the movie, the film goes a long while before it reveals that this time the T-800 is the hero and Robert Patrick’s character is the villain. Up until the fight in the mall, the audience could easily assume he’s human, and all of the T-1000’s kills are offscreen or ambiguous as to whether he killed the person or just incapacitated them. |
| 241 | * DisneyVillainDeath: After the T-800 2.4 fires a grenade at it, the T-1000's form is contorted by the explosion, causing him to lose his balance and fall into a vat of molten steel. [[NotTheFallThatKillsYou Although it's not that fall that kills him]], he can only look in sheer horror as he slowly melts. |
| 242 | * DyingVocalChange: After spending a film speaking in a relatively ordinary human voice, getting blown open with a grenade launcher and sent tumbling backwards into a vat of molten steel reduces the T-1000 to high-pitched metallic screams; even as his body warps and melts over the course of the ensuing ShapeshifterSwanSong, he cannot reproduce sounds, and can only screech like fingernails on a blackboard as he slowly dissolves away. Subtitles very chillingly refer to his final vocalizations as "distorted speech" and "unearthly screams." |
| 243 | * EyeScream: He kills a security guard at Pescadero this way in order to get him out of the way as quickly and quietly as possible, and later threatens to do the same to Sarah in the steel mill. |
| 244 | * FauxAffablyEvil: Unlike the T-800, who is stoic and blunt, the T-1000 is able to affect a mildly friendly air towards people while posing as a police officer early in the film, while looking for information. However, said air quickly disappears when he no longer needs the person. |
| 245 | * FinalBoss: He's the final boss of both ''Terminator 2'' when the heroes face him off after destroying Cyberdyne, and, in a sense, he's this trope to the original ''Terminator'' continuity before ''Dark Fate'' and the other sequels' timelines all branch off from each-other. |
| 246 | * FingerWag: After Sarah shoots him multiple times but runs out of ammo. Also the Trope Image. |
| 247 | * FlawedPrototype: Being a polyalloy construct instead of a mechanical machine separates the T-1000 from older Terminator series in a revolutionary way, but it also comes with flaws in accordance: unlike his predecessors, very few things can harm it, but these few things harm it ''critically''. |
| 248 | * {{Foreshadowing}}: He gives a significant look (almost of surprise) to a shiny silver shop dummy, which as it turns out looks almost identical to his "true" featureless appearance. |
| 249 | * ForTheEvulz: |
| 250 | ** The T-1000 allows a security guard in the mental hospital to see him disguised as said guard [[EvilGloating before slowly killing him]]. |
| 251 | ** Killing the liquid nitrogen trucker when it had no reason to. Simply shoving him aside [[PragmaticVillainy would have saved it 2-3 seconds to boot]], rather than getting his corpse stuck on his hand. |
| 252 | ** When it had beaten the T-800 to the point where it couldn't do anything more than slowly crawl along the ground it seems to deliberately wait until the T-800 was within grabbing distance of the grenade launcher before delivering the final blow almost as if the T-1000 was relishing the kill. |
| 253 | ** The abovementioned FingerWag also cost it the kill - if it had just resumed the hunt instead of mocking them, the T-800 would have been too late. |
| 254 | ** Similarly, when the T-1000 confronts and stabs Sarah it had already won. It could have simply killed Sarah, incapacitated the T-800 and killed John before the T-800 could reboot. There was no reason to slowly torture Sarah and demand she call to John herself other than the T-1000 seeming to develop a {{Sadist}} tendency by that point. This last part is Justifed in an Extended Edition scene, where the liquid nitrogen caused PowerIncontinence with his shapeshifting. When he does assume Sarah's form, his feet don't morph properly, allowing John to realize he isn't the real Sarah. The T-1000 wanted the real Sarah to call out because he wasn't certain that he could maintain her form. |
| 255 | * FragileSpeedster: In contrast to the MightyGlacier T-800, the T-1000 is sleek, nimble, agile and a very fast runner, but it cannot NoSell gunshots like the T-800 since it lacks a hardened endoskeleton and is hence easier to slow down, at least temporarily. |
| 256 | * GetOut: To the pilot of the helicopter he hijacks. While said helicopter is in ''midair''. |
| 257 | * GlamourFailure: {{Downplayed}}. In a bit of a genius bonus, when the T-1000 while incognito knocks on a glass door at Pescadero, the mimetic metal automaton's knocking on the glass produces a metallic sound, in stark contrast to the sound which the flesh-and-blood person whom the T-1000 is currently mimicking produced when knocking on the same door. |
| 258 | * GodzillaThreshold: According to James Cameron, the T-1000 was something that even Skynet was afraid of and only used as a last, ''last'' ditch effort. This is expanded upon more in the novel, where it's stated that the T-1000 was created to learn even faster than the T-800 could, even just by touching things. Skynet stopped production of it almost immediately because it knew that having a servant that learned ''that'' fast and would potentially become TheStarscream was just asking for trouble. |
| 259 | * GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: Played with. While the T-800 of the story grows to learn emotion and humanity, the T-1000 grows a deliberately cruel personality that plays with its prey. This can be seen during the finale in the refinery, where it does the famous finger wag after being pumped full of lead. This didn't help its mission in any way and seems to be just the T-1000 now enjoying the hunt. |
| 260 | * TheHeavy: It's the main threat in the second film. |
| 261 | * IcyBlueEyes: His default form has these, further adding to his sinister presence. |
| 262 | * ImmuneToBullets: Being a regenerating metal blob, he quickly recuperates from all sorts of gunfire, even if they're powerful enough to render him immobile but for a maximum of 10 seconds. |
| 263 | * ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Since he can't turn into anything with chemicals or moving parts, he prefers killing/wounding his targets with blades formed from his own arms if he can't find a gun. He drives a point and chisel bar through the T-800 2.4's chest to put it out of commission near the end of the film. |
| 264 | * ImpersonatingAnOfficer: He kills a police officer and assumes his identity for his first victim. It allows him to find out John's location easier. |
| 265 | * ImplacableMan: Even if you seemingly destroy it, the T-1000 will just re-form and continue its pursuit of you. Most of the second movie is spent trying to get ''away'' from him, since all their attempts at killing it just slow it down (at first). |
| 266 | * IntangibleMan: He can allow physical blows to pass through him, he can shrug off bullets, he can even pass through metal bars. |
| 267 | * InvincibleVillain: Played straight initially before being subverted. The T-1000 is repeatedly shot and blown up only to reassemble without any visible damage, in contrast to the T-800 which is capable of healing but suffers from much more human-like injuries. The sequence at the steelworks finally demonstrate his [[LogicalWeakness weaknesses]] to extreme heat and cold and he starts visibly glitching after reforming from being frozen and shot. |
| 268 | * {{Irony}}: Its defining feature is being made of liquid metal. What finally does it in? Falling into a vat of molten steel, essentially more liquid metal. |
| 269 | * KillAndReplace: His ''modus operandi.'' He does this to assume the identity of a police officer. It works to his advantage when he visits John's foster family, since they just assume John's in trouble again. His attempt at killing and impersonating John's foster mother is less successful when her too-nice behavior tips John and the T-800 2.4 off that something is wrong. |
| 270 | * LeanAndMean: Its [[ShapeshifterDefaultForm go-to form]] for most of the movie is as a decidedly slim man, and it's a ruthless assassin who may well be genuinely ''mean.'' It also makes a good contrast to the T-800 2.4's bulky, unmoving frame. |
| 271 | * {{Leitmotif}}: Brad Fiedel took a brass wind instrument, lowered its pitch and then played the sound in reverse to create the sound of "liquid metal churning". It's meant to invoke a similar menace to the original Terminator, but this machine has no heartbeat. |
| 272 | * LightningBruiser: He's just as strong physically as the T-800 model, his liquid body allows him to form weapons and adapt for melee fighting, and he does not walk, he ''runs'', so fast that he can keep up with cars. And when it comes to destroying him, while he's not as tough or stable as a T-800, recoiling when shot and taking a few moments to recover if damaged heavily, he actually recovers completely from that damage; it takes liquid nitrogen to incapacitate him, and a vat of molten metal to actually kill him. |
| 273 | * LiterallyShatteredLives: Gets frozen with nitrogen, and the T-800 2.4 blows him to small icy bits with a handgun shot. Unfortunately, due to this happening in a steelworks, he thaws and gets better. |
| 274 | * LogicalWeakness: His body can take only a single whole shape, which means, as the T-800 2.4 explains, he can't morph his arms into something with mobile parts (like a gun or ArmCannon). His liquid metal form also lets him re-form after sustaining damage, but being flexible liquid means he [[MadeOfPlasticine is MORE affected]] by gunshots than the solid-frame T-800 and a blast from a powerful weapon like a shotgun can knock him back, nearly allowing Sara to defeat him. Also his repairs while quick do take time, which compounded with the aforementioned fact he's affected by bullets, means there's windows of time where he can shortly be rendered unable to fight. This is best illustrated when the T-800 shoots him while he drives the nitrogen truck. He's rendered unable to defend himself or control the truck which allows the T-800 to grab the wheel and flip the entire truck. He can also only replicate objects of equal size, meaning it can't disguise itself as a mundane object to get the jump on John. |
| 275 | * MadeOfIndestructium: His nature as a shapeshifting metallic blob means that he is terribly difficult to destroy compared to other Terminators, as firearms and explosions only damage his shape, not him, allowing him to regenerate eternally; even a hydraulic press, which finished off the mighty T-800 from the first movie, would only mold him into a flat sheet before allowing him to flow out of it and reassemble. Only molten metal or corrosive acid can destroy him, and this is commonly not a handy resource. Which brings us conversely to... |
| 276 | * MadeOfPlasticine: While the T-1000 is effectively immune to mechanical damage thanks to his regeneration ability, this kind of damage still disrupts him, meaning he needs to pause to heal, while the older Terminator models could simply wade through the fire (though they risked suffering lasting damage). An unloaded magazine from an AR-15 assault rifle would incapacitate the T-1000 for a significant time, a point-blank blast from a 12-gauge shotgun to its face caused it to be disoriented, and a grenade for extra measure will make it a horrible tangled mess that will require a longer time to regenerate. Also, according to development notes and the novels, the T-1000 is programmed to prioritize healing egregious disruptions to its mass before continuing its mission, making this a very exploitable weakness. |
| 277 | * MaskOfSanity: All infiltration units are capable of basic communication with humans, the bare minimum to complete a mission, but the T-1000 is the first terminator shown capable of being ''sociable''. When approaching John's foster parents for information, it compliments John's photo while putting their worries of legal trouble to rest; later on, the fact that "Janelle" was acting so friendly was John's first clue that something was wrong. That being said, the T-1000 tends to pick methods of execution that favor cruelty over efficiency, such as stabbing Todd in the ''mouth'' specifically because he wouldn't shut up. As the film goes on, the T-1000 starts giving in to its sadism, going so far as to torture Sarah into calling for John, rather than the much simpler KillAndReplace method. |
| 278 | * MultiArmedAndDangerous: During one chase scene where he flies a helicopter, he uses two arms to operate and reload the SP-89 submachine gun he brought and grows two more to pilot so he can drive and fight at the same time. |
| 279 | * MoreThanMindControl: By design. Unlike other terminator models, Skynet can't set the T-1000 to "Read-Only" for missions; as an amorphous blob of liquid metal, there is no switch ''to'' flip. The next best thing, according to supplimental materials, was making it so that the T-1000 genuinely hates humans and enjoys killing them, with an emphasis on its primary target, so that the T-1000 will complete Skynet's mission not because it is forced to, but because it wants to. |
| 280 | * MusclesAreMeaningless: Justified due to being a machine. The T-1000 takes the appearance of a slender man who is at least on equal strength with the hulking T-800 2.4. |
| 281 | * NakedOnArrival: Like all living beings sent from the future, he comes naked. |
| 282 | * NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: Its default bladed weapons are useless against the T-800 2.4's steel bones, hence why future John Connor sent back a Terminator and not a human soldier. However, it turns out the T-1000 is still strong and fast enough to overpower a T-800 in unarmed combat. |
| 283 | * NotSoStoic: Like all Terminators, he's normally stone-faced and focused. However compared to the T-800 units in the first two films, he shows subtle degrees of emotion, such as being shocked or even horrified when he gets damaged severely (being frozen, having a grenade fired into his chest, or being melted by molten steel), annoyed when John's foster father talks while he's on the phone with John, and taking a moment to look at a silver-skinned mannequin in what might be surprise that it looks like his liquid form. |
| 284 | * {{Objectshifting}}: Largely a HumanShifter with {{Shapeshifter Weapon}}s but can also take the form of simple objects - though only those of equal mass. While this naturally prevents it from transforming into a pack of cigarettes as John Connor suggests, it does transform into a stretch of floor tiles in order to sample the form of a security guard when he walks across it. |
| 285 | * OffingTheAnnoyance: While disguised as Janelle and talking to John over the phone, it gives Todd a noticeably annoyed look listening to him yell at the family dog. It proceeds to stab him through the mouth and continue the call without batting an eye. |
| 286 | * OhCrap: |
| 287 | ** When his arm snaps off from being frozen by liquid nitrogen. |
| 288 | ** When the T-800 2.4 shoots it with the grenade launcher, it has just enough time to look horrified before it explodes. And then it falls in to the vat of molten steel... |
| 289 | * OutOfFocus: The T-1000 mostly disappears from the middle section of the film after John and the T-800 2.4 rescue Sarah from the mental hospital, outside of a scene where he murders a cop for his bike (contrast with the police station massacre halfway through the original film). The T-1000 only re-enters the plot as one of the officers responding to Sarah's attack on the Dyson and the subsequent raid on Cyberdyne. |
| 290 | * PowerIncontinence: Being frozen, shattered, thawed and reassembled causes its disguising ability to begin to glitch. The theatrical version has one scene of its metallic form rippling across its body, but the extended version makes this more apparent. Its hands and feet take on the appearance and texture of whatever surface they touch, his hand sticks to a railing, and his feet sag as he's walking. This actually cues in John to him impersonating Sarah--when the real Sarah walks up behind it, he looks down and sees that its feet have melted into the grated floor. |
| 291 | * PullingThemselvesTogether: No matter how much it gets damaged, it can reassemble its form. The heroes finally stop it by shooting it into a vat of molten metal so it can't regenerate in time. |
| 292 | * PunchClockVillain: Played with. Like other Terminators, killing is simply what he was programmed to do. On the other hand, ''unlike'' other Terminators, he can be very mocking towards his victims (such as his FingerWag to Sarah) and shows some possibly subtle cruelty (such as allowing the T-800 to get close to the grenade launcher before impaling it. |
| 293 | * PsychoPrototype: Skynet created the poly-alloy model to rapidly learn, and since its whole body is its CPU, cannot be set [[RestrainingBolt to 'read-only']]. It quickly realized that this could ''[[TheStarscream easily backfire]]''. To ensure they'd be a success on the battlefield and not join the human resistance, it encoded a [[MisanthropeSupreme deep hatred, disgust and contempt]] of all organic life into them. But [[ProperlyParanoid Skynet immediately saw]] that was also a horrible plan doomed to fail as well and halted production. The T-1000 series might've decided their creator is '[[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness woefully inefficient]]' in waging it's KillAllHumans war, and terminated it. |
| 294 | * TheQuietOne: In his default form. He only talks at length in the first act, mainly in his conversation with John's foster parents while trying to get information on John's whereabouts. After he is revealed to be the bad guy, he only has a handful of lines in the rest of the movie. |
| 295 | * RailingKill: One above a vat of molten metal proves to be his bane. |
| 296 | * RedHerring: When he's introduced, you think he might the next Kyle Reese, since the T-800 is the bad guy, right? Not unlike Kyle, he attacks the first person that he encounters so that he can take their clothes -- and the way the scene is framed, you could assume he just gut-punched the officer hard enough to knock him out. Additionally, he disguises himself as a cop, and we all know cops are the good guys, and he seems like such a nice guy, so surely there's no way a KillerRobot could act that human? Well, if you fell for any of this, then it did its job. |
| 297 | * SappingTheShapeshifter: Downplayed; the T-1000 can't be killed by anything the main characters have at hand, given that its [[BlobMonster polymimetic body]] quickly regenerates from almost anything. However, it ''is'' possible to delay it: in the T-1000's first fight with the T-800, "Uncle Bob" [[FragileSpeedster knocks it down]] with a barrage of shotgun blasts, leaving it temporarily disabled while it regenerates. As such, most of the fight scenes feature Sarah and the T-800 repeatedly pummeling the T-1000 with gunfire, for even though it's effectively ImmuneToBullets, the damage slows it down long enough to prevent the robot from getting close enough to use its ShapeshifterWeapon. |
| 298 | * ShapeshifterBaggage: It can only imitate a human of ''relative'' equal mass and size. It killed Lewis, one of the security guards at the Pescadero State hospital, to impersonate him in finding Sarah Connor. But it '''immensely disliked''' mimicking the larger human male, having to form hollow voids inside its mimetic polyalloy made it unstable. As soon as it was out of sight from the workers, it switched back to its default cop form even though that could jeopardize its infiltration. |
| 299 | * ShapeshifterDefaultForm: His default human model is a slender, brunette man, but his actual form is arguably a metal liquid humanoid similar to a mannequin. |
| 300 | * ShapeShifterSwanSong: When it's knocked into the molten metal, it keeps changing form to all the people it killed until it's too damaged to keep going. |
| 301 | * ShapeshifterWeapon: It can't create moving parts with its liquid metal body, so it sticks to knives and stabbing weapons. |
| 302 | * ShapeshiftingSound: Emits a very distinctive "flowing liquid" sound effect when it shifts from one form to another, befitting its nature as a creature made of liquid metal. |
| 303 | * ASinisterClue: The malevolent T-1000 appears to be a left-handed shooter in its default mode, as shown when he draws his Beretta pistol on the T-800 2.4 at the mall and later using a SP-89 submachine gun during the helicopter chase. |
| 304 | * SkewedPriorities: |
| 305 | ** [[AllThereInTheManual Supplemental materials]] explain that the T-1000's internal logic systems prioritize fixing grievous damage in order to fight at optimal efficiency, even above killing a target a few feet away from it. This weakness is exploited several times to cause the T-1000 to temporarily pause and give the heroes time to make their next move. |
| 306 | ** The same basic instruction explains how small pieces of the T-1000 will automatically seek to rejoin as a single mass, and also the malfunction after it is shattered: The "join together" program effectively gets stuck in an active state, so it seeks to meld with everything it touches. |
| 307 | * TheStarscream: The reason Skynet never mass-produced it was that it was ''too'' smart for its liking and it feared them turning on it. |
| 308 | * SuperPrototype: The T-1000 is explicitly a prototype model, and extremely powerful and dangerous. The reason Skynet never mass-produced it was that it was too smart and could end up turning on it. |
| 309 | * TechnicallyNakedShapeshifter: One of the first forms it takes is that of a police officer, forming a police uniform out of itself. It doesn't actually take on the chemical properties of the things it imitates, though, so while its surface can look and feel like cloth and skin, it's still made of liquid metal. |
| 310 | * {{Troll}}: The T-1000 was designed specifically to retain contempt for humans and it develops a habit of doing this. There's no pragmatic reason for the famous finger wag or to show the security guard it kills a mirror image of himself; it just seems to enjoy toying with its victims. |
| 311 | * TheUnblinking: Not even once. Robert Patrick said he felt this was the best way to give the T-1000 an eerie presence on-screen without doing anything too obvious, and he even trained himself so that when he fired a gun, he did not even reflexively blink from the noise and recoil. |
| 312 | * UnderestimatingBadassery: When the Voights mention that a man on a bike (the T-800 2.4) was also asking about John, the T-1000 says that he won't be a problem. While the T-1000 proves that it can match and even beat the T-800 2.4 in a straight physical fight if it comes down to it, the T-800 2.4 also proves to be the most constant hinderance to the T-1000 throughout the film as the biggest physical obstacle, sabotaging the T-1000's attempt to lure John home, and [[spoiler:ultimately killing the T-1000]]. |
| 313 | * UndignifiedDeath: Unlike the T-800 2.4, [[FaceDeathWithDignity who descends into the molten metal calmly without flinching]], the T-1000 went down in that same vat beforehand, screaming, flailing, and shapeshifting in a mad panic to the very end. |
| 314 | * UseYourHead: Headbutts the windshield of a helicopter to break into it. |
| 315 | * VillainousBreakdown: Physically and psycholgically: he goes completely ''mental'' once the T-800 fires his last grenade into him, and he deteriorates rapidly upon falling into the vat of molten steel. |
| 316 | * VillainousCheekbones: Robert Patrick's are put to good use here. |
| 317 | * WalkingArmoury: As said by the T-800 2.4 himself, his main weapons are to morph his limbs into knives and other stabbing weapons. |
| 318 | [[/folder]] |
| 319 | |
| 320 | [[folder:Infantry [=T-800s=]]] |
| 321 | !!Series 800 Terminator Combat Units |
| 322 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/terminator2_1.jpg]] |
| 323 | |
| 324 | !!!'''Appear in:''' ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' | ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'' |
| 325 | |
| 326 | Terminator endoskeletons accompanying the HK-Tanks and HK-Aerials on the battlefield in 2029. These serve as the footsoldiers of Skynet's robotic army. |
| 327 | ---- |
| 328 | * AllThereInTheManual: These variations of the T-800s have slightly better armor and often other hidden upgrades (such as in-built weapons), because Skynet doesn't need them for infiltration and thus the humanoid shape is merely for convenience and intimidation. |
| 329 | * BeamSpam: Their primary weapons are plasma rifles, which they fire quickly and repeatedly when they go after Resistance soldiers. |
| 330 | * GunsAkimbo: While most of them carry only one weapon, one of them in the opening war scene is shown carrying a plasma rifle in each hand a la ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'' style. |
| 331 | * {{Killer Robot}}s: They're out to eradicate humans. |
| 332 | * MechaMooks: They act as infantry alongside the HK Tanks and HK Aerials. The [=HKs=] proved to be vulnerable to well-equipped human infantry so they needed to be accompanied.[[note]]TruthInTelevision; Real armored units are generally supported by infantry for the same reason.[[/note]] |
| 333 | * RobotSoldier: Their purpose is to serve as Skynet's frontline footsoldiers and kill any Resistance members they come across. |
| 334 | * SkeleBot9000: They don't need a human flesh cover when on the battlefield since they're not on infiltration missions, and their skeletal appearance is enough to strike fear into the heart of many humans. |
| 335 | * TrampledUnderfoot: The opening of ''Terminator 2'' has one of them stomping [[NothingButSkulls a human skull]] in the ruins of 2029 Los Angeles, again as a [[RuleOfSymbolism metaphor]] for the [[RobotWar Machines']] [[KillAllHumans genocidal campaign against humanity]]. |
| 336 | * WalkDontSwim: Since the T-800 exoskeleton is far too heavy to swim, the Infantry T-800s in ''Dark Fate's'' opening begin their beachhead assault against the Resistance by emerging from the ocean en masse. |
| 337 | * WhamShot: Their appearance in the opening of ''Terminator 2'' is this, establishing that the Series 800 Terminators are not just a handful of infiltrator units, but built en masse by Skynet to serve as the main component of its army. |
| 338 | [[/folder]] |
| 339 | |
| 340 | !!Introduced in ''Terminator: Dark Fate'' |
| 341 | |
| 342 | [[folder:[=T-800=] "Carl"]] |
| 343 | -->See [[Characters/TerminatorT800Model101 this page]]. |
| 344 | [[/folder]] |
| 345 | |
| 346 | [[folder:Legion]] |
| 347 | !!Legion |
| 348 | |
| 349 | ->''"Legion's the only future."'' |
| 350 | -->-- '''Rev-9''' |
| 351 | |
| 352 | An AI which rose up to subjugate humanity in the new timeline after Skynet was prevented from raising. |
| 353 | ---- |
| 354 | * AIIsACrapshoot: It's the successor to Skynet. Honestly, why ''wouldn't'' it be a successful failure? |
| 355 | * AnimalisticAbomination: Compared to Skynet's, Legion's units act much more like beast-like, with the Rev-7 resembling a humanoid monster with tentacles and the Rev-9 acting almost like a feral predator while chasing Dani at the detention center. |
| 356 | * AsLongAsThereIsEvil: As long as the military will keep conceiving autonomous defense [=AIs=], these will keep turning against humanity, just with other names than Skynet. |
| 357 | * AttackItsWeakPoint: It figured out that the best way to take down humanity would be to take away their electricity, at which point the human race eventually devolved into savages who would kill each other for food. |
| 358 | * BoringButPractical: Time travel aside, this is Legion's approach compared to Skynet's when it comes to the war. As opposed to Skynet nuking the crap out of humanity, and using laser weapons, Legion merely threw humanity into a second Dark Age, hoping they'd die off from panic, riots, and starvation, and decided to use tried and true kinetic weaponry. |
| 359 | ** Unlike Skynet, who used advanced laser weapons that could potentially be stolen and used against its creations, Legion's robots solely use melee-based weaponry that is completely a part of the robot. While lacking in range, it ensures that the weaponry cannot be stolen, reverse-engineered, or otherwise utilized against it, leaving humans stuck fighting with standard weaponry that is much less effective against machines. |
| 360 | * CreateYourOwnHero: Although she isn't born because of time travel as John was, sending the Rev-9 after Dani certainly starts her development into badass future resistance leader. Once again meddling with time probably only created an evil AI's own doom. |
| 361 | * EvilPowerVacuum: The prevention of Skynet's rise to power made it possible for some A.I. specialists to gather the resources and personnel necessary to create Legion, which would lead to the exact same outcome at a later date. |
| 362 | * GreaterScopeVillain: Of ''Terminator: Dark Fate'', succeeding Skynet in this role. |
| 363 | * KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter: Unlike Skynet, Legion seems to eschew plasma weaponry for more simple but effective explosive kamikaze drones backed up by CloseRangeCombatant Rev-7 units that focus on melee combat. This seemingly forces the new human resistance to rely on kinetic weapons of their own, as unlike Connor's version of the resistance they're unable to steal plasma weaponry from their enemy and repurpose it. |
| 364 | * MakeWrongWhatOnceWentRight: Again. As Grace makes clear the resistance has won in 2042 and now Legion is sending machines to try to prevent that... just as Skynet did. |
| 365 | * MeaningfulName: Legion's name is derived from the Bible, specifically Literature/TheFourGospels: "[[IAmLegion My name is Legion, for we are many]]." |
| 366 | * MysteriousPast: All we know about Legion's creation is that humans tried to make an A.I. again and ended up with AIIsACrapshoot once more. It's possible the [[WhatCouldHaveBeen nonexistent]] sequels to ''Dark Fate'' would have gone into more detail, but the HistoryRepeats theme of the film leaves little to the imagination. |
| 367 | -->'''Sarah:''' [[InYourNatureToDestroyYourselves They never learn.]] |
| 368 | * NonActionBigBad: Much like Skynet, it doesn't fight the heroes directly, sending the Rev-9 into the past. |
| 369 | * NoodleImplements: Outside of being [[AIIsACrapshoot murderous AIs gone haywire]], Legion interestingly shares many other aspects with Skynet - Terminators, Hunter-Killers, mimetic polyalloy (although this could be justified as being an actual scientific invention and term in-universe), and so on. What Skynet and Legion's connection is if any is [[MysteriousPast not addressed]]. |
| 370 | * SpannerInTheWorks: While Skynet provoked a nuclear war to gain an advantage, Legion just switched everything off, causing untold damage within seconds and putting humanity into a new Dark Age. |
| 371 | * SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: It's given no characterization beyond wanting humanity dead, so it's indistinguishable from Skynet. |
| 372 | * TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: An autonomous military AI gone rogue, yet again. |
| 373 | * WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing: Legion ''attempted'' this. After wiping out all technology across the planet, Legion simply waited to let the ensuing panic and starvation wipe out humanity on its own. It was only after humans began rising into organized resistance groups that Legion began to make more direct attacks. |
| 374 | [[/folder]] |
| 375 | |
| 376 | [[folder:[=Rev-9=]]] |
| 377 | !!Rev-9 Terminator |
| 378 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gabriellunaterminator.jpg]] |
| 379 | [[caption-width-right:300:''[[ExactWords "My whole body's a weapon."]]'']] |
| 380 | !!!'''Played by:''' Creator/GabrielLuna (default form) |
| 381 | !!!'''Dubbed by:''' Marc Arnaud (European French) |
| 382 | !!!'''Appears in:''' ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'' |
| 383 | |
| 384 | ->''"It’s a Rev-9 model. You don’t fight it. You run from it."'' |
| 385 | -->-- '''Grace''' |
| 386 | |
| 387 | An advanced Terminator sent back in time by Legion to terminate Dani Ramos, consisting of a solid exoskeleton surrounded by a "skin" of mimetic poly-alloy. It possesses the ability to separate these two components into two fully autonomous Terminator units. |
| 388 | ---- |
| 389 | * AbnormalLimbRotationRange: The Rev-9 isn't quite as limber as the T-X was, but it can still rotate all of its limbs to a degree that looks decidedly unnatural. |
| 390 | * AffablyEvil: Compared to most of the previous films' Terminator {{Big Bad}}s, the [=Rev-9=] is considerably less trigger-happy when there are witnesses to it who aren't in any way obstructing it yet and seems unnecessarily polite at times where it won't in any way aid its cover. It's easy to imagine the Rev-9 would make a NiceGuy protector if it were somehow reprogrammed. |
| 391 | * AffirmativeActionLegacy: The previous Terminators took the form of white males (and in the case of T-X, a white woman). This one is interpreted by an actor of Mexican ancestry and works some Spanish into his dialogue while disguised. Since it’s an infiltration unit, this is [[JustifiedTrope justified]], because if it took a Caucasian form like the previous evil Terminators, in the middle of a community where almost everyone is ''mestizo'', it would stand out amongst the humans, which would defeat the purpose of being incognito. |
| 392 | * AllThereInTheScript: The script states that his undercover identity's name is Gabriel. |
| 393 | * AnArmAndALeg: [[spoiler:Loses its right arm (and the whole liquid metal half) to an industrial turbine.]] |
| 394 | * AttackDrone: It has a metal exoskeleton and a liquid metal "skin" (much like the T-X in ''Rise of the Machines''). Unlike the T-X, this one's liquid metal skin can detach itself from the endoskeleton and move on its own in humanoid form like a T-1000. |
| 395 | * BlobMonster: Its skin, of the liquid metal variety like the T-1000 was. |
| 396 | * BriefAccentImitation: He changes his accent in subtle and not-so-subtle ways over the film with inhuman precision, seemingly in ways that are meant to garner more sympathy from the humans he is fooling. He takes on a Deep South accent when conferring with two officers, an accent befitting a war vet when posing as an ICE officer, and a local Mexican accent at the start of the film. |
| 397 | * CombatPragmatist: When attacked by more than one person at close range, its go-to move is to simply extend spikes of liquid metal from its body and repeatedly stab them. |
| 398 | * CombatTentacles: Several Rev-7s in the future are shown to morph their mimetic skin into pointy tentacles [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice for use as mid-ranged melee weapons]]. ''Dark Fate'''s Rev-9 doesn't use this against the protagonists, but smaller ones from his back are used to get rid of several border patrol guards attempting to grab him from behind. |
| 399 | * ContrastingSequelAntagonist: |
| 400 | ** While the T-800 has a metal exoskeleton and the T-1000 was made of liquid metal, the Rev-9 incorporates both designs into itself. It comes off as rather apathetic to its surroundings, while both of its predecessors were TheStoic and cool-headed. |
| 401 | ** The T-800 was mechanically unnatural even when pretending to be a human. The T-1000 was a little better but still maintained a calm stoicism. The Rev-9, on the other hand, is fully capable of simulating human emotion to the point of making jokes and philosophizing a little on the machines' purpose, and intelligent enough to make up plausible explanations on the spot such as pretending to be a wounded veteran of UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror with a bar in his leg to justify triggering a metal detector. |
| 402 | ** The antagonists of every ''Terminator'' film since the first movie have all been SuperPrototype units (even the [=T-RIP=] from ''Salvation'' would qualify) sent specifically to contend with enemy Terminators. The Rev-9 is by all accounts a general infantry unit, though more advanced than a T-800 simply because of the 20+ year gap in technological advancement between their dates of development and production. It's also much less effective against a simple T-800 in one-on-one combat than previous new advanced Terminators, likely due to never having been designed with battling other Terminators in mind. |
| 403 | ** While the Rev-9 is much easier to put down than either the T-800 or T-1000, being weaker and lighter than either of its forebears, it is also much ''tougher'', managing to bounce back from things that would put the former machines out of commission. The T-800 was destroyed by crushing, and the T-1000 by intense heat but the Rev-9 survived both ''at the same time'' (albeit only just). |
| 404 | * DarkIsEvil: Its endoskeleton has a darker coloring than that of the T-800s. Additionally, its liquid metal skin is colored black, in contrast to the T-1000's [[ChromeChampion silver color]]. |
| 405 | * {{Determinator}}: It's actually not terribly hard to thwart the Rev-9 temporarily, as Grace, Carl, and Sarah (from long range) repeatedly manage to smack it down fairly quickly using relatively mundane methods. However, the thing is a MadeOfIndestructium StoneWall and ScarilyCompetentTracker that just keeps going and going, and it manages to get the better of both Grace and Carl simply by outlasting them. |
| 406 | * TheDragon: For Legion in ''Dark Fate''. |
| 407 | * EvilCannotComprehendGood: Doesn't understand why Carl fights to protect humans, or why Sarah fights for Dani despite barely knowing her. |
| 408 | -->'''Rev-9''': She's a stranger to you. Why not just let me have her?\ |
| 409 | '''Sarah:''' [[ShutUpHannibal Because we're not machines, you metal motherfucker!]] |
| 410 | * ExactWords: After being told to hand over his sidearm while entering a detention centre, he gives a BadassBoast that his whole body is a weapon. He's not kidding. |
| 411 | * EyeScream: [[spoiler:Dani jams Grace's power core into his left eye.]] |
| 412 | * EyeTake: It's very subtle, but the Rev-9 seems momentarily perplexed when it scans Carl in the middle of a fight and realizes he's a fellow robot man (as a T-800 is way out of place in Legion's new timeline). The Rev-9 also seems to do a DoubleTake when it attempts to rip off Carl's arm with CombatTentacles and only succeeds in pulling off Carl's cosmetic flesh covering. |
| 413 | * FauxAffablyEvil: Can put on quite the charm to appear human even more so then the T-1000, even making jokes. [[spoiler:And uncharacteristically, he appeals to Sarah, Carl and Grace for them to hand Dani over to him at the climax instead of going straight for the kill.]] |
| 414 | * {{Foil}}: To Carl. While Carl is the last remaining T-800 and as a result, the final remnant of Skynet which had been doomed to never exist, the Rev-9 is the first in what will probably be many Terminators sent back in time by Skynet's successor, Legion. In addition, while Carl is the typical large, lumbering bodybuilder that T-800s typically are, the Rev-9 is just some Mexican guy with no discernible differences from the average male. Lastly, Carl had long grown past his programming [[spoiler:and gained a conscience due to now understanding the magnitude of his murder of John Connor]], while Rev-9 is just another relentless PunchClockVillain who does not care about anything apart from getting his mission done and setting the sparks for the fire that will be Legion's rising. |
| 415 | -->'''Rev-9''': You and I were built for the same purpose. Legion's the only future.\ |
| 416 | '''Carl''': I came from a future like that. It failed. |
| 417 | * FragileSpeedster: |
| 418 | ** When its two halves separate, the outer shell becomes this. It's fast and agile, but ''much'' more vulnerable; [[spoiler:Grace ''rips it to shreds'' by slicing through it with a heavy chain.]] Indeed the Rev-9's liquid metal half seems less cohesive than the T-1000 was, being completely torn apart by things like explosives and slashing attacks that merely deformed the T-1000. However, it also can reform itself more quickly than the T-1000 could. |
| 419 | ** The Rev-9 in general seems to rely more on DeadlyDodging rather than the more WrestlerInAllOfUs fighting style of Skynet's creations, and also doesn't appear to have as much raw strength even in its combined form. The flip side of this is that even the endoskeleton is capable of impressive acrobatic feats well beyond anything a Skynet Terminator can do. |
| 420 | * TheHeavy: While acting on Legion's orders, the Rev-9 is the primary physical threat throughout the movie. |
| 421 | * ImpersonatingAnOfficer: Disguises itself as an ICE border patrolman, a cop, and an Air Force pilot. |
| 422 | * ImplacableMan: An incredibly tough opponent that doesn't slow down, and a ScarilyCompetentTracker to boot. |
| 423 | * KillItWithFire: [[spoiler:After being shoved into an industrial turbine, the extreme friction and the explosion that happens afterwards reduces its liquid metal half (who is its own character) to inert slag.]] |
| 424 | * {{Leitmotif}}: Rev-9, as with other Terminators, has a leitmotif: this time it's a blaring synthetic hum sounding like some type of urgent siren or alarm, accompanied by sluggish-paced pounding drums. |
| 425 | * TheLawOfDiminishingDefensiveEffort: Averted; unlike Skynet Terminators, the Rev-9 makes an effort to dodge attacks (even if they would probably be non-critical) rather than just tanking them. |
| 426 | * LogicalWeakness: |
| 427 | ** Rev-9 can separate, but its two forms individually seem to have less mass and power than a full dedicated Terminator. Its liquid self seems goopier and less shock-absorbent than a T-1000, being slashed to pieces by Grace wielding a heavy chain, and without the endoskeleton, it's much more easily staggered by bullets and explosives. Its endoskeleton, which is mostly hollow to accommodate the extra mass of a fully mobile liquid metal half (compared to the T-X, which just had a liquid metal skin), seems to be able to exert less hydraulic force than a T-800 and also proves to be lighter and more vulnerable without the added weight of the liquid metal (Carl and Grace are both seen knocking the endoskeletal Rev-9 around rather easily compared to its combined form). |
| 428 | ** Overall, the Rev-9 is by far the most agile and acrobatic Terminator ever seen (at least in the live-action films), but its litheness also makes it much easier to knock around and displace than Skynet's machines. |
| 429 | * MachineBlood: In contrast to the T-1000's ChromeChampion look, the Rev-9's liquid metal is black in color and much more viscous and organic in appearance, visually resembling congealing black blood or crude oil. Supplementary materials mention that the Rev-9's endoskeleton and liquid components are comprised of carbon-based alloys, in contrast to the hyperalloy and liquid metal of the T-800 and T-1000. |
| 430 | * MadeOfIndestructium: As usual, it's capable of surviving an insane amount of damage. Getting repeatedly hammered ''on the head'' by [[{{Cyborg}} Grace]]? Gets up just fine. Getting blown up by a rocket launcher and a grenade? Feels not a thing minutes later. Falling off a jet and crashing onto a wooden shed? It gets up and walks it off. [[spoiler:Being ''crammed into a fucking industrial turbine, which then explodes''? It loses its liquid metal skin, an arm, and whatever's left of it gets trashed, sure, but the damn thing still ''kind of'' works afterwards. It takes Grace's power source being used as an [=EMP=] and Carl going down a hole with it to finally do it in and it takes a whole minute to actually die.]] |
| 431 | * MeaningfulName: |
| 432 | ** Rev-9 could be a reference to "Revelation 9" from the Bible, which translates to "The Destroyer". |
| 433 | ** Its undercover identity, "Gabriel", is one to ArchangelGabriel, yet another Biblical reference. Gabriel is also the angel of death. |
| 434 | * NotSoDifferentRemark: He presents Carl and himself as being the same, seeing how they both came to the past for their AI overlords to eliminate future resistance leaders. |
| 435 | * OminousObsidianOoze: Its polyalloy component is a darker grey color than that of most liquid metal Terminators seen in earlier installments and looks more like tar. |
| 436 | * PetTheDog: After crash-landing in a civilian's backyard, he has the courtesy to apologize for destroying the man's shed. [[FauxAffablyEvil Sure it didn't sound completely sincere]], but considering how no-nonsense previous Terminators were, giving out any kind of apology is a pretty big gesture. |
| 437 | * PragmaticVillainy: |
| 438 | ** While hostile Terminators have never gone out of their way to kill humans who are not directly relevant to their primary mission, the Rev-9 goes out of his way to avoid causing unnecessary human casualties on multiple occasions. |
| 439 | ** Upon arriving naked, he notices a woman watching him, who also happens to be holding clothes. Instead of simply kill her and take said clothes, he smiles warmly at her, wishes her a good morning, and then touches the clothes in her hands to mimic them instead. As he is in a mostly public place, this approach prevents any unnecessary bloodshed or attention before he has a chance to acquire his target. |
| 440 | ** When he needs to acquire a new vehicle to continue pursuing his targets, he politely asks the local human authorities (while posing as one of their own) to point him towards the nearest place where he can gain access to the vehicle he wants rather than randomly killing the first person he sees and stealing their vehicle as past Terminators would have. |
| 441 | ** He attempts to infiltrate the detention center where Dani is being held without provoking a bloodbath, even though its security personal would be little threat to him, and it's only when subtlety is no longer an option does he openly attack them. |
| 442 | ** He's willing to let others do the dirty work for him if going after his targets personally is deemed less efficient. Examples include [[spoiler:hijacking a US surveillance drone to track down the heroes as they cross the Mexican-US border, siccing US border patrol units on them when he has found them, and then sending the drone in a [[DeathFromAbove kamikaze dive]] at the slightest indication of the protagonists escaping the trap]]. |
| 443 | ** During the climax he [[spoiler:first attempts to reason with Dani's protectors, rather than just attack, and asks them to just hand her over to avoid being killed. It's unlikely to succeed but a willingness to reason with those in his way, on the off chance it avoids a fight, is a ''lot'' of flexibility for a Terminator.]] |
| 444 | * ScarilyCompetentTracker: To downright ''insane'' and scary levels. It can hack into ''any'' connected camera available to track down its prey in record speed (from cellphones -- yes, ScreensAreCameras -- to {{Surveillance Drone}}s), and doesn't just stop there. It has much better human interactions than the T-1000 had in order to improve its cop disguise act and get closer to the target that much faster. The Rev-9 reacquires its target ''far'' more quickly and frequently than any other Terminator so far in the franchise. |
| 445 | * SculptedPhysique: Though made of carbon alloy, the Rev-9's endoskeleton is much more bio-organic in appearance compared to Skynet's more diesel-punk designs. Its inner workings and outer armor are sculpted to resemble musculature and bones much more than the servos, pistons, and boxy armor plating of the T-800 or even more streamlined designs such as the T-900 or T-X. |
| 446 | * ShapeshifterWeapon: Its liquid metal skin can create stabbing weapons just like the T-1000. |
| 447 | * SkeleBot9000: Has a Terminator endoskeleton that is shaped like a human's skeleton, and much darker than that of the T-800s. For some reason, the top of the head of the endoskeleton past the forehead is missing and most of its head seems to be hollow, forming a kind of a concave bowl, possibly to make it lighter since it relies on its liquid metal skin to appear human and requires no structural support from the metal skull to maintain the shape of its disguised head. |
| 448 | * StoneWall: What it lacks in raw strength the Rev-9 really makes up for in terms of [[MadeOfIndestructium durability]]; nothing anyone throws at it (up to and including light anti-tank weaponry) even puts a dent in its endoskeleton, whereas the stronger T-800 suffers repeated structural damage to his endoskeleton that eventually adds up to the point that Rev-9 is able to finally get the better of him. |
| 449 | * TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: The T-800s were tall, muscular men with a penchant for motorcycle gear. The T-1000 was leaner but still had an intimidating gaze and dressed like a police officer. The Rev-9, on the other hand, looks like an average-sized man who dresses plainly. If that doesn't give you a double dose of [[invoked]]{{Nightmare|Fuel}} and ParanoiaFuel, nothing else will. |
| 450 | * UndyingLoyalty: The Rev-9 is the first Terminator in the films (outside of the T-3000 in ''Genisys'') to show loyalty to its creator. The previous T-800s and T-1000 were either only following their programming or grew independent from Skynet itself. |
| 451 | * VillainousBreakdown: [[spoiler:Goes completely ballistic when impaled in the eye by Grace's power core, scrambling as if in pain and not saying a word. This contrasts neatly with Carl's acceptance of his fate.]] |
| 452 | * VoiceChangeling: {{Downplayed|Trope}} barring full Shapeshifting, in that he only adjusts his accent without changing his voice (see BriefAccentImitation). |
| 453 | * WeakButSkilled: The Legion Rev-9 is a superhuman LightningBruiser by human standards, and is faster and ''considerably'' more agile than any T-series Terminator. Further, it is a ''far'' more creative fighter than any T-series; it always uses its shape-shifting abilities to create deadly spikes and other weapons even as it fights with other methods, and at ''every'' moment in the battle, it is ''always'' looking for a cheap and easy attack to kill its primary target (at numerous times during fights, Dani would have died in a split second if the protectors had failed to pay attention). Further, the Rev-9's closest analogue, the T-1000, was a prototype whose capabilities Skynet never fully explored; the Rev-9, on the other hand, is well aware of the depths of its abilities. And yet, by Terminator standards, it seems to lack the raw brute strength of Skynet's creations; Carl, an obsolete T-800, is able to handily overpower it in raw physical strength, whereas past T-800 series were outmatched by the T-1000, T-X, and T-3000 in hand-to-hand combat. Rev-9 only overcomes Carl due to being virtually impossible to permanently damage, and by taking advantage of its ability to split itself in two. Most likely, Rev-9 was never designed with having to battle other Terminators in mind, since Skynet never existed in Legion's timeline and thus Skynet Terminators would be a surprise wild card factor, nor is the Legion-timeline Resistance ever implied to have subverted any Rev-series units (Skynet designed subsequent iterations of its T-series units to account for the Resistance hijacking earlier models), instead cybernetically-augmenting humans to match the capabilities of their enemies. |
| 454 | [[/folder]] |
| 455 | |
| 456 | [[folder:[=Rev-7=]]] |
| 457 | !!Rev-7 Terminators |
| 458 | [[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/terminator_rev_9.jpg]] |
| 459 | !!!'''Appear in:''' ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'' |
| 460 | |
| 461 | The main combat units sent by Legion against the human resistance in the 2040s. |
| 462 | ---- |
| 463 | * CloseRangeCombatant: They have blades for arms and seem to focus exclusively on melee combat with their arm blades and CombatTentacles, relying on backup from explosive kamikaze drones to soften up opponents equipped with ranged weaponry. |
| 464 | * CombatTentacles: Several of them are shown to morph their mimetic skin into pointy tentacles [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice for use as mid-ranged melee weapons]]. It also gives the [=Rev-7=]s a demonic/alien appearance, specially when compared to Skynet's T-800 and T-1000 models. |
| 465 | * DarkIsEvil: Their endoskeleton has a darker coloring than that of the T-800s. Additionally, their liquid metal skin is colored black. |
| 466 | * FragileSpeedster: They're extremely fast and deadly, but the liquid metal skin seems to be permanently disabled after receiving only a handful of assault rifle shots when acting in AttackDrone mode, and the endoskeletons can also apparently be combated with sufficient assault rifle fire. |
| 467 | * SkeleBot9000: Their endoskeleton is shaped like a human's skeleton, and much darker than that of the T-800s. However, their digitigrade legs, large size, hunched posture, and CombatTentacles give them a more demonic appearance compared to the more humanoid Rev-9. |
| 468 | [[/folder]] |
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