MANILA, Philippines?Science fiction and action movie icon Sarah Connor, played by Linda Hamilton in two previous blockbuster ?Terminator? movies, is revived in a weekly TV series that expounds on its mythology. ?Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles? decompresses the man-vs-machine premise, giving new life to its tough heroine.
Sarah, mother to John, destined leader of the human resistance, is back. But it?s not the gritty warrior-woman we remember. Taking over the role is Lena Heady (Queen Gorgo in ?300?), who has a less commanding presence, and not as finely developed muscles, as Hamilton?s gritty Sarah Connor back in the day.
Heady, however, is just as good an actress. She lends credibility to the character, who has grown complacent a few years after the events of ?Terminator 2: Judgment Day.? That?s where the story picks up; it disregards the third ?Terminator? film, ?Rise of the Machines,? where Connor was written out as having succumbed to cancer.
?Sarah Connor Chronicles? focuses on the titular character and her teen son John?s (Thomas Dekker) renewed war with relentless Terminator cyborgs from the future. But their saga has grown to include a new female Terminator, Cameron (Summer Glau), programmed to protect John from all threats. Time-traveling to 2007, the fugitive trio once again tries to prevent Armageddon, avoiding undercover Terminators and the authorities along the way. They discover artificial intelligence programs and projects that would rid the planet of human inhabitants.
Less brisk
The pacing of the series requires some getting used to. Certain episodes break free from the typical chase-fight-flee parameters and elaborate on meaningful human interaction. The movies couldn?t do this, on account of their limited span. But the action scenes, integral to the ?Terminator? films, are somewhat contained and not as brisk here. Also, some episodes are stretched to the point of predictability.
Still, Glau amusingly plays a Terminator that?s stoic and unblinking one moment, and an eccentric high school student the next. The addition of Brian Austin Green as a badass rebel soldier from the future shakes things up for the three main characters, as he?s revealed to have important connections to them.
Distancing
The show can still get better by exploring story angles that the movies missed, such as the changing mother-son dynamic. A few episodes into this first season, some interesting story possibilities have already presented themselves. Makes one wonder where it?s headed, given the deliberate distancing from the third film, where the dreaded robot-ruled future becomes a reality.
No Arnold
Arnold Schwarzenegger as the T-800 isn?t missed all that much; the series stands impressively without him. Heady?s narration bookends every episode, often alluding to the deeper symbolism of Sarah?s turbulent journey and her never-ending battles. But while her chronicles deserve watching, the show needs to speed things up and make things less mechanical.
?Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles? airs on C/S-RPN and AXN.
