Is it T2 or T3?

I saw T3 in theaters and hated it. T2 came out when I was a kid, and I had some of the toys. T2 was so good it could've been the first movie and T1 the prequel. How often does a sequel top the first movie? T3 had too many jokes, too many gimmicks. They have Arnold putting on star-shaped shades that he got from a male stripper. They basically just shat on the terminator legacy right there, but that's just the beginning of the movie. The scene where Arnold's stuck to the grill of a truck and offers to drive? What was that about? And what about the evil terminator, the TX, was it called? Hey guys, just for the sake of doing something different, let's make this terminator a woman! Let's also give it a traditional internal form and a liquid metal shell, so that internally it's just as vulnerable as any old terminator, and the ability to disguise its appearance without any of the other advantages the T-1000 had! Why have advanced weaponry when you can have a flamethrower?

Actually, the whole plot is pretty bad. They only delayed judgement day? So, what, they set technology back a generation? Is that why the terminators in the future end up sending back an experimental model that's inferior to the T-1000? I mean let's face it; the T-1000 kicked ass, and they were barely able to defeat it. If it weren't for the big vat of molten metal, the T-1000 would've eventually recovered, and I doubt the heroes would be able to pull it off again.

T3 was unnecessary. Don't even get me started on the acting. Yeah, in T4/Salvation, Christian Bale just yelled a lot, but we didn't need T3; we could've just skipped to T4, which would make more sense. Why have a movie about how much our hopes at the end of T2 about them saving the world are dashed, only to have them do it all over again in what I would call a B movie, and then only at the end have judgement day happen? Why not just skip to the future full of killer robots that we've wanted to see since the first Terminator?

I've heard rumors that that there will be more terminator movies set in the future, possibly involving time travel, but we'll see. As for the show the Sarah Conner Chronicles, I never watched it, but based on what I read about it, I guess there's one or more terminators in every episode, and apparently it's really hard to kill John Conner because they more than ten terminators back in time. Like T3, I don't consider the show canon because the concept is so awful.

My rating:
1. T2
2. T4
3. T1
4. There is no T3.

I agree with the fact of T-3 ripping off T-2. I don't even consider it a Terminator movie

Aaaah, so that is why i did not like T3...damn ripp-off

I felt like T3 was kind of stilted. It seemed like an attempt to rehash the story without really adding anything important. I think that the entire plot progression up to Rise of the Machines could have done without T3.

RITE ON! GREAT ARTICLE

I like T3 myself and think its a good movie on its own. Unfortunately, it lacks the true spirit and depth of the first two movies. Mostow himself admitted that he thinks the franchise is silly and that this is why T3 has such extensive humor that borders with parody. Again, I always say T3 is a good movie but a terrible terminator movie

Really well done article with the pics and stuff.

However, and this is no slight against you, but I feel this is just another slight against T3. And everyone is entitled to their opinion. Personally, I loved the movie. Of course I do acknowledge T2 as the pinnacle of the series all around. But fell T3 has its place in this franchises mythos. I also never understood or was clear on just what some have against the movie?

there are SOME similarities between T1 and T2 which were intentional (cameron calls them rhymes), but you cant possibly tell the same movie with one detailed description. T1 isnt abot shapshifting villain,good terminator defending john and female and trying to stop Judgment Day. T2 and T3 are

Hey don't act like T2 is so high and mighty either; you can say the same thing about T1 and T2. In fact, that unoriginal piece of crap is nothing but a badly done ripoff that also ruined the premise of the far superior first movie, just like Batman Begins and Batman 1989. Honestly, there shouldn't have been any sequels whatsover. The Terminator should have just been a one-shot movie.

I knew it!

So thats why I hated T3, it was a like a badly deformed twin/clone of T2! Very interesting article.

well, for me T2 was never about action. It was about the depth and the themes of the movie (Sarah becoming machine like while T-800 becomes more human), and since im an art student Im just fascinated with the artistic overtones of it. For example, ever noticed the subliminal lighting on T-800 when he says Hasta La Vista Baby? Since its a very human moment for him, the part of his face that exposes metal is in the shadow and is lit with cold blue, while his undamaged human side is in bright light lit with warm orange colors.

The actors werent good, but were perfect in their mime-like performance. They presented a phenomenal physical performance.

I agree with RottenTomatoes which give it a 100%, and their general consensus line is "T2 features thrilling action sequences and eye-popping visual effects, but what takes this sci-fi/ action landmark to the next level is the depth of the human (and cyborg) characters." I love the fact that its not a boom boom, bang bang action, but an action mixed with very deep messages and moral questions - would you kill the guy who would be responsible for the world war if you knew before hand what he'll do? Is there anything that would justify killing someone with a loving family and no bad intentions?

And many more elements like this. It has so many different themes that eventually come together in the end. And even the look got an artistic touch, the metallic blue. And the sound too - the soundtrack is mostly composed out of hydraulic noises and metallic and machine sounds. When Cameron was given the Dr. title in UK few years ago one of the professors made a remark than Cameron's movies are so full of artistic touches and are so multilayered that 90% of the population wont be able to fully get them. And I agree. I think T2 deserves the iconic status it got , all its Oscars and ocean of awards. And not for action - im no fan of the action movies - but for its incredible depth and perfection. Just my opinion

No Terminator movie will ever be as good as T2. For one reason they'll never find a better pair of robots than Arnold Schwarzenegger and Robert Patrick, because they are robots, they're horrible actors.

I think T4 will just be flashy, probably akin to the matrix in a lot of ways. It will also have a really attractive girl in it that you see half naked at the very least, if this will be a human or a robot is uncertain.

Lets face it, the story line for all of them is horrible, there is no way of saving it, the reason T2 was so loved was because of the one-liners, big guns, shooting things with those guns to make them explode using a one-liner either right before or right after. Nowadays people just aren't interested in that as much, the world has changed, we have real danger in the world and it has to top that danger.

Having said that I'll see it, maybe not in the theaters but it will make a good rental.

T3 was just awful, much like the Sarah Connor Chronicles are.
Never noticed that T3 was such a ripoff of T2.

Nice article lets hope Salvation is as good as it looks

lol thats amazing, ive never noticed that when you put the two up against each other they are the same, just with piss poor acting in T3

Lets hope T4 aint as big of a disapointment

Nicely done

T2>T3. Fact.

T4 looks pretty cool, though.

Here's to hoping that T4 is different enough from T3 and T2 even though T2 is one of the best films of all time.

Nice article. Thumbs up.

I've never noticed the similarities until now. Nice job on the article.

Great article, big thumbs up. I didn't realise it but you are right.

Another one is Top Gun and Days of Thunder - exactly the same story line.

Cool article. never noticed the similarities before.

thanks for the comments everyone! Ill be back!

wow, that was well done my friend. Shocking.

Your use of pictures for this article is legendary and visually perfect. I'm jealous at how well you made observations of both movies. Unfortunately, T3 lacked two main ingredients that were in the first two Terminator movies, those are James Cameron and Linda Hamilton. I also didn't like Nick Stahl as John Conner, I mean is it really too difficult nowadays to get a hold of Ed Furlong's agent? I thought T3 was a joke when I watched it, and it was just a paycheck for Arnold. I don't get why he agreed to do T3 and not a Predator sequel...I'm sure he wanted a mountain of cash for a Predator 2 but it would have been worth it. I don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet but you can now see Kristina Locken, the female terminator in T3, on the Sci-Fi Channel show Pain Killer Jane. Although it's probably cancelled by now.

There are only 4 movies that have ever made me almost pee myself after seeing the trailers:Transformers,Terminator Salvation,The New Star Trek , and Xmen Origins..Nice article BTW Thumbs UP

What the crap.... I managed to watch all of T3 and never realized all of these... I like both movies, but obviously T2 is way better, thumbs up on this article man, I still can't believe I never noticed all the similarities. Kinda like Home alone 1 and 2, but those were comedies and this ...well.... can't wait till TS though!

Nice to know I didn't miss anything by avoiding T3. Unfortunately I'm pretty sure the filmmakers were able to get financing for the project BECAUSE it was going to be exactly like T2. Gotta go with what works...NOT!

T3 was just a clone of T2 unfortunately. It just seemed like an excuse to make another Terminator film. They made so much shit up in T3 and confused the storyline.
Terminator Salvation looks more promising mainly because its set in the future just a shame Cameron s not directing them but I suppose he told his story. Anyway good comparisons.

This is why I really hated T3. It was basically T2 done all over again (only not done nearly as well). Luckily, Terminator Salvation is looking to be a completely different kind of movie.

Very interesting stuff. This sort of thing reminds me about the coincidences between the Abraham Lincoln and JFK assassinations.

http://www.snopes.com/history/american/lincoln-kennedy.asp

Anyways, good stuff. Thumbs up.