Arriving this week in theaters worldwide, Terminator: Dark Fate sequel ignores the events of all but the original two films in the long-running sci-fi action franchise -- 1984's The Terminator and 1991's Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Series co-creator James Cameron's lack of involvement in the three films that followed makes his return as producer and co-writer of the sixth chapter monumental, and is credited with Dark Fate's lauded back-to-the-basics approach.

However, with the benefit of hindsight, are the three films that Dark Fate completely ignores really so bad that they should be omitted from canon? Cameron admitted that the filmmakers studied all of the previous Terminator films -- including, yes, 2003's Rise of the Machines, 2009's Terminator Salvation and 2015's Terminator Genisys -- to learn from their mistakes and understand what makes the franchise as a whole work. And, in their own way, each of those installments contains elements that could appear tangentially in Dark Fate without being integrated into the streamlined continuity.

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Terminator 3 followed an adult John Connor drifting alone through the United States after losing his mother to cancer. When Skynet targeted his lieutenants by sending back the unstoppable T-X, John teamed up with Kate Brewster (who later became his wife) and a new T-800 to fight for the future once again, with the horrifying realization that Judgment Day could only be delayed, not prevented.

T3 is very much a product of its time, with a commercial polish that sets it apart from its grittier, leaner predecessors. The film retains the on-the-run pacing and narrative crux of the first two films, and Kristianna Loken's T-X is a relatively effective antagonist, engaging in a memorable brawl against the T-800 in a bathroom. The film leans too often into self-parody and campy dialogue for its own good, and its ending is contrived. But the idea that Judgment Day could only ever be delayed, not prevented, is a concept revisited in Dark Fate with potentially different results.

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While recasting the roles of John and Kate, and only loosely referencing its predecessor, Terminator Salvation picked up largely where T3 left off. Judgment Day nearly wiped out humanity through nuclear strikes around the globe, and the surviving human resistance was locked in a desperate conflict against sentient machines. A death-row inmate named Marcus Wright awakes alone, and navigates the post-apocalyptic world as he learns a sinister truth about himself while crossing paths with familiar Terminator characters.

In comparison to the other, non-Cameron sequels, Salvation is far and away the best, largely buoyed by its return to a gritty tone, and a strong performance by Sam Worthington, recommended to the production by Cameron, who worked with him on Avatar. Interestingly, the more preexisting characters like John and Kate get involved in the story, the more Salvation loses its focus, while the reportedly heavily reworked ending falls flat. That said, the film works best when it embraces the survivalist, post-apocalyptic possibilities of its premise, and the idea of humans being modified cybernetically was likely an influence on the creation of Dark Fate's new protagonist Grace.

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Terminator Genisys was an attempt to drastically reposition the franchise for new audiences, as the film explored divergent timelines resulting from the series' frequent use of time travel as a central narrative mechanic. Poised to destroy Skynet once and for all, John was corrupted by a new kind of Terminator while Kyle Reese was sent to the past to ensure humanity's eventual victory. He finds the world he expected much different, including a battle-ready Sarah raised by a visibly older T-800 facing threats from the future.

Of all the Terminator sequels to lack Cameron's direct involvement, Genisys is easily the worst, with its nonsensical plot and uninspired performances from most of its leads -- save Emilia Clarke's Sarah Connor, perhaps the film's only saving grace. The film's concept of divergent timelines from repeated abuse of the space-time continuum is intriguing, but not much is particularly done with it other than to offer the franchise a soft reboot that was quickly dismissed. The only discernible bit of influence from Genisys was the idea that Terminators could age due to organic matter covering their metal endoskeleton, explaining the aged appearance of the T-800 in Dark Fate.

Ultimately, Terminator Salvation is actually a pretty decent experience, while T3 is perfectly serviceable, as long as you don't think too hard about it; it's a paint-by-numbers cinematic thrill ride that winks at its audience far too often. As for Genisys, it's completely understandable why Dark Fate's filmmakers would want to avoid that installment; it messes with the established pacing and formula far too much, resulting in a bit of a train wreck. Without going into detail, given the story Dark Fate is trying to tell, it makes perfect sense that the three most recent Terminator films are ignored but there are strong elements Salvation and even T3 that should warrant a re-watch if given the opportunity.

Directed by Tim Miller and produced by James Cameron, Terminator: Dark Fate stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Mackenzie Davis, Gabriel Luna, Natalia Reyes and Diego Boneta. The film opens Friday nationwide.

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