History, or at least the way that the future as we know it in The Terminator, is changing, and resistance fighter Ben is central to the new timeline. With an older Kyle Reese having been rescued from a facility seemingly after his death at the metal hands of the T-800 during the events of the first film, he asks Ben to get involved and save him back in 1984. Ben, having now consummated his relationship with Paige, is reluctant, until things take an even darker turn.

Though writer Zack Whedon is aiming to put intriguing twists on the events of The Terminator, it’s just not particularly well executed, or interesting. Whedon has failed to capitalise on the one compelling element of this story so far (the survival of Reese), and even worse it seems to cheapen The Terminator as a story overall.

I’m also still not convinced at all by the romance at the heart of the story; Ben and Paige’s relationship just seems to have blossomed in a completely unearned way.

The art also seems much more awkward in this issue; amateurish, even. Though many comics have done well to go beyond the core cast of characters and time loop setting of the original film, this retelling/reimagining of the events leading up to Reese’s arrival in 1984 misfires in all kinds of ways.

It’s dreadfully dull and feels entirely pointless, with clunky dialogue and unengaging characters. Will things improve as we head into the second part of the series, with The Terminator: 1984? We shall see.