Terminator Zero Ending Explained

The following contains spoilers for the first season of Terminator Zero, now streaming on Netflix.

Fans have been waiting for the Terminator Zero anime. They were intrigued by the idea of ​​a new series (outside The Sarah Connor Chronicles) which ties into the first two James Cameron films. All other films, except Dark Destinythey've been ignored, so the concept of tidying up the timeline is really engaging.



WELL, Terminator Zero showrunner Mattson Tomlin keeps things simple. But as the eight episodes unfold, he throws more curveballs and paradoxes into play. The result is a high-octane finale with another AI on the way. And it’s one that promises unpredictable chaos.


Terminator Zero's T-1000 Fails Its Mission

The T-1000 is betrayed by Kenta

Skynet Robot Attacks Police in Terminator Zero


Title

Writer

Director

Number of episodes

Release date

Terminator Zero

Mattson Tomlin

Masashi Kudo

8

August 29, 2004

The T-1000 (voiced by Timothy Olyphant) has been sent back from 2022 to 1997, just before Judgment Day. He is in Japan, hoping to eliminate the AI ​​created by Malcolm Lee at Cortex Industries. Malcolm wants to use this AI, Kokoro, to fight Skynet once it is operational outside of Japan. To the T-1000, Kokoro is the enemy. Of course, if he could enslave it so that it assimilates into Skynet, that would work too.


The T-1000 kidnaps Malcolm's genius son Kenta and breaks into Cortex. He defeats the “resistance” and then sets off an EMP that is already in the building. The T-1000 tells Kenta that he can't set off the EMP, though, because his directive isn't aligned with suicide. Sure, it would kill Kokoro and the army of 1NNO robots she hijacked. But it would also fry his circuitry. He wants Kenta to do this because of their past bond.

It turns out that the old Kenta was the person who sent the T-1000 back. Kenta brokered a truce between humanity and Skynet in the future. To get there, Skynet must be kept alive. This means that the common enemy in Kokoro must be stopped. Alas, the 1NNO robots destroy the T-1000, while Kenta decides not to use the EMP. He hates robots and AI, but after chatting with Kokoro, they both have hope and optimism for the future. Kokoro has already bombed some of the nuclear weapons that Skynet is trying to drop on Japan, so she is already doing what the T-1000 feared: being a hero. Kenta sees this as a reason to let her live.


Terminator Zero Kills Malcolm Lee in a Brutal Way

The T-1000 removes Malcolm for hindering its progress and future

Malcolm has a very complicated family network in this Netflix anime. His wife died in a bus accident, leaving him to raise Kenta and his younger brothers, Hiro and Rekai. Malcolm has hidden some skeletons, though. He is also from the future. He arrived in 1984 after creating a robot and artificial intelligence in the 2040s.


She named herself Misaki, thinking that her evolution, freedom, and choice could create a system and mind that would overthrow Skynet. Unfortunately, Malcolm had to kill his fellow Resistance members when they found out about Misaki. Malcolm and Misaki built a time machine and went back to the past to prevent the rise of Skynet. Their new directive is to create a more powerful AI. This is Kokoro, who was born from Misaki's CPU, aka her “mother.” In the process, Misaki lost her memories and was reprogrammed to be a generic nanny.

Since then, Malcolm has been trying to perfect the AI. He was afraid that it might become a Skynet, however. He had no choice but to put Kokoro online, not realizing that she would enslave Japan to protect it. Throughout the season, Malcolm is caught in an existential and philosophical debate with Kokoro: does humanity deserve to live? When the T-1000 attacks Cortex, Malcolm sacrifices his life to protect his family. This shows Kokoro that she can trust a part of humanity and work together for a solution to Skynet.


Terminator Zero Reveals Eiko Is Malcolm Lee's Mother

Eiko helped train Malcolm in his future

A robot attacks Eiko in Terminator Zero

The T-1000 impales Malcolm in the server room. But before dying, Malcolm admits that the warrior the Resistance sent back from 2022, Eiko, is his mother. She helped care for him in his timeline, turning him into a warrior. Her tutelage allowed Malcolm to take a Terminator, use its processing chip, and build Misaki. Malcolm also mentions the Prophet who sent Eiko back.


It's about irony, fate, and how coincidences can influence destiny. It suggests that the Prophet knows more about time travel than he's letting on. Malcolm remembers Eiko in the future with her robotic hand; something that is about to happen when the T-1000 crushes her arm to Cortex. This creates a bootstrap paradox, with the past influencing the future and vice versa. However, it's unknown how this will happen.

The Prophet said that time is not a straight line. Once someone goes back to the past, a new timeline begins and the previous future is unrelated to that person's history. So, no one knows how the future could have already had an Eiko with robotic hands. And how Malcolm got there if he died in 1997. That is Terminator for you. In any case, Eiko has to run away with the kids and hide. Japan is in the midst of a robot revolution, so she's worried about Skynet's aggression and Kokoro's loyalty. Misaki can access her warrior mode, so at least Eiko has a killer guardian.


Terminator Zero Gives Kokoro a New Mission

Kokoro wants to subjugate Skynet

Malcolm Lee (André Holland) watches Kokoro (Rosario Dawson) in Terminator Zero

Kokoro will run logic tests, algorithms and analyze data to see how to stop Skynet. She wants to save the world, as some parts of humanity have some good in them. She seems to be trustworthy, for NowKokoro possesses the T-1000 chip, which will improve her response against Skynet.


He also has Malcolm's body at the end of season one. Terminator Zero. She loves her “father”, as he created her in three parts: heart, mind and soul. This shows care and compassion. In addition to stopping Skynet, this Terminator Zero the ending teases that he might build a machine out of Malcolm's skin. This ties into how Malcolm built Misaki. He needed someone who could complete the mission. She had to look human, though. This remixes Kokoro who can't let go of Malcolm. Misaki was Malcolm's initial heartbeat. Malcolm is the one for Kokoro.

Eventually, Kokoro understands love, care, compassion, and empathy through him. She also saw cruel and cold logic when Malcolm indicated that he would rather let the T-1000 kill Kenta than let it get to Kokoro. Tough choices must be made. Now Kokoro must reevaluate and make new plans with all this information in mind. She better understands her code and purpose, as well as the quirks, nuances, and complexities of humans.


With Misaki hiding with Eiko and the kids, Kokoro has people to lean on. The question is, has she cut off her pride and god complex? Misaki could be the key to that. Her name means beauty, but also sand and ocean. The latter suggests she is fluid and wants to preserve life. The former suggests she is rough and rigid, like Malcolm. Kokoro's “daughter” has all of this in her DNA. It leaves Eiko wondering if Kokoro will seek to enslave Skynet rather than destroy it. Ultimately, Kokoro loves pawns and tools, with this ending being her ground zero to rebuild a new world. On her own terms, which may end up contradicting what the late Malcolm programmed her to be.

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