The beloved Terminator franchise introduced one of cinema's most terrifying but memorable villains of all time: The T-800 Terminator, a robot sent from the future to ensure the extinction of humankind. In particular, the T-800 sent back to May 1984 was the T-101 model, designed to appear as a musclebound human male (portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger_.
At first, the T-101 Terminator was the ultimate movie antagonist, a merciless, unfeeling killing machine that would stop at nothing to see Sarah Connor, the mother of the resistance, dead at its feet. However, the franchise soon got creative and re-cast the T-101 as a brutal antihero in 1991's T2: Judgment Day, reinventing the character entirely. Was this a good move, or should the T-101 have remained a villain?
10 T-101 IS A BETTER VILLAIN: That's How The Character Was Introduced
Even if a character in fiction is portrayed in different ways with equal merit, fans might prefer the character as they first appeared, since that is how they made their first impression. In real life, first impressions are a powerful thing, and it's not easy to change an impression like that.
The T-101 Terminator made its big debut as a vicious killer in 1984's The Terminator, and that movie was out for seven years before Arnold's character was reimagined as a hero in the sequel. Some fans might find that awkward, and long for the killer robot they first met in 1984.
9 T-101 IS A BETTER HERO: It Provides More Insight Into Terminators & Skynet
Fans got some details on the future war with the ultra-intelligent Skynet during the first two movies, enough to at least understand the plot and know why the machines want to destroy John Connor so badly. However, the original, villainous T-101 Terminator was in no mood for exposition.
As a villain, the T-101 is rather tight-lipped, speaking just enough to find Sarah Connor and try to kill her. By contrast, a heroic T-101 will share whatever details it can to its ally about Skynet and Terminators in general. This can deepen the lore in a sensible and organic way.
8 T-101 IS A BETTER VILLAIN: The Villainous T-101 Is The Ultimate In Sci-Fi Horror
The original Terminator wasn't just an action movie or a summer blockbuster; it was also a horror movie in terms of its storytelling style and the aesthetics of the movie itself. This reflects in the soundtrack, the moody lighting, the pursuit scenes and sense of creeping dread, and more.
Thus, the original Terminator is a crafty and resourceful blend of 1980s sci-fi and horror, and this only works if the villain is an invincible, skeletal robot that can easily overpower its all-too-human targets. Not even the lauded T2: Judgment Day could pull this off.
7 T-101 IS A BETTER HERO: It's A Thrilling Novelty
Some fans of the original Terminator might like this character better as a villain, but there is still plenty of merit to repurposing it as a hero instead. At the very least, this is a serious novelty that's sure to generate buzz, since few movie franchises just turn their villains 180 degrees like that.
A movie trailer from the early 1990s gave away this big twist ahead of time, but still, this reversal made the franchise feel incredibly fresh just two movies in, and it's both scary and thrilling to see this killer robot defending humanity this time.
6 T-101 IS A BETTER VILLAIN: It's A Bigger Threat That Way
A proper action movie or horror flick needs a powerful foe to create high stakes and tension until the very end. Movies are best when their heroes are resourceful and gritty underdogs who prevail with ingenuity rather than brute force, and having a T-101 as the villain is the perfect setup.
Even a war veteran such as Kyle Reese had the odds stacked against him, and that went double for the civilian Sarah Connor. If they had a friendly T-101 by their side, it would have been an even match, and plot armor would ensure that the good T-101 would have won. Instead, one villainous T-101 vs vulnerable humans is the perfect setup.
5 T-101 IS A BETTER HERO: The Tense Ambiguity Of The Terminator's Mission (At First)
If a viewer sees T2 for the first time without any spoilers (whether in 1991 or now), then they won't be sure who the T-101 is fighting for when it appears in early-1990s Los Angeles that night. The T-101 was vicious as usual when it entered that biker bar, but it was also vaguely funny and a bit merciful this time.
The new T-101 was just barely heroic enough to make its motives and mission ambiguous, and a spoiler-free viewer would wonder whose side that Terminator is on. Then, the awesome plot twist arrives: This T-101 is a hero, and it has a new, liquid metal Terminator to face.
4 T-101 IS A BETTER VILLAIN: It Prevents Power Creep
Power creep is a common term for video games, but it can happen in other works of fiction too, when two or more sides have to keep boosting their strength to outdo the other in a never-ending arms race. The Terminator franchise did this too, with stronger and stronger Terminator models appearing so they can challenge the T-101.
This happened in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, when the T-X had to be incredibly advanced just to challenge the T-101, and the same happened with the Terminator John Connor in Terminator Genisys. This can easily get out of control, but if the T-101 is the villain, then its human foes don't necessitate any power creep.
3 T-101 IS A BETTER HERO: The Power Creep Can Be Managed Sometimes
Then again, perhaps the Terminator franchise can handle the power creep if it is careful. In T2, the T-101 Terminator is a hero for the first time, and no human foe can properly challenge it. So, Skynet sent in the newest killer robot, the all-liquid T-1000. Nothing like it had been seen before.
This Terminator is more advanced than the T-101, such as its shapeshifting abilities and its habit of reshaping its arms into blades. However, this Terminator had enough weaknesses to give the T-101 a fighting chance, and thus power creep was kept in check with a T-101 as the hero.
2 T-101 IS A BETTER VILLAIN: Its Role Is To Kill People, Not Protect Them
Terminators try to pass themselves off as human for the sake of a mission, but they are no ally to mankind. These monstrous machines were designed to wipe out humanity and ensure Skynet's supremacy on Earth for all time, and thus they are called Terminators. Their murderous job is in their name.
For that reason alone, it makes the most sense to keep the T-101 and its kin as villains, and changing them into heroes too often waters down the "killer robot" concept and weakens Skynet's image as a villain. Repeatedly sanitizing the T-101 as a gruff but cool hero sabotages the entire concept of a Terminator.
1 T-101 IS A BETTER HERO: Arnold Can Do More Acting As A Hero
Arnold Schwarzenegger is a beloved actor, being wildly popular ever since the early to mid 1980s for his many action movie roles. He did portray the T-101 quite well, but he had few lines as that character, and his character gave the actor no opportunities to show the full range of his acting chops. A stern, aloof robot isn't terribly expressive.
By contrast, a heroic T-101 played by Arnold Schwarzenegger can show a wider range of emotions and types of dialogue, as T2 showed. Only a heroic T-101 that is on humanity's side will show that side of itself, especially when John Connor actually teaches it to imitate emotions and use fun slang. Classic lines such as "Hasta la vista, baby" were uttered by the heroic T-101, not the villainous one.
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