I was fired-up to go see Terminator: Salvation at the midnight opening show. I talked Hooch and Ashley into going with me, and we had fun there and watched Angels & Demons until T4 started. Surprisingly, the show was not a sellout. I had thought it would be, but it gave me room to breathe (unlike National Treasure 2).

We watched the show, and it was entertaining. We ooh-ed and ahh-ed at the sweet looking terminators, what little time they spent on the screen. Bale wasn’t horrible, his wife just kinda stood there being pregnant, and the acting overall was decent.

Unfortunately, they tried to connect the characters and audience and failed – miserably.

I’ve been trying to figure out why the connection didn’t happen. It was one of those things that kept bugging me every now and then. Why couldn’t I make the connection with characters I liked and a franchise I thoroughly enjoy?

Today, Erich had Spiderman 3 on while I was job searching and it hit me. The Terminator franchise has never been about the deep character empathy like in the Spiderman franchise, something they tried to force in the latest film.

For example: When aunt May gets attacked we feel for her. Peter loves MJ, and she loves him.

Unfortunately, I understand the characters in the Terminator movies, I just don’t empathize with them. Frankly, I don’t see how anyone could. They face sci-fi problems that we can’t even imagine. It’s loosely based in reality, but not enough so that I feel connected to John Connor or anyone else in the franchise.

While Spiderman is full of fantasy as well, it is also tightly wound in with the fabric of everyone’s life in the film. We have all felt loss, anger, and most importantly love. These emotions are present in T4 as well, but not to the degree or as realistically as in Spiderman.

Maybe it’s just me, and sound off if you think so. I just don’t feel the latest incarnation is what it should be. Of course, I am a little bitter about FOX canceling the television series that I liked. Oh well.

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