‘Terminator’ flashback: ‘Terminator 3: Terminator Hunt’ (2004) (Book review)

Although not as good as “Terminator Dreams,” “Terminator 3: Terminator Hunt” (2004) is another strong novel where Aaron Allston brings his character-writing skills to bear.

While newcomer Paul Keeley is the main character, we learn a lot about Kyla Connor here, and get additional insights into John as well, although he’s a side character. We also learn a lot about the T-X (although not the same unit as seen in “T3”). By book’s end, there are significant developments in the war effort, namely Paul having a functional silent radio in his head and the Resistance possessing a T-X. But this turned out to be the last “T3” book.

As with “Terminator Dreams,” Allston mentions major events from “Terminator” film lore but he is not at all beholden to long-established plot points or terminology from the “T1” or “T2” continuities. Between the film itself, the novelization, the Beckett comics and Allston’s books, a defining trait of the “T3” franchise is the way it reworks the mythology. Will the “Terminator Salvation” franchise pick up these threads, or do yet another reworking? We’ll find out when we get there in this flashback project.

CHARACTERS

John Connor: The leader of the Resistance, he is treated with commander-in-chief-like reverence in the “T3” universe, where the Resistance adheres closely to the U.S. military structure. Kate notes that John had a “gift of persuasion” (p. 64) that was the main reason he was able to organize and lead the Resistance. Kyla notes that John had to learn how to be a leader, because he is not a “natural” leader (p. 128).

Sarah Connor: She’s not in this novel, having died in 1997 in the “T3” continuity.

Kyle Reese: He’s not in this novel, having been sent back on his time-travel mission earlier in 2029.

Kate Connor: John’s wife and second in command.

Kyla Connor: John and Kate’s daughter, who is 17 in 2029 (p. 61), develops a relationship with Paul Keeley. She is a sniper with the Hell Hounds, a key Resistance squadron.

The other two Connor kids: Allston mentions on page 124 that John and Kate raised three kids, but there’s no other reference to Kyla’s two siblings.

Paul Keeley: In the tradition of Dudley from the Dark Horse 1984 saga – and later, Marcus Wright from “Salvation” – Paul is a human, but his brain has Skynet wiring in it. An element of nanotech, reminiscent of the Blackford “T2” trilogy, also controls him. As the book begins, Skynet makes him believe he’s a pre-Judgment Day historian living in San Diego and flirting with Eliza (actually a T-X). At the story’s end, we learn the tech in his brain can be reprogrammed and used as a radio, which would be a valuable resource on upcoming missions.

Tom Carter: This Resistance lieutenant is among the reprogrammers of Terminators. This is a common skill in the “T3” continuity, where the Resistance owns several reprogrammed Terminators. The skill is rarer in previous continuities; for example, Danny Dyson is a key character in the Malibu Comics “T2” saga due to his ability to reprogram the robots.

Raymond Mears: In a rarity for the saga, we see significant conflict within the Resistance hierarchy through the antagonistic character of Mears, the head of Clover Compound, located right next door to Skynet’s Navajo Mountain.

TERMINATORS

Eliza (a T-X): Owning the default visage of Kristanna Loken – like all T-Xs — Eliza is part of Skynet’s program where T-Xs learn about humans and how to manipulate them in advance of possible time-travel missions (p. 262). One of the visages she adopts in this novel is that of Sarah Connor, as part of a plot to infiltrate the Resistance. T-Xs can fool dogs (p. 165), but Skynet can’t manufacture them quickly enough to fill the battlefields, nor can it train them fast enough to send them back on time-travel missions. This somewhat contradicts the “T3” novelization, where we’re told that Skynet had begun scrapping T-800s and T-1000s earlier in 2029, thanks to the rise of the T-X. Allston rolls that back in “Terminator Dreams,” where Kate observes that perhaps Skynet hadn’t scrapped all of the older models after all. Indeed, the old models are very much in use throughout “Terminator Hunt.”

T-801: Allston reveals that the 1994 Arnold model was a T-801 (p. 72). In previous continuities, that model had most commonly been called a T-800, model 101, although it is called a T-101 in the Stirling “T2” trilogy.

Glitch: The Hell Hounds’ reprogrammed Terminator is of the Arnold-style T-850 series as seen in “T3.”

T-600s: As usual, this is the earliest model of infiltrator. It runs on one hydrogen fuel cell, whereas T-850s use two.

Assault robots: Called endoskeletons in most continuities, Allston embraces the term “assault robot” throughout this book.

T-400: Allston mentions “the ancient T-400 series” in a throwaway line (p. 47). In a deleted scene from the movie (and a scene in the novelization), Arnold-style T-800s (or T-801s, as it were) are in the early stages of development before J-Day. But apparently the humans had in-between series such as the T-400 further along the development process at that time as well.

T-1s, T-5s and T-7s: These models were deadly in the early days of the war (p. 64), but by 2029 they seem “quaint and crude.”

CONTINUITY AND CONTRADICTIONS

Unless you count scenes where Paul thinks he is in the past, “Terminator Hunt” takes place entirely during the Future War, from September through November 2029, right after the events of “Terminator Dreams.” As with that book, John and his core Resistance team serve as a supporting cast while Allston focuses on a new character, in this case Paul Keeley.

San Diego is the location of the Skynet base where T-Xs study the behavior of humans to learn how to be more human for time-travel missions (p. 16). It’s the first time San Diego has been the location of a Skynet base; it was a safe port in the Stirling “T2” trilogy.

Kyla’s dogs need a lot of extra training to accept good Terminators such as Glitch (p. 23). This contrasts with the scene in “Terminator 2” – believed by many to be a continuity error – where the Salcedas’ dog has no problem with the T-800.

In a throwaway reference, Allston notes that some humans work for Skynet (p. 43). This concept was explored most thoroughly in the Stirling “T2” trilogy.

Skynet uses nanotechnology to erase Paul’s memories, give him false memories and generally take control of his brain (p. 125). Reprogramming humans in this manner was a central feature of Skynet’s strategy in the Blackford “T2” trilogy.

Allston’s “T3” continuity features the Resistance at its most technically competent of any timeline up to this point. In addition to maintaining the U.S. military structure, complete with an Air Force (a blimp with chameleon abilities called the Blowfish factors into the final battle), the Resistance has manufacturing plants up and running for items such as CDs.

TIMELINES AND TIME TRAVEL

There is no time travel in this book, but there is an interesting piece of information on the subject: The Resistance had used the Edwards Air Force Base Continuum Transporter three times (p. 72) – presumably a reference to the good guys’ time travel in the three movies. In this continuity, in stark contrast to the “T1” or “T2” continuities, Skynet does not know about the CT the Resistance uses. Skynet had used its Navajo Mountain CT to send back its Terminators, but the Resistance has access to that information (thanks to Daniel Avila from “Terminator Dreams”), thus allowing it to respond in kind at the Edwards CT.