The next chapter in the Terminator saga is less then a month away. With so much excitement building I feel it is necessary to review the first three chapters in the story.

The first movie simply titled The Terminator was released in 1984 and almost immediately became a blockbuster hit. It stood out from the pack with its over the top special effects and its time traveling story. It was a huge success and spawned two, and now three sequels as well as a television show on Fox. The first movie was released on VHS and later on DVD. It included a minimal amount of bonus features on its initial DVD release, but would later be re-released as a special addition.

In 1991, the sequel, T2: Judgment Day was released in theatres. Surpassing the first movie, it was an instant hit breaking box office records. It maintained all the greatness from the first movie and expanded on the Terminators lore.

This time putting Arnold in the role of the Terminator, but as guardian of John Connor, it changed up what we were expecting as moviegoers. I remember hearing the rumor of Arnold being a good terminator and couldn’t believe it. I wasnt expecting that kind of twist. The special effects were again over the top and cutting edge. Things that we saw on that screen were unlike anything that had ever been seen before. It was a technological breakthrough and many things have gone on to be standard practice in the years since. The DVD was packed with all the history and special features that you have come to expect. It was all packaged in a cool metallic collectors sleeve. It was truly the way to own the movie.

Ten years later, the dark horse of the franchise, Rise of The Machines was released. It was by Terminators standards a flop, but with almost $400 million is ticket sales, it would have been considered a huge success for any other franchise. The DVD was packed with extras and was just as good as the first two releases. There will undoubtedly be a special Blu-ray version of each of the first three movies and will be even more awesome in all their high definition glory.

Hopefully the newest movie will return the glory to the franchise that I grew up loving.