The Terminator #3 is the third comic book issue in The Terminator comic book series published by Dynamite Entertainment. It was published on December 11, 2024.
Premise[]
Official description of The Terminator #3 from Dynamite Entertainment:[1]
It's the last days of the Vietnam War, and the scale of the violence and destruction that have been unleashed seems unreal. But nothing that Private Duggan has experienced in battle could have prepared him for the thing that just tore his squad to ribbons and then walked through the hellish fire of an airstrike seemingly unscathed.
If there is some way to kill it, Duggan isn't sticking around to find out. Now on the run, the lone soldier desperately makes his way through the collapsing country to join the U.S. Army's final evacuation back to the States - but will the chaos and crowds of Saigon be enough to thwart the unrelenting force that is hunting him?
Writer DECLAN SHALVEY and artist LUKE SPARROW bring a sharp new perspective on the horrors of war with The Terminator #3, featuring suitably steely covers from SHALVEY, EDWIN GALMON, DREW MOSS, and DAVID COUSENS!
Plot summary for "Apocalypse Then: Part Two"[]
1976, Vietnam. U.S. Marine Edward Duggan stares at the approaching Terminator, now so battle-damaged that the left side of its metallic skull is exposed. Before it can finish him off, the machine is distracted by an incoming column of tanks. Seizing the opportunity, Duggan jumps onto his bike and speeds away as artillery shells rain down on the Terminator.
As he rides, Duggan questions his own sanity, until he realizes the T-800 is still coming for him: now reduced to a metallic endoskeleton, the machine has commandeered a tank. Duggan weaves through incoming fire, narrowly avoiding being hit, until he reaches the abandoned French airstrip. Spotting a fallen tree, Duggan uses it as a makeshift ramp, launching himself over the perimeter fence. The Terminator simply smashes the tank against the fence.
Inside the airstrip, American soldiers see the Communist tank chasing Duggan and come to his help, quickly destroying it. At the same time, North Vietnamese forces launch an assault, using the gap in the fence that the Terminator created. Amid the chaos, none of the combatants notice the flaming endoskeleton rising from the tank's wreckage and silently walking away.
Duggan presents himself to an officer, hastily lying that he was ordered to check on some refugees. The officer, pressed for time, tells him to move quickly and then board the next helicopter. Duggan finally finds his “treasure”: his Vietnamese wife, Thu, cradling their young son, Joey. After an emotional reunion, the three board a waiting Huey helicopter, which lifts off toward the Seventh Fleet.
Relieved, Duggan shakes the pilot’s hand in gratitude, only to feel an inhuman grip crushing his fingers: it's the Terminator, his skull covered by the pilot's helmet. Duggan pulls his sidearm and opens fire, blasting off the already damaged machine’s head. The Terminator slumps into sleep mode as Duggan struggles to keep control of the chopper with one hand. As he fights to stay conscious, Thu tends to his injuries. Against all odds, they manage to contact the USS Peoria.
As they approach the ship, Thu puts on a life jacket and jumps into the water with Joey. But before Duggan can follow, the Terminator reboots, its skeletal hands locking around his throat. Gritting his teeth, Duggan makes a choice: if he’s going to die, he’s taking the machine with him. He crashes the Huey into the sea.
On the deck of the Peoria, Thu watches in horror alongside Duggan’s friend, Hernandez. But Duggan has survived, floating face-down as the Terminator sinks into the abyss, its glowing eyes locked onto Duggan’s until the darkness swallows it whole.
1997, Los Angeles. An older Edward Duggan lies in a hospital bed, surrounded by photographs of his family. As Judgment Day unfolds outside, he watches the mushroom cloud rise over the city. And just like in Vietnam, he cannot look away.
Characters and machines in "Apocalypse Then: Part Two"[]
- Edward Duggan
- T-800 (Apocalypse Then)
- Thu Duggan
- Joey Duggan
- Hernandez
Plot summary for "Buried Alive"[]
Characters and machines in "Buried Alive"[]
Covers gallery[]
