The Terminator (NOW Comics)

The Terminator
Cover of issue #1
Original run	1988 - 1990
Issues	17
Publisher	NOW Comics
Written by	Fred Schiller, various
Penciled by	Tony Akins, various
Inked by	Jim Brozman, various
Colored by	Rich Powers, various
Genre	Science fiction
Country	USA
Language	English
Timeline	NOW Comics timeline
Series navigation
Next →	Terminator: The Burning Earth

NOW Comics published 17 issues under the title The Terminator from 1988 to 1990.

The series is an anthology of stories featuring new characters fighting in John Connor's Resistance army against Skynet in 2031.

Issues

#	Story title	Written by	Date	Official synopsis
1	(untitled)	Fred Schiller	Sep 1988	He's back! Five hundred pounds of unstoppable terror! The TERMINATOR! But now, it's the year 2031, and the battle between humanity and The Terminators continues! Non-stop action and suspense!
2	(untitled)	Tony Caputo	Oct 1988	The conclusion to the first issue's story. The rebels discover that there is a way to stop a TERMINATOR!
3	If I Had A Rocket Launcher...	Tony Caputo	Nov 1988	The savage assault on the SARAH'S SLAMMERS homebase which ends in death, destruction, and a startling revelation!
4	Amahiri	Jack Herman	Jan 1989	On a small island off the coast of Africa [there] is a tribe that talks about the blacken sky of thirty years before. They don't [know] why, until SKYNET sends a Terminator to destroy the rain forests, thus destroying humanity. It's the plasma-rifle against the six foot spear in a most unusual story!
5	The Bee Stings	Jack Herman	Feb 1989	Part Two of a TERMINATOR in paradise. After being savagely attacked by a black panther, the TERMINATOR decides that the island's human savages must all die!
6	Goin' Back to Miami	Jack Herman	Mar 1989	Part One of Terminators in the Everglades. Two heavy metal machines are holding Deffard hostage for info, and his friends have to break him out or kill him!
7	Big Bad Wolf: A Dog Bits Man Story	Jack Herman	Apr 1989	A special one issue story by penciller Robin Ator about a different type of TERMINATOR. Can man's best friend now be his mortal enemy?
8	In the Belly of the Beast	Jack Herman	May 1989	Beginning the final battle which will be an uphill climb to meet the famous John Connor!
9	(untitled)	Ron Fortier	Jun 1989	Beginning the final battle which will be an uphill climb to meet the famous John Connor!
10	Better Now Than Never	Ron Fortier	Jul 1989	Beginning the final battle which will be an uphill climb to meet the famous John Connor in the special double sized issue #12.
11	Factories	Ron Fortier	Aug 1989	Konrad and Tim visit a baby making factory run by nuns beneath an amusement park?
12	Night-Convoy	Ron Fortier	Sep 1989	Special Double-Sized Anniversary Issue! The return of John Connor!
13	(untitled)	Ron Fortier	Oct 1989	Read from the journals of Timothy Reese - Mexico in the year 2067!
14	Into the Deep Blue Sea	Ron Fortier	Nov 1989	Sarah's Slammers crash their HK in the ocean and sink to the bottom! They are ok, but can they swim?
15	See Cuba and Die!	Ron Fortier	Dec 1989	Sarah's Slammers head for Cuba to save The Habitat, but there's mutiny ahead!
16	The Battle of Cuba	Ron Fortier	Jan 1990	The battle in Cuba may be the end of the Slammers! Doyle takes on an army of Terminators in a man-made fighting machine called the Metal Warrior!
17	Escape to Silver Dollar	Ron Fortier	Feb 1990	The last official issue of The Terminator before the mini-series! It's a fill-in issue by Robin Ator set in a human work camp!

Issue #1
"2031"

Issue #2
"The Flesh is Weak"

Issue #3
"If I Had a Rocket Launcher"

Issue #4
"Amahiri"

Issue #5
"The Bee Stings"

Issue #6
"Goin' Back to Miami"

Issue #7
"Big Bad Wolf"

Issue #8
"In the Belly of the Beast"

Issue #9
"Cocoa Beach, Part 1"

Issue #10
"Cocoa Beach, Part 2"

Issue #11
"Factories"

Issue #12
"Night Convoy"

Issue #13
"From the Journals of Timothy Reese, Mexico, 2067"

Issue #14
"Into the Deep Blue Sea"

Issue #15
"See Cuba and Die!"

Issue #16
"The Battle of Cuba"

Issue #17
"Escape to Silver Dollar"

Characters

Resistance and affiliates

Skynet and affiliates

Connor's Grizzlies Resistance Command Cell (Sierra Madre, Mexico) John Connor - aka "The Golden Bear" Miguel "Patch" DeVerona Gerrald "Gerry" Gagnon - Mechanic Sarah's Slammers Resistance Cell ("Home Base": 55 miles west of Miami) Commander Mike Leahy - Cell commander Brady Spector Essie Borge - Mining Specialist Doyle Tom Slager Dwyer Skreinzti Pratt Steacy Lewis Reedfoot - Recon The Synth-Slashers Resistance Cell Johnny-O - Cell Commander Tim Reese - (age 14) Kyle Reese's younger brother Ann Tommy Holewczynski Hansen's 3rd De-Mechanized Infantry Battalion Resistance Cell (Orlando) Schroeder Dante Monroe Taylor Grippit Zucker Dann Deffard R.97143 - Regional Command Strategist The Field Hospital Resistance Cell (Duluth) Colonel Pinewood - Cell Commander Marissa Powell - Doctor Rip The Chief - Mechanic Barryman The Horse Soldiers Resistance Cell (Cocoa Beach) Major "Iron Horse" Adams - Cell Commander Tucker Reynolds Daniels Jameson The Breeders Resistance Baby Factory (Mort-Dizzy World, Orlando, Florida) Dr. Hiram Potterwax - IVF Scientist Sister Claire - Cell Commander Sister Irene Sister Gladys Peter Eddie Colin Savoy - Maintenance Cyndi The Amazons Resistance Transporters (Orlando, Florida) Ann Marie "Amazon Annie" Welch Johnny Go Dolores Amanda Wanda The Sea Wind Soviet Research Submarine (Habitat, Cuba) Captain Rostov - Captain of the Sea Wind Carlos Ramirez - First Officer Lt. Maria Ramirez Major Romchecki Sergeant Stanos Yuri Pietroff - Power Armor Pilot Seaman Skorbivitch - Mutineer Doctor Yerkol Nurse Natalie Tunnel A-1 Resistance Cell]' (Detroit, Michigan) Max Coogan Eddie Maude Sue Ian Sloane - Resistance Informant The Survivors Sam Clemente - Scavenger Salvador Clemente - Scavenger The Lunar Colonials ("Li'l Huston" Lunar Base est. 1998) Rosetti - Mission Commander Konrad - Lunar Synthetic Katherine Casey "K.C." Berwanger - Pilot Chi Gow Lotney Tama - Seminole The Yanomami (The Fierce People) Indigenous Honduran tribe The Yanomamo Headman Shaki Kao Dawa Teke - Yanomamo Shaman The Tukini-Teri Indigenous Honduran tribe The Tukini-Teri Headman Baro - The Tukini-Teri Shaman Alice - Detroit Slave Laborer Death Camp Survivors Darwin, California (Silver Dollar, Nevada) Jean Starr Charley Bell Lafe McWilliams - Corporate Lawyer Cleve Andrews - Army Captain Sasha Bovic

The Mother The Baby The Awahiri HK-417 - HK-Aerial The Wolf The Sickened JBH-311 Endo Reedfoot CEX-45 DIX-190 - Called a Series 1000 but is a standard Endoskeleton Cyborg, also TechnoDyne Terminator Unit 101 (aka Series 800, Model 101) Goliath-103 - TechnoDyne Terminator Unit 103 (aka Series 800, Model 101) "Goliath" upgrade Goliath-107 - TechnoDyne Terminator Unit 107 Upgrade (Mentioned only)

The Tech

• Hi-Tom - CIA Spy-Sat
• Flesh Farm - (Bedford Falls, Florida)
• Plasma - (GE-380, 506-PHW, Plasma 404, Plasma 1-X Regulator)
• Deforestation Tower -
• Viking - War-Shuttle
• TechnoDyne -
• Sea-Sac - IVF Test-Tube birthing center
• The Metal Warrior - Soviet Power Armor

Chronology

• 2029 - Terminator: All My Futures Past, NOW Comics, #1-2 (Aug. 1990 - Sep. 1990)
• 2031 - Rust, NOW Comics, #12 (Aug. 1988)
• 2031 - The Terminator, NOW Comics, #1–17 (Sep. 1988 - Feb. 1990)
• 2041 - Terminator: The Burning Earth, NOW Comics, #1–5 (Mar. – July 1990)

Continuity notes

• The NOW Comics timeline deviates after the events of The Terminator and prior to the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
• Published from 1988 to 1990, these comics operated in a vacuum, and contain numerous factual differences from what would be later established as core canon for the franchise. Only the events of the first movie were available for use as reference material. Because of this, the common errors of mixing Terminator model and series notation are repeated. Interestingly enough, T-600s are mentioned.
• The NOW series takes considerable liberties with the looks and abilities of Skynet machines. Endoskeletons often look like little more than human skeletons with mechanical joints.
  • In issue #17, endoskeletons are actually able to change their facial expression despite no evidence of organic tissue or liquid metal.
  • The bodies of HK-Aerials are not as wide as in the movies and do not have the deep recess at the front. Their engines are farther from the main body; this makes them look more like modern unmanned drones. Issues#2 and #3 show that they have cockpits with overriding manual controls, and also appear to have weapons on their engines.

• Terminators in the series seem to exhibit a wide range of emotions, including fear, which directly contradicts movie canon. They also show a great deal of personal autonomy, sometimes even going as far as to argue with Skynet.

Notes

• With a few exceptions, most Terminators in this series appear to be similar in appearance to Arnold Schwarzenegger, and generally wear matching leather jackets, grey pants, and sunglasses.
• In Terminator: The Burning Earth, more physical types of Terminator are added, though the uniforms stay.
• HK-Tanks do not appear at all until Terminator: The Burning Earth.