Alexander Williams

Each movie, and now the TV series, has given us at least one new type of Terminator, from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s hulking T-800 to increasingly complex and nanotech-inspired villains. As our techno-anxieties have evolved, so have the Terminators. But are the robots getting tougher, or just harder to explain? And are the latest models a breakthrough in killer robotics, or low-budget, made-for-TV throwbacks? Here’s a model-by-model breakdown of humanity’s greatest enemies and reprogrammed allies.