Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Terminator #8! John Connor is famously the ultimate savior of humanity in humans will ultimately beat the Terminators and win the war in the future - that’s how important John Connor is. However, now fans are learning that he didn’t do it alone, as the big secret behind John’s defeat of Skynet is about to be revealed.

In the solicitation for Dynamite Entertainment’s The Terminator #8 by Declan Shalvey and Colin Craker, fans are given a first-look at the main and variant covers for the issue (by artists Declan Shalvey, Edwin Galmon, Cat Staggs, and David Cousens) as well as the official synopsis.

While the covers don’t really offer any notable plot points for the issue - aside from just being badass - the synopsis reveals something pretty shocking, and very cool: John Connor doesn’t defeat Skynet alone. Obviously, John Connor always led an army against the Terminators, so he clearly didn’t stop Skynet all alone. But this preview makes it seem like one other person was just as integral to taking down Skynet as John himself - and fans have no idea who this “grizzled veteran” is.

New Terminator Comic Will Introduce Someone Just as Important as John Connor

How Will This Unseen Savior of Humanity Be Introduced in Terminator Lore?

Terminator's John Connor (Christian Bale) looking surprised.

It seems a ‘grizzled veteran’ will work with John Connor personally in the war-torn future to take down Skynet once and for all, which is a detail to John’s story of victory over the machines that fans have never gotten before. So, if this person is just as integral to humanity’s survival as John, how is he going to be introduced?

Surely Skynet will know how dangerous this ‘grizzled veteran’ is, and will send Terminators to assassinate them in the past, just as Skynet did with John Connor himself. Does that mean this ‘grizzled veteran’ will be introduced just like John was in Terminator 2? Or will this story only take place in the future, skipping the timey-wimey aspect of the franchise entirely? At this point, that remains to be seen, but just the idea that a person just as important as John exists in The Terminator universe is exciting.

Terminator #8 will be a Departure for the Comic Series’ Current Formula

Dynamite Entertainment’s Terminator has Steered Clear of John Connor - Until Now

A T-800 Terminator holding a machine gun with an explosion behind it.

Interestingly, the most fascinating aspect of this new ‘grizzly veteran’ character’s introduction is that their story will intersect with that of John Connor - someone this comic series has greatly avoided. Dynamite Entertainment’s Terminator comic has been telling original anthology stories that take place in The Terminator universe while avoiding the main canon that’s been done to death in the movies and original comic book tie-ins. However, now that is no longer the case, as not only will Dynamite’s Terminator touch on John’s story, it’s effectively changing it.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator next to Alien's Xenomorph.
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John Connor is no longer the number one most important person in human history in The Terminator universe, as there is another who is seemingly just as integral to humanity’s victory over Skynet as John Connor himself. The Terminator #8 may detail “the darkest days of the war”, but it will certainly be a bright spot for fans, as The Terminator is about to reveal a big secret behind John Connor’s defeat of Skynet.

The Terminator #8 by Dynamite Entertainment is available May 21, 2025.