Terminator: Genisys has been keeping fans on edge since its announcement - and not without good reason. The last two entries in the franchise - Terminator: Rise of the Machines and Terminator Salvation - were well below the standard of quality set by James Cameron's first two installments - and the info fans have heard about Terminator: Genisys' time-hopping, semi-reboot plotline has been more confusing than inspiring.

Watching the Terminator: Genisys trailer above will probably provide some answers - but it's also going to leave people with a whole lot of new questions.

Here's what we know from the trailer:  We finally get to see the side of the original Terminator movie we never did before - namely, seeing John Connor (Jason Clarke) first sending Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) back in time to save Sarah Connor. When Reese gets back to 1984, however, the mission and history explained to him is vastly different, as Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) is an already trained warrior, with an older Terminator unit (Arnold Schwarzenegger) serving as her protector.

From there it gets a little confusing as to what the plan is (beyond the usual 'stop Skynet and prevent Judgement Day' routine), but with foes like the original T-800 unit - and a new T-1000 unit - on their trail, Connor, Reese, and the Guardian Terminator may not last long enough to accomplish much.

Directed by Game of Thrones and Thor: The Dark World director Alan Taylor, Terminator: Genisys is attempting to do an awful lot at once, and it's questionable whether that "all-in" approach is going to attract fans, or further aggravate them. We have new actors inhabiting familiar characters while revisiting familiar places from James Cameron's first film, with a new aesthetic being established by a new director; a villain from the second film thrown in; and dangling mysteries about where the older version of Schwarzenegger came from, and why he repurposed Sarah Connor to be a warrior so early on.

Needless to say, the script by Patrick Lussier (Drive AngryDracula 2000) and Laeta Kalogridis (Shutter Island, Alexander) will need to be on sharp point to cover all continuity requirements while still carving out a new, rebooted story to pursue into two sequels. Beyond that challenge, however, director Alan Taylor will also need to sell people on the type of visual aesthetic that he is bringing to the franchise.

Arnold Schwarzenegger in 'Terminator Genisys'
Arnold Schwarzenegger in 'Terminator Genisys'

Even with good visual effects used to bring back the younger version of Arnold Schwarzenegger, or to once again create the T-1000 villain, there is no denying that this film doesn't quite measure up to the masterful levels of design and film technology Cameron put into his versions.

If anything, what's seen here is more on par with Terminator 3 - something a lot of fans will likely take issue with. The story of the film may be enough to entice people once they learn more about it - for further details, be sure to check out our set visit preview.

Terminator Genisys Set Visit Preview & Plot Details

Terminator Genisys Poster

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Terminator: Genisys will be in theaters on July 1, 2015.

Source: Paramount Pictures