While it is no secret that any model android within the Terminator franchise wouldn’t stand a chance against practically any fighter in the Dragon Ball universe, the manga introduced a character that was seemingly a direct copy of the Terminator’s T-800, except Dragon Ball’s version of the nearly identical killer robot makes the original look absolutely pathetic.
The T-800, made famous by actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, made its debut in the film Terminator which was the movie that launched the franchise into what it is today. In the film, the T-800 is sent back in time to kill the mother of humanity’s last remaining hope–a woman named Sarah Connor. Sarah was destined to raise John Connor who would grow up to be the leader of the human resistance against the machines in the not-too-distant future after the killer robots effectively conquered the planet. While the T-800 was sent back in time to kill Sarah Connor, a man named Kyle Reese was also sent to the past to protect her, though his mission was far more difficult than the Terminator’s. No matter what the two humans did, the T-800 proved to be an unstoppable force of impending death as it was almost completely indestructible.
In Dragon Ball Chapter 58 by Akira Toriyama, Goku is storming the gates of a Red Ribbon Army base after the organization’s villainous nature comes to his attention. This comes after Goku was searching for the Dragon Balls and was attacked by the Red Ribbon Army as they, too, were seeking the wish-granting orbs. While Goku makes his way through the guards with ease, the leaders within the tower launch their own secret weapon to stop the Saiyan child in his tracks: their very own "Terminator" who is known as Sergeant Metallic.
The Dragon Ball franchise has no shortage of android characters with the most prominent being Android 17 and 18 as well as the bio-android Cell. However, where this particular robo-fighter differs is the android’s overall aesthetic which makes it seem as though he was inspired by Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator from the similar hairstyle, giant muscles, way of speaking, and even the iconic sunglasses. Given their similarities in appearance, one can’t help but compare the two’s power levels–though unfortunately for fans of the Terminator franchise, Arnie’s T-800 doesn’t even come close to the strength exhibited by Sergeant Metallic. Throughout the Terminator films, it has been shown that–while it is hard to kill Terminators–all one needs to beat them is extreme pressure, heat, or by obliterating the machine with a strong enough weapon. While Arnold’s T-800 was killed in the first Terminator film by being crushed by hydraulics and died in the second film after going into a vat of molten liquid, Sergeant Metallic took a Kamehameha from Goku to the face and kept fighting, something the T-800 clearly could not do.
Not only is Sergeant Metallic more durable than the T-800, but he is also deadlier as he is equipped with hardcore weaponry. Sergeant Metallic can fire a rocket from his mouth and use his hands as detachable projectiles. His attacks are so strong that Goku is nearly defeated by the robotic villain, though the Saiyan proves too tough to get rid of that easily. However, if Sergeant Metallic were to go up against the Terminator’s T-800, Dragon Ball’s version would absolutely obliterate the original while taking almost no damage in return, despite the fact that both of them look nearly identical.