# Wait, wait...Why Does a Killer Robot Have an Austrian Accent?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [July 9, 2002, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114 "2002-07-09T17:43:10Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)
#### Post date: [July 10, 2002, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/21 "2002-07-10T23:10:09Z")
So - ‘Austrian’ is a language now? sheeesh…
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### Author:  [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)
#### Post date: [July 10, 2002, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/22 "2002-07-10T23:36:47Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by The Gaspode \*
> \*\*So - ‘Austrian’ is a language now? sheeesh… \*\*
Until you, every reference was to an Austrian accent. Just like there are Swedish accents. And American, FTM.
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### Author:  [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)
#### Post date: [July 10, 2002, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/23 "2002-07-10T23:45:09Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Jeff Olsen \*
> \*\ ***Max** , you should take a look at the [credits](http://us.imdb.com/Details?0088247). \*\*
The IMDB doesn’t have the whole story either.
The original movie _The Terminator_ doesn’t identify the terminator as anything but a “Cyberdyne Systems model 101”. The end credits (which is what IMDB really should go by) list Arnold as just “Terminator”. In _T2_, Arnold’s terminator character identifies itself to John Connor as “Cyberdyne Systems model 101.”
The “800” comes from a relatively obscure place: the only place it appears is in the special edition footage of _T2_. When Sarah replaces the terminator’s CPU and it “reboots” from its perspective, you get a flash on the left side of the screen that says, “Cyberdyne Systems Series 800 Model 101”. Because this information is only in “special edition” cuts of the film, I don’t think it’s appropriate to refer to Arnold-style terminators as T-800s, particularly when talking about the first movie.
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### Author:  [@jab1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jab1)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/24 "2002-07-11T00:59:06Z")
You want continuity flaws, you should go to Universal Studios in Orlando or Hollywood and see the 3-D movie. It was directed by James Cameron, who said it was a legitimate sequel to T2. Well, in the first two movies, we are told that metal cannot go through the time portal, which is why Reese and the Terminators go through naked. But in the 3-D film, John Connor and the Terminator go into the future fully-clothed, heavily-armed and **riding a motorcycle**.
The last time I looked, a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy was made mostly of metal.
OTOH, it’s a cool 3-D movie, so I’m willing to forgive this. 😃
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### Author:  [@FisherQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FisherQueen)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/25 "2002-07-11T01:11:16Z")
Did that sound like an Austrian accent to you? No, it’s simply that when you try to build a mechanical replica of a human jaw, teeth, tongue, and palate, you get just a little bit of difficulty in making all the pieces fit together perfectly.
You’ll notice that they fix the ‘robot accent’ problem in the newer models.
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### Author:  [@Skeezix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skeezix)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/26 "2002-07-11T05:22:19Z")
> [@](#):
>
> _Originally posted by **ShibbOleth** _
>
> **I watched a bit about this on E! True Hollywood Story. Lance Henricksen was originally envisioned as the “Terminator”. (They interviewed Henricksen in his apartment in front of an early promo poster that was based on him, not Arnie)**
Thanks, hoss. I _knew_ that didn’t just boil up from my imagination.
> [@](#):
>
> _Originally posted by **Max Torque** _
>
> **The “800” comes from a relatively obscure place: the only place it appears is in the special edition footage of T2.**
Actually, it’s gotta appear _somewhere else_, as I’ve never seen the T2:SE. (Woe is me. Did I hear correctly that Michael Biene appeared in some type o’ dream sequence with Linda Hamilton, and said sequence was restored to the SE?) Could well be that’s the first time ‘800 series’ was used. IIRC, I’m pretty sure I first ran across that designation playing one of the BethesdaSoft Terminator games… **Skynet** was the title o’ the one I’m thinking of, haven’t played it in a couple years now. The one that came after **Terminator: System Shock** , anyway.
Of course, it could just as easily have come from one of the comic books somewhere along the line, too, but that stubborn guy in the back of my mental trivia file keeps yammering at me that I first saw/heard it in **Skynet**. (Very slick game, for it’s time, BTW.) 🙂
(Upon preview, 2 things leap to mind.)
1. The T-800 series, in that game, were the ‘naked’ field combat chassis model. All metal, no skin, not infiltration units. Which leads me to wonder why Skynet seemed to number things backwards:
T-800 - Basic unit
T-600 - First infiltrator, ineffective, rubber skin
T-101 - Second (or third, or whatever) generation Infiltrator, real skin
T-1000 - nth generation machine, serious upgrade…
Maybe it was supposed to be a T-0.1000? 😉
2. After reading **jab1** ’s post, it hit me… If the machines gotta be ‘clothed in skin’ to use the time machine, how the hell did the T-1000 get through at all? Real skin, what with all it’s various veins and arteries and hairs and wrinkles and whatnot else is just a simple shape, and not real complex? (Think about it; to use the time doo-flitchet, the T-1000 can’t just _look_ like it’s wearing skin, it’s gotta have actual skin on its outside.)
Of course, it **is** just a movie and all, but wow… Why didn’t that ever occur to me before? :eek:
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### Author:  [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/27 "2002-07-11T06:04:12Z")
Well, the consensus of folks on the net seems to be that “Series 800” refers to the specific kind of terminator endoskeleton. So, the skinless terminators we see at the beginning of _T2_ would be series 800 terminators, same class as Arnold. The “Model 101” refers to the skin covering, meaning that all 101 models would look like Arnold, but 102 models would look like, I dunno, Nipsey Russell or something.
As far as I can tell, there’s no basis for this in the movies, and I’m real reluctant to argue about stuff that comes from sources other than the films themselves.
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### Author:  [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/28 "2002-07-11T06:15:51Z")
> [@](#):
>
> 102 models would look like, I dunno, Nipsey Russell or something.
SkyNet said, “No genocide!”
Too bad for you, the PC lied!
\
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### Author:  [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/29 "2002-07-11T10:50:42Z")
**ShibbOleth**
> [@](#):
>
> ## quote:
>
> ## Originally posted by The Gaspode So - ‘Austrian’ is a language now? sheeesh…
>
> Until you, every reference was to an Austrian accent. Just like there are Swedish accents. And American, FTM.
Yes, when Swedes, such as myself, speak English or French or whatever, we often have a Swedish accent. When we speak Swedish, we have dialect. Arnold has a _German_ accent, since they speak German in Austria. Saying he has an Austrian accent is like slamming an American: “I can’t understand his French - his Californian accent is so heavy.”
I just thought that dopers where aware that there is no Austrian language.
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### Author:  [@Mikahw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikahw)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/30 "2002-07-11T12:25:56Z")
> [@](#):
>
> If the machines gotta be ‘clothed in skin’ to use the time machine, how the hell did the T-1000 get through at all?
IIRC, they originally planned to have the T-1000 arrive encased in a bag of flesh, but it was considered too gory.
Of course, I could be wrong. I remember hearing about the flesh bag for _something_, but I don’t know if it was for the T-1000 or someone else.
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### Author:  [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/31 "2002-07-11T12:39:23Z")
Actually miller your "john connor kicking the door in and turning skynet off theory was in the book version of t-2
its also noted in the book the epilouge had sarah standing at the playground that she kept seeing i getting blown up in her dreams at the exact moment of t-day and nothing happens she sees the kids playing and thinks about her son the congfressman or senator
Now this may be wrong but i remeber in fact in the t-2 book they had kyle warning sarah again that another one was coming
after them althouhg it might not have bene done physically Ie a hologram ect
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### Author:  [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/32 "2002-07-11T12:47:14Z")
Ack… in the book after they kicked the door in and turned skynet off they managed to send arnie after the t-1000
Did you know the terminator pc game was banned/protested in some places becuase you could be either arnie or kyle but when you were arnie you could kill the cops I’m told the police station level was worh the price of admission alone
In the console versions you just stunned them for a sec and walked by them
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### Author:  [@Umbriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Umbriel)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/33 "2002-07-11T14:25:20Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Max Torque \*
> **It can mimic voice and appearance, but nowhere have we seen that the voice imitating ability includes the ability to mimic “anguish” or “pain” reliably. Maybe they can’t do it. Besides, as I recall, at that point the T1000 hadn’t had a chance to “sample” her yet. So, El Terminador decides to use her as bait instead.**
Moreover, if he kills Sarah then, he can’t use her as bait/a hostage later on…
Regarding the stoic T-101/800 and screaming/inorganic yet able to time travel T-1000: I think the nanotechnology of the T-1000 explains both of these issues. The T-1000 _should_ have greater tactile sensitivity than its predecessor, given its ability to analyze targets by touch to mimic them. Its computer processing ability is decentralized. While a human or traditional computer brain can be destroyed/shut down by damage, the T-1000 is aware of its own disintigration, bit by bit, as it is taking place. It also may be that the T-1000, with vastly superior processing power, could be considered “more sentient” than the prior model, and possessed something closer to a genuine survival instinct.
Also, the inorganic time travel of the T-1000 seems to me to merely indicate that the T-1000 possesses whatever characteristic of living matter allows it to time travel. This might be the capacity to regenerate/heal damage, though the outer layers of human skin are technically dead, and nobody else time traveling seems to some out looking exfoliated. I expect that the important characteristic is something to do with bioelectric fields, such that the T-1000 has something resembling the “aura” of a living thing.
“Meatbags” would still have been a handy idea though. Terminators could easily come back equiped with those “phased plasma rifles” if they toted them in giant, living bratwursts 😃
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### Author:  [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/34 "2002-07-11T15:21:49Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by The Gaspode \*
> \*\ ***ShibbOleth**
>
> Yes, when Swedes, such as myself, speak English or French or whatever, we often have a Swedish accent. When we speak Swedish, we have dialect. Arnold has a _German_ accent, since they speak German in Austria. Saying he has an Austrian accent is like slamming an American: “I can’t understand his French - his Californian accent is so heavy.”
>
> I just thought that dopers where aware that there is no Austrian language. \*\*
No, Austrians, Swiss, Germans and others who speak the German language have distinctive accents. Swiss don’t sound like Germans, and Germans don’t sound like Austrians. Although I’ll allow as there is some “bleed” of accents near the borders. For that matter, Germans from Hessen don’t sound like Germans from Bayern who don’t sound like Austrians from Wien who don’t sound like Austrians from Tirol, who don’t sound like Swiss from Bern. Likewise Americans from Georgia don’t sound like Americans from New York, who in turn sound nothing like Americans from California. True, I’d be hard put to distinguish fine shades of a Swedish accent, but it seemed quite simple to distinguish the English spoken by Stockholm Swedes from that spoken by Skane Swedes, at least once exposed to some people from both groups. Granted, these are generalisations and there are exceptions, but my point is that there can be a thing such as an Austrian accent in the absence of an Austrian language.
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### Author:  [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/35 "2002-07-11T15:49:39Z")
I’m having another ‘Seinfeld’ moment…
Because a Terminator with a British accent would sound dumb:
[british]“Pahdon me, old chap, but I’m afraid I’m going to have to whack you.”[/british]
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### Author:  [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/36 "2002-07-11T16:36:47Z")
**ShibbOleth** I am aware of that. Platt-Deutch is very diferent from Süd-Deutch. I dare the avarege native English-speaker to distinguish these dialects when the person is speaking a forreign language.
I still think that saying ‘Austrian’ accent is ignorant.
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### Author:  [@Emilio\_Lizardo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emilio_Lizardo)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/37 "2002-07-11T17:18:12Z")
I can suspend my disbelief in the case of all manner of minor inconsistencies, but in the case of T2 I am completely unable to fathom why, just before Arnold is lowered into the molten metal, John Connor doesn’t ask to keep the nifty black leather motorcycle jacket with all of the bullet holes in it.
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### Author:  [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/38 "2002-07-11T17:37:48Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by The Gaspode \*
> \*\ ***ShibbOleth** I am aware of that. Platt-Deutch is very diferent from Süd-Deutch. I dare the avarege native English-speaker to distinguish these dialects when the person is speaking a forreign language.
> I still think that saying ‘Austrian’ accent is ignorant. \*\*
Well, would you say that someone from the States, Mel Gibson for instance ;), has an English accent, just because we speak English? We wouldn’t and neither would the English, AFAIK. So in the context of how we perceive accents as tied to nationalities and not the home country of the language, this makes perfect sense. I discussed this at lunch with my German colleague and he fully agreed. I understand that from Stockholm it sounds silly, so perhaps it’s best we just agree to disagree.
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### Author:  [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/39 "2002-07-11T18:17:58Z")
pssst, Gibson’s from Australia.
Oh, wait, you were being sarcastic.
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### Author:  [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)
#### Post date: [July 11, 2002, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wait-wait-why-does-a-killer-robot-have-an-austrian-accent/118114/40 "2002-07-11T19:01:49Z")
I know MG is from Australia (actually born in the US). The first Mad Max was dubbed in the US.
There is of course an Austrian accent, when they speak german, as well as there is an Irish accent, Ozzie, American and a teeming number of sub-dialects. I won’t convince you either, but I wouldn’t say: “Hey. he’s speaking Spanish with a New York accent.” I would say it’s an American accent.
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