Whether it's a product of our car-based infrastructure or simply a desire to see wanton destruction, vehicular combat is always thoroughly entertaining. Whether in the deserts of Mad Max: Fury Road or the globe-trotting adventures of the Fast and Furious franchise, there's a beautiful simplicity in seeing fancy cars do extraordinary things.
Because of this, the Twisted Metal series of video games have long been sought after for a film adaptation, even after the series has long since fallen out of relevancy. While Brian Taylor of Crank fame would attempt to bring the series to film in 2012, the project would be subsequently dropped after only five years.
But, after a surprising announcement from Peacock, it looks like Twisted Metal is finally making a comeback as a streaming exclusive. The game series, which follows the titular demolition derby hosted by the mysterious, wish-granting "Calypso," offers a lot of creative freedom in terms of narrative and characters. After all, the games mainly follow whoever you decide to play as, including the likes of the murderous clown Sweet Tooth. With Peacock's series, however, it looks like a new character, and more have been introduced in a brand-new teaser.
Anthony Mackie as John Doe
Our teaser starts, appropriately enough, with John Doe (Anthony Mackie) getting his vehicle prepped and ready. A brief glimpse of his license plate tells us that the series will likely be set in the southwest, along with the remnants of a "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign later in the teaser.
After turning the ignition, he opens the glove compartment to an unusual sight: the entire compartment is stuffed with loose shotgun shells, the brass ends still shimmering from the glare of the windows. A break-action shotgun is subsequently loaded and set aside in the passenger seat.
If you're more used to the high-octane action of the games, you'll be happy to know that John Doe's car feels like a practical addition to the over-the-top series. As fun as it would be to see hellish ice cream trucks duke it out with gargantuan ATVs, we have to remember that reality faces a lot more limitations than fantasy. We're dealing with a thirty-minute streaming series. As cool as it would be to see something as grandiose as Fury Road brought back on the small screen, it's nothing more than a pipe dream.
In an overhead shot, it's revealed that Doe's plain-looking vehicle is thankfully outfitted for the chaotic car combat of Twisted Metal's universe. Trawling across a dirt road, he fires off a pair of machine guns mounted on either side of the hood, likely one of the multiple weapons outfitted on the vehicle.
Vintage Cars and Burned CDs
For older folks, a quick shot of John Doe flipping through a CD binder will likely bring back a torrent of memories. If you weren't aware, a large part of Twisted Metal's audio design was its metal and rock-influenced soundtrack.
The latest entry from as far back as 2012 would go a step further and license songs from prominent musicians like Iggy Pop, Rob Zombie, and Sammy Hagar, in addition to original compositions provided by other metal musicians. The visual of John Doe pulling a CD with "Road Mix" lovingly scrawled in Sharpie likely means we'll see a return of the franchise's reverence for edgy music.
Except, we don't get that. Instead, whether it's for the teaser or if it's part of the series itself, we get Len's "Steal My Sunshine." It's admittedly a little disappointing -- so much so that a fan edit with a White Zombie replacement track already exists -- but we'll have to wait and see what the full series has in terms of licensed music. As John Doe delightfully jams out to Len's alternative tones, his vehicle speeds off, kicking up dirt and dust behind the spinning wheels.
The teaser concludes with what most fans want to see: the face of Twisted Metal himself, Sweet Tooth the clown. Imagine Pennywise if he did cross-fit and took up street racing as a hobby, and you'll get a rough rendition of what Sweet Tooth is supposed to look like. Luckily, even from the brief glimpse we get, it seems like he made the miraculous transition to live-action with flying colors.
Having the professional wrestler Joe Seanoa, aka "Samoa Joe," portray our masked monster feels like a perfect decision in hindsight. We'll have to see if the associated vocal performance by Will Arnett is as up to snuff.
Cautious optimism is all we can feel towards Twisted Metal now that we're able to see it in motion. Despite the restrictions the series may face, it looks like it'll bring back the wonderfully warped world of Sony's car-combat series, reintroducing it to an audience who may have completely missed out on its heyday. You can catch Twisted Metal when it premieres exclusively on Peacock on July 27.