I really can't stand it whenever somebody on Terminator refers to a robot as "the metal." I'm not exactly sure why it bothers me; I don't have a problem with future slang, and it makes sense that the humans of the future would've come up with a quick and implicitly derogatory term for their opponent. But while Battlestar Galactica's "toaster" slur always made sense, there's something flatly unimaginative about "metal." It's the most obvious word to use, and real slang generally develops sideways. This show in general could use more sideways direction; the best parts of "Last Voyage of the Jimmy Carter" are the moments when the plot threatens to branch out in an unexpected direction. As always, though, the meager twists are pulled down by muddled execution and endless moping. If John Connor ever played Hamlet, it would've been six acts at least before he even considered buying a sword. (And even then, he'd probably rent.)
Right away, we get confirmation that John's trip to the morgue wasn't just about mourning; he asks Derek how long he could survive in a hand to hand fight against Cameron, so clearly, he's been thinking about defensive wounds. And he also knows what those wounds mean, even apologizing to Cameron for ever doubting her. So thank goodness, anybody who was worried that particular plot-line might develop into something relevant, consider your fears assauged. Sarah still loathes Cameron (for all we know, John never tells her he has proof Cameron didn't kill Riley; given that Sarah's blanket mistrust of Cam has been a constant on the series, there's no way of knowing without an explicit reference), which is by and large the only thing she really does this episode. Derek still mistrusts Cam. John still puts everything on her. And Cameron herself is still obsessed with pigeons.
What drove me crazy watching "Carter" is that so much of it should've been good. Finding out that a T-1000 was inside the package that was delivered to the Jimmy Carter last week should've rocked; I hadn't considered that future-past-Jesse and her crew had never seen a liquid-metal terminator before, which raised all sorts of neato questions about paranoia. Those questions were briefly entertained, but just about everything on the Carter seemed to take a few minutes longer than it needed to. I don't know if it was the way the storyline was broken up over the course of the episode, the flat-line acting, or just the way it all played out (Jesse finally destroys Queeg—man, remember when robots were hard to kill?—evacuates the ship, and gets told by the T-1000 that the answer to John Connor's question is "No"); that "No" at the end, while raising questions about future-John's plans, essentially ended the subplot in the dullest possible way. And man, how lame was that reveal that Jesse had been a.) pregnant without realizing it and b.) that she lost the pregnancy on the sub? It's like they reached into a hat for motivation and decided "robot rape" was a little too extreme.
Things in our present are nearly as bad, pacing-wise. About the only thing that managed to satisfy both in concept and execution were the handful of moments we got with John Henry. Seeing as how Cameron has been relegated to the sidelines at this point, John's become one of the few things on the show worth watching that we actually ever see. His new obsession with painting miniatures was charming, and I am actually a little curious to see where his developing relationship with Ellison goes in terms of his connection to the murder-happy Weaver. (Quoth Weaver: "Humans will disappoint you." Lady, you don't know the half of it.)