Soldier

Did You Know?

• Interiors were shot at Paramount Studios.
• Qarlo's "War Zone" was shot on the Paramount Sunset stage, a gigantic stage the size of three stages put together, with a sky cyclorama and a fog machine providing a smoky haze.
• The gun shop scene was filmed on the Paramount Backlot, on New York Street.

Plot

Eighteen hundred years in the future, two infantrymen clash on a battlefield. A random energy weapon strikes both, hurling them into a time vortex. One soldier, Qarlo Clobregnny, materializes in an alley off a city street in the United States in 1964. Captured, he is interrogated by philologist Tom Kagan, who translates Qarlo's language: "Nims qarlo clobregnny prite arem aean teaan deao" becomes "(My) name is Qarlo Clobregnny, private, RM EN TN DO"—his name, rank, and serial letters. Bred to kill, Qarlo is gradually tamed by Kagan, who takes him home despite government reservations. Qarlo breaks into a gun shop and brings home a rifle. The enemy soldier eventually materializes in 1964 and tracks Qarlo to Kagan's home. In a final hand-to-hand battle, both soldiers die, leaving it ambiguous whether Qarlo sacrificed himself out of training or to save the Kagan family.

The Terminator and allegations of plagiarism

Ellison brought suit against The Terminator production company Hemdale and distributor Orion Pictures for plagiarism, citing similarities between the episode and the film: both involve a soldier from the future who travels back in time to save a present-day woman from an enemy soldier. The Los Angeles Times reported that the parties settled for an undisclosed amount, with an acknowledgment of Ellison's works added to the credits of home video releases of The Terminator. The credit reads "Acknowledgment to the Works of Harlan Ellison" and was also included on the 2024 4K restoration. James Cameron denied the allegations and opposed the settlement, calling it "a real bum deal" at the 1991 T2 Convention.