REVIEW: ‘Twisted Metal’ Is Big And Dumb In The Best Ways

Look, I know that calling something dumb isn’t necessarily praise, but when you’re a show based on a vehicular combat tournament video game series that is ridiculous, loud, and chaotic, it’s a compliment. When I played Twisted Metal video games, I don’t remember a story, and I know for those big lore heads out there, there is one, but for me, it was hours of vehicular combat that made absolutely zero sense. It was big, dumb fun, and something you could get lost in.

No sense, no reality, just unhinged murder cars. Somehow, as a live-action series, Peacock Original Twisted Metal captures the absolute non-sensical world of the video game it’s based on with gore, violence, and shoe-horned comedy that I absolutely can’t find myself faulting it for.

A PlayStation Classic, Twisted Metal is brought to life in ten 30-minute episodes from showrunner Michael Jonathan Smith (Cobra Kai) and director Kitao Sakurai. It also features Executive Producers Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan from PlayStation Productions and Hermen Hulst, Head of PlayStation Studios, which should help ease any gamers into the project, and its star Anthony Mackie also serves as an Executive Producer. Additionally, the series’ cast of Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz, Thomas Haden Church, and features guest stars Will Arnett and Joe Seanoa (Samoa Joe), Neve Campbell, Richard Cabral, Mike Mitchell, Tahj Vaughans, and Lou Beatty Jr. all work to be as hectic as possible.

Marketed as a high-octane action-comedy, Twisted Metal is an original take instead of just a run-of-the-mill adaptation by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, written by Michael Jonathan Smith. Centered around John Doe (Anthony Mackie), a man with no real memories before being dropped in a f*cked up world where cars have machine guns and more. His only real tie in life after losing his relationship is with his car.

Living in their own special apocalypse, this bonkers show and premise embraces the absurdity and brash violence of the classic PlayStation game series. An outsider, John Doe is offered a chance at a better life if, and only if, he can deliver a mysterious package across a wasteland. With Quiet, an axe-wielding car thief with revenge on her mind, the duo faces marauders and all the slaughter that comes with their vehicles. The tournament feel of the games isn’t necessarily one hundred percent captured in the series, but the spirit of competition is, especially when everyone’s greed comes into play.

While the series itself is a fun time, Sweet Tooth and Arnett’s vocal performance is the heart of all of the crazy, dumb elements that make this series work. As a killer clown in a well-armed ice cream truck, there is something menacing and absolutely hilarious about both Arnett’s comedic line delivery and Joe Seanoa’s physical performance that makes this terrifying clown both an evil kind of depressing with humor that lands. It’s mostly akin to what you would see in Zombieland thanks to Reese and Wernick’s work on that property. That’s not a knock at all.

In fact, when those moments shine through in the dialogue and the violence, it makes for a great time. But Sweet Tooth isn’t the only standout. While Mackie’s John Doe leaves much to be desired, Stephanie Beatriz’s Quiet steals the series in this duo dynamic, even though her lines are few. Already shown in her previous roles, Beatriz’s ability to emote is louder in sequences when Mackie is frustrated with her.

Ultimately, Twisted Metal’s narrative and pacing leave a lot to be desired, but given the source material, the explosions and car combat make this action comedy shine. The series is bombastic, and that comes with a lot of flair, some awkward but well-fitting special effects, and a loudness that rings through. It’s not perfect, but it’s a good time, and that’s all Twisted Metal has ever been.

Twisted Metal is streaming exclusively on Peacock July 27, 2023.