Bucking the trend of video game adaptations being woeful, Peacock’s Twisted Metal was a good time. This is especially surprising considering it was based on a PS1-era racing franchise mainly known for its vehicular action and eccentric cast of characters, and not, crucially, its story. Episodes 1-10 didn’t even feature the titular tournament the games are famed for, instead functioning as more of an introduction to its post-apocalyptic world and various recognisable faces, including Sweet Tooth, Raven, and Dollface.
Across ten episodes, a fair amount went down in relation to these characters, and a good helping of worldbuilding gave its ravaged setting some stakes and texture. A lot of stuff was introduced for the show instead of being cribbed from the games, which is perhaps just as well, but the abundance of familiar faces were nonetheless put to good use. Here, I’ve rounded up the key details and dynamics, including who survived, what happened at the end, and what we can expect from the second season, so the article functions as a capsule summary of the season overall instead of an episode-by-episode play-by-play.
Hope it’s useful.
John Doe and Quiet Are In Love
Central to the narrative of Twisted Metal Season 1 is the burgeoning love story between John Doe and Quiet. The former is an amnesiac “milkman” – a group of delivery drivers who undertake perilous missions across the wasteland – and the latter a selectively mute survivor shaped by personal trauma. The A-B plot is driven – no pun intended – by John’s desire to “retire”, becoming the first milkman to ever do so, by delivering a mysterious package from Chicago to New San Francisco at the behest of Raven.
Needless to say, John and Quiet fall in love, but it’s one of those awkward kinds of romances where neither party can necessarily admit their feelings to the other. It becomes clear to them both, and the audience, throughout the course of the season though, with various intense showdowns reiterating how much they care about one another despite their own personal hang-ups.
The biggest of these showdowns crops up towards the end, and results in a crucial separation. While John Doe earns his place in New San Francisco for completing his mission, Raven isn’t willing to allow Quiet in with him. John wants to leave with Quiet, but she understands that the comparative safety of the city is best for him, so shoots him in the shoulder to force him to be taken inside for medical attention.
A Means to An End
It’s eventually revealed that the mysterious item Raven had John transporting across the wilderness was simply a pint of ice cream. But the item itself isn’t important – instead, John’s skills were being tested, as Raven is grooming him to be her champion in the Twisted Metal tournament, around which the games are based. So, John’s retirement isn’t taking quite the shape he expected.
Annoyed by the betrayal and the separation from Quiet, John refuses to participate in the tournament, but Raven uses several means to keep him in his new home. It’s likely that the tournament will form a fundamental part of the second season, with John reluctantly taking part while aiming to be reunited with Quiet.
That’s if Quiet doesn’t find him first…
People to Keep An Eye On
At the end of Twisted Metal Season 1, Quiet meets Dollface, another character from the game who in this version of the story is John Doe’s sister. She’s looking for her brother for unclear reasons, though perhaps not entirely nice ones, and wants Quiet to lead her to him, knowing they recently spent a lot of time together.
There’s also a chance that Agent Stone remains alive despite apparently having been killed by John during the Midtown Raceway showdown. Stone is a major antagonist with a particular connection to Quiet’s backstory, having forced her and her brother to kill each other lest he kill them both, leading to Quiet’s brother sacrificing himself for her. Stone’s death occurred off-screen, so there’s a chance he survived.
The Season 1 finale also confirms that Sweet Tooth remains alive, so we can definitely expect to see him again in Season 2.
