The cult classic sci-fi actioner that ignited one of the most convoluted franchises in all of cinema sticks to a single timeline on streaming

You’ve got to hand it to the Universal Soldier saga for dragging on for as long as it did despite tying itself in canonical knots across its six installments spread out over 20 years, but the original is still the one that holds a special place in the hearts of many.

Looking back, there was no other outcome than over-the-top insanity when you’re talking about a high concept sci-fi actioner directed by Roland Emmerich that starred Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lungren in the lead roles, and that’s precisely what the gloriously excessive slice of cheese delivers in spades.

Sequel Brothers in Arms features the same characters but played by different actors, with threequel Unfinished Business a direct successor to the second chapter that brought back its principal cast, before The Return welcomed Van Damme back into the fold and ignored both of its predecessors, prior to Regeneration ignoring every movie in the series so far and inviting a returning Lundgren to strap in for more, too.

Day of Reckoning is a genuine follow-up to Regeneration, though, which technically makes it the only canonical sequel of the bunch, but even that’s entirely dependent on how you choose to view the Universal Soldier saga as a whole. Either way, it’s a complete mindf*ck, albeit one that’s been doing big business on streaming.

Per FlixPatrol, the OG has locked and loaded to assume command of a spot on the Prime Video global charts, so we might even be in the midst of a renaissance for a complicated and convoluted string of shoot ’em ups that ended a decade ago.