That's an amazing observation, and I always give the Sarah Connor analogy, Terminator is one of the few that never took the audience for granted and laid the groundwork again.
The other sequels have failed especially because of that, like the 2003 one (Terminator 3) with Kristanna Loken or the 2009 one with Christian Bale... They just told people to imagine a world where robots rule the world, and went on with the action..
Great observation on medieval shows btw!
Thanks for the awesome comment!