Each episode is connected to one or more of the three titular concepts. Miller serves as the showrunner and producer alongside Joshua Donen , David Fincher , and Jennifer Miller; [ 3 ] most episodes are written by Philip Gelatt , and are adaptations of short stories. The series is a re-imagining of Fincher and Miller's long in-development reboot of the animated science fiction film Heavy Metal , which was originally planned to follow the feature length format of the original film but one that could be better adapted for the new generation.
Eventually, Netflix became interested in the idea and agreed to be the distributor of the project, but instead of a film it would be released as a television series. The first season was released on March 15, ; [ 6 ] the second season on May 14, ; [ 7 ] and the third season on May 20, In August , the series was renewed for a fourth season. The animated series consists of a collection of short films , produced by different casts and crews, though some episodes have some overlap in certain crew members.
The series title refers to each episode's thematic connection to one or more of the three titular subjects. Beyond the themes and genres, there are no story connections between any of the shorts with the exception of Season 3's "Three Robots: Exit Strategies", which is a sequel to Season 1's "Three Robots". Episode numbers reflect Netflix's original ordering. This ordering has since been changed by Netflix, and can be found in the episode description.
In dystopian London, a young woman named Sonnie participates in underground "Beastie" fights β remotely controlled bio-engineered gladiator beast battles. The ringmaster, Dicko, attempts to bribe Sonnie to throw the match , but she declines. Her teammates Wes and Ivrina explain that Sonnie was sexually assaulted and mutilated in the past; her desire for revenge eventually becomes her "edge".
Sonnie enters the arena piloting her beast Khanivore, to fight the opponent, Turboraptor. After a brutal match, Khanivore wins.
