Don’t let the rating of TV-Y7 fool you. Netflix’s Jurassic World: Chaos Theory is packed heavily with death, a tad bit of blood and the occasional violence. Unlike its predecessor, Camp Cretaceous, it plays a little more on the adult side of things rather than a teenager’s. Set six years after the events of Camp Cretaceous, you might’ve thought that the kids, now young adults, were done with the whole dinosaur situation. But with dinos now roaming free on earth, it’s impossible to not encounter them….or find a new kind of trouble.
This review is spoiler free
As previously described, this story takes place six years after the events on Isla Nublar. The kids are now young adults (probably between 19-21) and now live their own separate lives. Known as the Nublar Six, everyone knows their story and how they survived on the island for nearly a year. Darius is now an ex-employee of a company that protects people from dinosaurs, tranquilizing them and relocating the prehistoric animal to a safer location. When he stumbles across a dino in need that’s when we see there’s something bigger at play here: he’s actually hunting down an Allosaurus. The reason for it is unknown at the beginning but viewers quickly find out why….and it hits like a ton of bricks. While I won’t say much because it’s honestly one big spoiler, Darius has to regroup with the gang once again to help save both humans and dinos alike.
The time jump is handled beautifully and seeing the kids as adults now makes me feel like a proud parent after seeing what they went through in Camp Cretaceous. You can visually see the changes in their appearance as they went from kids to grown adults (especially Ben. Ben was very much a surprise). The jump also stayed aligned with the events of the movies as expected; following Jurassic World: Dominion while still maintaining its own plotline. Whether or not they’ll connect events of the film to the events of the show is unclear but it’d be very interesting to see two plots cross paths at some point in the future.
As a Jurassic nerd, it’s always nice to see parallels to films (see above photo) or even little Easter eggs that connect the show to the movies. If you haven’t seen them, they will fly right over your head. But if you’re an avid watcher of the franchise and you know your stuff, you’ll be doing that one Leonardo DiCaprio meme once you catch onto it. One particular reference to the movies was the shaving cream, so if you know then you know. There are several sprinkled throughout the season and are always a nice little treat for the fans.
I genuinely enjoyed this a lot. I loved Camp Cretaceous and was always on the edge of my seat while watching and this was no different. It’s got a more grown-up feel to it and I believe that it can reach both older kids and adult audiences for enjoyable experiences. The rating I think is a bit off considering there are a lot of heavy topics tackled but I suppose if the parents are okay with it then it should be fine for the younger ones. Overall it’s a fantastic watch and I eagerly await the next season.
Jurassic World: Chaos Theory is available to stream now on Netflix.
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