Jurassic World: Chaos Theory premieres on Netflix Friday, May 24.
Two years ago, Netflix’s animated series Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous wrapped up an entertaining five-seasons of adding unexpected stakes and flawed-but-admirable characters to the Jurassic Park canon. Now there’s a sequel series, Jurassic World: Chaos Theory, and it's even better. Set six years after the finale of Camp Cretaceous, Chaos Theory drops the reunited “Nublar Six” into an absorbing noir thriller. A deadly conspiracy is afoot, and only they can only stop it.
At the start of Chaos Theory, the Isla Nublar survivors are estranged. Darius (Paul-Mikel Williams), their once de facto leader, has withdrawn to a remote cabin in the woods. He’s coaxed out of hiding when a paranoid Ben (Sean Giambrone) arrives, begging for his help to investigate a threat he thinks is coming for them and their fellow Camp Cretaceous alumni. What ensues is a season-long road trip to collect their scattered friends ? structure well-suited for ginning up emotional tension heading into the various reunions.
It also creates plausible opportunities for them to encounter a variety of dino species out in the wild. Along the way, they’ll have to tap into their prior experiences on Isla Nublar to do everything from soothe destructive dinosaurs at rest stops to fleeing Becklespinaxes while keeping all their appendages intact. This series gets to play more with the idea of prehistoric beasts in our backyard, inspiring a lot of clever sequences that twist the most mundane situations into threatening ones as soon as a dinosaur shows up.
Visually, the computer animation has improved from Camp Cretaceous to Chaos Theory. All of the main characters get a design glow up that plants the characters firmly in adulthoods. (Ben, in particular, is going to earn some double takes from those who watched the previous series.) Chaos Theory also has more of a cinematic quality to it, with the animators creating standout moments including magic-hour sunsets, inky-blue nighttime chases, and even a gorgeous bioluminescent dinosaur reveal.
The efforts to push the action into scarier spaces is worth celebrating, too. The episodes “Down on the Ranch” and “Into the Fog” each feature nail-biting sequences that rival anything in the live-action Jurassic Park/Jurassic World films. It’s a potent reminder of the life-or-death stakes at play; prepare for some blood and a hefty body count (though most of the deaths occur off screen) with character reactions and effective sound design successfully emphasizing the implied carnage.
Thankfully, the writers remain deeply interested in the Nublar Six’s emotional arcs. Across the 10 episodes of Season 1, there’s plenty of time for quieter moments where we get to see just how much each character has grown or regressed. There’s also proper time spent rectifying the damage done to their friendships after so much time apart. It’s often messy and awkward to watch play out, but that keeps the show feeling personal rather than plot-driven. Also, the age of the characters means there’s juicer personal secrets used to drive storylines in unexpected ways.
For mythology nerds, there are many dinosaur and plot connections that tie to the Jurassic World film trilogy. The conspiracy theory angle introduces an array of threats, some familiar and others brand new. And in keeping with the movies, humans haven’t gotten nicer about how they treat the dinosaurs. The compassion of the Nublar Six is a welcome presence: they take the time to liberate captive sideshow dinos, or fight for an imperiled creature because it's the right thing to do.
As for characters original to this series, the most dynamic is a raptor trainer who’s the antithesis of the films’ Owen Grady. Only identified as The Handler, she makes a chilling recurring adversary ? a shadowy figure relentlessly chasing the kids with her Atrocraptors. Everytime she and her distinctive whistle appear, the menace kicks in. What’s her story? We’ll have to see because there’s not much backstory provided this season.
All in all, Jurassic World: Chaos Theory is an unexpectedly mature and original continuation to this animated universe. The decision to progress Darius and his friends into adulthood works well because the writers are building on their already established rich histories from Camp Cretaceous. Having more dinosaurs around to test their compassion and resolve during a vulnerable and uncertain time in their lives feels right for these characters, and results in an entertaining sequel that I didn’t see coming. My major quibble with the season is how much of the central mystery they’re chasing has been pushed to a potential Season 2. If there isn’t a pickup, light the angry torches, because a lot of questions are left unanswered.
Welcome back, Nublar Six. What could have been a cash-grab sequel series is instead a bold, unexpected mystery-thriller. The characters are allowed to grow up, mature, and figure out who they want to be in the aftermath of their Isla Nublar experience, which is a refreshing avenue to explore. Jurassic World: Chaos Theory serves up the dinosaurs while also working hard to be a different series that complements what came before.