Prehistoric Planet review: New dinosaur documentary leads with its best fin

Our planet’s oceans may or may not be the actual “final frontier,” but they were once home to the best dinosaurs Earth had to offer. Anyone who has seen a Jurassic Park movie or Mesozoic “documentaries” like Walking with DinosaursYou know this, the underwater dinosaurs are unstoppable.

Perhaps this is why Apple TV Plus’ new Prehistoric Planet show starts with the GOATs in “Coasts,” its first episode. The latest docuseries to merge state-of-the-art CGI (pulling in talents who worked on projects like 2019’s The Lion King And Boba Fett: The Book of Boba FettThe combination of scenic habitats and ) will create an immersive photorealistic experience that reflects the life under water since 66,000,000 years ago.

Cretaceous was a simple period in human history, ruled over by dinosaurs. Who better than Sir David Attenborough to show the magnificence of these species? This episode (and many others) is the star. Jurassic WorldSea World Jump) MosasaurusThe largest of all marine animals, the. But there’s all kinds of fun here, including TuarangisaurusThis is a spooky Loch Ness monster that grins goonily and sharply.

Universal Pictures

These undersea animals are amazing because they can kick an entire host of things. These creatures are large, flexible, and nearly impossible to control. Anytime Sir Attenborough mentions that the area we’re watching is “home to oceanic predators,” you know you’re in for a good time, though you never quite know how. These creatures have different physics than us, so the rules we’ve been using for moments such as these are not appropriate.

Giant lizards only open their jaws when they see a baby fish. Prehistoric Planet to set up a lesson we’d never see coming (real Hoffman’s Mosasaur fans know what’s up). You will see a fierce reptile resting on the surface, making derp faces before it starts fighting with a younger male. It is the height of entertainment.

Prehistoric Planet isn’t immune to some of the problems that plague documentaries of this ilk. While the series — produced by Jon Favreau and the producers of Planet Earth — promises the “latest paleontology learnings,” it’s just as quick to indulge the dramatic cliches of the genre. You can find the entire world of Prehistoric PlanetEvery vignette has its own dramatic story. Based on the response of the orchestra, you can predict how the tides change. As Attenborough’s raspy, soothing narration often reminds us, “few get as far” as the few baby dinos we see flop, scurry, and tumble their way through climactic showdowns, narrowly living on to dino another day.

Image: Apple TV Plus

Image: Apple TV Plus

These trite moments are accompanied by grand cinematic ones: A dinosaur emerges from a dust cloud after a fight or ammonites colliding in a shoal for mate and bioluminesce. It seems impossible that baby turtles have ever survived the wrath of mature dinosaurs.

“Coasts” doesn’t focus exclusively on the water dinosaurs; as the title suggests, we spend a lot of time on the place where the land meets the sea, and the choice is a smart one. It also better showcases the animating prowess Prehistoric Planet — the CGI is a mixed bag, with water dinos proving some of the most challenging to render due to the ocean’s waves and the fact that they are too badass to capture perfectly — it nods to the scope of the series.

Prehistoric PlanetAs bird-like dinosaurs fly over the oceans, we are reminded that land and sea ecosystems all interact. We can see them taking shelter in trees. There is so much to be covered, the series splits the episodes into biomes. The chapters are then divided into short glimpses that provide a brief narrative on the dangers found in dino-eats-dino environments.

After all, even though Tyrannosaurus rex may be the top predator on land, when it takes a swim with its young, it’s just as susceptible to MosasaurusWe are what we are. “Coasts” is a good entry point to the rest of the series, from the more peaceful, twinkling lights of a bioluminescence syncing up so two creatures can mate to the fact that the largest predators on the planet were often found as fossils with teeth of their rivals embedded in their skulls. Attenborough says that the oceans represent one of the best habitats on Earth. “Coasts” is just the beginning of exploring them.

Prehistoric Planet premieres on Apple TV Plus with “Coasts” on May 23. Each night, there will be a new episode.