It’s dinosaur week on Apple TV+. There’s a new episode of Prehistoric Planet on every night, and critics are heaping praise on the docuseries.
It has a 100% positive score on the review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.
Prehistoric Planet is ‘packed with plenty of dino might’
Apple isn’t shy about applauding its own production. It says the series “combines award-winning wildlife filmmaking, the latest paleontology learnings and state-of-the-art technology to unveil the spectacular habitats and inhabitants of ancient Earth for a one-of-a-kind immersive experience.
And the critics agree. The review in The Guardian says, “You’ll genuinely think you’re watching real dinosaurs.” The reviewer goes on to say, “Watching Prehistoric Planet has induced in me an existential – joy/delight? – that I don’t quite know what to do with.”
And the Daily Telegraph says,”Prehistoric Planet is a stunning feat of CGI. The dinosaurs look as real as any animal you see in a wildlife documentary.”
Or CNN says, “Prehistoric Planet weds BBC nature documentaries – complete with narrator extraordinaire David Attenborough – with the dinosaur era and conceives a fascinating hybrid, one that doesn’t require waiting around to capture footage but creates it using state-of-the-art imaging technology. The result is a five-part Apple TV+ series packed with plenty of dino might.”
The Cult of Mac review says viewers will “see the parenting skills of the Tyrannosaurus rex, the first flight of winged predators, the dental upkeep of the mosasaurus and so much more in this sleekly produced and beautifully photographed study of animal life.”
Perhaps it’s not surprising that the series is garnering so much praise: it has a stellar production team. It is being produced for Apple by BBC Studios Natural History Unit (creators of the Emmy-winning Planet Earth). The documentaries also feature photorealistic visual effects from MPC (The Lion King, The Jungle Book).
Producer Jon Favreau is best known for Marvel and Star Wars films and series. And Mike Gunton has produced many nature documentaries, including The Year the Earth Changed for Apple.
Five times the visual excitement
This five-night Apple TV+ docuseries explores the age of the dinosaurs from the Arctic to the oceans.
The first Prehistoric Planet episode debuted May 23. It portrayed dinosaurs and other archosaurs that lived on the coasts of the many shadow seas that existed 66 million years ago. That includes a male Tyrannosaurus Rex and his offspring in danger while swimming to an island.
Episode two is about the denizens of deserts, including aerial fights between male pterosaurs. It became available May 24.
The remaining three – “Freshwater,” “Ice Worlds” and “Forests” – will debut between now and May 27. Watching all five episodes of Prehistoric Planet comes with a $4.99 subscription to Apple TV+.
