The third season of Jurassic World Chaos Theory will stampede onto our screens in just a few short days, with ten new episodes debuting on the 3rd of April.
Courtesy of Universal Pictures and Dreamworks Animation, Brad and I had an opportunity to check out the third season ahead of its release. Join me for a full non-spoiler deep dive.
The third season of Chaos Theory picks up immediately after the events of the second season – plunging us straight back into a world where the Nublar Six have been divided by Soyona Santos. As you will have seen in trailers, this season runs in parallel with the events seen in the Amber Clave Black Market in Malta during Jurassic World Dominion. Whilst I don’t want to spoil too much about the story at this point, I will say that there is more than one thread present throughout the narrative of this season – with the ending of this season setting them up for a cataclysmic collision. I really enjoyed the way the third season of the story took the chance to tell a variety of different stories. From world-affecting high concepts to more intimate and nuanced character stories, there is something for everyone in the latest iteration of the show.
A story is only as good as the characters who we experience it through. In the third season, several members of the Nublar Six wrestle with their feelings about Brooklynn’s betrayal at the end of the second season – and this is used as a catalyst to take these characters in interesting new directions. The season benefits from a host of returning characters, from Lewis Dodgson as seen in the initial trailer, all the way through to other characters which fans may not have expected to see make the transition to the smaller screen. Each character feels like they serve a purpose in this season – either by connecting us to the broader world of the Jurassic canon, or by acting as a vessel for the wider story which is being told. One character in particular acts as an interesting antithesis to the person Brooklynn has become, allowing us to view her quest for justice through a new and interesting lens. A word of warning for those of you who have been fans of these characters for some time – brace for some heartache this season.
Any good Jurassic story comes with an influx of dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures. They are in good supply throughout the third season of Chaos Theory. I particularly love the capacity in which the returning Pyroraptor is used, something which I will talk about more in a spoiler review in the not-so-distant future. This season is packed full of great moments with these animals. We have moments which feel heartwarming and cute, and moments which are spine-tinglingly terrifying. This season has done a fantastic job of continuing to build on the more mature premise which was set when we received the first season of the show, giving us a healthy dose of horror for good measure. Oh – and there’s more than one dinosaur-related moment which might make you cry this season. In short, if you love dinosaurs, you’re going to get a kick out of the expansive menagerie present for Chaos Theory’s third outing.
Probably most significantly to me this season is the wider universe connections which the writers opted to explore. I’m not going to beat about the bush. It’s bloody hard to write about these in a non-spoiler review. But those of you who have seen the trailer will at least get a sense that BioSyn play a role in this season, as does a location from the third Jurassic World film which I referenced earlier in this review. Just how heavy of a presence these things have in the story, and the characters and dinosaurs who accompany them is likely to be exciting for a lot of long-term Jurassic fans. Anyone who knows me will know that I am constantly picking out little details which paint a picture of the broader universe these characters inhabit, and I am happy to report that the third season of Chaos Theory adds rich layers to the mythologies of both characters and locations in this world.
When I think back on this season, there are a couple of moments which stand out to me. One is a night-time sequence in an interesting location which felt incredibly tense, and another is a sequence which wouldn’t have felt amiss in a Ridley Scott film. There are some really fun set pieces sprinkled in throughout this season. One thing which really struck me was just how much a lot of this show setups for a future conclusion – but a conclusion which I would argue is unlikely to connect with Jurassic World Rebirth. Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous very much told its own story within a period of time which the film franchise had passed by, and it feels like Chaos Theory is doing that again with the period of time before and during the events of Jurassic World Dominion. Whilst it will be divisive for some fans, I think this show does a good job of further building out some of the key moments from that film, and I am exciting to see where the writers will take us if this show gets the fourth outing it deserves.
So, there we have it – another season of Chaos Theory under the belt, and another season which feels as if it built strongly on the foundations laid by prior seasons. I have had so much fun with Jurassic World Chaos Theory. I’ve said before that I felt there was so much for storytelling within this period of time in the Jurassic universe, and Chaos Theory really is continuing to scratch that itch for me. I love the creative scenes the writers develop, the meaningful relationships they craft, and the enriching connections to the broader universe. This really is a show where it is a delight to keep coming back for another helping – and I, for one, can’t wait for more.
Huge thanks to Universal Pictures and Dreamworks Animation for early access to make this review possible. Check out the full third season of Jurassic World Chaos Theory streaming April 3rd on Netflix.
Written by: Tom Jurassic