The Dinosaurs documentary series has achieved massive viewership and critical acclaim, becoming a global phenomenon. Within days of its Netflix release, it garnered 10 million views and became the most-watched TV series in over 70 countries, according to Netflix. The series holds a 100% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven positive reviews and is currently the number one show on Netflix UK.
The series, executive produced by Steven Spielberg and narrated by Morgan Freeman, took over three years to create and involved more than 700 people from 18 countries, including 58 scientific consultants, according to multiple reports. It uses visual effects from Industrial Light & Magic. Director Nick Shoolingin-Jordan, who previously worked on the 2023 Netflix documentary Life on Our Planet, told Metro that the project was an opportunity to go into a lot more depth and to tell the whole story of dinosaurs, emphasizing that the characters and stories discovered were surprising and brilliant. He also noted the importance of making the series scientifically accurate and emotionally compelling, with cliffhangers to keep viewers engaged.
While it suffers from similar issues to Life On Our Planet (like the ‘evolutionary superiority’ framing), it’s to a much lesser degree. The pacing here is also a lot better. I just wish they explained some things better.
The four-part documentary charts the rise and fall of the dinosaurs, featuring a wide range of species from tiny proto-dinosaurs like Marasuchus to giants like Plateosaurus and Mamenchisaurus. It includes armored dinosaurs such as Stegosaurus and Ankylosaurus, apex predators like Allosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex, marine reptiles like Pliosaurus and Mosasaurus, and Spinosaurus traversing land and sea. The series also highlights early feathered fliers like Anchiornis and Longipteryx to illustrate that birds are living dinosaurs.
Paleontologists and viewers have offered mixed reactions. A Reddit thread invited paleontologists to weigh in, with user u/Maip_macrothorax describing the series as somewhat 'shallow' but not 'terrible', with better pacing than Life On Our Planet but some misleading information. User u/mmcjawa_reborn praised the series for featuring lesser-known critters and visual effects, but criticized narration accuracy and some dull character designs. User u/endmaga2028 was disappointed by mispronunciations early in the series. User u/Practical_Reveal9477 called the show 'overly dramatic' with 'little educational value', suggesting it was a cash grab. In contrast, user u/GuessBrilliant9167 was moved to tears by the final episode, praising the bird/dinosaur montage.