Jurassic World: Chaos Theory is the second animated series in the Jurassic Park franchise and the sequel series to Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, starring the former campers of Camp Cretaceous, also known as the Nublar Six–six teenagers that were abandoned on the dinosaur-infested island Isla Nublar after Jurassic World was evacuated.
By:Harleen Bawa
Warning: Spoilers ahead!
Taking place around the same time as Jurassic World: Dominion, the series focuses on the Nublar Six, now adults, as they unravel a conspiracy that claimed the lives of one of their own and involves both dinosaurs and humankind.
Now that Darius, Brooklynn, Yaz, Sammy, Ben and Kenji are all grown up, the sequel series can take on a much darker tone than its predecessor. Season three of Chaos Theory honors the horror fact of living in a world filled with dinosaurs. From the Atrociraptors that have been used to put hits on those that threaten the underground dinosaur trafficking black market, to the Pyroraptor terrorizing civilians on the streets of Italy, there is always a sense of danger. The main characters are not out of the cold–the showrunners are not afraid to put the Camp Fam into danger, from separating them to Brooklynn even losing an arm to one of the Atrociraptors.
For those fans who hoped Chaos Theory sets up events in the future of the Jurassic Park world–especially in Jurassic World: Rebirth (starring Scarlett Johansonn, Jonathan Bailey, and Mahershala Ali, releasing in theaters July 2), the season is still set in the past, but it ties up loose ends from Jurassic World: Dominion, the finale to Chris Pratt’s and Bryce Dallas Howard’s trilogy. The return of Barry Sembène and the battle on the streets of Malta coincide with events from Dominion, giving us unseen moments from the movie–particularly the arrest of Soyona Santos, also known as the Broker, and the toppling of the black market for dinosaur exploitation, which is Brooklynn’s big and redeeming moment.
Brooklynn (Kiersten Kelly) reunites with Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams), Ben (Sean Giambrone), and Yasmina (Kausar Mohammed). Photo credit to Screenrant.
What I love most about these two animated series is that we have gotten to ride along on their journey from adolescents to adulthood, and see how the Camp Fam has both bonded and fallen apart, like all families do–from Kenji becoming Darius’ surrogate brother, to his breakup with Brooklynn, and Ben’s new girlfriend Gia, we got to see them through stunning animation provided by Dreamworks and splashy dinosaur fights, but the best thing to see was their own experiences.
In the finale of season two, the Camp Fam learns that Brooklynn–who was thought to have been killed by an Allosaurus–faked her death and is seemingly working with the person who tried to kill them all, the Broker. But just as the Nublar Five meet up with Brooklynn, she makes the stunning choice to leave them behind and go with Soyona, which had me wondering–was Brooklynn’s undercover work into the Broker’s operation pulling her into villainy, or was she so determined to get her revenge on Santos that the ends justifies the means?
The answer to how each member of the Camp Fam reacted to Brooklynn being alive was different: Ben and Yaz believed that Brooklynn needed their help and refused to turn their backs on her, while Kenji and Sammy said Brooklynn chose to abandon them and she didn’t deserve their help. Brooklynn’s death tore the Fam apart once before, and discovering that she was alive tore them apart again.
The strain of one of their own seemingly betraying on them grates on the Camp Fam, and climaxes into a heartbreaking yet honest scene: Yaz and Sammy, the first LBGTQ+ couple in the Jurassic Park franchise, realize that the two have been pulling away from each other for a long time, from Yaz moving away and dealing with PTSD to Sammy’s family leaving her. The two acknowledged their differences and part ways, with Yaz choosing to go with Ben and Darius to Malta to save Brooklynn while Sammy goes back to the United States.
And while Brooklynn never becomes a true villain, it is clear that she is beginning to lose herself in the power and authority that she gains by following in Santos’ footsteps. This is evidenced when Brooklynn attempts to maintain her cover–and in doing so, she shoves a young reporter named Davi into a cage of an Atricoraptor. Davi is horrified by what Brooklynn is willing to do to achieve her goals, and she threatens his life with a laser pointer that controls killer dinos without even realizing it. While it culminates into her undercover work allowing Santos to get arrested, I wonder if her ruthlessness and ambition will follow her into later adventures.
Brooklynn follows in the footsteps of the Broker, Soyona Santos (Dichen Lachman). Photo credit to ScreenRant
Jurassic World: Chaos Theory’s plot gets resolved, but it also ends on a cliffhanger that sets up season four. While Brooklynn has been vindicated and the Broker been arrested, the first half of the Camp Fam believes their work is not done and they have to stop the bioengineering company Biosyn once and for all to keep the world safe. On top of that, another member of the Camp Fam, the Ankylosaurus Bumpy has gone missing, and Kenji, Sammy, and Bumpy’s son Smoothie head to the same place–Biosyn headquarters, which is the same headquarters of the events of Dominion. So while the show is somewhat concluded, there are too many plot threads that need to be resolved.
I loved Jurassic World: Chaos Theory season three, which released on April 3, 2024. It was a great story, filled with action and adventure, and I hope that a season four is in the works. To catch more of the Camp Fam, you can watch Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous on Netflix, along with Chaos Theory. If you want more dinosaur action, you can watch the original Jurassic Park trilogy, starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Samuel L. Jackson. The sequel series, Jurassic World, stars Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, and BD Wong.
