Words cannot describe simply how amazing and awe-inspiring Walking with Dinosaurs is. It's downright incredible and without a doubt the best dinosaur documentary out there, with unparalleled atmosphere and authenticity when it comes to raw documentary making combined with brilliant storytelling. No documentary of it's caliber on the subject of prehistoric life has been made since (except for it's special, The Ballad of Big Al). Even though some of the science has become inaccurate over time, it's still very informative and it's so beautifully-made that it still holds up after all these years. Everything from the stories, to the special effects, to the soundtrack, to the narration, to it's general extraordinary presentation are just absolutely fantastic. It's simply art.
One of the things that makes this documentary so great is that the dinosaurs (as well as other Mesozoic animals featured like pterosaurs and marine reptiles) are portrayed as real animals as they actually were, not ferocious, fantasy movie monsters always out for the kill like most media unfortunately does. The hunts and confrontations are presented in a realistic manner, and the program shows plenty of other aspects of the animal's biology (their behavior and lifestyle). It's shot as if the film crew actually went back in time and filmed these animals in their natural habitat, as they actually shot in real locations. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful; it makes great use of the real locations its shot in, and every frame legit looks like paleoart. The CGI and animatronics were exemplary for their time and still hold up pretty well today for the most part, making the documentary even more believable. The animal models for the most part look great and accurate for their time, and they're shot in a very believable way. The animation of the movements of the animals is fantastic as well, the animals moving very naturally and convincingly with an astounding attention to detail. It makes them look so realistic and lifelike. This incredibly realistic portrayal of Mesozoic life is amplified by Benjamin Bartlett's brilliant, awe-inspiring music score that brings a huge presence of grandeur and emotion. The soundtrack is full of wonder, excitement, suspense, ambience, and even tragedy. It's excellent in it's own right and perfectly fits the series.
The stories are excellent and compelling, as you actually come to care for the animals each episode follows. The first episode, New Blood, takes place in the Late Triassic of Arizona and focuses on one of the earliest dinosaurs, Coelophysis, as well as other Triassic animals such as the large archosaur Postosuchus and the lumbering dicynodont Placerias. It tells the story of how the dinosaurs came to be the dominant clade on Earth. The following episode, Time of the Titans, looks at the Late Jurassic megafauna of Colorado: Diplodocus, Allosaurus, Brachiosaurus and Stegosaurus. We mainly follow a creche of young Diplodocus as they grow into an immense size, having to overcome hazards such as predators and the very environment they live in. Cruel Sea explores the Late Jurassic oceans of Oxfordshire and it's inhabitants, such as Ophthalmosaurus, Cryptoclidus, and Liopleurodon. The tragic global migration of the giant Early Cretaceous pterosaur Ornithocheirus is followed in Giant of the Skies as he travels halfway across the world to the mating grounds. The pentultimate episode, Spirits of the Ice Forest, examines Early Cretaceous Antarctica, which was home to polar dinosaurs such as Leaellynasaura, Muttaburrasaurus, and a polar allosaur. It delves into how each of the different animals have adapted to live in this unique environment. The final episode, Death of a Dynasty, takes place in Late Cretaceous Montana at the brink of the K-Pg mass extinction event from the focal point of a Tyrannosaurus trying to reproduce in a volcanic environment. It also features other giant, iconic Late Cretaceous dinosaurs such as Torosaurus, Anatotitan, and Ankylosaurus, and it ends with the climactic meteor impact that wiped out the non-avian dinosaurs forever. It ends on a fittingly somber, haunting yet slightly positive note when it brings up that one group of dinosaurs survived the extinction, being one of the few dinosaur documentaries to actually acknowledge that birds are dinosaurs, despite being the first.
Overall, this documentary is a masterpiece and makes for an exceedingly engaging and riveting viewing experience, full of grandeur, excitement, emotion, and education. It allows people to view dinosaurs in a new light, as the amazing and majestic creatures they really were. It's simply gorgeous, and genuinely shows how magnificent and extraordinary the dynasty of the dinosaurs truly was.
One of the things that makes this documentary so great is that the dinosaurs (as well as other Mesozoic animals featured like pterosaurs and marine reptiles) are portrayed as real animals as they actually were, not ferocious, fantasy movie monsters always out for the kill like most media unfortunately does. The hunts and confrontations are presented in a realistic manner, and the program shows plenty of other aspects of the animal's biology (their behavior and lifestyle). It's shot as if the film crew actually went back in time and filmed these animals in their natural habitat, as they actually shot in real locations. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful; it makes great use of the real locations its shot in, and every frame legit looks like paleoart. The CGI and animatronics were exemplary for their time and still hold up pretty well today for the most part, making the documentary even more believable. The animal models for the most part look great and accurate for their time, and they're shot in a very believable way. The animation of the movements of the animals is fantastic as well, the animals moving very naturally and convincingly with an astounding attention to detail. It makes them look so realistic and lifelike. This incredibly realistic portrayal of Mesozoic life is amplified by Benjamin Bartlett's brilliant, awe-inspiring music score that brings a huge presence of grandeur and emotion. The soundtrack is full of wonder, excitement, suspense, ambience, and even tragedy. It's excellent in it's own right and perfectly fits the series.
The stories are excellent and compelling, as you actually come to care for the animals each episode follows. The first episode, New Blood, takes place in the Late Triassic of Arizona and focuses on one of the earliest dinosaurs, Coelophysis, as well as other Triassic animals such as the large archosaur Postosuchus and the lumbering dicynodont Placerias. It tells the story of how the dinosaurs came to be the dominant clade on Earth. The following episode, Time of the Titans, looks at the Late Jurassic megafauna of Colorado: Diplodocus, Allosaurus, Brachiosaurus and Stegosaurus. We mainly follow a creche of young Diplodocus as they grow into an immense size, having to overcome hazards such as predators and the very environment they live in. Cruel Sea explores the Late Jurassic oceans of Oxfordshire and it's inhabitants, such as Ophthalmosaurus, Cryptoclidus, and Liopleurodon. The tragic global migration of the giant Early Cretaceous pterosaur Ornithocheirus is followed in Giant of the Skies as he travels halfway across the world to the mating grounds. The pentultimate episode, Spirits of the Ice Forest, examines Early Cretaceous Antarctica, which was home to polar dinosaurs such as Leaellynasaura, Muttaburrasaurus, and a polar allosaur. It delves into how each of the different animals have adapted to live in this unique environment. The final episode, Death of a Dynasty, takes place in Late Cretaceous Montana at the brink of the K-Pg mass extinction event from the focal point of a Tyrannosaurus trying to reproduce in a volcanic environment. It also features other giant, iconic Late Cretaceous dinosaurs such as Torosaurus, Anatotitan, and Ankylosaurus, and it ends with the climactic meteor impact that wiped out the non-avian dinosaurs forever. It ends on a fittingly somber, haunting yet slightly positive note when it brings up that one group of dinosaurs survived the extinction, being one of the few dinosaur documentaries to actually acknowledge that birds are dinosaurs, despite being the first.
Overall, this documentary is a masterpiece and makes for an exceedingly engaging and riveting viewing experience, full of grandeur, excitement, emotion, and education. It allows people to view dinosaurs in a new light, as the amazing and majestic creatures they really were. It's simply gorgeous, and genuinely shows how magnificent and extraordinary the dynasty of the dinosaurs truly was.