Palaeo-Redo: Prehistoric Planet


Yeah, I'm just gonna say it: while its definitely an incredible doc, Prehistoric Planet does falter in some spots. Some groups get shafted entirely, and the series' jumping around locations a la Planet Earth doesn't help give a connection to the animals in my humble opinion. But hey, no work is perfect. Even Walking with Dinosaurs had quetionable creative choices and designs. Here's how I would make the already great Apptle TV+ show into downright, absolute god-tier material in my book, while still retaining as much as I can.

In my version, episodes are done by regions or continents instead of environments, as I feel unlike the original, mine can maintain a better sense of focus and continuity. Also, rather then the same intro with the Oxford T. rex over and over each episode, each one is different with a different skeleton of a Mesozoic creature featured.

So without further ado, in honour of 6000 views, here's how I would Palaeo-Redo (trademark pending) Prehistoric Planet!

Islands


This episode covers both Madagascar and India, both islands close to one another, and even share many of the same fauna.
  • The Masiakasaurus and Beelzebufo segment stays, but we also ger new ones on other fauna of the Mareanavo, like the herbiborous crocodilian Simosuchus, the abelisaur Majungasaurus, and the fairly large mammal Vintana.
  • The other half of the episode covers India, specifically the Lameta Formation. The highlight of the sequences will be the basal snake Sanajeh preying on some baby titanosaurs, and the adults trying the first grass.

Oceans




A replacement for Coasts, here with a focus more on the fish of the Maastrichtian, particulely what remains of the Niobrara Sea.

Retained from Coasts are:
  • The Tuarangisaurus segments, which explicitly take place along Zealandia and Australia’s coasts and the mosasaur is Taniwhasaurus.
  • The Ammonite mating sequence
Original sequences added are:
  • Th giant predatory Xiphactinus
  • The seabird Hesperornis
  • One about the swordfish-like Protosphyraena
  • A huge feeding ball of all kinds of creatures hunting Enchodus as thr climax of it. From elasmosaurs, the shark Cretodus, Pteranodon, to the afromentioned taxa.
  • Deep sea ammonites in the Niobrara sea.

Land of the Tyrants




This episode is the terrestrial North America-covering episode, with both Laramidia and Appalachia, with a focus on each of their tyrannosaurs, and to a lesser extent ceratopsids.

Returning segments are:
  • Triceratops
  • Ornithomimus
  • Both the Prince Creek Formation's Nanuqsaurus vs. Pachyrhinosaurus and Edmontosaurus crossing segments.
Altered ones are:
  • Hank the T. rex and his chicks get a new one with them in the forests rather then then a beach day for them, and naturally encountering the Triceratops herd that enters the cave for clay, although no fight.
  • Mixing the forest fires from Ice Worlds and Forests together, so the Atrociraptor and Anodontosaurus appear after the troodont (here an Albertavenator rather then the Prince Creek Formation giant) sets fire to hunt.
New ones are:
  • Replacing the unnecessary Freshwater rex segment is one about both the semiaquatic mammals and crocodilian  Didelphodon and Borealosuchus. Just for good measure, I've even slotted the giant amphibian Habrosaurus in there.
  • An Appalachian segment, with Dryptosaurus and Hypsibema, as well as a leptoceratopsid*. The segment is about a Dryptosaurus pack hunting an old bull, but in a break from the usual weak trope, the Hypsibema pwns them, particularly a cocky young male. It contrasts with the T. rex segment where the tyrannosaur doesn't actually hunt, and the Nunuqsaurus succeed.
* Okay, there are no leptoceratopsid fossils from the Maastrichtian, but there is one from the Campanian, which is close enough to extrapolate. Plus, gotta get leptoceratopsid rep in there somehow.

Asia


Covers most of the Asian segments, following the path of a river, from the mountainous origin, to the basin, to its mouth at the ocean. Most of the segments from the series would return, albiet in a different order (and adnittedly I can't think of any other new additions the Mastrichtian has that aren't redundant).

Southern Lands



This episode would cover both South America and Antarctica. We start off in the lush parts of it before moving into the harsher dryer places, culminating with the Dreadnoughtus fight being the climatic end of it. Really, the episode has as a thread several Dreadnoughtus migrating to the grounds where they shall courtship.

The segments that stay or with minimal alteration.
  • Austroposeidon
  • Carnotaurus
  • Quetzalcoatlus, temporarily in South America to breed as was intended before being changed to South Africa for whatever reason.
  • Antarctopelta
  • Secernosaurus
  • Dreadnoughtus - As a minor addition,  scavengers are shown feasting at the fallen dreadnoughtus.
New segments to my version are:
  • The giant raptor Austroraptor, with it fishing. (I believe it was cut from the series, in fact)
  • The armoured crocodilian Armadillosuchus

The Archipelago



The finale depicts both both northern Africa and the islands that would form Europe. The segments that stay or are 
  • Both Pterosaur sequences, one from Coasts and the other from Deserts, are retained.
  • The Mosasaurus hoffmani segment is moved here.
  • The Hateg Island sequence and its species are extended to give more of an impact, especially for the finale (which I feel was inaqudate t showcasing just how weird the island's fauna was). Most of the taxa are nameddropped, and given their own scenes to showcase, like Magyarosaurus.
And new segments are:
  • Two more with the Ouled Abdoun fauna:
    • The suction-feeding turtle Ocepechelon bouyai
    • The hadrosaur Ajnabia odysseus crossing the ocean to Africa from Spain in a tenser take on the T. rex scene in Coasts.
  • A Maastricht Formation sequence with the bird Asteriornis and the crocodilian Thoracosaurus. The Mosasaurus above is also in the same package of it.
  • One in France and Spain, then a single landmass known as  Ibero-Amorica (perhaps the same as the Ajnabia one mentioned above).
Overall, I'm quite proud of this, though I can't help but feel there still could be taxa and formations I feel could actually suit it well. Let me know how you would change Prehistoric Planet, as blesphemous as it sounds.

Goodbye for now!

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