The kids have a new home, new allies and, maybe, a way home. But is Mr Kon everything he seems to be?

The final season ramps everything up, as it should. The constant conflict in the show between Science and Nature is made overt as the series falls into lockstep with the movies and BioSyn make their presence felt. The core idea, of making dinosaurs fight for sport, is dug into and around here in some surprising and poignant ways. Most of that is explored through Kenji, whose newfound emotional growth is tested to destruction by the arrival of his dad. Andrew Koshino is superb as the older Kon, balanced charm and concern with a steely resolve and a surprising amount of emotional complexity. You truly aren’t sure about him for the first few episodes and that ramps up the tension between Kenji and the other kids. When it breaks, and it does, the show finds some fun new ways to do beats it’s done well before. Kenji takes the Darius route last season, working mostly with his dad and his group of sociopathic investors as the kids struggle to deal with what’s really going. Mae gets some fun stuff to do as well, and the way Mr Kon slowly closes his fist around the island is very well done. There are moments of real malice and jeopardy here and each one hikes the tension further.

The show’s narrative tidiness impresses too. Dodgson and Blue both make appearances, and previous dinosaurs like Toro and Bumpy become central to the plot. In fact, the show’s big emotional beats centre the dinosaurs in some surprising ways. There’s a very sweet subplot about Firecracker learning to fit in, a touching call back to the watering hole scene from a few seasons ago and Ben’s reunion with Bumpy is everything you hope for. It’s also initially very dark, with a chipped Bumpy being controlled by one of the BioSyn mercenaries attacking Ben as Kenji frantically tries to save him. It’s a great sequence, and it shows the downside of the control technology but it’s not quite the whole story. Kenji bonding with Toro through the same technology is key to his redemption as he realises that the dinosaurs are more complex than he ever thought.

This is a Kenji season but the others don’t get small changed. Ben and Darius get some great action beats and Yaz and Sammy realising they’re a couple gives the season some of its sweetest moments. Each of the kids has grown enormously, and their relationship with the dinosaurs has changed with it. The entire back third of the season is about them rescuing the dinosaurs from BioSyn and it leads to some great, and harsh, moments. T Rexes Big and Little Eatie get a lot to do and a really burly fight with the Spinosaurus on the island. A lot of bad guys die, none of them pleasantly. The danger is constant but this time the kids are running towards it and doing so by choice.

Despite this, and the 12 episode season, some plots still feel a little undeveloped. Darius briefly contacted his brother last season and the much anticipated rescue ultimately boils down to just Roxie, Dave and Brandon showing up to give the kids a lift home. It’s not bad, but it feels a little rushed where so little else does.

Despite that, this is a great ending to what turns out to be the first chapter of a great show. The sequel show, Chaos Theory, effectively begins straight away with a two-year time jump. Ben’s summering on Mantah Corp island with Mae and Bumpy, Yaz and Sammy are spending the summer together and the Bowmans have adopted Kenji. And Brooklynn is off to investigate dinosaur sightings at the Lockwood Estate…

Verdict: It’s great and the final shot especially sets up the chaotic Fallen Kingdom/Dominion world Chaos Theory will explore. We’ll join it there next time. 9/10

Alasdair Stuart

Highlights: The Kenji plot, Yaz and Sammy being adorable, the massive amount of dinosaurs and dinosaur action, the ending