User reviews

I must confess I just watched this mini-series because I watch any film with monsters in it. I didn't expect anything much, but the 6 episodes of series 1 turned out to be a real surprise which left me wanting a series 2! PRIMEVAL is a flawless combination of comedy elements (with cute dinosaurs) and action elements (with big bad dinosaurs), and it manages successfully to appeal to both kids and mature viewers. The special FX are excellent, and conflicts make the human characters interesting. PRIMEVAL also has a whole bunch of really good ideas: let the creatures appear in the neighborhood, maybe next to your washing machine - not on a distant tropical island! Instead of the typical T-Rex, let's have a little known creature from the Perm age or even a predator from the future (so, they aren't even dinosaurs from the scientific POV). Instead of killing all the creatures, try preserve them and bring them back home to the age they came from, as any change in the past is potentially dangerous. Clever entertainment! Which also shows in the characters, since they are far from stereotypes. Helen Cutter (Juliet Aubrey) for example. On one hand, she saves lives and gives help, but on the other hand she won't speak the truth, is unscrupulous and cannot be trusted. Primeval - haven't seen any better series recently!

Okay, so the dinosaurs are a little hokey, but I really enjoyed the first episode of Primeval. The fact of the matter, you've got to look at it from the perspective that it's a UK-based fantasy series - so you've got to make sure you've taken a huge dollop of irony with the hole thing. I mean Torchwood is set in Cardiff - and making it look like a dynamic city took some hefty salt pinching on the viewer's behalf. So the Forest of Dean being the site of a portal to the past where dinosaurs can hide is really a walk in the park. So,getting past the dinosaur that moved like a Doberman - and the flying dinosaur that seem to have been taking cute lessons from my cat, the cast were interesting. Only Ben Murray and Hannah Spearitt were actors that I immediately recognised. I kind of knew Douglas Henshall's name. But the stand out actor of the first series was James Murray as Stephen Hardy. The tracker and hunter, with a penchant for playing chicken with huge carnivorous dinosaurs, is a good looking bloke. I reckon that he out-charisma-ed everyone off the screen. Ultimately, I laughed my socks off at the machismo, but that didn't stop me enjoying it.

Interesting premise - 'anomalies' popping up in diverse parts of London. These anomalies are naturally (one supposes) occurring portals to the past. The perfect plot devices - they remain for a limited time only. Just long enough for creatures to arrive and create a bit of mayhem. To date these have been prehistoric eras that ensure dinosaurs and other rabid fauna can come through and wreak havoc. We've had a diverse array of battling creatures that include giant centipedes, spiders and dodos. Yes, dodos. But, if you're looking for originality, you can stop reading and look elsewhere. Everything is game for these writers. Episode 4, with our rambunctious dodos, included hilarious thievery from Stargate, SG1.

The cast is adequate with stock characters. The suited bureaucrat who thrives on secrecy and SWAT teams; tousle haired professor who touts various theories; goofy geekoid student who insinuates himself into the proceedings. Et al. All moving under the premise, as with SG1, that all of this can be kept secret from a public sure to panic and riot if revealed. A rather more interesting character is the professor's long lost wife - found to be jumping among timelines and having the ability to predict where and when one will open.

But the bottom line is this: it's fun. It's not great, and it's not replete with originality. But you will probably go back each week for more. After all, what competition is there? Under these criteria I give it 6 out of 10.

Well, what can I say about Primeval? How about, that it's a very welcome breath of fresh air after all those godawful "reality" shows that we've had to deal with over recent years?

Great acting from a cast who gels well together, with at least one character you love to hate (and would happily push through an anomaly!) and several you come to care about throughout the series. With exciting CG dinosaurs and cleverly woven plot lines (which carry through each episode), this is an amazing new series that deserves to go on! Some have commented that the acting is poor, yet I think these guys and girls do extremely well, given that they are acting to CG for a large amount of time, and that is an extremely difficult thing to do.

The plot lines are well thought out and well written, throwing everyday people into the path of prehistoric monsters and seeing how they deal with it. A wonderful combination of acting, writing and our own desire to occasionally escape the "real" world makes this a gripping series that you have to tune into each week.

Great show, can't wait for series 2!!!

Prior to watching it I had low expectations. It sounded like an afternoon kids show but I was very wrong.

The concept is well imagined and it seems to be aiming at an older audience. Curiously the first two episodes had a zero body count, then they suddenly seemed to change their mind and the bodies started stacking up.

The largely unknown actors put in pretty good performances. Surprisingly ex "S Club 7" member Hannah Spearritt is a capable actress. The DVD extras reveal she is less capable at throwing rocks though - the one she was meant to throw at a creature hits the cameraman! The CGI effects are excellent for a TV series with a strictly limited budget, almost film standard largely thanks to the previous ground breaking Walking With Dinosaurs, with only the occasional wobble.

However while the overall story is engaging the script writer ought to be fired for the details. Our belief in the characters is disrupted at regular intervals when they do something unbelievably stupid just to keep the story running. For example when being told to run for the trees the character can be clearly seen running along side them, and after armed special forces are driven off by creatures they are content to let unarmed scientists face them alone, not intervening even when hearing they are in trouble on the radio. Every episode has such incidents which require forceful suspension of belief.

The characters also need to be developed more and their strengths played to to justify their continued participation in the project, as some of them are tenuous.

Despite these script failings the series shows a huge amount of promise and I am delighted to hear a second series has been commissioned which I will certainly be watching.

I recommend you give it a try. You may be surprised.

I didn't expect a great deal from Primeval which is perhaps why I now find myself pleasantly surprised by it. The casting is excellent and story lines, although sometimes far-fetched, are nevertheless highly enjoyable. It's the little gem on Saturday night TV which these days are pretty much few and far between.

For those who are keen to compare it to Doctor Who and Torchwood, I must say I personally don't think it's similar to either of them. Yes, it's the same genre but give the thing a chance! -- I'm not sure half the people who have slated this have even watched it.

At the end of the day, Primeval was never going to be groundbreaking - and, to its credit, I don't think it sets out to be anything of the sort - but it is a great piece of telly fluff that'll certainly keep me tuned for series two.

After seeing the trailer for this six-part ITV series. I thought it to be another cheesy attempt to cash in on the current British sci-fi phenomenon. The tag line 'Time For Adventure' was the real put-off for me, though. And I thought it to be another clumsy clone of the massively popular re-make of 'Doctor Who' After watching the first episode (mainly out of pity) I had a change of heart. Sure, the special effects could use some dusting-up, but the show seems to have it all. Massive dinosaur fight scenes for the kids, a love-triangle for older viewers, witty one-liners even a missing wife for all you 'Lost' fans out there. The one thing that worried me, though, is the scenes of Abby jiggling around in her panties due to her humid flat. Now, I have no personal problem against this, but it seems like ITV are just asking for trouble from over-worrying mum's by making a show for kids at around eight on a Saturday night and then going straight on and plonking that in there. My underline: May not be to everyones tastes, but worth a shot for any 'Doctor Who' or 'Life On Mars' fans.

I watched this with some apprehension but I have to say I was presently surprised, I'm sure as the series progresses it will be a hit, good performance for Douglas Henshall as the moody professor searching for his wife. The cute flying dinosaur named appropriately "REX" steels the show I must admit I forgot that ex S Club Hannah was in the program you know what they say about working with Children and animals. A bit of Doctor Who & Touchwood mixed with a few dinosaurs and the time portal what more could BBC do!After seeing next weeks previews I'll be giving the DVD rental for the time being and be tuning in hopefully for more than two episodes.

Having read the general plot outline I was a bit skeptical about the concept due to some disappointing other movies with the same repertoire. I thought that after Jurassic Park I could only be disappointed. On the contrary, the series' balance between suspense and British humor is very much refreshing. I loved the pilot episode and I certainly will continue watching. The graphics are fascinatingly nice bearing in mind that this is not a heavy Hollywood-Production. In addition, the soundtrack is carefully chosen. All the actresses and actors play their part exceptionally good. Finally, the fact that this is a British series makes the whole concept even more interesting. For those who love the different British accents this is the TV-Seires of choice. Have fun!

When I was younger, this was by far my most favourite TV show ever! I used to be buzzing for every episode on a Saturday, record it and then watch it again on Sunday! The concept to me was fascinating and almost every episode there would be a new dinosaur and I was always questioning what if this happened for real, especially because it was places in the UK which made it so much more relatable.

I then started to rewatch it this year and I couldn't finish the first season, it just wasn't the same experience that I had when I was younger. As you watch more and more TV shows and films you can start to pick holes in them. This I didn't want to do that (I know I would). It's disappointing but I've stuck with the judgment to just leave it as the great TV show it is in my memories. If they make a reboot of this with up to date CGI and good casting choices (like before) then I would be on board!!

So this is where BBC dinosaurs have come in ten years. Walking with Dinosaurs is without doubt the smartest prehistoric programme TV has offered. Slowly creator/producer Tim Haines and his studio, have made the transition from science, to show times. Primeval gets off to a good start but after one season, It gets clumsy, unstable and ridiculous, with little to hold onto but a few laughs.

The show is ridiculous from the start but at least it winks at its own absurdity. Starting in London's Forest of Dean, professor Nick Cutter and his team are investigating the reported sighting of a creature unlike anything from the modern era. One thing leads to another and soon they find that bizarre holes in time and space have opened gate ways from prehistory to the modern era. With the financial aid of Home office, Cutter sets up a Research Center to track down the plethora of creatures that are showing up all over England. Meanwhile Cutter is also searching for his wife. Helen Cutter was lost eight years ago, presumed dead, and now it turns out that she's been time travelling. worse still she knows things about the future that she wants to prevent, even if that means resorting to bringing down the Cutter's team.

Primeval is essentially Ghostbusters, meets Jurassic Park meets, 24. The first six episodes are actually pretty good despite some scientific inaccuracies and little plot holes, but these holes get bigger. The trick to Primeval is that it doesn't take itself seriously, but it gets carried away, and before long, the show starts inventing it's own creatures, throwing in too many bad plot developments, and silly dialogue.

Considering the contrived ways that several characters are bumped off, it's pretty obvious that half the cast wanted out of the series. I don't blame them. They have little to do other than run around in circles.

Even at it's worst, Primeval is still watchable, but barely. It holds onto a few quirks and running gags, and it has you tuned in, if only to see what crazy idea the show thinks up next episode.

If it interests you, I suppose it's worth a rent, but I don't expect anyone to fall in love.

Its been called ITVs Doctor Who, it has its critics among the die hard Who fans I'm sure, but there is no getting away from the fact that Primeval is extraordinary and is excellent ( as is Dr Who ). I love the "Star Gate Meets Walking with Dinosaurs theme, it really works. I think they are equal, there is enough disparity in the two genre to not really be able to compare them too deeply, they certainly are not " like for like ".

I don't try to compare the two any more, just enjoy them for what they each are. I wont be missing Primeval any time soon, and I do very much hope there will be more of the same to come from this source in future years.

And NO !!

I am not THE Tim Haines.

I Wish !!!!

One of the best sci fi thrillers of all time. Actors are 12 star characters. Needs to be renewed and continued

This series could be called Wilhelm Scream the series. The scream usually occurs in films and is used subtlety as in Star Wars or Lord of the rings when someone dies. Primeval has decided to use it in every episode, this becomes very old very quick. The special effects are OK, not terrible and not great, but considering Jurrsaic Park was made 14 years earlier and looked much better, it's hard to be generous even when comparing a film to a TV series. The acting is quite good, and the chartcers are believable, but the but given the sensational subject matter, episodes still manage to drag.

All in all, there are much better sci fi shows out there, this is farely child friendly and is the most likely target audience.

When I was 13 years old in 2009 I went to YouTube and on the home page there were several videos from a series called Primeval, and then I ended up loving the videos that presented this series, and I started watching the episodes of the third season in 2009 on open TV, I haven't followed the series since the beginning of the 1st season in 2007 because I live in the USA and I don't live in the UK so there was no way for me to follow the episodes since the first season, I watched the 1st season and liked it, then I watched the 2nd season and liked it too, then the 3rd, 4th and 5th seasons came and I loved it.

Watching the first season I was impressed. Great FX and interesting concept. But alas, being a British production, it is victim of the many mistakes the British commonly make. Putting recycled celebrities in to target an audience. Commonly rehashed British dialog and concepts to keep the feel British (or maybe they just don't know how to write anything else). There are just too many elements in personalities and inter-character situations that have been done over and over and over, that I have a hard time not turning off the program. The main concept is great, but it little develops in the episodes to keep it afloat. Way too much is focused on the characters and there is nothing new, interesting or captivating there. If the writers could just concentrate on the basis of the show and not the soap opera that is supposed to carry it (because it will give it a quick and painful early death if they don't). The ending of season 1 was pretty good, but season 2 has become a bore with again, the main plot not going anywhere. Just a powerful vehicle spinning it's wheels. The British are also amazingly cheap. They will only budget 6 episodes to a season. Unless it gets astronomical viewership. Then they will milk it for all it is worth and spend money on useless material (Dr. Who and Torchwood Confidential for each episode). WHAT A WASTE!!! Save the money, get some better writers (that know how to focus on a concept), make a FULL season of episodes (13-22). So that you don't loose the few good actors that you have remaining.... I do hope this show develops to it's full potential, but alas, if you look at how the British have compared up till now, it probably wont 8(

When Primeval first started it was pretty good and very interesting in its concept. However, in my view the show is getting worse and worse. The special effects are great, I like the theme tune and Andrew Lee Potts does what he can. But sadly, I wish I can say the same for the rest. The first series was good, after that it was clear the series was running out of ideas. There is a lack of atmosphere, because the scares are so predictably done. Then there is the camera work, which is very frantic and rushed to the point it is dizzying, the writing is now clichéd and banal and the story lines are dully paced, lame and unoriginal. Other than Potts, the other acting is often lacking and it doesn't help that I can't connect to the characters. So overall, to start it wasn't bad, now other than the effects and two or three other things it is rather dull and unoriginal. 3/10 Bethany Cox

Too many people watch shows to compare with others and are disappointed. Primeval has been compared to Dr. Who and Torchwood but it isn't anything like either of them. it is its own entity. I, personally, don't care for Dr Who but enjoyed Torchwood. Primeval is a very entertaining series and that's all i ask for. if I want to be educated I'll watch documentaries