A Journey to Dinotasia

This week, I hope you readers aren't getting tired of dinosaurs, because we're going full-fledge dino this week! Everything from the In the Spotlight to the Topic of the Week . . . well, the Days Till section of the article isn't devoted to dinosaurs, but everything else is. For those readers who might not be as interested in dinosaurs as I am, you've no need to fear, because we won't be doing a dinosaur-related blog post next week. Anyway, let's get started!

Days Till

It is: 17 days till Father's Day

It is: 23 days till Summer Solstice

It is: 36 days till Independence Day

In the Spotlight

For those of you who have been keeping up with reading these blog posts, you'll know that there's a lot going on concerning the upcoming film Jurassic World, that is filming at this very moment. I'm very excited for the film. However, in all the hullabaloo, many people have leaked “spoilers” onto the internet (they're not really spoilers, per se, but if you don't want to know anything about the film, skip to the Topic of the Week). One of the most major contributors to the spoilers leaking is Joblo.com, and they started a rumor regarding the film's plot. You can read about it here.

These rumors seemed like they were accurate, but we could never be 100% sure and we had to take this news with a grain of salt. When learning or hearing about rumors concerning upcoming films, it's always a good idea to take them with a grain of salt, because some are nothing more than tales spun up by people on the internet desperatefor attention. Just yesterday, the result from an exclusive review with the film's director, Colin Trevorrow puts a lot of conspiracies to rest and reveals why the film has been shrouded in secrecy. As the interview is far too extensive to put in this blog post, you can read the whole interview here and here.

Now we know for a fact that the new film will take place at a new theme park on Isla Nublar, the island of the first film. The interview you just read also corrected many misconceptions about Jurassic World. One of the ones I found most interesting was that many fans of the Jurassic Park franchise believed Velociraptors would be tamed in the film by Chris Pratt's character – named Owen, based on what was said by Joblo. Trevorrow corrected that myth and said that Owen is merely studying their behavior. He also debunked the myth that there would be “good” and “bad” dinosaurs. Yahoo!

Chris Pratt's character will be studying Velociraptor behavior in Jurassic World; let's hope he fares better than Dr. Alan Grant does in Jurassic Park III as seen above.

In other Jurassic World news, a series of photographs was recently leaked onto the internet from an unknown source. They reveal what the new park might look like. Here are the photographs below:

Of course, since many of them are either blurry or don't show the whole map, we can't be certain about everything the park will have to offer – if this isn't some hoax spun up by some guy on the internet – but from what we can see, we can start to learn about what species of dinosaurs and other creatures will be in the park:

• Tyrannosaurus
• Triceratops
• Gallimimus
• Pachycephalosaurus
• Flying reptiles that live in Aviary (possibly Pteranodon)
• Mosasaurus

Velociraptors and Diabolus rex are apparently missing from the map, suggesting either that these two dinosaurs aren't showcased to the public (we can see that the map is one for tourists because it says “Welcome to Jurassic World” and “You are here”) or that this map is a hoax. I'm also rather skeptical about this map because there is an apparent lack of enclosures for sauropods, such as Brachiosaurus, which appeared in the first and third Jurassic Park film, and hadrosaurs like Parasaurolophus, which appeared in all three films released so far. It seems kind of strange to me that this movie would emit sauropods and hadrosaurs from the film, considering how iconic they are to the series. But like I said, much of the map is hard to see, so we can't say for sure if they are or aren't there, or even if this map is really for the film and not a hoax.

Last but not least, Trevorrow posted an image of the badge worn on the hats of Jurassic World veterinarians:

With all the news coming in about Jurassic World, a JP fan like me can't help but be excited.

Topic of the Week by Christian Ryan

I recently got a documentary on dinosaurs called Dinotasia . . . and I loved it! For those of you not familiar with it, it is a dinosaur-starring documentary by Creative Pictures and Discovery Channel and narrated by Werner Herzog. But it's quite unlike any other dinosaur documentary I can think of, as it not only portrays the latest dinosaur fossil discoveries, but also classic storytelling techniques generally unseen since the era of silent films. This film is almost as if you took the BBC series Walking with Dinosaurs and the Disney film Fantasia and blended the two together. Just like Fantasia, there is slapstick humor, and moments that will make you cry; like Walking with Dinosaurs, it's based on real fossil evidence. That's what I feel makes Dinotasia so unique. Today, as Werner says near the film's beginning, “We've now returned to a world where life and death are locked in a merciless struggle.” Welcome to Dinotasia.

P.S.: Don't watch if your squeamish. This film is not really for young viewers, as there are quite a few instances where dinosaurs or other animals get eaten, violently killed, injured, stabbed, stepped on, beheaded and . . . you get the picture!

Before I get any further into my review about Dinotasia, you might want to know some background on the film. Back in September of 2011, Discovery Channel released one of my favorite dinosaur documentaries (or dino-docs) called Dinosaur Revolution (it was originally going to be called Reign of the Dinosaurs), a four-episode series that takes the viewer back in time to see what the latest fossil discoveries have to saw about these amazing creatures. Unlike most other dino-docs, it combined enriching storytelling with loads of scientific facts, often given by “talking-heads”. There were four episodes: Evolution's Winners (I wouldn't have picked that title for the episode, of course), which is about why dinosaurs were unique among other creatures. Watering Hole tells the story of an Allosaurus as he struggles to survive in the harsh Jurassic world. Survival Tactics was all about, as the title suggests, the dinosaurs' various survival strategies. The fourth and final episode was End Game; this episode focused largely on a pair of Tyrannosaurus rex and dinosaur extinction.

Unfortunately, while the series received lots of praise, it also received lots of negative comments. Many viewers mainly complained about the quality of the special effects, the annoying narrator (originally, it was supposed to have no narration), and the constant switches from serious to not-so-serious. Frankly, I don't know what there was to complain about. I LOVED the series. My main complains with Dinosaur Revolution, along with Dinotasia, is the use of the secular worldview of evolution and millions of years, of course. But seriously, other than that, I didn't get why a lot of people complained. After the series aired, it's creators decided to make sort of a director's cut of the series; they combined what they considered the best scenes from the series, used a new narrator, Werner Herzog and meshed them together to make Dinotasia.

Dinotasia takes the viewer on a ride back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the planet. As with the Walking with Dinosaurs: The Movie review I did, I want to take a moment and say when the scenes in the film take place, as the earth really isn't millions of years old as evolution teaches. Most of the scenes in Dinotasia would fit perfectly in the pre-Flood world, perhaps around 4,500 years ago; that's the time before the global Flood of Noah's time (which happened about 4,350 years ago) wiped the earth clean of all recognizable geography and God cast His judgment on the world. The only exception I feel would be the very first and last moments of the film, but I'll get to that later.

Another objection to the film I'd like to make is that many of the dinosaurs are portrayed with feathers, something obviously inspired by the belief that dinosaurs evolved into birds. There's a lot of evidence against this belief; in fact, no dinosaurs to date have been discovered with feathers. All “dinosaurs” that have been discovered with feathers (like Rahonavis) are actually birds that God created with some “reptilian features”.

As mentioned before, there is a good bit of violence in Dinotasia, but much of the violence isn't actually thought up by some creative mind – a lot of it is based on real fossil discoveries! One dinosaur discovery that backs up what is seen in Dinotasia is of the broken jaw of an Allosaurus that was broken during the time the animal was alive (more on this later). Finds such as this are a problem for Christians who believe that the Bible and evolution compliment each other. If that were the case, then you'd have animal death, injury and violence, millions of years before Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden, but that's not the world that God said “that it was good” (Genesis 1:31). No, death and injury of man and animals is a result of mankind's sin and rebellion against God. Dinotasia perfectly portrays the kind of violence that happened in the pre-Flood world; Werner himself even says at one point in the film that “Eden does not exist here.” How right he is!

A family of Eoraptors surveys the land in the first episode of Dinosaur Revolution.

Over the past few paragraphs, I've mentioned time and time again about the scenes in the film. Well, I might as well not have said that if I hadn't intended to tell you what scenes were in the film! So here they are:

The Great Dying – a thrilling short scene in which a pair of Inostrancevia try to escape the destruction of their world.

Rivals – this story takes place in Jurassic Portugal (the environment, not the fictitious time period) and portrays the rivalry between an Allosaurus and his prey, a Dinheirosaurus, along with the other creatures that live around a small waterhole.

Timeless Sea – A montage of different stories (taking place in the ocean, Utah, Antarctica, Portugal and China) featuring a mother mosasaur giving birth, a pack of Utahraptor trying to bring down a Cedarosaurus, a Glacialasaurus trying to find a mate, a pair of Cryolophosaurus fighting over a mate, a cameo appearance from the creatures in Rivals and a pair of Guanlong.

Sound of Survival – a tiny Rahonavis bird forms sort of a symbiotic relationship with a larger titanosaur and tries to avoid getting stepped on or eaten by the carnivorous Majungasaurus.

Forbidden Fruit – a young Shunosaurus learns a similar leason to the one Adam and Eve learned 6,000 years ago . . . that disobeying has serious consequences.

Herd Instincts – a baby Protoceratops struggles to survive after the death of his herd at the hands (claws?) of small but extremely underestimated Velociraptor!

Empty Nest – a mother pterosaur decides that it is time for her young to learn the power of flight . . . but it's a dangerous world for a new flier.

End Game – a pair of Tyrannosaurus named Tinkerbell and Stumpy find out how hard it is to raise a family in Cretaceous Montana with the ominous threat of Jack the Tyrannosaurus. Also, a pair of Troodon struggle to survive in a post-apocalyptic world.

While watching Dinotasia, it feels almost as if you can actually travel back in time to see these amazing creatures. I enjoyed the experience greatly. On this adventure, there are plenty of amazing and incredible creatures to see. Now, let's look at some of the creatures that make up Dinotasia:

The Great Dying

Inostrancevia

A pair of Inostrancevia fight over a carcass.

Inostrancevia was the largest member of the gorgonopsid family. These ancient reptiles were not dinosaurs, but another type of reptile called therapsids. The gorgonopsids were ferocious predators that hunted pretty much any other creature in their environment. In the habitat they lived in, the only creature they had to fear was another gorgonopsid. Gorgonopsids came in all shapes and sizes, but Inostrancevia – the largest – was the size of a rhinoceros! It bore four-inch saber-teeth in its jaws used to finish off its prey. In the first scene of Dinotasia, a pair of gorgonopsids try to survive a nasty meteor shower. Unfortunately, even if they survive, the world as they know it is sadly coming to an end. This is probably not the world of the pre-Flood. Instead, this scene in Dinotasia seems to fit more of a post-Flood setting, when the world really was quite apocalyptic and unpredictable.

Rivals

Allosaurus

Allosaurus was one of the top predators of Jurassic Portugal.

Allosaurus is what many have called the “Lion of the Jurassic”, and rightly so. It was one of the top predators of the Jurassic environment. It was about 10 feet tall, 28-30 feet long and weighed 3-4 tons. This dinosaur makes an appearance in Rivals in the setting of Jurassic Portugal. This story starts off with a young Allosaurus having a normal day with his mother and siblings. However, as he plays by himself, he wonders from his family and ends up near a herd of traveling Dinheirosaurus. One of the Dinheirosaurus doesn't like him so much and lashes out irrationally . . . literally! A single swipe from its whiplash-like tail snaps the baby Allosaurus' lower jawbone in two; many fans of the series and the film have nicknamed this dinosaur “Broken Jaw”. Interestingly enough, this scene isn't mere storytelling by the film's creators – it's inspired by real evidence. A lower jaw bone of an Allosaurus has been discovered and sometime in the past it broke. The tail of a sauropod is one of the most likely candidates for causing the injury. Astoundingly, the bone healed before the dinosaur died, so we know that the Allosaurus lived possibly years after the incident! Throughout his life, Broken Jaw learns just how hard it is to be the top predator in Jurassic Portugal.

Dinheirosaurus

Dinheirosaurus weighed 30 tons and stretched 90 feet in length!

This dinosaur is one of the largest dinosaurs to appear in Dinotasia. Dinheirosaurus is a close relative of the North American Diplodocus and Apatosaurus and is about the same size. Despite its long neck, Dinheirosaurus mainly grazes on low-growing foliage rather than browsing on tall trees. Weighing up to 30 tons, most predators would rather not mess with them. They also have long whip-like tails that can be used to injure attackers, as Broken Jaw learned the hard way! In Dinotasia, the individual that snaps Broken Jaw's lower jaw bone in two continues to have a predator-prey relationship with Broken Jaw into adulthood. She must always keep an eye on Broken Jaw, because the young Allosaurus seems set on making a meal, not on her, but on what appears to be her offspring.

Ornitholestes

Ornitholestes (right) spends much of his time trying to catch that Rhamphorynchus.

Ornitholestes, a small sheep-sized theropod, was probably the Jackal of the Jurassic. Although no fossils of this dinosaur have been found in Portugal, many of the dinosaurs found in Portugal are the same species or very similar related species to ones found in another location called the Morrison Formation, in North America. For instance, Allosaurus and Torvosaurus have been found in both Portugal and North America; Dinheirosaurus is quite similar to its relative Diplodocus, Lusotitan is similar to the North American Brachiosaurus and Miragaia is similar to the more famous Stegosaurus. In Dinotasia, one Ornitholestes learns why it should never awake a sleeping Allosaurus. Another Ornitholestes spends much of his time on screen trying (and often humorously failing) to catch a Rhamphorynchus in a very similar fashion to the cartoon Tweety and Sylvester. I found the scenes between Ornitholestes and Rhamphorynchus some of the funniest scenes in the whole film.

Rhamphorynchus

The Rhamphorynchus of Dinotasia has a symbiotic relationship with Broken Jaw.

Rhamphorynchus is a small pterosaur from Jurassic Europe. Normally, this species is a fish-eater, but the individual in Dinotasia seems to have a taste for insects. It also has formed a symbiotic relationship with Broken Jaw, similar to the relationship crocodiles were formally believed to have with African plover birds. Broken Jaw will open his toothy jaws for the little pterosaur and allow him to eat the leftover flesh stuck in between his teeth. Like all pterosaurs, Rhamphorynchus is not a dinosaur, unlike his pursuer, the carnivorous Ornitholestes.

Miragaia

A herd of Miragaia is best left alone, even by large predators!

Miragaia is a medium-sized member of the stegosaur family. Like its larger relative Stegosaurus, Miragaia has tall plates on its back. Scientists aren't sure what the plates are used for, but one theory is that they were used for display purposes. What makes Miragaia different from many other stegosaurs is the fact that it has a long sauropod-like neck, a quite unusual trait for a stegosaur. This dinosaur also has a spiked tail for protection.

Torvosaurus

Torvosaurus is the largest carnivore ever to walk European lands.

For a time, Broken Jaw believes that he's the largest carnivore in the region . . . that all changes with the arrival of Torvosaurus. Torvosaurus is a large megalosaurid that stretched 35 feet or more in length and weighed 4-5 tons. In Dinotasia, he wants the territory around the waterhole to himself, even if that means kicking Broken Jaw off of his favorite turf. He is also a major threat to juvenile Dinheirosaurus.

Lusotitan

Lusotitan can drink lots of water in one sitting!

The largest dinosaurs to appear in the series are sauropods called Lusotitan, with emphasis on “titan”. They stand 60 feet tall, are 80-90 feet long and weigh 50 tons! At this size, they could peer into a six-story building with no trouble at all. Lusotitan are very closely related to Brachiosaurus of North America and Giraffititan of Africa. Unlike the smaller Dinheirosaurus, this sauropod uses its long neck to browse on leaves in the treetops.

Sound of Survival

Rahonavis

Rahonavis is certainly a bizarre creature!

Sound of Survival portrays the little extinct species of bird, Rahonavis struggling to stay alive on what is now the island of Madagascar. Though it looked like a member of the dromaeosaur or raptor family, Rahonavis' skeletal design reveals it is actually a bird. Like a raptor, it had a sickle-shaped enlarged talon on each foot. Paleontologists aren't sure if this bird could fly or not. Dinotasia seems to portray it as a creature that can fly at least a little bit. However, its long legs make it an ample runner, able to escape dangerous predators. Back then, Madagascar wasn't home to cute and cuddly lemurs and scaly chameleons. Before the Flood, ravenous dinosaurs roamed the area. Rahonavis wasn't very big – at only the size of a raven, it would have made the perfect meal for many predators.

Majungasaurus

Even baby Majungasaurus are ferocious hunters!

Madagascar's largest predator in the pre-Flood world was a carnivore by the name of Majungasaurus. This species of dinosaur belonged to the abelisaurid family and was related to dinosaurs such as Carnotaurus and Aucusaurus. It probably hunted creatures like the large sauropods it shared pre-Flood Madagascar with. In Dinotasia, even the babies are ferocious predators at a very young age. While their mother attempts to kill big game, her young try their hunting skills on a Rahonavis who must use his roadrunner-like running ability to escape danger if he wants to survive.

Beelzebufo

Beelzebufo was large enough to eat baby/small dinosaurs!

One of the largest frogs ever to exist was Beelzebufo. It was about the size of the modern African bullfrog. African bullfrogs aren't very frightful creatures like many frogs are; in fact, they won't hesitate to bite human beings. If African bullfrogs are like this, one can only imagine what meeting Beelzebufo would have been like! This extinct frog was so large that it could consume other frogs, and even baby/small dinosaurs, including Majungasaurus babies!

Forbidden Fruit

Shunosaurus

Shunosaurus has a club on its tail for defense.

Shunosaurus was a bizarre sauropod; unlike most sauropods, it had a club on the end of its tail, similar to the ones possessed by ankylosaurs. In Dinotasia, a juvenile or sub-adult Shunosaurus decides to disobeys his elders and sample some red mushrooms. However, he soon learns that his choice was a poor one when he becomes disorientated and starts feeling sick. This is a bad time for this to happen, because no sooner does he come under the effects of the mushrooms does a pair of Sinraptors approach, deciding they want their next meal!

Sinraptor

Sinraptor is a predator you don't ever want to run into!

The name of carnivorous Sinraptor is deceptive, as its not sinful (though it did become carnivorous due to man's sin) and it isn't a raptor. Instead, it's in its own family. A pair of these dinosaurs attacks the disorientated Shunosaurus in Dinotasia.

Herd Instincts

Protoceratops

In Dinotasia, this baby Protoceratops learns why it is important to stay with other members of his own kind.

Protoceratops was a sheep-sized herbivorous relative of the larger Triceratops – they were both in the ceratopsid family. As portrayed in Dinotasia, scientists believe these dinosaurs traveled the plains of what is now Mongolia and China in herds to protect themselves from predators. Also for protection, they have a bony frill jutting out of the backs of their skulls to protect the neck. Unlike Triceratops, Protoceratops lacked ferocious-looking horns on its head – it had a parrot-like beak that would not only have been useful for eating tough plants, but also snapping the bones of predatory dinosaurs. One dinosaur that preyed upon Protoceratops is none other than the infamous Velociraptor! By the way, we know that Protoceratops was prey to Velociraptor not only because we've found tooth marks and teeth of raptors on and around Protoceratops bones, but we've also found the skeletons of these two dinosaurs preserved locked in a deadly battle they were having before being rapidly buried by the waters of the Genesis Flood. In Dinotasia, a baby Protoceratops loses its herd to a pair of Velociraptor who insist on making him their dessert. Could a mysterious stranger save him from death?

Velociraptor

Even at the size of a large turkey, Velociraptor was one of the most deadliest predators ever to walk the earth!

Made famous by its portrayal in Jurassic Park, Velociraptor has a rightly deserved reputation in terms of its ferocity! The real Velociraptor wasn't as large as the man-sized one in the movie – it was only about the size of a large farm turkey. But anyone who was fooled by the raptor's small size paid a deadly price! Pound for pound, Velociraptor was one of the most deadly of dinosaurs. Scientists believe that it might have hunted in packs or pairs to bring down prey larger than itself. As if this weren't bad enough, it also had an enlarged retractable claw shaped like a sickle on each foot used to finish bring down its prey. In Dinotasia, this wily predators are responsible for the death a young Protoceratops' family and are soon after him too. A lone bull Protoceratops soon shows up . . . has another dinner option arrived or have the Velociraptors met their match?

The Empty Nest

Anhangeura

Anhangeura was a pterosaur, and not a dinosaur.

At the beginning of this sequence, a mother Anhangeura arrives at her nest of offspring with a freshly caught fish in her jaws. The babies squeal excitedly, waiting for their mother to feed them . . . before gulping it down herself! Anhangeura was, like Rhamphorynchus, a species of pterosaur, but with a 15-foot wingspan it was much larger. Fossil eggs of pterosaurs have been found and reveal that the babies were born with fully-functional wings, suggesting that they didn't remain in the nest for a long period of time. In Dinotasia, the mother Anhangeura has the same idea and decides that it's time for her young to learn to fly! One young Anhangeura isn't so sure he can accomplish this feat. Unfortunately, there are plenty of dangers around the nesting area that make it risky for a young flier. Anhangeura had a bizarre crest on its beak that was probably used for display. This pterosaur's remains have been found in Argentina.

End Game

Tyrannosaurus

Tyrannosaurus rex, like Jack Palance as pictured above, were 40 feet long, 20 feet tall, weighed 7 tons and were made of pure terror!

Tyrannosaurus rex is the most famous dinosaur of all time! It was the largest member of the tyrannosaur family, measuring 43 feet long and weighing 6-7 tons; it plays a huge part in Dinotasia, which centers around the lives of a pair of Tyrannosaurs, named Tinkerbell and Stumpy. Early in this section of the film, Stumpy battles with another, larger tyrannosaur named Jack, who's mere appearance is enough to give most dinosaurs a run for their money! During the battle, Jack successfully rips one of Stumpy's arms off with his powerful jaws (hence the name “Stumpy”). Yes, we have evidence for this gruesome behavior as well: a fossil “shoulder” bone from a T. rex reveals that its arm was completely ripped off by another predator, and there was only one dinosaur that lived in T. rex's locale that could do damage like that – another T. rex! Despite their violent nature, many scientists believe that Tyrannosaurus, as portrayed in Dinotasia, cared for their young before and after hatching. Tinkerbell and Stumpy appear to be wonderful parents and even go as far as to help their young escape their eggshells. Unfortunately, the pair learn that their Cretaceous Montanan home is a hard place to raise a family, especially with egg-eaters about and the threat of Jack. Life for a dinosaur can be hard, especially for the King of the Tyrant Lizards.

Even the mighty T. rex can be good parents.

Triceratops

Triceratops is the largest member of the ceratopsid family.

Triceratops – a 30-foot long, 6-12 ton behemoth – was a favorite meal for T. rex. We know this because bite marks have been found on Triceratops bones; also, many bite marks made on Triceratops bones from T. rex were made when the Triceratops was alive because the bone healed before the herbivore died. Triceratops was the largest member of the ceratopsian family and had a beak strong enough to chomp through tree branches as thick as a man's arm! For protection, Triceratops boasted a neck frill and three sharp horns on its head. Because of this dinosaur's defenses, Stumpy and Tinkerbell will work together to bring it down.

Ankylosaurus

Ankylosaurus is built like a tank!

One of the most heavily armored dinosaurs ever to exist was the Ankylosaurus. It was covered in bony knobs and spikes from its neck to the tip of its tail. At the size of a school bus, it was built like a tank. An added bonus possessed by Ankylosaurus was the large bony club on the end of its tail used to protect itself from danger. It weighed as much as four to six tons and is a creature best left alone, a lesson Junior, one of Stumpy and Tinkerbell's offspring learns the hard way.

Troodon

Troodon might have nested in colonies.

The final creature I'm going to talk about in this review is the wily Troodon, the fox of the Cretaceous. It was a sheep-sized omnivorous theropod similar in design to Velociraptor. Unlike raptors, Troodon probably wasn't too keen on hunting big game very often and mainly stuck to smaller prey, such as smaller reptiles, amphibians, eggs and baby/smaller dinosaurs. A major similarity they have to raptors is the enlarged sickle-shaped claw on their feet. In Dinotasia, this small dinosaur lives in pairs and likely mates for life. They are also very protective of their nests and eggs; this is based on fossil evidence. We've found close relations to Troodon sitting on top of their nests – they were brooding their eggs and refused to leave them unprotected, just as any good parent will do even as the waters of the Genesis Flood covered them. This sort of reminds me of the Bible verse (Under God's protective wings) . . . Dinotasia portrays a pair of Troodon struggling to cling to survival after an asteroid strikes the earth, (according to Dinosaur Revolution, as this isn't said in Dinotasia) setting off global wildfires and afterward an impact winter, similar to a nuclear winter; they are portrayed as some of the last dinosaurs on earth.

Creationists know that dinosaurs were not sent to extinction by an asteroid from space like evolutionists belief; there is actually much evidence against that theory. However, the events portrayed in the film's climax and the first scene featuring Inostrancevia aren't as untruthful as they might seem to a Bible-believing Christian at first glance. (Don't worry, I'm not about to get Theistic evolution-ish here! Just bear with me!) Geological evidence suggests that our planet once went through a time of major catastrophes and asteroid collisions. This has led many creationists to believe that they happened during the Genesis Flood! In fact, an asteroid collision might have even started the Flood. How? Well, that's beyond the scope of this article, but here's a link where you can learn about how God might have used asteroids and/or comets to start Noah's Flood.

Evolutionists believe that a six-mile wide asteroid struck the Gulf of Mexico 65 million years ago and it wiped out the dinosaurs. Well, we know it didn't happen 65 million years ago, but that asteroid collision did happen. How do we know? We have the crater to prove it! Asteroid impacts such as these (and the lava fields showed in the Inostrancevia sequence) both happened during Noah's Flood. So what about the end of Dinotasia that portrays the Troodon struggling for survival? How close to the truth is that? After a Flood of the magnitude described in the book of Genesis, the world wouldn't have been pretty as is often depicted in portraits. It probably would have been pretty barren. The volcanic activity during (and after) the Flood would have expelled a lot of volcanic debris into the air, blocking out lots of the sun's heat. The world Noah stepped into after his voyage on the Ark would have probably looked somewhat similar to an impact winter, causing much snow in some regions of the world, as is portrayed in Dinotasia. (You can find more information on the post-Flood world here).

So there you have it: my summary of Dinotasia. While watching it, all the violence and predatory behaviors in the film really reminded me of the world we live in that has been marred by sin – our sin! But God never intended us to stay in this state forever. He sent His Son Jesus Christ to live the life of a mortal before paying the penalty for your – and my – sin: death. However, He rose again three days later. He did this so that one day, Christians can live in a perfect world without sin and death. (If you are interested in becoming a Christian, please visit this page).

Aside from my objections to the film mentioned above, I really loved it and felt almost as if I'd been transported back in time (at least, what we believe the world would have looked like back then). I hope you enjoyed this look into what our world might have been like after the Fall in the pre-Flood world: the world of Dinotasia.

Welcome to the world of Dinotasia!

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