It doesn’t work for every TV show, but if you’re not at the very least trying to fit in a cute, adorable sidekick that’s easily marketable, what are you even doing? For sure you can blame The Mandalorian and its absurdly successful weaponization of The Asset, also known as “The Child”, and more colloquially, “Baby Yoda” for the renewed intensity of this particular craze. However, a new player has entered the field of streaming cuteness, and it comes from a most unusual source, as Bumpy the Ankylosaurus from Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous has basically won herself a place in the hypothetical Season 2, should it be greenlighted.
WARNING: Spoilers for Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous are in play. If you haven’t seen all eight episodes of the Netflix series, you’re going to want to turn back around and come back once you’ve caught up.
This is yet another revelation that came from the recent press day for the recent Netflix series, which I attended on behalf of CinemaBlend, and while it’s a pretty obvious point, it’s still something that’s worth bringing up. This is especially true when considering the fact that before the world had even laid eyes on the cute baby dinosaur that would become camper Ben Pincus’ best friend and companion, there was already a lot of love put into this “imperfect” dinosaur. Showrunner Scott Kreamer filled us in on this fact, as well as why Bumpy would be so important for Season 2, as follows:
We all loved Bumpy before it went out there, and to see the adoration and the Baby Yoda-like love that Bumpy is getting has been incredibly gratifying. So yeah, if we went forward, I mean Bumpy is one of our gang. So I would imagine we’d see more of Bumpy.
Much like Baby Yoda itself, Bumpy’s introduction in Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous nailed home the fact that this adorable tagalong was going to serve a purpose. Throughout the eight episodes of Season 1, we see the overly anxious Ben go from worry wart to protector of the dinosaur that Jurassic World antagonist Dr. Wu gave the side eye to, as he found its asymmetrical horns to be undesirable. Practically imprinting on the young boy as she hatched in the genetics lab, Bumpy and Ben became inseparable.
Which makes the mid-credits scene in Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous’ finale all the more heartwarming. Presumed lost after an incident separates Bumpy from the campers, we spend a good portion of the last two episodes wondering where she’d gone. And as if that wasn’t enough, we’re also treated to Ben Pincus’ presumed death after being yanked out of the monorail to safety by a roaming pack of Pteranadons, Sure enough, while there was a believable threat present for those closing acts of Season 1, audiences weren’t sent away totally bummed out, as Bumpy finds Ben and licks him as we see his fingers twitch.
Ensuring that Bumpy will be hanging around in the Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous universe also provides some interesting questions when it comes to the future of the Jurassic World series on the whole. After Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom had no reservations killing off the first Brachiosaurus we saw in Jurassic Park history, could there be a chance that Bumpy is eventually revealed to be left on Isla Nublar after the chaotic eruption of its on-site volcano? Or did Bumpy somehow make it into the pack of dinosaurs recovered for auction, only to be released into the wilds of the United States?
How this particular creature ties into the very canonically-driven Netflix animated series is going to be interesting to watch, as well as the development of some other human characters we might hopefully see take the stage in the silver screen. With Scott Kreamer, Colin Trevorrow, and the entire Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous team plotting out the interweaving storyline between the films and the series, anything is possible; and for now, the survival of Bumpy means we’ll get even more adorable, meme-worthy content if Season 2 gets that greenlight. Which is an eventuality that, if the below video is any indication, the folks in charge have already banked on:
For now, we’re going to have to wait for more information, as Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous’ future is wide open, and no second season has yet been announced. However, you can see the entirety of Season 1 for yourself, as all eight episodes are currently streaming on Netflix. Even if you’ve already watched the whole run, you might want to watch it again. Bumpy will thank you for it in Season 2!
This poll is no longer available.
