Primal (TV series)

Primal
Also known as	Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal
Genre	Action-adventure Adult animation
Created by	Genndy Tartakovsky
Story by	Darrick Bachman and Genndy Tartakovsky (Episodes 3+) Bryan Andrews (Episodes 3-8) David Krentz (episodes 3, 7 only)
Directed by	Genndy Tartakovsky
Voices of	Aaron LaPlante
Composers	Tyler Bates Joanne Higginbottom
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	9
Production
Executive producers	Genndy Tartakovsky Brian A. Miller Jennifer Pelphrey Rob Sorcher Mike Lazzo Keith Crofford
Producer	Shareena Carlson
Running time	22 minutes
Production companies	Cartoon Network Studios Williams Street
Original release
Network	Adult Swim
Release	October 7, 2019 (2019-10-07) – present

Primal is an American adult animated television series created and directed by Genndy Tartakovsky for Adult Swim. Primal draws in elements of fantasy, horror, action, and adventure. The first episode premiered on Adult Swim on October 7th, 2019. The first season of Primal consists of 10 episodes, the first half airing daily on the week it premiered. The second half of the season aired on October 4, 2020. A film retelling of the first four episodes, Primal: Tales of Savagery, screened at the London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills on November 21, 2019. This version was submitted in the Animated Feature Film category for the 92nd Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.

Critics have praised the series, in particular the animation, the pacing and editing, and the storytelling. The show has won three Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation Juried Awards from the Emmy for Storyboard Artist (Genndy Tartakovsky), Art Director (Scott Wills) and Character Designer (Stephen DeStefano).

Premise

Set in an anachronistic and fantastical prehistoric world, the premise is a bond between a caveman and a Tyrannosaurus (named “Spear” and “Fang” in the production notes and credits, respectively) who struggle to survive as they encounter the various dangerous fauna and people that live in their world.

Characters

In comparison to Tartakovsky's other shows where there are multiple characters, Primal only features two protagonists in the show as they encounter different prehistoric or fantastical species and various tribes of hominins. Tartakovsky stated that although the show is a work of fantasy, the animals in the show are based on real prehistoric animals, mythological beasts, as well as some new ones created by the artists involved in the project.

Main

• Spear (vocal effects provided by Aaron LaPlante) – A caveman whose tragedy begins when his mate and two children are attacked and devoured by a pack of horned Tyrannosaurs. Although he overcomes his initial urge to commit suicide, Spear is still learning to cope with the loss. Eventually, he develops a deep bond with Fang and is willing to make any personal sacrifice to protect her.

• Fang – A medium-sized female Tyrannosaurus whose tragedy begins with the death of her hatchlings, caused by the same predators who killed Spear's. Unlike Spear, who is still traumatized and dealing with the loss of his loved ones, Fang is able to cope with hers much quicker. Initially, she attempts to assert her dominance over Spear, but eventually learns that it is far healthier to work in a partnership than with a pack mentality.

Recurring

• Spear's family – They consisted of his mate, son, and daughter. They were eaten in the first episode by a pack of horned Tyrannosaurus, like Fang's children, but reappear through visions and flashbacks across the series.

Production

Conception and development

According to the show's creator, Genndy Tartakovsky, Primal was an early piece of work he scrapped because it did not click with him at the time. As he learned more and more about what drew people in to his shows, he wanted to experiment with those artistic traits, particularly the use of no dialogue and slow moments. He also stated that the method in which he approached animated shows and films began to slow down in terms of energy after Dexter's Laboratory. By the time he began working on season 5 of Samurai Jack, it had come full circle. He said he was inspired by Conan the Barbarian and vintage pulp novels. According to Tartakovsky, he felt that people would not take the show seriously because they were "breaking the rules" by having "a man and a dinosaur together," so he emphasized that it is a character study, a "buddies" journey about two characters who are very different but bonded by tragedy.

The first season will consist of 10 episodes. On August 31, 2020, it was announced it has been renewed for a second season which will comprise 10 episodes.

Episodes

No.	Title	Written and storyboarded by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	"Spear and Fang"	Genndy Tartakovsky	October 7, 2019 (2019-10-07)	0.538
A caveman, Spear, returns from spearfishing to find his mate, son and daughter devoured by a trio of horned Tyrannosaurus. Distraught, he contemplates suicide before resolving to take revenge. While fishing, he sees the silhouette of a dinosaur and, believing it to be one of the Tyrannosaurus that killed his family, silently pursues it into a thicket. He comes face to face with the hornless Tyrannosaurus Fang, with two offspring hiding behind her. The sight of the young dinosaurs causes Spear to back down, just as they are attacked by the horned Tyrannosaurus pack. Though Spear helps Fang kill two of them, their gargantuan alpha consumes Fang's babies. Spear and Fang slay the alpha, but Fang is left distraught over the loss of her children. Spear leaves Fang and walks off alone, but is later approached by Fang, and the two decide to travel together.
2	"River of Snakes"	Genndy Tartakovsky	October 8, 2019 (2019-10-08)	0.661
While hunting warthogs, Fang consistently bogarts any food she and Spear come across, causing him to grow increasingly agitated at her. Eventually, Spear snaps and attacks Fang, losing his spear in the process, but their fight is interrupted when they wander into a den of large snakes. A flash flood rushes them and the snakes into a swampy river, where a gigantic individual resides. Fang kills it, but despite working together to stay afloat, she and Spear fall down a waterfall, causing him to hit his head on the way down. Fang pulls Spear from the water, and as he comes to, Fang fetches Spear's lost spearhead. They reconcile and continue their journey together, now hunting food as a team.
3	"A Cold Death"	David Krentz	October 9, 2019 (2019-10-09)	0.573
In the harshness of primordial winter, an elder woolly mammoth is separated from its herd, and subsequently attacked and killed by Spear and Fang. Spear harvests as much meat from the mammoth as he can, using one of its tusks to pull a makeshift sled. When the dead mammoth's herd comes across their desecrated elder, they follow the sled's tracks and attack Spear and Fang. The pair attempt to fight them off, but they are quickly overwhelmed by their power and numbers. In a final act of desperation, Spear defends himself with the elder mammoth's tusk, and notices that the other mammoths stop their attack upon seeing it. He returns the tusk to them, who leave in peace and bring it to their mammoth graveyard to mourn.
4	"Terror Under the Blood Moon"	Don Shank and Genndy Tartakovsky	October 10, 2019 (2019-10-10)	0.557
After Spear and Fang evade a pack of dromaeosaurs, they experience a red lunar eclipse and encounter a tribe of cavepeople being attacked by gigantic red bats. They attempt to fight the bats off, but Spear is carried away by one, his spear being left behind with the cavemen. Fang pursues the bats to a tall stone pillar, which she finds impossible to climb. Seeing the bats emerging from the top, she plays dead and allows them to carry her to a cave at the peak. While searching for Spear, Fang discovers the nest of a massive spider that the bats share their food with. Fang frees Spear, who helps her kill the spider. As the bats return, Spear and Fang use the spider's webbing to safely descend the pillar. Spear retrieves his spear from the cavemen as he and Fang flee from the bats and lead them into a fight with the dromaeosaurs before safely escaping towards the rising sun.
5	"Rage of the Ape-Men"	Bryan Andrews and Genndy Tartakovsky	October 11, 2019 (2019-10-11)	0.654
Spear and Fang reach a seemingly peaceful oasis and relax before they are captured by a vicious tribe of Ape-Men. The Ape-Men hold a brutal tournament to the death, with one of them eventually coming out on top. After the champion drinks a drop of an enhancement serum which mutates and enrages him, Fang is lowered into the arena for him to fight. Helplessly watching as Fang is nearly beaten to death, Spear breaks free from his bindings and drinks the rest of the serum, causing him to transform into a hulking monster. After killing the Ape-Man champion, Spear proceeds to massacre the other Ape-Men in the arena overnight. When Spear eventually returns to normal, he runs to Fang's side as she lies unmoving.
6	"Scent of Prey"	Bryan Andrews	October 4, 2020 (2020-10-04)	0.442
Spear agonizes over the apparent loss of Fang after the events of his fight against the Ape-Men. Fang awakens, but is critically injured. Seeing that the Ape-Men corpses are attracting vultures, Spear builds a litter to carry Fang and fashions a new spear for himself. He struggles to nurse her back to health while simultaneously trying to keep her from falling victim to predators in her helpless state. Spear discovers they are being followed by scavenging African wild dogs and takes precautions to stop them. As the dog pack grows and continue stalking the pair, Spear and Fang are forced to take shelter in a cave. Defending her from flesh-eating armored beetles inside the cave and the dogs outside, Spear's desire to protect her gives Fang the time she needs to heal and join him once more on the battlefield.
7	"Plague of Madness"	David Krentz	April 1, 2020 (2020-04-01) (April Fools Day)	0.539
			October 11, 2020 (2020-10-11)	0.404
A nesting herd of Argentinosaurus is decimated by one of its members after it is infected with a flesh-eating rabies-like virus by a diseased Parasaurolophus. Spear and Fang stumble across the slaughtered herd at the devastated nesting grounds and become the crazed sauropod's next target. Running for their lives, the duo trick the behemoth over a cliff and into a narrow ravine before finally escaping with their lives by making a mad dash across a lava field. The sauropod's massive weight makes it fall into the magma, which incinerates it as Spear and Fang observe its final agonizing moments.
8	"Coven of the Damned"	Nagisa Koyama and Genndy Tartakovsky	October 18, 2020 (2020-10-18)	0.464
Spear and Fang come across a tribe of primitive witches at a ritual. The leader of the tribe uses dark magic to steal the essence of males and birth females which she gives as daughters to her followers. The witches spot Spear and Fang and give chase to the duo, capturing Spear and using magic to control Fang. One of the witches named Lula uses her magic to travel back into both of their pasts and learns of the tragedies that befell them. Having lost a daughter of her own when she fell off a cliff, Lula saves the pair from the other witches and sacrifices herself to help them escape by stalling the head witch. Fang and Spear mourn the loss of their savior before continuing into the jungle. In the afterlife, Lula reunites with her daughter.
9	"The Night Feeder"	Genndy Tartakovsky	October 25, 2020 (2020-10-25)	N/A
Spear and Fang come across the mangled remains of a saber-toothed cat, killed by a mysterious creature. Although Spear wants to investigate it, Fang refuses to let him. Later that night, the mysterious creature kills an entire herd of triceratops nearby - yet Fang refuses to let Spear go anywhere near the area. The next day, Spear and Fang hear bizarre screeching while braving through a powerful storm. Later at night, the mysterious creature attacks the duo - forcing them to flee into a mist-covered forest to escape. The creature catches up to them and they struggle against the fast, unseen foe but Fang manages to wound it. The creature lets out ear-splitting shrieks but in the process, Spear learns of the creature's weakness of light. Using sparks from his weapon, Spear and Fang use fire to create a trap of fire and ultimately kill the Night Feeder.
10	"Slave of the Scorpion"	Unknown	November 1, 2020 (2020-11-01)	N/A

Broadcast

The first season premiered on October 7, 2019. The first half of the seasons had the episodes airing daily from the premiered date. An episode from the second half was shown during Adult Swim's April Fools' Day 2020 run. Adult Swim announced on their Twitter that the second half would be released on October 4, 2020.

Reception

Critical response

Initial reception for Primal was highly positive; much praise was given to the art and animation, the use of storytelling with no dialogue, and the balancing of the show's interpretation of violence and beauty. In a review from IndieWire, Steve Greene wrote "Primal is a piece of elemental storytelling that finds some real emotional depth without either of its protagonists uttering a single word of dialogue", ultimately giving the series an "A-". On Rotten Tomatoes the show has an approval rating of 100% based on reviews from 20 critics. The site's critical consensus states: "Epic in every sense, Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal is a stunning feat of visual storytelling".

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
2020	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation	Stephen DeStefano (character designer) (for "A Cold Death")	Won
			Genndy Tartakovsky (storyboard artist) (for "Spear and Fang")	Won
			Scott Wills (art director) (for "Spear and Fang")	Won

External links

• Official website
• Primal at IMDb
• Primal: Tales of Savagery at IMDb