Dinosaurs Decoded

Dinosaurs Decoded is a 2009 TV Documentary from National Geographic (although in some countries, it aired under the Discovery Channel logo) that focuses on some recent controversial theories concerning classic dinosaurs.

Paleontologist Jack Horner and his colleagues explain to the dumbfounded viewers that a third of their beloved dinosaur kinds they grew up with didn't actually exist as valid genera/species, but really represented the different growth stages of a single dinosaur.

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Tropes used in Dinosaurs Decoded include:

• Amazing Technicolor Wildlife: The trope befalls T. rex itself: it is pitch black with a bright red face, similarly colored accents on its back and stripes on its tail.
  • Male Triceratops have bright blue streaks on their body, and their frill is bright yellow with orange patterns on it.
  • In a scene near the end of the program, Pachycephalosaurus is bright blue with an orange dome.
  • Finally, there is a Dromaeosaurus that is blue with white spots. It appears briefly in two or three scenes.
• Anachronism Stew: A mild case, what is obviously Dromaeosaurus is shown living with the later Triceratops, Pachycephalosaurus and Tyrannosaurus.
• Artistic License: Biology: To quote Horner on Triceratops horns, "The last place you want a defense organ is on your head". Evidently, he's never heard of rhinos, buffalo, bison, goats, deer, antelope, etc.
• Everything's Better with Dinosaurs
• Feathered Fiend: The aforementioned Dromaeosaurus.
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall: At one point, a juvenile Triceratops comes up and looks at the camera.
• Raptor Attack: The Dromaeosaurus that briefly appears lacks primary feathers.
• Real Is Brown: Averted.
• Shown Their Work: Of course. The bulk of the program is paleontologists explaining stuff.
• Somewhere a Palaeontologist Is Crying: Needless to say, not everyone agrees with Horner's theories and the way he explains them in this program.
• Stock Dinosaurs: T. rex (said to be the same as Nanotyrannus), Triceratops (same as Torosaurus), Pachycephalosaurus (merged with Dracorex and Stygimoloch) and an unidentified Dromaeosaurus (its own species, thankfully).
• Stock Footage: Scenes from The Truth About Killer Dinosaurs appear.
• Tyrannosaurus Rex
• Use Your Head: It's said that ceratopsians and pachycephalosaurs did not do this, contrary to popular belief.