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Backpacking
Dinosaurs Are Lizards
Dinosaurs are either depicted as being lizard-like in personality, or possessing lizard-like traits and adaptations.
Medium-Sized Predator Dinosaur Idea
Title Description:
When one thinks of predatory dinosaurs, three very quickly come into mind; Tyrannosaurus rex, Velociraptor, and Spinosaurus, all of whom have become popular dinosaurs and made enough of an impact in popular culture to warrant archetypal tropes based on the three of them.
Of course, there is more to meat-eating dinosaurs than those three. While they don't hold the same sort of recognition and fame as they do, they have managed to uphold a degree of notoriety and impact towards the world of dinosaurs to a point where they would go on to be featured in numerous dinosaur-centered works and documentaries. Sometimes, they would end up being the main dinosaur threat in case raptors and T. rexes aren't shown, but will more than likely take up a certain role if those two are featured.
Between the raptors and the tyrannosaurs/spinosaurs would be moderately-sized dinosaurs. With a combination of speed and strength, they would prove themselves to be just as deadly and fearsome as those two kinds of theropods, though there are a number of differences compared to them. For one, they would have their own prey preferences to make them stand out against smaller and larger predators who may thrive in the same environment. Their size would also mean a variety of strength and speed to further their differences, mainly as a way to distinguish themselves from predators. Their roles can vary, with some being antagonists that are a distinct threat compared to raptors and tyrannosaurs/spinosaurs or enemies for the protagonist to overcome or they can even be central characters themselves, mainly focusing on their natural life with a list of events, such as fighting other predators for food and resources, finding a mate and continuing their lineage, and simply trying to survive. In the event that they are playable in video games, these dinosaurs have stats that are balanced in comparison to raptors and tyrannosaurs/spinosaurs with decent speed, strength, and durability.
This role can be fulfilled by several medium-sized or comparatively large theropod dinosaurs, with carnosaurs and abelisaurs being the most frequent examples. The most common individual species/archetype would be Allosaurus, which oddly would fill up the same role as Tyrannosaurus does as the apex predator in the Late Jurassic, yet ends up fulfilling a niche in-between that and raptors in case they do coexist. Carnotaurus has also become a popular dinosaur to fill in this niche, being just big and intimidating enough whilst being dwarfed by much larger animals and has since become a popular dinosaur in its own right in the 21st Century. Ceratosaurus, Baryonyx, and Dilophosaurus are other notable cases, with the former being this in works with Allosaurus as the apex predator.
While distinct, it is possible for this to overlap with Raptor Attack, Savage Spinosaurs, and Terrifying Tyrannosaur if larger raptors and smaller tyrannosaurus are shown respectively, not to mention that they could be an interim whilst using other animals as apex predators, including pterosaurs and mosasaurs. This is Truth in Television as some dinosaurs really did fill a void between smaller and bigger predators themselves, however, when heavy comparisons and exaggerations are made, there can be cases of Artistic License – Paleontology. Compare Sliding Scale of Villain Threat. In case these dinosaurs are the Big Bad of a work, a larger predator would possibly turn up to impose themselves as a case of a more threatening or intimidating animal, though it doesn't need to subtract the potential threat the Big Bad would impose on the protagonist.
Examples:
- Dino King 2: Journey to Fire Mountain: Whilst trying to find their son and daughter respectively, Speckles and Fang have to fend off a Carnotaurus pack that is hounding the nesting grounds of a Pukyongosaurus They act similar to the Velociraptor packs from the first film, though the Carnotaurs, being bigger, put up with the Tarbosaurus duo more physically and even get a few good hits before they're defeated and driven away.
- Jurassic Park:
- Jurassic Park III:
- Subverted with the Ceratosaurus in a brief appearance. It stumbles across the heroes after they've gone through a raptor pack and a Spinosaurus and glares at them for a moment, but when it sniffs at nearby dung and realizes that it's in Spinosaurus territory, it scuttles off without any hassle.
- Ironically, this is played straight with the Tyrannosaurus, which chases Alan Grant's party after they've just escaped from the Spinosaurus. When the two dinosaurs do meet and battle, the T. rex is the one that ends up losing via a neck snap. Though it should be noted that this particular Tyrannosaurus was a sub-adult.
- Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom: Baryonyx and Carnotaurus both turn up to antagonize Claire and Franklin when the two of them are trying to escape Isla Nublar once Mt. Sibo erupts. While Compies are background fodder and Blue plays the role of the main supporting character, the Bary and the Carno serve as the main predatory adversary of Owen's group, though Rexie puts a stop to the Carnotaurus before the latter can attack Owen, Claire, and Franklin.
- Jurassic Park III:
- Jurassic Park:
- Jurassic Park: The Dilophosaurus in this depiction better fits this archetype more than it's film counterpart, being more accurately sized and striking fear upon Dennis Nedry when he stumbles across the dinosaur upon first notice. Said fear is not unfounded as the Dilo quickly disembowels and poisons Nedry before killing him, though it doesn't get much attention after this scene, with the Raptors and the T.rex being more prominent. The juvenile T. rex also plays this role by killing Ed Regis, though is mostly overshadowed by the adult who continues to chase after Grant, Lex, and Tim throughout the book.
- The Lost World (1995): A Carnotaurus pair stalk an abandoned village during the night during Malcolm and Dodgson's parties' travels in Isla Sorna. the Carnotaurs prove to be at their most dangerous the night due to their camouflage, with both raptors and T. rexes not risking being near the village during nighttime. That said, they do have a weakness in bright lights and they scurry off when noticed. It is speculated that while effective hunters, Carnotaurus are not as good in this when during daytime as light hampers their ability to camouflage.
- Quintaglio Ascension: Predators in the Quintaglio Moon include the Terrorblades which are descended from raptors, Blackdeath, whose lineage ties with T. rex's and is the moon's apex predator, and the Quintaglios, who were, according to Word of God, descended from Nanotyrannus, and have been evolved to form civilizations and settlements just like humans do. While their intelligence would potentially make them more dangerous than a Blackdeath, they are religiously prohibited from using weapons and thus, the Blackdeath is inaccessible to hunt. However, a quadrupedal theropod dinosaur, Fangjaws fit in more traditionally, being savage beasts that prove difficult to take down, which is why Asfan killing one is seen as an impressive feat as hardly anyone can kill a Fangjaw on their first hunt.
- Raptor Red: Utahraptor fills this niche, despite being the largest known species in the raptor clade. They are larger than predators like Deinonychus and able to hunt Astrodons (small by sauropod standards but still several times larger than Utahraptor), yet they are dwarfed by Acrocanthosaurus, an allosauroid that acts as the apex predator in Utahraptor's environment. Raptor Red and her pack are constantly on the move throughout the novel as they try to migrate into areas where they can avoid acros: during a head-to-head fight, the acro will always win unless the raptor uses trickery. Still, Utahraptor is very secure as the second-largest predator in their ecosystem. The only time a pack of Deinonychus gets the upper hand on Raptor Red's pack, it's because the Utahraptors are badly injured and exhausted from an unrelated battle: previously, the Utahraptors had been stealing carcasses from the Deinonychus with impunity.
- The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island: In this book tie-in to King Kong (2005), one of several theropod dinosaur descendants described is the Carnotaurus-like Tartarusaurus (Cruel Hell-lizard). It was a fearsome and territorial animal, with males battling for territories and scoring mates. Like Venatosaurus, it's an animal built for speed, mainly hunting down fur seals, Limusaurus and other coastal reptiles. Like the Vastatosaurus rex, it was the dominant predator of the coastal regions of Skull Island, hence it was able to coexist with the Venatosaurs and V. rex without much hassle.
- Dinosaur Revolution: While Allosaurus is one of two central dinosaurs in The Watering Hole, with said animal being a male named Broken Jaw, and Ornitholestes filled the role of the "smaller theropod", he ends up being overshadowed by a Torvosaurus who hounds him as well as every other dinosaur who resides near the titular watering hole, with Broken Jaw being constantly bullied and beaten by the larger theropod whenever they meet. The Torvosaurus's antagonism proves to be so bad that an Enemy Mine is made between Broken Jaw and a Dinheirosaurus named Woodstock to stop the Torvosaurus from terrorizing the watering hole.
- Monsters Resurrected: Biggest Killer Dino features a very egregious case; while Spinosaurus is built up to be the biggest and best predatory dinosaur, this, plus its exaggerated size ends up downplaying the Charcharadontosaurus to this, when in any other work, it would be depicted as a co-existing apex predator. Furthermore, when the two battle, the Charcharadontosaurus is killed by just one swipe from the Spinosaurus, despite being clearly bigger than the Rugops that are also featured in said episode.
- Planet Dinosaur: The episode, New Giants features a Skorpiovenator that feasts upon an Argentinosaurus nesting ground. In the process, it drives away a flock of Lagusovagus that also came to feast upon any sauropod infants or embryos it could find. The main point here is to show that while Skorpiovenator hunted on young Argentinosaurus and could drive away other opportunists, it doesn't stand a chance against adult Argentinosaurs whilst also keeping distance from the sauropod's main predators, Mapusaurus.
- Terra Nova: Carnotaurus is the main theropod threat throughout the show, whereas the smaller carnivore archetype is filled by Nikoraptor, Slasher (obviously inspired by the Velociraptor), and Ovosaurs (which are based on Ornitholestes). Larger than the Carnotaurus is a fictional dinosaur known as the Empirosaur, though in its sole appearance, it doesn't really attack anyone, still leaving Carnotaurus as the prime predatory danger.
- Walking with Dinosaurs: The main dinosaur featured in Cruel Sea is Eustreptospondylus, which mainly hunts for fish and other aquatic life, usually predators themselves. And then the Eustreptospondylus itself is seen as a prey item for the Liopleurodon, best seen when the latter suddenly scoops up the former when the Eustreptospondylus is in the midst of hunting.
- The Ballad of Big Al: Zig-Zagged; Allosaurus is clearly shown to be the apex predator of Late Jurassic Colorado, but as shown in the story of the titular character, Allosaurs lead very different lives from each other depending on their age. With the lack of any onscreen Ceratosaurus, Big Al essentially fills in the former regarding its hunts and struggles, having to be wary of adults of his own kind and hunting smaller animals like Dryosaurus.
- Carnivores:
- Carnivores 2: The list of huntable carnivores included are Allosaurus, Velociraptor, Spinosaurus, Ceratosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus rex. Strangely, Allosaurus is the weakest predator in the game whereas Spinosaurus and Ceratosaurus are smaller and larger than their real-life counterparts respectively. They come after Velociraptor in the hunting order, being stronger of course, but still easier and weaker to hunt than the T. rex. The updated port, Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter adds in Utahraptor, Carnotaurus, and Gigantoraptor, who all similarly fill in the predatory and difficulty gap between Spinosaurus and Tyrannosaurus.
- Carnivores: Cityscape: Coelophysis and Oviraptor fill in the small carnivore archetype whereas Giganotosaurus is the largest predator in the game. The mediums-sized theropods in the game are Nanotyrannus and Suchomimus, who are tougher enemies than the previous two whereas Giganotosaurus is the game's Final Boss. As playable dinosaurs, Nanotyrannus and Suchomimus are stronger and have more health than Coelophysis and Oviraptor whilst also being faster and less clunky than Giganotosaurus to compensate for being weaker.
- Dino Crisis
- Dino Crisis: After the Velociraptors on the surface and bottom first floor of the Ibis Island facility, there are "Blue" raptors on the second basement floor that have more endurance and strength to them and can quickly kill Regina if the player is too reckless. The third basement floor is lurking with meat-eating Therizinosaurus who are the most resilient and powerful dinosaurs after the Tyrannosaurus.
- Dino Crisis 2: Allosaurus serves as the main dinosaur threat that isn't either Velociraptor or T. rex, being stronger and more durable than the latter whilst dwarfing in comparison to the latter. The T. rex itself becomes one once the Giganotosaurus turns up to usurp the role of being the main dinosaur antagonist.
- Dino Stalker: Whilst dealing with raptors, Oviraptors, and Pteranodons, Mike Wired's most persistent enemies are a Carnotaurus pair that serve as bosses in three stages, and they end up being a lesser threat to a "Pitch-Black" Tyrannosaurus. Interestingly, this is juxtaposed with the orange Carnotaur killing a fleeing raptor in its first appearance and being killed and thrown to the floor by the Tyrannosaurus in its last appearance.
- Monster Hunter:
- Monster Hunter: World: Anjanath is among the stronger monsters players encounter in the earlier sections of the game and primarily lurks in the Ancient Forest. While more formidable than the Great Jagras, Pukei-Pukei, and Tobi-Kadachi, it's ultimately in the middle of the Ancient Forst food chain, being dwarfed in ferocity in comparison to Rathalos and Nargacuga, whilst also falling short of invading monsters like Deviljho and Glavenus.
- Primal Carnage: The Novaraptornote and Tyrannosaurusnote represent the "Predator" and "Tyrant" class, with emphasis being put on agility and strength respectively. The "Spitter" and "Bruiser" class are mainly represented by Dilophosaurusnote and Carnotaurus[[note]]also Ceratosaurus[/note]] who are weaker and more vulnerable than the Tyrant class bulkier and have more strength than the Predator class whilst compensating for speed and gaining their own weaknessess.
- Saurian: Dakotaraptor is a decently-sized maniraptoran that hunts larger prey than the smaller Acheroraptor whilst being wary of larger animals, such as Triceratops, Anatosaurus, Ankylosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus, the latter of which is the biggest threat to any animal in the Hell Creek Formation. In-Game, Dakotaraptor players would have to compete against each other as well as juvenile T. rexes for food and resources.
- Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous: The Campers are forced to contend against a myraid of theropod dinosaurs once they're stranded in Isla Nublar. Alongside raptors and T. rexes, some of the more notable threats the Campers face include Toro the Carnotaurus who serves as their most persistent threat in Season 1 alongside the Indominus rex and they're similarly hounded by a Baryonyx trio, consisting of Chaos, Grim, and Limbo, whilst also trying to avoid Rexie, a clearly bigger predator and Isla Nublar's apex predator.
Victimized Muslim
Muslims having to deal with being ostracized or being seen as unwelcomed in society.
Islam is the world's second-biggest and fasting growing religion, holding a dominant presence in the Middle East as well as parts of Asia, especially in the Central and Southern parts of the country. Despite this, Muslims have had a rather polarizing depiction in popular media since the late 1980s, namely by being oppressors and enemies to the western world, an archetype which was furthered by 9/11. While Muslims and terrorist groups, largely Al-Quaeda and ISIS were heavily distinct and opposed to one another, it didn't stop depictions to portray the former as being accepting of the latter in their home countries.
Over time, however, Muslims have also been seen in a more nuanced and sympathetic light. Believers having lived through troubling times have been around since the days of the Prophet Muhammad, who himself was persecuted for what he believed in, though these tales were largely uncommon in non-Muslim areas up until the 21st Century. With the new prominence of anti-Muslim sentiments in The Noughties, there were just as many stories featuring Muslims in a more sympathetic, even heroic light, with their own experiences, struggles, and success. One thing that is kept consistent about their stories in Western depictions is how their religious beliefs as a Muslims are challenged by the society that they're raised in.
Of course, stories from Post-9/11 tend to be the most common setting when featuring characters of this archetype. However, as mentioned before, this is actually older than
