Commentary: ‘Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal’ Is The Epitome Of “Show, Don’t Tell”
by Frank Martin
“Show, don’t tell” is a fairly strong foundation of storytelling. It basically means when something is to be communicated to the audience, it’s best to show them that message rather than tell them. This can mean different things when applied to different mediums. In terms of film and television, this could refer to expressing a story’s themes through action rather than dialogue. Of course, dialogue can be very important to communicate pathos to the audience, but it’s usually best to demonstrate this emotion through events. Given that it has no dialogue at all, Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal is the best example of this mantra.
Created by Tartakovsky, Primal takes place in a fantastical, prehistoric land of dinosaurs, cavemen, magic, and monsters. The main character is a caveman named Spear (Aaron Laplante) who hunts and fights to survive alongside his family. He comes into conflict with a dinosaur named Fang, who also has a family of her own. The two of them are at odds with one another, but they are forced into a similar predicament when an even larger dinosaur kills both of their families, rendering them alone. Spear and Fang then decide to join forces as they traverse the land, fighting to survive without their loved ones.
The story has an incredibly strong emotional arc. It deals with love, family, loss, and learning to survive by any means necessary in a cruel and unforgiving world. Primal expresses all of these themes to the audience without a single line of dialogue — nothing is ever being told to the audience. All of the love, loss, pain, and heartache is shown through action. Across every episode, the series manages to craft plots that are able to find new ways to showcase this struggle without any words being spoken. It truly is one of the greatest embodiments of “show, don’t tell.”
Primal is now streaming on Hulu.
