The Changing Shape of Isla Nublar
Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2023 10:40 pm
Something that has become of interest to me recently is the various different 'canonical' maps of Isla Nublar given in various JP/W media across the years and how they all fit together (or rather, how they all don't).
Jurassic Park itself was rather liberal with how it portrayed its topography. The brochure and satellite maps varying greatly for no obvious reason. Fair enough given JP was more interested in telling a story than mapping out a fictional island accurately, resulting in two distinct but potentially valid possible canonical layouts for the island. An issue that was only exacerbated by JP:TG using the brochure map for its locations.
Jurassic World seemed to try to solve this problem by going 'screw it' and designing its own topography for the most part from scratch, only keeping the vague shape of Isla Nublar and changing pretty much everything other than that. Indeed going by JW (and JWFK) exclusively, the majority of locations from the original Jurassic Park are in the northern restricted sector including the T-Rex Pen (Blue's Den in JWFK) and the Visitors Centre (As per Zac and Grey's visit in JW). Whilst the shooting of the movie itself doesn't entirely follow this topography, it's clear from the fact they distributed proper topographical maps and the like that JW was intending to retcon Isla Nublar's layout entirely.
Then JWFK mucks it up again. Supposedly by accident. The Mosasaur Lagoon is inexplicably moved to the coast. Jurassic-pedia claims
Just kinda curious, given the various different depictions of Nublar. What other people consider to be the 'canonical' one for them since it's clear there is no one true answer for the shape of Nublar due to the various inconsistencies.
Also as a followup, as I was bored, I modified the Jurassicpedia JP Legacy/JPTG and JW maps to create these four for my headcanon.
JP Map, combined from the JP and JP:TG Legacy Maps on Jurassicpedia with the addition of a few locations implied to exist on JW maps in the legacy park.
JW Park on the JP topography of Isla Nublar. Modified from the JW map on Jurassicpedia with updated locations based on the JWFK Nublar map by ANICETUS1 on the JP Wikia, plus a few I just put in without a real justification like the Tarbosaurus pen implied to exist due to JW:CC.
JP Map on the JW topography of Isla Nublar. Combined from the JP Legacy and JP:TG maps and JW map on Jurassicpedia.
JW map updated from the JW Jurassicpedia map using the JWFK Nublar map by ANICETUS1 on the JP Wikia, plus a few I just put in without a real justification like the Tarbosaurus pen implied to exist due to JW:CC.
None of these are 100% correct and were more just done for fun/fanfic purposes since Nublar doesn't have a consistent map and I wanted to just create a headcanon one.
Jurassic Park itself was rather liberal with how it portrayed its topography. The brochure and satellite maps varying greatly for no obvious reason. Fair enough given JP was more interested in telling a story than mapping out a fictional island accurately, resulting in two distinct but potentially valid possible canonical layouts for the island. An issue that was only exacerbated by JP:TG using the brochure map for its locations.
Jurassic World seemed to try to solve this problem by going 'screw it' and designing its own topography for the most part from scratch, only keeping the vague shape of Isla Nublar and changing pretty much everything other than that. Indeed going by JW (and JWFK) exclusively, the majority of locations from the original Jurassic Park are in the northern restricted sector including the T-Rex Pen (Blue's Den in JWFK) and the Visitors Centre (As per Zac and Grey's visit in JW). Whilst the shooting of the movie itself doesn't entirely follow this topography, it's clear from the fact they distributed proper topographical maps and the like that JW was intending to retcon Isla Nublar's layout entirely.
Then JWFK mucks it up again. Supposedly by accident. The Mosasaur Lagoon is inexplicably moved to the coast. Jurassic-pedia claims
Though it seems this is a misinterpretation as Trevorrow's actual quote is.This moves the lagoon closer to the ocean rather than being in-land. Per conversations on Twitter with Colin Trevorrow when people asked about this, it was always meant to be this way.
Which, along with Camp Cretaceous maintaining the JW placement of the Lagoon seems to imply the JWFK placement was an accident and JWs placement was the intended one.The lagoon is in the center of the island, connected to the ocean by a canal system. The digital maps in the film are incorrect, not a retcon. My fault for missing it, I had no idea the change was made until it was too late. Hope you guys can forgive it.
Just kinda curious, given the various different depictions of Nublar. What other people consider to be the 'canonical' one for them since it's clear there is no one true answer for the shape of Nublar due to the various inconsistencies.
Also as a followup, as I was bored, I modified the Jurassicpedia JP Legacy/JPTG and JW maps to create these four for my headcanon.
JP Map, combined from the JP and JP:TG Legacy Maps on Jurassicpedia with the addition of a few locations implied to exist on JW maps in the legacy park.
JW Park on the JP topography of Isla Nublar. Modified from the JW map on Jurassicpedia with updated locations based on the JWFK Nublar map by ANICETUS1 on the JP Wikia, plus a few I just put in without a real justification like the Tarbosaurus pen implied to exist due to JW:CC.
JP Map on the JW topography of Isla Nublar. Combined from the JP Legacy and JP:TG maps and JW map on Jurassicpedia.
JW map updated from the JW Jurassicpedia map using the JWFK Nublar map by ANICETUS1 on the JP Wikia, plus a few I just put in without a real justification like the Tarbosaurus pen implied to exist due to JW:CC.
None of these are 100% correct and were more just done for fun/fanfic purposes since Nublar doesn't have a consistent map and I wanted to just create a headcanon one.