I originally started watching the TV show La Brea because of Eoin Macken. I absolutely loved him in the TV show Merlin, so seeing him in another major role immediately caught my attention. The second reason I wanted to watch the show was because of the entire time-travel aspect. I’ve always loved stories involving people traveling through time, alternate timelines, survival in the past, and all the chaos that comes with it, so the concept itself already had me interested from the beginning.

The overall premise of La Brea is honestly really fun. Giant sinkholes open up, people fall into another time period, and suddenly there are prehistoric creatures, survival situations, mysterious organizations, and people constantly jumping between timelines trying to fix history. The time travel itself was one of the strongest parts of the show. Watching characters go back and forth between time periods kept things interesting, and honestly, the dinosaurs and prehistoric animals made it even better. I just wish they had leaned into that aspect a little more because the creature moments were some of the most entertaining parts of the series.

That being said… there were also parts of the show that drove me completely insane.

The biggest issue for me was Izzy. From the very first season all the way through the rest of the show, her character constantly felt manipulative and exhausting. One minute she would fully support a decision, then suddenly change her mind, then get angry at everyone else for following the original plan that she agreed to in the first place. It became an endless cycle of guilt-tripping and emotional whiplash, and honestly, by the second episode I was already tired of her character.

Unfortunately, the more the show focused on her family drama, the more frustrating things became.

Her mother somehow managed to become just as irritating. The constant back-and-forth between two different men became exhausting to watch after a while. One minute she’s devoted to one relationship, then suddenly emotionally pulled toward another, then immediately switching again when circumstances change. Instead of focusing on the fascinating survival and time-travel storyline, the show spent so much time on this emotional indecisiveness that it honestly started taking away from the actual plot.

What made it even more frustrating was how inconsistent the characters acted. There would be moments where Izzy would tell someone to stay away from the family, only to suddenly call them “family” a few episodes later the second they were in danger. The constant switching made some of the emotional moments lose their impact because the characters changed sides so often.

Despite all of that, I still think the actual storyline was interesting.

The problem is that starting somewhere around season two, the pacing becomes extremely chaotic. So many things happen so quickly that if you stop paying attention for even a moment, you’ll probably end up confused. One minute they’re trying to repair the time travel system, the next someone is dying, another character is trapped in a completely different timeline, there’s fighting happening everywhere, wildfires breaking out, and new threats constantly appearing. The show almost starts throwing plot twists at you faster than it can properly explain them.

There were also a few plot points that felt unfinished or inconsistent. One moment that stood out to me was when Gavin’s father warns him about his sister, making it sound like meeting her would become this huge regret or dangerous turning point. But later, when they finally do meet, it turns into a surprisingly emotional and positive moment instead. She even helps him. That buildup never really matched the outcome, and it honestly felt like the writers changed direction midway through the story.

By the third season, it definitely felt like the show was trying to wrap everything up quickly. The ideas behind the series were genuinely good, but some of the plot holes and character writing kept it from reaching its full potential.

Overall, I wouldn’t call La Brea a terrible show at all. The time travel, survival elements, prehistoric creatures, and mystery aspects were entertaining enough to keep me watching through all three seasons. At the same time, I also wouldn’t necessarily call it binge-worthy because some of the character drama becomes frustrating pretty fast.

I think La Brea works best as a “watch a few episodes here and there” type of show rather than something you sit and marathon all at once. If you enjoy time travel stories, survival mysteries, dinosaurs, and chaotic sci-fi plots, it’s still worth checking out. Just be prepared for some very questionable character decisions along the way.