Netflix’s New Tomb Raider Series Debuts With Lara Croft Franchise’s Best Rotten Tomatoes Score

With it being the first screen adaptation of the franchise in six years, Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft‘s Rotten Tomatoes score has set a new record for the series. The Netflix animated show marks the fourth adaptation of the iconic video game series, being directly connected to Crystal Dynamics’ reboot trilogy and following a still-younger Lara as she sets off on a globe-trotting adventure to recover a mysterious powerful artifact. Marvel Cinematic Universe alum Hayley Atwell leads the Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft cast in the titular role alongside returning game star Earl Baylon, Allen Maldonado and Richard Armitage.

As the show finally premieres on the streaming platform, enough reviews have come in for Rotten Tomatoes to calculate Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft‘s scores. With 18 reviews, the animated show has a 67% approval rating from critics, making it the best-reviewed installment in the adaptation franchise. Audiences, on the other hand, have proven to be a bit more mixed in their reactions, with The Legend of Lara Croft holding a 54% from audiences at the time of writing.

What This Means For Tomb Raider: The Legend Of Lara Croft

Filmmakers Are Gradually Understanding How To Adapt The Games

Despite being one of the most iconic video game properties, the Tomb Raider franchise has never enjoyed the same level of success on screen. The Angelina Jolie-led movies of the early 2000s were both poorly received by critics, and similarly left audiences with mixed reactions, though the first was a major box office hit. Alicia Vikander’s 2018 Tomb Raider reboot, meanwhile, garnered the best reviews of the franchise, but fell short of its break-even point at the box office. Check out how the various Tomb Raider adaptations compare at the box office and on Rotten Tomatoes in the chart below:

Though the franchise’s streak of Rotten scores from audiences continues with the show, Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft‘s critics score shows filmmakers are better understanding how to adapt the games. With every new installment, both critics and audiences seem to be gradually appreciating the takes on the source material more and more, something that doesn’t happen often when a franchise reboots multiple times. That said, with the show not currently sitting in Netflix’s Top 10, this better reception may not be turning into viewership success for the streamer yet.

Our Take On Tomb Raider: The Legend Of Lara Croft’s Rotten Tomatoes Score

Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Show Can Learn A Thing Or Two

Having watched the show myself, it isn’t entirely a surprise that Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft‘s Rotten Tomatoes score is the best of the franchise, in spite of its mixed nature. The adaptation was undeniably a stylish and fast-paced adventure, and Atwell was a magnificent choice to voice Lara. However, while there are some great Easter eggs from the games, the story ultimately felt a bit too safe and routine for the franchise, something many critics have noted in their Legend of Lara Croft reviews.

In spite of some of its weaker elements, though, Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft‘s RT scores prove that all future adaptations of the games could learn a few lessons from the show, including Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s upcoming Prime Video show. The closer adherence to the games both the Netflix title and Vikander’s reboot took clearly worked out in their favor, and if the Fleabag vet can follow a similar path that also breaks from traditional formula, it could be the best incarnation yet.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes