"Earthshaker. Stormbringer. Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon."
Hello everyone!
What can I say, I'm a Disney kid, alright?
Growing up on these movies, you're hard-pressed to just NOT watch something once they release it, you know. I mean, you obviously CAN choose not to but, why if it's entertainment in some way, shape or form, right?
Right!
So on with the show. Or in this case, the show that's a second attempt at an adaptation after some arguably bad movies years ago.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians swing in like the hammer of the gods but, do they succeed? Read on and find out!
Links to previous related posts can be found at the bottom of the page, as per usual! And ... there's a fair few of them, because I think I may have covered just about EVERYTHING Greek gods related when it comes to Rick Riordan.
And his other series, but I'm focusing only on the Greeks at the moment.
So anyway, having read the original book series that this is based off of, and seen the two movies that never really went anywhere because Hollywood decided to change important details of the plot in such a way the plot couldn't actually go forward, I was slightly nervous about this one.
I'll admit, it's no easy task to accomplish, a faithful adaptation nowadays, because for some reason or another it seems to be largely difficult to follow the written material, and scriptwriters, producers as well as directors tend to veer off-course.
I think this show got it about 50-50, but let's hop right in!
So Percy Jackson (Walker Scobell) is, or at least thinks he is, an ordinary kid with ADHD and dyslexia, making life ten times harder, especially since his mom is married to this ugleh character Gabe. After getting kicked out of yet another school, it's time for extreme measures, which is where Grover comes in - Grover being Percy's best friend.
And, conveniently, a satyr.
Because Percy's not just a troubled kid, he's a demigod, and monsters from the world of Greek mythos are after him for his godly powers - which is proven right off the bat when his mom is supposedly killed during their attempt to reach Camp Half-Blood, a safe haven for kids like Percy.
Only, it's kind of not, because turns out there's trouble on Olympus: somebody stole Zeus' masterbolt (yeah, ole Zeus is right here, once again), and Poseidon's been accused, or more specifically, Percy after Poseidon claims him as his child. If the bolt isn't returned by the summer solstice, it'll be an all-out war, not just between the gods, but between the campers, too, who're all going to choose a side to support.
For that reason, Percy picks Grover and Annabeth for the quest that's placed before him: to return what was stolen, prove his innocence ... and maybe save his mom along the way.
And so begins an adventure that leads us through the lair of Medusa, a fight with a Chimera, meeting Ares, Hades and Hermes, not in that particular order, and wreaking all sorts of havoc along the way because demigods can't really travel from Point A to Point B without it, really.
Plus gods have their own agenda, so each one that pops up has a lesson to impart: Hephaestus, about what it looks like to be considered broken and ugly in a family striving to be perfect; Hermes, what godly parents go through and what they suffer because Zeus' edict prevents them from actively participating in their children's lives; Ares ... well, alright, what we learn about Ares is that he's actually a bit of a moron and easily goaded into either revealing too much, or giving his enemies the upper hand, but that's a point I'll cover in a little bit.
Point being: Percy obviously didn't steal the master bolt. He, Grover and Annabeth become a kick-ass team during their (mis)adventures, and while on their way to the Underworld to free his mom, they learn from Hades that, firstly, he doesn't want a war between his brothers, he certainly didn't steal the bolt like they'd been assuming, and his helm is missing.
Considering the fact one other god had sent them for an artifact of his earlier, I think it's safe to say that when they figure out Ares led them on a wild goose chase and HE has the helm, well, things come to a head.
Percy actually duels the god of war (and no, not Kratos) and we see a glimpse of his powers, which have always been one of the highlights of the story, showcasing just why the gods are very right to fear him, and why he's considered, among fans and other side characters of his own story alike, to be the strongest demigod to have ever been born.
Helm returned, Percy then heads on to Olympus (on the Empire State Building, of course), where he delivers the bolt to Zeus, but also gives him a warning: Kronos is stiring, and he's the one that's been causing all this trouble, so why the hell would Zeus GIVE him the upper hand and wage a war against Poseidon that nobody wants or needs?
Instead of being destroyed on the spot, Poseidon appears to surrender, and plead for his son's life, at which point all's more-or-less well that ends well, right?
Wrong. We still don't know who actually stole the bolt - because Clarisse, daughter of Ares, was not it, as Percy deduces when Luke, son of Hermes, takes him out into the woods at night to supposedly talk to Chiron ... which doesn't happen really. Instead, Luke is revealed to be the thief, and he's working with Kronos to bring back another golden age under the Titan - but considering that was the age of, er, godly cannibalism, I'm not sure how well that'll go over.
In any event, with Luke now on the run, the series comes to a close with our three heroes each on their separate path for a little while before they meet again at camp - and wouldn't you know it but Hades is a god of his word, and Sally Jackson is returned to the world of mortals!
But there'll always be another battle to fight, so here's to hoping we get a season two.
Because the first one wasn't ALL bad, even if some points were a little laggy, and some spots moved too fast. They did hit all the pertinent information from the books, however, also left a lot to be concluded by the audience themselves, something that's slightly on the rare side nowadays when everything's served to us on a silver platter.
Percy's role shifts slightly into being the all-knowing narrator because his mom raised him on stories about Greek gods and stuff, and I feel like Annabeth needs a bit more work. This is in no way criticism of her skin colour, mind you; I just don't think they've GOTTEN her yet, but there's a glimmer of hope that they might, if given some more range and a little bit more time. First seasons are notoriously finicky anyway.
I really enjoyed the cast who plays the gods, and I especially love how they didn't just make Ares into a brute who loves killing, but gave him some agency, as well as showed his disregard for anyone he considers beneath him which leads into more trouble since he can't see it coming, too blinded by his own arrogance.
Also, the casting for Poseidon and Percy REALLY makes sense once you see them together on screen, because they genuinely look like they could be related. It's amazing!
Now, I'm not ENTIRELY sold on this, because some plot points felt a little too forced or rushed, and we never got to see a whole lot of dialogue that should have happened on-screen as opposed to off-screen for us to just clock into, but I will admit that the series is entertaining and easy to watch and follow along. If you're a book fan or just a casual fan, I think it's an enjoyable thing to sit down to on a cozy afternoon, and I also honestly think they could - or should - only go up from here.
I'm willing to give the first season some slack, especially as, in comparison to some other adaptations I've seen recently (looking at you, Rings of Power), nothing has been so egregiously changed that it can't be worked with. So I'm holding on to hope we get a season two green light sooner rather than later.
And in the meantime ... I'll be watching it again. Just for kicks.
xx
*images and video not mine
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