There are so many reasons to love Percy Jackson and The Olympians, and well, I have to admit that I fall harder and harder for it every single episode. There is something about this show that makes it something that I want to send to everyone who adapts a show and tell them – this is a case study for why you absolutely need to have an author involved.
For years there has been a lot that has circulated about Percy Jackson and The Olympians movie, and the way that it really screwed up the series. A lot of people – including myself – thought that this show would be its redemption. The thing is, I have grown to forget about the movie, because I have found that it doesn’t matter. I have found that what we need to do is look at this show and respect it for what it is.
And it’s a gold standard for adaptations.
Percy, Annabeth, and Grover have made it to Las Vegas. Sure, this isn’t before Grover makes the assumption that Clarise is the lightening thief. But back to Las Vegas. It’s not the best place for adults so it sure isn’t going to be a great place for middleschoolers, but they are there for help. Hermes is the only person that can get them to Santa Monica, where Percy believes that his father will be to help them. As the team splits up to find Hermes, none of them understand that time is passing by in a different way. They are focused on getting to where they need to go, and hey – Annabeth even pulls out the fact that they are Lukes friends.
Now, I have to admit at this point, seeing Hermes care about his son was refreshing. In the movies (not comparing) it really bugged me that Hermes was so indifferent to Luke. But this iteration wanted to be Lukes Dad. He just didn’t know how to do anything but stay away.
My heart broke for Percy when Hermes said that the advice to stay away came from Poseidon. Watching your child from a far – staying away – because it’s the best for them? Doesn’t seem like the best advice, because all a child wants is to have their parents. They want to have that support and love. They want to know that their parent will do anything to stand up for them.
And I feel like Hermes knew how to push buttons and it was as if he knew that he could hurt Percy, so why not go full steam ahead with that.
When it’s time to leave, Percy is able to tell Annabelle that time has really screwed up in there and they are going to miss the deadline. Annabelle is always thinking and has stolen Hermes keys to make their way to Santa Monica. When it comes to any show, I have a tendency to love one character more than others. But with this cast, I love them all. There is no favorite – because I am in awe of these kids and the way that they are. I am in awe of their abilities. I am in awe of the way that they bring themselves to the screen and set out to bring these characters to life.
The production value on this show is definitely high and you can tell that there wasn’t a person on this show – in front of the camera or behind the scenes – that didn’t put everything that they had into it. They brought this story to life knowing that the viewer that had read the books needed something that had been missing. They brought this story to life knowing that they wanted to give it their all. It was important to them.
You can just tell that they gave it everything that they had.
And I, personally, am so thankful for that.
When they get Grover back and went to find Hermes car – had to laugh that it was a yellow cab. I mean it does make sense – it gets everyone around. I just loved it, but even better than that, was Percy driving the car out of the garage. It was hilarious. We all know that these kids don’t know how to drive, but seeing this whole driving situation made me laugh.
I didn’t expect to find myself crying when they made it to Santa Monica and Percy went to see his Dad, but he wasn’t there. It hurt. Physically it hurt because you know that all Percy wants is to have a relationship with his father. He wants him to be there. He wants answers. He just wants to feel loved and to save his Mom.
Poseidon leaving… I get it. I understand why it was that he needed to leave. There was a war coming. But I hate him though for leaving as I really wanted Percy to know that his Dad was there for him. Having his person there to tell Percy that he had to go and that he could back to camp – I was kinda angry over the whole thing. But Percy takes it like a champ and tells her that he’s going to see this whole thing through.
Percy is more like his father than he knows, but aren’t we all. He doesn’t want to give up on his quest and he’s going to see it through. He doesn’t care if people want him to return to camp, he’s not going to give up. His father has left him four pearls to get out of the underworld – one for him, Annabeth, Grover, and his Mama to escape the Underworld.
Save the world, then save your Mom. What an ending. What a moment. What will happen next?
