I love mythology, but I don’t remember anything I learned about it in school. So, if you ask me about anything related to the mythology of this vertical, I am not the one. Google may be it for you. While you are there, you should be googling this name – Cameron Porras. He stars in The Daughter of Zeus as Kairos.
Greek Mythology. Kairos. In The Daughter of Zeus, Kairos is Hera’s right-hand man. Looking up who he is, Google says that he is, “the god or personified spirit of the opportune, fleeting moment—the ‘right time’ for action, distinct from measured time.” So now I am walking into this series confused.
Because in The Daughter of Zeus, Kairos was killing people for Hera, and he’s not a God. But Google says that he was a God and there is no indication that he worked for Hera.
At this point, I am going to have to stop looking up anything about mythology, because if I find anything else that is wrong, I am going to have to write a whole different review, and well, I liked this one and don’t want to do that. I loved Porras’ portrayal of Kairos and Gabrielle Faith Brown as Aria. I loved Andrew Tonga as Hermes – he was funny AF.
And well you know, facts always find a way.
RELATED: The Bad Boy Wants Me Vertical Series Review: That Voice, Those Tropes, Those Misunderstandings, & That WTF
THE CHILD
Aria hates Kairos. I can’t really blame her for that. When she was young, she woke up in the middle of the night only to find her Mom on her knees in front of Hera. Aria was a daughter of Zeus, and Hera was not about any of his demigod offspring surviving. She saw her Mom murdered and then, as Kairos came in to murder her, she tried to hide.
But she couldn’t hide, and for some reason, when he saw her, he spared her. He could not murder her.
We don’t know why, as it is not stated. I also don’t want to think that it is because he is fated to her. After all, if that is the case, gross. She was a child when her parents spared her life.
Life would never be the same for Aria after that. Her biggest heartbreak was losing her mother. It propelled her to be a better person, but the hate for Kairos remained strong.
THE LAMB
With her Mom gone, Aria was put in a situation that was horrible. The man who was living in her home was cruel and mean. He sent Aria out and told her basically if she didn’t come home with some animal, there would be hell to pay.
Aria goes hunting and kills a lamb. That lamb happens to be one of Zeus’ lambs, and as a mortal, she shouldn’t be able to kill it. However, she does, and that makes Hermes and Kairos suspicious. A mere mortal should not be able to kill a lamb of Zeus.
Kairos tells her that she’s coming with him, and well, she’s not going willingly. Aria’s spirit and anger are part of what makes you watch the show. She gets mad – remember she hates Karios – and is not going to go willingly. However, she knows that she’s going to have to go and says she will go if she can say goodbye to her sister first.
RELATED: Monster In His Eyes Vertical Review: There’s Something Hot About A Don, But Something Really Bad About The Wardrobe
The Fates have shown Kairos that he is meant to be with Aria. Showing him that makes him unable to hurt Aria or hand her over to Hera. It’s kind of this moment that is endearing, but what is missing for me is the feeling of not wanting to hurt her in his eyes. He says it and tries to show it, but it’s missing in his eyes.
The only reason I noticed it was that in later parts of the series, Porras shows feelings in his eyes while portraying Kairos. For instance, when he faces Hera later in the series, you see the anguish in his eyes. When he faces the possibility of Aria getting hurt, the love his eyes show – I believed his pain.
TO THE CAMP WE GO
Aria and Kairos share something in common. They are both stubborn AF, and neither seems to want to hear what the other is saying. Her hate is fading, while his desire to protect her is growing. He takes her to the camp where he lives. It’s filled with demi-gods.
Kairos makes a big mistake, leaving her and asking Daphne, the daughter of Aphrodite, to show her around. Mia Sydney plays Daphne, and she makes Daphne straight up cray. I admire the fact that she instantly makes you hate her character. There is always a girl in shows who likes the boy and thinks that destroying the girl he does like will help them be seen. None of them ever seems to notice that if you do that, that boy is not going to like you.
And would you really want him to?
Pouring water from the river Styx all over Aria leaves her with burns. Kairos is the one to save her and try to make her understand. He takes her in and doesn’t back down from anything.
He wants to be there for her.
TRAINING
Aria doesn’t want to trust Kairos, but as the show moves forward, she does just that. Kairos is there for her like no one else has been. Does this sit well with others in the camp? Of course not. They are all a bunch of bullies who don’t think twice about being miserable demi-gods.
Hate them for that.
What I do love is Hermes. That snitch needs his backside kicked, but he is so whatever about everything that I want him left alone.
RELATED: What Vertical Series Should You Watch? So Glad You Asked…
Hera ends up coming to the camp after she hears all sorts of rumors. She’s wanted to destroy all of Zeus’ illegitimate kids, and hearing that one is left infuriates her. Kairos has told Aria that no matter what happens, she needs to show no reaction.
Hera is the god that you can’t bring home. She’s straight up crazy. At the camp, looking for answers, she starts to punish Kairos, and Aria can’t handle seeing him in that much pain. She doesn’t listen and shows her reaction.
What she doesn’t seem the get is that Hera is going to want her dead over this. No matter how many times she is told that it will happen, she doesn’t seem to want to pay attention.
BACK TO THE HUMAN WORLD
Aria is saved by a portal to the human world opening. She’s shoved through, and Kairos agrees to be with Hera. He will do anything to save Aria, and nothing says I love you unconditionally like letting a god chain you up like an animal. That’s sarcasm if you don’t get that.
Aria is happy to be back with her sister and finds out what Kairos did. He made sure that her sister was safe and that no one could get to her. She was given riches, and the man who was “raising” them was exiled.
I think that it was at this moment that she realized how much she loved Kairos and how much he loved her. She summoned Hermes, and I applauded. She is embracing both sides of herself. The god and the human side.
The fates have shown her that she’s meant to be with Kairos. She knows that she’s meant to be with him and that means going to be with him. So the time in the human world is limited, before she asks Hermes to take her back. She knows that Kairos is alive and she’s going to save him.
Even if it means facing Hera.
DAUGHTER OF ZEUS
Aria facing down Hera – well, that’s interesting. She’s willing to take on the cray in order to save the person that she loves. Hera’s turned the camp into the colosseum and has all the demigods fighting each other to the death. She tells Hera she’ll fight anyone.
When she wins, though, she wants Hera to leave everyone alone. Hera takes on the bet – one that Aria didn’t think all the way through. You see, she has to fight Kairos to the death, and he can’t die.
Porras and Brown fighting as Aria and Kairos made me stop breathing for a second as I screamed NO at my phone. It didn’t work out the way that anyone thought it would. But leave it to Zeus to save the day. It’s about time Daddy shows up and gets his wife under control.
Zeus offers Aria immortality, but she doesn’t want that. Kairos requests not to have immortality. The two want to live out their lives together, and they get that chance.
RELATED: ‘Tears & Contracts: Never Provoke The CEO’s Wife Vertical Drama Review: Well, Well Mr. Stein…
OVERALL THOUGHTS
There are a lot of conversations around vertical dramas and what they are like. Whatever the conversation is, there needs to be some respect put on the names of actors who have made this space one for themselves. Actors like Cameron Porras are a great example of vertical actors who can go far. He is not only someone to enjoy on the screen, but his social media is always a lot of fun.
The Daughter of Zeus is different than most English language verticals, and that is part of what made it more enjoyable. Don’t pay attention to the bad mythology and just enjoy the episodes.
It’s fun and worth it.
