Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Season 1
Stream on Disney+
Episode: 8 Episodes (Around 38 - 43 minutes each)
Rated TV-PG
Based on the popular Rick Riordan books Percy Jackson has to come to grips with the fact that he isn’t just different than everyone else, he is actually the son of Greek god Poseidon. That’s right, Percy is a demigod! He and his best friend Grover, who turns out is a satyr, attend Camp Halfblood where young demigods go for protection and training. If this change wasn’t enough Percy is sent on a quest to recover Zues’s stolen lightening bolt, save his mom from Hades, and stop a war of epic proportions from happening.
Themes:
Dyslexia, Greek mythology, ADHD, heroes, gods, demigods, history, bullying, being different, step dads, parenting, best friends, bullying, glory, trust, betrayal, death, realm of the dead, Hades, Zeus, Poseidon, single parents, proving oneself, bravery, love, mistakes, and overcoming.
Language:
There is name calling (such as loser), this is usually done in a bullying way. “By the gods,” is used. I did not catch any curse words.
Stuff to be aware of: (some of this could be considered spoiler territory, but nothing outside what’s in the book)
Be prepared for some Greek statue nudity, regular history museum stuff. God and Jesus are mentioned in a throw away line to explain how Percy’s mom didn’t fall in love with “God, but a god.”
Sexuality - A kid is seen in his boxer shorts as he puts on his pants. There are multiple references to the god’s having children with humans, but sex is never mentioned. One god is said to have cheated with another god’s wife.
Alcohol and Gambling - Dionysus (god of wine and pleasure) is in the show and wants demigods to bring him alcohol because he has been forbidden to drink. Percy’s dad has possibly been drinking in one scene. An episode takes place in a casino with gambling.
Scariness - As with the book there is a good amount of monsters and creatures that try to stop the heroes from completing their quest. There are harpy (bird women) looking creatures that disintegrate into ashes when killed. A dark figure in a hooded robe that speaks in a creepy way is seen multiple times in a dream sequences. You can not see the hooded figure’s face. A minotaur is seen early on and causes a car to crash and smashes a person into an ash like dust. Medusa and her snakes make an appearance, along with some scary looking statues. Medusa does lose her head (not a phrase of speech), but you don’t see her head being cut off. She is invisible during this scene. Later her head is viewed from the back, but there is no blood or gore.
Possibly, the scariest creature is the Oracle. She looks like a dead woman and briefly moves in a creepy way before exhaling a smoke like substance. During one episode the heroes enter a spooky theme park, but nothing scary happens. The underworld is a frightening place with the dead, Cerberus, and zombie looking statue people.
Fighting - There is plenty of sword fighting and slaying of monsters. There isn’t any gore, but there is some blood from cuts and fights.
Overall: (Some minor spoiler territory)
This show BY FAR is a much better adaptation than the movie from 2010 was. The episodic nature allows for more of the original story and characters to be explored, however there are some ideas and relationships I wish were discussed with more screen time. The first couple of episodes do some great world building and relationship work, but some of it seems too rushed. One example is Percy’s first fight. The scene is very unlike the book, and while it demonstrates his fear and lack of knowledge it seems like a waste of what was an awesome scene in the book.
The show changes some plot elements, but not huge shifts like the 2010 movie. Some of the changes from the book are well done and help build the world giving us a deeper look into characters lives and motivation. My biggest complaints are I wish we had another episode of Camp Halfblood, it felt too rushed. The camp is the Hogwarts of this story so we need more time there. Also, I wish the show would have inserted some dialogue here and there explaining things a bit further (like why Percy’s mom was married to his stepdad).
Now the positive, I love the changes they made with Percy’s mom! I need to go back and read the book, but I believe Percy’s mom has more to do and say in the show. She also is no push over! I really like that the actors/actresses are close to the age of the kids in the book and they all do a great job.
All in all I really enjoyed this series. I wish it had one or two more episodes, but it was a good adaptionation and a lot of fun to watch.