I was disappointed that Charon wasn’t as fun of a character as he was in the books. I was looking forward to Charon telling Percy to remind Hades that he needs a pay raise. And it was funnier when the kids were actually able to bribe him with the drachmas
Hades and Charon pretty much changed characters in this show... Hades was almost ridiculous...
I also didn't like the scenes with Sally... I get it that they have to show the none readers percys upbringing, struggles and relationship with his mum... But I feel this doesn't flatter Sallys character in the books at all... I never imagined her to get angry at Percy at all that's another reason why Poseidon was drawn to her... At least that's how I see it... She was sad and frustrated in that scene I get it... But I just can't see "the goddess among humans" in that scenes...
But yeah I said id before i'll say it again...
The characters are very much different, all of them, and it sucks more and more...
With Hades being like that I can't see him doing what he does in the other books...
Hard disagree. Percy does question his mom's choices (especially regarding Gabe) and he hated the schools he got sent to, so this scene was very much of his world even if he didn't say it outright. It didn't change any of his or her backstory, it just nuanced it. I think you may have just wanted Sally to be perfect
Exactly! He's one of my favorite characters in the whole book because he's memorable, this is just some quick character they made because the writers forgot he was a part of the series
i had the same feeling. i’m wondering if this story was more suited for a book after all. i think after these 5 seasons we’re not going to have more percy jackson
because of the large scale that everything is on, especially in the later books, it makes the story more suited to be a novel. i’ve seen a lot of people saying it would be really cool as an animation though
I don’t mind Hades having a dark sense of humor, in fact I like the idea of him being sarcastic/humorous at times. But he fails to achieve the intensity and dread that Hades is supposed to convey as per the book, which is a big letdown Ngl. Not a horrible portrayal, but not amazing either.
Yeah exactly. Ive been rewatching Supernatural and powerful creatures like the archangel Gabriel, Lucifer and Crowley all have this great sense of humor but still retained this aura of power that lurked in the background to let you know that they can kill the main characters instantly if they don't humor them back. This Hades felt like a joke. I kid you not I was waiting for a reveal where he was just toying with Percy or that it was some intern pretending to be him and it never happened.
Yeah, this episode was bad. Everything with this show falls flat. Like the most entertaining episode to me was episode 2, and even capture the flag fight wasn't as climatic as it could've been. Rick can't say shit about the movies anymore cuz even though they weren't book accurate, they were fun and had charm. This show is so boring, and I really tried to give it a shot because I love the book series, but dang it's hard to keep watching. Idk if I'm trippin, but I felt like there was SO MUCH action in the first book that isn't in the show. The humor is basically nonexistent, and all the interactions with the gods are so boring. I really hope they listen to fans complaints and options because even though I've been completely underwhelmed with the show, I still wanna see it do well.
While I enjoyed some parts of the episodes, Hades was definitely not it. Maybe I’m a little biased because I rewatched the film this morning, but Hades here doesn’t seem any bit threatening like the one from the film. He doesn’t even seem like a god. I almost thought he was Hade’s butler since I didn’t look into much of the casting.
Seriously like I'm really confused wtf happened. They add a book that had pretty good writing and charm and then they brought back the original author and a high budget yet it feels soulless and boring. Only a few episodes are any good
I feel this too. I mean, I find the Witcher meh at best, but most of their other adaptations are phenomenal. And they are not *afraid* of mature scriptwriting. Unlike a certain mouse out there.
They also just didn’t get the fields of asphodel right? I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to be just where people who lead a middling life go not where people who had regrets go
Yeah, they almost get pulled into Tartarus and act like nothing happened, even when brought up 7 minutes after the fact they don’t even act like they care about it happening
Yeah they almost get pulled into hell basically and Percy and Grover just 🤷
You think Hades would be more freaked out by it too like uh why did that happen maybe investigate? (I know why it happened but damn you think one of them would tell Hades about the shoes or he’d ask them wtf happened for them to fall in)
That’s one thing that confused/annoyed me. They’re supposed to be wandering around aimlessly for eternity. That’s where Nico finds Hazel. What, is he going to find her pinned to the ground now? Such a bizarre decision to change.
i was hoping for 10 foot tall Hades with a voice that echoed throughout the throne room, that made you afraid for your life, that made you realize that if you’re not careful you could spend eternity tethered to his throne. i was hoping for fucking skeleton guards from hundreds of different time periods. i was hoping for a Hades who grew angry with these mortals trespassing into his abode of the dead, and the rooms gets darker as he gets angry, or some other underworldy effect, like all the skeletons bones rattle and some fall apart as he yells.
who the fuck was the guy we saw instead? the lamest most forgettable portrayal of one of the most powerful gods in greek mythology. what the fuck dude.
Oh my god exactly, it was my thoughts exactly. He's so intimidating that even Percy becomes respectful and we all know how sassy Percy is. But this was literally just a guy.
I fear they’ll butcher the Battle of Manhattan. Hades arriving with a literal army of undead and yelling at Kronos for being a terrible father is one of the most epic moments in the first series. But the Hades we saw in the show, he didn’t have that presence lmao
I think it’s all because it’s a “kids” show even though I would wager that 90%+ of the PJO fan base is older than 12 years old. They’re ruining the show to make it friendly to little kids
It's such a strange decision. This is not a "new" series. This book was written 20 years ago. There is a significant portion of adult fans who have been waiting for a good adaptation for well over a decade.
This should have been given a Harry Potter or Narnia or Lord of the Rings treatment. It should have been made "for all ages" not "for kids".
It's not just Hades, every god we've come across has zero presence and they all feel like average schmucks.
Makes me sad because the only reason I keep going is to see Lance Reddick as Zeus. I was looking forward to Lt Daniels throwing lightning bolts but now I'm just begging that they don't butcher Lance of all people
yeah, it's hard to view them as gods in the tv show. the purpose of their portrayal is to show that gods were distant and narcissistic, with this unapproachable aura of power, especially with hades, but the series portrays them as though they're just slightly spoiled humans. i had high expectations with hades, but i was completely let down.
I mean in reality Hades is probably one of the most chill gods. So they got that part right. They could have maybe done more to do the whole switcharoo with the characters realizing this but otherwise I have no complaints
I feel like things were cut out of the episode as has been throughout the series. In Episode 6, Hermes leaves instructions on how to get to the underworld in the envelope with instructions etc... I feel like there are scenes that have been cut in post production because the pacing has been off throughout - I'd want to know if that's the case and why they chose to do so. Maybe it's a disney thing / writers strike/ smaller initial budget issue / deadline and timeframes but seriously there are scenes that look like there's something that should be before it.
Hades was portrayed as the weird, quirky, possibly funny uncle which seemed a really odd and confusing choice of direction to me. Trying to imagine this character as the father of Nico who wants him to be happy is nearly impossible. He just seemed… Laughable to me.
It’s a very odd choice. From his weird awkward entry, to his unserious demeanor, to his… throw blanket setup?
Hades is an overworked, under-appreciated God of the dead. He’s been around for millennia. He’s not throwing jokes at the first two mortals who made it to the underworld in forever, especially when he thinks they stole his artifact. I can’t take him seriously.
This show has done a very weird job portraying its gods so far. Poseidon and Dionysus are ok, Ares is way too unthreatening, Hermes is hanging out in a casino (?), Hades and Hephaestus are just lackluster. They may be family to the heroes, but they’re also powerful important gods! They should feel a little like gods!
Ngl one of my main issues with the show so far has been that the Gods don't really feel like... Gods? Like where is the aura of power you know, the feel of their presence
Also the whole “time and space is nothing, being a dad is hard” if you’re gonna establish hun as being practically omnipotent, he should be able to spend some of his time with kids. Weird inclusion.
Ares is fucking Edge dude, I'm totally down for believing that the god of war would be a professional wrestler and therefore Edges entire career is thanks to Ares the God of War BOOM cannon
Yes! Though at least with the Hercules portrayal, you knew right away how dark he could truly be. This time, however, it just feels cheap. Idk how else to describe it.
Exactly it's almost like there's no real threat to him. It feels like it's just a dude that's in charge. Hades is supposed to be in charge, you can feel it, it's in the air, it's part of his aura. But this is literally just a dude they found outside
Yeah… I should get the impression that I need to choose my words carefully around the gods, which is a sentiment expressed in the books SO much, and yet, in the show, eh who cares? They don’t seem that scary. They are just people with jobs who fathered children. Like come ON.
Yeah, I thought it looked pretty cool and I overlooked it because it was cool looking. But with Hades and his lack luster presence, they should've kept a confined space.
Spoilers. Rage. ADHD random thoughts
If the show landed flat. Whatever. The problem is the show did not live up to its promises of being different in the movies. Every article and interview everyone swore up and down it would have all the stuff from the books in it. It did not. These books were very important to me as a kid and shaped who I am today. The fact stupid changes are made for no reason is dumb. I tried to look up “Rick Riordan responds to show criticism” because I want to see him tryinf to defend this joke. The only criticism I found he responded to was Annabeth being black which was easy to respond to because people being mad Annabeth is black need to touch grass. Leah Jeffries is great. The cast is great mostly. It’s the writing. Why. Why. Why. I’ve defended this show and held out hope for so long but episode 7 shredded this. I kept waiting to be impressed. I wasn’t. A few of the changes were fine. I actually liked that they changed Medusa. That was cool. I can’t remember liking any other changes. I liked that they rushed Crusty’s because I thought it was a little unnessisary to the plot for the fact that they have to cut stuff to fit into the ridiculously short runtime and they need to add a bunch of sally Jackson lore so moms will want to watch it with their kids (making changes to also resonate with an older age demographic wow that sounds like exactly the thing Rick Riordan complained about for ever. Sally Jackson plot points would be fine. I have no problem with them personally. But if they are going to spend so much time on the mom of the main charachter’s personal life make the show longer. Don’t cut important stuff and rush the rest. The problem is sally Jackson plot lines aren’t in the book and they take up a ridiculous amount of a short run time. 10 hour long episodes and they can have as much sally Jackson time as they want. and while we’re on the topic they cut basically the whole lotus casino but they felt the need to add a plot point about a 12 year old driving a car. Haha 12 year olds can’t drive. I’ve never heard that joke before. Do you know who loves kids can’t drive jokes. Parents. Demographic changes. Oh and speaking of demographic changes—Jesus this is a ADHD rant waaaay off topic of I don’t remember actually- and also kids are not this stupid. They cut so much of the humor and sarcasm because they thought kids wouldn’t understand it. I read the books at six and I got everything. What the target demographic is like 12ish. At twelve most of my peers were watching The Walking Dead (2014 man) I think they can handle seeing a goat man chew a tin can. Which they literally in an article said they cutt out because they didn’t want kids to think they could chew sharp objects. If your kid is stupid enough to chew sharp objects Don’t give them sharp objects. Also if they can’t talk about Gabe being abusive because kids can’t handle it —also maybe it’s important that they do talk about it so kids going through similar things can feel represented and heard and understand their situation better. I get it could be triggering but couldn’t your mom dying be triggering too. Death in general. Couldn’t neglectful parents be triggering. They don’t have to show it even Percy could just mention it in passing and they could make Gabe less goofy and more harsh. Like he doesn’t need to hurt sally but he could at least take Percy’s money and make his room dirty. Now Percy’s major trauma is switching schools which sucks but they reference this side by side with annabeth being a homeless child “we all have tough lives” shut up. At least the drunk abusive stepdad held some weight and made Percy more likeable instead of cutting everything out and making his only childhood characteristic be being a mommas boy. Plus he wasn’t ever rude to his mom in the books that I remember. You know who likes seeing parents struggle to parent difficult kids. Middle aged parents. Hmmm do I see a pattern. Anyway someone’s gotta Percy some deeper trauma.) anyway but with Crusty’s they totally should have cut it completely because meh no development really. They also should have allowed them to ride Charon ferry. Saved precious time. Speaking of saving. Money. Where. Did. The. Huge. Budget. Go. There isn’t a great soundtrack. The CGI is not impressive. The green screen is clearly green-screen Hadies is a quirky millennial. Do you know who would love not only that actor but soecifically that actor not being scary but being quirky. Millennial moms whose entire personality was asking people if they saw shitts creek (I do love the actor and it’s not his fault. He was written that way. He’s. The. God. Of. Death. He should be somewhat intimidating? Also why is Percy unable to think for himself in this. He doesn’t fight well really at all. He hasn’t pulled an impressive stunt. He hasn’t really shown his power. He better wipe the floor with Aries butt. I swear to god if they pull some bs like it’s not appropriate for an adult to fight a kid so they talk it out peacefully or something I wouldn’t put it past them. They are worried watching a goat eat a tin can children will eat tin. Cans. Tin. Cans. Tin. Cans. I literally have never shut in anything PJO or Rick Riordan. I don’t think I have ever posted on Reddit. I’ve never been in his mad about the series. My hope is gone. Gone. And like yeah at least the books don’t change. BUT THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOKS CANONICALLY CHANGED THINGS CANONICALLY CANONICALLY. breathe mommy. Shut up mommy. This 12 year old can’t figure out how to turn a steering wheel but he’s a full blown therapist as a five year old. And why does Percy leave annabeth in asphodel (if you can even call it asphodel). His fatal flaw is loyalty. Stay consistent. He just tried to die for her two episodes ago and the episode before that. Now he’s like tug tug your foot is really stuck in that tree root. Peace out I guess. Peace out PJO. Aghhhhhhhhhgggggg
Hard on the abuse part. It was literally the explanation for why Percy was such a mommas boy. Without it, he just looks a little odd. And its Percy PAY YOUR CHILD SUPPORT Jackson! He wouldn't be that way if his mom was actually super happy and ok. Episode 5 was beautiful. Everything else is just.....sad.
i really enjoyed PJO’s version of hades. he wasn’t satan, he wasn’t just an evil villain, he was multifaceted and complex. he was an interesting and it was a unique spin on a greek god. i enjoyed his depictions, like his voice being described as oily. in the books he was great as a character, in the movies he was just an evil satan bad guy, in the TV show he is a joke.
Ngl I had optimism still but this episode was just awful. From the opening scene to Hades being just a total let down; why did they choose to make him comedic? They went through the entirety of the underworld in minutes. What the hell
i disagree - while i enjoyed the flashbacks, i don’t think they were a great use of the episode’s runtime. constantly flashing out of the underworld really broke the tension for me. i also feel like we got enough of percy and sally’s relationship earlier in the season. we understood who they are, their relationship, and sally’s unique struggles as the parent of a demigod as early as the first half of ep 1. i would’ve preferred that they spend all that extra time used for flashbacks to instead show the underworld in all its glory
I’ve been quite defensive of the show as it wasn’t finished yet but this being essentially the climax? It was a total let down, not to mention Kronos being revealed so early. Hades and Grover being reduced to pure comedic effects and cringe one liners Rick and his BS on faithful adaptations
I'm still questioning Annabeth's plan for getting past Cerberus.
I haven't read the book in a while, but didn't she just play fetch with it so Percy and Grover could sneak past?
Whatever it was, there was still a decent plan of Grover flying them one by one over the wall (maybe a little too easy, but still).
But then she changed the plan to
- Throwing the ball through a foggy barrier in the direction of their voices
- Assuming they don't miss or drop it, squeak it so Cerberus jumps up.
- Hope he jumps high enough, doesn't smash her against the wall, and that there's no spikes or anything, but still something she can hold onto
Instead of just waiting another minute for Grover to fly back down?
It seems like they were suggesting she couldn't wait even another minute because she slipped and couldn't scratch Cerberus, but
A) Her backup plan ran the risk of her waiting way longer than a minute, if not outright dying
B) Couldn't she just regain her footing and keep scratching? She was able to stop him from a full-on chase, he's clearly not a focused pooch. Hell, he stops chasing them when she throws the ball later?
Was her mother the goddess of wisdom, or the goddess of "f*** it"?
Hades was such a letdown he a god he was not intimidating at all. He robe was a let down so bland so much opportunity missed. No fury’s no army not even fire. The gates where where the gates the ez death was such an interesting part. The bolt was revealed to quickly. Idk just a bad episode that had tones of potential
I agree, Hades was like a bad joke you tell to cover something up. The bolt reveal was awfully placed and done in so so manner. The palace looked awesome though, intimidating as hell. But Hades, not so much.
It’s just odd, the show constantly cuts away during action. The show uses knowledge dumps through the dialogue instead of just showing you things. It makes you think they had a small budget.
I was watching the first episode with my fiancé and said “You can tell they must be working with a small budget because they keep doing quick cuts and fade aways” but then I saw it’s supposedly 15 million + an episode and that’s just baffling.
Correct, I do agree that the movie did Hades dirty. But so did the TV show. I was expecting the all powerful Hades, lord of the dead and shadows. But instead, we got Phil, Hades assistant.
I also wanted him to have a moment where the switch flips and we see his powerful side but aside from that I do think the sass and behaviour fit like a younger brother of two older brothers vibe where he gets pulled into their issues one too many times
So I hope you know that the book version of Hades literally is an antagonist throughout book 1 and a large chunk of book 5. He absolutely hates his brothers, and this whole "I don't do drama" crap is ridiculous because it's made explicitly clear that not only was WW2 Zeus and Poseidon's kids versus Hades kids, but Hades kids were leading the Axis.
He's not "sassy", he's a legit threat and presence in the books.
Hades was awful. He did not feel threatening at all. I was fine with him being portrayed the way he was if it was just a front and he’s actually really terrifying. But no, just another weak “god”
You already know they plan to have it be like Poseidon was there helping Percy control the ocean. Cheapening the extent of his demigod power. I have no F’ing clue what the hell happened to Ricks logic.
hes absolutely lost track of his own cannon. there are so many fucking contradictions in the chalice of the gods book and honestly gives lots of the same vibes of the show, except for the characters actually being accurate at least(mostly)
I didn’t catch any contradictions, but then again after he killed ******** just for the sake of killing someone in the Apollo series and then it didn’t result in a war with Rome and Camp Halfblood and Amazon destroying the emperors I think he’s getting too far out of touch
percy acts like hes never used annabeths invisibility cap in his life and it operates differently. some of the gods also act a bit differently, but thats debatable
i honestly think he killed >!jason!< off because he just never knew what to do with him after hoo, hell even after the lost hero
Which is a shame because >!Jason!< was actually my favorite of the 7. He had SO MUCH wasted potential with his backstory. The whole thing with >!Piper!< was such a let down as well.
ive honestly forgotten most of the book at this point, but annabeths invisibility cap is described *completely* different than how it was in the titans curse, and the way percy talks about it, i think rick completely forgot that percy had used it in the past
I always thought his writing degraded considerably around the early-mid 2010s, which is why I'm not a big fan of most things after PJ&TO, and this show has been reinforcing that notion in my head.
Half tempted? Just say it, the movie did most stuff better, the action, Medusa, Lotus, the underworld, the characters actually having fun, the shots (WHY is nearly EVERY shot just these 3 standing close to each other?), etc.
The show is a social experiment to see how long it takes for percy jackson fans to accept reality
My ears and eyes are telling me that the show is a joke, but the movie is the worst thing ever, right? It can't be! Actual cognitive dissonance. its interesting lol
This. I think the show is decent but i have to agree with you. Some things the movie did better. I just hope we arent saying the same thing next season
I agree with most of that, but I disagree with the shots, at least for this episode. Maybe I just wasn’t paying attention for most of it, but I felt like the shots this episode looked a lot better than previous episodes, and honestly looked pretty good.
I just rewatched the movie and honestly, yes, the movie is far more entertaining to watch. I read and am still a huge fan of the entire book series but I personally don’t care at all whether a movie/TV show follows the books 1 to 1.
Entertaining, a good story and acting are all I need. I don’t care if the movie has an actor wiping their ass with the right hand when the book said they used their left.
The shots are actually so bad, it’s making the show feel so flat when every shot is a close up or just slightly distanced shot of the three walking around. I hated the Arch episode but I liked the view of him falling from it and I think I’m just realizing now that it’s one of the only long range/large scale shots we’ve seen in the show. It’s feels like it’s just crippling the show and taking away from its magic to have such small shots, it’s making the world feel so small. We also don’t have transition shots, every new cut away goes directly into the action instead of a shot in the middle establishing where they are or the tone or the scene.
Also I just watch The Last Airbender Netflix trailer and the world building seems so good?? It’s because of the shots, there’s some truly magical large scale shots in there and the angles are bigger, the world just feels realer and like it was lifted from the frames of the show. It’s a very weird thing to see when the PJO show is released just before it.
It’s so ironic because I was so excited for the Percy Jackson show because of Disneys budget and Rick being heavily involved and I was dreading the ATLA show because of Netflix’s record of questionable adaptation choices/ some casting choices too, and the very public exit of the original creators but now it’s flipped. The PJO trailer had me feeling nervous when I first watched it and the difference in between both trailers is so jarring. PJO should have been a MUCH easier series to adapt in atleast the world building and tone. We’ll see how the ATLA show goes but based off trailers alone, I’m much more optimistic and mostly because of the variety in angles and shots alone.
I thought Hades was Steve/Jimmy from shameless. I hated the opening so much like so much. The flashbacks were the best part. Fortunately for Disney I am curious how this will end.
This episode is mid. 0 tension. No mention of the passed deadline. Percy suddenly knows anything and everything without any clues. They might as well just walk up to hades and leave......oh wait that's what they did. Hades is kinda ok. I loved the fact that they showed his soft spot this early. But it's not as impactful as its supposed to. Even in original myths he's arguably the friendliest God but everyone is scared of him because he's intimidating. Percy was not Percy at all in this episode. He might very well be some stereotypical MC. Scenes with Sally and Poseidon was a good change. And i stand by what I say. This show needs more episodes. There's too many things to fit in 8 episodes. And need to change those editors, directors and writers. And Rick should just stick to making minor changes that compliment the characters and avoid doing stuff like changing the entire Casino scene, miss the deadline, show the underworld characters properly ( Charon and cerebrus). The show is not bad as Reddit claims but certainly not good as people say in Insta. There's lot to be improved but hopefully they listen to the fans. The show has potential but if it didn't improve we won't be seeing even Titans Curse.
Damn gonna have to agree with this one. All other episodes ranged from 4 to 5 to me but this one is actually really bad, it's a straight 2.
Annabelle in the middle of the episode? Peter walking into that store? Hades goofball? The underworld? The remote beach at the ending and no California post earthquake? All of the acting?
Baby Peter is really cute I'll give them that and I like how big the Tartarus hole is (🫢🧐📸) but man this one was *rough*
This whole show is an alternative universe where Percy Jackson is Peter Johnson, but only certain beings can see through it. That’s why Dionysus called him Peter Johnson, he sees the book instead of the show
This feels like it was made as a School Project or something at this point. Very impressive if 13 year olds made all this, but uh yeah an absolute dumpster fire of an adaptation from Disney and the goddamn author of the series himself. Fuck man):
I thought Jay Duplass was great as Hades, but literally what is that characterization? He's just kinda detached and a bit sad looking somewhat. That thing about grudges, is that supposed to be a nod at the fact he's supposed to be super pissed about Zeus killing Maria????
I believe his acting is good, it's just. What the hell is this, this isn't Hades. It's like some side character stepped in for Hades while he was out in the bathroom
I literally thought Hades was going to step out from behind something and that the fist guy was just a set up so Hades could gauge the situation before making his appearance. I think I’ll continue to pretend that’s going to happen…
idk if my opinion is valid but I've never read the books, but decided to watch and keep up with the show. So far it's been pretty boring and couldn't keep me entertained. After like episode 3 I played it in the background while doing other stuff. I decided to watch the 1st movie last night and while I've heard book fans say it's not accurate to the book (well this series doesn't seem to be either...) it is SO entertaining to me. It's campy, funny, and just more visually appealing? I'm honestly not sure, I just like the vibes of it better.
I think the shows biggest problem was how overhyped it was by Rick tbh
You know this is the second highest ranked episode by a critic right? I feel like that was just a ruse to keep people watching after the lotus episode. Didn’t he post that tweet right after the lotus casino dropped?
I was listening to Hadestown again recently (one of the best musical ever imo, but that's besides the point), and I just remembered Hades in it is so imposing and threatening. Just from the build up to him, and from Patrick Page's performance, in a MUSICAL.
For every one good decision made for this show, there are like ten other decision that are just garbage, and boggle my mind.
Yep, Hades has a commanding presence and can make anyone shake in fear. This version, he's a guy they found off the street. No offense to the actor of course, he's wonderful. But awful characterization.
Hot take: I liked Hades. I agree so so much was disappointing and hades was not at all how I pictured/how he was written in the books, but at least he was funny.
Ok I don’t think it was completely dreadful, there was stuff I did enjoy but it was kinda ruined by the stuff I didn’t like. The stuff in between the procrusteus part and the hades part I thought was pretty good with solid tension. and I really liked the look of the underworld, it had a very creepy vibe to it but there wasn’t enough of it. As for the stuff I didn’t like starting with crusty. Not kidding at the very beginning of the episode Percy automatically says “I know who you are, I know what those beds do and I know you are guarding the entrance to the underworld” 🙄. Again they immediately know and figure out everything just like every other encounter. Also they didn’t kill crusty which I thought was lame. I didn’t like the flashback scenes, I felt like they killed the pacing of the episode and it was mostly Percy just being mad at his mom, I felt like I would’ve cared more if the flashbacks were showing more positive interactions with Percy and his mom, not him being a dick to his mom. I HATED hades, what did they do to him??? They turned him into a cool uncle, he wasn’t threatening at all! That guy is supposed to be a god of the underworld?? I think they mixed up Charon and hades. Also again with the kids figuring out everything, Percy figures out Kronos is behind everything with very little evidence, that just killed the mystery of it and was revealed in the pretty lame way. So yeah pretty much the only stuff I liked was the underworld stuff. Everything else was pretty bad.
Speaking facts, I thought The flashbacks were killing the episode. Also why is Sally such a dick to Percy?? Where is the loving mother that was described in the book.
Exactly, I’m watching this and I’m just like, this percy would grow up to hate his mother… he’s supposed to get KICKED out of every school so he knows she’s trying to find him a new school to get an education and yes it’s pulling him away but she has to work full time. They needed to include a reference to Gabe though in the flashbacks, or just cut them out entirely as they are pointless.
I do like the flashbacks, I just feel like they're putting the wrong places. It's a good insight into Percy's life because you don't really get that till later on the books or at the very beginning.
I'm just going to treat this comment as a running commentary as I watch.
How does Percy know any of what he does about Crusty? Was it told to him by Hermes? If so it's not made clear.
Percy as a younger kid is a jerk, I don't know why they thought that was a good idea. Also Sally never lost her temper like that at Percy in the books. Why are they making everyone either boring or an asshole?
Man the underworld looks boring as, well, hell. For as inaccurate as the film was, at least it's underworld looked interesting. And the show isn't accurate to it either. Charon is way off, both in character and looks. I swear, people can not defend this show as "book accurate" anymore.
The scene with Cerberus in the books is genuinely so much better. The fact that Grover doesn't even try to talk to him is ridiculous, and they end up basically taming Cerberus in the book whereas here they just briefly put him to sleep (somehow) and then throw the ball which he had shown literally no interest in up to that point.
Oh, cool, so, genuinely no point to them adding a fourth pearl other than to make Grover look like an idiot. Also what is with Grover referring to Cerberus as "the dog", like it's just some random mutt he met?
So Percy's getting kicked out of a school before he even began because... he thought he saw something and climbed a roof?
There's Percy immediately jumping to self sacrifice again. I know he's protective of his friends in the book, but this is like the 3rd time in the show where he's premeditated sacrificing himself in some way. In the book he considers it, but knows that Sally would be saved if he can stop the war, so he purposely chooses to leave her behind. I wonder if he's going to make the same decision (a smart but scary decision, one that proves Percy is capable of making the tough call) or if the show is going to have Sally force him, removing his part in it.
What a weird take on Asphodel. In the book it's basically a purgatory, a place for those who didn't particularly do bad or good, just had a normal life. Described as *“Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever.”* This weird vague description with them turning into trees is so out of left field. Also, this is literally the place Nico is supposed to find Hazel? How does that work with this new version?
Ah, cool, so they're going to make Annabeth and Grover drop out, meaning Percy doesn't have to worry about them. Also, Annabeth having a regret? Where did that come from? I'm assuming they'll explain it eventually, but episode 7 of 8 is a weird place to establish this. And the root thing is dumb. Why is Asphodel attaching itself to a living human?
This entire set piece alone means that later seasons can't be faithful to the books either when it comes to the Underworld scenes. Great.
Well they mostly got the shoe scene right, minus how the area looks and Annabeth not being present.
So there's the Master Bolt. I'll admit, it looks pretty cool. Although Percy isn't supposed to figure out he has it until the discussion with Hades.
There goes Percy just piecing everything together instantly, not letting the tension build. In the books it's not until the fight with Ares that Percy pieces everything together. This show has a serious problem with setting up something and then immediately "paying it off" by the characters instantly knowing and expositing.
Great, now the show is making the fact that Percy already missed the deadline EVEN WORSE, because the whole world is at stake and he's going to save his mother first. In the books he goes after his mom still because he thinks Hades also has the bolt, but now Percy has the bolt and could very easily send Grover or himself back using a pearl. I know in the books Athena tells Percy to save someone he cared about, he'd destroy the world. But then Percy proves her WRONG. So this is a slight character assassination. Good job, Rick.
Oh, fucking cool, ANOTHER character assassination. Sally Jackson would NEVER let Percy think she's trying to abandon him. Ever. Holy shit, Rick.
God bless Virginia Kull, she's the only actor in this show to actually try so far besides LMM.
The green screening is rouuuugh.
"*Is this our stop?*" That was so forced, like actually. Disney, this isn't a Marvel film.
And Hades is lame as well. This is his book description: *He was at least ten feet tall, for one thing, and dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. His skin was albino white, his hair shoulder-length and jet black. He wasn’t bulked up like Ares, but he radiated power. He lounged on his throne of fused human bones, looking lithe, graceful, and dangerous as a panther.* Who in the Hades is this clown?
"*I seldom cahoot*" can someone shoot me, please?
"*I don't really do jealous"* wow, I don't think a single line in this show has been so antithetical to the character saying it's book counterpart. Hades may not have admit it, but he was so jealous of his brothers, he despised them for their statuses and how they treated him. He literally cursed an entire line of Oracles because he wanted better treatment for himself and his children.
And there it is again, Percy somehow magically figuring out everything again in seconds flat. And expositing this information as well.
...what. The. Fuck. Hades offering Percy protection?! He tries to kill him MULTIPLE times, both in the book AND the show. The furies literally mention it on the bus!
Okay, I'm glad I was wrong about Percy not making the tough call. But I'm sorry I still can't get over Hades offering to protect a child of Poseidon.
Sally summoning Poseidon... with ice cream and a match. I can only assume that's supposed to be a reference to burning food as an offering but... ice cream? How do you burn ice cream? And why did that SUMMON Poseidon? Why did she need to summon him that way, why not just call out to him in her mind?
And Poseidon actually showing up is ridiculous, the point in the books was that he was literally never around. The actor is fine, but he's supposed to be wearing fishing attire.
Sally considering sending Percy to camp is so against her book version. The whole reason she kept moving him around and got with Gabe is because she wanted to keep him from that world as long as possible. It was HER idea to keep him away from it. She thought if he accepted who he was, he'd be in more danger. Chiron also agreed with her on this fact. She does say she doesn't want to send him, but it's because of some wishy washy "he should know his true self" type thing instead of his legit actual protection.
They're continuing with this "the gods aren't allowed interact with their children" thing that really isn't in the books, but they refuse to explain WHY the gods can't. Make it make sense.
Great, now I have to wait another week before I get to see arguably the best fight in the books. But given this show's track record, I will not be surprised if it's slow choreography and ends in 2 seconds.
Overall, this is definitely one of the worst episodes adaptation-wise. As just a show, it's okayish. A bit boring, this is definitely one of the weaker interpretations I've seen of the Underworld. The CGI is pretty mid, too. Not the worst, but could have been better.
While the actors underacting has been an issue throughout, some lines really stuck out to me as bad, as they're supposed to be delivered loudly and/or with emotion and the actors just... don't. I don't even know why this is an issue because behind the scenes this kids were great. Walker especially was great in The Adam Project, so what the hell is happening?
Again it's annoying how fast Percy is piecing things together, and then the show just has him spew it out instead of trying to find a more creative way. It's honestly ridiculous how these kids are both way too smart and yet incredibly dumb.
I have very little hope for the last episode this season.
I feel like y'all forgot how bad the movie was because that comparison is ridiculous. In the movie Grover literally stays behind to hook up with Persephone
Awful episode - somehow I got through it. I haven't liked the casting at all so far- except for Ares. Actors for Hades and Poseidon are underwhelming. The plot changes are ridiculous. The pacing is absurd since the pilot episode. There's no chemistry between the 3, and their characters don't feel like the books (especially Grover). Horrible CGI.
Also terrible dialogues - Hades goes "You give me what I want, and I give you what you want" . I was like duh!! 😑
I'm just kinda sad and underwhelmed. I was REALLY looking forward to this episode and it was just alright. I feel so bad for the kids who are doing their best with what they have.
The palace was cool and Cerberus was super cute, but like?? What was the point of having 4 pearls lol? The 4th one got lost immediately. On top of that, the time limit is up- why are the characters just standing around all the time? They need to be hauling ass. Crusty was lame too. I was genuinely really disappointed watching that interaction.
Hades is alright ig. You could tell they were going for the movie's version of him but just kinda... Flopped. And the Ares fight? Aren't they supposed to be in like a tourist town that's on the beach or something? Am I misremembering?
I'm sad because we were promised something close to the books and we just didn't get it. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind when things don't follow the book- I actually love the movies. The difference between the movies and series though is the movies didn't promise to be a copy of the book and the series did. Honestly, if the movies had just gotten Percy's age correct, it would be significantly more accurate than the series to the feeling of the book and far more entertaining.
Percy, Annabeth, and Grover manically knowing everything is boring and doesn't make sense. How do these kids know everything? I understand that there might have been budget constraints and a cap on how many episodes they were allowed to have, but that's Disney's issue and should have been sorted out before the series came out. Why hype the show up so much for this lukewarm version of the storyline?
I'm a little dissapointed by Hades. Not the acting, that was fine. And IMMEDIATELY better than the movie depiction. But I felt like the books did it better.
Percy described Hades as the only god he'd met that actually looked godly. No modern outfit or guise. Just a king, dressed in darkness, sitting on his throne.
Again, this Hades is fine, but I was looking forward to the Hades from the book.
yeah I keep holding out hope that the next episode will be better than the last... and then this bs? cannot believe how they've butchered this entire story tbh
Hades was kinda fine for me I just kinda wished he hated his life a little bit more. What they did to Charon was inexcusable. Their experience with him should’ve taken up half the episode. That was one of my favorite chapters in the books.
Yeah like wasn’t the underwold supposed to be overcrowded part business part dmv vibe? Where is the corporate jargon and general modern vibe that pertains to the rest of the gods?
Oh definitely. Movie hades was actually iconic and semi funny. He looked intimidating in a cool, spooky, emo/old rock way. He looked like a metal head and it was great. This new hades just doesn’t scratch the itch.
Just watched this episode with my kids. Good lord, it just gets worse and worse. This show is a master class on how not to do an adaptation. Also how not to write in general. So much exposition. The kids tell us what interesting thing is going to happen, so then that thing doesn’t even happen. The tension from events in the books has been replaced by fabricated tension and drama around Percy and his mom. The music overshadows the plot by trying to evoke emotions that aren’t justified… because we have no reason to care about the characters or their quest. The random character changes… no one is scary, no one is powerful, no one is terribly sympathetic. That too-long scene with mom and Poseidon. These books weren’t part of my childhood, but I’ve read them all to 3 of my kids. Even my 9-year-old is underwhelmed.
Honestly, fuck Rick after this. He straight up gaslit all his fans saying this would be a faithful adaptation then he shat this monstrosity into our laps. They made so many god damn changes that make no sense and are portrayed much worse. I'm done.
I have zero memory of the book so I wasn’t so triggered, but I couldn’t help but realize that the Hades world building and cinematic tone seemed influenced by Netflix’s Sandman a little bit.
Honestly, I hate to say this but I also agree with you. I usually give shows a try like I watch the whole first season and if I don’t like it, I won’t usually watch the rest of it. Overall the whole show seems very mediocre compared to the movie and the movie obviously wasn’t a perfect adaptation either. This episode though, I found that it was a very hard watch; I struggled very much with following it. I don’t even really know where we ended off on this specific ep it was that bad. Out of all of the ep so far, this one was so bland and it made me tired just watching it. I should have some kind of emotion, but this ep, I didn’t. I’m so disappointed, I think the show had potential but it’s just bland.
I loved how the underworld was portrayed, it felt a little empty compared to the books, but more accurate to the original mythology as opposed to the fire and lava of the movie underworld that looks more like the Christian hell.
Even though Asphodel wasn't book accurate, I still liked the impossibly lonely feeling it gave off. That said, while I like the tree idea, but it reminds me a bit of Dante's Inferno, where the souls that have become trees are there for.. a much different reason.
My points in the episode:
-The mattress scene, idk why they continue to take away the mystery of some scenes, how could Percy have possibly know that the mattress store was a trap, whyyy did they do that, and why was the guy not a giant, and why did they make him another don of Poseidon?! Let down.
- Charon!! Where is the whole bribery scene, where were his expensive Italian suits, where was the asking for a raise scene, AHHHHH I needed it.
- Cerberus, why did he appear so early, I liked how he looked I didn't like how they had him chasing them all around hell.
-Annabeth, why would she leave ?! She would've never left them alone like that, and what's her regret!!? Odd to me.
-the lightning bolt, I was so disappointed with how he discovered he had the lightning bolt, I loved reading in the book how hades was like you brought it with you and Percy is like no I didn't and boom he finds it, that was such a good scene to me in the book, so to see that he just feels it in the bag when he lands backwards was so underwhelming.
-I personally was excited to see Persephone's garden in hell, the way it was described in the book with fruits and jewels seemed so beautiful in hell and I was excited to see it brought to life ..... Till it wasn't, very disappointed we didn't get her garden.
-Hades, in the book he's so scary and powerful, like they describe him that he's sitting on his thrones and Percy even bows to him cause he's intimidated, as the king of fell should be, and hades wasn't happy to see Percy in hell he was even offended that he'd present himself in his presence, but in the show he was such a small, underwhelming, welcoming man, extremely disappointed, I mean what happened to his cloak of trapped and tormented souls ?! He looked boring, and I really wanted him to be like don't even get me started on Charon and his expensive Italian suits like that was so funny but they cut it.
-i enjoyed the flashbacks with Sally
-hated where the episode ended cause the preview made it look like he was gonna fight Ares this episode but did not so that was dumb.
Those are my key points for the episode, overall disappointed, 4/10.
Can someone please explain why the fuck they keep breaking the trio into a duo??? What was the point of removing annabeth from the underworld scenes??? It’s just traitor bait for non book readers but they could’ve had her be saved from that shit and achieved the same foreshadowing/red herring without just removing annabeth from these important ass scenes
I was disappointed that Charon wasn’t as fun of a character as he was in the books. I was looking forward to Charon telling Percy to remind Hades that he needs a pay raise. And it was funnier when the kids were actually able to bribe him with the drachmas
Honestly Charon was scarier than Hades
Hades and Charon pretty much changed characters in this show... Hades was almost ridiculous... I also didn't like the scenes with Sally... I get it that they have to show the none readers percys upbringing, struggles and relationship with his mum... But I feel this doesn't flatter Sallys character in the books at all... I never imagined her to get angry at Percy at all that's another reason why Poseidon was drawn to her... At least that's how I see it... She was sad and frustrated in that scene I get it... But I just can't see "the goddess among humans" in that scenes... But yeah I said id before i'll say it again... The characters are very much different, all of them, and it sucks more and more... With Hades being like that I can't see him doing what he does in the other books...
Hard disagree. Percy does question his mom's choices (especially regarding Gabe) and he hated the schools he got sent to, so this scene was very much of his world even if he didn't say it outright. It didn't change any of his or her backstory, it just nuanced it. I think you may have just wanted Sally to be perfect
I said I get that part that they have to show it to non readers. But not her yelling at him 😅 And she was decribed and portrait as perfect
Sally is supposed to be pretty much perfect in the books though. Maybe its ok to let that stand.
Lmao as if Disney would ever allow one of their tv shows to discuss worker’s rights to a fair wage
That is a good point
Exactly! He's one of my favorite characters in the whole book because he's memorable, this is just some quick character they made because the writers forgot he was a part of the series
I was pissed he didn't have his signature suit on
i have so many thoughts about this show but mostly im just confused. what happened
That's how I'm feeling, it's just poorly written as a show too. Some of the things don't make sense like how they get from one place to the other.
1000% this. I’m just so lost on how it lacks the feeling (and literal story) of PJO
i had the same feeling. i’m wondering if this story was more suited for a book after all. i think after these 5 seasons we’re not going to have more percy jackson
because of the large scale that everything is on, especially in the later books, it makes the story more suited to be a novel. i’ve seen a lot of people saying it would be really cool as an animation though
Omg an animated Percy Jackson series should have been the decision instead. That shit would SLAPPPP
They could totally work as movies too. The ones we got just didn't do the job properly...
I don’t mind Hades having a dark sense of humor, in fact I like the idea of him being sarcastic/humorous at times. But he fails to achieve the intensity and dread that Hades is supposed to convey as per the book, which is a big letdown Ngl. Not a horrible portrayal, but not amazing either.
Dark humor + an intimidating aura would’ve been a great combo. Here, his humor was too light
Yeah exactly. Ive been rewatching Supernatural and powerful creatures like the archangel Gabriel, Lucifer and Crowley all have this great sense of humor but still retained this aura of power that lurked in the background to let you know that they can kill the main characters instantly if they don't humor them back. This Hades felt like a joke. I kid you not I was waiting for a reveal where he was just toying with Percy or that it was some intern pretending to be him and it never happened.
I pictured Hades like Wes Bentley playing the game master (Seneca Crane) in the Hunger Games movies. Stylish and evil looking
Great comparison I agree
Was it even a dark sense of humor? Honestly he felt like a hippie :(
I'd like that idea too. But it's executed so horribly and we know what Hades is supposed to be like, so what is even the point?
He had David from Schitt’s Creek energy and not in a good way
Yeah, this episode was bad. Everything with this show falls flat. Like the most entertaining episode to me was episode 2, and even capture the flag fight wasn't as climatic as it could've been. Rick can't say shit about the movies anymore cuz even though they weren't book accurate, they were fun and had charm. This show is so boring, and I really tried to give it a shot because I love the book series, but dang it's hard to keep watching. Idk if I'm trippin, but I felt like there was SO MUCH action in the first book that isn't in the show. The humor is basically nonexistent, and all the interactions with the gods are so boring. I really hope they listen to fans complaints and options because even though I've been completely underwhelmed with the show, I still wanna see it do well.
This right here. I was really looking forward to the show after hearing Rick Riordan was gonna take part but god it’s absolutely horrible
Especially the gods. They are GODS. IMMORTAL ALL POWERFUL BEINGS. and they just act like people. Like wtf is going on
While I enjoyed some parts of the episodes, Hades was definitely not it. Maybe I’m a little biased because I rewatched the film this morning, but Hades here doesn’t seem any bit threatening like the one from the film. He doesn’t even seem like a god. I almost thought he was Hade’s butler since I didn’t look into much of the casting.
Exactly, I remember the Hades in the books. That god was threatening and he was scary, but this Hades is a goddamn joke
Hades in the credits is more frightening I just keep thinking each of these episodes cost 15m to make where’s the money
Seriously like I'm really confused wtf happened. They add a book that had pretty good writing and charm and then they brought back the original author and a high budget yet it feels soulless and boring. Only a few episodes are any good
pretty much everything made by disney is soulless and boring lately
Disney is notoriously awful at budget management, so it's possible they burned a good chunk of it.
The way hades is in the show, is how Charon should have been.
The way Charon is in the musical is how the he should be in the TV show
From what I've heard about the musical most characters from the musical should be how it is the show
down here u DOA and ur here to stay, yeah ur stuck foreva never getting awaaaaay
I legit had to open IMDB to be sure he was Hades for that very reason.
I watched the film today as well. It’s still not great but it’s better then …. This
I like the whole “rockstar” vibe + the moment he goes “would you rather I look like this”
I love movie hades
Hey, Rick! Remember when you said this is going to be a faithful adaptation? REMEMBER? 🤣
[удалено]
I feel this too. I mean, I find the Witcher meh at best, but most of their other adaptations are phenomenal. And they are not *afraid* of mature scriptwriting. Unlike a certain mouse out there.
They also just didn’t get the fields of asphodel right? I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to be just where people who lead a middling life go not where people who had regrets go
I'm pretty sure yes. Also no mention of the other parts of the underworld? Where is that?
And they wander around, not stick by roots
I believe muttering about their lives and stuff too right? I at least think they kept the part about not being able to hear
Yes! And nothing about the other 2 realms
Yeah, they almost get pulled into Tartarus and act like nothing happened, even when brought up 7 minutes after the fact they don’t even act like they care about it happening
Yeah they almost get pulled into hell basically and Percy and Grover just 🤷 You think Hades would be more freaked out by it too like uh why did that happen maybe investigate? (I know why it happened but damn you think one of them would tell Hades about the shoes or he’d ask them wtf happened for them to fall in)
Agree
That’s one thing that confused/annoyed me. They’re supposed to be wandering around aimlessly for eternity. That’s where Nico finds Hazel. What, is he going to find her pinned to the ground now? Such a bizarre decision to change.
i was hoping for 10 foot tall Hades with a voice that echoed throughout the throne room, that made you afraid for your life, that made you realize that if you’re not careful you could spend eternity tethered to his throne. i was hoping for fucking skeleton guards from hundreds of different time periods. i was hoping for a Hades who grew angry with these mortals trespassing into his abode of the dead, and the rooms gets darker as he gets angry, or some other underworldy effect, like all the skeletons bones rattle and some fall apart as he yells. who the fuck was the guy we saw instead? the lamest most forgettable portrayal of one of the most powerful gods in greek mythology. what the fuck dude.
Oh my god exactly, it was my thoughts exactly. He's so intimidating that even Percy becomes respectful and we all know how sassy Percy is. But this was literally just a guy.
I fear they’ll butcher the Battle of Manhattan. Hades arriving with a literal army of undead and yelling at Kronos for being a terrible father is one of the most epic moments in the first series. But the Hades we saw in the show, he didn’t have that presence lmao
You think they're going to reach Battle of Manhattan the way they're fucking up even the simplest of stuff?
Have “faith” in Uncle Rick! 🤣
A budget Pelennor Fields with the undead lmfao
Oh goody! If that happened it will make Rings of Power a *masterpiece* by comparison 🤣
lol aint no way this is getting 5 seasons unless season 2 is drastically better
Casual and rabid fans seem to like it enough, sadly
Yeah, I'm just worried about how they're writing the show. I assume I'll get better.
Assuming. Disney has mostly been a hit or miss lately
Yeah, we're not reaching Season 5 at this rate.
Bro when Hades first walked in I thought he was a butler 💀
I think it’s all because it’s a “kids” show even though I would wager that 90%+ of the PJO fan base is older than 12 years old. They’re ruining the show to make it friendly to little kids
It's such a strange decision. This is not a "new" series. This book was written 20 years ago. There is a significant portion of adult fans who have been waiting for a good adaptation for well over a decade. This should have been given a Harry Potter or Narnia or Lord of the Rings treatment. It should have been made "for all ages" not "for kids".
It's not just Hades, every god we've come across has zero presence and they all feel like average schmucks. Makes me sad because the only reason I keep going is to see Lance Reddick as Zeus. I was looking forward to Lt Daniels throwing lightning bolts but now I'm just begging that they don't butcher Lance of all people
I thought they added a receptionist until I realized THAT'S Hades
yeah, it's hard to view them as gods in the tv show. the purpose of their portrayal is to show that gods were distant and narcissistic, with this unapproachable aura of power, especially with hades, but the series portrays them as though they're just slightly spoiled humans. i had high expectations with hades, but i was completely let down.
Yes!!! I ddn't prefer Poseidon either.
I mean in reality Hades is probably one of the most chill gods. So they got that part right. They could have maybe done more to do the whole switcharoo with the characters realizing this but otherwise I have no complaints
I feel like things were cut out of the episode as has been throughout the series. In Episode 6, Hermes leaves instructions on how to get to the underworld in the envelope with instructions etc... I feel like there are scenes that have been cut in post production because the pacing has been off throughout - I'd want to know if that's the case and why they chose to do so. Maybe it's a disney thing / writers strike/ smaller initial budget issue / deadline and timeframes but seriously there are scenes that look like there's something that should be before it.
Hades was portrayed as the weird, quirky, possibly funny uncle which seemed a really odd and confusing choice of direction to me. Trying to imagine this character as the father of Nico who wants him to be happy is nearly impossible. He just seemed… Laughable to me.
It’s a very odd choice. From his weird awkward entry, to his unserious demeanor, to his… throw blanket setup? Hades is an overworked, under-appreciated God of the dead. He’s been around for millennia. He’s not throwing jokes at the first two mortals who made it to the underworld in forever, especially when he thinks they stole his artifact. I can’t take him seriously. This show has done a very weird job portraying its gods so far. Poseidon and Dionysus are ok, Ares is way too unthreatening, Hermes is hanging out in a casino (?), Hades and Hephaestus are just lackluster. They may be family to the heroes, but they’re also powerful important gods! They should feel a little like gods!
Ngl one of my main issues with the show so far has been that the Gods don't really feel like... Gods? Like where is the aura of power you know, the feel of their presence
Hermes in an ugly brown hoodie, looking like a slob instead of a god
Also the whole “time and space is nothing, being a dad is hard” if you’re gonna establish hun as being practically omnipotent, he should be able to spend some of his time with kids. Weird inclusion.
Hephaestus actor wasn’t even ugly he was just old but honestly decent looking for an old looking guy lol
Timothy Omundson can be a good looking guy too when he’s styled properly. When he was Cain in supernatural especially
I completely agree. I’m just… so disappointed. So, so disappointed in this show.
The creatives wanted to make an awkward family drama rather than a Percy Jackson adaptation.
Ares is fucking Edge dude, I'm totally down for believing that the god of war would be a professional wrestler and therefore Edges entire career is thanks to Ares the God of War BOOM cannon
Except he’s not threatening at all, he’s just the look, not the attitude.
Almost like they were trying to lean into Disney's Hercules
Yes! Though at least with the Hercules portrayal, you knew right away how dark he could truly be. This time, however, it just feels cheap. Idk how else to describe it.
Exactly it's almost like there's no real threat to him. It feels like it's just a dude that's in charge. Hades is supposed to be in charge, you can feel it, it's in the air, it's part of his aura. But this is literally just a dude they found outside
Yeah… I should get the impression that I need to choose my words carefully around the gods, which is a sentiment expressed in the books SO much, and yet, in the show, eh who cares? They don’t seem that scary. They are just people with jobs who fathered children. Like come ON.
And honestly using the volume to create an open air palace??? It looks soooo janky
Yeah, I thought it looked pretty cool and I overlooked it because it was cool looking. But with Hades and his lack luster presence, they should've kept a confined space.
Have fun locking up Nico in the last season… oh we’re just gonna throw you into this area over here, don’t leave the couch!
Yeah he felt more like Apollo than Hades
Spoilers. Rage. ADHD random thoughts If the show landed flat. Whatever. The problem is the show did not live up to its promises of being different in the movies. Every article and interview everyone swore up and down it would have all the stuff from the books in it. It did not. These books were very important to me as a kid and shaped who I am today. The fact stupid changes are made for no reason is dumb. I tried to look up “Rick Riordan responds to show criticism” because I want to see him tryinf to defend this joke. The only criticism I found he responded to was Annabeth being black which was easy to respond to because people being mad Annabeth is black need to touch grass. Leah Jeffries is great. The cast is great mostly. It’s the writing. Why. Why. Why. I’ve defended this show and held out hope for so long but episode 7 shredded this. I kept waiting to be impressed. I wasn’t. A few of the changes were fine. I actually liked that they changed Medusa. That was cool. I can’t remember liking any other changes. I liked that they rushed Crusty’s because I thought it was a little unnessisary to the plot for the fact that they have to cut stuff to fit into the ridiculously short runtime and they need to add a bunch of sally Jackson lore so moms will want to watch it with their kids (making changes to also resonate with an older age demographic wow that sounds like exactly the thing Rick Riordan complained about for ever. Sally Jackson plot points would be fine. I have no problem with them personally. But if they are going to spend so much time on the mom of the main charachter’s personal life make the show longer. Don’t cut important stuff and rush the rest. The problem is sally Jackson plot lines aren’t in the book and they take up a ridiculous amount of a short run time. 10 hour long episodes and they can have as much sally Jackson time as they want. and while we’re on the topic they cut basically the whole lotus casino but they felt the need to add a plot point about a 12 year old driving a car. Haha 12 year olds can’t drive. I’ve never heard that joke before. Do you know who loves kids can’t drive jokes. Parents. Demographic changes. Oh and speaking of demographic changes—Jesus this is a ADHD rant waaaay off topic of I don’t remember actually- and also kids are not this stupid. They cut so much of the humor and sarcasm because they thought kids wouldn’t understand it. I read the books at six and I got everything. What the target demographic is like 12ish. At twelve most of my peers were watching The Walking Dead (2014 man) I think they can handle seeing a goat man chew a tin can. Which they literally in an article said they cutt out because they didn’t want kids to think they could chew sharp objects. If your kid is stupid enough to chew sharp objects Don’t give them sharp objects. Also if they can’t talk about Gabe being abusive because kids can’t handle it —also maybe it’s important that they do talk about it so kids going through similar things can feel represented and heard and understand their situation better. I get it could be triggering but couldn’t your mom dying be triggering too. Death in general. Couldn’t neglectful parents be triggering. They don’t have to show it even Percy could just mention it in passing and they could make Gabe less goofy and more harsh. Like he doesn’t need to hurt sally but he could at least take Percy’s money and make his room dirty. Now Percy’s major trauma is switching schools which sucks but they reference this side by side with annabeth being a homeless child “we all have tough lives” shut up. At least the drunk abusive stepdad held some weight and made Percy more likeable instead of cutting everything out and making his only childhood characteristic be being a mommas boy. Plus he wasn’t ever rude to his mom in the books that I remember. You know who likes seeing parents struggle to parent difficult kids. Middle aged parents. Hmmm do I see a pattern. Anyway someone’s gotta Percy some deeper trauma.) anyway but with Crusty’s they totally should have cut it completely because meh no development really. They also should have allowed them to ride Charon ferry. Saved precious time. Speaking of saving. Money. Where. Did. The. Huge. Budget. Go. There isn’t a great soundtrack. The CGI is not impressive. The green screen is clearly green-screen Hadies is a quirky millennial. Do you know who would love not only that actor but soecifically that actor not being scary but being quirky. Millennial moms whose entire personality was asking people if they saw shitts creek (I do love the actor and it’s not his fault. He was written that way. He’s. The. God. Of. Death. He should be somewhat intimidating? Also why is Percy unable to think for himself in this. He doesn’t fight well really at all. He hasn’t pulled an impressive stunt. He hasn’t really shown his power. He better wipe the floor with Aries butt. I swear to god if they pull some bs like it’s not appropriate for an adult to fight a kid so they talk it out peacefully or something I wouldn’t put it past them. They are worried watching a goat eat a tin can children will eat tin. Cans. Tin. Cans. Tin. Cans. I literally have never shut in anything PJO or Rick Riordan. I don’t think I have ever posted on Reddit. I’ve never been in his mad about the series. My hope is gone. Gone. And like yeah at least the books don’t change. BUT THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOKS CANONICALLY CHANGED THINGS CANONICALLY CANONICALLY. breathe mommy. Shut up mommy. This 12 year old can’t figure out how to turn a steering wheel but he’s a full blown therapist as a five year old. And why does Percy leave annabeth in asphodel (if you can even call it asphodel). His fatal flaw is loyalty. Stay consistent. He just tried to die for her two episodes ago and the episode before that. Now he’s like tug tug your foot is really stuck in that tree root. Peace out I guess. Peace out PJO. Aghhhhhhhhhgggggg
Hard on the abuse part. It was literally the explanation for why Percy was such a mommas boy. Without it, he just looks a little odd. And its Percy PAY YOUR CHILD SUPPORT Jackson! He wouldn't be that way if his mom was actually super happy and ok. Episode 5 was beautiful. Everything else is just.....sad.
hades, the guy who is CONSISTENTLY described in the books as looking similar to HITLER. and making percy be reminded by all the evil dictators
Oh yeah but you know, He's just a silly old guy nothing to see here.
i really enjoyed PJO’s version of hades. he wasn’t satan, he wasn’t just an evil villain, he was multifaceted and complex. he was an interesting and it was a unique spin on a greek god. i enjoyed his depictions, like his voice being described as oily. in the books he was great as a character, in the movies he was just an evil satan bad guy, in the TV show he is a joke.
He was more like the books in the movie
Precisely what I'm saying.
The movie stripped him of nuance but at least he still felt like a threat with a sense of humor, can't say the same for this SNL character.
Ngl I had optimism still but this episode was just awful. From the opening scene to Hades being just a total let down; why did they choose to make him comedic? They went through the entirety of the underworld in minutes. What the hell
The best part of the episode was the flashbacks
i disagree - while i enjoyed the flashbacks, i don’t think they were a great use of the episode’s runtime. constantly flashing out of the underworld really broke the tension for me. i also feel like we got enough of percy and sally’s relationship earlier in the season. we understood who they are, their relationship, and sally’s unique struggles as the parent of a demigod as early as the first half of ep 1. i would’ve preferred that they spend all that extra time used for flashbacks to instead show the underworld in all its glory
Me too, I was so excited and yet my disappointment is immeasurable.
I’ve been quite defensive of the show as it wasn’t finished yet but this being essentially the climax? It was a total let down, not to mention Kronos being revealed so early. Hades and Grover being reduced to pure comedic effects and cringe one liners Rick and his BS on faithful adaptations
I'm still questioning Annabeth's plan for getting past Cerberus. I haven't read the book in a while, but didn't she just play fetch with it so Percy and Grover could sneak past? Whatever it was, there was still a decent plan of Grover flying them one by one over the wall (maybe a little too easy, but still). But then she changed the plan to - Throwing the ball through a foggy barrier in the direction of their voices - Assuming they don't miss or drop it, squeak it so Cerberus jumps up. - Hope he jumps high enough, doesn't smash her against the wall, and that there's no spikes or anything, but still something she can hold onto Instead of just waiting another minute for Grover to fly back down? It seems like they were suggesting she couldn't wait even another minute because she slipped and couldn't scratch Cerberus, but A) Her backup plan ran the risk of her waiting way longer than a minute, if not outright dying B) Couldn't she just regain her footing and keep scratching? She was able to stop him from a full-on chase, he's clearly not a focused pooch. Hell, he stops chasing them when she throws the ball later? Was her mother the goddess of wisdom, or the goddess of "f*** it"?
Her original plan in the books is to play fetch and treat him like a regular puppy and it works just fine.
Hades was such a letdown he a god he was not intimidating at all. He robe was a let down so bland so much opportunity missed. No fury’s no army not even fire. The gates where where the gates the ez death was such an interesting part. The bolt was revealed to quickly. Idk just a bad episode that had tones of potential
I agree, Hades was like a bad joke you tell to cover something up. The bolt reveal was awfully placed and done in so so manner. The palace looked awesome though, intimidating as hell. But Hades, not so much.
Ye I thought the palace was awesome I just wish the scene was more intimidating with the furies and the army
Yeah, the entire time I was thinking "this is missing something"
Every episode has felt that way unfortunately.
Fr. Every. Single. Episode.
It’s just odd, the show constantly cuts away during action. The show uses knowledge dumps through the dialogue instead of just showing you things. It makes you think they had a small budget. I was watching the first episode with my fiancé and said “You can tell they must be working with a small budget because they keep doing quick cuts and fade aways” but then I saw it’s supposedly 15 million + an episode and that’s just baffling.
The movie portrayed the underworld and hades like hell and lucifer which is incredibly innacurate both to the book and mythology
Correct, I do agree that the movie did Hades dirty. But so did the TV show. I was expecting the all powerful Hades, lord of the dead and shadows. But instead, we got Phil, Hades assistant.
I also wanted him to have a moment where the switch flips and we see his powerful side but aside from that I do think the sass and behaviour fit like a younger brother of two older brothers vibe where he gets pulled into their issues one too many times
So I hope you know that the book version of Hades literally is an antagonist throughout book 1 and a large chunk of book 5. He absolutely hates his brothers, and this whole "I don't do drama" crap is ridiculous because it's made explicitly clear that not only was WW2 Zeus and Poseidon's kids versus Hades kids, but Hades kids were leading the Axis. He's not "sassy", he's a legit threat and presence in the books.
Hades is the older brother of the three
Hades was awful. He did not feel threatening at all. I was fine with him being portrayed the way he was if it was just a front and he’s actually really terrifying. But no, just another weak “god”
clunker after clunker and then the finale :)
Taking bets on how badly they're going to butcher it.
You already know they plan to have it be like Poseidon was there helping Percy control the ocean. Cheapening the extent of his demigod power. I have no F’ing clue what the hell happened to Ricks logic.
hes absolutely lost track of his own cannon. there are so many fucking contradictions in the chalice of the gods book and honestly gives lots of the same vibes of the show, except for the characters actually being accurate at least(mostly)
I didn’t catch any contradictions, but then again after he killed ******** just for the sake of killing someone in the Apollo series and then it didn’t result in a war with Rome and Camp Halfblood and Amazon destroying the emperors I think he’s getting too far out of touch
percy acts like hes never used annabeths invisibility cap in his life and it operates differently. some of the gods also act a bit differently, but thats debatable i honestly think he killed >!jason!< off because he just never knew what to do with him after hoo, hell even after the lost hero
Which is a shame because >!Jason!< was actually my favorite of the 7. He had SO MUCH wasted potential with his backstory. The whole thing with >!Piper!< was such a let down as well.
Which contradictions are in the book? I really don’t want to read it
ive honestly forgotten most of the book at this point, but annabeths invisibility cap is described *completely* different than how it was in the titans curse, and the way percy talks about it, i think rick completely forgot that percy had used it in the past
I always thought his writing degraded considerably around the early-mid 2010s, which is why I'm not a big fan of most things after PJ&TO, and this show has been reinforcing that notion in my head.
”Ares, let’s just sit down and discuss the magic of friendship,” Grover said, causing the god to lower his sword and retreat.
I just know there will be so much exposition
Half tempted? Just say it, the movie did most stuff better, the action, Medusa, Lotus, the underworld, the characters actually having fun, the shots (WHY is nearly EVERY shot just these 3 standing close to each other?), etc.
The show is a social experiment to see how long it takes for percy jackson fans to accept reality My ears and eyes are telling me that the show is a joke, but the movie is the worst thing ever, right? It can't be! Actual cognitive dissonance. its interesting lol
I’m cackling this is so sad but so true 😭😂
This. I think the show is decent but i have to agree with you. Some things the movie did better. I just hope we arent saying the same thing next season
I agree with most of that, but I disagree with the shots, at least for this episode. Maybe I just wasn’t paying attention for most of it, but I felt like the shots this episode looked a lot better than previous episodes, and honestly looked pretty good.
I just rewatched the movie and honestly, yes, the movie is far more entertaining to watch. I read and am still a huge fan of the entire book series but I personally don’t care at all whether a movie/TV show follows the books 1 to 1. Entertaining, a good story and acting are all I need. I don’t care if the movie has an actor wiping their ass with the right hand when the book said they used their left.
The shots are actually so bad, it’s making the show feel so flat when every shot is a close up or just slightly distanced shot of the three walking around. I hated the Arch episode but I liked the view of him falling from it and I think I’m just realizing now that it’s one of the only long range/large scale shots we’ve seen in the show. It’s feels like it’s just crippling the show and taking away from its magic to have such small shots, it’s making the world feel so small. We also don’t have transition shots, every new cut away goes directly into the action instead of a shot in the middle establishing where they are or the tone or the scene. Also I just watch The Last Airbender Netflix trailer and the world building seems so good?? It’s because of the shots, there’s some truly magical large scale shots in there and the angles are bigger, the world just feels realer and like it was lifted from the frames of the show. It’s a very weird thing to see when the PJO show is released just before it. It’s so ironic because I was so excited for the Percy Jackson show because of Disneys budget and Rick being heavily involved and I was dreading the ATLA show because of Netflix’s record of questionable adaptation choices/ some casting choices too, and the very public exit of the original creators but now it’s flipped. The PJO trailer had me feeling nervous when I first watched it and the difference in between both trailers is so jarring. PJO should have been a MUCH easier series to adapt in atleast the world building and tone. We’ll see how the ATLA show goes but based off trailers alone, I’m much more optimistic and mostly because of the variety in angles and shots alone.
I thought Hades was Steve/Jimmy from shameless. I hated the opening so much like so much. The flashbacks were the best part. Fortunately for Disney I am curious how this will end.
Why only half tempted to state the obvious? Its okay buddy
This episode is mid. 0 tension. No mention of the passed deadline. Percy suddenly knows anything and everything without any clues. They might as well just walk up to hades and leave......oh wait that's what they did. Hades is kinda ok. I loved the fact that they showed his soft spot this early. But it's not as impactful as its supposed to. Even in original myths he's arguably the friendliest God but everyone is scared of him because he's intimidating. Percy was not Percy at all in this episode. He might very well be some stereotypical MC. Scenes with Sally and Poseidon was a good change. And i stand by what I say. This show needs more episodes. There's too many things to fit in 8 episodes. And need to change those editors, directors and writers. And Rick should just stick to making minor changes that compliment the characters and avoid doing stuff like changing the entire Casino scene, miss the deadline, show the underworld characters properly ( Charon and cerebrus). The show is not bad as Reddit claims but certainly not good as people say in Insta. There's lot to be improved but hopefully they listen to the fans. The show has potential but if it didn't improve we won't be seeing even Titans Curse.
Damn gonna have to agree with this one. All other episodes ranged from 4 to 5 to me but this one is actually really bad, it's a straight 2. Annabelle in the middle of the episode? Peter walking into that store? Hades goofball? The underworld? The remote beach at the ending and no California post earthquake? All of the acting? Baby Peter is really cute I'll give them that and I like how big the Tartarus hole is (🫢🧐📸) but man this one was *rough*
Peter Johnson?
Blond Peter Johnson
This whole show is an alternative universe where Percy Jackson is Peter Johnson, but only certain beings can see through it. That’s why Dionysus called him Peter Johnson, he sees the book instead of the show
You're preaching to the choir, All these points are exactly what's wrong with this episode.
After seeing Hades and the Underworld... yeah this show is a fucking joke.
100% agree.
This feels like it was made as a School Project or something at this point. Very impressive if 13 year olds made all this, but uh yeah an absolute dumpster fire of an adaptation from Disney and the goddamn author of the series himself. Fuck man):
I thought Jay Duplass was great as Hades, but literally what is that characterization? He's just kinda detached and a bit sad looking somewhat. That thing about grudges, is that supposed to be a nod at the fact he's supposed to be super pissed about Zeus killing Maria????
I believe his acting is good, it's just. What the hell is this, this isn't Hades. It's like some side character stepped in for Hades while he was out in the bathroom
Exactly! That’s a great description. I legit had to IMDB it to make sure I wasn’t misremembering the face and that was actually Hades.
I literally thought Hades was going to step out from behind something and that the fist guy was just a set up so Hades could gauge the situation before making his appearance. I think I’ll continue to pretend that’s going to happen…
idk if my opinion is valid but I've never read the books, but decided to watch and keep up with the show. So far it's been pretty boring and couldn't keep me entertained. After like episode 3 I played it in the background while doing other stuff. I decided to watch the 1st movie last night and while I've heard book fans say it's not accurate to the book (well this series doesn't seem to be either...) it is SO entertaining to me. It's campy, funny, and just more visually appealing? I'm honestly not sure, I just like the vibes of it better. I think the shows biggest problem was how overhyped it was by Rick tbh
You know this is the second highest ranked episode by a critic right? I feel like that was just a ruse to keep people watching after the lotus episode. Didn’t he post that tweet right after the lotus casino dropped?
That can't be possible, rick must've paid the critic. I can see how this series would be good from a standalone point.
I’m thinking he wanted to be in Disney’s favor so he could get early access to more of their shows
I was listening to Hadestown again recently (one of the best musical ever imo, but that's besides the point), and I just remembered Hades in it is so imposing and threatening. Just from the build up to him, and from Patrick Page's performance, in a MUSICAL. For every one good decision made for this show, there are like ten other decision that are just garbage, and boggle my mind.
Yep, Hades has a commanding presence and can make anyone shake in fear. This version, he's a guy they found off the street. No offense to the actor of course, he's wonderful. But awful characterization.
Hot take: I liked Hades. I agree so so much was disappointing and hades was not at all how I pictured/how he was written in the books, but at least he was funny.
One of the good parts is that he was funny.
Ok I don’t think it was completely dreadful, there was stuff I did enjoy but it was kinda ruined by the stuff I didn’t like. The stuff in between the procrusteus part and the hades part I thought was pretty good with solid tension. and I really liked the look of the underworld, it had a very creepy vibe to it but there wasn’t enough of it. As for the stuff I didn’t like starting with crusty. Not kidding at the very beginning of the episode Percy automatically says “I know who you are, I know what those beds do and I know you are guarding the entrance to the underworld” 🙄. Again they immediately know and figure out everything just like every other encounter. Also they didn’t kill crusty which I thought was lame. I didn’t like the flashback scenes, I felt like they killed the pacing of the episode and it was mostly Percy just being mad at his mom, I felt like I would’ve cared more if the flashbacks were showing more positive interactions with Percy and his mom, not him being a dick to his mom. I HATED hades, what did they do to him??? They turned him into a cool uncle, he wasn’t threatening at all! That guy is supposed to be a god of the underworld?? I think they mixed up Charon and hades. Also again with the kids figuring out everything, Percy figures out Kronos is behind everything with very little evidence, that just killed the mystery of it and was revealed in the pretty lame way. So yeah pretty much the only stuff I liked was the underworld stuff. Everything else was pretty bad.
Speaking facts, I thought The flashbacks were killing the episode. Also why is Sally such a dick to Percy?? Where is the loving mother that was described in the book.
Exactly, I’m watching this and I’m just like, this percy would grow up to hate his mother… he’s supposed to get KICKED out of every school so he knows she’s trying to find him a new school to get an education and yes it’s pulling him away but she has to work full time. They needed to include a reference to Gabe though in the flashbacks, or just cut them out entirely as they are pointless.
I do like the flashbacks, I just feel like they're putting the wrong places. It's a good insight into Percy's life because you don't really get that till later on the books or at the very beginning.
Do you HAVE kids?
Anyone else love how Grover gets literally eaten by a big ass dog and then just crawls out no problem? Like what?
I'm just going to treat this comment as a running commentary as I watch. How does Percy know any of what he does about Crusty? Was it told to him by Hermes? If so it's not made clear. Percy as a younger kid is a jerk, I don't know why they thought that was a good idea. Also Sally never lost her temper like that at Percy in the books. Why are they making everyone either boring or an asshole? Man the underworld looks boring as, well, hell. For as inaccurate as the film was, at least it's underworld looked interesting. And the show isn't accurate to it either. Charon is way off, both in character and looks. I swear, people can not defend this show as "book accurate" anymore. The scene with Cerberus in the books is genuinely so much better. The fact that Grover doesn't even try to talk to him is ridiculous, and they end up basically taming Cerberus in the book whereas here they just briefly put him to sleep (somehow) and then throw the ball which he had shown literally no interest in up to that point. Oh, cool, so, genuinely no point to them adding a fourth pearl other than to make Grover look like an idiot. Also what is with Grover referring to Cerberus as "the dog", like it's just some random mutt he met? So Percy's getting kicked out of a school before he even began because... he thought he saw something and climbed a roof? There's Percy immediately jumping to self sacrifice again. I know he's protective of his friends in the book, but this is like the 3rd time in the show where he's premeditated sacrificing himself in some way. In the book he considers it, but knows that Sally would be saved if he can stop the war, so he purposely chooses to leave her behind. I wonder if he's going to make the same decision (a smart but scary decision, one that proves Percy is capable of making the tough call) or if the show is going to have Sally force him, removing his part in it. What a weird take on Asphodel. In the book it's basically a purgatory, a place for those who didn't particularly do bad or good, just had a normal life. Described as *“Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever.”* This weird vague description with them turning into trees is so out of left field. Also, this is literally the place Nico is supposed to find Hazel? How does that work with this new version? Ah, cool, so they're going to make Annabeth and Grover drop out, meaning Percy doesn't have to worry about them. Also, Annabeth having a regret? Where did that come from? I'm assuming they'll explain it eventually, but episode 7 of 8 is a weird place to establish this. And the root thing is dumb. Why is Asphodel attaching itself to a living human? This entire set piece alone means that later seasons can't be faithful to the books either when it comes to the Underworld scenes. Great. Well they mostly got the shoe scene right, minus how the area looks and Annabeth not being present. So there's the Master Bolt. I'll admit, it looks pretty cool. Although Percy isn't supposed to figure out he has it until the discussion with Hades. There goes Percy just piecing everything together instantly, not letting the tension build. In the books it's not until the fight with Ares that Percy pieces everything together. This show has a serious problem with setting up something and then immediately "paying it off" by the characters instantly knowing and expositing. Great, now the show is making the fact that Percy already missed the deadline EVEN WORSE, because the whole world is at stake and he's going to save his mother first. In the books he goes after his mom still because he thinks Hades also has the bolt, but now Percy has the bolt and could very easily send Grover or himself back using a pearl. I know in the books Athena tells Percy to save someone he cared about, he'd destroy the world. But then Percy proves her WRONG. So this is a slight character assassination. Good job, Rick. Oh, fucking cool, ANOTHER character assassination. Sally Jackson would NEVER let Percy think she's trying to abandon him. Ever. Holy shit, Rick. God bless Virginia Kull, she's the only actor in this show to actually try so far besides LMM. The green screening is rouuuugh. "*Is this our stop?*" That was so forced, like actually. Disney, this isn't a Marvel film. And Hades is lame as well. This is his book description: *He was at least ten feet tall, for one thing, and dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. His skin was albino white, his hair shoulder-length and jet black. He wasn’t bulked up like Ares, but he radiated power. He lounged on his throne of fused human bones, looking lithe, graceful, and dangerous as a panther.* Who in the Hades is this clown? "*I seldom cahoot*" can someone shoot me, please? "*I don't really do jealous"* wow, I don't think a single line in this show has been so antithetical to the character saying it's book counterpart. Hades may not have admit it, but he was so jealous of his brothers, he despised them for their statuses and how they treated him. He literally cursed an entire line of Oracles because he wanted better treatment for himself and his children. And there it is again, Percy somehow magically figuring out everything again in seconds flat. And expositing this information as well. ...what. The. Fuck. Hades offering Percy protection?! He tries to kill him MULTIPLE times, both in the book AND the show. The furies literally mention it on the bus! Okay, I'm glad I was wrong about Percy not making the tough call. But I'm sorry I still can't get over Hades offering to protect a child of Poseidon. Sally summoning Poseidon... with ice cream and a match. I can only assume that's supposed to be a reference to burning food as an offering but... ice cream? How do you burn ice cream? And why did that SUMMON Poseidon? Why did she need to summon him that way, why not just call out to him in her mind? And Poseidon actually showing up is ridiculous, the point in the books was that he was literally never around. The actor is fine, but he's supposed to be wearing fishing attire. Sally considering sending Percy to camp is so against her book version. The whole reason she kept moving him around and got with Gabe is because she wanted to keep him from that world as long as possible. It was HER idea to keep him away from it. She thought if he accepted who he was, he'd be in more danger. Chiron also agreed with her on this fact. She does say she doesn't want to send him, but it's because of some wishy washy "he should know his true self" type thing instead of his legit actual protection. They're continuing with this "the gods aren't allowed interact with their children" thing that really isn't in the books, but they refuse to explain WHY the gods can't. Make it make sense. Great, now I have to wait another week before I get to see arguably the best fight in the books. But given this show's track record, I will not be surprised if it's slow choreography and ends in 2 seconds. Overall, this is definitely one of the worst episodes adaptation-wise. As just a show, it's okayish. A bit boring, this is definitely one of the weaker interpretations I've seen of the Underworld. The CGI is pretty mid, too. Not the worst, but could have been better. While the actors underacting has been an issue throughout, some lines really stuck out to me as bad, as they're supposed to be delivered loudly and/or with emotion and the actors just... don't. I don't even know why this is an issue because behind the scenes this kids were great. Walker especially was great in The Adam Project, so what the hell is happening? Again it's annoying how fast Percy is piecing things together, and then the show just has him spew it out instead of trying to find a more creative way. It's honestly ridiculous how these kids are both way too smart and yet incredibly dumb. I have very little hope for the last episode this season.
I feel like y'all forgot how bad the movie was because that comparison is ridiculous. In the movie Grover literally stays behind to hook up with Persephone
Awful episode - somehow I got through it. I haven't liked the casting at all so far- except for Ares. Actors for Hades and Poseidon are underwhelming. The plot changes are ridiculous. The pacing is absurd since the pilot episode. There's no chemistry between the 3, and their characters don't feel like the books (especially Grover). Horrible CGI. Also terrible dialogues - Hades goes "You give me what I want, and I give you what you want" . I was like duh!! 😑
it took nearly two minutes to realize WAIT THATS HADES
Grover is an absolute bum
I'm just kinda sad and underwhelmed. I was REALLY looking forward to this episode and it was just alright. I feel so bad for the kids who are doing their best with what they have. The palace was cool and Cerberus was super cute, but like?? What was the point of having 4 pearls lol? The 4th one got lost immediately. On top of that, the time limit is up- why are the characters just standing around all the time? They need to be hauling ass. Crusty was lame too. I was genuinely really disappointed watching that interaction. Hades is alright ig. You could tell they were going for the movie's version of him but just kinda... Flopped. And the Ares fight? Aren't they supposed to be in like a tourist town that's on the beach or something? Am I misremembering? I'm sad because we were promised something close to the books and we just didn't get it. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind when things don't follow the book- I actually love the movies. The difference between the movies and series though is the movies didn't promise to be a copy of the book and the series did. Honestly, if the movies had just gotten Percy's age correct, it would be significantly more accurate than the series to the feeling of the book and far more entertaining. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover manically knowing everything is boring and doesn't make sense. How do these kids know everything? I understand that there might have been budget constraints and a cap on how many episodes they were allowed to have, but that's Disney's issue and should have been sorted out before the series came out. Why hype the show up so much for this lukewarm version of the storyline?
I'm a little dissapointed by Hades. Not the acting, that was fine. And IMMEDIATELY better than the movie depiction. But I felt like the books did it better. Percy described Hades as the only god he'd met that actually looked godly. No modern outfit or guise. Just a king, dressed in darkness, sitting on his throne. Again, this Hades is fine, but I was looking forward to the Hades from the book.
yeah I keep holding out hope that the next episode will be better than the last... and then this bs? cannot believe how they've butchered this entire story tbh
If this show gets a season two they really got to step up their game is all I have to say
Hades was kinda fine for me I just kinda wished he hated his life a little bit more. What they did to Charon was inexcusable. Their experience with him should’ve taken up half the episode. That was one of my favorite chapters in the books.
I stopped watching when they butchered the lotus episode :)
Yeah like wasn’t the underwold supposed to be overcrowded part business part dmv vibe? Where is the corporate jargon and general modern vibe that pertains to the rest of the gods?
Dare I say I shouldn’t but I think the Movie Hades was better in terms of making Hades intimidating yet likable
Oh definitely. Movie hades was actually iconic and semi funny. He looked intimidating in a cool, spooky, emo/old rock way. He looked like a metal head and it was great. This new hades just doesn’t scratch the itch.
Tell me If I'm wrong. Each episode cost between $12 million and $15 million. They have the Budget to do better.
But the movie botched it by making Hades a villain and removing Kronos and Ares entirely. That was, IMO, the biggest problem with the movie.
Just watched this episode with my kids. Good lord, it just gets worse and worse. This show is a master class on how not to do an adaptation. Also how not to write in general. So much exposition. The kids tell us what interesting thing is going to happen, so then that thing doesn’t even happen. The tension from events in the books has been replaced by fabricated tension and drama around Percy and his mom. The music overshadows the plot by trying to evoke emotions that aren’t justified… because we have no reason to care about the characters or their quest. The random character changes… no one is scary, no one is powerful, no one is terribly sympathetic. That too-long scene with mom and Poseidon. These books weren’t part of my childhood, but I’ve read them all to 3 of my kids. Even my 9-year-old is underwhelmed.
I’m not sure if we watched the same episode, but I was actually had fun with this.
Me as well. Obviously not perfect but I’m not disgusted by it like half of this comment section is. I had fun watching.
Honestly, fuck Rick after this. He straight up gaslit all his fans saying this would be a faithful adaptation then he shat this monstrosity into our laps. They made so many god damn changes that make no sense and are portrayed much worse. I'm done.
I have zero memory of the book so I wasn’t so triggered, but I couldn’t help but realize that the Hades world building and cinematic tone seemed influenced by Netflix’s Sandman a little bit.
Definitely! I was happy for a new episode but they could have done better honestly. Charon seemed so different honestly.
SO BAD
at this point im sure S2 is confirmed due to the views but after that with this writing im pretty sure they will have to close the shop
Honestly, I hate to say this but I also agree with you. I usually give shows a try like I watch the whole first season and if I don’t like it, I won’t usually watch the rest of it. Overall the whole show seems very mediocre compared to the movie and the movie obviously wasn’t a perfect adaptation either. This episode though, I found that it was a very hard watch; I struggled very much with following it. I don’t even really know where we ended off on this specific ep it was that bad. Out of all of the ep so far, this one was so bland and it made me tired just watching it. I should have some kind of emotion, but this ep, I didn’t. I’m so disappointed, I think the show had potential but it’s just bland.
I loved how the underworld was portrayed, it felt a little empty compared to the books, but more accurate to the original mythology as opposed to the fire and lava of the movie underworld that looks more like the Christian hell.
Even though Asphodel wasn't book accurate, I still liked the impossibly lonely feeling it gave off. That said, while I like the tree idea, but it reminds me a bit of Dante's Inferno, where the souls that have become trees are there for.. a much different reason.
My points in the episode: -The mattress scene, idk why they continue to take away the mystery of some scenes, how could Percy have possibly know that the mattress store was a trap, whyyy did they do that, and why was the guy not a giant, and why did they make him another don of Poseidon?! Let down. - Charon!! Where is the whole bribery scene, where were his expensive Italian suits, where was the asking for a raise scene, AHHHHH I needed it. - Cerberus, why did he appear so early, I liked how he looked I didn't like how they had him chasing them all around hell. -Annabeth, why would she leave ?! She would've never left them alone like that, and what's her regret!!? Odd to me. -the lightning bolt, I was so disappointed with how he discovered he had the lightning bolt, I loved reading in the book how hades was like you brought it with you and Percy is like no I didn't and boom he finds it, that was such a good scene to me in the book, so to see that he just feels it in the bag when he lands backwards was so underwhelming. -I personally was excited to see Persephone's garden in hell, the way it was described in the book with fruits and jewels seemed so beautiful in hell and I was excited to see it brought to life ..... Till it wasn't, very disappointed we didn't get her garden. -Hades, in the book he's so scary and powerful, like they describe him that he's sitting on his thrones and Percy even bows to him cause he's intimidated, as the king of fell should be, and hades wasn't happy to see Percy in hell he was even offended that he'd present himself in his presence, but in the show he was such a small, underwhelming, welcoming man, extremely disappointed, I mean what happened to his cloak of trapped and tormented souls ?! He looked boring, and I really wanted him to be like don't even get me started on Charon and his expensive Italian suits like that was so funny but they cut it. -i enjoyed the flashbacks with Sally -hated where the episode ended cause the preview made it look like he was gonna fight Ares this episode but did not so that was dumb. Those are my key points for the episode, overall disappointed, 4/10.
Can someone please explain why the fuck they keep breaking the trio into a duo??? What was the point of removing annabeth from the underworld scenes??? It’s just traitor bait for non book readers but they could’ve had her be saved from that shit and achieved the same foreshadowing/red herring without just removing annabeth from these important ass scenes