PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: Episode 2.1

Name: PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: Episode 2.1
Item: PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: Episode 2.1
Author: Review

“A Book Adaptation Done Right”

Family Content: -2 Extreme caution for older teenagers and adults.

Entertainment Quality:

	None	Light	Moderate	Heavy
Language
Violence
Sex
Nudity

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What You Need To Know:

PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS is a live-action fantasy adventure series on Disney+ about demigod children saving the world. In the first episode of Season Two, the sea-born warrior Percy Jackson discovers that sea monsters have kidnapped his best friend. Meanwhile, Percy and his demigod friends unravel a conspiracy. Someone has stolen the Golden Fleece and crippled their training camp’s defense system.

The premiere episode of Season Two of PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS is an excellent adaptation of the second PERCY JACKSON book. The acting, pacing, and general writing quality are an improvement from the first season. However, PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS leans on a strong pagan worldview with some redemptive elements. The program’s setting is a world where Greek gods and monsters are a fact of life. Despite that, the heroic characters exhibit moral attributes, such as kindness and loyalty, to their best friends. However, Episode 1 of PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS: Season Two has mild fantasy violence, brief suggestive dialogue, and dark pagan elements of Greek mythology. MOVIEGUIDE® advises extreme caution for older children and teenagers.

Content:

(PaPa, C, B, FR, VV, S, M):

Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:

Strong pagan worldview with false theological concepts as well as Christian, redemptive, moral elements where a young boy vows to rescue his friend from hostile sea creatures, he exhibits kindness and loyalty to his demigod friends, a cyclops encounters discrimination from monsters and demigods alike, the hero’s mother is strong-willed and adopts a cyclops from a homeless shelter, the characters honor the tree dedicated to the deceased daughter of Zeus, and the characters go on a quest to rescue a coat of fur that can heal any wound;

Foul Language:

No foul language;

Violence:

Moderate fantasy violence but no blood or good, demigods take a ride in a high speed magical taxi cab, the heroes get into a sword fight with earth giants, the giants hurl fireballs at the heroes, a cyclops blocks an incoming fireball with his chest, characters get electrocuted and thrown across a forest, and a cyclops disintegrates into dust by getting an arrow to the chest;

Sex:

No onscreen sex, but three undead witches gossip on the awkward romantic tension between the hero and his female friend, and the God of Wine makes a sexual remark about Poseidon “not keeping his trident back”;

Nudity:

No nudity;

Alcohol Use:

The heroes briefly speak to Dionysius, the God of Wine, but the god does not consume any drinks in this episode;

Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:

No smoking or drugs; and,

Miscellaneous Immorality:

The hero and the daughter of Athena scold each other for keeping secrets within their letters, a boy poisons a magic tree with venom, a cyclops recounts how monsters and demigods alike treated him as a pitiful weakling, and the God of Wine teases a man for being cursed with not being able to eat anything for eternity.

More Detail:

This series is based on the popular children’s book series of the same name. Season Two adapts the second book, “Sea of Monsters.”

In Episode One, “I Play Dodgeball with Cannibals,” Percy Jackson has a nightmare in which monsters kidnap his satyr friend, Grover. When he tries to break the news to his friends, someone has sabotaged the magical barrier of Camp Half Blood. Monsters intend to destroy the camp for good. Meanwhile, Percy struggles to befriend Tyson, a homeless cyclops whom his family recently adopted.

With everything going wrong, will the young demigod be able to rescue his best friend?

The premiere episode of Season Two is an excellent adaptation of “Sea of Monsters.” The acting, pacing and general writing quality are an improvement from the first season. It’s shot well, the comedy is decent, and the chemistry between Percy and the other teen actors feels believable.

Will the rest of Season Two be able to hold this quality? It remains to be seen, but the show’s moral test of character can be accurately judged.

PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS leans on a strong pagan worldview with some redemptive elements. The show’s setting is a world where Greek gods and monsters are a fact of life. The characters attend a summer camp that trains human demigods in self-defense. The lead character, Percy, exhibits self-sacrifice, loyalty and a willingness to defend people from dangerous monsters. When the campers threaten to banish Tyson for being a cyclops monster, Percy swears that Tyson is an innocent boy. Lastly, the heroes show dedication to saving their friends despite grave danger.

However, Episode 1 of Season Two has numerous red flags.

This episode contains fantastic violence and some suggestive themes. A kraken captures a satyr, which he drags off to the sea. There is a “hyperspeed taxi” scene that is similar to the “Night Bus” scene in PRISONER OF AZKABAN. The heroes get into a sword fight with Laestrygonians, tall monsters that hurl fireballs from the ground. There is no blood or gore, but a monster receives an arrow to its chest and turns into dust. Later, the characters gossip about the awkward romance between Percy and Athena’s daughter. Lastly, the God of Wine makes a snide remark about Poseidon “not keeping his trident to himself.”

The Season Two Premiere of PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS leaves a great first impression. The directing, acting and cinematography are as strong as in the last season. The characters exhibit moral attributes, such as kindness and loyalty to their best friends. However, this episode has mild fantasy violence, some suggestive dialogue, and dark pagan elements of Greek mythology. MOVIEGUIDE® advises extreme caution for teenagers and adults.