fandom posts and opinions

I MADE ANOTHER ONE go take it rn i worked hard

Disclaimer! First of all, there are a lot more cons than pros here, and if you loved the show and don’t want to hear my criticism just keep scrolling. Second, I’m not someone to complain just because it isn’t exactly how it was in the book! I have quite a range of feelings about story changes. In regard to the ones I’ve listed as cons, i’m just irritated that they haven’t been able to match the book in frankly any capacity. I believe that if you’re making changes, it should be a) out of necessity, b) to improve upon the material, or c) taking positive creative license to try a new spin on an element from the source material. But the changes I’m complaining about, for the most part, haven’t met any of those requirements.

Pros:

Sets and Visuals

It was so magical seeing camp come to life!

The Underworld looks fantastic, the visuals are super cool, especially the Fields of Asphodel. That was a really cool spin on the books- the CGI was pretty good, and the concept there was really interesting.

Olympus was very cool looking too! It reminded me of Asgard.

Overall I Just Think There’s Lots of Potential!

Since the leads are fairly inexperienced (and kids), you can’t expect them to be incredible. They’re doing just fine, but I think they have a lot of potential, and I’m excited to see them grow over the course of the series!

Generally I still really like the casting and have high hopes for these actors, I just wish (for our sake and theirs) that they had better material to work with.

Plot Changes

This ones kind of a pro AND a con: Generally, I really like the flashbacks! They add a lot more depth to Sally, and her relationships with Percy and Poseidon. That being said, the episodes typically feel far too short to be adding material that wasn’t in the books. I thought it was fantastic in episode 7, but in other episodes it didn’t quite work when so much else was cut, or there were opportunities left untaken as a result.

I also liked that they included a few flashbacks with Luke in the finale- there was so much training and time at camp that didn’t fit into the first two episodes.

They got rid of the “names have power” stuff which is great (never made sense in the books).

They did a really nice job humanizing Medusa, but still creating conflict with her, and simultaneously setting up further issues with the gods.

I also agreed with their decision to move the fight from Santa Monica to Montauk, to save time.

Cons:

Dialogue and Writing

The dialogue is definitely less charming than in the books. It’s a huge part of what makes them fun, and the dialogue here is honestly pretty bland. The characters don’t totally feel like themselves, but it isn’t only the acting. Forcing the characters to be explaining stuff to each other nearly every time they have a conversation makes them a lot less personable.

Honestly, this series feels kind of elementary in comparison to the middle grade books. I’d imagine that, like the books, they were aiming to create something that could be enjoyed by young kids and adults alike. But I didn’t find it as successful as the book in this regard.

And the dialogue is consistently so surface level! Stiff, boring, and above all, CONSTANTLY telling over showing. This affects the likability of the characters, and the ability of the actors. Both parties are deterred by the info dumping, as they aren’t really given as many genuine lines or interactions as they should have.

Honestly, it kind of feels a bit like they gave some of Percy’s personality to Annabeth in parts of the show? I saw someone else point out that they’re kind of giving Annabeth the Hermione treatment (ie giving her some of the other characters good moments), which I kind of agree with. However, a lot of that was towards the beginning and middle of the season and has somewhat improved since.

I posted a whole rant earlier about the Lotus Casino episode, which I’ll just summarize: theres a consistent pattern in the show of having the characters figure out what’s going on immediately, removing the danger, and more importantly, not allowing the characters to make mistakes, which weakens both them and the plot. In addition, I didn’t like that they brought up May Castellan already, primarily because it was just another info dump, which (in my mind) gets lost amongst all the other info dumps and removes the poignancy from the reveal. Now, there’s absolutely time to fix the May Castellan situation and ensure that it still packs a punch later on, but for this season it wasn’t great. Go check out my last post if you’d like to hear the rest of my argument on that episode!

Some additional examples of the ‘not letting the characters experience danger’ thing: Procrustes (obviously), and Kronos- forget whether or not Percy should know who Kronos is, the biggest issue is that there’s very little evidence or buildup, so (again) there’s no tension or shock at the reveal. And finally, with Luke. I was so annoyed when Percy figured it out! I could’ve believe that they were doing it AGAIN. I still enjoyed that scene because Walker and Charlie were great, but that was disappointing for sure.

The thing with the pearls honestly amounted to nothing, and there was no reason for Annabeth to not be present in the underworld: that was just a tearjerker for the sake of being a tearjerker (manufactured drama).

Lowering the Stakes

I just wish they’d made it SLIGHTLY more mature- don’t get me wrong, it’s a kids show! I’m very well aware of that! But this feels a lot tamer than a lot of kids (PG) movies involving monsters and stuff.

Gabe was a real piece of shit in the books, but in the show they just kinda made him look lazy and turned him into comic relief. And I don’t believe in the argument that they had to make this change to benefit a younger audience- they didn’t really need to change anything there.

Throughout the majority of the season, I felt like they weren’t allowing the gods to be truly intimidating, or powerful. First with Ares, who wasn’t BAD but generally didn’t have that kind of dramatic presence that he had in the books. Again with Hades, who wasn’t shown as being REMOTELY intimidating, and perhaps the biggest offense of all- Zeus. Having the deadline pass with seemingly zero consequence or threat of consequence does absolutely nothing (and certainly doesn’t increase tension like I’m pretty sure Rick Riordan said was their reason for changing it). Up until the finale, viewers had very few reasons to fear the Gods. Even Dionysus and Hephaestus! In the books there’s a clear line- you can interact with them, but you DONT want to offend them. There’s a clear threat of power, and that just wasn’t remotely present for a while.

And again, I just want to clarify- this is an overall writing problem! It’s not that Ares, or any other one of the gods I just mentioned has a different personality than in the books, it’s that a show like this (KIDS OR NOT) should still be compelling, and part of that includes having real danger and clear stakes.

I would add that they did a much better job with this in the finale! Lance Reddick gave such an amazing performance, and truly made Zeus an intimidating figure. The fight on the beach with Ares was great as well. So I’m optimistic about this criticism moving into season 2, but I stand by the idea that this was an issue for the majority of the series.

Overall, it felt like they weren’t taking the serious parts seriously, AND they didn’t take the comedy as seriously either? So it isn’t as lighthearted OR as impactful as the books. It feels so much more bland and watered down by comparison.

Episodes Were Too Short

Everything just flowed really well in the books, here the pacing is off and the dialogue isn’t as natural (again, they’re forced to rely on a lot of telling instead of showing which takes away from genuine moments). Many character details and personality traits were cut for the sake of additional verbal explanation

As many others have pointed out, the fight scenes also feel pretty rushed, and haven’t quite conveyed the sense of urgency that they should. It all just lowers the stakes.

This Ones Kind of a Joke, but the Casting for Hephaestus

It’s mostly my book bias. This guy was NOT giving Hephaestus. Mainly because Hephaestus is the god of the forge, and I can’t picture this guy anywhere near one of those. He kind of looked like one of Santa’s elves, he’s giving tinkerer not GOD of the FORGE. This is also something they can absolutely fix/win me over in time lmao

Changes

I already mentioned most of the changes (good and bad) already, but there’s one more. I kind of wish they had kept Percy’s dream about Tartarus, especially given that they decided to have Percy figure out Kronos is behind it all earlier- it just would’ve clicked a little easier.

Finishing Thoughts

I don’t want to totally sound like a hater! I’m still enjoying the series, and I really hope it gets renewed for season 2! I was just disappointed in the weak writing. I hope that the writers will be able to recognize these flaws and improve for season 2.

I’ve seen a lot of Clone Wars and Rebels fans talking about how this show isn’t for anyone who hasn’t seen those shows, about how it must be totally confusing to us. As someone who didn’t watch either, I have to say that isn’t totally true. I’ve never been really confused while watching this show- I’ve just had questions. They do a good job explaining everything- the plot itself, and the characters and whatnot are not remotely confusing. Rather, I have questions about where these plots and characters fit into the greater Star Wars universe- where were they during the events of the prequels and originals? With a whole new set of characters who have supposedly played big roles in the overarching plot, it’s not confusing, just a little hard to place the timeline. Mostly because of lacking knowledge of those characters pasts or connections.

That being said, this show (while certainly not perfect) felt a bit like Star Wars rehab after the mess that was The Book of Boba Fett and a disappointing third season of The Mandalorian. Especially because Rosario Dawson is great! She fits the role perfectly, and she really made the series. This one definitely feels a lot more traditional Star Wars-y, which is fun. It’s entertaining to be back in the whole Jedi/Sith side of things, since we haven’t seen much of that in a lot of the other Star Wars shows. And it’s cool that, like in The Mandalorian, we’re getting to see lots of different worlds and corners of the galaxy.

These days with Disney, it’s hard to predict how the visual aspect of things are going to turn out- sets, makeup, costumes, cgi, etc. I’m relieved to see that this show has (generally) aired on the side of The Mandalorian as opposed to The Book of Boba Fett. However, one big issue I had was that Hera Syndulla’s makeup is pretty terrible. As in, it’s obviously makeup. Ahsoka’s makeup is pretty realistic, it’s smooth and actually looks like skin. Hera’s is totally fake looking, like cheap face paint, and her contacts are… a lot. Not to mention her makeup! Her eyeshadow in particular looks totally out of place. I understand that they were trying to stay true to the original, but I really think this is a makeup flaw as opposed to a character design flaw since (like I said) Ahsokas looks great. It might just be the color, and hey. I’m not a makeup artist. But it just looks… so… awful…

Unfortunately, I have to say Sabine isn’t really working for me: I don’t find Natasha Liu Bordizzo’s acting particularly believable. And another Hera issue- she doesn’t walk, talk, or act at all like a general. The only possible explanation I can think of is that there’s some detail about her character from one of the animated shows that I’m missing. But as someone with fresh eyes on these characters, she comes off as a little phony and is hard to take seriously. Between my issues with her and Sabine, it ends up being a pretty major detriment to my viewing experience given how much screen time they both have. On the contrary, Ray Stevenson has been wonderful, and makes a fascinating adversary/antihero. Ivanna Sakhno, who plays his padawan, has been great as well. Lars Mikkelsen killed it too- his character, being rather silly looking, requires a certain level of gravitas to be taken seriously, which he supplied with authenticity.

Unfortunately it wasn’t as good as the others. It’s less that it was bad or that I didn’t enjoy it, and more that it sort of failed in its duties as a finale. I really liked the finale, it wasn’t until I finished it that I was left like… that’s it?

Starting with the Pros: I’m glad they had the sense to end it here. This season has gotten hated on pretty hard so far, which makes sense, but isn’t quite deserved. Even though it wasn’t as good as it COULD’VE been, it was still good! In particular, Aimee, Eric, and Adam had wonderful and satisfying arcs which I found quite compelling and felt like a lovely send off to each of their characters. Maeve’s ending, despite being a point of controversy, was fitting. She had a difficult but moving season, and her destiny was always to be a writer. As disappointing as it is that she doesn’t end up with Otis, I thought the writers justified it quite well. It would’ve simply felt wrong for her to stay back in Moordale just for Otis. She was always going to get out.

This brings me to the Cons. I have to say, my biggest disappointment with this season has to be Otis himself. Being the lead character, I really wish they would’ve chosen a more personal storyline with more depth to it to send off his character. Instead, they had him acting like a child the whole season. He’s the primary character and yet he has the least interesting, least sympathetic, least moving storyline. It was all about his relationships with Maeve, Ruby, and Eric, and his competition with O. Nothing really about him. They didn’t give enough closure as to how his future looks- he’s no longer the school sex therapist, which is disappointing. He agreed to think about working with O, but that’s all, and that isn’t the most satisfying conclusion. They left him in a very nondescript place. Additionally, many former cast members weren’t in this season. As a result, I felt that there were a number of missed opportunities. My other big complaint is, predictably, the change in setting and new cast of characters. I really didn’t love the new school. I don’t think I need to elaborate on that too much, it was just kind of over the top in a way that felt misplaced and unrealistic. As for the new characters, most of them weren’t bad, they were just unnecessary. The one character I did have an issue with was O, who was a rather grating presence. Which I don’t think was something all that good for a finale. I didn’t find her character at all interesting or sympathetic. She was really annoying, and didn’t grow on me at all over the course of the season.

But for me, what it all comes down to (ie the correct/incorrect way to do a cameo) is whether or not it’s all about the celebrity. When cameos are more about watching a famous person than the actual character they play or the story they’re in, it’s distracting. It takes away from the material. A recent example of this? The Mandalorian. When Jack Black and Lizzo showed up, it was all about watching Jack Black and Lizzo. No hate to either of them, I’m a huge Jack Black fan, but it was distracting. It wasn’t necessary for the story, nor was it interesting, or impactful, or brief enough to be fun without taking too much away from the episode.

But this season of The Bear was a PERFECT example of how to do celebrity guest stars right. It was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. It’s always fun to see famous people pop up, but once you get over the initial burst of excitement, that’s when it can get dicey. But in this season, there was never an instance where I felt like I was simply watching a celebrity for the sake of watching a celebrity. Each role (from bigger ones like Jamie Lee Curtis as Donna, to single scene roles like Olivia Coleman’s brief appearance) had a part to play. Each character was interesting, well thought out, well fleshed out, and just to state the obvious, incredibly well acted. Every actor was given the chance to perform really wonderfully written material- something that benefits the story, impacts the other characters, and leaves a mark on the viewer beyond simply enjoying getting to see them. I’m still in awe of Episode 6. Every actor simply nailed it. Even John Mulaney, who’s character wasn’t 100% necessary to the story, and who didn’t have any intense acting to do. It still went without a hitch- his acting was believable, his character fit in perfectly, and he left a mark.

Fyi I’m sure many people have pointed this out before. Also this post is sort of piggybacking off of @childhoodtheme’s post of Jeremy Strong’s Vanity Fair interview.

Watching Succession right after Barry is just heartwrenching. They both deal with such intense themes about change. Each show deals with it differently. With Succession, it goes unsaid. You’re meant to watch the show and see for yourself. With Barry, it’s a very present question throughout the show. There are even moments where the characters put that question directly into words. But they end very similarly.

Starting with Succession- one of the general themes is that life is cyclical. Roman doesn’t recover. He doesn’t go to therapy, he doesn’t become a better person. He doesn’t change, he just accepts who he’s always been. In one of his culminating scenes, he simply says ‘We’re bullshit…we’re nothing.’ He, unlike his siblings, has come to terms with the reality of their situation instead of trying to change it. Shiv and Kendall’s arcs are cyclical in a different way. They do not change, and fail to recognize their situation, so they face the consequences instead. Instead of giving up, and getting out in the hopes of a freer life, Shiv does what she’s always done. She schemes, she manipulates, she ruins peoples lives and her own while she’s at it. She’s still striving for what she’s always wanted, but she’s dead inside. And Kendall? Just like Shiv, he ends up where he’s found himself so many times before. He’s alone. He’s failed AGAIN. After scheming and backstabbing and failing to learn and grow once more. His story ends the way we’ve all known it’s had to end, but the way he could never accept. After this long journey, they’re all right where they’ve started. Alone, bitter, and falling back into the same habits they’ve never been able to let go. And it’s devastating.

As stated before, Barry ends in a similar way. Like Roman, Fuches and Sally’s stories end in being honest with themselves and the people around them. Have they really changed? Not entirely. Are they happy? Not entirely. But they’re free- or as free as they can be. They’ll always be tortured by their situation, and by their character, but they’re out. They’re alive. In the same fashion, Barry and Noho Hank’s stories end in a way that reflects Shiv and Kendall’s. They’ve doomed themselves, by not only failing to change, but failing to accept the reality of their lives and what they’ve done.