'Percy Jackson And The Olympians' Episode 4 Spoiler-Free Review
Image Source: Cinemablend
Author Rick Riordan posted on his socials before this week’s episode of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: “Can’t wait for you to see the Saint Louis Arch scene at long last. Plus, ‘I Plunge to my Death’ sounds like an auspicious way to start the year, right?” That is the episode (and book chapter) title for episode 4. Rick was right, it certainly was an auspicious way to start the year with quite an exciting episode.
“I Plunge to My Death” continues to follow the adventures of Percy Jackson (Walter Scobell), Annabeth Chase (Leah Sava Jeffries), and Grover Underwood (Aryan Simhadri) as they travel across the country to Los Angeles and the Underworld to uncover Zeus’ Master Bolt before the Solstice. As usual, they are plagued with monster attacks, and this episode showcases one of the most pivotal monster attacks in the story as it helps push Percy to realize even more exactly who he is and what he can do.
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As usual, the actors expertly help bring you into the story with their amazing performances, capturing the big three’s personalities and fears. One of the things that this series continues to do well is keep up the momentum with outward fantastical collisions and danger while also showcasing the quieter moments of character development and conversations. One of the excellent things this show is doing, that complements the books and the story, is showing more of the inner thoughts and struggles of all of the characters. Since the books are written in first person, in Percy’s voice, we don’t get as much from Annabeth or Grover. In this episode, we see a lot more of Annabeth and who she is in this story, that we don’t get to see as much in the books. We learn more about her background and her relationship with her mom, the goddess Athena.
Rick Riordan has said that he wanted to show more of Athena in this first story vs. what we saw in the books. While we have yet to be introduced to Athena, she is still very much a part of the story, shaping Annabeth and what the quest does indirectly, especially in this episode. We get to see even more of how the gods work, especially concerning their children and the monsters, which adds a depth to the story that the books didn’t have as much, especially in the earlier stories. And it isn’t always a good thing.
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One of the highlights of this particular episode is seeing Percy become even more like the Percy that book fans know and love. We get to see his selflessness, his protectiveness for his friends, and his slow realization of his powers as Poseidon’s son. He’s starting to realize that as a Forbidden Child, he is powerful, and it will be exciting to see how that plays out, and how Walter portrays that, throughout the rest of this season. And, there are even more hints and easter eggs of things to come in this season and in, hopefully, future seasons.
One of the things that this series seems to be focusing on is showing the monsters for more than a very short time. As book fans know, the Saint Louis Arch scene is actually quite short in the book, at least in relation to seeing the monster (portrayed by Suzanne Cryer) and Percy’s interaction with it. This can work for a book where we don’t necessarily need a lot of high-stakes scenes that last a while because we get a lot of character commentary and interaction that doesn’t transfer as well to the screen because it would bore many viewers, especially if they haven’t read the books.
While many book fans would probably love a paragraph-by-paragraph adaptation to the screen, being able to show the monsters more on screen and elongate the interaction is what the show is excelling at. It is also what makes screen storytelling different from book storytelling and why each works in its own way. In this episode, we get much more than just a few pages (or minutes) of interaction with one of the most iconic monsters of the Greek myth world, which adds depth to the story and the nuances of the world just like with Medusa last week, this monster gives some clues and insights into how this world works. Plus, we get to see a really cool and well done CGI monster up close and personal, and it adds some amazing visuals. We also get to see a little more about how the Mist (how the mythical beings stay hidden) works on humans.
Image Source: The Envoy Web
One of the best things about this episode, too, is the blossoming relationship that fans of the story are waiting to see unfold: Percy and Annabeth’s relationship. This episode gives us a lot more of ‘Percabeth’ and excited fans. Book fans know what the next big adventure of the journey will be, and it looks like, according to the episode preview at the end, it will be the highlight of next week’s episode. In this case, we should be getting a lot more character development from these two, and it will be interesting to see where it takes us next.
One other thing of note in this episode is the continuation of Percy’s dreams. As Luke said earlier, demigods have vivid dreams, and as fans know, Percy’s in particular show quite a bit. However, in the series so far, we haven’t seen as much in the dreams as we did in the books, at least so far. While they are definitely hinting at something, it is quite tight-lipped and mysterious and hasn’t given away much. It will be interesting to see where this goes next and how much foreshadowing the show gives us from the dreams, if anything.
Tune in next week for the continuation of the journey of our favorite heroes to see what mess they get themselves into next. And perhaps, we might meet even more new characters?
Rating: 7/10
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