As is true for many teenagers now, my childhood was shaped by Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” — a book series from the perspective of a young boy named Percy Jackson, who discovers he is the son of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. My Halloween costumes, vacation spots and subsequent passion for Greek mythology revolved around the obsession my siblings and I had with the books.
Now, 15 years since the series concluded, the long-awaited Disney+ adaptation of the first book, “The Lightning Thief,” is not only entertaining for those unfamiliar with the book series but provides fans with an on-screen adaptation that stays true to the original and reignites their love for the novels.
Unlike the first time “Percy Jackson” was brought to the screen — with the 2010 movie adaptation that let many fans down in how far it strayed from the original plot — the eight 40-minute episodes allow the show to carefully follow the details and plot lines featured in the book series.
While the movie’s adult cast failed to portray the trials and complexities present when 12-year-olds are forced to go on life-threatening quests, the new series does quite the opposite with 13-year-old Walker Scobell playing Percy Jackson.
In detailing Percy’s quest to return Zeus’s Master Bolt to Olympus, the show’s fast pace and impressive cinematography enrapture all audiences. Similarly, the detailed sets, like Hephaestus’s amusement park and Camp Half-Blood, immerse even those unfamiliar with the original series in the mythological world.
The entire cast does an incredible job staying true to their characters, despite the backlash posed by racist fans due to the female lead Annabeth Chase being played by a Black actress, Leah Jeffries. However, there were aspects of the book characters that I wished were present in the show, like Annabeth and the other children of Athena having distinct gray eyes.
Additionally, major plot lines from the book were changed or skipped over entirely in this adaptation. Most notably was the way in which the trip to the Lotus Casino, an iconic scene in both the book and movie, was incredibly rushed to fit into a 30-minute episode — the shortest of the season.
Despite these changes, the show managed to encapsulate the thrill and excitement I felt while reading the series for the first time. While still not quite as good as the original books, the first season of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” not only provides an opportunity for those who haven’t read the books to develop new interests, but was nostalgic in the best way possible, reminding me of why I loved the series so much when I was younger.
