PERCY JACKSON’s finale succeeds in its quest as an excellent adaptation but fails to save what mattered most – being an epic fantasy TV show. It’s ironic that a show that tells a story about how pervasive ancient Greek gods are feels so empty and lacks any gravity.
As I’ve mentioned in past reviews, the show seems largely true to the source material in many foundational ways. The series has an epic arc, sparking debates around the cruelty and callousness of the Olympians, the complexity of building a society that works for everyone, and of course, a coming-of-age story. All the wheels seem to be turning to make this happen – but if you haven’t read the original books, I’m not sure how much of this comes through in the show.
This brings me to my next point – while the finale delivered an exciting end to the first season, it left more to be desired. While Lance Reddick gave an excellent performance as Zeus, the show’s writing failed to show him as the King of the Gods (why was Olympus empty?!). The stakes never feel as high as the characters make it out to be.
Yet will all these nitpicks, I came back every week – these episodes are engaging and show so much potential. I feel like I have a Disney franchise curse – I never finished OBI-WAN, SECRET INVASION, AHSOKA, ECHO, or even ANDOR. Not because I disliked the shows; I just stopped watching. But I was on my couch at 10 PM on Tuesday excited for the PERCY JACKSON finale. And I’ll be eagerly awaiting the Season 2 premiere.