Episode 4 of Percy Jackson left our kiddos questioning. Percy got some reassuring words from his father Poseidon after he was saved by the king of the sea. Annabeth is left abandoned by her mother for something that she wasn’t even responsible for, and Grover is left trying to keep the peace between the two. This episode introduces Ares and fleshes out some of the other Gods and how they fit into the story. 

Episode 5 starts off with Annabeth hugging Percy in a very sweet moment. They are going from acquaintances to actual friends in real-time and it’s really fun to see their dynamic evolve.

“Hey guys, I think this quest might be harder than we thought” is a well-written line encapsulating just how young Percy and the gang are. Seeing the three of them look so small next to Ares is funny and really puts into perspective that they really don’t know anything because they’re only twelve years old. They are easily manipulated, swayed and distracted. As far as young adult media goes there are very few movies, books, or shows that really show the reality of children being the ones in charge of saving the world. 

Ares sends Percy and Annabeth to retrieve his shield. Every director in Hollywood needs to go back to lighting school or something. Because the trend of shooting night scenes in pitch black is insane and it needs to end. There are decades of film that exist with scenes that take place at night and yet the audience can still see what’s going on. Not letting your audience see what’s happening is not artistic, it’s not cool, it’s not unique. It’s lazy and it’s bad filmmaking. Light your scenes. 

Leah Jefferies as Annabeth really shines in this episode. She gets more of an opportunity to showcase her amazing acting skills and she does a great job. We get fear, determination, love, hope and her usual snark from her all in one episode.

We seem to be nearing the climax of our quest. Grover says he knows who stole the master bolt, the kids seem to have made an adversary out of Ares, Athena looks like she will be coming into the picture at some point, and Percy seems to finally have accepted that Poseidon might actually care about him. We are in a great place for the next three episodes. There is still a lot to cover but it also feels like the pacing is so well done that the show will also wrap up everything not needed for a Season 2.