‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ Season Two is Goddess-Tier

Look, he didn’t want to be a half-blood. But five books, a spinoff literary series, a musical and a couple poorly rated movies later, an iteration of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” has finally received the acclaim fit for a demigod.

Despite already achieving success with the franchise, the modern universe where children of Greek gods and goddesses go on quests fit for an epic continues to grow as the television show based on the eponymous literary series by Rick Riordan. The show released the final episode of its second season Jan. 21.

Since its first season, creators of the series haven’t shied away from changing aspects of the storyline and characters from the books. While it’s not uncommon for TV and film adaptations to divert from their source material, it’s rare for these adjustments to satisfy fans of the original text.

“Percy Jackson and the Olympians” was able to defeat this seemingly impossible quest. 

With the guidance of Riordan, the show was able to differ from the books without altering the integrity of the original plot while simultaneously enhancing the representation of characters — especially female ones.

While the books displayed a wide range of non-stereotypical female archetypes, its basis in Greek mythos gave way for a surface-level interpretation of many female “monsters” derived from folklore, who the patriarchy often portrayed as solely evil beings because they held power without the need of a man.

Riordan’s intent when crafting these novels was to create characters his son, who was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and dyslexia as a child, could connect to by forming heroes who shared the same neurodiversities. Children and adults have since found a home among the demigods living at Camp Half-Blood — some for the first time finding characters in the media who resembled them.

When the creators of the series were given the opportunity to expand the reach of the franchise’s impact, it was entirely taken by adding more depth to characters who reflect people often not cast in Hollywood’s spotlight.

Alterations for the monsters began briefly during season one when Percy (Walker Scobell) recognized the complexity of Medusa’s (Jessica Parker Kennedy) traumatic story that’s often overlooked to more easily reduce her to villain status, but was taken in full force the second season with introduction of Circe (Rosemarie DeWitt) in episode five. 

Rather than making her a heartless sorceress, Circe is given a fatal flaw that opens the audience to the intricacies of her seemingly cruel decisions. DeWitt (“Poltergeist,” “Smile 2”) brings a warmth to a character who’s been demonized by society since her appearance in the “Odyssey,” inviting the viewer to question who’s considered a villain when the control of power isn’t as clear as originally perceived.

As the monsters of this series are given the depth history has long owed them, they aren’t the only women this season receiving more complex storylines.

Clarisse La Rue (Dior Goodjohn) was a fierce adversary of Percy in the second book, “The Sea of Monsters,” in charge of the quest that would determine the safety of Camp and ready to take down anyone who got in her way, whether friend or foe. However, by changing the narrative from Percy’s perspective as it is in the novels to a more holistic view of each character, Clarisse becomes more than the bully 13-year-old Percy perceives her to be.

Goodjohn (“Are You Afraid of the Dark?” “Head of the Class”) takes the additional screentime given to her character and creates an elevated daughter of Ares that is headstrong yet relatable as she grapples with issues of self-worth as her first quest is foretold to fail from the start. 

Unable to accept defeat, she perseveres through every obstacle thrown her way, but not without a few more scratches than seen in the previous season as the series’ makeup and visual effects artists play into the more rough visual aspects of life spent on quest.

Despite its rougher edge, a true sense of love and care is still felt in scenes between Scobell (“The Adam Project,” “Looking through Water”) and Leah Sava Jeffries’ character, Annabeth Chase.

Scobell’s delivery of emotionally heavy scenes are palpable through the screen, and when Jeffries (“Something from Tiffany’s,” “Beast”) shares the scene in these moments, the two  have an undeniable chemistry. Jeffries is able to meticulously portray both Annabeth’s reluctance — almost fear — to open up as an independent daughter of Athena and her complete inability to stop herself doing so when it comes to Scobell’s Percy.

While the final episode ends with rising tension between Percy and other demigods, fans will not have to wait long to know what happens next as a third season was announced to release later in 2026.

With the confirmation of another season, one could hope that the show continues to holistically reflect the storylines of its female characters, as well as those of other commonly underrepresented voices in current popular media. The already expansive influence of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” will continue to grow as marginalized communities feel they are adequately depicted and can find safety at Camp Half-Blood.

All episodes of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” are available to stream on Disney+.