Strap in demigods, our quest has officially begun! This week’s installment of Percy Jackson and the Olympians sees our core trio start their trip across America to reach the Underworld. From the beginning, their journey proves perilous as they encounter monster after monster, one of whom teaches them a valuable lesson about parentage.
READ: ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ Episodes 1 & 2 REVIEW: A Worthy Quest
The episode starts with Percy receiving his quest’s prophecy from The Oracle (Riordan’s adaptation of The Oracle of Delphi) and choosing Annabeth and Grover to accompany him on his journey. He chooses his companions trying to subvert a line of The Oracle’s prophecy, not knowing that you can’t escape Fate.
No sooner than they’ve left camp, the trio discover that they’re being followed by Alecto (previously known to Percy as his pre-algebra teacher, Mrs. Dodds). It’s here that the viewers see Annabeth’s fatal flaw – pride. When the Fury catches up to the trio and it’s clear the group needs to flee, for a split-second Annabeth stands her ground, staring Alecto down before she finally retreats. As the daughter of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and strategy, Annabeth’s fatal flaw contradicts her mother’s teachings, the first instance in the episode of the theme of parentage.
While running from Alecto, the group happens upon “Auntie Em’s” shop, and Annabeth quickly realizes they are in Medusa’s lair. Portrayed by Jessica Parker Kennedy, Medusa draws you in with her kind and soothing voice, hiding behind her birdcage veil. As she tells the trio about her past with Athena and Poseidon, you feel sorry for her, just another helpless victim caught between two gods who both want to be the center of everyone’s attention. But as Medusa knows, once you draw a god’s eye, it doesn’t end well.
In telling the trio her story, Medusa likens the gods to bullies. They’re entitled beings who think they not only rule the world but own it and its inhabitants as well. As demigods, half-bloods are proud of their lineage and defeating monsters, but as Sally Jackson said in the first episode of the season, not everyone who looks like a monster is one. The gods are just as monstrous as the ones they would have their children slay. This is a theme heavily prevalent in original Greek mythology that proves important in Riordan’s universe.
Medusa tells our trio that they are not their parents unless they choose to be. In a world where lineage defines you, it’s a lesson Annabeth and Percy need to learn, but are hesitant to hear. Most myths have Athena and Poseidon as bitter rivals, most notably fighting over patronage of Athens. Therefore, it makes sense that Annabeth and Percy would start off antagonistic and bickering for most of the episode. Until they are strong enough in their own personalities to not be and embody their parents, they rely on Grover to keep the peace (as annoying as they find his methods).
Near the episode’s conclusion, Percy repeats history and beheads the gorgon, but is left wondering if he’s killed the right monster. Percy then decides he won’t be a pawn for the gods, using the Hermes Express to send Medusa’s head to Olympus, making the first move in a contentious relationship that will continue for seasons to come.
Episode 3 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is now streaming on Disney+.
