As someone who has read the original Percy Jackson series and its spinoffs multiple times, seen both movies multiple times, and now is watching the new Disney+ TV show, I feel like I can speak in this topic with relative authority. The books are brilliant in my opinion. I feel the characters grow with us, and they brought me my love of Greek and Roman mythology. There are wonderful, well-developed characters that have faults and gifts and go on real human journeys (even if they’re technically in demigod situations).
As for the movies, looking at them as stand alone films and not as adaptations, they’re kind of fun and the cast did a great job. However, as adaptations they are a terrible representation of the depth and brilliance of the books, and should not be used as a tool to teach mythology (this is actually a direct quote from the man who wrote the books, Rick Riordan, if that tells you anything about them).
I’m excited for the potential of the new show. While some of the acting seems a little hokey and Disney Channel-ish (it feels like it could have a laugh track playing after some of the more cliché jokes), I have hope. I’m hoping that maybe it’ll be like the Harry Potter movies, where the kids were younger in the first few movies and got better as they grew up and grew into their talents and their characters. Regardless, I’m enjoying the loyalty to the original material for the most part, and I’m ready to watch more with an open mind and an open heart.
Overall, despite my varying opinions about the movie and TV show, I still very much enjoy them both, and while I may not rewatch them as often as I reread the books, I encourage you all to partake in whatever medium works best for you.
Thanks for reading.
Holly
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