I'm annoyed at the Percy Jackson film adaptations.

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This might turn into a bit of a rant.

So, lately I've been reading the book series. I saw the films first, but didn't think much of them. However, now that I've gotten around to reading the books, I've grown annoyed at the films. They're nothing like the books. I mean, I wasn't expecting a word-by-word copy, but the films might as well be tied to a completely different story. The author himself has been rather active on social media about how he disapproves of the films. I don't blame him.

One of the biggest changes between the books and the films is the age difference. At the start of the books, most of the characters are twelve. In the films, the characters are seventeen. Perhaps this was to aim it towards an older audience, but I think that the ageing of the books works better because it allows for more gradual character development. The characters mentally mature over time and the connections between them develop at a slower rate. In the films, it just feels rushed since they decided to shove a bunch of plot points from later books into the first.

Another major difference is the personalities. I'm especially bothered by Grover's character. The scriptwriters of the films seem to have just completed disregarded his personality. In the books, he's responsible and prone to nervousness. An environmentalist who holds a bit of contempt towards humans because of how they treat the Earth. The film completely ignores this, and makes him into an outgoing comic relief character who flirts with women a lot. Something Grover definitely does not do in the books. He's not like that at all. Sure, he sometimes serves as comic relief by eating plates because of the whole half-goat thing. However, he's also a serious character with depth. The films just make him a stereotypical black comic relief character, which ages the film poorly and comes across as a bit insulting to the audience.

The appearances, especially with Annabeth, don't look like the characters. Ignoring the age difference, Annabeth looks nothing like how she's described. This is somewhat understandable, as changes do need to be made to accommodate who is best for the role. Still, it mainly bothers me because she looks a lot closer to another character in terms of appearance. I find it hard to look at that actress and not think that she would've been a better fit for Clarisse. Why didn't they use hair dye? I can understand the lack of coloured eye contacts because some people react badly to those or just don't want to wear them, but why not dye her hair blonde?

I'm mainly disappointed because a significant amount of people probably saw the films, thought they were mediocre, and perhaps assume that the books aren't much better. However, they are. The films give a poor impression of the actual story. Sadly, the other books in the series probably won't ever be made into films. Not enough interest. They couldn't make them true to the story either due to the fact that they changed too much, and took out important plot points that were brought up more later on, in the previous films.

So we'll never have films with the characters introduced in the later books. Which is a shame. I've found myself relating to them. The books go into certain topics, such as racism and internalised homophobia, in a surprising amount of detail for a children's series. I found myself having to take a moment because some of the conflicts hit very close to home. When I started getting into it, I wasn't expecting this level of emotional intensity. There would probably be a public outcry if some of these books were turned into films.

I guess that's the thing about children's books compared to movies. They tend to get away with a lot more. I'm glad though, as the books don't sugar-coat issues and seem more accurate to what it's actually like to be a teenager (minus the whole Greek mythology element, of course). Some of the issues remind me of what I was going through at fourteen. They are handled with a lot of respect for the audience, I never feel as though the writer is talking down to the readers. Personally, I think that a cartoon adaptation would be more fitting, it can be rather exaggerated at times in a way that animation would complement. However, it can also be serious and emotionally deep when it wants to be.

^I don't even know why people in general confuse Hades with the Devil, and the Greek/Roman Underworld with Hell.

However, as much as I have praised the books, I have been a little disappointed with the third series (Trials Of Apollo). It comes across as an unnecessary addition. My main gripe with the third series is being stuck with side characters that I don't care about all that much. I preferred it when Apollo was just in the background as another busy and inattentive parent. The writing seems different. Almost unofficial. I think that it lacks something that the two series before it had.

Recently I finished reading The Burning Maze. I was more emotionally invested in this book compared to the two that came before. At this point I'm only continuing with reading Percy Jackson because I want to reach the final conclusion.

I'm also reading the Magnus Chase books, I'm currently up to the final story in the trilogy. Personally, I prefer Magnus Chase over The Trials Of Apollo. Especially since the chapter titles have returned. I didn't mind having the chapters named after which character POV it was being told in during the second series, but the third series just has numbers and a bad poem to distinguish each chapter (which I'm not a fan of).

*Jumps up and down*

Disney + has announced a Percy Jackson TV series! Rick has creative control over it! Shame I don't have Disney +. Still, the idea of a TV series making up for the films I-



Please excuse me.