The Biggest Book Changes Yet Are Surprisingly Compelling

Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 2, episode 5 continues a fine run of form with another solid episode filled with Greek mythology and exciting sequences. Percy Jackson season 2, episode 4 was the show’s best yet, showcasing a massive scale and adding some genuine depth to its characters.

Unless Percy Jackson changed too much from the book in episode 5 and went full movie mode, it was going to be difficult to derail the improved season currently airing on Disney+. Thankfully, any book changes found in episode 5 remained well handled for the sake of a new medium, with the installment maintaining a lot of what fans know and love.

Combined with the now-expected great performances from Percy Jackson season 2’s cast, some great production design, and compelling villains, the show continues to be a hit.

Percy Jackson Season 2, Episode 5’s Story Is A Well-Constructed Book Deviation

Rosemarie DeWitt smiling as Circe in Percy Jackson season 2

As a longtime book fan, the immediate pullout of Percy Jackson season 2, episode 5 is how differently the show constructs this section of the book’s story. In the book, after Clarisse’s ship explodes, Annabeth and Percy find themselves at C.C.’s spa and resort. After escaping, they encounter the island of the Sirens and then find themselves in Polyphemus’ lair.

Wisely, C.C.’s home and the Sirens are tied together in Percy Jackson season 2, episode 5, adding layers of depth to the former that were not present in the book. C.C., a sorceress who reveals herself as Circe, uses her spa to train heroes to find their fatal flaw, something that the Sirens use against them to lure them with their song.

This makes Circe more of a flawed, morally gray person than the villain she is in the book. Circe simply wants to help heroes, no matter who they are, so that she can feel loved without being abandoned. This leads her to make some less-than-benevolent choices, but ones that stem from a very human need for connection.

Circe’s changes are like those made to Medusa in Percy Jackson season 1, with both being better characters as a result. Rosemarie DeWitt embodies that well as Circe, making the audience feel for her while still viewing her methods as flawed. This change, as well as the Sirens being the “cell” Circe uses to keep heroes around, is one of the better narrative changes made in Percy Jackson thus far.

Percy Jackson Season 2's Big Bad & Most-Anticipated Episode Revealed In New Exclusive Posters

Beyond that, Percy Jackson season 2, episode 5 utilizes the Sirens and Polyphemus in a way that is slightly different from the book, but captures the same important beats. The Siren song is chilling, and seeing Annabeth’s experience firsthand was genuinely tense and surprising in a way the show usually isn’t.

Where Polyphemus is concerned, the show’s decision to make him a smarter, more cunning villain pays off massively. Adding to that, the excellent mix of practical and visual effects to bring him to life is excellent, rendering Polyphemus a great monster for the heroes to face off against next week.

Similarly, the production design to bring Circe’s island to life is stunning. The ancient Greek architecture allows the modern world of Percy Jackson to blend with the magical one in a way that the show and the books rarely allow for. All of the armor, tunics, dresses, and other elements are beautiful to behold, continuing the trend of improving the scale of the show.

Leah Sava Jeffries and Walker Scobell are, again, excellent here. The two have some great scenes that play on their characters’ biggest worries and flaws, continuing to flesh them out well. The same can be said for Grover and Clarisse. Overall, Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 2, episode 5 is another very solid entry, continuing the show’s fine form.