I've Always Wondered...

time passes

Why was this ever a debate? I swear most non canon ships have better dynamics and relationships than anything the canon can ever devise. This is especially true in pjo fandom. Not a single good canon ship in the entirety of the ten book series and then all the other sequels/spinoff. And I mean not a single one. Percabeth and solangelo speak for themselves. Jiper and Caleo couldn't be more disastrous. Frazel isn't well fleshed out, and so on. No one's saying they couldn't have been good, but it's the truth that they aren't. Rick's writing plus certain tropes have ruined them completely.

Another point is that they are all teenagers with heavy trauma. They could have been fine without relationships. Rick could have focused more on their individual arcs and them overcoming their own traumas. There was no need for any ships. Rick acts as if a relationship is the solution to all the character's trauma and ptsd and the fandom is going along with this? Come on.

I have a Question.

I'm just know finding out about percy jackson and was wondering...

Is this book series worth reading?

Even though it's almost like 10 years old?

I'm really late finding out about it

And what things should I look out for in the Fandom and the books?

Oh my, am I really going to be the one to introduce you to Percy Jackson Series? What an honor! 100%, yes, you should absolutely read it. The main series, at least for sure.

There's some serious drama going on in the fandom right now over certain sequels but the orignal series is perfection.

If you are looking for a fast-paced, action-adventure sort of thing but with tons of humor, then that's the series for you. There's a romantic sub-plot as well if you are interested in that. Percy is one of the sassiest main characters ever and one of the best main characters of all time to date, period.

All the characters are great and nuanced (stick to the main series for this), and it's an awesome mix of fun , trauma, and battles. And no one, no one in the entirety of fandom will ever say they regretted reading the series. The only reason everyone is so furious at the later sequels is because we absolutely adored the main series and want a fitting continuation. Now, this main series I keep talking about refers to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, which is the first set. Five books in this order:

The Lightning thief

Sea of Monsters

The Titan's Curse

Battle of the Labyrinth

The Last Olympian

Now my advice is that you read certain short stories like The Stolen Chariot, The Bronze Dragon, and the Sword of Hades before The Last Olympian. Personally, I think you can skip the Bronze Dragon, but the other two, especially the Sword of Hades, are a must-read.

There are post main series short stories too, but I won't overwhelm you with them right now.

After this, when (not if) you fall absolutely in love with the series, you can read Heroes of Olympus series [also 5 books], which is the second set. It's a direct continuation of the first series. There's some whacky stuff here and there, which means there are a few problems with certain characterizations, but ultimately, it's worth it. You would have to be a super serious fan to be bothered by it, so don't worry about it. It's all great. Heroes of Olympus gets really, really good in the middle, and personally, you should absolutely read it cause you would be missing out on a whole lot of greatness if you don't.

There are other book series taking place in the same universe and lots of fun cross-overs, if you like that sort of thing.

The fandom is a great place if you want for super cool headcanons or great character analysis or great au fanfics, and so on. A few characters have toxic stans, I won't mention which characters cause you might be put off by that during reading; these stans are mainly involved in the ships' monopoly. There are many ships and you can ship whoever you want really but some of the blind fandom is a bit touchy feely regarding their pairings so yeah try not to get involved in those if you want a fun time and a peace of mind( mainly cause you won't have to deal with toxic stans) ; unless you want to cause chaos instead (join the party), which is where the real fun is.

You are going to completely and absolutely love this series, I guarantee you. Take my word on it. Have fun, and if you have a blog here, would love to know your personal reviews after reading each book.

Percy walking in with a Greek hero’s name and a different Greek hero’s curse and the most famous and looked up to Greek/Roman hero’s sword into camp Jupiter …

I'm really pleasantly surprised that you answered :)

Of course, here are some materials from where I got information about Zagreus and Peitho!

For Peitho:

https://mirrorpalace.wordpress.com/2009/10/17/an-exploration-of-peitho/ - her research, which I really love.

And here is the stream of consciousness about her - https://mirrorpalace.wordpress.com/2009/08/17/thoughts-on-peitho/

They both don't belong to me.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/3093410 -the fanfiction in which she appears, just keep in mind that it can be very difficult and dark there - Nico Di Angelo becomes a victim. This fanfiction also doesn't belong to me.

Zagreus:

https://hades.fandom.com/wiki/Zagreus - his wiki page, though I can't judge how good it is, because mostly I just read fanfiction/posts on tumblr and get information from there.

and - https://www.tumblr.com/happyk44/tagged/Zagreus - there is also a lot of good material about Zagreus.

And here's one fanfiction - https://archiveofourown.org/works/47538967/chapters/119808652 - from there I draw the creepy and dark part of Zagreus. It doesn't belong to me.

I'm sorry if you get a little confused. I "collect" Character images from various sources, reinforcing them with my own thoughts. For example, Peitho in my understanding is basically the same as in "An Abyss for Atonement" with some additions and my changes. And if you were wondering why I see Percy as a legacy of goddess of charm and a chthonic god - the answer is simple - Percy is beautiful and charming,He is most likely one of the most beautiful demigods of his generation and he can convince you to do what he wants. And I think Percy has some kind of connection with the underworld, it's a subtle dark atmosphere and the fact that he likes to travel through the shadows. His connection to the underworld is subtle and not too noticeable, as if, funny to say, ghostly.

I think this was the hardest of asks, but somehow, I liked it entirely too much. It's a bit out of box take, but I have already done one where I wrote Percy as a Legacy of Odysseus, so I think this fits too. Why do I have a feeling this is going to be a recurring theme for asks?

I am so terribly sorry for the delay but I didn't want to make the post without reading up on most of your suggestions; as I have said I was really unfamiliar with both Zagreus and Peitho.

As per anon's request Percy is a Legacy of Zagreus and Peitho through his grandparents. Percy Jackson as the Legacy of Zagreus and Peitho. [His grandmother Estelle was the daughter of Zagreus, and his grandfather James - son of Peitho].

Peitho is a very interesting deity. I suggest all readers check out at least one of anon's references. She is the deity of seduction, of persuasion , of divine charm and thrall. A force of passion and abstract power.

In certain versions, she is also an alternate representation of one of the Moraie. Lachesis, to be precise. She also used to represent the concept of everything that has happened before or has been till now.

Zagreus, though intriguing, is a bit more straightforward. I know I know I just called a chthonic god straight forward, but he is. Now, the wiki states that he is the God of Blood, but in one of the codex entries, Achilles says he is also a God of life.

He has connections with Styx and has traversed through Tartarus and here's a fun fact in the orignal myths Zagreus and Dinosyus are actually the same gods or at least father and son which would kind of create an extremely strange and entertaining dynamic but let's stick to game wiki. Not to mention the very newly layered dynamic now painted between Percy, Hades, and Nico.

Now think, Percy, eloquent and charming, words dripping with unspoken power. People think it's the tongue of the sea, of sirens, alluring and hypnotic, but it's far older, far more primordial, of Peithos, of divine eloquence, of persuasion.

Perseus Jackson, who none, not god nor mortal, can deny. Persuasion by words, persuasion by war , is it not all the same? Both reflect passion and thus reflect Peitho.

Perseus Jackson, beautiful and alluring, yet dangerous. Too sharp edged. Not a gentle beauty. A sharp, passionate, bloody beauty ,whether of sea or underworld we know not yet.

Percy Jackson, with midnight black hair, so vivid, so deep, that even the Lord of the Underworld balks at the resemblance, to his own line and that of Poseidon's.

Percy Jackson, who dreams and dreams yet again of things that have been, ages before or just now, it does not matter. He has my sight drawls Peitho , lips red with blood and rose, from somewhere far away, but perhaps Sally hears it all the same for she has it too, the gift of her line.

Perseus, whom Styx spares the fatal curse of Achilles not out of Roman interference but out of familial bonds, of primordial connections. The Underworld looks after its own, does it not? And Perseus Jackson is most certainly of the Underworld, will always be.

Percy, whose mind bends blood as easily as it would water sees not the gift of Zagreus, but a horror of Tartarus but he will come to see, after all blood is life and life is blood. Of blood and over blood child, that is your power declares Zagreus from the deepest caverns if the Underworld and Percy thinks he's heard the whispers of the pit but perhaps, just perhaps blood will serve him well, better than sea, better than water.

Perseus, whose call the rivers obey, the rivers of the Underworld. They recognize the blood of their own, do they not? They do, and they answer. They always will, and so will the dead if he dares call upon them. One day, one day whispers Achilles to Zagreus as they watch, the rise and triumph of the favored child of the sea and the Underworld.

Percy, who puts all in his thrall just with the green of his eyes and the smile at his lips. He sees not the divine Peitho in himself, but Aphrodite does not miss, neither do the Olympians.

Perseus, who teeters on the edge of mortal and divine as does Zagreus between living and death. Both, neither, one more than the other. Which one? We may yet see, but Peitho knows, and so does Zagreus. They do not say it, but the Olympians feel it. The wave of change.

Percy, who finds his way in and out of his uncle's, once and again, and then always. New ways and old ones, even forgotten ones. Perhaps Zagreus will be out of a job soon, thinks Persephone fondly. Not even the Lord of the Dead finds it in himself the words of chagrin.

That's all the thoughts I can think up at the moment but I will reblog with more I am sure cause this will stay with me.

I wrote it a bit too dramatically, but I think it fits well. All things considered. Also, anon, let me know if this was to your liking.

Also, I think Zagreus's dynamic with Nico could be super interesting, and maybe just maybe it deserves it own post.

This might be a good explanation for why Klaus so pointlessly sacrificed both Elijah and himself.

I think another thing that plays into it is Klaus's promise to Hayley that he would do ANYTHING to save their daughter, and now that there's a chance for him to fulfill it, he takes it. They could have killed Hollow through so many other ways, but no, this is the one Klaus settled on cause it was his only way out of his own misery and to see through his vow to avenge Hayley.

( Reminds me of how in Castlevania we find out that Dracula's whole destroy the world campaign is just a grandscale suicide act after the killing of his beloved wife.)

But of course it goes without saying that if it actually came to sacrificing himself for Hope he would gladly do it, especially if it's a way to keep both his daughter and the mother of his child safe.

All in all, though, as I have said so many times before to him, Hope and Hayley are a static pair. Both of them or not at all, it's non-negotiable to him. (An example is when he exiles Hayley and binds her in her wolf form, we see mainly Freya or even Elijah care for Hope, and while Klaus is present, he isn't as involved)

What's for sure is that he loves Hope and Hayley the most and to extreme lengths, which are at times overwhelming.

Klaus did NOT die for hope

Klaus was stuck in a torturous loop of self loathing and self destruction

He had lost everything he had, was completely estranged from the only people he actually felt safe with, people that made him feel less lonely (his biggest fear)

Hayley's death sent him over the edge and he felt responsible for what happened, he had admitted to staying away from her for the simple fact he felt like he was failing her and hope, and fear he'll only hurt them more and he only realized staying away did more harm than good far too late

Had it been about hope he would've either 1) not have killed Elijah because that was pointless, he left hope an orphan and Elijah was the only perfect person to look after her and Klaus was more than okay with killing him proving he no longer really meant shit to him after his indirect role in killing Hayley (he was ready to die for him every other day in the previous seasons)

And 2) since he gave no fucks about Elijah he could've let him die alone and stay with his daughter who he admitted clearly needed him

Instead he hit two birds with one stone, he gave Elijah what he thought he deserved and he died to simply get out of the responsibility of actually caring for his daughter, he knew he had nothing to offer her especially without Hayley there to help him so he thought the only thing he might give her is his death

Till his very last breath he was running away from facing his fear of turning into Mikael and failing as a father

And Hayley who was the biggest part of parenthood to him was lost so he had ultimately nothing to stay for

This is not even close to how bad she gets. Annabeth would be dead in this quest without Rachel and Percy. They both literally did all the work while Annabeth was being absolutely unreasonable and bitchy. I understand this is Rick's attempt at portraying jealousy but at this point in time, Annabeth and Percy aren't even dating. She is being toxic and showing unhealthy possessiveness to Percy.

Also, doesn't Annabeth pride herself on her intellect and wisdom? And her knowledge of myths? She knew how in the orignal myths, Ariadne's help was paramount in crossing the Labyrinth and yet she still refuses to accept it. Rachel the only one who can save them and help them has benevolently offered aid despite Annabeth's horrible demeanor and yet she has the audacity to be absolutely ungrateful. We don't even get a single apology.

At the start of Botl when the school blows up due to fighting, Annabeth who has known Percy for at least three years immediately jumps to accuse and blame Percy for it even though she knows it's almost always due to monster attacks and rarely Percy's fault. Rachel who has known him for like five minutes is the one jumping to his defense, offering to cover for him at the cost of her own reputation and school record and take the blame for something she is the not one bit responsible for. Because it was necessary. That's the difference between Annabeth and Rachel. One is practical and compassionate, while the other is prideful and self-centered.

So many other things happen in Rachel and Annabeth's dynamic that are horrible and toxic but the ace is that Annabeth has the audacity to consistently bring up Rachel, (who at later point is a close friend) to make Percy uncomfortable and keeping him on his toes, even in literal hell, so much so Percy is scared to talk to Annabeth about Rachel or even think about her near Annabeth which is absolutely completely disgusting behavior and the fandom just glosses over it like nothing. What the hell?

Annabeth, you know you're half mortal, right? You can't just pretend that isn't a part of you.

Didn't even remember that this was an aspect to the Annabeth and Rachel dynamic, but it really supports all I've been saying about how Percy and Rachel are so much more compatible, because they build their own world. Find the in-between of the mortal and the godly together. Ground each other in the half of themselves they feel disconnected to. And then there's Annabeth, who buys into the godly propaganda so hard. Annabeth who doesn't get along with her mortal family. Annabeth who's spent more of her life at Camp than anywhere else. Annabeth who wants to rebuild Olympus. Annabeth who wants to go to college in New Rome, a city absent of mortals. Even if I didn't think Percy and Annabeth's relationship was toxic, I still wouldn't ship them because they're just fundamentally incompatible.

Reasons Why Percabeth Doesn’t Work For Me

Note: If you like Percabeth and get aggressive and hurtful when someone disagrees with you then this isn’t something you’re interested in, I’m going to have to ask you to move along :D I’m entitled to my opinions as you are yours. Any aggression targeted at me because I don’t ship what you ship will be treated with demeaning responses

You have been warned

Side Note: I have nothing but love for Rick Riordan, these are solely my opinions, which I’m entitled to have.

If you have anything to include, feel free to add your own thoughts.

I’m putting this under a Read More so people who don’t want to see this doesn’t have to.

Keep reading

I'm a Percy Jackson apologist, not because I think he has anything to apologize for, but because people in this fandom tend to blame him for every little thing that goes wrong in those books, even if he had little or zero control over it or even made the objectively good or reasonable choice.

"Percy choked Nico in the last Olympian"

Percy was imprisoned by Hades himself, after Nico had (although, of course, unwillingly) betrayed him, in a cell, he was convinced would suffocate him, had just woken up of a nightmare of Typhon wreaking havoc in the US, with the gods doing very little to slow him down, and didn't even know it was Nico, he was attacking at first. He only realized it was him, after he had him already pinned to the floor and he let him go only a few moments after that. For all Percy could have known, Nico could have been a servant of Hades sent to kill him.

"Percy forgot to free Calypso."

First of all, not Percy's responsibility. Not at all.

Second of all, he did free her.

Percy stood before all the Olympians and, after winning the war for them, one of his demands was specifically that she (and other gods) should be forgiven. Let me be clear, Leo would not have been able to free Calypso from her island without this specific request. There was no possible way for Percy to know, that the gods would be assholes about it and wouldn't inform her of that. Hell, he even knew, that Hephaestus visited her from time to time to chat, so there was no reason for him to doubt that he'd just tell her.

"Percy killed Michael Yew in the battle of Manhattan"

Percy probably saved the entire Apollo cabin on that bridge. And as a reminder, it was Michael's idea to destroy it in the first place. Percy even told him to run before that. His death was without a doubt a tragedy, but by no means Percy's fault.

"Percy treated Tyson shitty after finding out he was a cyclops"

When? Give me one example in the Sea of Monsters were Percy was actively being a jerk to Tyson. Not something he thought, but something he actually did. He wasn't a fan of Tyson being his brother and denied it to other campers, yes. But, as a reminder, camp half-blood, or ar least some members of it, started to bully Percy after Tyson got claimed. The one place he thought he belonged to treated his friend and him by association like shit.

Still, he was on Tysons's side. He even defended him in front of Annabeth, his best friend might I add, and didn't stop spending time with him. They were a team during the chariot race, and even while thinking that Tyson might be a liability on their quest to save Grover, Percy refused to leave him behind, because he feared, that Tyson would be blamed for their disappearance.

I could go on and on and on, because that kid (and he is a kid, at the end of heroes of Olympus Percy is not even 17 years old) gets blamed for so much it's exhausting, but I 100% believe that nothing that Percy Jackson did was ever wrong and there is absolutely nothing he has to apologize for. Prove me wrong.

The way I totally glossed over that despite having read MoA a few times. There's so many instances that should have been Jason chapters but were given to Piper instead. And even to Leo. There was absolutely no reason to give them so many povs in this book. Jason, Percy, and Annabeth should have been key players, yet only Annabeth was done right by. [Hell, she had too many chapters by my count. The quest for the statue was such a small part of the book that there was no reason to shove Annabeth in so many extra pov chapters.] The Pov Distribution was really terrible in the HoO series. With the exception of SoN and HoH, every other book had considerable pov distribution problems. The same treatment was given to Percy later on. The way that Percy doesn't have a single pov chapter in Blood of Olympus even though he was the one who awoke Gaea and was involved in other pivotal moments is insane.

A Jason and Reyna reunion? Jason's feelings on returning to his once home? Jason meeting Percy? The giant fight? One Argo ii deck meeting scene? We were certainly robbed of quite a lot of nuance in MoA.

jason grace not having a pov in mark of athena is WILD. that's literally supposed to be a book centered around him and reyna, and camp jupiter (in the beginning of the book, atleast). and you're telling me he had no.... pov? like hello? this is peak level of insane writing 😭