Transcript
Speaker: Welcome to Based on a Book, the podcast where we pack our gear, grab the book, and set on a quest to see how our favorite stories survive the journey from page to screen. I'm your host, Lindsay, and I'll be taking over Carrie's job as guide back to Camp Half-Blood.
Speaker: I'm Crystal, and I'm not a cruise person. I'm Carrie, and I'd like to know where all the adults are. Alright campers, before we set sail, here's what you need to know about today's quest.
Speaker: This episode kicks off Anything Goes April, our theme for the month where we dive into a mix of stories across different genres and adaptations, and what better way to start than to dive back into Percy Jackson's universe.
Speaker: Today we're talking about The Sea of Monsters, the second book in Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, and the second season of the Percy Jackson series on Disney+. plus As always, we'll start things off spoiler-free, so whether you've read the book, watched the show, or you're still deciding if you want to take this quest for yourself, you're safe to listen along.
Speaker: Once we raise the spoiler flag, we'll dive deeper into the story, the characters, and how this adaptation holds up. So grab your blue food, your celestial bronze, and maybe a map to the Sea of Monsters, because this quest is officially underway.
Speaker: So, the Sea of Monsters follows Percy Jackson as he returns to Camp Half-Blood, only to discover that the camp's magical borders are failing, and the sanctuary for demigods is in serious danger.
Speaker: To save it, Percy and his friends must embark on a dangerous quest across the Sea of Monsters, better known as the Bermuda Triangle, facing mythological creatures, ancient magic, and unexpected revelations along the way.
Speaker: But before we depart, I want to start with our book ratings. And I want to begin with the OG host of the series, Carrie. Oh, okay.
Speaker: I finished this in like two days. i really enjoyed this. i think that this was such like a refreshing read after so much heavy stuff that we've read recently. ah Like all the classics that we've read and also just coming off of poor things. um So this felt like a necessity at this moment. And I was really excited to dive back into this series. I gave it four sheep.
Speaker: I really liked it. it's I like the nonstop action in this book, kind of similar to the first one. um i really wish that I like read this when I was younger.
Speaker: like this I really felt that as as as I was reading it, where it made me feel very nostalgic. where I was like, oh I really wish I was super into this book. like when it was first coming out or you know when i was like in middle school or something i feel like i would have had so much fun with this but um there's a character we're introduced to a new character in here that i love so so much that i'm sure we're gonna get into later but um i'm liking the slow like character development in like the slow burn of the story like there's so much going on
Speaker: But there is like a slow burn of the overall storyline in this. And I'm like and i'm enjoying it a lot. like I'm constantly entertained, but we're slowly like moving forward. And I think it's really funny that in the first...
Speaker: part of this series that we've done when we read the lightning thief uh i was listening back to it and i was talking about how excited i was to be to get like an extensive version of the camp and get more of the camp in the second book and in the second book we're not at the camp at all but nope so i thought that was really funny it's not five stars for me just because like I, you know, like I'm not like obsessed with this series. Maybe I will be like once I finish it and like maybe when I go back to it, I can see the potential in it being like a lot more exciting, getting obsessed with it. But right now, solid four. Really enjoyed it.
Speaker: I give Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters three drachmas. I also really enjoyed this story. i think the plot is super compelling. The characters are just so enjoyable.
Speaker: i struggled a little bit with the settings. we We jump around so much in the settings, but at no point did I feel super immersed in them. And this is where I kind of found a moment of pause for myself. is Because I agree with with Carrie so much that we just came off of all these heavy reads, like one after another after another. This was so refreshing. But there were definitely moments in the story where I was like, this is so childish. And then I was like, Crystal, it's a kid's book.
Speaker: you know But it's a story that I think is super interesting. so In my mind, it isn't a kid's book. I mean, it is a kid's book, but it's it's not a kid's story. Does that make sense? There's a lot of heavy themes here. There's a lot of really, i don't know, like interesting storylines that... yeah and And so...
Speaker: it It almost shocked me at moments when I was like, but it's a kid's book, Crystal. Like, oh, yeah, is a kid's book, isn't it? Because I enjoyed this story so much as an adult. really like this. In fact, I'm probably, I'm kicking myself already for giving it three drachmas. I think at least three and a half. Three and a half. Changed my mind already. Three and a half. I mean, honestly, like so much of the Greek mythology connections, the fact that it is like middle grade story is so insane to me. It's almost like teaching Greek mythology in this really fun and exciting way you know, a younger generation. I think it's really fun that way. I think that's cool.
Speaker: Yeah, i I always buy, I'll try really hard to buy used books when I buy books. And this one must have been a school book for like the advanced reader program or the AR program, um because it even has the book level is 4.6 in here. So I'm pretty sure that's like fourth and a half grade.
Speaker: I don't know what that translates into, but for the advanced reader program, the AR program, it's book level 4.6. Good to know. anyone wonder yeah but What about you, Lindsay? So I agree with Crystal on this one.
Speaker: A lot of the verbiage and the language is very young because it is a middle grade book. And I i kept having to remind myself that. But the overall story and the characters and everything, i actually gave this one five prophecies. Oh my gosh, Lindsay.
Speaker: when have When's the last time you gave something a five on this podcast? Nimona. okay Okay. Yeah, it wasn't that long So not that long ago. Never mind. And then before that, the Princess Bride. so Okay, so that was a very long time ago. Yes.
Speaker: I've got a new rating system that has been helping me. So yeah I'm not just rating off of vibes like I was before. Mm-hmm. Yeah. But yeah, i I really enjoyed the story and I can't fault it for the language because it's middle grade. So I i really enjoyed the actual story for this. Mm hmm.
Speaker: That's so awesome. I love that. This is like a really, i honestly, this is like a really good book. And I'm very excited to keep going in the series because it's like, like I said, it's just like nonstop. I like that.
Speaker: It's every single chapter, something exciting is happening. i don't, I never felt it dragging in plot.
Speaker: Like, I understand. I get what you're saying, Crystal. There were definitely moments where, like, because of the jumping around and setting, like, it was hard to feel, like super connected. Right. Specific moments because you're jumping around so much. Because you're, like, it's just constant questing, constant adventure. You know? um so I understand that you're never, like, settled down.
Speaker: But it was like, it's a page turner. Definitely. For sure. Yeah, we go from a boat to another boat to another boat. Yeah. and ah so And Florida Island to island to boat to boat to the island to, yeah, to the coast. Yeah.
Speaker: And I just love, you know, I'm a very, like I always say on this podcast is I'm a very character driven reader. And i feel like this has both where it is very character driven, but also plot driven. So I i get both of those sides while reading, and which I really love, where i love these characters so much, where I feel like I'm seeing their very slow development in watching them grow up. And I think that's really fun.
Speaker: like that. Was there anything else that we wanted to discuss before we get into spoilers? No, I'm excited to talk about ah the show and get into the spoilers for sure.
Speaker: Okay. Well, all right, campers, this is your official spoiler warning. If you haven't read the book or watched the show yet and want to experience it for yourself, now's a good time to pause the episode, go complete the adventure, and then come back and join us. And surprise, I don't have a content warning for you this time.
Speaker: and know. We're used to Lindsay ah covering all the super dark stuff. Is it real and a Lindsay episode if there's no content warning? I know. like I'm even sitting here trying to, like what could we say is ah is a content warning?
Speaker: I don't know. think it's a little heavy, but it is middle grade. Yeah, it's middle grade. yeah Okay, so we start off with Percy finishing the school year at Merriweather College Prep, and it's his last day of school, and we learn he has a new friend named Tyson.
Speaker: Oh, my favorite character. Literally the best addition to this second book to immediately grab me. Into the story.
Speaker: I'm like, who is this character? i'm Immediately I knew, because in the book, you're kind of like, who is this person that's like kind following around? And immediately I'm thinking like he's a protector of some kind. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: Because he's always following him around and all this stuff. In the show, I was kind of disappointed that they didn't include like a lot of like this whole beginning, like first chapter the book. It's very different. i wasn't I was expecting some differences, but they actually changed quite a bit this season. Yeah. yeah I think la the first season, they followed it like exactly. Mostly.
Speaker: Mostly. And I think this second season, I think they're they have to to make some adjustments because, you know, you're starting to hit a point where you have to...
Speaker: ensure that you're going to hit the overall like story arc depending on how many seasons you're going to be doing and if you're capable of doing that and you might have to like rush some things whenever it comes to like a tv show so i think they have to like obviously cut specific things to make that happen yeah yeah they completely cut out the school From the very beginning, we know who or or what Tyson is, I guess I should say.
Speaker: And it was very subtle in the book, the way they kind of brought Tyson up and kind of described him. But you could tell there was something going on because Percy's mom was like, oh, you you better leave quickly so you can get to Tyson in time because he's afraid to go underground by himself. And you're like, what?
Speaker: Okay, well, that's an interesting fact to drop there. Yeah. Right. Yeah. And then immediately when the show starts... Him being a Cyclops, I was wondering how they were going to do that in the show. i was like, how is he going to look as a Cyclops in the show? i thought it was good.
Speaker: It really wasn't bad. And I hadn't seen the the previous movie at this point either. So I didn't know what the Cyclops was going to look like and like. If they were going to do it well before, they had to have done it better now. So I wasn't...
Speaker: nervous but I was curious yeah and all of them are getting like so much older and I feel like that's always like a common issue when it comes to shows like this like you have to push these seasons out quick it's almost like stranger things like I think of stranger things where they start out so young And they take a really long time to push out each season. Then I'm like, aren't you guys supposed to be like in middle school? And they're like 20 years old or something. Right. You know what I mean? So like, I think you're going to run into this issue with the show if you're not like quick about it. Right. I think they not talked about it.
Speaker: but i think they already announced, didn't they, that the next season is going to come out this year. Yes. Yeah, it was at the end of the... Yeah. So they are, you know, obviously, you know, really... um What's the word I'm looking for? Not cognizant, but they're really aware of the fact that these kids are going to grow. And I think...
Speaker: Honestly, I think they aged just enough between the first one and this one that it was like, oh, they're they're growing up, but not like, oh they're grown. It was really just just enough to be noticeable. And as a mom to make me be like, oh, look, you know, they're they're growing up. He's gotten so much taller, and you know, like, you in a heartfelt kind of really happy way to watch these kids literally grow up at Camp Half-Blood. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, because we see in the book, like, yeah, they are growing up and their decision making is aligning with that, I think.
Speaker: How they do things. And I mean, they're already, like I said in my intro, you know, where are all the adults? There are no adults around here. You know, there are no adults making any type of decisions around here. It's all relying on these kids or these demigods who are kids. And.
Speaker: But they're still kids making, you know, decisions that are like life and death and on prophecy based on prophecies here. And they have to determine what the prophecy is going to tell them what to do And, you know, a child is deciding that.
Speaker: But I think that. based on like the first part the first book or like the first season and then how they make decisions now like crystal said it's kind of like aligning how what age that they're at which i think i think they're doing really well in the show too it like reflects really well i agree yeah with the only adults really around Camp Half-Blood being Mr. D and Chiron. And they're always like, okay, we'll go talk to the Oracle and see what the Oracle says. Yeah.
Speaker: And Mr. D, of course, doesn't even seem to care. So he's Mr. D. It's really funny that he, he obviously purposefully calls Percy by the wrong name, but he's like Percy's uncle, but also Percy's named after Perseus.
Speaker: Which was like Mr. D's brother. they have this at hit So he has the same name as Mr. D's brother. Still doesn't know it. Peter doesn't know it. Yeah. I also like this, you know, once they get there and they have like that whole moment um in the car and everything. With the Grace sisters? Yes. I love that part. I love that scene um in the show too. was so good. Okay. So I also love, because you know, I like, like even like the cutesy little like relationship stuff because we don't really get that so much in like the second book because I i always hear that, you know,
Speaker: Even like people my age that read this when they were younger, like talking about how excited they were to see, you know, Percy and Annabeth, you know, that was their like ship whenever right they read this when they were younger. Right.
Speaker: So like watching this, they're like really excited to see them together. And, you know, Percy's like doing a lot of like book boyfriend type things in the show that doesn't happen till much later in the series. Like people were talking about that. Like he's already showing those tendencies in the second season. And we already get like that first indication in the first episode when she's like talking about how I think she's like talking about how um she thinks or she was talking about how he's like her boyfriend or something. what Yeah, the Grey Sister. Yes. yeah Yes. And he's like, boyfriend.
Speaker: Like those cute little things that like just like make you like have like a cheesy smile like while you're watching. I love that stuff. It's so cute. I can't stand it. And I like that there is like the addition of that in the show versus like there's not a ton of it right now in the second book. But I like that we're sprinkling that in already in the show. It's so good. And I like that they're doing it in a very age appropriate I love it. It's, you know, talking about like writing each other letters over summer. And, you know, like, are, you you know, just simple, like you could have called me, you know, kind of like, it's, it's very age appropriate. It's not weird. It's not super. I mean, it's awkward. from middle school awkward you know yeah like junior high awkward yeah it's not awkward as in these young kids are doing adult things no not at all it's really perfect yeah I really love you know and we'll talk about this in our next episode but I really just do love how this series aligns so well with the age of these kids in the book it it really is perfectly I watched this with my son
Speaker: he's He's six. It was a little over his head, but I didn't feel uncomfortable watching this with my son. You know what I mean? The subject was a little over his head, but none of the material was inappropriate for him.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. Yeah, i I think you can just tell. i mean, we talk about this, you know, when we talked about season one. There's just so much, like, love and care for this series when it's being made. And you can see that. It's very clear.
Speaker: You can tell by the actors. Like, when you watch interviews of the actors, they've all read this series. They read it when they were younger. Like, I remember... walker who is um the actor who plays percy when he was first you know told that he was going to be playing percy i remember him having like his camp half-blood shirt on from whenever he was actually much younger before he even knew that this was going to be a role like a possible role that he would play like
Speaker: These actors have a serious love for this series and it's shown and reflected as they play these parts. And I think that's why i love it so much.
Speaker: Even the new character Tyson, like the actor read this series when he was younger. I love that. Yeah. like It's so good. I love that. And even like Clarice. Clarice was like talking crap about book Clarice versus like movie or show Clarice. Right. She's like, that I hated her. She's like, I hated book Clarice. Me too. She's the worst. But she's like, but the show Clarice. I love the show Clarice. I feel like
Speaker: I see like so much like good in her even when she does like annoying things I see so much good in her and i mean i kind of see that in the book too I see that a little bit in the book just I see more of it in the show and I just like love their interpretation of yeah everything it's just so good so good So we get to Camp Half-Blood and we learn that Talia's tree has been poisoned.
Speaker: ah So the camp's magical barrier is weakening. Chiron has been accused and fired as activities director. And then we get in Tantalus.
Speaker: Tantalus is so well done. i was going to say, how do we feel about him? How do we feel about him? He's a jerk. as Yeah, the character it's horrible. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The character is horrible.
Speaker: ah It was when at first, in the first episode, maybe it was the second episode, whenever when they introduced him. And I was just like, I don't know how I feel about this guy. Yeah, that's how I felt.
Speaker: But honestly, as we go on, i was just like, okay, I get it now. get it now. Yeah, that's I had a similar feeling about it. I think his name is Timothy Simmons that plays him.
Speaker: I thought that i like i was standoffish about it at first, and then I thought it was really well done. Honestly, the whole time i was like thinking, i was like, oh, this would be the absolute worst curse. Yeah.
Speaker: This would be the worst curse. I would be... miss I would... I would... Honestly, I would become evil. I still get it. I would become evil. Because the curse is that he can't eat or drink anything. And like the whole time during the book and in the in the TV series, he keeps trying to grab food or grab like a cup to drink something. And it moves away from him or it doesn't let him eat it or grab it. And it's hilarious. Yeah. I love the way that's written. Yes. when It's so funny.
Speaker: It's so nonchalant. It's like when they're at the campfire and they're roasting marshmallows and he's like, he tries to sneak the marshmallow from the stick and it says the marshmallow jumps into the fire. Yeah.
Speaker: But it's so subtle about it. It's really good. Yeah, it's so funny. I love it. But yeah, in in Greek mythology, Tantalus was punished by the gods when, among other offenses, he tried to serve them a stew made from the meat of his own son.
Speaker: I talk about it a little bit in the book. It's also very subtle. It's also very gross. But he was forced to stand in the middle of a pool of water that went up to his chin as well as ah there's a branch that hangs above him.
Speaker: And he's not able to drink the water or eat the fruit from the branch. So he's just stuck there. And that's the origin for the word tantalizing. yeah.
Speaker: Interesting. There are so many words that are derived in the English language that are derived from Greek, specifically Greek myths and Greek tales. And I just think it's fascinating.
Speaker: I love it. I love all the Greek stuff. Yeah. I think, I don't remember if this around... That scene where we get like a lot of like Tantalus or not.
Speaker: But one of my favorite scenes in the book, I don't love it as much in the series. I like it in the book a little more. um Is when Tyson is claimed by Poseidon. Yeah. I cried.
Speaker: You guys. I just, I love Tyson. I'm emotional. No. Ever since I started this podcast, I realized am an emotional ass reader.
Speaker: I can't believe it. I cry at everything. But Tyson is so lovable and so just... innocent and sweet and kind and so and yet he's been you know ostracized and and abused and you know chased down by monsters and given you know left for an abandoned child and and then something good happens to him like i cried too girl don't don't get it twisted that hit me hard no i love i love tyson
Speaker: Something it like really got me because in the book specifically, like they, you know, bring Tyson with them to the camp and he there's like a whole thing to invite like a monster into the camp and stuff like that. And so they do that and everyone's like, oh my God, he's not supposed to be here, you know, and everyone's freaking out about it and all that stuff. And like, you know, Percy's thinking that Tyson's going to be kicked out He doesn't want him to be kicked out.
Speaker: And at this point, he's just thinking like, this is just his friend that he's supposed to be taken care of in the book specifically. And he at that point, he kind of like, he makes like a wish or something to say like, please help me keep him here.
Speaker: like kind of talking to his dad almost, like, please help me keep him here. And then there's this moment where he they have like the sign above his head where Poseidon claims him as his son. And that, like, my heart,
Speaker: Oh my gosh. I got goosebumps. good. And that was so good in the book. Like it was so quick in the series where I think that they were just like immediately attacked by like Clarice and stuff the second that they cross like the threshold that's protecting them by the tree and stuff. And then immediately, you know...
Speaker: Tyson is claimed by Poseidon but in the book it just was like he was like it was a call for help and was immediately claimed and that just like That one really got me for sure. But then Percy was kind of just being like, I kind of don't want you as my brother.
Speaker: And i was like, Percy, if you don't get it together. Yeah. Don't be mean to your brother. Right. If you don't stop misbehaving. Yeah. Right. That's your brother. Don't be mean to him. That's a very middle school thing, though. We all had that one friend that was like, we wanted them to be our friend, but they was we were also kind of embarrassed by them or whatever. You know what i mean? Like, there's that one kid in school that like,
Speaker: you don't want to be mean, but you also don't necessarily want to be treated like they are. So you don't want to be too close, you know? Like, yeah. Yeah. That's a very middle school experience, a very junior high thing. And so to see it written into the book, like, i don't know. It yeah hit me hard too. Cause it's all about like wanting to fit in. And this was something that wasn't helping him fit in yeah And, you know, and I think also there was a thing where he was the only son to that he thought to yeah his dad and now it was almost like a competitive type feeling with someone else even though Tyson was the sweetest boy ever so sweet and was like I'm gonna protect you and we're gonna be like best buds best brothers ever so i was like if you don't get over it you're fine
Speaker: We also have an introduction to the chariot races. Which was interesting. Mm-hmm. But we get to see Tyson work his magic and help craft the ah the chariots that Percy uses. Mm-hmm. I like this in the show. I like that they kept it for the show.
Speaker: and Yeah, I liked it too. I thought it was pretty fun. But also I'm just like, okay, so like all this like crazy hellish things are happening Why are we doing this right now? Okay.
Speaker: I know we don't talk a lot about this particular one on this um podcast, but this is very HP coded. You know we have a whole bunch like the first season we had the capture the flag. Now, you know, or the first book now in this book, we have the chariot race and, you know, i'm pretty sure this predates that series.
Speaker: But it's it's very much the like, we're still going to have fun and do our thing here at camp. Oh, yeah. Even though the world's burning down outside and yeah the whole, you know there's a prophecy that this kid. There's a Quidditch match. You know, exactly. You know.
Speaker: So like that they changed it up, though, because if it was Capture the Flag every single book, it would get boring. ah So I'm glad we're doing chariot races now. i don't I don't remember what we do in the next book, but I'm sure there's something.
Speaker: And I'm excited about it already. I'm excited too. I have no idea. Yeah. I genuinely have no idea what to expect. I've read all of these, but it's been like 20 years. So I don't remember.
Speaker: Yeah. i thought it was so funny when they were, I think they were playing what, would they play like a Mariah Carey song? Yes. yes The whistle note. The whistle note. To help all, like, because they realized that, you know, during the chariot race, the barrier is breaking. and these like birds stuff through yeah and they break through and they have they notice that music is gonna help them like go away or like loud noises and stuff and they play mariah carey whistle notes to help them go away and honestly like shout out to annabeth which is like very hermione coded obviously
Speaker: She just like always like, I really like, I like Annabeth lot. Like I think she said, and the girl who plays Annabeth, I think she is such a great actress.
Speaker: She just plays her so well. And I, I always get like, she makes me feel more emotionally connected to the character.
Speaker: Honestly, more than I feel in the book so far. I mean, this could change, but I feel more emotionally connected to her in the show than I do in the book.
Speaker: Because I think she's just like she's just very good at like her face expressions, showing how stoic she'll be. But then like when those emotions do come out, they mean a lot.
Speaker: And... I really like her a lot. I think she's great.
Speaker: Of this part, we also learn that Grover is trapped by a Cyclops, which we haven't really even discussed Annabeth's distrust of Cyclops, but she is very hesitant of Tyson being involved in anything. And now we learn that Grover's trapped by Polyphemus, who's another Cyclops.
Speaker: And then we learn of the Golden Fleece, That can be used to heal the tree and save the camp. oh Yes.
Speaker: Honestly, the whole time I was thinking of like the golden fleece is actually like a thing also. Yes. In mythology. And ah the whole time I was like trying to picture what this golden fleece would look like.
Speaker: And then we finally saw it. I'm like, why? It looked like a rug. Like, it looks like here's one of those scrub brushes that you use to, like, clean off the the Brillo pads. Yeah, the Brillo pads. Yes. Have you ever seen the fleece of a sheep after the sheep has been sheared? Yes.
Speaker: I feel like this is as close as we're going to get if it's made out of potentially golden Like, gold gold. Like, wire thread. You know what I mean? like Yeah. Like, metal gold. Now, in my mind, I always assumed that the golden fleece was not actually made out of gold. That it was just, like, golden hair. yeah That's kind of what I was picturing. And so, when I saw it and it was, like, shiny metallic gold, i was like, wait.
Speaker: I thought we were going for, like, gold in the color, not the the material. Yeah. It looked like a Brillo pad. Exactly what Lindsay said. It really was like a Brillo pad. I've seen like sheared sheep fleece.
Speaker: And it it looks soft. like you kind of want to You want to touch it. Because it's smushy soft. and I did not want to touch that. No. It looks scratchy. yeah It looked painful. yeah I like that they kept...
Speaker: Grover's storyline like yeah so much like the book that was really good i love that a lot we do have like extra like in the very beginning how grover gets there we have like this extra element of like luke's like posse basically like his bad group like we have an extra character i don't think that that character is in the book is in the book at all which i think is interesting which one are we talking about Oh, gosh. What is her name? The girl. Allison. Yes, Allison. Yeah. Yeah. She's not in the book.
Speaker: Like, I know we're going to talk about the movie on the next episode, but there are a few things that happen in the movie that didn't happen in the book that seem to have made their way into the series.
Speaker: Like, the posse, like that Chris Rodriguez character, he's not in the book, but he's in the other movie, and now he's in the series.
Speaker: I don't remember him being in the book, but... He's not picked for the quest, like he's in the series, but they mention him in the book. Yeah, but he's not like... Yeah, it's in passing, right? he's not not character that you care about. And like he becomes involved specifically in the storyline in the movie and in the series.
Speaker: and Yeah, interesting. So there's been a couple of like little things like that. Like even in the like the um the taxi ride with the three sisters, there were a lot of things that happened in a little bit differently in the movie that brought over to the series that weren't in the book. Now, not enough to change the...
Speaker: the the story at all and you know little things but it it i i find it really interesting that again it kind of goes back to our frankenstein thing like the lightning and frankenstein in the 1931 not in the book at all but somehow lightning frankenstein has permeated frankenstein lore and so now we see some of this stuff kind of permeating from the movie into the story or into the series yeah that makes sense yeah like we kind of talked about Very early on in the series, it's known that Luke is the one who poisoned Talia's tree.
Speaker: So we are on a quest to find Luke. Hermes has shown up. He's helped Percy. And he only requests that Percy find his son and help his son.
Speaker: So Percy, Annabeth, and Tyson find Luke's cruise ship, which... I really liked the, was it the hippocampi?
Speaker: Yes. They're really cool. They didn't do like a lot of that in the show, unfortunately. Yeah. In the book, they immediately use them to get to the ship. I think in the series, they are on like a little boat or something.
Speaker: I love that so much. And I love Tyson is like so sad when he has to leave them. Like he's like crying. He says like Percy says that he's like crying about it. Water ponies. I'm like, oh my gosh, I love Tyson so much.
Speaker: I love them. Protect him at all costs. Yes. But they get to the cruise ship, which is the Princess Andromeda. And they are captured by Luke. I like this whole cruise ship thing so much. Yeah. i think it's so cool. Like when they get there and i was like, okay, so what is to happen? And they're like, Tyson can sense the monsters on there. Yeah.
Speaker: And you know, I can, like, just see, like, the entire cruise ship. Like, they're, like, seeing the stuff on the TV. And, you know, they're, like, sitting in the room and stuff. and And they don't really show this in the show. But show this in the show. They don't really do that in the show. But they do it in the book where everyone almost is robotic. Yes.
Speaker: And almost in a trance, like they're not seeing the monsters that are obviously around them. And like, they're like, I'm having a great time. I'm having a fun time in the pool. Like they're doing all these things. But in the show, they're kind of just like there and the monsters are around them and they're just not seeing it or noticing. Because they have like that mist thing.
Speaker: thing going on yep the mist yeah not the mist yeah not the movie the mist no not the stephen king mist yeah no different thing which i mean there are monsters in the mist true don't ruin this book for me yeah but this is where we learn that luke is working to revive chronos mm-hmm ah So now we know what we're stopping. Yep.
Speaker: And we believe that Luke also wants the Golden Fleece to revive Kronos. Because he he has, like, parts of Kronos. Or, like, he's trying to put all of Kronos together. And um the Golden Fleece is supposed to completely heal people. And that's why they're they are healing the tree, healing Kronos, bringing it back to life.
Speaker: So... Not good. Not good. Not looking good for us. Nope. And then back at Camp Half-Blood, when the Golden Fleece quest was initially given, it was not given to Percy. It was given to Clarice.
Speaker: Clarice is given a ship by her father, Ares, called the CSS Birmingham. And she is also out finding the Golden Fleece. we have three separate parties looking for the same object.
Speaker: ah Percy and Annabeth end up joining her quest. And they... Go it up. Yeah, they they... It's a mess. I think the name of the chapter is Clarice Blows Everything Up or something like that. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. I like this in the show a lot where whenever they run into Clarice, Annabeth basically, like...
Speaker: kill all the important people of her crew to be like okay you need us now so now we're coming with you can we i i gotta talk about mitch the the one guy so clarice's um ship is manned by dead soldiers like that that um aries got for her oh also like hey aries oh But so so they're full of like, they're losers, right? these are These are the like, they died in battle. They, from the losing side.
Speaker: And one of them is like, ah like and I noticed in the lineup when she's being introduced, there's a guy wearing a blockbuster polo. And I'm like, no is that really a block is it really is that and we later find out that his name is Mitch and they were like what war did you fight and he's like uh the streaming wars it was really hard like yes I loved that so much so so much and then like Mitch at one point comes running around the corner hey boss uh we really need you out here can you help and it was so retail like I get it man yeah I get it poor Mitch
Speaker: but they She also asked Mitch if he was able to do any of the jobs that the other three men had done before Annabeth took them out. And he was like, I just do inventory. i know. I loved it.
Speaker: they loved it. i hope I hope he found his way to the fields of Elysium. Yeah. That honestly made me really sad because she, you know, Clarice promises them that if they fight with her,
Speaker: to go to like the next steps with which is charybdis and scylla and everything and she says to pro she promises that that she will talk to aries and everything and so that kind of like pushes them to finally be like all right let's do this let's fight and i was like oh my gosh what if they don't actually go like this is gonna be so sad I think it's awesome that we see Clarice's character like genuinely begin to care about her soldiers. Because we don't really get that in the book as much kind of at all.
Speaker: But we definitely see her start to care yeah in in this one. And I love that. I love that. Because you can kind of feel it happening, starting to happen in the book. That she starts to care about the people around her. But we get to see that in action in the show. And I love that. Yeah, I'm curious if that, honestly, that development happens later in the series and they're just kind of pushing it up a little bit faster.
Speaker: But yeah, i think it, like you said, I think it was such a perfect moment to incorporate that. ah Yeah, I'm also wondering what exactly they're picking from future books to bring forward much faster because I don't know what's going to happen. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker: But like Carrie said, they do encounter Scylla and Cryptus. And at first, they are going to take on Scylla. Scylla is the one with the tentacles.
Speaker: Is it tentacles or is it scorpion tail? i don't I don't know. i think it's a kind of like yeah tentacles that end up in a...
Speaker: end in a scorpion tail because she's they say she's high up on the rock so she's not like a she's not a squid or an octopi she's grabbing him right so i i feel like i don't i don't know she got six arms is what they said because they had to they were gonna potentially sacrifice six soldiers yeah This part was scaring me.
Speaker: I was part was so intense. It was so good in the show. Yeah. and They did really well in the show because they have, you know, Clarice, um Percy, and Annabeth. They're like inside of the ship.
Speaker: But, you know, they have people on deck that are basically going to be the sacrifices. Yeah. And, you know, and then all of a sudden you see Clarice's face like she's like, we got to go the other way. We have to go the other direction because it's like you're picking two really terrible scenarios. Yeah. um And she's like, we got to go to Charybdis and then goes the other way. And Charybdis is like.
Speaker: Hell, like literally we're going to in this giant whirlpool, which is honestly my worst nightmare. I don't like water. Water's scary. This is why I'm not a cruise person.
Speaker: Yeah, yeah. I want to say one thing, though. Like, something that does, like, bother me a little bit about this series, both the book and the show, is that, like, I really...
Speaker: wonder You know, I haven't read the rest of the series, so I don't know if this is supposed there's a reason for this and this is going to come forth later. Like, I don't understand why we don't have Percy doing more water things.
Speaker: You know, like... protecting people specifically honestly more in the show because we do see him doing things in the book but like he's not doing any water stuff like we're it like we're in the shit right now of you know almost dying at sea and we've got son of poseidon here Who's kind of not doing anything with the water. But didn't they say it's because because he's in the Sea of Monsters, he doesn't it's not Poseidon's domain? Oh, yes.
Speaker: Yes. But even after that, he's not doing much. He's not doing anything. Even outside of outside of it. Yeah, like when they're on the island... Like you're surrounded by water. You could have on any of the islands. Yeah. Even when they go to like the cruise ship and stuff. Yeah. I was like, is Amiris not really doing any.
Speaker: Cool water. Water things. Where's the water bending? Yeah. At some point, I think he does mention something about. Poseidon was gracious enough to give him some abilities over the water.
Speaker: But that isn't really. standard. Like, that doesn't normally happen. Yeah. Because we're seeing so much, I mean, technically, of Anibus' abilities. Anibus' abilities is, like, wisdom, right? So she is, like, utilizing that twenty four seven We see Clarice's abilities, you know, of you know, she is the daughter of Ares, and she is utilizing that all the time. I just feel like we're not seeing a lot of Percy's abilities. Yeah. We saw him navigate, though. That's a new one that he has being able navigate. we see that in the book, and I feel like that's not really doing a lot in in the show. So that was like a kind of a bit of of a complaint I had about the series. that's fair.
Speaker: Yeah. So we get to Cersei's Island after... Oh, wait, wait, wait, wait. Wait, wait. Boz, we have to talk about this. About Tyson point. I was going back. I was going back. Yeah. Okay, wait.
Speaker: Tyson, at this point, freaking, we think he dies. Did you guys think he died? No. I thought he died. They wouldn't introduce such an amazing character that was obviously meant as, like, Percy's pal. Percy's, like, buddy. Yeah.
Speaker: just to kill him off. but Like, I knew that. yeah I knew that couldn't. he was gone too long. Like first I was like, yeah, he's not dead. And then all sudden I was like, hello we're on almost the last chapter.
Speaker: Where's Tyson? I was very upset. i I don't know if anyone saw our Instagram stories, but i was like, can someone tell me if Tyson's okay? And then I turned the next page and he was okay. Okay.
Speaker: okay Yeah. I'm glad that was resolved pretty quickly. Yeah. i I was honestly very sad. And there was like a point, i think I marked it where he was like the last thing whenever like the ship blows up because Tyson is like at the bottom of the ship because he's trying to fix it because the engine is about to blow up and everything. And he's like able, the only one that's able to do that. Yeah.
Speaker: And I think it's interesting that Percy, whenever he talks about like he just wants to be done or like just wants to everything to be over, he always talks about drowning, which I think is like very sad because like that's his thing. Water is everything to him.
Speaker: And he says, the last thing I remembered was sinking in a burning sea, knowing that Tyson was gone forever and wishing I were able to drown. And that...
Speaker: hurt me very badly it was like the one thing that you were supposed to love you would rather it end you because that's how bad like this thing upset you and i thought that was that was pretty deep i was like deep for this like the ocean yeah like the sea that was yep that's where he went all the way to the bottom nope yeah thought that was good
Speaker: So now we get to Cersei's Island. Or is it Miami, Florida? I don't remember. i don't know. We're going to so many different places. many different places. We're partying. It's fine. Cersei's or Cece's Spa. Cece's. Yeah. We don't know it's Cersei yet. Yeah.
Speaker: But yeah. Surprise. It's Cersei. And Percy is turned into a guinea pig. Mm hmm. That made me laugh. I knew it was coming, but it made me laugh. Yeah. Yeah. i remember I remember reading it and thinking, i know Annabeth is really smart, but I really hope Annabeth figures this out really fast. Yeah, because she was being like, like they were kind of like trying to, i'm trying to think of the right word.
Speaker: Like they were trying to convince her like everything's okay. Everything's fine. And she was just like kind of be like la-di-da. Like i'm having a great time. They were like dressing her up and they were like giving her food. And like i was like is she gonna figure this out?
Speaker: So I was a little panicked. Did you guys ever have guinea pigs? I did. you know the sound they make. Yes. Like, kui kui sound. Can you imagine? Because at one point he's like, in the book, they're talking about like the guinea pigs were screaming because there's other guinea pigs there. Yeah. The guinea pigs were all screaming.
Speaker: Like, can you imagine like 15, 20, 30 of these guinea pigs all at that that high pitch? Kui kui kui kui. Yeah. I, uh-uh. No, thank you. I was reading that I was getting anxious. was like, nope. Turn the page. Yeah. i used to I used to work at a pet store.
Speaker: Yeah. Pass. none You're in that all the time. but You're like, um are you a human? Right. And then we see the sirens.
Speaker: h I love this scene in the book better than I do in the show. I liked It felt more emotional in the book. Yeah. hated in the show that we see Athena come down. Because instantly was like, oh, it's a trap. jumpsuit. Right?
Speaker: But instantly I was like, it's a trap. It's a trap. Because ain't like none of these gods and goddesses actually visit their own children. Ever. And this is our first time seeing Athena. Yeah.
Speaker: the like I think Ares visiting Clarice is the only time we've seen a god actually meet with their own child outside of Percy.
Speaker: And in the book, he didn't even physically meet with her. Nope. So yeah, when when Athena showed up in her yellow jumpsuit, I was like, nah, nah, not believable at all.
Speaker: yeah Saw that coming. i love this whole thing in the book so much. i think it's so good how, you know, he puts like the wax in his ears and like she's like tied to the ship as they cross to the sirens. And then like she eventually jumps in and like he I think that is like, they've always had this very, you know,
Speaker: platonic like relationship and all this stuff friendship you know they're very young obviously yeah but I think it's like at that point they have like a much closer like bond mm-hmm
Speaker: whenever this happens, I think their bond, like, they have him a better connection because when he jumps in and he, you know, puts that air bubble around them whenever they're underwater. And that was, like, a moment when he used, like, his powers. Yep. And I think i was like, oh I really wish we would have seen that.
Speaker: I loved that in the book. Yeah, I wish we would have seen that in the show. Yep. That would have been good. So, back to Grover and Polyphemus.
Speaker: Grover is pretending to be a female Cyclops because Polyphemus has terrible eyesight, which... Wouldn't the Golden Fleece heal that? i I was curious. Maybe he never purposely used it for himself?
Speaker: Yeah. I just feel like if you had it there, why not? Right. And I get that. I mean, he really only cared about being alone and caring for his sheep, but I mean...
Speaker: at least be able to see him. you would think. Yeah, true. I also really liked them bringing Odysseus and his story and nobody Nobody. I like all of that being in the story. I think this is why i enjoy the series so much. I love all of the Greek mythology they bring in. It's not just one set story. It's like all these stories.
Speaker: Yeah. And they make it like really fun and sometimes they make it super like subtle. To where you won't know like unless you know it or like you look more into it. like It's not super obvious sometimes if you don't already know it. Right. Which I think is fun.
Speaker: Yep. And then Polyphemus is also a lot smarter in the series than he is in the book. Yeah. Yeah. like he Like he knew all along that Grover was a satyr. And like somehow like he had teamed up with Luke and like this was a trap to begin with.
Speaker: who was i It was weird. Didn't like that. Honestly. Yeah. And there's the fake fleece. you know Yeah. yeah That was... I didn't love that a lot.
Speaker: ah i also wish that we had the flesh-eating sheep in the show. I liked that in the book. I thought that was pretty cool. and They introduced them in such a typical way, but it was is actually really interesting. I liked it.
Speaker: His security guards or his security system or whatever he called it in the book. and It's the... Cannibal sheep. And Tyson's just able to walk through them because he is a Cyclops and he smells like Polyphemus.
Speaker: I liked all that too. And that wasn't in the series. Yeah. ah But then Luke is there again. And Luke captures Percy once again. And they are back on the Princess Andromeda in Miami. I think they're in Miami now. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: I think so. But I think in this series, they're in Long Island. In the book, they're in Miami.
Speaker: I think so. I just know the ending of the series kind of went in a different direction. i really did not like it than the book. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. Yeah, it definitely did something. think because it's really pushing this Luke being this bad guy, you know, they're they're really trying to push this whole thing. Because throughout the series, we're having these flashbacks the entire time of, um, it's her name, Talia, right?
Speaker: We're having flashbacks of Talia the entire time, who is the girl who is Zeus's daughter, or yeah zeus's daughter who was turned into the tree, all that stuff. And who was apparently, you know, Luke's very close friend and someone that Annabeth admires.
Speaker: And we don't really touch on that a ton in the book, but that is, like, such a huge plot line through the entire series. And I'm curious if that's, like, extremely important later the series. mean, it's the prophecy. Yeah, that we're going to be talking about way more in the The great prophecy is about a child of the big three.
Speaker: yeah so we've only got Percy and now... but or Talia too. Yeah. Yeah, so like this whole thing with Luke being so much more like extra in this ending, i get it but I don't love it. like With Annabeth, because Annabeth is also injured in the book, right? At the end.
Speaker: But this whole thing of like where Percy has to give him the fleece, because I think what they're trying to do is being like, Percy probably...
Speaker: probably not sacrifice his friends to save the world. That was his fatal flaw. Yeah, that's his fatal flaw. And this is proving that because he needs to get the fleece away from Kronos or the person that is being controlled by Kronos. And he will throw all that away to save a friend.
Speaker: And this proved that in like two seconds, you know, you were just shown your fatal flaw and you're immediately shown that You didn't pass the test kind of thing. And I think they had they were immediately showing that in this second season, which I get, you know, I get that.
Speaker: I didn't hate it, though. I just don't love it. Sorry. i was I was more upset with the fact that there was there was more Sally, Percy's mom, and less Chiron.
Speaker: Yes. Yes. But I do love that one time in any child middle grade series, somebody said, maybe we should call your mom.
Speaker: yeah I'm just saying that was really refreshing. Yeah. I needed that. Yeah. And I like that the mom was like, all right, I'm on my way. Pick you up. No questions asked. Let's go.
Speaker: And then. I also love that when they're driving down the road and they run into Blackjack, the horse, they don't run into him. They, when they meet up with Blackjack, the horse who's standing in the middle of the road, like an idiot. Yeah.
Speaker: Percy's like, it's okay, mom. I know him. And he jumps out of the car and runs to go talk to this Pegasus. And Sally's just like, oh, he knows him. Got it.
Speaker: but Yeah. This is my life now. i will say this was one of my, Blackjack was one of my favorite characters. Well, that and Tyson. Because my son was like, why does that guy only have one eye? And then, oh my God, that guy has a flying horse. So these were really great six-year-old moments in this series.
Speaker: I love that. That's great. I think also adding this whole battle scene at the end of the series was kind of interesting as well.
Speaker: Also, like the fact that in the series, like he kept having those dreams that he assumed was Kronos, like coming in to like attack him basically. And then finding out that it was Talia.
Speaker: i actually kind of like that. I like that little like twist that we had in there. That was pretty good. But this whole like battle scene with like all of like Luke's people and then all like the Camp Half-Blood people, that's not really in the book.
Speaker: So I thought that was interesting that they added all that extra stuff in there. Yeah. I mean, they had to make it epic. Yeah, they did. Especially for finale.
Speaker: Yeah, that's true. They did have to make it epic. I mean, that that part when Talia... So they put like the fleece on all that stuff. And Clarice getting there to put the help put the fleece on. It's so dramatic and extra. and then Talia comes to life because she is... ah she like hits Percy...
Speaker: Yeah, she hits Percy when she comes back to life because it was like almost like she was like in the middle of doing something whenever she was like turned into a tree. And I'm wondering, i'm like how did she you know not age at all?
Speaker: She was in the tree. I know, but from the point that you're turned into a tree? I think that's interesting. It's like stasis. You're in stasis. You're on pause. Trees grow slow, so Talia grew slow.
Speaker: yeah I think it's also talked about in The Lightning Thief when they explain what the tree is and what it does and what Zeus did to save Talia. I don't remember the specifics, but I think they talked about it.
Speaker: Okay. I have to look back at that, though. But I do like the cinematic moment like when they both like fall apart. And because it's going to be where they're almost one in the same, i think, because they're both born from these powerful gods.
Speaker: But like, which one is going to be the bad one and which is going to be the good one? I think I'm assuming that's going to be what the future holds for them. And even Annabeth was like, I'd be curious to see you two together because you're either going to be best friends or you're going to hate each other. Yeah. And honestly, Annabeth was annoying me at the end where I'm just like, okay, like, stop saying, like, Talia's your best friend because I don't think this is a good person.
Speaker: Like, I think you just woke up someone that's possibly a bad that's going to cause chaos. It was six years ago. And you are just now, what, she's 14 maybe? 13, 14? Mm-hmm. So, like, six years, you're telling me this you've been talking to a tree for six years? And, you know, i mean, don't get me wrong. Obviously, you're still emotionally connected to this traumatic thing that happened to someone you love.
Speaker: But also, you didn't you didn't think to find a different best friend, someone you could talk back, maybe? as a Like, you're a small child, and six years later, you still...
Speaker: are holding a torch for this tree. Like, come on. And you know that she is best friends with Luke. Right. Like the bad guy. i don't know if she thinks that she, that Talia would like bring Luke back to like the good side or something, like talk some sense into him or something. But I'm just like, this is a bad idea.
Speaker: i fear this is not good. Yeah, and I was curious, again, if they're they're bringing stuff forward from future books into the series very early on with Talia and her story.
Speaker: Yeah, because at the very end of the book, as something I really, really love is... So, we he never meets up with his dad. He never meets up with Poseidon. in the book but he does get like a letter from him and all the letter says is brace yourself and that's it i love that i thought that was so good and then you know he hears hey everyone needs to come right now to the tree or whatever and it's talia like waking up from the tree basically
Speaker: And I thought that was so good in the book. I love that. Did everyone stick around for the end credit scene? i did. i did.
Speaker: Look at you, Carrie. I know. I actually did it this time. Both of them. Both. he Both. Okay. Not progress. And I only know one. i only know one. That's okay. The Poseidon one.
Speaker: is it oh wait what poseidon won was that post credit was that when percy meets with poseidon because it's the dad from the robinsons okay so wasn't that post credit i don't think that that was a post was that a post credit i thought that was just at the end i thought it was after like title drop i could be wrong I know that there there was a post credit of where, you know, Percy and Annabeth almost look like they're a a school dance. Oh, yes. Okay. That's no. Yeah, there are two.
Speaker: Yeah, there's one more after that. yeah You're kidding. They're at the school dance and that's when they announced season three is coming this year. And then there's another one after that. and There's another one after that. You guys, I still haven't learned. It's okay. You're forgiven. I'll learn next time. Okay, tell me about the other one that I missed. Annabeth and Percy get statues.
Speaker: in cc spa for passing the sirens so she's talking about um an advanced if you let's take the advanced ah course it gets fast results kind of thing yep okay wow you guys failed on that one i'll try better next time I always like the end credits in the show are so long, like very long, but they're like beautiful. Like they're stunning because all like the pictures and the drawings and stuff are incredible. Yeah. My son wouldn't let me fast forward through the credits. He yeah loved watching that. And the the music is so like, I don't know, like moving just kind of. And he was just fixated on that every single episode.
Speaker: Yeah, it's so good. and But then there's like that little next episode button, and I'm just like, click, click. But if you miss it, you just got to sit there and wait it out. Yep. I did. Yep, exactly.
Speaker: Well, what's our final verdict on this one? I don't even have any guesses this time. Carrie? um I think i I adore the show. Like I love, love, love the show. I was so excited to watch it. But I'm going to have to go book.
Speaker: I really I finished that book so fast. And I had a freaking blast reading that. i felt like very emotionally connected to a lot of scenes in it versus the show. so i'm going have to go book.
Speaker: I'm going with show. You guys, we've we've talked about this before off pod, but I have aphantasia. don't see the story. Because I felt so disconnected from the settings bouncing around in this story, watching the show helped me to really feel more immersed in it.
Speaker: So I'm going to go show. I'm actually going to go book I just felt like everything was revealed way too quickly in the series. It it was pretty fast.
Speaker: Yep. That brings us to our question of the episode. What do you think your fatal flaw would be if you were a demigod? Crystal?
Speaker: Oh, analysis paralysis. I can't make a decision to save my life. I can't commit to a decision without someone else's input. That's that's that's my my fatal flaw. I need someone to push me one way or another. i will overanalyze and overanalyze and overanalyze and never make a decision.
Speaker: Yeah. I feel that. yeah I feel that. Gary? um I talked to my family about this because it's I like, I don't know. i i like, obviously i have plenty of flaws, but like my fatal flaw, like what's the one that I'll really, that that it's like the top one that'll get me. And like, I kind of talked to them about it and they said forgiveness. I am, I hold grudges Right.
Speaker: I hold grudges real bad. I'm the type to, I will ghost. I will block. You'll never see me again. I'm really bad at that.
Speaker: I don't know that that's a fatal flaw though. Like that's just, it's protecting your peace girl. Yeah. I think to an extent, but sometimes it's like, all right, just get over it You know?
Speaker: That's fair. What about you, Lindsay? Yeah. My fatal flaw would be obsession or um hyper-focus. I tend to dive very deeply into the things that I care about. um So, like, podcast episodes, research, writing details, like...
Speaker: Yeah, i'm I'm overworking myself. Overthinking, getting stuck, trying to perfect something. So, yeah. Oh, yeah. Definitely my fatal flaw. I get that too.
Speaker: You get that tunnel vision going. Mm-hmm. Yeah, it sucks. My own worst enemy. Yeah, I can see that. But all of these, they'll have like, yeah, they're fatal flaws, but sometimes they'll have good stuff too.
Speaker: It's true. Yeah. They have good elements to them as well. Well, that's going to wrap up today's quest through the Sea of Monsters. Thanks for sailing with us. If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow Based on a Book on all of our socials so you don't miss future episodes, polls, and behind-the-scenes content.
Speaker: And if there's a book-to-screen adaptation you'd love for us to cover, send us your recommendations using the link in our show notes. We're always looking for new stories to add to our reading list. And until next time, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. And we'll see you in the next chapter Based on a Book.
Speaker: Bye!
