RIOTUS

If last season came through like a lightning bolt, Season 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is a tidal wave—sweeping us back into a world where the Greek gods meddle too much or care too little, monsters roam the edges of our awareness, and demigods splat face-first into the messiness of becoming a hero. In Season 1, Percy (Walker Scobell), Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), and Grover (Aryan Simhadri) proved themselves against Medusa, the trials of Hades, and the ultimate betrayal—when Luke (Charlie Bushnell) was revealed as the lightning thief and a minion of Kronos. 

The fandom breathed a sigh of relief while watching the first run of this adaptation: Finally, the books opened up and Rick Riordan’s characters sprang to life. What makes this series thrilling isn’t just the gods and monsters but that it honors the original novels, with Riordan himself deeply involved as co-creator and executive producer. Plus a cast that’s everything readers want them to be. No surprise that Percy Jackson and the Olympians became the Disney+ most-watched original series of 2024.

This season, the stakes ascend from mythic threats to personal mythic threats. Camp Half-Blood’s magical border is failing, Thalia’s tree is in trouble, and Grover is missing while searching for Pan, the god of the Wild. Enter Tantalus (Timothy Simons), a camp activities director with a curse that would make a foodie wail like a banshee, and say welcome back to Clarisse (Dior Goodjohn) for a bigger role and more turmoil. Oh, and we have to introduce you to the cyclops Tyson (Daniel Diemer)—a sweetie who’s been revealed as Percy’s half-brother. Poseidon takes being fruitful and multiplying really really seriously. 

The season premiere, Episode 201 – “I Play Dodgeball with Cannibals” leaps out of a freewheeling taxi ride with the Gray Sisters (Kristen Schaal, Margaret Cho, and Sandra Bernhard) into a full-blown firefight with giant foes and roadblocks from the faculty, blending mythological mayhem with comic relief. It’s hard to resist Jason Mantzoukas as the sardonic Dionysus as Percy struggles with new family ties, unspoken words that keep him and Annabeth at a distance, and the fate of Camp Half-Blood—all of which ground the spectacle in tangible stakes.

After the chaos of a chariot race the fans are starving for—prepare for the delights of Mario Kart and the highs of a Mariah Carey whistle note—Percy, Annabeth, and Tyson are catapulted into a quest straight out of Jason and the Argonauts in Episode Two – “Demon Pigeons Attack”. Multiple revelations turn up the intensity. Prophecies and prophetic dreams go head to head, pushing Annabeth and Percy further apart as they each play to win, working to get to Grover faster with as few casualties as possible. The gods say, ha! And when Clarisse becomes part of the quest equation, the race gets more dire. Meanwhile, Hermes (Lin-Manuel Miranda) comes back around, once again with magical gifts and, okay, let’s just call it confusion.

Season 2 is all about the characters and watching how they grow, while facing obstacles that would make most of us tap out. The tension and awkwardness between Percy and Annabeth builds nicely. It’s a sighingly sweet opening foray into a lifelong bond and first love. With Grover’s fate hanging by a thread, his “empathy link” to Percy’s allows their friendship to grow organically too—offering glimpses of the peril they’re both immersed in. Clarisse shows us her vulnerable side, even while she plays tough, and we might be seeing both a new ally and a new legendary warrior rise. 

Everything about the first two episodes of Season 2 is satisfyingly twisty and emotional, pulsing with urgency and heart. Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ YA heart shows in the character arcs—Percy’s emerging leadership, Annabeth’s balance of vulnerability and strength, Tyson’s tenderness and quest for belonging, and Clarisse discovering she’s meant for more than war—elevate this coming-of-age contemporary epic fantasy. If the second half of the season blends humor, heroics, and heart like this, we’ll be cheering for Season 3 to enter the arena.