Percy Jackson and the Olympians is fast approaching, leaving fans excited about the adaptation of one of the most celebrated middle-grade novels in recent memory. One of the things that the show is banking on is the involvement of the author of the original series, Rick Riordan.
One of the major criticisms of the Percy Jackson films was the sheer amount of details and plot points that were removed from the story to make a serviceable film aimed at teens. Among the objectionable changes were the aging up of characters, and the absence of key Camp staff like the Wine God Dionysus. However, despite the commitment to stay true to the books, the Rick Riordan lead series might be doomed to repeat the latter mistake all over again.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians might be missing a key character
Fans of the Riordanverse have been following every detail of the casting process. Riordan, on his personal blog, has posted every casting choice that the crew has made, even defending some after they received widespread backlash from certain problematic parts of the internet. However, fans were more than happy to see each character that they adore being cast in the story, who were previously cut from the films. Be it Mr. D or Dionysus, played by Jason Mantcoukas, or Echidna, the mother of monsters, played by Suzanne Cryer, fans are more than thrilled to see these characters come alive on the screen.
However, the series has still managed to cut (or not yet reveal) a key character who is involved at Camp Half-Blood, the training camp for Greek demigods in Riordan’s shared literary universe. Despite the series casting key Camp Staff like Chiron, the immortal Centaur, and trainer of heroes (played by the uber-talented Glynn Turman) there still seems to be no sign of the giant-turned-security guard of Camp Half-Blood, the hundred-eyed Argus.
With no Argus, Percy Jackson and the Olympians has a problem to solve
As blasphemous as it is to say, the lack of Argus found a solution in the films that might not work for the streaming series due on 22nd December. While Mr. D was also missing in the Percy Jackson films, the lack of Argus was made up by the fact that the characters were aged up and did not require adult supervision while getting from point A to point B, since the cast was playing 16-year-olds, which is the legal driving age in the United States of America.
However, since the series sticks to Percy, Annabeth, and Grover’s canon ages, which is 12, it remains to be seen how the characters will start their journey in the absence of the security guard of Camp Half-Blood, who was responsible for ferrying demigods to various locations to begin their quests. While this might be a dilemma in the story, not all hope is lost yet for the character.
While not appearing in any promotional material, Argus might still be present at CHB. Jason Gray-Stanford has been cast in the show in an undisclosed role. While this could be a multitude of characters, such as the matters-selling monster Procrustes, Gray-Stanford might end up playing Argus after all. If not, it waits to be seen how the show fixes the need for the character without repeating the mistakes of the film series.
