I’ve been an ardent fan of the “Percy Jackson” franchise ever since the 6th grade, and, like most fans, I was quite fervently disappointed in the movie adaptations. So, when the first season of the new Disney Plus series, “Percy Jackson and the Olympians,” was announced, I was well beyond stoked — a sentiment in which I carried for the release of the second season.

Even though it was advertised as book-accurate by the production team, which included the author of the series, Rick Riordan, the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series still altered and outright excluded scenes from the novel, which sparked mass debate online at the time.

Perhaps it’s just because the last time I read the book was in the 6th grade, but I didn’t mind the changes. For me, the series still captured the classic “Percy Jackson” essence: Greek mythology overload, intense action scenes, compelling characters, and quick-witted remarks. 

One of my favorite changes was the addition of the new character, Alison. And no, it’s not just because we share the same name, albeit spelled differently. Truthfully, I found Alison’s character very appealing, as she operated as part of Luke’s inner circle of anarchist demigods and demonstrated cut-throat ambition and loyalty to her master, Kronos.

The parallels between Alison and Luke are also quite compelling. While Alison is the flat, stone-cold, merciless fighter, Luke remains the dynamic, morally conflicted pawn. In fact, I think the addition of Alison’s character highlights the wavering loyalty in Luke; something that could have been less clear to audiences who are not familiar with the series.

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Now, even if I did enjoy most of the changes made, there is one glaring change I am disappointed with: Percy’s powers felt underutilized. Percy is the son of Poseidon, which is naturally a major aspect of his identity, and learning to deploy and command the abilities that come from his parentage is major to his character development.

So, seeing Percy reduced to practically powerless the entire season was a large-scale letdown. Sure, Percy used his powers to command the sea and change the tides once, but so many other scenes could have benefited from the addition of his powers.

You can’t even argue Disney just didn’t have a big special effects budget, as they were spending their time attempting to make cyclopes and skeletons look lifelike instead of giving Percy back the powers he rightfully deserves. Also, it’s Disney, they have the cash.

Plus, for the two years this eight-episode season was in production, I was hoping for the episodes to be slightly longer. By the time you remove the recap, title card, abundantly long end credit sequence, and the preview for the upcoming episode, the actual episodes themselves felt a lot shorter than they were officially advertised as.

The constant cut-to-black transitions featured in every episode were eye-roll-inducing and made it feel like a cut to commercial between scenes. While I’m not looking for the next piece of groundbreaking transition method, surely there was a better alternative to every transition being cut-to-black.

I do have to give the series some props because I swear I did actually enjoy it. For starters, the set design was one of my favorite aspects. I really enjoyed seeing the places I had once only been able to visualize come to life. Plus, as someone who grew up on Long Island, where the series takes place, it was quite enjoyable to spot some names and places I recognized.

The second season of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” might not have been perfect, but it was good enough for me. In fact, I might be daring enough to say that I preferred the second season to the first.

With the third season officially in production and slated for a release date later this year, I’m hoping that “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” continues to grow stronger, and that the production team listens to the fans who grew up with the series from the beginning.