Percy Jackson and the Olympians – Episode 4 Review
- The Real Perspectives
- Dec 24, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 6
Reel Perspectives
December 24, 2025
Quests and emotions collide when the crew sails headfirst into the perilous Sea of Monsters.
We Learn Prophecies Are Trash & Annabeth Deserves Peace
Completely waterlogged Camp Counselor Morgan here, reporting on four missing-in-action campers, emotional flashbacks, and one undeniable truth Percy Jackson clocks early: prophecies really do suck, y’all.
And don’t get me wrong—Episode 4 is easily my favorite so far, not because of the chaos (though there’s plenty), but because it finally lets Annabeth’s (played beautifully by Leah Sava Jeffries) inner world take center stage. The Young Annabeth (our mini Annabeth is portrayed by the Marissa Winans) flashbacks don’t just add lore; they explain the weight she’s been carrying since last season, when she was trapped in Tartarus’ Fields of Asphodel by her own regrets.
One of those regrets begins with Young Annabeth on the run, reassured by Luke (Charlie Bushnell in a cute beanie), who gives her Kellogia’s bracelet of protection—similar (but non-magical) to the shield-morphing one Thalia carries. It’s not just a keepsake; it’s trust, safety, and found family wrapped around her wrist. We also meet Thalia (introducing badass in all scenes, Tamara Smart) pre-tree, defiant and ready to flee, until Grover (we missed you, Aryan Simhadri) finds them and urges the trio toward Camp Half-Blood. Luke resists and broods, Thalia wants no part of her father’s world, and Annabeth listens. But when Annabeth runs back to retrieve her lost bracelet and is demigod-napped by cyclopes—which finally explains why Annabeth is supes weird around Tyson—she’s rescued by a thunder-spear-and-shield-wielding Thalia.
That night, Thalia makes the choice that haunts Annabeth to this day: Camp Half-Blood is worth the risk if it keeps her family safe.
Flash forward to the present, after the escape from the Princess Andromeda, where Annabeth finds the hideout Luke once brought her to—and the long-lost bracelet of Kellogia. The memories hit hard, right up until an explosion rocks the shoreline. Percy (getting better and better at stunt work, Walker Scobell) and Tyson (Daniel Diemer, killing it with CGI dots) are having a tender brother moment, with Percy reassuring Tyson that, despite the so-called Great Prophecy, not everything is what it seems—and that burping helps with stress—when Clarisse literally blows up their escape boat.
On a sidenote: It would be remiss not to discuss how Percy and Tyson’s growing bro-ship continues, which is some of the best character work this season. Yes, they’re on different learning curves, but watching Percy step confidently into his identity while guiding Tyson as a more experienced (yet shorter) brother has been captivating to watch.
We also see Poseidon lend Percy knowledge of the sea, allowing him to sense how close they are to the Sea of Monsters. This pushes Tyson to worry he hasn’t developed that bond yet, but Percy reassures him with such a gentle certainty.
Because Riordan knows, it took Percy time, too.
And a moment where Percy realizes his nautical mileage sensitivity powers are kicking in, he reassures Tyson with:
“I don’t know when it kicked in for me, but yeah. I know where I am.”
Being one with the sea, Percy finally understands where he stands—and, in his own way, thanks his estranged father. No worries, Tyson, you’ll get there soon.
Clarisse (the gorgeous, as ever, Dior Goodjohn), daughter of Ares and patron saint of aggressive confidence, demands the exact coordinates to the Sea of Monsters. Percy responds by challenging her to single combat for the ship, which she gleefully accepts. Percy holds his own far better than last season, and just when things escalate, Annabeth goes full Invisible Woman and takes out Clarisse’s zombie crew. It’s a reminder that Annabeth isn’t just the smart girl—she’s an army all her own. With no crew left, Clarisse has no choice but to bring the trio along.
Onboard, they debate how to survive the Sea of Monsters, caught between Scylla’s teeth and Charybdis’ swirling chaos. Annabeth, obviously, read The Odyssey and chooses Scylla—at the cost of six of Clarisse’s The Walking Dead soldiers. Clarisse agrees, guilt-ridden after promising her crew a one-way ticket to Elysium, a favor she plans to ask of her father.
And I mean this so very lovingly: absolutely not.
As doubt consumes her, Annabeth keeps trying—and failing—to rid herself of Kellogia’s bracelet, which mysteriously boomerangs back via Tyson, the sea, and a suspicious fishy tail that may or may not belong to a Siren. We’ll unpack that trauma in the next episode.
Taking a quiet moment, Annabeth confides in Percy about Thalia’s choice and the guilt she carries for Thalia’s sacrifice.
As we see the furies hunt down the forbidden child of Zeus, Annabeth laments:
“Thalia never made it to 16...”
With Thalia’s tree now poisoned, the Great Prophecy looms large. Annabeth fears history repeating itself—wonders whether wisdom is enough to save Percy, or if small, human choices will undo them both.
Percy, being Percy, reassures her. Choosing to protect someone you barely know, sacrificing yourself, saving Camp Half-Blood, and rescuing Grover is always the right call—even if the bracelet is cheap plastic and nonmagical.
Percy’s beaten worse odds than this… right? Right, Riordan???
Percy’s confidence vibes continue when Clarisse, of all people, gets vulnerable and asks how he survived last season and saved Sally. His answer? Friendship. Compadres. A trio. Community. You know—doing the work together.
And then Percy sums up the entire episode like he’s tweeting from Camp Half-Blood:
“Because prophecies suck. It’s like they’re made to scare you.”
No notes. Character development achieved. Put the book down—just kidding, please don’t do that.
By the time they reach Scylla’s deadly passage, chaos is inevitable. Clarisse charges in to save her men, fireballs light up the sea, and Percy and Annabeth lock in—Annabeth with Hermes’ wind thermos, Percy tapping into his still-loading Poseidon powers.
Nothing can go wrong now, right? …Right, Rick Riordan? Please don’t play with my emotions.
🔱🧡🦉 Top 3 Percabeth Squee Moments 🔱🧡🦉
“Annabeth, will you decide who’s more stupid?”
In a truly unserious debate over whose plan is the stupidest of stupid does, Percy turns to Annabeth for arbitration like the wise woman she is. When Annabeth sides with Clarisse’s pronunciation of Charybdis, Percy’s disappointed head tilt says everything. It’s that quiet tension between wanting to impress Annabeth and knowing when to step back and let her lead. Self-aware king behavior. So much character growth happening here.
“It only took me two days to see how special you are.”
Oh—did you hear that? That was me throwing my laptop across the room and pacing like a proud auntie. These writers understand the assignment. Annabeth may doubt herself, but Percy—and everyone paying attention—knows she’s operating on a different level. The reassurance lands because it’s earned, and because Percabeth isn’t about destiny alone; it’s about choosing each other. Together, this trio might actually defy the odds to save Grover and Camp Half-Blood.
Dem “Small Choices” Ain’t So Small
There’s a quiet, devastating moment when Annabeth confides in Percy about the burden of planning ahead—wondering if her wisdom can change Percy’s fate, or if foresight just means watching disaster approach in high definition. She can plan for monsters, but she can’t account for human choice. Percy, steady as ever, reminds her that saving Grover is the right decision. Still, those choices feel heavier when Clarisse charges headfirst into danger, forcing Percabeth to work in sync just to keep the ship afloat.
Because in this world, it’s never the prophecy that breaks you. It’s the choices that come after.
💗 Shipping Verdict: Percabeth is in their “confidence over prophecy” era—and it shows.
🏛️ Olympian-Level Quotes 🏛️
🌲 “Okay, you’re just making up names now.” — Thalia, voicing what we’re all thinking because, as much as I respect Grover’s Pan lore and forest-satyr enthusiasm, some of these names sound like he’s freestyling, ya know?
🛡️ “So you let this Chiron know that if anyone tries to hurt this little girl, they’ll have me to answer to.” — Thalia, on goddess-level business, issuing a protective big-sister decree and making it very clear Annabeth is under divine supervision.
💥 “I say that having been body slammed by him.” — Percy, trauma-bonding with Clarisse and casually reminding us that Ares once tossed him around like a chew toy.
⚔️ “Because heroes slay monsters, they don’t run from them.” — Clarisse, proving she’s more than the daughter of Ares; she’s a one-woman war strategy with no reverse gear.
🎥 The Reel Demigods Behind the Camera
Directed by Jason Ensler and written by Shae Worthy, Episode 4 benefits from storytellers who understand how to balance spectacle with emotional weight. Ensler brings decades of television experience—from Percy Jackson and the Olympians to The West Wing, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and The Newsroom—and currently serves as an executive producer and director on Season Two. Worthy (she/him), a Bronx native by way of Jamaica (the country, no shade to Queens) and a Northwestern alum, writes character-driven genre stories with sharp emotional instincts. After stints in casting and development at Sony, Worthy now writes full-time on Percy Jackson and the Olympians, bringing a human-first approach that makes this episode’s quieter moments hit just as hard as the chaos.
🎓 Da Reel Perspectives’ Grade 🎓
🏕️ Camp Half-Blood Rating:
9.2 / 10 Plastic Bracelets Worth Risking Everything For
Prophecies are trash, the character work hits hard, and Annabeth Chase stays that girl.
🐹 What’s Happening Next Episode 5: "Sirens and the Percy-Guinea Pig Era Is Upon Us, People..."
Comments