#people are so psyched up for the thunder saga that i feel kinda bad for feeling disappointed

[blueflipflops]

Love that. Thank you. I enjoy our talks so much!

Oh thank god I can say it. The thunder saga low key disappointed me. A lot of things were going on that was vital to our boy's character. The siren song wasn't even about mainly Penelope but his want to know. His thirst for knowledge. The hades saga was missing Agamemnon (that bastard. I finally started reading illiad and i finally understood why people hate him) which, in a storytelling standpoint, was a very vital keypoint in the story, along with Anticlea which emphasizes and urges Odysseus to get off his ass and get back home or else.

Or else something bad will happen. Them emphasis on a ticking clock, a hard deadline. The amazing and deliscious foreshadowing in homer's narration is so good.

I might not know much about the odyssey and greek myths but i DO know about contemporary and emergent literature and adaptations. The thing is, that every adaptation is different and will always ALWAYS mess with the original story in the name of "Creative Liberties". Every bard tells the story differently. It was done often enough even in the past as we have discussed last time with Aeneas and the seperate plays that influenced the public's POV on Odysseus. Those are adaptations with Creative Liberties. The famous Wooden Horse thing wasn't even expanded on (if I remember correctly) if it weren't because of a seperate play adaptation cuz that was easier than making up an original story when they could have had a play with characters people ALREADY liked and cared about. (Also why sequel, trilogies, franchises and even remakes WORK. Because we already know of this character we gotta at least check it out right?)

From the Cyclops Saga on foward, the main point of the storytelling aspect is focuses on the morality trope that goes apparently hard for the modern audience. Which. Is. The. Point. for Adaptations. To adapt the stories for the modern palate. The modern majority of monogamous and 'high' moral upholding audience is not gonna care as much about a character that is not beholden to the apparent moralities we have. And we just LOVE characters that are "just like us"! Thats why there are people out there calling random characters "problematic" when it its actually just thematic storytelling.

This is also why, when I got into epic the musical, I immediately read thru the Odyssey before the Thunder saga is released BECAUSE I knew it was gonna be different as an adaptation and if theres something I like doing most, it's analyzing and comparing adaptation vs original. ESPECIALLY if it's using a different media from the original. (ex. Book to movie, novel to comics, etc etc.) So after reading thru it, I suddenly became uhhh kinda disappointed in the storytelling aspect of the musical. Although in the musical aspect it is very impressive. Nice beat. Catchy. Orchestra is on point. Singers are very talented. Its hard to use music as a medium for story telling although now that I typed it i remembered that the odyssey was originally supposed to be sung so...huh.

Kinda disappointed that they never explained WHY exactly Poseidon is beefing with our boy Odysseus and the very funny and cleverness of the 'Nobody— Odysseus, son of Laertes, King of Ithica' when it is EXACTLY when and why our boy's extended voyage became from "Unfortunate Events Yeah We Can Deal With This" TO "Series of Unfortunate Events WITH Divine Intervention (the bad kind)" and how he's fated to go home at some point but not without suffering and losing every man that he brought to war and only coming back on a foriegn ship. Which I think is very vital in the storytelling standpoint.

The thing that FLOORED me was the existence on Polites like where tf did you come from lil dude? Which is in the storytelling aspect, supposed to a thematic foil and symbolism of when all things gone to shit. But, reading thru the Odyssey, why would they need that when the story already had Agamemnon? Anticlea? Polyphemus? Why would Zeus be against him personally when in the story he is somehow someway 'on his side'? With the eagles and the law of xenia and such and such.

But I'm still ultimately game for creative liberties. I love seeing how people make the story their own. That is why we love telling the same story over and over and over. Give a little twist. A hey what if's. A little personality. Outside POV stories. Humans just love telling stories and i love hearing them even if i have to wince a bit at some points. Which part of the musical disappointed you the most?

EPIC THE MUSICAL:

Zeus: I am gonna appear personally to you because why not and now choose my dear fellow! Yes I know I didn't give you a REAL choice years prior but now I am being clear this time so you choose them or your sorry ass?

Odysseus: Please don't make me do this! (Because the same thing worked wonders before!)

Zeus: Nope I think I will!

Odysseus: I'm sorry guys my wife waits

Them: Wtf?!

Odysseus: Sorry guys you must now join the other souls we so dramatically saw a few songs ago in the underworld. Bye!

The Odyssey:

Zeus: *never appears personally but he works as divine retribution against Odysseus comrades because Helios Hyperion wishes justice for his slain animals*

Odysseus: Makes one last attempt to save his men by sailing out of the island and actually TRYING to go home with them despite the fact he knows they are doomed from Tiresias's words and from Circe's warnings because he ACTUALLY CARES and he doesn't want to suffer the sea by himself and he wishes once more to try the inevitable and change fate even though he knows is impossible in a way adding more to the hubris thinking he can challenge fate.