#tsats was great this is a JOKE

[nicodiangelo-we-stan]

confession time! i didn’t really enjoy tsats because nico was happy, i liked that bastard when he was miserable and relatable, how am i supposed to relate to someone happy now

someone make that italian boy suffer

[aroaceleovaldez]

im really not a fan of Rick's recent trend of recycling bits of his writing that got a good reaction the first time and acting as if that's a valid substitute for. actually bothering to write something original a second time around. It's clearly just there as a callback and nothing more.

It's "Nico's rage exploded" and "Percy's rage exploded" with the exact same paragraph formatting. It's CoTG having titles like "My Singing Makes Things Worse, and Everyone Is Totally Shocked" (reference to TLO, when Percy says he thinks his singing would cause an avalanche) or "Pretty Much the Best Good-Night Kiss Ever" (reference to TLO "Pretty much the best underwater kiss of all time") or any other number of near word-for-word references to the first series. It's Nico calling Percy "seaweed brain" in Un Natale Mezzosangue (when Percy says in TTC that anybody but Annabeth calling him that is a major offense). It's Nico and Will falling into Tartarus in TSATS word-for-word referencing Percy and Annabeth in House of Hades, despite it not making any sense for their characters (and otherwise being written as Percabeth 2™). It's the show making huge changes but keeping random "fan-favorite references" (mostly overusing "seaweed brain" and "wise girl" and emphasizing percabeth) only because they're popular in-jokes and considering that a faithful enough adaptation to market it heavily as such. It's lazy writing.

And it's a disservice to the series and to the audience, because it clearly shows Rick doesn't have original ideas anymore (though given all his writing is heavily derivative to begin with, it begs the question how much was original in the first place and how much he has difficulty when he doesn't have a structured mythological plot to work from) and that there is an expectation that the audience will just sit down and accept that behavior hook-line-and-sinker. Everything recently is clearly such lip-service to the audience, either in retcons that are overt speaking-to-camera acknowledgements of things he's been criticized on or wink-wink-nudge-nudges of community in-jokes that have no business in the actual text (see: over-use of ship names in canon). Especially since Rick tends to be about 5 years behind on the fandom uptake. It's just so disappointing to see.

[fuckingyrs]

The sound of a body throwing itself onto one of the infirmary cots echoed through the mostly empty room, followed closely behind with a dramatic, but melodic sigh. “Can I say something mean?” 

“Probably not in front of the baby.”

Will groaned, looking up from his pile of patient reports he had been sorting for the past… year. “I hardly think eleven still counts as being a baby.”

Lee, who had been refilling first aid kits for the past two hours, contemplated this for a moment. “Maybe, but that’s besides the point. I’m six years older than you. You’ll always be a baby.”

“I’m going to say something mean. Will, cover your ears.”

“I’m not covering my ears, Taylor. Unlike you, I’m working right now and I need my hands.”

“Oh,” Taylor dragged, a taunt evident in her voice, "someone's grumpy.”

“He’s mad I put him on infirmary duty during arts and crafts.”

“Will, you aren’t good at arts and crafts.” Lee slapped her arm. “And you like working in the infirmary, you are constantly taking my shifts. It’s why I love you.”

Lee slapped her arm again. “Taylor, what the heck.”

Taylor groaned, “Fuck. Just say fuck. I’m begging you.”

“That’s besides the point. I had it with Cecil. We were going to finish our board game.” Will turned to Lee, pointing an accusing finger at him, “You knew this.”

Lee let out a long-suffering sigh and Will almost felt bad for causing a fuss, but really, Lee brought this upon himself. “Taylor, stop pawning off your shifts to Will. Will, stop letting Taylor’s pawn off her shifts to you. Also: I’m sorry about arts and crafts. The last few days have been hectic and I needed your help. I’ll make sure to not schedule you over arts and crafts next week.”

“I’m going to be home next week! Mama is picking me up, remember?”

Lee had the decency to look ashamed when he said, “Heck. I forgot. I’m sorry, Will.”

Taylor got up from her self-designated cot and walked over to Will, ruffling his hair once she was close enough. “I’ll take over the rest of your shift, buddy. You go have fun.”

Will shook his head, “No, it’s okay. I’m already here. Arts and crafts is half-way done anyway. We wouldn’t be able to finish.”

“If you’re sure,” Taylor sighed as she pressed a kiss to his forehead and Will let out a cry of protest because he could feel the lipstick stain there. He tried rubbing it away with his fingers but by the look on Lee’s face and the snickers Taylor was making behind him, he only made it worse.

Lee graciously handed Will a wipe before glaring at their sister. “Taylor, what are you even doing here?”

“I think I made that pretty obvious when I threw myself onto a bed and stated I was gonna say something mean. I came to gossip.”

“You should be at archery right now.”

“Mike was being a piss-baby. He wouldn’t let Josh and I try to hit one another. What’s the point of being in advanced archery if you can’t shoot at your brother? Moving targets!”

“So you left?”

“Yep. I found Silena and she offered to do my nails before I came by.”

Lee pinched the bridge of his nose in a way that resembled an old man at the end of his rope. Will suppressed a giggle at his brother’s anguish as Lee said, “You can’t do that.”

“Do what? My nails?”

“Leave Michael like that.”

“Why? He’s not in charge of me.”

“But I am. And he’s my second in command, so yes he is.”

Taylor groaned, flopping back onto her cot. “One, he’s like three weeks older than me, unfair. And two, none of that is important right now. What is important is that our father was here and didn’t say hi to any of us. Who does that?”

“Our father, apparently.”

Taylor flipped Lee off, showing off her new manicure. It was baby pink, like her lipstick, with a little sun in the center. “He gives those kids a ride, none of them his, and has the audacity to leave before saying hi? Hell, Will over here has never met him. He has time to bring a group of kids to camp, but can’t spare a lousy minute to check in on us? And I can’t say this to Michael or he’ll claim I’m “on the other side”.” Taylor sighed, a faraway look in her eyes. Will had only seen this look on her face a few times before: every time Luke was mentioned. “I’m just tired of feeling abandoned and I’m sick of feeling like it’s bad to think that.”

Lee stepped towards her, a soft, “Tay–” passing through his lips, before she sat up and shook herself out of her stupor.

“Instead of saying hi, he just causes chaos and disappears! He brings Percy back, which is never a good sign. Thalia is driving the sun chariot, and crashes it! Oh, and he brought that new weird kid that keeps bombarding everyone with questions.”

Will saw through the change of topic, and Lee clearly had to as well, but he allowed it to happen. He slapped her on the arm for the third time, “He’s not weird. He’s, like, eight. The kid is just excited. You were excited about camp once upon a time.”

Taylor turned to Will, jerking her head at Lee, “I think he’s finally lost it. When have I ever been excited by anything ever?”

Will grinned, “Yesterday, you beat Madi at Josh’s song quiz and you danced around the cabin for ten minutes.”

Taylor gasped loud and dramatic, clutching at her chest as she fell back onto her cot, chestnut hair falling all over her face in her fall. “William! How dare you accuse me of such things!”

[helphelph]

Rating pjo ships because I've seen a good amount of people doing it lately and it seems fun. But there's a twist!! I used the wackiest rating system imaginable because I'm insane. Have fun.

Percabeth: a hundred hearts out of five blue cookies.

Their dynamic is not only incredibly fun but also they complement each other very well. Honestly, when I first read the books, I didn't really want them to get together because I didn't want another "main guy gets main girl" situation, but they're honestly made for each other.

Jiper: five daggers out of ten great canyons

They were incredibly forced, but honestly not that bad of a ship. They were really cute but I dont have much to say about it.

Valgrace: fifty festus heads out of ten college aus

One of my favorite Jason ships ever. I love me some tragic gays.

Pipabeth: Two goddesses out of fifteen owls

I will ALWAYS support a good wlw ship. And Piper defo had a microcrush on Annabeth while they were on the Argo II. Plus the fanart of them is SO good.

Jercy/Person: twelve riptides out of ten horses

I like reading about it and it's quite fun to think about. Nothing much to say honestly.

Perachel: Ten prophecies out of nine pancakes drowned in syrup

They could have been cute. I dont really ship them though.

Annrachel(is that the name?): three prophecies out of five spiders

Korrasami vibes lmao. I think they're better off as friends but I will read a fanfic if I find an interesting one.

Solangelo: twenty-six skulls out of ten doctors notes

They were written for each other. As in Rick made sure that they were written for each other. I havent read tsats yet and im still on the first toa book so I don't have much on their dynamic. Still I like them and they visually look good together.

Valdangelo: ninety-four automatons out of six pomegranate seeds

They would have been unstoppable I tell you! Unstoppable!! Or maybe I'm biased. Either way they would have been an amazing couple together but Rick was too much of a coward to let them be (boy)friends. (Can you tell I'm biased?)

Jeyna: One bad father out of two older sisters.

UPDATE!!1!1!1 It has come to my attention that Reyna is canonically aroace with no romantic or sexual interest whatsoever so this ship is out of the window.

Jasico: 3/10

Personally I've never seen the hype for them. I like their dynamic a lot but not really in a shipping way. Sorry pjotumblr😔

Pernico: One bathe in the river styx out of thirteen hades figurines

The angst of Nico having a crush in Percy is a good concept to explore. Both in relationships with other characters and Nico's character development. But them being in a relationship together just irks me. It's not entirely problematic(at least i dont think it is? Correct me if im wrong), but still, the age gap makes me uncomfortable.

Ruegard: thirty-seven drakons out of one patrochilles parallel

Like I said, I love me some wlw ships. And while I've never really been a diehard fan of them, the fanart is amazing, so of course i ship them.

Frazel: 6/10

Rick try to make a girl and a boy stay friends challenge(impossible). But jokes aside, the 13-16 gap makes me annoyed. Three years isn't much but it matters in this situation. And it annoys me bacuse I want to like them. They have a cute dynamic but the maturity gap between them kinda gets in the way. That said, I would probably have liked them a lot better if they just stayed friends.

Valzhang: Nine eagles out of twenty hidden bunkers

Like I said before, I will consume almost every ship in a fandom. And if I find good fanfics of them, I will read it because I like exploring different characters' dynamics with each other. It's fun and I honestly think the pjo fandom should chill out a little. The amount of people who put others down for shipping something that isn't canon is way too much. Just let people enjoy their ships.

I think that's all? I didn't include Grover and Juniper because I honestly don't really have any opinions on them. They just exist and it's kinda like Rick just made them canon because he didn't want grover to feel left out. Let me know if there's other ships you'd want me to rate!

[doevademe]

So, about that new book...

I'll be honest, I was expecting a disaster. Like, I expected to seethe and hate and grumble in the most 'old man yells at cloud' way possible. And at the beginning, I was doing that.

But the more I hear about it, the more I'm impressed with the book and writing decisions. It's still a disaster, but it's less a trainwreck and more like a clown car crashing with the batmobile. It's bad, it's nonsensical, and it's hilarious.

Like, you have to try to reach this level of bad. This is fanservice gone wrong, and while I hope that everyone that liked the book had a great time with it, I assure you it's not half the enjoyment I'm getting from this.

Spoilers, if anyone cares about those.

Nyx has demon children with Nico (yes, really). And because everything must turn into a joke, they decide to call them Cocoa Puffs and keep them as pets (because I guess they aren't sentient despite being born from two very much sentient beings?).

There's a scene where Nico and Will make out while Bob is sobbing in the background. The image alone is fucking hysterical. But it's okay, they are happy tears, you guys! An immortal old man crying in happiness because two teens are kissing in front of him is not weird!

Oh, but if you wanted a kiss scene while ignoring death and trauma, don't worry! tsats got you covered! Their first kiss happened right after Jason died as a way for Will to comfort Nico! Yeah, they've been dating for months but apparently Jason needed to die for them to actually start kissing (Jasico crumbles, I guess?)

There is at least one part labeled "FLASHBACK" like an actual amateur fanfic. The pet names are terrible, the pacing is off, but nothing, NOTHING, can rival how they write Will.

It's like he's written by his hatedom. He's judgmental of the Underworld, a jerk, insistent that Nico being so close to the darkness is something to fix, basically demeans Nico, tells him his stepmother is hotter than him, and then asks her how can she love that creep Hades, because seriously, Will is having so much trouble with Nico, who is only half Hades. Just consider him, Persephone, he will dump Nico as soon as you do.

I love this mess. This is the PJO version of the Bee Movie, it's My Immortal with the grammar fixed. Best comedy book of the year.

[kanicrow]

riordanverse characters as taylor swift songs but it’s who comes to my head first and there’s no reason to like most of these

nico: antihero (literally just all of midnights tbh), eyes open

will: safe and sound, jump then fall, stay stay stay (that one part in tsats)

in my mind wills mom is, taylor swift (all I could think about while reading tsats)

annabeth: if this was a movie (?) mastermind, would’ve could’ve should’ve, seven (LITERALLY HER SONG????)

percy: the great war, this is why we can’t have nice things

magnus: shake it off (no clue, don’t ask), blank space (AGAIN I DONT KNOW)

jason: august (bro just trust me)

bianca: bigger than the whole sky (UAGHHHH)

piper: getaway car (LMAO)

alex: gorgeous (bro just trust me), ME! (PLEASE ITS MOSTLY A JOKE)

leo: red (yeah), cowboy like me (yeehaw)

hazel: snow on the beach (idk makes me think of her), marjorie (what died didnt stay dead?!?!)

frank: the archer (OK LISTEN)

[logolepsy-babble]

TSATS (Not Really) Spoilers

Speaking to my friend but the Lil Nas X joke? Random. It’s supposed to be 2011 so this doesn’t make sense. UNLESS, hear me out, what if Rachel knew about it.

Rachel is the oracle, she can tell the future. Of course she says them in prophecy-tone, but what about the dreams she had in book 3 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians? Rachel dreams of things and they tend to happen years in the future or even years in the past. Her dreams are her seeing possibilities.

Now what if Rachel had a dream about Nico dancing and enjoying Lil Nas X’s Montero and she tells him everything and even in great detail. He remembers this and he’d make the reference later. This excuses the timeplot hole and suddenly it makes sense. Also it’s funny.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[sadcharactersrmykryptonite]

Completed tsats, in the middle of exam week, guess I have my priorities straight. Okay, let's get into the pro and con opinions of mine in this book.

Pros

1.Nico got over his trauma. Not completely of course, but he is on the right path. And the cocoa puffs are really cute ( send me fanart).

2.I am glad nico is more emotive in this. We saw him smile more, make jokes and generally be more optimistic then the other books. I felt like titan's curse nico is coming back and i love it. I love that nerdy side to him.

3.We see him cry it out. After so long of seeing him being described as emotionless, cold and scary, it was nice to see him letting out his emotions.

4. I love that he is so affectionate with will. We already know that nico is physically affectionate with the people he cares about, like hugging Jason, reyna, and kissing hazel on the cheek. It makes sense that he will be affectionate with his bf.

5. I love that the entire story revolves around how kind nico is. Like we knew that nico was the only one who saw and talked to hestia. His selflessness is the most important trait of his but also the most overlooked. But it's also the trait that got him in the most trouble. I am glad that he told nyx to f**k off, it means he is learning to prioritise himself and i am so glad for that. Also it felt so good to see people and deities acknowledge that, too the point that a primordial goddess was threatened by it. Listen up kids, KINDNESS IS YOUR BIGGEST STRENGTH NOT A WEAKNESS.

6. I liked will's characterisation. He's exactly what I taught he will be, kind, daring, supportive and brave. And he learns, accepts his mistakes and meets nico in the middle, what more can i ask. ( I feel like a parent giving their blessings to their child's so)

7. Nyx felt threatening, way better then gaia. And I really liked the way the final battle was more psychological then physical. And the new development in wills powers, that's a head cannon that felt validated. He can use plague powers, powerfull sunshine boy, nico, powerful sunshine boy.

8.Bob and small bob, they are the best. And them being happy and enjoying their freedom, ah, I was crying. I love them.

9.The deities crying over solangelo. I get it, they are so cute. Kind of shows a human side to them. And that talk about lost souls with gorgyra, yeah, another scene that brought me too tears. The fact that they still have hope. Warmed my heart.

10.Loved the talk about change , and being true to yourself and having the option to choose. It read nicely and it's a great message for the kids out there, not just LGBTQ kids, to everyone. And even bitter adults can learn this lesson. So be open minded people.

As a literature student, I am done with all the nihilist, Existentionalist, tragic stories that I had to read. This was the cheesy, funny, pure, and sweet book that I wanted to get rid of all this stress. And that's what I want from a percy Jackson series book.

Cons

1.It was rushed. But I think I understand. I mean they had to put nico's solo tartarus plot, the actual plot of the story and also address their trauma, add fanservice, create a believable story for why nico had to go to tartarus again ( sideyes hades) , yeah way too much for a spinnoff.

2.I would have love to know more about will. Don't get me wrong, as I gushed about it, I really like their interactions. But it felt like he was made for those interactions, like will solace is still not an individual character but nico di angelo's boyfriend. To me it felt like Rick was telling," look at this sunshine boy, I would tell you why he is perfect for nico", hence the earlier blessing comment. ( you have my blessing will, you have my blessing). But I don't care about it much, for me I was looking forward to Nico's story and I got it so I am happy.

3.There were inconsistencies, like bianca and his mother. It felt like a retconn, but it's also a story about gods, so it makes sense that hades will do it.

4.The tartarus parts didn't hit as much as I thought it would, nicos past solo trip, that is. Maybe it's because the story was written by two authors. I cried but it didn't tear my heart out. Maybe because I know nico gets out. Hmmm, something to think about.

5.Please dont take this the wrong way, but I didn't like how they constantly kept saying boyfriend. Like I get it, I know you are a couple, I want you to be couple, but it felt like the authors didn't think they would come across as a couple and kept on reminding us. This is one nitpick I have in this book.

Oh another nitpick. I wanted to see the other characters, like hazel and reyna and how did I forgot apollo. I need more apollo. I really wanted to see nico's reaction to reyna joining the hunters. Not much just a tiny reference, like when they were talking to gorgyra, like she also abandoned me, something like that.

And that's it. I can't think about any more cons.

TLDR: This book left me feeling like a proud mama who's watching her son grow up to be a hero. And that's exactly what I wanted. So, this book is a 10/10 for me. Cherished forever.

[kali-chaotic-neutral]

TSATS SPOILERS!!!

So I just got and finished reading The Sun and the Star and oh my gods.... Rick portrayed their dynamics wonderfully, of course their relationship isn't going to perfect. With Nico's insecurities and Will making uncomfortable jokes about the Underworld, angst was bound to happen. No love is perfect, there are always ups and downs but it was soooo WONDERFULLY depicted by Rick. The long gray and black chapters showing Nico's haunting dreams and actually seeing what happened to him during his time in Tartarus.

I love how Rick Riordan made Nyx more fearsome and powerful as befitting her status as the literal embodiment of Night. I love how manipulative Nyx was and I love love LOVE LOVE the Cocoa Puffs!!! I love how Rick beat back the Solangelo haters with such a beautiful content of their love and respect for each other. (I remember some people were calling Will ab*sive and rude and some people were even making such weird speculations on what would happen in TSATS, like legit someone said something like: "Nico cheating on Will with Jason's ghost in the new book". Like wtf dude, these people really be pulling out the wildest shit out of their asses. They be the same people that be saying Annabeth is ab*sive and that Leah Jeffries isn't "black enough", like bffr)

I love how Rick didn't make Nico's trauma go away because of the power of love and instead the whole journey to Tartarus with Will was what he needed for closure and to face his demons (literally too). I love that Bob was back but I am absolutely DESTROYED THAT DAMASEN WASN'T THERE!!!!

I know that Damasen wasn't in Nyx's view because he didn't really change. Yes, he did change and got the courage to leave his swamp but he had always defied his position as the antithesis to a god. so Tartarus is still holding back his regeneration. I am so sad that he was only slightly mentioned, I wish he was there, I could imagine him and Bob starting a life together (doesn't have to be gay) as the only giant and titan to defy their roles.

Also the plot twist with Menoetes and Geryon!!? Was I lowkey hoping that we got see newly reformed Geryon and Nico chat? Yes. Was I disappointed it wasn't shown. Also Yes. Was I absolutely okay with this random ship? Yes.

I also absolute love Will's powerups. From a light wielding sack of potatoes to someone who gave the Primordial of Night HAY FEVER!!! I loved Gorgyra who at first I was a bit annoyed at, but later appreciated as her wanting them to tell her stories was a way to help them in the end.

Also, to anyone who thinks the Tartarus thing belongs to Percabeth SHUT UP!!! A trauma experience is not limited to your favorite ship or character. Also, Nico was the first person ever to go into Tartarus and survive all the while knowing that he was walking in the body of a living breathing Primordial and the only one to fully witness the horrors of the House of Night. Sure Percy realized that Tartarus was an actual entity instead of a place, but it was MUCH LATER in their adventure.

Edit: This book was from a totally new way of writing for Rick as it mainly focuses on healing and the ptsd. And to those who think it was a bit unrealistic for Nico to have existential crisis, mind you he was going to Tartarus. The very place he NEARLY LOST HIS MIND IN. He was 13/14 when he went down there and was captured and put into a jar! Will was also a great candidate for his quest because it was like Annabeth and Percy said, having someone you love and and trust in that hellscape is the best way to survive. Sure Hazel and Reyna would have been great candidates too, but we wouldn't get the same thing we got in TSATS. Will was someone Nico trusted and loved and Nico was the same to him.

Also, fanon versions of Nico has absolutely ROTTED the minds of many "fans". Nico is not emo, while he was a little edgy he was mostly depressed. Also the timing of this book releasing is quite nice as well, because of all the anti-lgbtq things happening in the US, where many queer or other books are being banned. This book touches on the lgbtq subject where many young adults 10-14 year olds will read as it is part of a very popular book series.

[hahahax30]

I just don't accept anything Oshiro wrote about Will Solace on the principle that they literally said like 2 months ago that they don't understand Will at all lmao

The thing is, we don't really know what they wrote and what plot points came from their mind as opposed to Rick's.

I just know that Will was disappointing af as a character. Idc if he wasn't close to the sun or whatever, he should've powered through at least the underworld, because that's what heroes are meant to be, and if he wanted to help Nico, then he should've acted like a hero.

Anyways, when I first learned that there was going to be a solangelo book, I was really excited because Nico is one of my favourite characters (along with Jason 💀), but then I learned that it was going to be co-written and my excitement lessened considerably. Idk, I just don't like it when authors who haven't created a set of characters decide the course of their development. More than anything, it feels like published fanfiction.

Oshiro doesn't even write books similar to the ones Rick writes. The Riordanverse is, at least from my understanding, all about adventures in mythological worlds. There's not much introspection or philosophical wondering (?) in them. From what I've been able to see, Oshiro's writing style does lean more towards this later category --and there's nothing wrong with it! I'm sure they're a great author, but I didn't want an author like them (aka someone who writes coming-of-age YA and the likes) writing about Nico and Will. Especially if they truly don't know enough about the characters to begin with...

In any case, I'm not putting all the blame on Oshiro because it was Rick who decided to work with them. This wouldn't have happened if Rick had written the book on his own or simply chosen a more fitting author. I mean, he genuinely chose Oshiro because they're queer.

I wish I could be joking:

Because, honestly, if Rick had wanted to write about Nico and Will and approach their queerness adequately, he could've easily hired sensitivity readers.

TSATS was just a huge letdown and I strongly believe it would've been better if Rick had written it on his own.

Sorry for the rant lol.

[zazzander]

It’s weird Octavian suddenly got attention…Like he never gets involved in read Riordan articles.

*puts on tinfoil hat*

IS THIS A POSSIBLE CLUE THAT HE IS RELATED TO TSATS CONSIDERING THAT THE BOOK WILL BE RELEASED IN 3 MONTHS?!?!?!?!? AND HES SUDDENLY GETTINF ATTENTION HERE WHEN HE’S NEVER EVEN BEEN MENTIONED A MANY IN PREVIOUS ARTICLES.

THE TIMINGS!!! THE TIMINGS??!!? IS IT ALL COMING TOGETHER

*Lysanderdotexe has stoped working*

Great minds think alike!! zaz.exe stopped working for a little bit seeing him on Read Riordan as well. I was literally squealing.

Like, didn't Mark say an "underrated" demigod would show up in the book, and then we have this article? There is a reason Octavian doesn't show up in Read Riordan articles, he's not popular. But then here we are with him on a list of underrated demigods...

Now - I think it might just be because a standard Valentine's gift is teddy bears, so many someone in the writer's room went "Octavian has a thing with teddy bears, we could make a joke about that". But I find it hilarious that they gave him the most aro statement ever, like "no time for romance", in the process. Like they could have leaned into that weird moment where Reyna suggested she considered dating Octavian, or something. But, nope, he's just not interested in romance at all. He's got better things to do.

BUT, also like, what if it is a hint? What if it's a clue? What if this is the beginning of a "hey, guys, remember Octavian exists?" reminder campaign prior to him showing up in the book!!

Especially because the paragraph isn't terrible? It doesn't make him a creep or anything? Like he's not even whiny. He's just got this "I do go here" vibe instead.

I HAVE ADDED IT TO MY LIST OF CLUES.

[curseofdelos]

first of all i love your thoughts on cabin 10 and i especially think a lot about how piper fought so hard to be herself against the traditional heteronormative expectations of not only her mother but also hera the god of marriage who implanted her feelings for jason in her brain. also. lavinia is my favorite fiction book of all time

RIGHT!!!

I don't remember tlh super well so correct me if I'm wrong about any of this, but my interpretation of Piper was always that she was an incredibly rebellious person. She "steals" stuff to get her Dad's attention, and I like to imagine that part of her pushing back against traditional gender norms is her rebelling against the societal expectations on what she, as the daughter of a hollywood heartthrob, is supposed to look like. Can't imagine the other nepo babies approve of her cutting her own hair, and I bet she loves that

But yesssss I think about this so much as well!! Like the Aphrodite cabin is consistently portrayed as mostly girls with traditionally feminine interests. Their only real use in the titan war is adjusting armour, and six Aphrodite girls kiss Percy on the cheek in TLO because he let them buy perfume to repel monsters. Piper doesn't care for that type of thing, and Aphrodite pushes her to be more feminine in the claiming scene by forcing her into a dress + makeup. There's so many expectations from both her mother and the other campers on what she's supposed to be because of her parentage, and it makes sense that someone so rebellious by nature would push back against that at every turn.

I doubt Rick had envisioned her as a closeted queer woman when he was writing HOO, but that adds a whole other layer to her discomfort with traditional gender norms too. If she was internally exploring her gender and sexuality at that time, then the expectations she had to be a certain way would have felt even more stifling.

Piper was genuinely attracted to Jason (according to tsats anyway), but Hera playing with them like dolls and pushing her to be with him because she's a pretty girl and Jason deserves to be with a pretty girl is SO messed up. She does eventually choose to be with Jason, but would she have made that choice if Hera hadn't put the thought in her head first? Would she have discovered her attraction to women a lot sooner if she had been allowed to consider options other than Jason? How much of her attraction to Jason was real, and how much of it was her thinking she had to like him because Hera wanted her to, and/or because he was conventionally attractive and nice and that's who girls are supposed to like? Regardless, breaking up with him was the right decision for her because it allowed her to explore other options without Hera's meddling hanging over her. Maybe if TOA had gone differently, she could have come back to him (I only ship Piper with women personally, but I acknowledge that it's possible), but she needed to figure herself out first away from those expectations, and she didn't reeeeally have the space to do that in HOO.

There's so much to say about Piper and her relationship with the Aphrodite cabin and gender/sexuality as a whole, but her discomfort with conformity is framed as a 'not like other girls' thing, and that Piper is 'above' them because she doesn't stoop to their 'shallow' level. It doesn't help that there isn't a single effeminate character in the books that isn't treated as a joke or a villain. The closest we get is Silena, but even then, she isn't shown to be particularly feminine - we just assume she is because she isn't shown hating femininity the way Piper is. We're supposed to view Drew as a bitch, and Valentina as vapid. Piper, who hates makeup and cuts her own hair and is talented with a dagger, is framed as better than them because she rejects femininity.

Piper pushing back against expectations is GREAT but I don't love that it comes at the cost of framing femininity as lesser. There are SO many interesting reasons for why Piper would reject traditional gender roles, and there are ways Rick could have explored that without framing femininity as a bad thing/something to ridicule, but that's not what we get in the books. Instead, cabin 10 are all vain and shallow, and Piper is better than them because she isn't.

The way cabin 10 is written is so so frustrating. They all deserve SO much better.

[aroaceleovaldez]

random question but i came across a post of yours where you talked about how mark oshiro sort of erased an aspect of nico's ADHD by making a joke about how he only liked mythomagic cards because he's gay and there are hot guys on the cards, and then TSATS also seemed to really downplay the themes of neurodivergence in the series. and it made me wonder if you have any thoughts on how the show has portrayed the demigods' ADHD and dyslexia so far? i've seen some people say that the show also downplayed it a lot, and i'm inclined to agree... which feels really weird considering that rick's own son's neurodivergence was specifically a major inspiration for him writing the series. but if i recall correctly a lot of scenes showcasing that in the first book were taken out of the show.

Oh absolutely, a lot of scenes and general discussion about adhd/dyslexia were removed in the show (and some of the disability-coding in general - i appreciate the change they made with making Chiron disabled based on his mythos rather than just using a wheelchair as a disguise, but i wish they had kept Grover's crutches in a similar manner honestly) - I've made a couple of posts discussing it: here, here, and this reblog is relevant to my opinions about the matter. There's probably some other stuff in my pjo tv crit tag.

I think the main sentiment i have regarding it - which i've seen a couple of other people mention as well - is how much the show ignores or outright removes and downplays Percy's personal struggles with his disabilities to instead emphasize Sally's experiences instead, particularly in manners of her taking out her stress on Percy - which alongside being completely antithetical to Sally's role in the books, is pretty ableist and why I continually compare show!Sally to Autism Speaks Parents. Autism Speaks tends to make an emphasis on the struggles of the parents of autistic children rather than treating autistic individuals like a person experiencing their own struggles. One of the major points of Sally's character (and later Paul) in the books is that she's an incredibly accommodating parent and works hard to make sure Percy is supported when he's struggling with his disabilities, because he's not been able to find that accommodation elsewhere. That's part of why Sally is such a great mom in particular, and is intentionally supposed to directly contrast Annabeth's home life struggles with her parents having difficulty navigating how to provide that same level of accommodation to help support her (and how Annabeth finds that accommodation at CHB instead, because that's the metaphor that CHB is supposed to represent - an appropriately accommodating system they can rely on, and then exploring how that's still a flawed system and looking at how disabled kids/demigods fall through the cracks and how to change the system to better support them).

The show also almost completely ignores Percy's ADHD/dyslexia experiences in general after the first episode. I was honestly really happy with, in the first episode, how clearly Percy's poor experiences in the American education system, particularly relating to his neurodivergence, have informed his reaction to situations such as people trying to tell him he's a demigod in coded language. It was essentially the perfect update to something i've discussed in the past here, about how the original "all demigods have adhd/dyslexia because it's secretly SUPERPOWERS" thing was presented as the basis for the series and why that teaching/parenting style fell out of favor. We see Percy in e1 acknowledge how dismissive of his struggles it is to constantly just be told he's "special" - and we even get explicit acknowledgement of how that description is used aggressively and for ostracization (from Nancy), which is extremely true to the experiences of kids who grew up with that teaching/parenting structure. But then we get to episode 2 and... all the acknowledgement of ADHD/dyslexia/etc is gone. We get at most a one-off acknowledgement from Luke that demigods are all neurodivergent and that's it. Pretty much nothing else for the entire rest of the season, save for flashback scenes that only emphasize Sally's experiences, not acknowledge Percy's. No further acknowledgement of Percy's dyslexia, or Annabeth's, or anything about their ADHD, or even Percy's completely removed PTSD (which we know for sure because of both writer commentary [see: that second post i linked about the LA Times article] and Percy's total lack of reaction to Mr. D). Nothing.

It was extremely disheartening to say the least, having such a strong start and it evaporating completely, and I fully agree with you.

[rustyrainedrops-blog]

Okay I read tsats and yall are being so overdramatic jeez

It was good. The montero joke was funny idc shut up. " nico wouldn't know this nico wouldn't say that" dawg let him live. Why do you have a parasocial relationship with a fictional character?

Also why is there so much nitpicking going on? Yea there were some inconsistencies but when aren't there with Rick? Some of these scenes were so beautifully written I cried, and I would've killed to have this book when I was in middle school figuring out my own sexuality. Why is everyone so focused on parts they didn't like? Bunch of negative Nancy's.

Just because your perception of what the characters should be or how they should act has been skewed by fanfic doesn't mean that Nico and Will were written out of character. Honestly, I appreciated the fact that Will wasn't perfect. I feel like it's been such a trope in the fandom to think of Will as a harmless ball of sunshine that can do no wrong and it's so annoying and unrealistic. People have faults. People learn. People grow.

"Wills whiny and lame" that's rich coming from yall, also he's literally a child of Apollo, he's basically the God of being whiny and overdramatic idk why ur so surprised.

It's just so annoying to see such a petty, negative reaction to a queer children's book. Yea it's not perfect, but it was still pretty great and I think that reading this when I was younger could have made a world of difference.

Anyways, Menoetes slayed. Go to sleep and reasses your priorities if ur hating on the book.

[crossdressingdeath]

First off: I never claimed that Nico would've been universally beloved at camp if he talked to people. Obviously not everyone's going to like him, that's just how people are. The closest I got was saying that no one really expresses a negative opinion of him in ToA, which... makes a lot of sense given his boyfriend's godly dad is around in every scene where he comes up for obvious reasons. What I'm saying is that Nico's firmly held belief that literally everyone hated him is clearly false based on how quickly he seems to befriend people, most notably the Apollo cabin, once he lets himself open up (and I suspect once he has someone to smooth over that first meeting). And yeah. The Seven are dicks to Nico. That was a large chunk of my point. Hazel being a little worried that Nico sees her as a replacement for his dead sister isn't really the same thing, though.

And... I do hope you're not taking Will commenting that Nico's scaring the campers over a poor rendition of a camp song at face value. Nico and Will snark at each other constantly. It's the backbone of their relationship! But we also see that they drop that when shit hits the fan (see the total lack of snark while Austin and Kayla are missing in ToA and Will not being amused by Nico's trauma jokes when they're having a serious conversation about said trauma in the TSatS excerpt, as some examples). These two have a very healthy understanding of when they should and should not be playfully sniping at each other, we love to see it. If Will's snarking at Nico here, I'd be more inclined to take that as a sign that this isn't something Nico's insecure about (or if he is he hasn't told Will). Especially given Will is canonically also not a great singer, so he doesn't have a leg to stand on if he's being serious. Hell, if anything the "More than usual" bit suggests the campers aren't scared of Nico now that they've gotten to know him, or at least no more than they'd be scared of any mega powerful half-blood. Also, I mean... someone introduced Nico to his camp friends, most notably the Apollo cabin, and there's only one long-term Camp Half-Blood resident among his actual friend group who'd know those people. Again, especially the Apollo cabin.

Sure, Nico's incredible power levels play a part in why Lou Ellen and Cecil are so glad to see him, but consider: Lou Ellen is described as flustered rather than scared or uncomfortable, and Cecil seems pretty neutral until Nico suggests fucking with the onagers' trajectory, at which point he's delighted. Are they friends? No, they've barely spoken. But to say they don't seem to like him feels inaccurate.

And... we don't know why Will and Nico didn't make friends before BoO. Neither of them have been POV characters before that point, we have no idea what they did and didn't do or why. It's possible Will tried but Nico was too closed off at the time to listen, it's possible they just never got the chance to talk (Nico didn't stay at camp long after the battle of Manhattan and Will would've been incredibly busy as both the camp's best combat medic and the new head of the Apollo cabin), it's possible Will was just being shy about it given the impression I get is that he had a crush on Nico well before BoO... we have no way of knowing until/unless it comes up in TSatS. Certainly Will seems to jump at the chance to make friends (and more) in BoO! Personally I'm against passing judgement on a situation I know nothing about, so I'm not going to hold that against Will until we know why he never befriended Nico before.

I am once again asking Rick to confirm in TSatS that the reason why Nico thought no one at Camp Half-Blood wanted him around was that he exclusively spent time with Percy's friend group while he was there.

Like... ToA confirms that Will's claim that people would be Nico's friends if he talked to them is accurate (I can't think of any non-villain character in ToA who responds to him with worse than neutrality, and he's clearly become very close with the whole Apollo cabin, not just Will). So does Will, Cecil and Lou Ellen's reaction to him running into them during their recon mission; all three of them are as friendly and pleased to see him and work with him as you could expect under the circumstances. But we also know that Nico is right about people not wanting him around, because the Seven (minus Hazel and later Jason) are about a step removed from openly hostile towards him in their POVs the whole way through HoH and only interact with him when they have to to the point where they barely seem to remember how he literally had to walk through Tartarus alone like a week before they rescued him from the jar where he had been locked up to slowly suffocate to death. And we can confirm that Percy was basically gossiping about Nico on the way to Rome (and we can assume that Annabeth, who would also have been one of the people Nico spent time with at camp, either didn't know or didn't try to do anything about it) and that that did play a part in the Seven's dislike of him based on Jason's POV in the Split section. And if Nico's only been spending time at camp with that group...

Basically Percy's friend group are fine on their own, but they do seem to be pretty insular (Percy says he has other friends at camp, but aside from Annabeth, Grover and Tyson they seem to be more like school/work friends than close friends; he gets on with them okay, but he doesn't seem to really interact with them except when they're put in proximity to each other by the structure they're part of) and they clearly don't particularly like Nico specifically. Both Percy and Annabeth are pretty open about being uncomfortable around him in their POV, and while Tyson's his usual friendly self when he runs into Nico in BoO he and Grover tend to take their cue from Percy and Annabeth in a lot of things. Nico clearly picks up on that (his bitterness when he tells Jason that he's sure Percy told the Seven all about him really does speak volumes), and he never really sticks around at camp long enough to interact with other people (and even when he is around he's definitely not the most sociable of people, and while people are clearly perfectly happy to be his friend there probably is a sense of intimidation from his death powers and general Big Three energy that means people are a little nervous about approaching him first; I suspect part of the flashbacks in TSatS will feature Hazel, Jason, Reyna and Will dragging him into socialization). It would make sense for him to conclude that no one at camp wants him around when all the people he actively talks to don't really want him around!

And also like... just in general it's the only way I can really think of to reconcile Will's claim that Nico could very easily have friends at camp if he talked to people (and how that's backed up by ToA) with how Nico has never felt welcome at camp and how the Seven's POVs (minus Hazel's and later Jason's) show that he's right to feel that way based on how they think of him. At least the only way that wouldn't feel like a copout. And that's one of the things that really bothers me about Nico's situation, because almost all the POVs in HoO prove his view of the situation right... but then he does seem to have made friends pretty easily between HoO and ToA, and it just doesn't line up.

[eewtp]

I’m a nice person and all but I’m a hater at heart so let me just air out my grievances for everyone after this TSATS teaser:

• Some of you all really are insufferable because what do you mean this is Jasico material? What are you fangirling over? Nico missing his best friend? His first friend, yet another one of the people close to him that’s dead?

It’s really giving “fellas, is it gay to miss your dead friend?” “is it gay to yearn your dead friends touch?”

I really do not care if you like Jason and Nico together but to go to this extent, as well as the whole “lol this is marketed as Solangelo but really it’s Jasico <3” like I want you to be so for real right now-

• Tied to the first one because Nico and Will are not going to break up. Nico is not going to “realize” the he likes someone else and not his current boyfriend, who he gushed about like crazy in these few chapters. Yeah they’re probably going to hit a roadblock or argue along the way but what couple doesn’t? Ask a madly in love married couple if they’ve ever been annoyed with one another at some point in time and come back to me then.

• These teenage boys are not infants they can joke with each other however they like. This is in Nico’s POV and he does not show the slightest discomfort at Will’s jokes or presence or anything so I don’t understand where some of you are coming from. As a former teenager with former teenage friends, I can say that there are couples of all flavors and it’s not up to you to push your boundaries on others. Yeah these mental health jokes wouldn’t fly with *some* people but that’s not them so move on.

• Listen I like the hc that Percy is bisexual but this is like the second time he was referred to as straight. He’s straight unless he comes out somewhere in the book or in the next one, Chalice of the Gods. You can’t be genuinely mad at Rick for putting a sexuality to his character…

• Finally this one is for me but yeah Percy and Nico weren’t that great of friends. There was never that connection so, again, can’t be too mad when Nico says they literally weren’t that close.

Alright that’s all for now 😶