Percy Jackson and the Olympians episode 3: We Visit The Garden Gnome Emporium implies a much darker, more accurate take on the Medusa backstory. They also changed a few things regarding how things play out throughout the episode.
Grab some popcorn because this one is going to be a douzy.
The Selection Ceremony
Before Percy, Annabeth, and Grover set out on their quest, Percy has to select who he wants with him. He is given the choice of Luke, Annabeth, Clarisse, and Chris. Chiron tells him that three people always undertake quests. He (obviously) chooses Annabeth.
We next see Grover cleaning up after Blackjack (we assume it’s Blackjack) the Pegasus. Percy shows up to tell him about his selection and says he chose him and Annabeth.
The Selection Ceremony doesn’t happen in the book.
Alecto And One Of Her Sisters Appear And Attempt To Recruit Annabeth
Like in the book, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover encounter Alecto on the bus. However, there is a slight change. Only Alecto and one of her sisters appear, rather than all three. Also, Alecto attempts to recruit Annabeth to their cause, where Alecto proposes she remove Percy and Grover. In response, she kills Alecto’s sister.
Also, Percy doesn’t make the bus blow up like in the book.
Medusa’s Backstory
When Percy, Annabeth and Grover stumble across the Garden Gnome Emporium, they encounter Medusa, and her backstory comes up almost instantly. She also has some ties to Alecto, who attempts to attack the kids, but Medusa prevents her from doing so.
Medusa explains her backstory as a follower of Annabeth’s mother, Athena and how Poseidon violated her.
Executive Producer Becky Riordan explained in an interview with Variety that the reason why Medusa’s backstory was added to the show was because it is told from a third-person perspective, whereas the book is told from Percy’s viewpoint where, during the first book, his knowledge of his father’s history with Medusa is limited.
It is also essential to respectfully play out Percy and Annabeth’s lineages as the demigod children of Poseidon and Athena and how their godly parents have created a large chasm of enemies.
Percy, Annabeth And Grover Are Suspicious Of Each Other
Given the prophecy (more on that in a moment), Percy and his friends become overly paranoid that the others will turn on them. At the end of the episode, Percy reveals to them that the prophecy told him that one of them would betray him.
The paranoid was sprinkled throughout the episode with Annabeth considering siding with Alecto and Percy attempting to fight off his impulses to have Medusa turn his friends to stone.
A Prophecy Change (Sort Of)
Unlike the film, we get to see the Oracle of Delphi say her prophecy. However, it is constructed differently short of. We get Percy in the attic, where we get part of the prophecy, which is spoken by an image of his stepfather Gabe, who does not have his poker buddies. Also, he uses his normal voice rather than the Oracle’s voice.
However, we do get the rest of the prophecy in a flashback to the beginning of the episode.
Hermes And His Delivery Service
When Percy kills Medusa, he, Annabeth, and Grover agree to send her head to Olympus, even though Annabeth is hesitant about the idea.
The way they send the head away is different from the book. The delivery is taken to Olympus by Hermes himself, whereas, in the book, they label the box, and once they’ve put the Drachmas in the pouch, the box disappears with a pop.
