The St. Louis Gateway Arch and two new monsters dominate the fourth episode of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. This week marks the midway point for season one, and while Percy, Annabeth, and Grover have delt with Medusa, the Minotaur, and some unhappy gods, this week we meet Echidna and the Chimera.
Episode 4 is titled ‘I Plunge to My Death’ where Percy is forced to take a leap of faith, but viewers and fans continue their plunge into the world of Greek mythology with two interesting and dangerous new characters.
Who is Echidna?
Suzanne Cryer brings Echidna to life for this week’s entry into the season. Meeting the kids on the train, Cryer gives Echidna a threatening gaze and a forceful personality that would intimidate anyone. In Greek mythology Echidna is the mother of all monsters, and Cryer makes her version of Echidna a terror.
Throughout Greek mythology, Echidna has been described as half woman-half snake. With a forked tongue and green skin, Echidna would often be portrayed as having the eyes of a reptile. Thanks to this duality, Echidna embodied terrifying and unknown characteristics, which would be passed down to the monsters of Greek mythology. Suzanne Cryer has captured these classic characteristics with her terrifying portrayal.
Echidna partnered with Typhon who is known as the father of all monsters, and the two would go on to be a formidable pair in Greek mythology. They would help to give birth to some of the most dangerous monsters that would threaten the Greek heroes for generations.
Her most significant impact in Greek mythology was when she and Typhon attacked the Olympians. Their incredible threat to Zeus led to Typhon’s imprisonment under Mount Etna but mercy for Echidna. She and her children were spared any harsh punishment from Zeus. This salvation led to future Greek heroes to challenge themselves against her and the many monsters that she created.
What’s interesting is how Echidna dies. For her fearsome nature and mystery, she would die in her sleep thanks to a multi eyed giant named Argus Panoptes. The head of security for Camp Half-Blood, Argus, would have been a real help for Percy, Annabeth, and Grover.
Who is the Chimera?
A child of Echidna and Typhon, this monster is a hybrid of body parts. Part lion, goat, and snake, in many versions of Chimera’s story, the monster would have the ability to breathe fire on its victims.
Finding a home in the foothills of Lycia, the Chimera was a deadly foe that reigned down terror on the people of the countryside with impunity. Thanks to the timely intervention of another child of Poseidon, Bellerophon, the monster was killed.
One of the earliest descriptions of the Chimera comes from Homer’s Iliad. There have been many representations of the Chimera throughout multiple stories, but the Chimera was often depicted with the head of lion in the front, the head of a goat in the middle, and a serpent tail. That tail could often grow to the length of ten feet long.
The term chimera has become a generic term for any creature that has parts from various animals to form the body.
This week’s episode brings two new characters to the forefront and only helps to push Percy and his friends on their quest for Zeus’ master bolt. With all of the monsters we have met, audience still haven’t met Zeus, Poseidon, Ares, Hephaestus, or Hades yet.