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American adult animated television series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Blood of Zeus, formerly known as Gods & Heroes,[1] is an American adult animated fantasy action television series created and written by Charley and Vlas Parlapanides for Netflix.[2][3][4] Produced by Powerhouse Animation Studios and animated by South Korean studios Mua Film and Hanho Heung-Up, the first season premiered on October 27, 2020, on Netflix.[5]
| Blood of Zeus | |
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Teaser poster with its former title | |
| Genre | |
| Created by |
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| Written by |
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| Directed by | Shaunt Nigoghossian |
| Voices of | |
| Music by | Paul Edward-Francis |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Animators |
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| Editor | Shea Formaneck |
| Running time | 25–37 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Netflix |
| Release | October 27, 2020 – present |
In December 2020, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on May 10, 2024.[6][7] According to the creators, they had five seasons outlined.[8] In July 2024, the series was renewed for a third and final season that is set to premiere in 2025.[9]
Set in mythical ancient Greece, the series revolves around Heron, the demigod son of Zeus, trying to save Olympus and Earth. Though Heron himself is an original character created exclusively for the series, the existence of such demigods born of the union between a god and a human is implied to be common in the original myths. The series claims in its prologue to be one of the tales "lost to history" rather than part of the current canon of Greek myths. It features gods, giants, demons, automata, titans, and mythical mounts from the original tales.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "A Call to Arms" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Alexia hunts two demons close to a village where Heron works as a miner. As his mother is unmarried and he is thus a bastard, they are mistreated by the villagers. Their only friend is Elias, an elderly man. When a demon attacks Heron, Alexia injures and captures it while it is hiding in human form. Alexia explains that a cult of humans turned into demons is approaching and burns the human, revealing his demonic face to the villagers. Elias tells Heron the story of how the Olympian Gods defeated the giants, that were grown from the blood of the last Titan to fall in battle. Zeus made a deal with two giants to betray their fellows and throw their corpses into the sea, trapping their souls in a cauldron that was forged by Hephaestus and guarded by Talos. The body of a giant was later discovered by a human cult, who ate the giant's flesh and became the demons. Alexia invites Heron to become one of her soldiers, but he refuses to help save the villagers because of their mistreatment. Men from the village accuse Heron's mother of being a demon and attempt to burn her, only for her to burn herself to prove she is human after they beat Heron. Knowing war is coming, Elias tells Heron to mine the powerful metal adamantine from the top of a mountain to forge a sword. Elias, revealed to be Zeus in disguise, is confronted by Ares, who is surprised Zeus wants Heron to lead mankind. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Past Is Prologue" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Heron dreams of a queen giving birth to two sons, one her husband's and one belonging to another man. Heron brings the adamantine to Elias who begins forging a sword and tells him his dream came from the three Oneiroi, Phobetor, Phantasos, and Morpheus, the respective gods of Nightmares, Illusions, and Visions. Heron confronts his mother who admits she was once Electra, Queen of Corinth, but Zeus fell in love with her and she soon became pregnant. Zeus's wife Hera discovered Zeus's infidelity and sent the Oneiroi to tell the King of the infidelity in his dreams. When Electra gave birth to twin boys, the King tried to kill the son that was not his, Heron, but Zeus intervened and Electra killed the king. Zeus hid Heron and Electra under a layer of cloud so Hera could never find them, while Heron’s twin brother was left behind and assassinated by an uncle who wanted Corinth’s crown. Realizing Elias is his father Zeus, Heron tries to confront him, but finds only the completed sword which Heron rejects by impaling it into a boulder. Alexia's soldiers are killed by the cult leader but Alexia escapes with a map to their main camp, so a three headed hound is sent after her. Zeus reveals himself to Heron to ask forgiveness but leaves after Heron rejects him. Alexia arrives with the hound chasing her, so she flees with Heron. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "The Raid" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Hera swears to kill Electra and Heron, so Zeus threatens her to leave Electra's life in the hands of the Fates. In secret, Zeus removes the protective clouds so he can see Heron. The demons attacks, so the villagers flee to safety through Heron’s iron mine. Heron causes a rockslide crushing several demons, so the Demons leader tries to kill him, Heron only surviving when Zeus sends him telepathic warnings. Electra manages to hide from the demons, but the demons leader Seraphim demands the villagers tell him where Alexia is. Electra kills them when the Cerberus picks up Alexia's scent. Zeus hides Alexia's scent with a rose bush. Seeing Zeus actively intervening, Hera decides to intervene herself and redirects the Cerberus to Electra. Hera and the other Gods confront Zeus, reminding him Electra's life is supposed to be in the hands of the Fates. According to Zeus' own laws, they would be within their rights to execute Zeus to preserve peace among themselves. Zeus is forced to watch as Seraphim executes Electra and takes Heron captive to turn him into a demon. Hera gloats at Zeus' misery while Seraphim takes Electra's necklace commemorating Heron and his deceased brother. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "A Monster Is Born" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Alexia comes across Zeus disguised as Elias mourning Electra before continuing after Heron. Hermes carries Electra's soul to the Underworld where she chooses to appear to Heron in a vision, reminding him to be strong. Hera appears before Seraphim. After forcing him to kneel before her, Hera tells him he is the firstborn son of the Corinthian King. When his uncle Acrisius dropped him from a cliff, he was found alive by Electra’s midwife Ariana who fled with him into the woods where she raised him alongside a bear and her cubs. When Acrisius' sons found them, they murdered Ariana and Seraphim's bear siblings. The mother bear killed all the men except for one of Acrisius' sons who escaped. Years later, Seraphim tracked down and murdered the surviving son before fleeing into the sea where he discovered the corpse of the giant. After eating its flesh, Seraphim retrieved the Olympian bident that killed the giant and used it to kill the pursuing soldiers, turning those that surrendered into his followers. Hera claims everything is Zeus' fault for not saving Seraphim the way he saved Heron. Seraphim is suspicious of Hera's motives, so Hera also reveals Seraphim unknowingly killed his real mother Electra, enraging Seraphim against Zeus. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Escape or Die" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Alexia goes to meet her mentor Chiron in order to translate certain portions of the map she had obtained from the demons. Chiron reveals that the map provides a path through the labyrinth where the body of the Giant that created the Demons is hidden. Alexia tries to leave with this information, but Chiron reveals he has betrayed her to the Demons in order to protect his people. He surrenders Alexia and the map to Seraphim, but not before discreetly covering the map in mud. Hera leads Seraphim to the sword that Zeus forged for Heron. She states that the sword can cut through anything, including the automaton Talos that protects the chest that holds the souls of the Giants. She also demands that Seraphim kill Heron who has been taken on board a galley where he conspires with other prisoners to break from their shackles and take control of the ship. Hermes reveals to Zeus that he saw Hera conspire with Seraphim and this revelation pushes Zeus to the edge and he rains lighting to earth in order to protect Heron from Seraphim. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Back to Olympus" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Saved by Zeus, Heron is taken to Olympus while Alexia and the other prisoners are directed to go to the entrance of the Labyrinth, even though the map was destroyed. Seraphim is directed by Hera to find an artifact called the Cauldron of Darkness. Zeus tries to appease Hera and swear his devotion to her, but she only intends to accept if Heron is killed. Zeus refuses the condition and Hera leaves with her followers to Hades who remains neutral and offers shelter to any god who asks. Poseidon leaves with her. Alexia and the others meet with Chrion who provides a copy of the map to atone his mistake and they make plans to head to the Labyrinth through the Fields of the Dead. Heron is briefly trained and taught to control his anger when fighting before being summoned by the fates who warn him of the influence he will hold in coming events before revealing to him that Alexia and the others are walking into danger. However, Zeus tells him he cannot go to help them as he is not ready. After Heron asks Zeus why he didn't stop Seraphim from killing his mother, Zeus reveals that Seraphim is Heron's twin. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "The Fields of the Dead" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Seraphim is given a nightmare by the Oneiros. Zeus banishes the Oneiros and reveals he has helped Seraphim all his life, even saving him from Acrisius' sons when they killed Ariana. He also reveals Hera manipulated him into killing his mother Electra. Chiron leads Alexia and her followers to the Fields of the Dead where the Olympians defeated the Giants and warns them within the mist they must never run in case they disturb the poisoned ground. Several followers are killed fleeing from hallucinations. They make it to the labyrinth's entrance where Heron arrives and kills the Minotaur. Following Zeus's clues, Seraphim finds Acrisius living in a cave and kills him. Alexia and Heron find the Giants' corpse is missing and Seraphim has them in a trap. Seraphim offers Heron a chance to work together and kill the Gods, but Heron refuses. The rest of the followers are killed, leaving only Kofi the gladiator and Evios the thief. Hera attacks Hermes who had been following her and steals his soul-collecting arm brace. Apollo saves Hermes, but is injured by Ares who throws Apollo's body into the sea. Seraphim locates the cauldron and escapes Talos using Heron's sword. Hera releases the Giants, souls, returning them to their bodies before fatally injuring Zeus while disguised as Hermes. As Zeus lies dying, the Giants begin marching on Olympus. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "War for Olympus" | Shaunt Nigoghossian | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | October 27, 2020 | |
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Hera offers the Giants the oceans if they kill Zeus. Overhearing this, Poseidon returns to Olympus with Apollo, heals Zeus (Zeus used his lightning to close his wound), and reveals where Hera has the cauldron. As the battle for Olympus begins, Heron, Alexia, Kofi and Evios infiltrate the demons' camp. Zeus and Poseidon kill most of the demons and Giants, so Hera attacks Zeus. Heron realizes the cauldron is being held high in the sky by Hera's crows. Zeus overpowers Hera, allowing Heron to retrieve the cauldron while the leader of the Giants wounds Zeus. Hera is betrayed and almost killed by the Giants' leader, but Zeus sacrifices his own life to save her. Seraphim severs Hera's right arm, taking the cauldron while Hera flees. Heron engages Seraphim in a fist fight. Accepting Zeus training, Heron stabs through his own chest with Seraphim's bident, impaling Seraphim as well and summons Zeus’s lightning to finally kill Seraphim. Heron reaches the cauldron and once more traps all the Giants' souls inside, ending the battle. The next morning, Heron reunites with his friends and is welcomed to Olympus by his several demi-god half-brothers. Seraphim's soul awakens in the underworld where the bident is retrieved by its true owner Hades who offers Seraphim freedom from eternal punishment if he kneels to Hades as he once knelt to Hera. | ||||||
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 1 | "A Shadow Emerges" | Jae H. Kim & Jae Woo Kim | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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An extended flashback reveals that, during the battle of Olympus, Hades commands his servants to steal the Eleusinian Stone, which grants its bearer the right to rule Olympus. Simultaneously, Zeus orders Hestia and Athena to place the stone in the hidden realm where Zeus was raised unseen by Kronos. After Hades’ servants fail to acquire the stone, Persephone suggests that they recruit the now-deceased Seraphim, as his giant blood permits him to enter the hidden realm. After the battle, Gaia tells Heron to retrieve the sword Zeus forged to save Seraphim. | ||||||
| 10 | 2 | "Weights & Measures" | Jae H. Kim & Joshua Covey | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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At the site of Seraphim’s death, Alexia tries to comfort Heron, but he sympathizes with Seraphim’s hatred of the gods and rejects a summons by the Fates. In the Underworld, Seraphim rejects Hades’s attempts to intimidate him, choosing to be judged. Kings Minos, Rhadamanthus, and Aeacus sentence Seraphim to Tartarus. As springtime begins on Earth, Persephone leaves Hades and their children once again. Hades visits Seraphim in his torture and tells how, after Typhon was imprisoned, the world was divided according to three stones drawn by Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. Zeus and Hera cheated to win the Eleusinian Stone, granting them rulership of Olympus. Despite their wrongs at the hands of the gods, Seraphim again refuses to help Hades. | ||||||
| 11 | 3 | "Winter is Born" | Jae H. Kim & Jae Woo Kim | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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Hephaestus grants Heron a compass which, with a piece of adamantine from the same vein, will guide him to the sword forged from it. Hades describes to Seraphim how he found existence in the Underworld unbearable until he encountered Persephone. Against Demeter’s wishes, Persephone took Hades as her suitor and bound herself to the Underworld. To appease Demeter, Zeus declared that Persephone would reside there only six months every year. Seraphim sympathizes when Hades reminds him of Gorgo, a priestess whom he loved as a human. They intended to marry until Seraphim killed the man who had killed Ariana, resulting in his pursuit to the cave and eating of the giant’s corpse. Hades reveals that Gorgo is now a wraith, unable to cross the Styx, and blames Seraphim for abandoning her. In exchange for Gorgo’s passage and erasure of her memory of him with the waters of the Lethe, Seraphim finally acquiesces. | ||||||
| 12 | 4 | "Funeral Games" | Jae H. Kim & Joshua Covey | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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The Fates warn Heron that an unknown intruder cut his lifeline during the battle of Olympus and that he will soon die. Hades returns Seraphim to the surface world with the power to alternate between his human and demonic forms. At Zeus’s funeral games, Ares mocks Heron and nearly beats him to death in pygmachia until Hera intervenes. The gods nearly come to blows over Hera’s right to attend when Gaia arrives and declares that, in three days, a challenge will be held to determine the next ruler of Olympus. Zeus’s spirit grants Heron his signet ring before being taken to the Underworld. Heron tells his friends that he intends to save Seraphim, to their shock. | ||||||
| 13 | 5 | "Judgement Day" | Jae H. Kim & Jae Woo Kim | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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In the Underworld, Zeus briefly reunites with Elecktra before being taken to judgement. Hera and Hades testify to Zeus’s virtues and faults as a ruler; Zeus is ultimately sentenced to Tartarus after confessing that he purposefully neglected Seraphim. Heron and his friends return to his home and discover an underground chamber, where a vision of Zeus says that Heron is prophesized to save the world from Typhon’s return. Evios parts ways with them upon hearing that a smuggler associate has escaped imprisonment. Seraphim confronts the Tree-bender, who killed Gorgo even after she correctly answered the riddle to cross his gorge. He kills the Tree-bender but is wounded. | ||||||
| 14 | 6 | "Crossing Paths" | Jae H. Kim & Joshua Covey | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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Finding no adamantine left on the original mountaintop, Heron and his friends discover that the Keres are feeding on survivors of Heron’s polis in the mines. They are nearly overwhelmed until Heron summons lightning to kill all the Keres but one, with a warning to only feed on the dead. The survivors’ leader suggests that Elecktra was buried in their graveyard for fallen heroes. Demeter confronts Hades over his conspiracy but offers to remain silent if she, Hades, and Persephone rule as a triumvirate when they win Gaia's challenge. Heron finds Seraphim passed out from his wound, not recognizing him in his human form, and revives him. After recovering, Seraphim refrains from murdering Heron after overhearing him confess his desire to save Seraphim. Heron discovers adamantine in the engravings on Elecktra’s grave. Gaia releases her summons to the hidden realm, where the contenders will face three challenges for the Eleusinian Stone. | ||||||
| 15 | 7 | "The Hidden Realm" | Jae H. Kim & Jae Woo Kim | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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Demeter unleashes poisonous spores upon the world, killing many mortals and weakening the gods. Hephaestus’s compass leads Heron and his friends to Talos, who is running amok and sinking Amazonian ships. They recover the sword and kill Talos with it, and Alexia reunites with her aunt. Athena confronts Persephone over Hades’ activities. Seraphim reaches the entrance to the hidden realm, guarded by the Kouretes. With the Oneiroi, he tricks them into drinking Lethe water and convinces them to let him pass. | ||||||
| 16 | 8 | "The Three Trials" | Jae H. Kim & Joshua Covey | Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides | May 10, 2024 | |
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In the hidden realm, Seraphim rejects a false offer to go back in time and change his life, then kills a dragon after breaking the illusion. A sphinx then challenges Seraphim to confront his worst fear, but Seraphim claims he has none anymore and enters a labyrinth next. Heron uses Zeus’s ring to pass the Kouretes and enter the hidden realm as well. The sphinx confronts Heron with the knowledge that he could have killed Seraphim and saved many others if he had not thrown away the sword. At the center of the labyrinth, where Zeus’s eagle carries the Eleusinian Stone, Gaia says that Heron must teach the gods the value of forgiveness. The gods arrive and battle for the stone until Heron claims it and pledges to be a forgiving ruler. But when he says Hades must return to the Underworld, Hades stabs Heron to death and claims the stone. Angered, Gaia declares none of the gods are worthy and resurrects Typhon to destroy them all. | ||||||
For the series, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes collected 21 reviews for Season 1 and identified 100% of them as positive, with an average rating of 8.14/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Reforging Greek mythology as an epic battle royale with slick imagery and sterling voice acting, Blood of Zeus earns a spot on the Mount Olympus of action animation."[10] Inverse.com called the series "Netflix's best American anime yet",[11] while IGN gave it a 9/10 score.[12] In a posting summarizing an interview on her podcast with the show's creators, Kate Sánchez argued that the series offers a "nuanced take on anger and how it relates to power" and noted how the series is part of the "continuing trend of adult animation."[13] The New York Times also praised the show, calling it, "special and dazzling" comparing it to the HBO series Game of Thrones.[14] Collider ranked Blood of Zeus #2 in its Top Ten Mythology Shows, second only to the History Channel's Vikings. Blood of Zeus fared better than the Norwegian series Ragnarok, Starz's American Gods and Outlander, among other shows.[15] YardBarker called it one of the most extraordinary recent offerings in the dark fantasy and mythology genre,[16] while Ranker named Blood of Zeus their #1 Greek mythology show.[17] The show's musical score was nominated for an Annie Award for Best Music in 2021.
Season 2 of Blood of Zeus was released on May 10, 2024 and currently has 13 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and is also at 100% Fresh.[18] The website's critics consensus reads, "Blood of Zeus's long-awaited second season steps down from Olympus to explore Greek myth's underworld, finding even more compelling lore and emotional texture than before."[19] The season has been universally lauded by Rotten Tomato critics. Marilo Delgado of Espinof wrote, “Blood of Zeus once again proves that it is one of the most entertaining animated series available.” She gave the show's second season a 4.5/5 score.[20] Some critics have said that Season 2 surpassed the creative heights of the first season. This includes Daniel Kurland, who wrote, “Blood of Zeus’ first season was a fascinating dissection of not just Greek mythology, but demystifying the larger-than-life figures who are the basis from so much of modern culture's mythology and storytelling. This season would have been a masterpiece in and of itself with the places that it visits and where it's willing to push its characters. That being said, Blood of Zeus’ second season pushes all this to such greater heights and makes its freshman season feel like a warm-up and schoolyard fable in comparison to what's on display this year.” [21] Kate Sanchez, from BUT WHY THO? wrote, “With fantastic animation that captures epic action moments and emotional character growth that goes far beyond expectations, Blood of Zeus Season 2 is near perfect.” [22] She gave the show a 9.5/10 score in her review while Britany Murphy from Muses of Media gave the Second Season a 4.5/5 score and wrote, “The much-anticipated second season of Blood of Zeus has finally graced our screens, and it's a magnificent continuation of the divine drama that captured our attention in the first season.”[23] Other critics have noted the importance of the show's creators, Charley and Vlas Parlapanides and how their Greek background infused the show with a certain degree of authenticity. This includes Black Nerd Problems critic Frantz Jerome who wrote, “What Blood of Zeus brought to the table from its pilot in season one was something inherently Greek. Not just because the story employs Greek mythology, Percy Jackson does that, but with way less seasoning. No, Blood of Zeus deeply engages in the ethos of Greek society. Due in no small part to creators and showrunners, Charles and Vlas Parlapanides. In the age of AI “art” and culture-appropriating superstars, the authenticity of this show goes a long way. The kinds of decisions characters make, the direction of a plot, the design of a character – each of these things hinge on culture. This is still a rare occurrence in productions. Despite there being some very notable standout TV shows and movies (Jane The Virgin and Black Panther for instance) that utilize culture to ground their fiction in ways that are super relatable to audiences.” [24]
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