Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-34145432-20190225080602

So, I just realised that there was something like this, and thus, I wanted to post one of my theories here. Some of you may have already read this, but many wouldn't have. So, yeah. Here you go. ..

'''The Evil Masterminds Of The Riordanverse '''

I am going to talk about the most evil masterminds of the Riordanverse. Now, we've seen some wonderful antagonists in the Riordanverse. They all have their own reasons for becoming an antagonist, and they all have their own intentions and own powers. They all are cunning in their own way. But who is the most evil of them all? Who is the villain who stands out? Who is the evildoer who is the most dangerous and most intellectual? There are some potential candidates who could fill this spot. Let's discuss them.

Kronos

I regard him as one of the most strategic antagonists ever. Kronos is really, really smart and was thoroughly trying to manipulate any situation in the first pentalogy. He was cunning and wicked. His brilliance, I could say, was unparalleled. He worked out his mind in various situations and created a wonderful plan. He struck when the gods were too foolish and egoistic. He struck at a time when the gods didn't respect the minor gods, when the gods had zero respect for them and didn't care about them. He plans were well thought out. And regardless of who the pioneer of those plans was, seeing that they were almost successful with these plans talks about how good Kronos is at executing ideas which will have a positive effect to him. Kronos is incredibly powerful too. Being the Titan of Time, it's obvious. He was threatening even at his weakest form, when he was hosting Luke Castellan. At that time itself though, he proved too powerful for Percy and Annabeth. Kronos knows who is more powerful than him. He avoids a fight with someone more powerful than him, unless he has a contingency plan. He doesn't overestimate himself and underestimate his enemies. That's something which I really like about him. Many other antagonists have lost only because they had underestimated their enemies. That's a negative trait belonging to most of the antagonists. But Kronos doesn't have this illogical trait. And that makes him stand out.

One thing which made Kronos a wonderful antagonist is the impact he had on every reader. He was the cause for a lot of deaths. He developed our fear. My fear. His presence itself made me extremely serious. I felt as if I myself was facing him. Kronos was so evil. This was why he had this impact on me. This was why he had been considered as a good villain by me.

Kronos's plan in The Sea Of Monsters was perfect. He wanted the Golden Fleece. That was his main objective. If he had it, he could get restored back to his original Titanic form. He could become normal and powerful again. At the same time, if he had lost, the Fleece would have resurrected Thalia, and that would eventually advance the time of the occurrence of the Great Prophecy. Also, he may have known that Clarisse had took the Fleece and escaped, near the end of The Sea Of Monsters. So, Kronos had tried to kill the other demigods, satyr and cyclops who didn't have any transport facility. This was a perfect plan, to be frank. Not only would the Great Prophecy get advanced, he would have gained an advantage by killing Percy, Grover, Annabeth and Tyson.

While Kronos is indeed a wonderfully narrated antagonist, he isn't a successful one. Things worked out perfectly for him only in The Sea Of Monsters. And that too was because he knew that he had an advantage, be it him getting the Golden Fleece or Percy getting it. But in all the other books, his brilliant plans had eventually failed. Though being smart, witty and cunning, Kronos eventually lost. Despite being powerful, dangerous and scary, Kronos lost. And this clearly states that he isn't the most evil antagonist. An evil antagonist, according to me, should be smart, wicked, and victorious. They must also have the attitude of never giving up. But then again, they shouldn't be reckless and think that they could defeat or destroy anyone. While Kronos can be defined as smart, powerful - powerful by the sense that they're sensible and at the same time, belligerent - and wicked, victory isn't something which he had achieved in the books. The main aim of an antagonist - and a protagonist - is to ultimately win. But Kronos didn't. And this rules him out of the race.

Gaea

Though having the power of the Earth with her, though being the Earth itself, Gaea wasn't as dangerous as Kronos. To be honest, she wasn't that much of a threat itself. Her plans had always failed. She was incredibly powerful, yes. But she didn't have the wits required by an antagonist to be successful. In fact, she struck the gods and demigods at a time when they were at their weakest. The demigods had their own conflicts. The Greek and Roman demigods were at war. And due to this, a split personality had occurred in the gods. Both groups were affected. But still, they won in the end. And this was because of poor planning. Gaea wanted to rush things. She didn't take her time properly. While she waited for approximately seventy years after Alcyoneus’ return was delayed, she didn't act in the right way to achieve victory. Kronos took his time. He took a lot of time. But Gaea didn't. Some may say that this was because the Seven were closing in to stop them. But they didn't even know how Gaea was going to strike. They didn't even know what her ultimate plan was. She clearly could've taken more time. She didn't focus on the things in the present. She always looked at the stage where she would come back from her slumber. Her concentration in the future was what had made her lose in the present. And this is a terrible fault from her side. This is a terrible fault which a good antagonist shouldn't make. Also, she wasn't manipulative. And she and her group revealed their plans like they had no importance. Porphyrion revealed his plans of attacking the Gods in their roots. In Greece. That was why the Argo II was built. That was why the seven were actually powerful. This was poor planning - both on Porphyrion's and Gaea's side. The absence of creative planning was one of the most terrible flaws of Gaea. This clearly cost her her life.

A powerful antagonist need not be smart and successful. This was the case with Gaea. Such a powerful force, due to poor planning, had ultimately fallen. Such a powerful force, due to poor planning, was ultimately defeated. Her physical manifestation was killed some minutes after she had woken up from her slumber. She definitely can’t be 'an evil mastermind'. Gaea is out of the race too.

Nero, Commodus and Caligula

The Triumvirate Emperors are somewhat good antagonists. Somewhat. But we actually don’t know whether they are good antagonists, seeing that their role hasn’t still ended in the books. So, I think it’s better to not include them in this discussion. There would be a lot of predictions by me and you on what they could do, how they could act and how powerful they could be. So, let’s leave them for now.

Apophis

We really have to praise Apophis for delivering the most action-packed climax and final battle in the history of the Riordanverse climax and final battles. The Serpent’s Shadow had a wonderful narration of the final battle between Ma'at and Isfet. It was partially similar to the climax of The Blood Of Olympus. But there’s only one difference between these two: the climax of The Serpent’s Shadow was good and clearly much better than the climax of The Blood Of Olympus. Not only was it wonderful writing by Uncle Rick, Apophis himself was a wonderful antagonist. His power was unprecedented. He was immensely powerful to have had the upper hand against numerous Egyptian deities, deities who were so ancient and powerful than many other deities from different pantheons. And this is something for which you can endlessly boast. Apophis used his incredible power wisely, unlike Gaea, who was too stubborn and slightly egoistic. The manifestation of Ma'at was not only powerful, though. He was incredibly smart too. He manipulated Set, a god, in The Red Pyramid. He manipulated many Magicians and brought them to his side. The visions which he gave to many Magicians was so influential that they felt obliged to follow him. Apophis turned a majority of the Magicians to his side. Also, he carefully planned and destroyed the various versions of the 'Book Of Overcoming Apophis'. He caused the deaths of many Magicians who were against him while he destroyed these books. This not only ensured his survival, but also increased his chances of achieving victory as many Magicians who fought for and defended Ma'at were killed.

Apophis - an evil mastermind. The name suits him perfectly. But just like Kronos, the giant serpent - though being powerful, smart and wicked - wasn't victorious. Just like Kronos, he was killed. Destroyed. Having a really, really unlikely chance of return. Apophis is incredibly powerful, and can literally beat anyone when they are alone. But he was eventually killed by a successful unit of gods and Magicians working together. He too, as per my opinion, will not qualify as an evil mastermind.

Loki

The Norse God-Giant of Mischief. The blood brother of Odin. This guy is a spectacular mastermind. His brilliance is unmatched. His entire plan in The Sword Of Summer took me by storm. It was an awesome plan. It was a shame that it had failed. That one scene. That one epilogue. It made me like the book five times more than before I had read the epilogue. It showed Loki's status as the prime antagonist of the series. It showed his status of how many of the most dangerous Norse monsters where his children. It showed how dangerous he would become if he was released from his. . . prison. Even when he was in captivity, he still proved to be a major problem for the Norse Gods and Einherjars. He's a major threat to the Norse Gods. He's a one man army who could actually have a chance at defeating all the Norse Gods with his immense knowledge in every god's weaknesses and strengths. There's a chance - even if it is minute - for him to overcome these gods. He's that much of a witty giant. He is, as far as I know, the only Norse character, in the books, to have successfully killed a deity. And that's impressive. Loki is also undefeatable in a game of flyting, when his opponent doesn't use any kind of magical item to enhance their debating/speaking skills.

The last line shows a positive and negative side for Loki. The positive side is that he's probably the best in flyting. But the negative side is that even he could be defeated. Even he could be defeated by someone who uses a magical item. Even he could be defeated by someone who consumes Kvasir's Mead. And that was what had exactly happened in The Ship Of The Dead. Magnus had defeated Loki in flyting with the help of the mead. He was able to defeat him. And that's a thing which clearly explains that Loki could be defeated. That's a thing which clearly states that Loki, though being incredibly smart and tricky, is defeatable. So, naturally, he too is out of the race.

I've listed out and explained why the main antagonist of each series in the Riordanverse couldn't qualify as the 'Evil Mastermind'. Kronos from Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Gaea from Heroes Of Olympus, The Triumvirate from The Trials Of Apollo, Apophis from Kane Chronicles and Loki from Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard. All these antagonists are not worthy of being stated as a supreme antagonist. Then who is? Which antagonist is actually more evil than all these. . . definitions of evil, as many would say? Which antagonist is actually more successful than all these antagonists? Who gets the top place? The answer, my friends, lies in a place where one would never search. It lies in a place where one would never, ever search.

The 'Evil Masterminds' of the Riordanverse are the gods. The Greek Gods.

Yes, they are indeed the 'Evil Masterminds'.

I have plenty of reasons to defend this statement of mine. I'll clearly explain my claim so that it seems sensible.

"Any work done with a selfless intent becomes god's work."

We have a really ironic quote here. Let's go on detail about it.

Why is there so much indifference? Don't we find it easy to look away from people who suffer? It seems the easier route not to feel responsible or connected to the tears of the world. Let there be terrorism. Let there be hunger. Let the children of my servant-maid where tattered clothes. So what if my driver's children don't go to school? That's their fate. I don't author their destiny. Isn't it troublesome to get involved in the pain and despair of other people? This list which shows the indifferent of us humans in nearly endless. We are, in many ways, not caring about what happens to other people. This is wrong. We are incorrect. Our approach towards life should change.

When we heed these words, we actually understand what these words mean. We try to follow what these words say. This is what neutralizes the end number of times in the past where we had ignored; where we were indifferent. We, as humans, know what we're doing. We know whether it is right or wrong. And we often want to correct ourselves and do the right thing. In this way, we actually try to become good. We create a remedy for ourselves. And that's something which we should be proud about.

While we humans have the ability to correct ourselves, the Greek Gods don't. They have no emotion, no feeling and no empathy.

Indifference is worse than anger (Gaea, Apophis), more cruel than hatred (Loki), worse than revenge (Kronos, Commodus). At least in anger, hatred and the urge for revenge, some good is done by the immortal, in most of the cases. But indifference reduces the others to an abstraction. Indifference numbs you of your feelings for others. In that sense, indifference is the greatest sin.

The Gods are indifferent. Yes, they are. The quote said, "Any work done with a selfless intent becomes god's work." But I am going to change that: "Any work done with a selfish intent becomes a Greek God's work." More particularly, a Greek God belonging to the Dodekatheon. That is, a Greek God who is one of the Olympians. Now, let's recap on some of the events of the Riordanverse and see why I say that the Gods are the 'evil masterminds'.

The Greek Gods may mean order, but they don't justify this statement. They have always been the cause for every single problem which has occurred in the myths or in the Riordanverse. They have never fallen into the 'peace line', and will never do so in the future. They have been ruling for millennia now, and this has done nothing but raise their egos to a height which can never be touched by any other immortal. Their egoistic persona will not help either Camp Half-Blood or Camp Jupiter in any way. It will only lead to more and more wars and fights and chaos. And who will be used to fight in these wars? The demigods, of course. They are being discriminated time and again. They aren't being given what they are meant to be given. They are always dragged into danger by the gods. And these gods play everything by their wishes and live a happy life, not worrying about what happens to their children. Not caring about what happens to their children.

I want to elaborate on some points here to extend my statement of the gods being egoistic and caring only about their existence, not worrying what happens to anyone or anything. To simply put it, I want to elaborate on some points here to extend my claim of the gods being indifferent. So, in the Heroes Of Olympus series, Poseidon had never talked to Percy like a father. Whereas, in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, this wasn't the case. Poseidon was one of the only gods to have actually shown a lot of love for a demigod. Why did this sudden change happen? Some may say that Zeus restricted the Gods from having contact with mortals. Some may say that it was because of the Greco-Roman conflict. Then why did some other gods visit the Seven, including Percy, while Poseidon - one of the most caring gods as shown in Percy Jackson and the Olympians - didn't visit them? The only sensible reason I can point out here is that Poseidon acted as if he liked Percy a lot in the first series just to ensure that Percy, the child of the great prophecy, would stay loyal to the Olympians, so that the Olympians themselves didn't die. Poseidon then saw no use of Percy. And thus, he didn't waste his time by having some quality time with him.

Some may say that Percy would have conversed with Poseidon in the climax of the Blood Of Olympus, when the gods and the demigods fought together against the Giants, but I disagree with this statement. There are many reasons for this.

Percy and Poseidon were fighting together. They were fighting against two Giants. Obviously, they couldn't have talked when they fought. Also, when the battle was over, every god present in the Acropolis were never in the mood to talk to their children. They just discussed about the situation which was going on. They assembled together and talked about how they could transport the demigods back to Camp Half-Blood. I highly doubt that Percy and Poseidon would have talked in this time, because the only question which Percy would have asked Poseidon in that situation was, "Why didn't you visit me even once for the past 10 months?' or something similar to that. And answering this question would have led to a huge conversation, which definitely didn't happen. So, in the Heroes Of Olympus series and in the Trials Of Apollo series that followed the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Poseidon had never conversed with Percy. Why? It’s because Poseidon is an evil god who cares about nothing but himself.

Dionysus too behaved vastly different in the Heroes Of Olympus series from how he behaved to Percy in the first pentalogy. In Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Dionysus had pep talks with Percy. He was shown to be a gentleman. He was shown to care for his children. He even helped Percy on The Titan's Curse. He behaved in a way which made me like him a lot. But later, in The Heroes Of Olympus series and The Trials Of Apollo series, Dionysus didn't even talk to Percy once. Bacchus conversed with Percy, yes. And at that time too, he was too arrogant. More arrogant and egoistic than before.

I think that Dionysus was made Camp Director of Camp Half-Blood not because he broke a law, but to create a thought in Percy that the gods are much better than the Titans. Think about this. The twelve Olympian gods trusted only themselves. They didn't trust the minor gods. Also, among the twelve, Dionysus was the only god to have become immortal after living a mortal life as a demigod. The other Olympians would have thought that Dionysus was the only one who could behave in a good way towards a demigod. So, they installed him as Camp Director. They wanted him to be friendly towards Thalia, who was the eldest child of the Big Three till the Titan's Curse and the demigod to have been mentioned in the Great Prophecy. But they also wanted him to be friendly towards Percy, who could also be the demigod of the Great Prophecy. That's why, in The Battle Of The Labyrinth, Dionysus was extremely friendly with Percy and supported Grover, so that he could gain Percy's trust. This also explains why Dionysus was never in Camp Half-Blood probably since Percy's sixteenth birthday, and never had any sort of communication with Percy in his Greek form. Dionysus, one of my favourite gods, has become one of my hated gods after this discovery of mine. I despise him so much after this discovery of him being a wonderful actor.

Some may say that Zeus, after caring for Thalia, had turned her into a pine tree when she was at the brink of death. But I disagree. He didn't do this because of his compassion towards Thalia, but did it because he knew that Thalia was his eldest living mortal child and that when she turned sixteen, she would be the hero mentioned in the Great Prophecy. And she being the hero would bring fame to Zeus. It would raise Zeus's popularity to a much higher level. Zeus even showed some love towards her in The Titan's Curse. But after Thalia became a Hunter of Artemis - resulting in the fact that she would never be the child of the Great Prophecy - Zeus lost interest in her. This is evident as we never saw Zeus communicating with her after this incident.

Many of us think that Hestia is the sweetest and best goddess. She is the best among the race of the gods. Even I thought so, I agree. But after some recent discoveries, I hate her.

I think Hestia appearing in The Last Olympian is something which greatly fueled Percy's trust towards the Greek Gods. It made him believe that there were wonderful deities too. He even gave Pandora's Box to Hestia so that he won't open it and signal that he had surrendered. I think of this as a master plan by the gods. See, the gods knew that Percy's decisions were important for their survival. So, they would never want Percy to open Pandora's Box, give up hope and join Kronos. This was where they brought in Hestia, a trustworthy and peaceful goddess who couldn't be hated. The gods knew that Hestia could control anything and wasn't hurt by pride. So, they used her, with or against her agreement. But she played her part perfectly, something which makes me think that she was the one who had actually planned all this. Also, Hestia is someone who doesn't care about anyone or anything. She's just similar to every other Olympian-Dodekatheon deity, in a different way. She doesn't care about anyone just like the Olympians. But at the same time, she isn't hurt by ego like the other gods are. But that still disturbs me, seeing that the only god who isn't affected by an ego isn't available to change the egoistic gods in anyway. Hestia is indifferent too. In fact, she is the most indifferent. She is satisfied with what she has and doesn't even bother about what her family does. And this opinion of mine was brought in by @Wintertopia, so credit goes to her too. Also, just like the other gods whom I have mentioned above, nothing was heard of her since Percy's sixteenth birthday.

This explanation clearly proves that Poseidon and all the other gods aim only to live. They don't care what happens anywhere as long as they live. Uncle Rick has actually, knowingly or unknowingly, created careless, evil gods. He had created gods who were egoistic and cared only about themselves. He had created gods who were indifferent. The true nature of the gods is this. No one can agree to disagree to this.

While all the gods listed above are bad, indifferent and egoistic, I do think that some gods are an exception. Let's discuss them.

Hades

I really think that he's the only god with feelings and emotions. Hades is a sweetheart, to be honest. Though he's the god of the underworld, he has shown more emotion, throughout every series than any other god. Most of the gods cared for their children only in the first pentalogy. After that, they were confident that no demigod would betray them. But Hades cared for his children wholeheartedly. As far as I know, he's the only god in the myths to have not had more than one wife. He loved Persephone truly. He cared for her. He saw her as his better half - someone whom he could trust. Someone whom he could take care of. Someone who would make himself better. Though we found some flaws in his character after he kidnapped Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter realised that just like her, Hades was a person filled with emotions. He truly loved her. He took care of her and didn't harass her in any way. And this kind of love is something which we can never see in any other god. This is true and perfect love. Hades made Persephone more mature and Persephone made Hades calmer and sweeter. They balanced each other's flaws, just like Percabeth did. And the fact that Persephone could see this compassion, the fact that she could see a god who's extremely different from any other god is in itself a wonderful trait. Persephone, a young goddess, made a mature decision, something which I liked a lot. She saw the good in Hades when no one did. She saw how charming he was when no one did. She didn't judge a book by its cover. And this is a trait which most humans themselves don't possess. But a goddess, a young goddess, had this trait. And that's saying something.

Hades, though saying that Bianca was his favourite and that he would have preferred Bianca to live, deeply cared for Nico too. He gave Nico gifts and wanted him to live a happy, peaceful life, unlike his other children. I could see mortal love in him. I could see it. I could see how much he cared for Nico and how much he wanted Nico to live and die a peaceful death. I could feel his pain over losing so many children. I could feel his sufferings - his own sufferings after he saw the dreadful deaths of his children. I could see the compassionate love he showed towards every one of his love interests in the Riordanverse. He was the only god to have visited his mortal wife and demigod children during their childhood - the children's childhood. His human actions was something which made me care for him. Also, the fact that he wasn't too much egoistic and helped the gods - though all they had done to him was give him misery - is appreciable. Hades heeds a good advice, no matter from whom it comes from. He doesn't kill demigods without any logical reason. He doesn't kill demigods just because he is 'bored'. He doesn't cause earthquakes just because he becomes slightly angry at something. He is a reasonable god, unlike the gods of the Dodekatheon. He was amazing and was written in a way which made many love him. But his unintended actions and emotions were the one which had truly emphasized him as a great god, as I had explained above.

Hades didn't have the desire to obtain more power. He was initially disappointed at Persephone for trying to make him another weapon. He didn't crave for power unlike the other members of his family. Also, he didn't punish Persephone for doing something which he didn't like. He just talked to him about the matter later. This is what I call the 'nature of a wonderful character'.

Hades was a true role model. He taught us to not hold grudges and care for our family, no matter how wrong they are. In one point of view, this is a really good characteristic. He was the personification of true love - having married only one deity in the myths and loving that deity for eons, not even showing a little disinterest in his love. He wholeheartedly cared for everyone around him and wanted them to live happily. He feels that it's his fault for his children not having a good life.

Hades didn't just break his connection with Nico after The Last Olympian. In fact, he was the only god to be in constant and frequent connection with a demigod. This clearly explains to us that Hades not only cares about his life. He cares about everyone related to him. That's the only reason for him to still side with the gods.

Many people like Hades because they like characters who are dark and brooding. I think that this is a wrong opinion. People shouldn't like him for this trait of his. They can feel for him, yes. They can want to make him a better person, yes. But they can't like him. They can't like a character just because they are pessimistic. They also can't like a character just because they're optimistic. But I think that people like Hades for totally some other reason, but are unable to sentence it in the right way. I think that people like Hades only because he cares for his children. I think that people like Hades only because he behaves like a good parent, a good father. That's the only reason. But they themselves misinterpret this in their mind.

So, we had discussed about some of the evil gods. But I had left out the most evil god. I had actually left out the 'Evil Mastermind of the Riordanverse'. Who is it? It's obviously not any one of the gods whom I had mentioned above. Then who is it?

Mastermind has only one definition: true brilliance. And we know with whom we can relate brilliance to.

Yes, it’s her.

Annabeth's mom.

Athena.

You see, Poseidon and Dionysus aren't that smart. They definitely had never got the idea of acting like they cared for demigods. Undoubtedly, this was Athena's masterplan. She moved every demigod's chess pieces by manipulating their fatal flaws. Let's see how she did it.

Athena stated in The Titan's Curse that Percy's fatal flaw was loyalty. She was the first one to ever reveal this. Now, it's obvious that she had ordered Poseidon and Dionysus to act. She had told them to care for Percy and behave in a good way towards him so that the son of Poseidon remained in the side of the gods. She had ordered Hestia to help Percy in The Last Olympian. She was the manipulator of every single godly appearance towards Percy in the first pentalogy. Many would say that she never really showed her wisdom in the series. But she had truly manipulated the first pentalogy superbly and thoroughly. She is, as we know, the goddess of wisdom.

We have seen how Annabeth has defeated her enemies by using their fatal flaws against them. She defeated Arachne with this technique. When she herself can manipulate and use someone's fatal flaw to her advantage, why can't her mother, Athena do it? Of course, in the explanation which I had provided above, she had done this. She used Percy's loyalty to her advantage. This was pure genius, to be honest. She's a perfect mastermind.

According to my opinion, an evil mastermind is someone who's successful. And surely, seeing that the gods have survived for eons now, they are truly the successful evil masterminds. And specifically, Athena, the goddess of wisdom, is the true 'Evil Mastermind of the Riordanverse'. The title goes to her. The gods are the real antagonists of the books. They have always been the antagonists. They have always caused every kind of trouble. They are indifferent, egoistic, stupid, evil, dangerous, powerful and insane monsters. They are worse than a gajillion Typhons. Athena and the Gods are the true 'Evil Masterminds of the Riordanverse'. 