Odysseus - Blog Posts

Do you have any myths about Diomedes after he gets turned into a god?

What was Titan Odysseus's childhood like?

1. not yet

2. A childhood of a titan is a vague timeframe. Odysseus remembers the time where people weren't created yet. He remembers the time without worship and different meanings of pleasure. There was a time when he just like the other ancient generation didn't possess sentimentality over acts of love making.

It used to be something as simple as drinking water from the river when you are thirsty and eating fruits when you are hungry. Odysseus still remembers the names of titans, nymphs and satyrs that used to share with him pleasure. He isn't sure if he sires any children from that time since children made between titans or ancient gods like Nyx or Gaya were growing up so fast they barely needed parents and they quickly understood the meaning of domains that they embodied. After all he barely remembers Gaya or Eros (in Hesiod's Theogony Eros as spiritual embodiment of love was made by Khaos instead of being son of Aphrodite) ever nurturing him or teaching him about his domain. He WAS the peace. He was what calmed those in distress and what allowed others to enjoy a quiet existence of nature.

But then the people arrived. Those creatures made out of clay were fascinated to the titan who despite living for centuries was maybe in his teen years.

They lived for such a short time that they saw importance in the smallest of things. Odysseus loved seeing how people would put a lot of care in creating tasty food, building homes or nurturing their youth.

He then also witnessed the true meaning of marriage and family. People who lived for such a short time would find another half to share life with. They would do everything together and even refused to share the nights with anyone else just to prove their devotion.

While Odysseus never found interest in the idea of being worshipped by the people, ha absolutely fell in love with the marriages. Now he couldn't imagine having an affair with anyone that wasn't this special for him. And so he waited until he found himself someone so special he would like to share his life with.

What did Titan Odysseus, Penelope, and Diomedes do as a couple? Considering Ody's abilities made it hard for them to be around him for a short period of time before they became deities, how did that work?

When Penelope and Diomedes were mortals they would have a very active first day with Ody and then calm second. Ody would then leave for a few hours and the cycle could repeat.

For example with Penelope they would play around trees, dance etc in the first day and in the second they would have a peaceful day during which Penelope would weave and Ody would carve in wood. Or they would both play instruments together.

With Diomedes they used to spar and play a lot of "tavern" games and later do something like fishing.

Also it's not like they could stay for too long with him before they got married and became gods. Penelope was a princess and she was expected to be home regularly and Diomedes met Odysseus when he was a soldier and a king. Ody usually had to be the one to remind them about their duties.

Short "myth" about Titan of Peace Odysseus.

After many days Dionysus finally found a perfect spot for his cult to celebrate. It was a small island full of fruits, flowers and other breathtaking sights.

He let his people and satyrs alone for a day while he would gather the wine needed. What surprised him was that once he was back, his people were asleep. Even when they woke up they would act too calm to enjoy a party.

Dionysus tried again and again to make them active. In the act of desperation he called out Apollo to help him.

The god of music at first laughed at the god of wine, claiming that he's so boring that even his followers mellowed down.

But suddenly the same thing happened to Apollo's followers as well. His musicians would only play lullabies and his dancers only moved slowly in embrace.

Buty gods tried to find the source of it all and it was then where they found Titan Odysseus sleeping in the nearby field of flowers.

Narcoleptic titan probably planned only to nap for a short while but black or loud wildlife on this island created a situation where nothing would wake him up naturally and now everyone was experiencing an effect of his domain.

Both gods tried everything to wake him up but nothing was helping. The river was too shallow, warm and calm to wake up titan and most animals were unwilling to help.

Finally out of desperation Dionysus lured in the loudest goat on the island and Apollo used its horn to turn it into an instrument noisy enough to awaken their friend.

They blew at it with the full power of their lungs. It was heard by a nearby island as well and even Helios would almost trip from his chariot, being startled by the instrument.

But it worked! Odysseus woke up. With slow movement he stretched his limbs. Seeing tired looking Apollo and Dionysus (they are tired since they tried to wake him up for days) he asks if he can help them with anything. The two gods explained the situation which made Odysseus embarrassed. He apologised and promised to leave the island, but Dionysus invited Ody to come back in three days. He would be able to enjoy some fun and music and he would be a huge help in calming down drunk followers of his.

The gods and titan enjoyed their time with mortals and the world was introduced to new instruments. The horn 📯

What if god Odysseus was the son of Poseidon? How much would that would change in Ody's life?

A LOT would change. Poseidon would be a helicopter parent to his son. Ody as a god of safety would focus on assisting sailors and shipwrecked people, but Poseidon would punish any man who tries to take advantage of his innocent son.

Ody would live on a hard to reach island and any nymph/god/siren/etc that would potentially inhabit it would have to be approved by Poseidon.

The reason why is because Ody is due to living near the sea he always helped people lost there but sadly some sailors out of desperation would want to do unspeakable to the beautiful young looking man with wings.

Odysseus would have wings similar to a seagull or albatross. He is also more sheltered so he relies on stories shared by people to know more about the world.

It is almost like a currency to him. You can ask him a favour and he will accept if you in exchange tell his an interesting story that he didn't hear before.

Odysseus would meet Penelope when she was sailing with her family and she accidentally fell overboard during a storm. He helped her and took her to his island because she had no idea how to explain the Ody location of Sparta. So they would spend a few days together and at night Ody was flying and trying to locate her home.

Once he did it he took her to safety. They fell in love and Ody promised to visit her but also he warned her to not try to seek him or Poseidon might punish her.

He was visiting her once a week but her cousins started to suggest that he just has another lover on his island. She didn't believe them but once her father wanted to marry her off she decided to risk everything and swim to Odysseus.

Poseidon was about to strike her with his trident but Ody shielded her with his wings. Penelope seeing it started to worry and tried to help Ody despite being in danger. Poseidon was impressed and allowed her to be with his son but she wasn't allowed to invite her family over. (There would be an additional "myth" about that). She became a goddess once she reached her twenties so she would be in a similar "age" as Odysseus.

There would be a story where Jason and Argonauts accidentally landed on Ody's island where the young god helped them and told them that they can take any food but they can't steal any treasures or stay for longer than two nights. They at first agreed but one of them got fascinated by pearl jewelry and stole a necklace. Also Jason forgot that they were there already for a day when Ody explained the rules and because of it they stayed for a day too long. Because of it they stumbled upon angry Poseidon who assumed that they wanted to hurt his son. They promised that they didn't touch him but Poseidon told them that he will only believe them if the thief who stole the necklace reveals himself and experiences a proper punishment. At first they wanted to blame Heracles since he would most likely survive it but then even started claiming to be the thief. Impressed Poseidon allowed them to go but as a punishment he moved their boat so their journey would take longer than needed.

Will you ever make a full fic of your deity!ody au?

Also I love your work! Thanks to you I am now obsessed with hector/odysseus!!

I might once I have a bigger idea for the entire story, because for now I just have an idea for a few smaller stories.

Thank you so much 😊 I'm happy you like my crack ship. In around a week or two a new chapter will be posted.

How much do you think god or Titan Odysseus affects greek mythology if at all?

How does Telemachus find his domains?

What abilities do you think Diomedes would inherit upon becoming a deity?

Titan Odysseus would not affect Greek mythology too much. He is one of those gods/titans that you fear about but they are rarely active in stories of other people. (Like the greek god of riches for example.)

He would have a few stories involving gods like Apollo or Ares that were unable to do their job because Ody was too close to them or a story or two about a mortal/nymph who tried to seduce Ody only to be cursed by Penelope.

Telemachus finds his domain during his travels with his parents. He finds traveling people who had a problem with setting up their camp. Telemachus helped them by helping them find a shelter and creating a campfire that would survive a night. Travellers gave Telemachus a flute (which would become his symbol) and some food as thanks and they spent the rest of the night exchanging stories and playing music together. Telemachus was able to calm down stressed travellers and aided them, that way he discovered his domain.

I'm still not sure what type of god Dio would become so I don't know.

What do you think Diomedes bonding attempts with Telemachus were like?(If it was either before he gained immortality or after he gained immortality). What do you think Telemachus would be like as a Titan?

Diomedes went through an awkward stage of trying to understand how babies work and then trying to understand how godly babies work hahaha

I imagine Dio taking Telemachus on trips to cities and showing him things that his parents might not understand too well. He is like a big brother when it comes to answering questions.

Once Telemachus was old enough he would absolutely teach him how to spar and use weapons. Also Diomedes is the one who accidentally becomes a bad influence to baby Telemachus (since Diomedes is a little hot headed and didn't learn tact)

Telemachus would not be a titan but a god (even if he would be a child of titan Odysseus). He would be curious of people and the world like his parents. He enjoys pretending to be a human just to join other travellers on their way.

He would be the type of person who would randomly make a backpack journey around the country only to tell you about it once he's back. Also if he sees something he finds cool he WILL drag one of his three parents to show it.

He is also a prankster like his father, but while his dad would mess with people by scaring them a little or making them trip, Telemachus would instead come up with random gossips, make your tent fall a few times before you can build it correctly or he would add something to your food/drink that would make your tongue blue. (It represents innocent accidents that might happen on camping trips)

A cover for my Hector/fem!Odysseus fanfic

I hope you'll enjoy this story of a love entangled in the tragedy of war.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64488046

Chapters: 2/? Fandom: The Iliad - Homer, The Odyssey - Homer, EPIC - Jorge Rivera-Herrans (Albums), Ancient Greek Religion & Lore Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Hector/Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Diomedes/Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Diomedes & Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Andromache/Hector (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Hector & Paris (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Hector & Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Menelaus & Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore) Characters: Odysseus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Hector (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Priam (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Castor (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Pollux (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Diomedes (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Menelaus (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Agamemnon (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Nestor (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Trojan War, Fluff and Angst, Domestic Fluff, Difficult Decisions, Friends to Lovers, Lovers To Enemies, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Odysseus Needs A Hug (EPIC: The Musical), Odysseus is Not Okay (EPIC: The Musical), hector needs a hug, Slow Burn, english is not author's first language, Attempt at Humor, I'm Bad At Summaries, I'm Bad At Tagging, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Bittersweet, Female Odysseus (EPIC: The Musical) Summary:

In the shadows of war and duty, quiet bonds are hidden from prying eyes—some tender, some painful, and some worth breaking the rules for. This is the story of a forbidden love between Prince Hector of Troy and Queen Odysseus of Ithaca, how it all started and what the war will force them to do.

Do you think Titan Odysseus looks any different from God Odysseus? Are there personalities any different?

How exactly do Diomedes, Penelope, and Odysseus go about discipline/raising Telemachus ?

Any fun facts about them as deities (Telemachus and Penelope)?

What are the reactions of those from the kingdom of Argos (if he somehow managed to convince them of dating a Titan and a goddess)?

Okay so I have a headcanon about titans that they are much more of an embodiment of the domain they represent. It basically goes

Chaos > ancient gods (Gaya, Nyx, Tartarus) > Titans > Gods embodying elements (Limos) > "Olympian gods" > minor gods > nymphs/spirits > demigods

The further it goes the more human they are. For example Limos as goddess of hunger embodied her element to the point where even Demeter couldn't get close to her, or how Helios is sometimes described as the sun itself which never happened to Apollo.

Odysseus as a titan of peace would cause his surroundings to become calm. He sometimes visits cities that were victims of a panic to calm them down. He also helps by visiting places that are meant to be sanctuaries like temples. If he would stay too long he could risk people acting like lotus eaters and not being willing to work so he makes sure to not stay in one place for more than a month.

Titan Ody looks more like a harpy than a human (he has harpy legs and his body is mostly covered in feathers with exception being his chest, neck, arms and face) he has a pair of wings on his back and on his head.

God Odysseus looks mostly like a man in his twenties with wings on his lower back and head.

Raising Telemachus is different depending if it's god Odysseus or titan one. If he's a god, he, Penelope and Dio would stay in Argos at first and make sure if Telemachus is a god or not (since gods do not always give birth to other gods). Telemachus would be raised among people of Argos until he develops his domain.

If Odysseus is a titan they would raise Telemachus in the fields that are seen as Ody's main domain. Diomedes would make sure to take Telemachus regularly to some cities to make sure that he would know more about people. (Since God Ody is easily startled by people and titan one can't stay with them too long without affecting them)

In both Odysseus would share stories with his baby and show him many places while Penelope would introduce Telemachus to many books, arts and crafts.

Ody is more relaxed about raising Telemachus. He is a little bit overprotective but at the same time he wants his baby to enjoy what the world has to offer. Penelope is a kind but stern parent. She is the one who established things like bedtime or will give him timeout for misbehaving. Diomedes is at first confused as hell because he knows nothing about raising kids but he gets better with time. He also was only recently granted godhood or he is about to so he is still figuring out all the god stuff while trying to raise a baby that can easily lift him.

With the people of Argos it's a funny story.

At first they obviously didn't believe him when he said he's a lover of a titan. But once Sthenelus realised that Dio isn't lying he's PANICKING! Everyone knows that Odysseus has been married for over a century. They are scared that his wife will punish Dio and the entire Argos for this situation. They want to build a temple for Penelope to beg her for forgiveness only to turn out that Penelope doesn't mind sharing her husband (especially since the first thing Ody did was to ask for his wife's permission to have a date with a pretty human.) Dio decides to stay human until he finds someone to replace him on the throne and Sthenelus is always sweating bullets when he feels the presence of the titan and the goddess.

Titan or god Odysseus. What's your take on dioodypen? Like how would it go?

With Penelope it would probably be the same as I described before.

Dio would stumble upon them by accident. He would travel only to hear the soft sound of music.

At first he was just visiting them regularly but then he admitted that he started falling for them

They would start dating and Dio would most likely accept ambrosia.

Also when he tried to tell others nobody believed him that he dates a titan and goddess

If you think about it epic could easily be turned analog horror series.

So, as for god Odysseus do you have any fun facts about it or at least more of how their cults work?

I'm not well versed with analog horrors (I'm a bigger fan of creepy pasta/books/movies) so I can't say much about the first part.

And for god Odysseus:

- He invented wind chimes (as a source of comfort and also a simple alarm), people attach it to the window of the rooms that they want Odysseus to protect the most (like a child's bedroom), it also works as a basic alarm since trying to break in would make a noise (the wind chimes that are made as a sign for Odysseus have a hawk feather attached to it)

- His first temple was built in Ithaca by Ctimene.

- When he met Diomedes for the first time he pretended to be human to not startle the teen but he didn't realise that the young soldier was attracted to him. (Ody is super oblivious to courting until someone says bluntly what they want/feel)

- Eris is obsessed with Odysseus. She is in love with him and at first she tries to arrange the marriage between them by getting blessings from Hermes and Zeus. Hermes instantly refused and Zeus only refused because Hermes demanded it. She always chases after him and he escapes. It would be a symbol of how you don't feel safe in places full of discord and vice versa.

- Also there would be more than one myth mentioning Eris trying to be with Odysseus (In a similar way we have more than one myth about Apollo's bad luck with lovers)

- Ody chirps and makes bird noises when happy/sad/startled

- Because he was working too much (and because Ares got mad that many conflicts were stopped) Hypnos was ordered by Zeus to make Ody narcoleptic. Now Ody takes a few naps during the day.

- he gave the hedgehog its spikes. The small animal was often bullied by other creatures which made Ody sad, especially since the little being was always playing with it. Hedgehog originally had a very soft fur, it also explained how it was too scared to bite someone. And so when a satyr was using a hedgehog as a pillow to take a nap, Ody turned the fur on the back into spikes, harming satyr and scaring him away.

- bow is his special tool that he uses for his domain. The arrows when hit by someone will send a jolt/shiver that is a silent warning from upcoming danger (explaining idea of "sixth sense"/"sensing danger(having a bad feeling about something)")

Working on the second chapter of "Sing, O Muse, of Agony". New characters are introduced adding to building drama 🤭🫣

What's your take on if Odysseus was transported back in time to the start of the Trojan War after defeating for Poseidon?

That depends:...

If it was just his mind going back then it could be an interesting way to explore his changed morality and his view on people.

He would probably make sure that Eurylochus does not have a reason to doubt him by being more clear in what his intentions are.

He would also struggle less/more with his PTSD which would change his interactions with Polites.

Also the journey back would be easier since he would know to avoid or to kill the Cyclop so they would back home in a few months or a year. (Only in epic universe)

But if Ody got physically transported back it would be just painful.

He aged ten more years, has scars he can't speak of and his friends would barely recognise him. In both of those he would avoid telling anyone what happened. Also in both it's hard to say what would be his relation with Athena.

She didn't have her character arc so he would face her cold self after knowing how she acts at her worst.

There is a high chance they would part ways anyway because Ody would not trust her and she didn't have the reason to change her mindset.

Let me present to you "Sing, O Muse, of Agony"

A retelling of the Illiad and Odyssey with two key differences being that Odysseus is a woman in this story and that she is/was in a relationship with Hector of Troy.

You'll have to see for yourself how things will turn out for them.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64488046

If you were your own Titan Odysseus lore, how would you go about it?

I mostly had one main idea. Where Odysseus would be a titan of peace (in the sense of calmness)

Odysseus would be a gentle titan who enjoys pretending to be mortal just to listen to stories shared by travelers. (That's how he gained most of his wisdom)

He enjoys some tricks and practical jokes but never something too cruel.

He and Hypnos would be friends and they would often be associated with one another for obvious reasons.

He's seen as a patron of caretakers and one of his symbols is chamomile.

His main story would come from how a god fell in love with him but he kept avoiding the advances with his words. Because of it the god decided to steal Eros' arrow and poured the gold from it into Ody's nectar. Once the titan drank it his tongue turned gold and he was forced to answer all advances with words of love.

To avoid gods/nymphs/people forcing upon him romances Odysseus started wearing rags and wrapping himself in bandages, looking like a sickly beggar so nobody would be interested in him.

He fell in love with Penelope who despite him looking displeasing she would always visit him. They would share stories while she was weaving baskets and he was carving in the wood.

Even then the Spartan princess would show her affection by gifting him instruments or singing love songs allowing the titan to listen to confessions without the need to say anything in exchange.

Helios decided to help the pair by whispering to the princess Ody's secret. His curse and his fears related to it. How no matter how much he loves someone he might not be able to ever be honest with them.

And so Penelope did something unexpected. She asked the titan to remove her tongue. Odysseus was terrified when he found out but then he understood. She did it so her words would never accidentally force Ody to say or do something that he didn't mean.

Once fed ambrosia, Penelope became the goddess of silence. Two beings with domains seen almost as inseparable.

Sometimes a traveler might hear in the middle of the night a soft humming of a woman and a melodic voice of man singing softly, almost whispering sweet words of love he has towards his wife.

Hi, I'm working on a Fem Odysseus/Hector story that would cover the entire length of Illiad and Odyssey (+ additional prequel at the beginning)

Soon I'll be posting the first chapter. Feel free to ask about anything and I'll answer as long as it won't be too big a spoiler to the story.

✅ tortured by Voices

✅ cursed by god

✅ small waist

✅ criminal record

✅ died once

Diagnosis: babygirl

"I will fall in love with you over and over again, I don't care how, where, or when No matter how long it's been, you're mine"

Some epics college doodles

I swear I'm going to have a proper draw this October, just.. not today 😅

I'm sobbing this memes are everything 💀

greek mythology | cursed images

Get me a man who would sacrifice his men and beat up Poseidon for me

Odysseus my man 😔

Telemachus and the Plow

[Ulysses [Odysseus] yoked an ox and a horse or an ass to the plough and sowed salt. While he was busy fertilizing the fields in this fashion, the Greek envoys arrived, and Palamedes, seeing through the deception, laid the infant son of Ulysses in front of the plough whereupon the father at once checked the plough and betrayed his sanity.]

EVERYONE STFU- I found an Odysseus and Telemachus to sit with in pony town 🥹💗💗💗

AND OMG THEY LOOK SO COOL!!

odysseus getting palamedes, one of their most valuable assets in war, killed simply because he did not like him is hilarious to the highest degree. he did NOT care which side won

This... This is doing things to my heart.

"Then they recognized me. Each embraced me tightly in his arms, and started sobbing in desperation. So the house rang loud with noise, and even [Circe] herself pitied them."

You're so fucking insane for that and I love it

A (not) so small philosophical interpretation of Odysseus in epic

Disclaimer: I'm doing this analysis for fun, please don't take everything I write as truth, because this text is based on my interpretation and, even though it took some academic research to do it. It's worth remembering that I don't have a degree in philosophy yet, so I can still make mistakes on some points. Another point I want to highlight is that I wrote this text in a language other than English, and there may be some translation errors by Google, so I apologize if anything is confusing or if you have any questions about something, feel free to comment or send an ask, I'll do my best to explain.

(Notice that's basically me as far as you decide to read this blog)

EPIC:the musical is a work that is very present in my life and in the lives of many other people who are reading this little fan outburst; And if you've just stumbled upon this craze and are hearing about it for the first time, a brief summary is that it's a musical, more addictive than drugs, that tells the story of Odysseus, that guy from Greek mythology who spent 20 years trying to get home after the Trojan War, also known as Simp by his wife Penelope. We have moments of joy, sadness, introspection and many fan outbursts caused by the owner of it all, Jorge Rivera-Herrans, who is not only the creator but also the lead singer of this masterpiece, playing Odysseus and a few others.

But let's get back to the analysis here because I could talk about this for hours without stopping.

A few months ago, when the Underworld saga was released, I remembered the phrase:

"If you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you."

This phrase was written by Nietzsche in the book Beyond Good and Evil, and it reminds me a lot of the Odysseus we see in EPIC, although the phrase is incomplete in the previous quote, even though it is the most common one we see being spread around. The original is:

“Whoever fights monsters should take care that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”

And I also remember thinking about that phrase by Heraclitus, which I think everyone has heard, probably incompletely, at some point in school:

“No one can step into the same river twice, for when he steps into it again, the waters are not the same, and the being itself has already changed. Thus, everything is governed by dialectics, the tension and the alternation of opposites. Therefore, reality is always the result of change, that is, of the struggle between opposites.”

In my opinion, I think that both phrases fit well with the version of the character that we see starring in the entire musical, since most ancient myths and poems have different versions and translations and of course Jorge took some artistic liberties; Odysseus is a Greek hero who fights against many monsters, both mythical and internal, taking into account his ethics as a person while trying to survive and return home.

I think it's interesting to point out that from here on I'll use some different terms, but I'll do my best to explain them.

We can see that throughout all the sagas Odysseus is describing the line of what it is to be human and how one can easily slip off it; this line is located between the definition of gods and monsters/animals and is known as Metron, which gave rise to the word measure, and here we will use it as a synonym for limit for something. It's also good to say that metron has nothing to do with a person's morals/character, because it's a question of ethics.

Morals are the set of rules that concern good and evil, right and wrong. These standards refer to values ​​that are passed down from generation to generation and guide the conduct of individuals in their daily lives. (personal)

Ethics is a field of philosophy whose object of study is the principles that guide morality. In this sense, ethics is a philosophical reflection on morality, approaching the universal principles that govern the common good and coexistence between human beings in general. (common sense)

In my opinion about the musical, the issue of gods and monsters is not so different. For me, in that context, monsters and gods are the same thing, since they are outside the ideal of humanity, but this point may be mentioned later.

Metron is not a knowledge, it is, above all, the limit between impossibility and weakness.

We can see in several Greek myths that human beings like to cross this line, most stories end in tragedy because of this, human beings can also be called “Hybris” which is an excess, it is being hybrid, having two natures, acting in two ways, it is being in the Metron and trying to be something that one is not, because thinking that we can be more than men is arrogance, and arrogance is a human emotion, another story that exemplifies this well is the myth of Oedipus who tries to overcome his destiny given by the gods and ends up fulfilling it anyway.

Hybris is a Greek concept that can be translated as "everything that goes beyond the measure; "immoderation" and which currently alludes to excessive confidence, exaggerated pride, presumption, arrogance or insolence (originally against the gods), which often ends up being punished.

It is worth noting that hybris would in no way be a sin, in the concept of the word and the ideal current translation for it would be "Hamartia", which by chance is also no longer used in its original meaning because of the Catholic Church.

Now going to the interesting part because I was just giving context of terms.

In The Horse and the Infant, we 'meet' our beloved version of Odysseus, where during the Trojan War he states that everything he is doing is for his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus, using this as a way to inspire his men to carry out the massacre that he himself did not want to participate in, I think because of his moral nature, the proof is so much that in Homer's original Odyssey, he pretends to be crazy so as not to show up when called, unfortunately he is unmasked and forced to go.

We also see here that up until now Odysseus is still a very moral character, he has his reasons for being there, he, like the other warriors, has a family and his deepest desire is to return to them. So with this we can conclude that he is still just a man, he is human.

In the same song we see how far his morality goes, as he receives the divine mission to kill the young Trojan prince, Astyanax, who is just a baby, due to the threat that one day he will want revenge on him and his kingdom.

All of this creates doubts in Odysseus, about the morality of gods and men. Here we see him crossing the line and this whole text begins to be about ethics, as it is common sense that killing a child is a monstrous act, but for him not to kill means that his family will die in a more horrendous way later and he cannot let that happen.

Then we have the monologue in Just a Man, the best song, where we can really see the doubts mentioned earlier. And one detail that I find very interesting and that will be important for this text is that in Gigi's animatic, we can see Odysseus' "monster" being 'born' and its source is the baby and his doubts about whether he would really be a monster just for that, even though at that moment the baby is still just a human, the mission to kill him little by little makes him a monster due to the possibility that one day he himself will commit several atrocities.

It's fun for me to think that representing 'the monster' as a tree could be an allusion to the fact that trees take as long to grow as a monster takes to be formed by man.

I think you now understand part of Nietzsche's quote. Odysseus looking at his own reflection and not recognizing himself, seeing the monster he will become if he crosses the metronome is very well treated in several animatics, but the most visible is in Gigi's where he is not only referenced but shown as a completely different being both in attitudes and thoughts.

I'll just pause to say that I love how Gigi did the work of showing the tree growing in the shape of a skull, which could be the deaths that the monster will bring or that it is a macabre thing to do, I don't know, I just love this detail for some reason.

And also how I think that makes a point of showing that the real problem is not the baby but rather Odysseus' unethical thoughts developing because of his doubts.

Ok, end of the pause and start of a mini explanation.

I didn't think this analysis would be so long and in my original thought I was only going to end up mentioning a few songs and focusing more on "No Longer You" and "Monster" but it ended up getting out of control and listening to the musical again it seems like I can make a lot of connections that I hadn't thought of before but now I can't express them properly, so from now on there will be a gigantic gap in content that I might fill later in another post or by editing this one, but at the moment thinking too much about it is giving me a headache and I really wanted to be able to post this now along with the Wisdom Saga because it's something I did for fun from fan to fan and I know that now the fandom is busier. One day I swear I'll do a complete analysis relating song by song, but not today for the sake of my mental health.

End of explanation, subject change.

Going through his entire journey, Ody goes to the underworld after Tiresias who reveals that he will never return home, which makes him indignant, I think any human would be, how much he suffered to get there for nothing. Here we can see how Heraclitus fits into the prophet, and as much as I hate cutting philosophical phrases in half, I don't think I need to use the whole thing to make sense of it here, because the most well-known part of it is enough to get to the point discussed here, since it really won't be him who returns to Ithaca, but rather another man, a man haunted by his own past and by the ethics of his people.

There is no way a man who spent 20 years away from home, suffering for the divine and for his own mind, can be the same, because this is a human characteristic, humans are hybrid beings, which implies that we can change our own nature while gods and monsters will always follow the same line of thought, since they are perfect they do not need drastic changes to live as they are.

That's it. So finally we have the mental breakdown where Ody begins to accept that it doesn't matter if he is a monster to everyone, he did what was necessary. He looked into the abyss and was looked back. He becomes the monster, even if he compares himself to the other divine creatures, which I think he never really learned to differentiate from humans, because Ody my friend there is no way you can really reach the level of a cyclops or a god with a wounded ego, or a traumatized nymph, time makes things very trivial for them and let's face it you will not live even half as long as they do because you are just a mortal.

And I don't know how to make gifs so here are some prints to illustrate the last paragraph. But before that I wanted to thank you if you read this far, I know the ending was kind of bad but I'm emotionally tired, I hope I at least conveyed the idea that was in my head. Thank you and stream the new saga!!!!

(All arts belong to gigi!! go check out this amazing work!!!)

Hello everyone! In celebration of the Ithaca saga release (and yes, I am still sobbing over that ending), here's an Epic au that's been rolling around my head for far too long! Enjoy!

In a few mythology stories, there is a theme of "if you kill a monster, you become a monster yourself." And, with the theme of Odysseus abandoning his humanity and becoming a monster being so prevalent in the second act, why not take it one step further?

What if, when Odysseus nearly killed Poseidon with his own godly weapon, some of that divine power found its way into Odysseus? What if the combined power of wielding the trident and the act of defeating a god and spilling his ichor ascended Odysseus unwillingly into godhood?

And, given what Odysseus was doing when he attained godhood, what of Odysseus specifically became the god of monsters?

By the time Odysseus has finished mutilating Poseidon and sails the short distance to Ithaca's shores, the ascension is already almost complete, despite Odysseus's resistance to it. When Odysseus finally sets foot on Ithaca's beach, he is no longer human at all. He is, in many ways, no longer himself.

Sure, he looks human enough at first glance, but his shadow writhes with twisting, monstrous forms, and his form blurs around the edges if one looks for long enough, as if he had to put conscious effort into appearing human.

It takes all of Odysseus's concentration to both keep himself looking human and to put one foot in front of the other, determined to ensure that the first time his family sees him again, they see him, not some monster.

But then, Odysseus finds the suitors. He hears Antinous speaking of killing his son and doing vile things to his wife, and suddenly, Odysseus doesn't feel like holding back the writhing, howling beasts under his skin anymore. No, no, he is going to revel in releasing them on these dogs.

Odysseus, still unseen by the suitors, lets his mortal disguise disappear in an instant, and a horrible roar has the suitors all stiffening with primordial terror, their minds frozen at the sight of something that their instincts screamed was a predator, unlike anything they had seen before.

The beast that they now beheld, which seemingly appeared out of nowhere, was horrific, with its body shifting and changing between all manner of monsters. One moment it was a hydra, then in the next it was a minotaur, and then it took the form of a chimera. The suitors watched in grotesque horror for a few seconds as the beast's body could not decide on a shape, its head and eyes and limbs always shifting, before the monster took a step towards them, its clawed foot shaking the ground.

At that, the suitors suddenly realized that this was real and that they were in a room with this creature. And then, all hell broke loose as the 108 suitors screamed with terror and scrambled away from the monster in all directions.

Then, the hunt began.

The monster chased them down the long hallways of the palace, killing any suitor it got its hands on. Some were shredded by its claws, others trampled under its feet like bugs, and some were even devoured with a single bite of its jaws. And all the while, The beast showed no mercy, no remorse, and no signs of that its bloodlust was even remotely slaked.

One suitor, when cornered by the beast, got on his knees and begged for mercy, only to be crushed with one swipe of a club that had manifested itself from the beast's body, which now took the shape of a savage cyclops.

Soon, blood painted the walls and floor of the palace, while the surviving suitors armed themselves for battle. After all, it was impossible to flee from the beast, so their only chance was to fight it.

However, at the armory, Telemachus appeared, back from his diplomatic mission and demanding to know what was happening, asking the suitors about the beast. Then, Antinous, one of the only surviving suitors, got an idea.

He ordered the others suitors to hold Telemachus down and tie him up as he explained his plan. They could still go through with their previous plot if they played this well enough.

After all, the beast out there was clearly either a punishment sent by the gods or a god in of itself. And the only way to appease a god was through an offering or sacrifice.

So, the suitors could present the bound prince to the beast as a sacrifice, which would appease the gods. After all, a blood sacrifice of a royal held great significance.

And when Penelope was mourning her poor, sacrificed son, Antinous and his men would be hailed as heroes by all of Ithaca for appeasing the monster, and Penelope would have no choice but to wed one of them.

Telemachus was screaming with rage and fear behind his makeshift gag as Antinous finished explaining his plan to the other suitors, who enthusiastically agreed to it.

Together, the suitors dragged Telemachus, his limbs bound with rope, out into the hallway, where it took the monster only a matter of seconds to find them.

Telemachus' eyes widened with shock at the sight of the monster, with its ever-changing limbs and body. The only constant feature on the beast was its ferocious glowing red eyes, which chilled the prince to the bone.

Antinous kicked Telemachus forwards towards the beast, sending him sprawling out over the floor.

"Great beast! We know not why you are here, but we humbly apologize for whatever wrong this kingdom has done to you! Please, accept this honored sacrifice: Telemachus, the prince of this land, and leave us in peace."

The monster, for the first time since it appeared, stood still, though its form still shifted fluidly. The suitors watched with baited breath as the beast ever so slowly inched forwards, towards a squirming and terrified Telemachus.

As the creature got closer, however, its form stopped changing as much, until its seemed to stabilize, taking on the shape of a giant human figure, but its body and face were featureless, simply a mass of shadows, except for its ever-present red eyes.

The now human-shaped monster picked Telemachus up in of of its hands slowly, handling him far gentler than it had any of the suitors. On the ground, Antinous and his men watched on in barely-contained excitement, overjoyed that everything was going as planned.

"I take it that you accept and are appeased by this sacrifice, great one?" Antinous, ever confident, spoke up.

The beast was still silent, giving no indication that it even heard Antinous, with all of its attention still focused on Telemachus, who was convinced that this was the end for him.

Gingerly, the creature rearranged its hold on Telemachus, until it was cradling him in its arms as a human would with an infant. The suitors look on in confusion, unsure what to make of this. What kind of monster cradled its sacrifice? Why wasn't it mindlessly slaughtering the prince just as it had the other suitors?

Then, the creature's gaze shifted from Telemachus to the suitors, filling them with an instinctive fear that told them to run. But before they could even take a step, a massive serpent's head shot out of the creature's chest, devouring all of them in a single bite. Telemachus, still bound and gagged, screamed with terror at the sight of it.

The beast, with Telemachus still trapped in its arms, started lumbering its way through the halls again, swiftly killing any remaining suitors it came across while the prince shook with terror in its arms.

After a while, the beast had finally killed the last of the suitors, leaving a trail of mutilated corpses and blood throughout the entire palace. There would be no one left inside the palace except for Telemachus and... his mother.

Telemachus came to this horrifying realization as he recognized exactly where the monster was heading. It was going to his mother's room, and the reinforced door would not protect her from this creature.

Telemachus renewed his struggles against his bindings, begging as best he could from behind the gag, "not her, please, not her!"

But the beast, of course, did not listen, and continued its path of destruction until it reached Penelope's door, still carrying the furiously squirming prince in its arms.

The doors, reinforced with bronze, did not stand a chance against the monster's strength, and Telemachus was forced to watch on in horror as his mother screamed at the sight of the beast, and he could do nothing as the monster grabbed ahold of her with a gigantic hand.

Telemachus had felt helpless and useless many times over the years as suitors invaded their home and disrespected his mother, but that was nothing compared to the sheer hopelessness and terror of seeing his mother struggling in the grasp of this monster and being unable to even move.

Now that Penelope was in his grasp, the monster slowly, almost gingerly, made his way to the throne room, trampling the scattered and bloodied corpses of the suitors that were in his path.

There, in the middle of the throne room, the beast finally sat down, halting its rampage through the halls of the palace at long last. Penelope and Telemachus, still trapped in the monster's arms, held each other as close as they could, trembling with fear at the massive, gore-covered monster that held their lives quite literally in its merciless hands.

(But little did they know that, as the hours went by, the monster would slowly shrink, diminishing in size, until it revealed a man, a very familiar man, underneath it all. And that man would like nothing more than to hold his family close for as long as he can.)

And that's all for this story! I might do a continuation if the inspiration strikes! Please let me know if you'd like to see a continuation!

And, as always, thank you for reading through my ramblings! :D

Bringing this one back to celebrate the countdown to the release of Ithaca saga! Only one more day left before the full musical is out!!

Another thought on Epic the Musical, do you want to know one detail that kills me every time?

If you look at the titles of the songs, the ONLY songs that are named after characters are songs that are named after monsters that are trying to slaughter as many people as possible (like Polyphemus, Scylla, and Charybdis). No human character or even any god gets a song named after them, only the monsters do.

But (MINOR SPOILER AHEAD), do you know what song 38 is titled? Odysseus.

Odysseus, the man made monster, who has become something so far from his own humanity that he is counted within the ranks of the terrible monsters that came earlier in the story. Odysseus, who will absolutely be trying to slaughter as many suitors as possible when he returns to Ithaca.

It's such a small detail, but it gets me every time I think about it! Because not only has Odysseus become a monster in the eyes of the other characters, but he has become one in the eyes of THE VERY MUSICAL ITSELF!

AHHHHHHHHH!!!

Another thought on Epic the Musical, do you want to know one detail that kills me every time?

If you look at the titles of the songs, the ONLY songs that are named after characters are songs that are named after monsters that are trying to slaughter as many people as possible (like Polyphemus, Scylla, and Charybdis). No human character or even any god gets a song named after them, only the monsters do.

But (MINOR SPOILER AHEAD), do you know what song 38 is titled? Odysseus.

Odysseus, the man made monster, who has become something so far from his own humanity that he is counted within the ranks of the terrible monsters that came earlier in the story. Odysseus, who will absolutely be trying to slaughter as many suitors as possible when he returns to Ithaca.

It's such a small detail, but it gets me every time I think about it! Because not only has Odysseus become a monster in the eyes of the other characters, but he has become one in the eyes of THE VERY MUSICAL ITSELF!

AHHHHHHHHH!!!