Season 1 Finale. Episode 115: The Bringer of Death
Editor: Bre BoswellReleased: 14 June 2020Episode 115 is the season one finale and focuses on how Persephone earned her epithet, “Bringer of Death.”
Hades has finished watching the tape and appears upset as he picks up his cellphone. The person he is trying to call has a number that is no longer in service.
The following events are being told by an unseen narrator.
Persephone is starting her day and we can see she is surrounded by flower nymphs. Even as she sneaks away from them for time alone, she shows a sense of caring towards these nymphs that are like family to her. What follows next reveals that while Demeter and Persephone have a loving relationship, they aren’t the best at communicating. Demeter wants her to talk with her, but she also doesn’t like what Persephone has to say. Persephone brings up her legitimate thoughts and feelings about commuting to school and not having the opportunity to experience something new outside the paradise Demeter built for her.
She complains that everyone thinks she’s a joke and she doesn’t blame them. Instead of hearing Persephone’s plea for independence, Demeter sees her daughter as lacking in gratitude. She brings up how when she was Persephone’s age, she was fighting in the Titanomachy war. The conversation continues to devolve into a screaming match as Demeter begins shutting down her adult daughter by grounding her and taking away her ability to communicate with her friends. Persephone says she wishes that Zeus would marry her off so she could have a way to leave and be out from under Demeter’s control. Demeter calls her an ungrateful brat that knows nothing of the world and Persephone retorts that that is Demeter’s fault.
The conversation ends on an angry note and the two stomp away from each other. Persephone proceeds to begin her work for the day but she isn't’ able to be alone with her feelings. She screams at a flower nymph to leave her alone and is horrified to see the nymphs begin to disappear. The nymphs have crumbled and as Persephone mourns their loss, her eyes turn red. Mortals have infringed on sacred ground and are tearing up the roses the nymphs are tied to, killing them.
Persephone confronts the mortals and when they plead ignorance, she takes a scythe and strikes one down, saying they knew they were doing wrong, but did not care. She begins to grow and expand in her righteous anger, coming into a towering primordial goddess form with sharp claws and wings made from living tree branches. She is the image of what would make the mortals fearful of the gods, understanding that they are creatures to be feared and revered. She travels to the village the mortals came from, leaving a wake of carnage behind her. She grows a massive thorny tree in the center of the village, destroying the buildings, and grabs the mortals and pinned them to the tree, one by one, seemingly creating an altar to the sacred land the mortals defiled.
Meanwhile, Minthe, Thetis, and Thanatos are in Zeus’ office, telling him what they have learned from Helios. Their attitude speaks to nefarious intent in revealing this information about the unsanctioned act of wrath and Demeter’s coverup. Zeus tells them that they’ve brought him a very serious accusation and if it was true, Persephone would need to face some consequences.
Theory: Persephone, the Bringer of Death
OTHER EPISODES:
The Dread Queen has arrived, and Kronos is not prepared.