The first episodes of Percy Jackson and The Olympians’ second season are bigger, bolder, and with a healthier production budget. The visuals, story, and acting are polished with more experience (and money), but still fight through the weight of being primarily a children’s story. That means heavy exposition, happenstance conveniences, and certain scenes falling flat to cater to lighter sensibilities. However, while the younger cast works through growing pains of carrying more emotional responsibility, veteran actors and deeper themes help further refine the season’s authenticity and entertainment. It matches what this series has always been: an elevated children’s story; each new episode keeps my inner-child smiling.