The webtoon Lore Olympus has fascinated me. Let’s review Lore Olympus. Epic romance! The love and tragedy of a Greek myth retold! Read the webtoon Lore Olympus yourself first and then come back and share with me! 

Lore Olympus: the Art First

What do I love about the Lore Olympus art style? It embraces chaos! It is emotional. Relevant. Unafraid to show the messy, squishy, clingy, struggles and triumphs.

Colors clash. Pink hair, pink skin, and red eyes. Eyes shift and bodies bend, sometimes unnaturally, sometimes cartoony. Mouths bug out. Eyes pop. Angles pinch. Faces morph. Despite this, the art is always done expressively, or the faces are deadened to make a point. 

Bodies change. Hair grows and is cut down within the same stretch. Perspective is sometimes an attitude. Proportions are relative to one’s power. The older myths are more like giants.

But the webtoon creator Rachel Smythe knows what she is doing. She pushes her readers to notice. To pay attention. To feel.

A motif of strings appears, like a musical staff without notes, like the strings of a lyre stretching, like the bars of a cage. You can hear the art. It is devastating.

It is tied to a difficult plotline, one that requires trigger warnings at the beginning of the episode. Every time it reappears, you know the emotional state of Persephone and what she is going through. 

Lore Olympus Story

This is a tale of Greek myths, a reimagining of epic proportions. Before Lore Olympus, I never considered the story of Hades and Persephone to be special, not particularly romantic either, but Rachel Smythe changed that. Her version has burrowed its way into my eyeballs. Persephone is the pink goddess of Spring and Hades, is the blue ruler of the underworld. Pink and blue. Literally. They match. Just like Hera, Queen of the gods, who is a weary yellow, and Zeus, ruler of Olympus and a pompous purple. Complimentary color couples.

Except their relationships are driven by their myths. Zeus and Hera do not get along. Zeus is disloyal and controlling and Hera is long-suffering. Hades and Persephone are a star-crossed couple, destined to be together, but also broken people who match each other. The story expands on the myths. It is inclusive and daring. Telling the stories with all the emotional baggage that comes along. The PTSD, the guilt, the ambitions, the hardships, and the romance. Oh boy, the romance. 

If I have any complaints, it is the unfortunate beginning of the story. At a fancy party, Persephone is drugged and put in the back of Hades’ car. He takes her home and puts her to bed. That is how they meet. Even the comic trailer captures the feeling of the most unromantic situation. Awkward! But this, I suppose, is the point. 

A Greek myth: where the characters bring the drama

The story of Lore Olympus is not here to be a fantasy or romantic fantasy. It is marketed as a romance, but it is more about the character drama of two people falling in love. It is harsh on its characters and doesn’t hold back. Does it romanticize and idealize Greek mythology at times, especially the myth of Persephone? Sure, but that’s part of the appeal. Clearly, Smythe likes Persephone’s myth and wants to use that as a springboard to tell a story.

Lore Olympus features messy characters and relationships. It builds up Persephone, but also breaks her down. Her relationship with Hades is compelling, as it is complex, and I love it for that. But what really catches my heart is when it shows them flirting and sharing their lives, helping each other, a loving and caring relationship.

That’s what brings me back to this story as a romantic, influencing presence. Yes, Relationship Goals! And where is the happy ending? Please!

Webtoon story structures, the continuous long-form

Ongoing stories, like most webtoons, must have ongoing conflicts. The next trial. The next person steps up to ruin their budding romance. (It’s the unfortunate power escalation problem.) Some of the conflict is caused by their hangups and personal insecurities. Hades was in a prior relationship with Minthe and didn’t immediately break it off. Uh oh! But he feels as if he doesn’t deserve happiness and the story focuses on these emotions, leading to personal growth.

Persephone and her mother have an ongoing, difficult relationship. There are many other, older, power-hungry, obsessed gods and goddesses. 

But in between these moments, you’re given casual ones too: cozy coffee time with our couple, flirting on the phone without the endless drama. Puppy snuggling sessions. One of my favorite moments was watching Persephone and Hades play chess.

Another scene that I loved happens when the gods have a meeting through ‘Zoom’. The episode was written during the pandemic, and so perfectly captured the strange feeling of that time. And the scene hilariously captures all the different personalities of the Olympians.

I lived for the slice-of-life moments. We see Hades bringing his dogs to the groomer/doggy daycare. Honestly, I just want to watch Persephone play with her adopted son, walk the dogs, and water her plants without someone trying to destroy Olympus or the mortal world. Truly, this will only happen if the story ends. And guess what? It has finally ended. It is a bittersweet feeling, but also a relief. Finally, some closure!

How does Lore Olympus end?

Sorry, you’ll have to read to find out. I’m not going to spoil the ending because I think Smythe does something incredible. She ends her long-running, endless story with finesse and spectacle. The story ends well! It doesn’t disappoint. It doesn’t squander the long-fought battles, and bring in new twists at the last second. The plot threads tie up, past and future, and the characters are given a chance to make their future their own, without us spying on them.

Endings are a tricky thing. (My biggest struggle as a writer sometimes!) You have to grab all those loose ends and pull them together, and hopefully, you find yourself with a beautiful tapestry. Luckily, Lore Olympus gives us that epic ending we crave. One of Smythe’s ingenious ways to show the grandeur and power of these mythic figures was to have them literally stand as giants above the landscape. And the ending takes this visual to the next level.

If you have the time, Lore Olympus is worth it. Catch up on Lore Olympus while you can read everything. All 200+ episodes all at once. (I’m sure it won’t go away from Webtoons but it will be more restricted. One free chapter a day, maybe the chance to binge-read 20 during special promotions.) 

There are physical books too, which I have never been drawn to, as the books rearrange the artwork from a vertical scroll to a graphic arrangement. I fell in love with the vertical version, but you can’t have a book that long, unfortunately. A scroll would be horizontal too. Do I need wall hangings? (Webtoon Wallpaper! When?)

Let me know if you’ve read Lore Olympus! What was your favorite moment? Did you think it ended well?