Never let it be said that Bobo Glaukon was a disloyal servant of Athena.
Hades Thoughts on Kidnapping
Ep. 87 represents a major change in how Hades deals with Persephone, and I believe it is because he now knows she is not a full member of TGOEM. Hades is both actively courting Persephone and auditioning her as Queen, and she is doing very well.
First, Hades is now evaluating Persephone as a potential Queen. One of the most important things Hades requires in a Queen is a partner who can help govern the Underworld. Governance, even by non-A’ holes, requires making decisions benefiting some people over others, and sometimes people get hurt. Perhaps the biggest risk of taking Persephone as queen is that her innocence will prevent her from making the hard choices, or—worse yet—get in the way of Hades making hard decisions. * He tests Persephone by presenting unvarnished reality, and seeing how she reacts. He does not equivocate at all that he had, in fact, popped the paparazzo’s eye and broken the paparazzo’s legs. A bad outcome for Persephone as queen would be an inability to accept the premise of Hades’ behavior. Persephone understands and accepts the need for action, but disputes his conclusions with equally valid arguments. In other words, Persephone debates with Hades by appealing to the same logic Hades must use to govern his kingdom, thereby demonstrating she is capable of being queen. Perhaps better, she comes to a different conclusion from Hades, meaning she wouldn’t just simply echo Hades’ views, making her a valuable counsellor.
Second, Hades is actively courting Persephone. Up until this point, Hades has never initiated emotional or physical intimacy. Aphrodite puts Persephone in Hades car leading to her spending the night at his home <Ep. 4>. Hera assigns Persephone as Hades’ intern <Ep. 31>. Hecate leaves Persephone with Hades for the tour <Ep. 52>. Persephone spontaneously arrives at Hades’ brother’s house. <Ep. 78>. Hades occasionally exploits the intimacy, but (other than at the party when he attempts to talk to Persephone without knowing her age, or really anything about her) he never initiates or escalates the intimacy.
In <Ep. 87> Hades is all about the intimacy, and doesn’t shy away from it. He takes Persephone to his private hideaway. He has dinner lunch with her. He takes her concerns seriously, voices his own concerns, and even admits vulnerability when he says he probably did attack the paparazzo for his own reasons. Most importantly, however, Hades extends his hand to Persephone who then takes it and says that the last thing he wants to do is hurt her. That is a profound admission, though not quite a confession of love. Rather than back away from the emotional intimacy, or fear it, Hades embraces it.
Hades also appears to be explicitly replacing Minthe. Minthe makes a big deal about Hades preparing Minthe food, but not Persephone; Hades prepares Persephone food. Minthe stays in an apartment Hades (apparently) provides for her; Hades provides a space for Persephone. Most obviously, Hades creates the exact same dress we see Minthe wearing at work <Ep. 33> for Persephone. I suspect this is all intended to be taken as subliminal, but to a reader (and to Minthe) the meaning should be obvious. “Good riddance to old rubbish; there’s a new queen bee in town.”
There seems to be a fair amount of game left to play in the Hades and Persephone relationship, but <Ep. 87> represents the point where Hades is playing for keeps. Persephone may not have completely figured out the score yet, but seeing the pomelia on the table clued her in, a little. There is a whole drawer of Persephone memorabilia speaking to his feelings for her at Hades townhouse. The banter between Persephone and Hades also indicates that she, too, is thinking about the long game including her reputation and power, and they both recognize that she is more powerful than the ‘toon has let on. (Not many people could release the dead, I’m just sayin’.) I am fairly confident the speech bubble at the end is Persephone’s, and it will be interesting to see what she apologizes for. Regardless, it seems that Hades has “figured it out” as Hera put it, and is starting to make his play. He did not expect Persephone to show up at work, so his reaction is unplanned, but his response represents a change in his attitude towards Persephone from a tempting minx to someone he could marry. <Ep. 87> is not Hades “taking his shot” but he is getting into position.
Bobo Glaukon