In many ways, The Titan’s Curse marked a turning point for Percy, Annabeth, and all the demigods of Camp Half-Blood. The third installment in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series included the full-fledged return of Thalia Grace, the introduction of Nico and Bianca di Angelo as well as Rachel Dare, and the first on-page appearance of both Apollo and Artemis.

And between all that we also met a whole slew of new (ancient) members of the deadly Titan Army. On the surface, the villains from The Titan’s Curse were bigger, nastier, and way more terrifying than the monsters in both The Lightning Thief and The Sea of Monsters. Forget about dodgeball players and waterbed salespeople. We’re talking about giant automatons, hundred-headed dragons, and a Titan who literally carries the entire sky on his back.

But let’s not get caught up in the hype. Did these baddies perform any better against the demigods than their predecessors did? Let’s find out.

The Manticore, aka Dr. Thorn

We’ll start by taking a look at the Manticore, who disguised himself as a teacher named Dr. Thorn at Nico and Bianca’s school, Westover Hall. A classic case of a monster who’s just as intimidating in his human disguise as he is in his true form.

We genuinely believed that this creature—a lion with the tail of a juiced-up scorpion—could have easily taken down Percy, Annabeth, or Thalia, and he did get a few stings in. But we also believed that, as a strict and demanding educator, his notes on our essay about the Treaty of Versailles would be even more devastating than the poison from his tail.

Score: 4 See Me After Class Notes out of 5

Ophiotaurus, aka Bessie

Ah, Bessie. Belying his strange appearance, this strange water serpent/cow hybrid was considered a major asset for the Titans in their war against Olympus. Unfortunately for them, Percy got to Ophiotaurus first and rescued him from his fate as either a weapon against the gods or a sacrificial tribute in their favor.

We couldn’t be happier that, thanks to Percy’s intervention, good ol’ Bessie now lives a carefree life of freedom and comfort on Mount Olympus. But we’re not scoring these monsters on cuteness or likability, so . . .

Score: 0 Waterlogged Entrails out of 5

The Nemenean Lion

In no way do we condone violence against animals. But we’d be lying if we said we didn’t get a little excited every time a demigod hero has to battle the famously indestructible Nemenean Lion. Facing off against this ferocious member of the Felidae family is a tradition that dates back to the days of Hercules. It was only a matter of time before Percy would go up against the golden-armored beast himself.

Thanks to an assist from Bianca and Zoë Nightshade, Percy handily defeated the lion with the most powerful weapon in a demigod’s arsenal: astronaut food from the gift shop at the National Air and Space Museum. Having to eat that stuff is a fate far worse than being strangled by Hercules, if you ask us. We’re just wondering why Percy didn’t keep a package of the freeze-dried foodstuff on hand for the rest of his battles. Kronos wouldn’t have stood a chance.

Score: 4 Metallic Pelts out of 5

Ladon

The hundred-headed dragon and guardian of the Garden of the Hesperides isn’t technically a villain. He’s just doing his job, ensuring that no one steals any golden apples of immortality on his watch. Unfortunately, his role as guardian did bring him into a quarrel with Percy, Thalia, and Zoë Nightshade. The confrontation between the heroes and the dragon was brief but ultimately tragic.

The trio’s encounter with Ladon serves as a reminder that the horrors of war can have a negative impact on the deepest of friendships. And even the most innocent of bystanders can be dragged into mortal conflict. We can’t see how scoring Ladon’s “performance” would be anything other than completely tasteless . . .

And on that somber note, let’s transition into talking about goofy skeleton dudes!

Spartoi, aka The Skeleton Warriors

No grand adventure is complete without an army of (literally) nameless and faceless goons for our heroes to fight and promptly wipe the floor with. However, the Spartoi are more formidable than most people give them credit for.

Let’s be honest—if the skeleton from your biology class magically came to life one day, you wouldn’t consider it much of a threat, either. Even if it attacked you and your friends. But the Spartoi are different from the wimpy skeleton warriors you see in the movies in that they’re invulnerable to nearly all physical attacks. They can only be defeated by the children of Hades. Another reason to make sure you always keep Nico on your good side.

Score: 3 Calcium-Rich Diets out of 5

Hephaestus’s Talos Prototype

We’re not sure how to talk about this giant automaton without breaking into tears. If you know, you know. All we’re going to say is that we wish this defective prototype of the first Talos had stayed in the Junkyard of the Gods for good.

The battle between the demigods and this beta build of Talos was more the result of an unfortunate accident than anything else, so we probably shouldn’t even include him on this list. However, if we’re going to talk about the villains who have done the most damage to this particular group of demigods, we need to at least give him a shout-out . . . as much as we would rather just throw him into the deepest pits of Tartarus.

Score: We don’t know! You decide!

Atlas

The Titan Atlas is undoubtedly the most powerful foe that Percy has faced up to this point. Atlas, bored out of his mind from the back-breaking job of holding up the entire sky on his shoulders, was finally freed from his burden by Luke Castellan.

Atlas then spent the rest of The Titan’s Curse causing trouble for Percy, Thalia, the di Angelo siblings, and his daughter Zoë. All the while, his sky-holding gig was unwillingly taken over by Annabeth and Artemis.

Despite his immense power, Atlas was content to allow his monster underlings to do his dirty work for him. After all, why sully your hands dealing with puny demigods when you could be enjoying the first vacation you’ve had in thousands of years?

But when Atlas did eventually encounter Percy and Zoë face-to-face, we’re sure that the demigods would have been instantly destroyed if not for the timely intervention of the goddess of the hunt. The battle was won by the Greeks, but at a terrible cost.

At least Atlas is back where he rightfully belongs. And his last fateful battle will not be forgotten anytime soon. Some say that if you stare up at the night sky and listen closely, you may even hear him mutter some words and phrases that we definitely can’t repeat here.

Score: 5 Denied Requests for PTO out of 5.

Who’s your favorite villain from The Titan’s Curse? Be sure to let us know!