Entry #2 - Argus

All 100 Eyes Blinded by Love

Argus Panoptes or Argos was the hundred-eyed giant in Greek and Roman mythology.

This illustration is one of my favorite depictions of Argus. It was posted by Ancient Origins.

Argus’s catchphrase is “My eyes see your fate.” I want him to use “The better to see you with”. He hates it.

Not gonna lie though. It was always hard for me to be around Argus after he grew the hundred eyes. It triggers my trypophobia. I’ve never been a huge fan of many eyes, mouths, or ears on a beast.

Over the years, people have said the eyes were meant to conjure up an all-seeing god. That’s just people being obsessed with gods. Since these eyes were all over this poor primordial giant, Argus, he should get the credit for being all-seeing, not some elusive god. That’s what he says to me on almost every occasions we meet, and I can’t help but agree with him.

He always slept with a few of his eyes open, which contributed to the saying “sleep with one eye open”, a feat much easier if you have 100 of them. However, he did shut them all one time, and that’s when Hermes (Mercury) mostly killed him by hitting him with a giant stone while he slept.

 That coward Hermes/Mercury mostly killed him at Zeus’s bequest. We all know that if Zeus was involved, the murder was most likely about a girl. And this violence was for sure about a girl, more specifically, the nymph, Io. Although technically, it was about a cow because that was the form Io was in when Zeus conspired against Argus. More proof that Zeus really had no shame.

Mercury (Hermes) Killing Argus by Antonio Tempesta (1606)

I only met Argus a few times in his actual form. Hera tried to lure me into her drama with Zeus and Io. I refused to help her. I don’t get involved in love triangles, especially when they involve the king and queen of the gods. Also, it’s not wise to trust Hera when it involves Zeus.

Us monsters do reluctantly consider Argus a monster. I don’t think he ever has, not completely. For a long time, he believed he was above us, more like a god with superpowers. In his mortal life, he even went so far as to slay the Mother of All Monsters, the she-dragon Echidna. Killing her was a big no-no in the monster world. Echidna gave birth to some of the most infamous monsters of all time. She was revered by many a monster. Most never forgave Argus for destroying her. Me? I don’t hold a grudge, and I can’t help but feel bad that even after all his attempts, the gods never really accepted him, and ultimately unceremoniously killed him. He also has eyes on his tongue which you must agree, is not cool. Poor primordial creature.

In comics, the Argus name shows up as a government organization in the DC universe as the acronym Armed Revolutionaries Governing Under Secrecy and evolved over time so that it now shows up in video games and T.V. shows as Advanced Research Group United Support. The organization is a parent group to Suicide Squad and Checkmate. I didn’t read those particular comics, but I do wonder if Argus would like these groups being named after him. It doesn’t quite match his perception of himself.

An Argus character also shows up later in the DC Universe when Nick Kovak’s DNA is altered, and he gains the site of Argus and superhuman strength. He can also meld with shadows and regenerate. He has a slogan “The Eyes of Justice” which does capture the real Argus’s inflated view of self accurately. As far as powers go, Nick Kovak’s were pretty epic.

I especially dug it when a version of him showed up in God of War: The Betrayal. The game’s depiction is way more hideous than the actual Argus and doesn’t have nearly enough eyes.

But by far my favorite modern version of Argus is in the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan. Argus is head of security at Camp Half-Blood. I love that series! To me, head of security is the perfect job for the all-seeing giant.

The myth involving the slaying of Argus ends with Hera immortalizing Argus for his service to her by putting his eyes in the peacocks tailfeathers. It sounds utterly unbelievable but the peacock thing is actually true not just a myth. Hera did immortalize Argus’s eyes in the feathers of the peacock. In a way, Argus is reborn with each and every peacock. He can’t speak in the traditional way these days, only see. But, if you are a very clever and powerful book of the dead, you just might be able to access the old giant’s thoughts. I did become somewhat obsessed with the task a while back, and unlocked this very complicated mystery. At first when I entered his thoughts, he refused my friendship, but over time and with great persistence on my end, he eventually opened up and began confiding in me. Very few creatures can resist my charms for long. Now, Medusa and I check in with him, especially when we can’t find someone on Earth. Argus is excellent at seeing… everything. He has become one of our most trusted sources, helping Medusa when she cannot find something or someone. His intel has been critical to the success of many of our monster rescuing missions.

I always wondered why Medusa wasn’t angry with him for killing Echidna. She would always smile mysterious and say that the stories we read today are rarely what really happened. She would not tell me anymore, insisting the secret was not hers to tell. After that, I was dying to know what really happened, and there was no way I wasn’t going to get to the bottom of this mystery.

After many, many years of friendship, Argus finally told me, and I was not disappointed.

The real story of Argus and Echidna involves how Argus grew his 100 all seeing eyes. Hera did not give them to him after all. No, someone much darker and cooler did, and I’ve been waiting for the perfect moment to share it. Today is the day I share the story, “A Monster’s Glance”.