The ILIAD and the ODYSSEY of Homer (COMPLETE) The Story of the GREATEST EPIC Adventures in Mythology

Recap of the Main Plot (Homer’s epic: Troy → Odysseus’s long return)

The video retells two linked mythic sagas:

1. The causes and unfolding of the Trojan War (centered on Paris, Helen, and the many divine grudges)
2. Odysseus’s struggle to get home after Troy (the “man of many turns”)

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Trojan War highlights & key turning points

• Troy’s disaster begins at the cradle: Priam’s newborn Paris/Alexander is foretold to ruin Troy, so he’s abandoned on Mount Ida—then mysteriously survives, raised by a shepherd and a she-bear. He grows into a beautiful, capable shepherd, living a seemingly “wrong-for-his-destiny” life with the nymph Oenone.
• The Apple of Discord decides everything: At a wedding of the gods, Discord throws a golden apple labeled for the “most beautiful.” The dispute is settled by Paris, who chooses Aphrodite after she offers the greatest reward: Helen of Sparta. His choice sparks revenge from Athena and Hera, locking in their opposition to Troy.
• Helen’s marriage trap and the oath: Helen is chosen as wife by Menelaus, while Odysseus cleverly engineers opportunities through Penelope. Once Helen is taken by Paris, Greek leaders swear an oath to respond—even if it leads to war.
• Cassandra’s curse and the city’s doomed blind spot: Cassandra is blessed with prophecy but cursed so no one believes her after rejecting Apollo—meaning Troy’s warnings arrive too late.
• Paris returns, kidnaps escalate, war ignites: Paris wins Hector in a tournament, causing humiliation and violence. Later he and Helen escape to Troy, and the abduction becomes the spark for a full-scale Greek invasion.
• The Greeks can’t even sail—then sacrifice happens: A windless delay is interpreted as divine punishment: Agamemnon must sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia to Artemis. The scene is emotionally brutal—Achilles intervenes, reluctantly accepts the necessity, and the army finally sets sail.

Early battlefield victories and key deaths

• The Greeks land, kill Trojans, and momentum builds.
• Troilus is killed by Achilles (despite the sacred fountain’s taboo), breaking Trojan hope.
• Palamedes is falsely accused of treason and stoned, creating Greek internal fracture and humiliation—though Achilles and Ajax shield the truth only partially.

Divine interference becomes open warfare

Gods switch sides constantly and actively:

• Hera/Athens/Poseidon aid the Greeks
• Apollo/Aries/Aphrodite favor the Trojans
• Conflict escalates to Zeus imposing a “stop direct meddling” rule during one crisis.

Achilles vs. Hector—revenge becomes destiny

• Achilles’ feud with Agamemnon escalates after Apollo’s plague begins because Agamemnon refuses to return Chryseis.
• Achilles withdraws—then returns with new armor after Patroclus dies.
• Patroclus fights Hector while wearing Achilles’ armor; he’s killed, and Achilles’ grief turns into total slaughter.
• Achilles finally kills Hector, drags his body behind his chariot, and the war’s emotional center collapses.

Hector’s funeral pause and a brief heroic “last stand”

Achilles grants a ceasefire so Hector can be honored. After Hector’s death, Troy’s morale sinks.

The Amazons and the “bigger than gods” chaos

• Penthesilea arrives, fights Achilles fiercely, and dies.
• Then the Ethiopian warrior Memnon appears and duels Nestor-like hero Achilles (via a chain of divine protections) until Achilles defeats him at the prophecies’ timing.

Achilles is finally killed by fate

• Achilles is nearly invulnerable, but has a single weak heel.
• Paris (with Apollo’s help) shoots him there from behind.
• Achilles dies; Ajax rescues the body; Achilles is cremated.

Ajax’s tragic end

After losing armor honors to Odysseus, Ajax goes into madness and dies by suicide—while Athena’s intervention earlier prevents a worse massacre.

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Palladium, infiltration, and the Wooden Horse

• Odysseus steals the Palladium from Athena’s temple (the artifact protecting Troy).
• The Greeks retreat—leaving the Wooden Horse as a “gift.”
• Cassandra begs Troy to burn it, but she’s ignored again.
• Inside the horse, Greek fighters infiltrate; the signal fire summons the army; Troy is sacked brutally.

The war ends with prophecy-paying brutality

• Priam and most heirs die.
• Helen’s status flips from “cause” to “consequence,” but the gods still frame the tragedy.
• Only Aeneas survives and carries Troy’s legacy toward the future (Romans).
• Trojan royal bloodline ends with the killing of Astyanax (Hector’s child).

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Odysseus’s return: main events & standout episodes

After Troy, the video shifts to Odysseus—still hunted by Poseidon and kept away for years by divine and mythic traps.

• God council: Zeus orders Hermes to free Odysseus from Calypso on Ogygia. Calypso ultimately helps him build a raft and sail away.
• Telemachus grows up while suitors consume Ithaca: Penelope is pressured by suitors. Athena disguises herself to guide Telemachus, who finally sails to Sparta for clues.
• Odysseus survives a string of set-pieces:
  • Cyclops Polyphemus: Odysseus blinds the one-eyed giant (“Nobody” becomes his escape trick), but Poseidon punishes him for bragging.
  • Aeolus and the wind bag: Nearly fails when the crew opens the bag—winds escape and blow them off course.
  • Giant warriors: The crew faces giant cannibals and loses nearly everything—Odysseus is again the sole survivor.
  • Circe: Odysseus’s men are turned into pigs. He protects himself using Hermes’ antidote and forces Circe into a reluctant truce until he can leave.
  • Sirens and the mast: Odysseus wants to hear, so he orders himself bound to the mast while his crew plugs their ears.
  • Scylla and Charybdis: A terrifying whirlpool plus a multi-headed monster causes deadly losses despite strategy.
  • Helios’ cattle (Thrinakia): The crew eats Helios’ sacred cattle; Zeus punishes the ship—Odysseus survives alone (barely).
  • Return via the Phaeacians: Odysseus reaches the island of the Phaeacians, where his identity is recognized after a long storytelling night.
• Final homecoming and the suitor massacre:
  • Poseidon’s anger culminates in disaster for the Phaeacians.
  • Odysseus returns disguised (with Athena’s help), reunites with Telemachus, and reveals himself.
  • A key “joke-like” test (but lethal): suitors fail to bend Odysseus’s bow—Odysseus succeeds and shoots cleanly through axes.
  • Telemachus and household fighters corner the suitors; Odysseus kills them all.
  • Penelope tests him one last time with their bed’s secret; then the two reunite.

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Jokes / memorable reactions (as portrayed in the subtitles)

• “Nobody” trick: Against Polyphemus, the “Nobody” punchline works like a classic setup—when the Cyclops yells for help, he insists “nobody” harmed him, enabling escape.
• Divine drama as petty and personal: The story repeatedly frames gods as petty rivals—feuding, cheating, cursing, and bargaining—making the war feel both cosmic and petty.
• Suitors’ humiliation: They’re allowed to gamble social status, but the bow test turns it into a public defeat.

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Personality list (who appears/are repeatedly central)

• Priam (King of Troy)
• Hecuba (Queen of Troy)
• Paris / Alexander
• Hector (Trojan champion)
• Cassandra (prophetess)
• Helen of Sparta
• Menelaus
• Odysseus (Ulysses)
• Achilles
• Patroclus
• Agamemnon
• Calchas / Calus (Greek seer)
• Palamedes
• Teleg/Telemachus
• Aeneas
• Ajax (Telamonian Ajax / Ajax of Salamis)
• Dion/Diomedes (Diomides)
• Artemis / Apollo / Athena / Aphrodite / Hera / Zeus / Poseidon (and other gods)
• Hermes
• Circe
• Calypso
• Polyphemus (Cyclops)
• Scylla / Charybdis (as threats)
• Cersei / Helios (in Odysseus episodes)