Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Netflix’s Kaos.
Kaosepisode 2 shows Riddy getting stuck in the Afterlife without her gold coin, a piece of worldbuilding that shows creator Charlie Covell’s attention to detail when weaving real Greek mythology into the show. Netflix’s dark comedy centers on the head of Mount Olympus –Jeff Goldblum’s Zeus– and three humans who have the potential to take him down. Based on the premise alone, Charlie Covell clearly drew from Greek mythology in some manner. However, Disney’sHerculesproves that taking inspiration from myths doesn’t mean maintaining an ounce of accuracy.
Luckily,Covell took a much more loyal approach to the myths when they wrote the script, creating a new story while capturing the spirit of the originals. Their deep love for the myths is abundantly apparent based on the Easter eggs and references hidden throughout the series. However, it’s also apparent from worldbuilding details like the gold coin Riddy needs to pass through The Frame in the Afterlife, which draws on a Charon myth.
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Kaos Follows Charon’s Mythology With Riddy’s Death
Kaos' Gold Coin Is A Reference To Charon’s Obol
The world andcharacters withinKaostake inspiration from Ancient Greek mythology while putting a unique spin on it. The coin in the mouth isn’t a new idea from Charlie Covell. Instead, they drew this from a vital rite of burial in Ancient Greece called Charon’s Obol, a coin placed in or on the mouth of the deceased.
According toStudy.com, when the dead person reached the banks of the River Styx, which divided the land of the living and dead, they used the coin to pay the ferryman, Charon, to take them across to face Hades’ judgment.If a person weren’t buried without Charon’s Obol, they’d roam the banks of the River Styx on the Earth side for 100 years, after which Charon would take them across for free.
InKaos, human souls are purportedly renewed after swimming through The Frame in the River Lethe – a river in Greek mythology whose water makes a person forget everything. However, they cannot swim through the river without a coin placed with their body when they die. The coin isn’t payment to Charon but to Hades instead. Unfortunately, Orpheus removes Riddy’s coin from her mouth after her funeral, causing her to get stuck in the Afterlife.
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Why Orpheus Took Riddy’s Gold Coin
Orpheus' Reason For Taking The Coin Isn’t As Clear-Cut As He Says
One of the most confusing parts about Riddy getting stuck in the Afterlife is that the person proceeding over her funeral put the gold coin in her mouth. Orpheus could have left it in place for her well-being. Instead, after everyone leaves, Orpheus steals the coin from her mouth, knowing it will get her stuck in the Afterlife.Orpheus offers the same explanation every time he defends his actions – that he loves her so much that he couldn’t bear to lose her.He says her getting stuck in the Afterlife is the only way he can see her again.
Despite this, a much less wholesome explanation emerges when looking at Orpheus’ actions and his relationship with Riddy more critically. WhenKaosstarts, Orpheus is a famous singer who notoriously writes love songs about Riddy. He forces her to make a poster for his performance, which shows her face with the word “Muse.” However, he doesn’t seem to consider her wants or needs when they interact. Everything is about him. He wants her to get him a specific cereal. He wants to use her name as a song title. He wants her to come to his concert.
From this perspective, his journey to the Afterlife and back is self-serving instead of self-sacrificing.
It’s like he only thinks of her in terms of how she benefits him, an idea that’s furthered by his refusal to change the name of the song. As such, he might be honest about not wanting to lose her, but it’s not because he loves her. Instead,he doesn’t want to lose her because he views her as something he owns – an object rather than a person.From this perspective, his journey to the Afterlife and back is self-serving instead of self-sacrificing.
In the original myth, Eurydice travels across the River Styx to the land of the dead. The way Orpheus gets to the Underworld varies across different iterations, but one version states that he sings a song so beautiful that Charon decides to take him across the river for free.
Without The Gold Coin, Riddy Couldn’t Move On In The Afterlife
Riddy Is Forced To Work In The Afterlife
Because of Orpheus’ betrayal, Riddy gets stuck in the Afterlife and is sentenced to 200 years of labor, after which she can cross through The Frame in the River Lethe.Riddy’s getting stuck is crucial toZeus’ prophecy inKaoscoming true.In the Afterlife, she meets Caeneus and learns about The Nothing and the gods’ lies. Together, they devise a plan to stop people from crossing through the Frame.
Then, at theend ofKaos, Riddy is brought back to the land of the living, turning her into a prophet – according to Cassandra – which will undoubtedly play into the plot of season 2. This doesn’t make Orpheus’ betrayal any less cruel, but it provides context as to why, narratively, Riddy needed to stay in the Afterlife instead of passing through the Frame inKaos.
