THE SHADOW PRINCE

A singer and a soldier boy re-enact and rework classic Greek myths in this lengthy series opener.

Daphne Raines loves her down-to-earth mother, Demi, and their safe haven in Ellis Fields, Utah. Nevertheless, she moves to Olympus Hills, Calif., with her estranged rock-star father, Joe Vince, in hopes of herself becoming a star. Likewise, Haden Lord wants to please his regal father, overcome his (slowly revealed) childhood trauma and regain his position in the Underrealm court, even if he has to go topside and persuade a girl to return with him to the land of the dead. Mirroring their alternating (and sometimes overlapping) narratives and music lessons, they first clash and then begin to harmonize in their shared adventure. While their fish-out-of water experiences would have been sufficient material for a first installment, Despain attempts to layer apocalyptic deadlines and a convoluted tale of the prophecied Cypher who can find the lost Key of Hades atop reinterpretations of the tales of Orpheus and Persephone. Daphne and Haden occasionally surprise, but they are ultimately a standard heroine and hero. Naturally and supernaturally attuned to the music of the world, Daphne is inexplicably and irritatingly special, while her counterpart, Haden, is darkly handsome as well as sensitive but scarred.

An overcrowded modern romance equally inspired by ancient Greece and Glee.