“We’re Bringing a Zebra to Vegas,” the sixth episode of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, This is what fans of the book series have been waiting for. Percy (Walker Scobell), Annabeth (Leah Jeffries) and Grover (Aryan Simhadri) head to Las Vegas and enter the infamous Lotus Hotel and Casino – where fans have been hoping a certain favorite character might make an appearance, which they already know from Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson novels about this place.
[Ed. note: Slight spoilers ahead for the Percy Jackson books.]
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Photo: David Bukach/Disney
Introduced in The Curse of the TitansIn the third book of the Percy Jackson series, Nico and Bianca di Angelo are at the Lotus Hotel and Casino at the same time as Percy and his friends, at least in book canon. Because of this, many fans have theorized that the di Angelo siblings could make guest appearances in this episode.
Nico and Bianca are mysterious siblings with unknown parentage. Eventually, Percy and his friends learn that although Nico and Bianca look like teenagers, they were actually born in the 1930s, about 70 years before the events of The Curse of the Titans. They simply spent decades of their lives at the Lotus Hotel and Casino without realizing how much time had passed.
Nico becomes an important character throughout the Percy Jackson series and the subsequent Riordan books. As for Bianca… let’s just say she barely shows up after the third book.
Do the di Angelo siblings appear in Percy Jackson episode 6?
Short answer: No, they don’t!
Long answer: While there are some children and teenagers in the casino when Percy and his friends are there in “We’re Taking a Zebra to Vegas,” the episode doesn’t focus on them or highlight them in any way. They just appear in the background.
But we also get to see another important character: Hermes (played by Lin-Manuel Miranda) has a long conversation with Percy and Annabeth. This is new to the series, as Hermes only appears in the second Percy Jackson book. The Sea of Monsters. (Plus, Grover meets an old satyr friend named Augustus, who has no book equivalent.)
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Photo: David Bukach/Disney
All in all, this episode plays out very differently than the corresponding chapter in the books. In the first book of the Percy Jackson series The Lightning ThiefPercy and his friends first come across the casino and fall victim to its gimmick: Designed by him Lotus eater of mythologyFor those who give up everything else in life to eat narcotic, pleasurable lotus flowers, the casino also offers hedonistic pleasures that will leave travelers never wanting to leave.
The trio is carried away by the casino’s cool arcade games: Annabeth in particular spends a lot much Time with a 3D city building simulation that sounded like the coolest shit when I read the books at age 12. Percy doesn’t realize what’s going on until he notices one of his gamer friends using some very archaic slang, and then starts looking at all the anachronistic outfits around him and his friends. The gang ends up losing five days in the casino.
But in the show, Grover pretty quickly realizes the connection between the Lotus Hotel and Casino and the Lotus Eaters. He warns the others from the start not to eat anything in the casino, but it turns out that the scent of lotus is in the air instead. The friends still lose a few days, but this time they’re taking a more deliberate and genre-savvy approach.
Enough of the book differences – where are the di Angelos?
It’s unlikely that the production team would commit to casting these two characters so far outside of a hypothetical third season Percy Jackson and the Olympians – especially Nico, considering how big his role in the series ends up being. Given the hubbub surrounding the casting of the three main characters, I’m sure Rick Riordan will Make a big deal about Nico’s first appearance and not just include him as a quick cameo.
But the di Angelos have a very small, maybe even tiny, appearance in the show! Well, theirs Surname does. In the first episode, Percy’s mother Sally (Virginia Kull) tells her loser husband that she’s going to pick up sandwiches at a place called di Angelo’s on the way back from Montauk. The caption reads “D’Angelos,” not “di Angelos,” but Despite it. It’s something of an Easter egg for eagle-eyed (or eagle-eared) fans.
Bringing a Zebra to Vegas is now available on Disney Plus. New episodes of Percy Jackson and the Olympians Join Disney Plus on Tuesdays at 9:00 pm EST/6:00 pm PST.
