"A God Buys Us Cheeseburgers"[1] is the fifth episode of the first season of the Disney+ adaptation of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Synopsis[]
The quest deepens as Percy, Annabeth and Grover are tasked with a favor from a fearsome opponent.
Plot[]
After an explosion at the Gateway Arch, Annabeth notices the Fates knitting, then cutting a blue thread, as Grover warns her that the police are looking for them and they leave. The two search for Percy, eventually arriving at the waterway where they meet up with Percy. Annabeth hugs him and Percy says his father will meet them in Santa Monica. However, Grover informs them that the authorities have blamed them for the incident on the train and the explosion at the arch. As they would be arrested if they go on public transportation, the three walk.
As they walk, Percy speculates who could have stolen the Master Bolt on Hades' behalf, realizing he is the last one to realize there is a second traitor. He also understands he needs to take this more seriously when they hear a motorcycle and hide behind a barricade. Annabeth starts acting weirdly, which Percy mistakenly believes to be about their hug, but she reveals that the fates cutting the string means one is going to die soon. However the biker addresses them and they reveal their position, he tells them they're running late. As the man talks, Annabeth realizes he is Ares, the deity of war and Clarisse's father. Ares offers them help if he meets them at a diner down the road.
They find Ares at the diner, starting fights on Twitter, where he reveals he knows that their quest will fail. He also shows them a video of Gabe being interviewed, where he cries over his destroyed car and blames Percy for Sally Jackson's disappearance. Ares explains that Zeus will go to war with Poseidon if the bolt is not returned and happily offers to help them get to Santa Monica without being arrested, which Annabeth finds suspiciouss. Ares states he believes that a war will happen even if the bolt is returned, as that's what his family are like, but wishes to help them get the bolt as ordered. In return, Ares requests they find his shield and an amusement park down the road. After Annabeth offends the god, Percy agrees to his terms. Ares requests Grover stays behind and, despite his companion’s protests, Grover agrees and walks them to the door. Percy and Annabeth promise to come back before heading out and Grover returns to the booth.
Percy and Annabeth arrive at the abandoned waterpark, where Percy learns that Annabeth has never seen a movie, so he offers to take her to one after the quest. As Percy steps through the toll booth, Annabeth notices a trap made of Celestial Bronze, explaining its properties. As she tries to figure out how to save him, she becomes distracted by the machines ingenuity, and also explains that the park was likely built by Hephaestus. Eventually, she instructs Percy just to step through, asserting that whoever built the park doesn't want to kill Demigods, only dissuade them from entering.
Meanwhile, Ares is on Twitter whilst Grover sits in the booth, trying to make conversation. He gets Ares' attention by mentioning they have met before, at the previous Winter Solstice, and that he is 24 years old. He then claims to be a fan of Ares, as war is a part of nature, saying he likes the Turbot War, Lobster War, and the 335 Years War. Ares notes that there were hardly any deaths tolled in those conflicts, but Grover clarifies the fact that they, from beginning to end, occurred with no blood spilled was what makes them so admirable, impressing Ares.
Percy and Annabeth wander around the park, discussing where to go. They realize that Ares likely met Aphrodite, Hephaestus' wife, in the park, which is how he lost his shield. Suddenly, the lights for 'Tunnel Ride O Love' turn on, and they tentatively enter. As they are riding on the boat and talking, 'What is love' suddenly starts playing, which Percy recognizes from the orthodontists. They realize that the animated people on the walls are telling the story of Hephaestus, who was rejected by his mother Hera who threw him off a cliff, and then rejected by his wife Aphrodite who unabashedly cheats with Ares. Percy darkly states that this is what the Gods are like to each other, and that Sally likely told him these stories to warn him and keep him away from their lifestyle. Suddenly the ride speeds up, and they rocket through tunnels before passing by a gold statue holding the shield. The two of them dive off, with Percy using his water powers to save Annabeth.
Ares tells Grover how much he hates children, including his own, as they consistently pray to him asking for things. He rants about the Winter Solstice, and how tiring it was to listen to every demigod give presentations every year. When Grover mentions that it is likely one of the demigods stole the Master Bolt, however Ares dismisses this due to the amount of different races there who could have stolen it. Grover begins to prompt Ares, mentioning how the thief has to be someone smart, bold, sneaky, stealthy, before a frustrated Ares stops him. When he mentions Athena, Grover says that she makes things more complicated so people will believe she is the smartest, to which Ares emphatically agrees. He talks about her pet owl, which she always talks to and is her only friend, but that nobody thinks is weird. Grover mentions that people will stop thinking that now he's found the Lightning Thief, to which Ares becomes hostile, pointing out he knows Percy didn't steal the bolt, despite Zeus believing he did.
Percy tells the myth of the gold chair; Hephaestus gave it as a gift to Hera, but it entrapped her and nobody, even the Gods, could free her. Eventually, they offered Aphrodite as his bride, and Hephaestus let her go, meaning one of them has to be turned to gold to get the shield. Annabeth instantly offers herself, to Percy's protests, after arguing Percy points out he picked her as she would sacrifice him if the quest required it and that she would likely succeed more. Annabeth promises to free him after getting the bolt from Hades. Percy sits, and the chair turns him into gold, as Annabeth tearfully begs him to just stand up. Ignoring the shield, Annabeth desperately attempts to free Percy but is unable, when suddenly a figure appears on the balcony above, asking if she needs assistance. She ignores him, but the man plays a few notes and a ladder to safety appears, revealing himself as Hephaestus. Annabeth continues to ignore him, as he talks about how Athena has recently been displeased with her. Annabeth breaks down crying and says that Percy is better then how her mother was, and she doesn't want to continue down Athena's path. This emotionally moves Hephaestus, who was only intending on trapping Ares, and frees Percy. He tells the two of them that 'some of us don't like being that way either' and promises to put in a good word with Athena, before vanishing.
The two of them, exhausted, return to the diner and give Ares his shield back. He takes them to a large white lorry belonging to 'Kindness International' and tells them it will arrive at the Lotus Hotel and Casino in Vegas within a few hours, where they can get help from Hermes. He tells Percy not to worry, as Poseidon has plenty of children he stopped caring about, but Percy stands up, angrily telling Ares they are not going to fail and that he doesn't know who Percy truly is. Grover interjects before Percy goes too far, and thanks Ares for the 'emotional abuse and cheeseburgers' before dragging his friend inside the lorry. Percy and Annabeth wonder if Ares was telling the truth about the lorries' destination, before Grover says that Ares was lying, and that he now knows who stole the Master Bolt.
Cast[]
Starring[]
- Walker Scobell as Percy Jackson
- Leah Sava Jeffries as Annabeth Chase
- Aryan Simhadri as Grover Underwood
Guest Starring[]
Co-Starring[]
- Ryan Cowie as Chaperone
- Joyce Robbins as Fate #1
- La Nein Harrison as Fate #2
- Cindy Piper as Fate #3
Differences[]
- The fates are shown later in the timeline of the show, than they are in the book.
- Hephaestus appears during the Quest for Ares' Shield, whereas he did not appear until the third book.
- Percy and Annabeth go to Waterland while Ares holds Grover as collateral. In the book, all three of them go.
Trivia[]
- The title is derived from Chapter Fifteen of The Lightning Thief while the episode itself is an adaptation of Chapters Fourteen through Sixteen.
- ”What is Love”, a song by the Trinidadian-born German singer Haddaway, is heard when Percy and Annabeth are on the Thrill Ride O' Love.