On this great day, it’s time to give the slithering reptiles their due and highlight some of our favorite snakes from across the Riordan series. . . . The fact that most of them are bad guys is purely coincidental.
Python
As we’ve learned from The Trials of Apollo, Python is technically a dragon, not a snake. That being said, his name is Python, and if you ever got a good look at the guy, you’d probably mistake him for one. That is, before your eyes were incinerated and your body rendered to ash. Currently, Python is carrying out his plan to control all of Earth’s Oracles as part of Triumvirate Holdings, an evil scheme that will surely set up a rematch with his old foe, Apollo. Fortunately for Python, Apollo ain’t exactly what he used to be.
George and Martha
Although we’ve been fans of these two since The Sea of Monsters, as a general rule, we prefer office supplies that don’t talk back. But when they aren’t bickering, they are extremely useful as an all-in-one multipurpose tool, transforming from phone to pen to laser cannon. On second thought, maybe we wouldn’t mind a pair of our own . . . if we didn’t have to feed them all those guinea pigs and rats.
Jormungand
As we learned from Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, Jormungand is so large that his body completely surrounds the Earth, and his slightest movements cause tidal waves that can level entire cities. Thankfully for us, he’s in the middle of a long nap right now. Once he wakes up, he’s destined to kill and be killed by Thor, the god of thunder. A little-known fact is that Jormungand is another child of Loki, which means that Samirah and Alex have to deal with an increasingly problematic family tree.
Queen Uloopi and King Takshaka
Venomous snakes poison you with their bites. Uloopi and Takshaka are more likely to poison you with their words. The king and queen of the Nagini—as well as the king and queen of passive-aggressiveness—made it clear in Aru Shah and the Song of Death that they are two royals you do not want to cross. When these two accused Aru and friends of stealing Kamadeva’s bow and arrow, they sent our Pandava heroes on a deadly retrieval quest that resulted in near-death multiple times. Goes to show that sometimes the most dangerous snakes rely on others to do their dirty work for them.
Which of these snakes would you keep as a pet? Personally, we’ve got to go with our boy Apophis, about whom you can read more right here.
