"Zig-Zagged" is the twenty-seventh episode of the first season of PBS Kids show, Wild Kratts. It was written by Eva Almos and directed by Chris Kratt. It is the twenty-seventh episode of the series overall, and premiered on May 24, 2012.
Plot
The episode begins with a live action segment. The Kratt brothers slip out of a barn house containing domesticated horses and find zebras. Afterwards, they ask their "What if?" question and the show transitions into the cartoon segment.
The Kratt brothers rappel down into a zebra herd from the Tortuga, which is camouflaged so the zebras will not be startled by its presence. However, Jimmy, the pilot, smashes it down, blowing its cover, and consequently scares away the zebras. Only a zebra foal is left behind. Martin names it Maze. Aviva is impressed by the zebra's stripe pattern and plans on incorporating the design in a set of jackets for the entire Wild Kratts crew. The Kratt brothers take Maze along so they can find his herd while the rest of the Wild Kratts return to the Tortuga to get working on the jackets.
The Kratt brothers see a herd of zebra across a river. Martin decides to escort Maze across the river, when Chris sees a crocodile swimming behind them. Martin pushes Maze back to their starting point while Chris lassos a noose to the crocodile's snout and ties the rope to the tree. Martin and Maze return to the side of the river where Chris is. To safely traverse the river, Chris activates his Hippo Creature Power Suit. Martin and Maze follow him to the other side of the river. Later, the Kratt brothers find another zebra herd at the bottom of a hill. They activate their Zebra Creature Power Suits and run down the hill. They witness a male stallion chasing away an intruder male and defend Maze from hyenas, but do not find Maze's mother. A while later the Kratt brothers end up in another herd of zebra. Maze's mother gallops towards and cuddles with Maze. The Kratt brothers run back to the Tortuga after the herd's stallion chases them away. At the Tortuga, Aviva shows off the finished crew jacket to her teammates with Jimmy as the mannequin.
The show transitions into the concluding live action segment. Chris puts on spot-patterned clothing and hides from Martin. Martin contrasts after putting on his black- and white-striped clothing. The Kratt brothers then conclude the episode by saying "Keep on creature adventuring; we'll see you on the creature trail!"
Characters
Animals
Animation
Note: Featured animals are in bold.
- Grant's Zebra (called Zebra): Maze
- Nile Crocodile (called Crocodile)
- Hippopotamus
- Nubian Giraffe (called Giraffe)
- Spotted Hyena
Flashback
Live Action
Note: Live action animals are linked to Wikipedia.
- American quarter horse (called Quarter horse)
- Striped skunk (called Skunk)
- Common buckeye (called Butterfly)
- Leopard
- Impala
- Sitatunga
- Lion
- Cheetah
- Thomson's gazelle
Trivia
Key Facts and Creature Moments
- A zebra's stripes are involved in a type of camouflage that is used to confuse predators. When a herd of zebra moves quickly enough, a predator is often unable to distinguish between one zebra or the other.
- A giraffe's spotted skin makes it look like a tree from far away, allowing it to blend in with its environment.
Gallery
