Hercules (character)/Relationships

The relationships of Hercules.
==Romance==
===Megara===
Hercules had a rocky relationship with Megara, due to his lack of experience with girls, to not knowing Meg is working for Hades, and Meg being his weakness. On the way to Thebes, Hercules hears Meg's scream, and encounters what he believes to be a very beautiful young damsel in distress being chased and needed help. Unbeknownst to him, Meg was trying to convince the centaur Nessus to join Hades' forces, only to have him harass her. Hercules became angry as he saw the young woman struggling against the centaur and barrels in. She retorts sarcastically to the uncertain hero's confusion, "I'm a damsel, I'm in distress - I can handle this. Have a nice day!" While stunned, given none of his hero workshops had said what to do if the damsel didn't want to be rescued, Hercules refuses to desist and defeats the centaur. Hercules pays little attention from Phil's lectures as he is distracted by the sight of Meg, becoming curious, captivated by her beauty, and falls for her instantly. Phil and Pegasus are both irritated by his obvious attraction to Meg, who has flirtatious banter with a shy, smitten, stammering and tongue-tied Hercules, whose manner she believed to be an "innocent farm-boy routine" rather than his true personality.
After arriving to Thebes, Hercules hears Meg bursting upon the scene saying that two children have been trapped in a rockslide, not knowing that she was luring him to battle the Hydra, a fixed contest set up by Hades. While initially guilty and mourned her role in the death of an innocent young hero, she applauded Hercules when he defeats the beast and is proclaimed a hero. While Hades is frustrated about Hercules's victories, Meg is openly smug and confident that he cannot be defeated. Hades hits upon a new plan and offers a reluctant Meg her freedom in exchange for learning Hercules' weakness. Hoping that he will become too distracted by his attraction for her, Meg convinces Hercules to "play hooky" so she can learn his weaknesses, seducing the handsome dazed hero over the course of their romantic day and evening. They nearly kiss, but Phil and Pegasus swoop in and stop him. However, Meg finds herself falling for his kindness and openhearted innocence. Hades realizes this and uses Meg as leverage to convince Hercules to give up his god-like strength in return for her safety; if the deal is broken, his strength returns. Despite taking the deal, Hercules is heartbroken upon Hades revealing Meg worked for him the whole time (realizing Phil was right about Meg working for Hades and should have believed his warning about meg all this time, also realizing he threw away his trainer for nothing). Although Hercules almost died fighting the Cyclops, Meg saves him from a collapsing column and dies in process. Realizing that she did indeed love him, Hercules goes to the Underworld, retrieving her soul, and achieves the status of godhood. However, once he ascended to Olympus, Hercules declines a place offered to him among Zeus and the gods to live a mortal life with Meg.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Meg appeared twice. Meg first appears in "Hercules and the Aetolian Amphora" in which she asks for teenage Hercules' help to retrieve her amphora so she can use it to forget about Adonis who she had a blind date with that went badly. During a fight for the amphora, Meg tells Hercules that she liked him from the start. They almost kiss, but the amphora's water is dropped on them, causing them to forget how they met, and reinforcing the fact that Hercules and Meg never established any relationship until the events of the 1997 film. Meg appears again in "Hercules and the Yearbook", which takes place after the events of the film and features Meg learning about Hercules' years at Prometheus Academy. Hercules tells Meg he did not want her to know about that part of his life because he wants her to see him as a hero. Meg tells him that she accepts that part of his life as an awkward phase, and loves him just the same. However, this does not stop Hercules from having Hermes retrieve Meg's own yearbook and laughs at the revelation that Meg was a cheerleader and in the glee club.
==Family==
===Zeus===
Hercules' father is Zeus, ruler of Mount Olympus. During the celebration for their newborn son, Zeus let Hercules play with his lightning bolts and created Pegasus as a gift. When Zeus and Hera later discover Hercules gone, taken from Mount Olympus, Zeus becomes so infuriated that his roar of "NO!!" summons a thunderstorm across Olympus and the land below. Zeus led all the gods on a frantic search but by the time they found their baby, Hercules was mortal but still retained his godlike strength. Because their son could never come home, Zeus had to watch him grow up from afar. Years later, Zeus met Hercules when the boy grew into a teenager, in the form of a statue his son visited. When the statue of Zeus came alive in a flash of lightning, Hercules was terrified, instinctively screaming loudly and trying to run away as the statue reached for his startled son. When Zeus picked up Hercules in his massive hands, the boy felt like an insect as he desperately tried to escape his enormous fingers. After discussing their familial relationship, Zeus explains that Hercules cannot go back to Mount Olympus as he has lost his Godhood, and the only way to reclaim it is to become a true hero. Zeus reunites Hercules with Pegasus and sends him to Philoctetes to help his son on his journey, which led him to complete hero training, defeating various monsters, and becoming the most famous person in all of Greece. Despite being proud of his son, Zeus told Hercules that being famous isn't the same as being a true hero, much to his son's disappointment. After defeating Hades and returning Meg her spirit (to which she returns to life) Hercules is reunited with his parents and is told by Zeus for a true hero isn't measured by the size of his strength, but by the strength of his heart. Zeus creates an image of Hercules for Hercules and all the citizens of Thebes to see.
===Hera===
Hercules' mother is Hera, goddess of marriage. Hera seems to be overprotective of Hercules when she and Zeus let him play with thunderbolts while celebrating the birth of Hercules. When Zeus and Hera later discover Hercules gone, taken from Mount Olympus, Hera breaks down into tears. By the time they found their baby, he was mortal but still retained his godlike strength. Hera and Zeus wept because their son could never come home and they'd have to watch their precious baby grow up from afar. Upon meeting Hercules as a teenager, Zeus told Hercules he had his mother's eyes. And after defeating Hades, Hera embraces him and telling him how proud she and Zeus are of him as he was willing to sacrifice his own life to save Meg's.
===Amphitryon and Alcmene===
Hercules' adoptive mortal parents are Amphitryon and Alcmene. After Pain and Panic kidnapped baby Hercules, the childless couple find the infant, believing that the Gods have answered their prayer to have a child. They read Hercules' name on his medal, which shows the symbol of the Gods. The two mortals stare in amazement at baby Hercules, who still retained his godlike strength, when the baby snatched Pain and Panic as two snakes, tied them together in a knot, and hurled them into the distance. Amphitryon and Alcmene raise Hercules, who becomes the child they had longed for, as their own, and they loved him dearly even though he grew stronger every day. Hercules loved Amphitryon and Alcmene with all his heart and had always tried to be a good son to them. Sometimes, late at night, he had wondered why he didn't have any brothers or sisters or why he didn't look much like his mother or father.
Following the destruction of an entire marketplace by teenage Hercules, to include most of the goods that have been brought there for sale, the angry people say Hercules is too dangerous to be around them and call the clumsy country boy a "freak", though Amphitryon defends him, and tries hard to comfort his teenage son. Hercules, however, begins to question where he really belongs. Hercules stood up and strode away from his father for a walk needed to take alone. Wisely, his father let him go. When Hercules walked back home to the farm, both his mother and father stood in the doorway, waiting for him with strange looks on their faces. This led to both Amphitryon and Alcmene deciding to tell Hercules of how they found him and that he was adopted, news that blew him away. They showed him the medal with his name on it, which has the symbols of the Gods on it. Hercules decides to go to the Temple of Zeus and find out where he belongs, but tells Amphitryon and Alcmene that they're the greatest parents anyone could have, hugging them before he goes on his journey. When Hercules becomes a famous hero, Amphitryon and Alcmene are seen with Hercules souvenirs, and now have a bigger house. And when Hercules decides to stay on Earth with Meg instead of becoming a God again, he is reunited with Amphitryon and Alcmene and they watch as Hercules' biological father Zeus paints a picture of him in the sky for being a true hero.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Amphitryon and Alcmene remain mostly absent in the series, as Hercules has left them to train with Philoctetes on his island. Both Amphitryon and Alcmene appear in "Hercules and the Parent's Weekend", where they both come to visit Hercules during an open house event at Prometheus Academy, only to be kidnapped by Ladon, the son of Echidna aka the mother of all monsters. In "Hercules and the Underworld Takeover", after Amphitryon injured his leg, Hercules is given the responsibility of looking after his adoptive father's farm while he recovers.
===Hades===
Hades is Hercules' evil uncle and his arch-nemesis. Upon the celebration of Hercules's birth, Hades learns from the Fates that he could succeed at overthrowing Zeus by releasing the Titans in eighteen years, but should Hercules fight, he will fail. Hades sends his minions, Pain and Panic, to kidnap baby Hercules and give him a potion that would render him mortal if he drank ever last drop, and destroy him. Unbeknownst to Hades, Pain and Panic failed to kill Hercules, ends up losing the last drop, thus retaining his godlike strength. They tell Hades that Hercules is dead, hoping that he will not find out.
Years later, Hades finds out from Megara that Hercules is still alive upon her failure to convince the centaur Nessus to join Hades' uprising, and starts plotting to kill him again. His first attempt was by using Meg to lure Hercules into a fixed contest in facing the Hydra, determined to humiliate and destroy the hero. Hades watches every second of the battle excitedly as the strong young man destined to defeat him struggles under the multi-headed monster's attacks, only for Hercules to slay it in a rockslide that seems to have killed both, until the hero emerges from the Hydra's claw. He then sends a various succession of creatures to defeat Hercules. Frustrated that none of the monsters have worked, Hades hits upon a new plan to send a reluctant Meg to stop him, hoping that Herc will become too distracted by his attraction for Meg for the latter to learn his weaknesses. When he learns that Hercules has fallen in love with Megara, Hades uses this to his advantage and makes a deal with Hercules: he must give up his strength for the next twenty-four hours. Hercules agrees, as long as Meg will be safe from any harm. Hades then reveals that Meg was working for him the whole time, crushing Hercules' will to fight. After releasing the Titans, Hades sends the Cyclops to kill Hercules to keep him from getting in the way of defeating Zeus, but Hercules defeats the Titans using his wits. Hercules defeats Hades after saving Meg's soul from the Underworld.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Hades passes time by trying other plans to dispose of Hercules or take over Olympus, such as tricking the other gods into swimming in the waters of Lethe to forget their pasts, arranging for the sun to be stolen, or sending Cerberus after a temporarily mortal Zeus. One episode, "Hercules and the Arabian Night", Hades and Jafar team up to defeat their foes, only for Hercules and Aladdin to team up to defeat the villains.
===Triton===
Triton is the paternal cousin of Hercules, and has a deep admiration for him, taking greater pride in being his cousin than in being a God. In "Hercules and the Son of Poseidon", Triton begs his father to allow him to go to Prometheus Academy with Hercules. On his his first day of school, Triton embarasses Hercules in being a "bumbling, stumbling, uncoordinated goof", which his friends Icarus and Cassandra compared to Herc's own flaws since they met on his first day of attending the Academy. Despite this, Hercules accidentally hurts Triton's feelings with his words. As a result, Triton steals his dad's trident, using it to humiliate Hercules and impress kids at school. After accidentally releasing a three-headed sea serpent his father fought prior, Triton works with Hercules to defeat the serpent as it attacks the school.
==Friends==
===Olympian Gods===
Being the son of Zeus the king of Gods, the other gods respect Hercules. When Hercules accidentally mess up like he accidently made Morpheus go to sleep or disturbed Poseidon's sleep, Hercules takes responsibility for his actions and the gods normally minimize their punishment for him.
===Pegasus===
Pegasus is the winged horse of Hercules, created by Zeus out of clouds. Described by Zeus himself as "a magnificent horse with the brain of a bird", Pegasus' behavior mixes elements of both a horse and a bird, with habits such as clicking his tongue, whistling, and at times, perching on one of Hercules' shoulders. Pegasus also extremely close to his friend, acting almost dog-like as he licks Hercules's face on multiple occasions, along with his suspicion towards people that try and be close to Hercules. Those who treat Hercules well gain Pegasus's trust and affection.
Though they met when Hercules was a baby, as soon as the horse licked and nuzzled him, Hercules found he did remember Pegasus. Presented as a constant companion in his journey to become a true hero, Hercules jumped onto the winged horse, and off they flew. As Hercules's steed and best friend, Pegasus is extremely protective and no-nonsense. He doesn't hesitate to jump into battle when Hercules needs assistance, most notably in Hercules battles with the Hydra and the Titans, and will quickly become spiteful towards those who bare ill will towards the demigod—even close friends, which is evident by his threatening glare towards Phil when he initially refused to help Hercules during the climax. Despite their friendship, Pegasus can also be petty and envious when someone derails Hercules' attention; upon meeting Megara, he was initially irritated by Hercules's obvious attraction to Meg as he falls for her instantly. Being immediately against her solely due to Hercules' fascination with her, going as far as to take advantage of her fear of heights by flying at a purposely high speed during her first flight upon him in Thebes. Even so, Pegasus is capable of garnering a change of heart as Meg needed help during a fight between a weakened Hercules and the Cyclops.
===Fates===
The Fates are three deities who see the future, sharing a single eye among them, and decide how long mortals live. Clotho is the Fate who spins the Thread of Life, having green skin, wavy yellow worm-like hair and a long pointed chin. Lachesis is the Fate who measures the thread's length and decides how long mortals will live, having blue skin and a long pointed nose. And Atropos is the Fate who cuts the thread, short, has purple skin, green serpent-like hair and is the only fate to have one eye socket. In the film, following the Olympian gods' celebration of baby Hercules, it was the Fates who told Hades about how the planets would line up in the next eighteen years, at which point Hades could then defeat Zeus by releasing the Titans, but also warned that he would fail should Hercules fight. The Fates later cut Megara's thread, killing her, and while they tried to cut Hercules' thread, it turned gold and hard.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, the Fates appear during Hercules' time as a hero-in-training. In "Hercules and the Tapestry of Fate", Atropos has a crush on young Hercules and flirts with the "handsome, strapping, smooth-skinned son of Zeus" by Atropos, much to Herc's disgust.
===Philoctetes===
Philoctetes is a well-known trainer of the original Olympians who had been burned by a bunch of hero wannabes and has to be talked into training Hercules as his coach. Learning from Zeus that he has to become a true hero, Hercules travels to Phil's island with Pegasus to begin his training. Hercules was surprised to discover that Philoctetes (or Phil) was a tough, rude, and wisecracking little satyr: a half-man and half-goat creature, complete with horns. He stumbles upon Phil watching Nymphs bathing, angering the satyr when they flee at his arrival. As Hercules introduces himself asked the trainer to help him become a true hero, Phil refuses and insists he had retired with the many failures and disappointments he had in the past, specifically the great Greek warrior Achilles, saying none of the heroes he's trained could go the distance. While the last thing he needed was to be let down by some starry-eyed yahoo with more muscles than brains, Phil agrees to help after learning that Hercules was the son of Zeus, and being hit with a lightning bolt by the god himself. Hercules' training began with grueling exercises and rescues to test the most courageous youth, especially one who was clumsy and inept like. By imposing hundreds of hero rules, and constant days of practice, Phil put a lot of effort to turn Hercules from a klutzy boy into a first-class hero. While training Hercules or coaching the clumsy country boy in a fight, Phil would constantly utter at least one of his many hero rules, whether he succeeded or failed.
Upon completion his training, Hercules changed from an awkward youth to a skilled athlete, ready to demonstrate his abilities as he told Phil he wanted to go to where the action was, eager to try his new skills for heroics. However, shortly afterwards, Phil berates Hercules for the sloppy mistakes he made in the fight with Nessus, such as being distracted and losing his sword despite now being in the big leagues, but Hercules pays him little attention, since he did win. When Hercules offers himself as a hero, Phil insists that he was the "genuine article" though none of the Thebans weren't interested. During the battle with the Hydra, Phil ran for cover and tried to coach Hercules but shakes his head when the beast swallows him whole, and while the young hero dodges a swarm of heads Hercules tells Phil that he didn't think they covered this in basic training. In the middle of the excitement, Phil congratulates Hercules upon the defeat of the Hydra and other monsters. But even more of a distraction from Phil is the sight of Meg: Hercules is captivated by her beauty and falls for her instantly. Phil and Pegasus are both irritated by his obvious attraction to Meg. After Hercules' date with Meg, Phil was accidentally left behind after he fell off of Pegasus, and when he regained consciousness, he found out that Meg really was working for Hades. He went to warn him, but when Hercules didn't believe him because he loved her, they had a fight, and when Phil insulted Meg, Hercules got angry and slapped him. Phil abandoned Hercules to go back home after this, leaving him on bad terms. Later, however, when Hercules gave up his super strength for the day in exchange for Meg's safety due to a deal with Hades and is injured when fighting a losing battle against a Cyclops, Phil came to the rescue after Meg convinced him to help him because he was in danger of death, and gave him the confidence to beat the Cyclops without his strength. After Hercules defeated the Titans, Phil's dream came true once Zeus created a picture of Hercules in the stars, after which the tall, fat Theban says, "That's Phil's boy!", leading Phil to shed tears of joy.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Hercules is still training with Phil while attending Prometheus Academy. As a hero-in-training, Hercules sometimes passes his tests, whereas other times he fails in foolhardy efforts, such as his training to fight a dragon, only for tomatoes (Phil's makeshift dragon fire) to start flying and hit him. Phil once told Meg that this wasn't the most graceful period of Herc's life, partly because of Herc's own flaws, and at one point sinking Phil's island. In Hercules and the Tiff on Olympus, Hercules believed it was time to do something big to make his parents proud, like his first official hero labor sanctioned by the Heroes' Union Local 839. Despite Phil being unsure Hercules was ready, due to the labors being tough, Hercules was confident as that's what he's been training for, leading Phil to suggest that Hercules take on King Diomedes' Man-Eating Mares. When Hercules falls off a tree due to being distracted by the nerve-raking Neurosis, Phil thinks Hercules is seeing things and warns the young hero to keep his wits now that he was entering the big leagues.
===Thebans===
Full of confidence and sure that he would be a hero across town, Hercules flew over to the city of Thebes. Upon arriving, Hercules saw a crowd of depressed people gathered around a fountain in the town square, all complaining about the state of their city. Despite his bravado, Hercules shyly approached the group of unhappy citizens and announced that he was the hero for them. The townsfolk are skeptical, their faces lined with fatigue, glaring at him. Hercules forged on, but it was a foolhardy effort as the Thebans laughed at him. Hercules was taken aback as they stare at him suspiciously. Given his lack of experience, an elderly old man and tall fat man rolled their eyes not taking him seriously, and a lumpy woman told Hercules they needed a "professional hero, not an amateur" before the crowd turned their backs on him. Hercules tried to go after the Thebans, but he knew that he'd already made a bad impression as they wouldn't give him a chance to prove himself a hero. After Meg claims that two little boys are trapped in a rockslide, Hercules used this opportunity to prove his worth to the people. As the townsfolk crowded around the edge of a canyon, Hercules lifted a massive boulder over his head, freeing the boys. Only a few people applauded, unimpressed, though Hercules was still sure of himself until the Hydra emerges. The people of Thebes watch in horror as Hercules fought the Hydra, with the crowd later muttering and one woman screaming after the beast swallows the strong young man whole. As the crowd watched in stunned silence, Hercules cut off the Hydra's head, which landed in the middle of the crowd, and then they clapped with more enthusiasm this time as the young hero proved himself more than an amateur. However, the Hydra grew more heads and wasn't defeated until Hercules triggered a rockslide, which seems to have killed both the monster and and the hero. Staring in shock for a moment, the crowd drew back in terror when the Hydra's talon uncurled, only to see Hercules alive. The crowd went wild, bursting into wild shouts and cheers. Finally impressed with Hercules, all Thebans rushed in, eager to congratulate him by raising the hero to their shoulders.
As word of Hercules' deeds spread, the grateful people of Thebes found inspiration in him. He becomes the most famous person in Greece, a champion, heartthrob and the center of merchandising bonanza, whose fame grew as he defeats a succession of creatures. However, Hercules was still nervous when the naïve hero approached by fangirls. Later, the citizens cower away as the city of Thebes was in flames and the Cyclops struck fear in their hearts as it caused damage, such as smashing a Hercules statue, until the hero himself strode out to face him. While the lumpy woman thanks the gods for their champion, the Thebans watched in horror as the Cyclops sneered at the weakened Hercules and easily knocks his opponent across the city, then takes his time beating him up badly. After Hercules defeats the Titans and Hades, he becomes a true hero, which the Thebans notice once Zeus created a picture of Hercules in the stars, after which the fat Theban says, "That's Phil's boy."
===Icarus===
Icarus is Hercules' best friend during the hero-in-training's time at Prometheus Academy. Introduced as a complete "brain-fried" nut who flew too close to the sun on wax wings. Despite his accident, Icarus still flies every chance he gets resulting in a few more encounters with the Sun and other perils, often requiring Hercules to rescue him. Icarus took part in many of Hercules's adventures, such as becoming an ultra-serious soldier at boot camp or a nearly identical version of Hades himself, though at the end of each episode, he reverts to his own odd self. Although Hercules had issues with the teachings of his father, the legendary inventor Daedalus, Hercules is still good friends with Icarus, even through his parents' divorce. By adulthood, Hercules likely kelps in touch with Icarus, as Icarus went into manufacturing with his father, Daedelus, and became very wealthy, earning the name "Icarus: The Wax-Wing King".
===Cassandra===
Cassandra is Hercules's other best friend during the hero-in-training's time at Prometheus Academy. Introduced as an attractive yet anti-social girl, Cassandra is cursed with foreseeing visions of the future (usually bad or catastrophic) once in a while, which are rarely believed. Some of these perils, often requiring Hercules to rescue her. When one of these prophetic trances overcome her, she becomes immobile and her eyes spin, initially confusing Hercules when they first met. Cassandra took part in many of Hercules's adventures, most involving Icarus's flirtatious behavior or catastrophic events such as Atlantis sinking, though having once pointed out his hero rules were annoying. By adulthood, Hercules likely kelps in touch with Cassandra even when she became the most famous Prophet in all of Greece.
===Adonis===
Adonis is the self-obsessed prince of Thrace who bullies Hercules and Icarus every chance he has, but sometimes can be their friend. He also annoys the gods which resulted in Gaia even putting a curse on him once. Adonis believes that anything can be solved with power and money. In "Hercules and the Yearbook" at graduation, he was one credit short and had to attend summer school. He may have been the person whom Meg sold her soul to Hades to save his life, and ditched her for another woman, leaving her to do service for Hades.
===Helen of Troy===
Hercules and Helen are good friends during his time a Prometheus Academy. Despite her boyfriend being his rival Adonis, they are very close and Helen generally a very kind person to Hercules.
According to the plans of the sequel Hercules II - The Trojan War, Hercules' was going to rescue Helen after she was captured by the evil Paris of Troy, leading Hercules to enlist himself to fight in the Trojan War.
===Tempest===
Tempest is a quick-tempered Amazon "Warrior Princess" and Hercules's classmate at Prometheus Academy. In "Hercules and the Assassin", Hercules tries to impress Tempest, only to embarrass himself, and the two work together to fight Clion, who was sent by Ares to assassinate Pericles of Athens. In "Hercules and the Techno Greeks", Tempest allies herself with centaurs to take over the town and fight against Hercules. In "Hercules and the Girdle of Hippolyte", Hercules tries to save Tempest, though in reality she was taken to her mother Queen Hippolyta and King Darius.
===Chipacles===
Chipacles is the head city-state police officer for the Athens Police Department who takes his job very seriously, and an occasional ally of Hercules. In "Hercules and the Assassin", Chipacles and Hercules try to defeat the one who assassinates Pericles of Athens. In "Hercules and the Driving Test", Chipacles oversees Hercules' driving test. In "Hercules and the Hero of Athens", Chipacles tries to arrest Hercules for property damage, only for Icarus to take the blame for the damage that ironically serves as the Nemean Lion's defeat.
===Nereus===
Nereus is an ally to Hercules, but he is also an elderly, grouchy shape-shifter who is able to turn into various creatures to make people leave him alone. In "Hercules and the Prince of Thrace", Hercules and Adonis visit Nereus about the golden apples for Gaia, only for the shapeshifter to turn into a giant gorilla, serpent, and spider in battle against the hero-in-training. Though afraid, Hercules held his ground, not knowing Nereus was playing tricks on him as the serpent flicked the oblivious hero with its tail, but he was smart to avoid the spider's legs and fangs. Nereus nearly defeated Hercules until Adonis helps defeat the shapeshifter, thereby leaving Nereus to help both the hero and the prince of Thrace.
===Achilles===
When Hercules and Phil first meet, the latter talks about how he trained wannabe heroes who couldn't go the distance, leading to them admiring a statue of Achilles. Hercules recognized Achilles as the greatest Greek warrior in the Trojan War. When he was a baby, Achilles' mother dipped him in a magical river, hoping to make him immortal. But she missed the spot where she held him by his heel. And that was where he remained mortal. Phil and Hercules standing admiring statue of Achilles, until Phil remembered the hero's faults. He gave the heel of the statue a tiny flick with his finger, and then the whole statue crumbled to the floor.
In "Hercules and the Living Legend", Achilles appears as an old washed-out, has-been and the laughing-stock of Greece, being forced to keep his vulnerable heel in a protective shoe. Making a deal with Hades, Achilles temporarily gained his old body and capabilities back, with the condition of splitting Hercules and Phil. When Phil is visited by Achilles, who wins a fake battle with Memnon, the two begin to spend more time together, pushing Hercules to the side until he finally decides he no longer needs a trainer. Hercules tries to prove himself as a hero without Phil by saving Arcadia from a massive fire, but ironically flooded it in the process. However, Hades' plan is foiled when Phil realizes he can't leave Hercules on his own and gets back together with him, so Hades returns Achilles to his grey-haired, pot-bellied former state. Achilles returns to help Hercules and Phil defeat Memnon, who Hades sent to kill Hercules and Phil after Achilles' failure.
===Prometheus===
Hercules attended Prometheus Academy that humanity named in the Titan's honor. In "Hercules and the Prometheus Affair", when Hercules heard that Prometheus was unjustly imprisoned, the hero-in-training went to save the Titan. However, Hercules was unaware that his father Zeus imprisoned Prometheus and when he found out, Hercules manage to convinced Zeus to let him go. 
===Orion===
Orion was a legendary hunter, who Hercules idolized. In "Hercules and the Falling Stars", Hercules freed him to teach him how to use the bow resulting in Hercules learning the barbaric Orion Cluster. However Orion kelp causing trouble due to coming from a different time period. Following Hercules learning of Orion's history with Artemis, Hercules was able to use his own rendition of the Orion Cluster to take down the Constellations. After the Constellations were rounded up and sent back into the sky, Artemis had Orion and Hercules repair the damaged city-states, the damaged Gyro World, and pay the fine that Chipacles gave Orion. Later, Orion returned to the sky himself and suggesting that Hercules may one day have a constellation of his own.
===Alexander the Geek/Great===
Alexander the Great appears as "Alex the Geek", who can't tie his sandals, in "Hercules and the Kids". Hercules and a class of five children, one being Alex, go on an afternoon nature hike while the two hungry monsters are out hunting for their dinner. The kids and Hercules defeat the bugs, and Alex is shown to go from geek to Great under Hercules' tutelage. However, even though he becomes Alexander the Great, he still can't tie his sandals.
===Orpheus===
Orpheus is a singer and teen idol to Hercules and his classmates. He is first mentioned in "Hercules and the Tapestry of Fate" where Hercules and Icarus try to get tickets to his concert, only for it to turn out in the end it is cancelled due to a sore throat. In "Hercules and the Prom", Hercules tries to get Orpheus to sing at the Prom at Prometheus Academy to impress Tempest.
===Medusa===
In "Hercules and the Gorgon", Medusa saved Hercules by pulling him out of the water after he saved Icarus. Medusa admire the unconscious boy's face and later finds Hercules' school ID, this causes her to crave a normal life, her call is answered by Hades, lord of the dead and Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love. She soon becomes guilt-ridden for living a lie and willingly reveals herself as a gorgon to Hercules, hoping he'll accept her. But Hercules immediately accuses Medusa of wanting to turn him to stone, hurting her feelings and bringing her to tears. Hercules realizes his errors and goes to see Medusa intending to apologize and give her flowers. But when Hades learns that Hercules is the guy Medusa has a crush on, he lied to her that Hercules has come to slay her. Then he makes sure Hercules sees Medusa's eyes, turning him to stone. Medusa is heartbroken and realize he brought her flowers to apologize, when Aphrodite appears, reminding Hades of the better part of Medusa's deal. He prepares to turn her human permanently, but she uses Hercules' shield to turn the magic on him, saving him from his petrified state, much to Hades' fury. 
===Theseus/Grim Avenger===
Theseus is a student briefly enrolled at Prometheus Academy who has a double identity, his second self being the superhero "Grim Avenger". After the Minotaur escapes from the Labyrinth, Theseus helps Hercules face it. As the Grim Avenger, Theseus is constantly narrating his every move aloud, with Hercules pointing it out.
==Enemies==
===Pain and Panic===
Pain and Panic are Hades's minions and enemies of Hercules, demonic duo capable of morphing into any shape imaginable carrying out Hades' dirty work. Hades sent them to kidnap baby Hercules, make him drink a magic potion which would turn him into a mortal, and then kill him. Although Pain and Panic succeed in the first part of the plan, capturing Hercules in the middle of the night and flew down to Earth, they are interrupted by two human peasants (Amphitryon and Alcmene) before Hercules finishes drinking and the final drop falls wasted on the ground. Because of this, Pain and Panic only half-succeed in their plan: Hercules is mortal, but still keeps his godlike strength. When Pain and Panic slithered out as snakes to attack, baby Hercules snatched them up by their tails, tied them together in a knot, and hurled them screaming into the distance. Not wanting Hades to know about their failure, they tell him that Hercules is dead. Many years later Hades discovers that Hercules is actually alive, leading his minions to try and grovel sufficiently, reminding Hades they could still kill Hercules in the time left. They first help Hades by pretending to be two boys trapped under a boulder, which led Hercules to unintentionally release the Hydra. Throughout Hades's plan to dispose of Hercules, they're seen cheering the monsters on, grovelling to Hades, or using their powers to contact Megara. After Hercules punches Hades into the river Styx, Pain and Panic are left watching him go down into the river.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Pain and Panic have several encounters with teenage Hercules, most of which as part of Hades' plans. They help King Salmoneus in "Hercules and the King of Thessaly" after Hercules assumes the throne, trying to dethrone the demigod, and later battling the hero as a giant lion. In "Hercules and the Spring of Canathus", Pain and Panic try to use spring water to reverse Hercules's age, only for Pain to be accidentally given a dose as well, forcing Panic to work together with Cassandra to save their friends.
===Neurosis===
Neurosis is more of an annoyance than an enemy for Hercules, a third imp who resembles Pain and Panic, but has yellow skin and has the power to make people nervous (hence his name). In "Hercules and the Tiff on Olympus", because of Pain and Panic's past failures, Hades recruits the spazzed-out and nerve-racked Neurosis to follow Hercules around everywhere he goes, haunting him with undermining remarks. Hercules and Neurosis first meet during the hero-in-training's "send-off party" before his hero labor with the Man-Eating Mares, where Neurosis eats a banana peel then throws the banana onto the ground, which Hercules slips on to destroy Hestia's cake. Later, Neurosis later pops out of Hercules's backpack at Prometheus Academy, points out that his parents could have sent him to a school for gods rather than a school for mortals, suggesting that he'd be prepared for life as a common mortal if he failed as a hero. By this point, Neurosis became an annoyance as Hercules climbs a tree in training and preparation for his labor, in which Neurosis slaps Hercules in the back, distracting the hero-in-training enough to fall from great height. Although Hercules tried to tell his trainer Phil about Neurosis, the minion was nowhere to be seen, causing Phil to think the young hero was seeing things and warned him to keep his wits now that he was entering the big leagues. Prior to Hercules' fight with the man-eating mares, Neurosis asks how many mares are in a herd only to say that the hero-in-training was outnumbered, as well as tell him his sandal's untied. With the irritating Neurosis distracting Hercules and draining his confidence, the hero-in-training finds himself shaken in a deadly situation with the man-eating mares until the timely arrival of Zeus and Hera.
===Echidna===
Echidna is the Mother of All Monsters who Hercules occasionally fought. In the episode "Hercules and the First Day of School", Echidna chides Orthos to go on a diet by eating royalty or at least a hero, inadvertently putting them at odds with young Hercules, when the hero-in-training challenges Orthos to battle. In "Hercules and the Return of Typhon", Hercules confronts Echidna to prove himself to his father Zeus, who defeated Typhon, the Father of All Monsters, by defeating the Mother of All Monsters. Although Echidna initially "feeds the baby" by throwing Hercules into Ladon's mouth, the baby monster spat out the hero-in-training, who continues to battle the mother of all monsters. Hercules struggles against Echidna, who calls the Son of Zeus a "demi-brat" for humiliating her, only for the young hero to accidentally release Typhon from his eternal prison. With help from Hera, Hercules and Zeus repelled Echidna, Typhon, and Ladon. In "Hercules and the Parent's Weekend", after Hercules saves the parents Ladon kidnapped, Echidna tries to feed Hercules to Ladon, saying that one bite wouldn't ruin her baby's appetite, "They say wonder boys help build strong bodies 12 ways." Echidna chases after they all escape, only to be stopped in her tracks by Zeus' lightning bolts striking two rocky formations to incapacitate her. In "Hercules and the Big Games" Echidna enlisted by Hades to bring her children to where Athens and Sparta are holding the first Olympic games so that her children can feed off the spectators. After Hercules defeated her children easily, Echidna engaged Hercules, making things more difficult for the young hero until Athena and Ares save him.
===Ladon===
Ladon is a monster as well as the youngest child of Echidna and Typhon. During the opening theme for Hercules: The Animated Series, Ladon uses Hercules as a pacifier, pulling out the hero-in-training, now covered in slime. In "Hercules and the Return of Typhon", Hercules confronts Echidna, who initially "feeds the baby" by throwing Hercules into Ladon's mouth, only for the baby monster to spit the hero-in-training out. In "Hercules and the Parent's Weekend", Hercules confronts Ladon while the baby monster attacks Prometheus Academy, only to be easily defeated. Hercules faces Ladon with a spoon, asking the baby monster to leave quietly only to be squished under the monster's foot, and later fights with Adonis's statue only for the monster to hit the young hero with its tail through the brick wall and lockers. Ladon laughs at the clumsy hero's defeat before kidnapping the parents of Hercules, Adonis, and Cassandra. When Hercules wakes up, dazed, he goes to the Realm of Monsters to free the parents from Echidna and Ladon. After Hercules saves the parents Ladon kidnapped, Echidna tries to feed Hercules to Ladon, only for them to escape. Ladon tried to defeat and eat Hercules in multiple times, but each time is unsuccessful, with one time being revealed that Ladon started teething. In "Hercules and the Big Games" Ladon is among Echidna's children enlisted by Hades to attack the Olympic games, only to be defeated by Hercules.
===Typhon===
Typhon is the Father of All Monsters who originally fought Zeus before Hercules fought. In the episode "Hercules and the Return of Typhon", Hercules accidentally freed Typhon while battling Echidna, the Mother of All Monsters. Typhon prepared for a rematch with Zeus by spending "quality time" with Echidna and baby Ladon. When Zeus and Hercules reappeared, Typhon throttled his enemy and nearly succeeded when Hera once more intervened and threw a lightning bolt into his nostril, forcing all three monsters to flee, though Typhon demanded another rematch the next time. When they discover that Hera and Zeus were working together, Echidna and Typhon attempted to get Homer to fix the facts. Typhon reappeared in "Hercules and the Long Nightmare" as Phantasos, the god of dreams and younger brother of Morpheus, takes the form of Typhon during the final stage of his battle with Hercules before being pulled back into reality.
===Orthos===
Orthos is the two-headed Cyclops that Hercules first fought in "Hercules and the First Day of School" to prove he's somebody important. Hercules meets Orthos shortly after their mother Echidna tells them they need to eat royalty or at least a hero, with Hercules intending to defeat the monster so word spreads at his school, Prometheus Academy. Though briefly hesitant to eat this "nobody" due to their strict diet, Hercules introduces himself as a hero-in-training, which made the two heads not consider him an entree, but as a snack. Orthos grabbed Hercules then tried to take a hefty bite out of his head with their jaws, only for them to realize he's "stale" and after flipping the helpless hero-in-training around, discards him. Setting their sights on Prometheus Academy, the two heads terrorize the people before attempting to eat Adonis, Prince of Thrace. However, they were unsuccessful after being defeated by Hercules. In "Hercules and the Epic Adventure", Orthos sought revenge on Hercules for making them the laughingstock of the entire monster community. Although Hercules squirmed and fought for his life, he defeated Orthos again.
===King Salmoneus===
King Salmoneus is the King of Thessaly and an enemy of Hercules. To keep his morality high to the people, Salmoneus impersonates Zeus until he gets struck by a lightning bolt by Zeus after being exposed by Hercules. After escaping from the Grove of Despair, Salmoneus conspired with Pain and Panic to defeat Hercules and reclaim his throne.
===Clion===
Clion is an enemy of Hercules in "Hercules and the Assassin", where he repeatedly attempts to kill Pericles of Athens. During the second attempt Clion makes to kill Pericles, a spear that is thrown by Hercules (who stole it from Phil to impress Tempest) breaks the table in half, nearly killing Pericles. Clion is later turned big and strong with an axe in his hand by Ares, then tries to kill Pericles once again, but fails and battles against Hercules until he gets defeated.
===Doubt===
Doubt is a serpent with two arms and a great cobra hood that bites people, causing them to drown in fear and doubt, in "Hercules and the Big Kiss". While Hades sends Doubt to help make sure Icarus won't kiss Cassandra (because she sold her soul to him to make sure he doesn't kiss her), Hercules fights Doubt while trying to make the kiss happen. However, after Hercules loses the bow and arrow given by Aphrodite the Goddess of Love, Doubt easily defeats the hero-in-training and attempts to eat him until Aphrodite intervenes. Aphrodite blows a kiss to Doubt, making the serpent feel love and gives Hercules a kiss before letting him down.
===Arachne===
Arachne is a female spider-like monster and the guardian of the Tapestry of Fate in "Hercules and the Tapestry of Fate". As Hercules and Icarus try to enter the Tapestry's cavern, Arachne attempts to eat both, only for the young hero-in-training to struggle his way out her jaws as well as defeating the spider-lady after Icarus's temporary death. When Hades changed the Tapestry, Arachne was reduced to minding the cave where the Tapestry used to be. After attempting to eat Hercules again, only to find out that the young hero was now a god, Arachne revealed the Tapestry's current whereabouts as well as her desire to see the world and eat exotic people.
===Memnon===
Memnon is a dragon that appeared in "Hercules and the Living Legend" that fought Hercules and Achilles. Hades sent Memnon to lose a battle with Achilles, who turned from a has-been hero, in order to make the latter look good as a true hero and push Hercules and Phil apart. However, when Phil and Hercules ultimately get back together, Hades turns Achilles sends Memnon to kill the hero and trainer. Memnon tries smashing Hercules or breathing fire on him, but the young hero-in-training was able to defeat the dragon by tripping him with his own tail. As Hercules celebrated his victory, he didn't keep his guard up and was knocked out by Memnon with one punch. However, before Memnon could kill the two, Achilles steps in and defeats the monster by knocking him out with his massive gut.
===Squiggles===
Squiggles is Poseidon's giant pet squid that appeared in "Hercules and the Bacchanal". After Phil's Island sinks, the giant squid attacks young Hercules and Hermes, almost eating the two before Poseidon summons him.
===Hecate===
Hecate is the goddess of witchcraft and the night who wants to rule the Underworld. In "Hercules and the Underworld Takeover", Hercules helps Pain and Panic overthrow Hecate in the witch's attempted takeover after stealing Hades' power and throne. Using bravado and good manners, Hercules tried to act bold while confronting the witch, who uses her winged wolves Canis and Lupus and her humanoid-shaped crystal against the hero-in-training. As Hecate started to gloat about her new Underworld order to Hades, Hercules destroys the crystal monster, restoring Hades' rightful power. In "Hercules and the Disappearing Heroes", Hecate kidnaps all the famous heroes from Greece, including Hercules, and steals their great abilities in order to create a powerful monster to dethrone Hades. In the end, Hectea is defeated yet again.
===Caucasian Eagle===
The Caucasian Eagle is a giant eagle ordered by Zeus to eat the liver of Prometheus every day in "Hercules and the Prometheus Affair". Hercules, armed with a spear and shield, flies Pegasus to free Prometheus, though he loses his spear and shield in the battle with the Eagle. After Hercules freed the Titan, the Eagle allied with Hades, who briefly turned him into a fiery phoenix to battle Hercules again.
===Minotaur===
The Minotauris a creature with the head and hindquarters of a cattle and the arms and torso of a man. In "Hercules and the Minotaur", he was housed inside a Labyrinth built by Daedalus in Crete for its insane King Minos. Hercules is dropped into the maze, where he tries to escape, avoid the Minotaur, as well as save Icarus and Daedalus. The hero-in-training and the Minotaur battle until the latter is defeated. In "Hercules and the Grim Avenger", the Minotaur faces Hercules and Theseus/Grim Avenger, only for to be subdued by them together and placed back by the gods.
===Three-headed serpent===
In "Hercules and the Son of Poseidon", Poseidon defeats a three-headed serpent until his son and Hercules's cousin Triton accidentally releases the monster. Hercules boldly confronts the serpent, only to be nervous after seeing the monster up close and is initially easily defeated. While trying to eat Hercules, the three heads themselves also fight over which one gets to eat the hero-in-training and accidentally tosses him away. Hercules and Triton fight the three-headed serpent after it attacks the Prometheus Academy with the timely arrival of Poseidon.
===Acheron and Aesop===
Acheron is a spider and Aesop is a mosquito who appears in "Hercules and the Kids". Hercules and a class of five children, one being Alex, go on an afternoon nature hike while the two hungry monsters are out hunting for their dinner. As they face their potential meal, Hercules bravely faces the monsters, only to get stung by Aesop and webbed by Acheron. The kids free Hercules, who defeats the bugs, and Alex is shown to go from geek to Great under Hercules' tutelage.
===Croesus===
Croesus is the richest man in the world and owner of Atlantis City in "Hercules and the Big Sink". Hercules goes to rescue Cassandra and Homer, who were captured by Pain and Panic in a plot by Croesus to make sure the vision of Atlantis City sinking wouldn't happen. Seeing the self-proclaimed hero-in-training knocking on his door, Croesus asks Poseidon for his one of his sea monsters, Scylla. The fight between Scylla and Hercules accidentally causes the Fates to cut the Atlantis City banner causing Cassandra's vision to come true.
===Scylla===
Scylla is a sea monster resembling a woman with an eel's tail and six eel-like heads circling her waist. In "Hercules and the Big Sink", Scylla is used by Croesus to battle Hercules at Atlantic City. Although Hercules instinctively gapes at Scylla, with the young hero-in-training unsure how to begin to fight the tremendous monster, they fight after Pegasus flies Herc's friend Icarus to safety. Scylla slithers around Hercules, who jumps to avoid the eel-like heads until the monstrous woman slingshots the hero-in-training across Atlantic City where the Fates are. payback Before Scylla could grab Hercules again, the young hero got even by grabbing the monster's index finger and throws them away. Their ensuing fight ends up severely damaging the Tapestry of Fate, from which Atlantis City is accidentally unwoven. In "Hercules and the Odyssey Experience", Hercules and his group enter the Passage between Scylla and Charybdis, leaving them to deal with the monster or the whirlpool. While Telemachus saves his parents from being sucked into Charybdis, Hercules takes on Scylla and manages to trap it in a cave.
===Sea snake===
In "Hercules and the Complex Electra", Hercules sees the snake being served as "sauté of sea snake" for the students in the Prometheus Academy cafeteria. After Hercules is grossed out, the snake attempts to attack before the lunch lady hits the snake with her spoon. However, the students flee as the snake flies across the cafeteria and into Hercules' lap. A wave of horror and revulsion swept through Hercules as the snake wrapped its coils around the hero-in-training, who struggles to free himself from the snake. As the entangled hero holds the snake at bay, Hercules was oblivious as the snake uses its coils to trip him down, hammers him, then wraps its coils around his friends, Icarus and and Cassandra. Hercules defeats the snake shortly before meeting and saving Electra.
===Furies===
In "Hercules and the Complex Electra", Hercules boldly confronts Furies as a hero-in-training only to be snatched by one. Hercules flails clumsily as the Fury lifts him off the ground, dunks him in mud puddles, and then throws the hero into a tree. There a group of Furies try pecking at his head until the hero-in-training defeats them. Despite the nature of their further attacks, Hercules was oblivious to the fact that the Furies appeared as Electra gets angry.
===Phantasos===
In "Hercules and the Long Nightmare", Phantasos is Morpheus' younger brother who wanted to be the God of Sleep, only for his older brother to take the job, then created a nightmare counterpart of Morpheus's blanket. With Phantasos's blanket, young teenage Hercules had a dream of his adult self being attacked by a three-headed Hydra but he couldn't fight back because he dropped his sword. Hanging by his cape, teenage Hercules was crying out in desperation and screaming for help before being swallowed him whole. When Morpheus asks for the hero-in-training's help against Phantasos, Hercules and Phil entering their dreams to face Phantasos, who transforms into the Hydra. Though terrified, Hercules overcame his fear, and bravely defeating Phantasos as the Hydra and Typhon. After stopping Phantasos, Hercules told Morpheus that because of the dreams, he wouldn't be afraid if he ever faced a real Hydra, that tackling it in his dreams made it less frightening.
===Man-Eating Mares===
King Diomedes' man-eating mares were a herd of man-eating horses. Hercules misunderstands a tiff between Zeus and Hera as thinking he's caused the fight, which makes the young hero-in-training believe it was time to do something big to make his parents proud, like his first official hero labor sanctioned by the Heroes' Union Local 839. Despite Phil being unsure he was ready, due to the labors being tough, Hercules was confident as that's what he's been training for. When Phil suggests that Hercules take on the man-eating mares, the young hero's eyes went wide in confusion after hearing the word "man-eating" and Phil plans a big send-off party "in case [he] don't make it." When Hercules falls off a tree due to being distracted by the nerve-raking Neurosis, Phil thinks Hercules is seeing things and warns the hero-in-training to keep his wits now that he was entering the big leagues, but Hercules insists he could do it.
However, with the irritating Neurosis draining his confidence, Hercules more than meets his match with the Man-Eating Mares, each with mouths filled with razor sharp teeth. Wide-eyed, Hercules concentrated and looked around the area cautiously, as he found himself outnumbered by the herd. The man-eating mares lunged at the hero-in-training, but he tumbled away after a piece of his rope was snapped by one of the mares. One mare clamped its mouth around a piece of wood Hercules grabbed and struggled to push the mare away, then jumped away from another mare. Hercules landed hard on the rocky ground and faced the herd of mares. Quickly he rolled to his feet and used all the skills Phil had taught him to dodge the mares and keep them at bay. With the mares on his heels, Hercules took cover and high-tailed away. Using the strength of his powerful legs, Hercules leaped into the air and started climbing the side of a cliff with the mares snapping ferociously at his heels. Just as Hercules managed a good grip on the cliff, he grabbed a loose branch and fell back down, instinctively screaming as he landed on a rock, hanging right above the man-eating mares. The herd continued snapping at Hercules from below, but the young hero dangled just out of reach. One of the mares bit Hercules in his sandaled right foot, and he bellowed out in pain. Crying out in desperation, both Hercules and Phil called the gods to with the mares until the timely arrival of Zeus, Hera, and the other gods, though Hades had a shiver of anticipation.
===Nessus===
Nessus is a large centaur and the first monster Hercules fights in his journey to become a true hero after completing his training. On the way to Thebes, Hercules hears Megara's scream and encounters what he and Phil believe to be a damsel in distress in need of help saving from the centaur. Unbeknownst to them, Meg was trying to convince Nessus to join Hades' uprising, only to have him harass her.
Hercules became angry and frustrated as he saw the centaur cackling as he grabbed the young woman. Against Phil's wishes, Hercules barrels in and leaps right into the centaur's path. Using bravado and good manners, Hercules tried to act bold towards Nessus but words failed him as Nessus snarls and growls at him, towering over the young hero, and Meg's retorts sarcastically to the hero's confusion. But while uncertain, Hercules refuses to desist and pulls out his sword. With the girl still in his clutches, Nessus punched Hercules halfway across the river, dunked in the water. The clumsy young hero frantically searched the water for his sword, but aimed a fish instead. Nessus roared with laughter at before hitting Hercules again, who rammed headfirst into a rock jutting out of the water. With the centaur having the jump on him, Hercules took Phil's advice to "use your head" literally, as he lowered his head like a battering ram and plowed into the huge centaur's gut, causing Nessus to lose his grip on Meg. As Nessus charged back into the attack, Hercules struggled with the centaur, his training kicked in as he slammed the centaur and rode him like a rodeo horse. Then he pulled a lucky punch that knocked Nessus out of his horseshoes. Phil berates Hercules for the mistakes he made during the fight, but the hero pays him little attention: after all, he did win.
===Hydra===
Of all the foes that Hercules fights over the course of his adventures, perhaps none is more frightening than the Hydra, a giant serpent-like creature and the second monster Hercules fights after completing his training. After freeing two boys from under a boulder, Hercules unintentionally releases the Hydra, which has been set up as a fixed contest by Hades to kill the young hero.
When the Hydra first emerged from a cave, Hercules was startled, having never seen anything so big and scary in his life. Wide-eyed, Hercules backed away and stuttered to Phil, not knowing what the enormous creature was as she strike legitimate fear within the inexperienced hero and his coach. Rather than running, Hercules concentrated and kept his eyes fixed on the creature as it charged from the cave, advancing towards him. Although Hercules shrinks back after the Hydra let out a threatening and intimidating roar, the young hero stood his ground and bravely fights the Hydra with just his sword and his wits, using all the skills Phil had taught him to dodge the serpent and keep her at bay, avoiding the monster's lunges, its jaws snapping shut inches from his face and ripping a piece of his cape. However, Hercules becomes reckless and overconfident as he clumsily loses his sword, and then scrambles to continue the fight with his mighty strength. After he attempts to throw a boulder, which the beast laughs at, Hercules struggled to hold back the Hydra's fangs, but the hero was able to have the better of the beast as he wrestles and slams her head head down before retrieving his sword. Despite his cocky bravado, Hercules underestimated the Hydra, letting his guard down when the monster lashed out her tongue and caught him by his ankle. Instinctively, Hercules screamed, arms flailing, still clutching his sword but overcome with fear as the Hydra flipped him into the air as she swallowed him whole. The Hydra thought Hercules had a pleasant flavor as she let out a loud burp, rolling her eyes and licking her slimy lips, satisfied with her meal of just one tasty muscular human being. After a moment, a bulge formed in the Hydra's neck, and while in the monster's throat, Hercules slashed his way out from inside the Hydra. Dazed, panting, nearly out of breath, swaying on his feet, exhausted and covered head-to-toe in green slime, Hercules was momentarily weakened from the ordeal but became more confident in his heroics. Unfortunately, while Hercules thought he did great, the young hero underestimated his opponent again as three heads oozed from the Hydra's wound, thus fueling the beast's hunger even further as all three heads gazed greedily at the hero with renewed fury.
Knowing the Hydra gave him enough trouble with just one head, Hercules scuttled backwards as the now three-headed monster chased him around the canyon. The beast enjoyed the flavor of the strong young man so well that after it grew more heads, the Hydra's pursuit to have another taste continued and makes several attempts to eat Hercules again. Trying to escape, but knowing he can't outrun the multi-headed monster, Hercules avoided their snapping jaws until Pegasus picks him up. Hercules tries slicing off the Hydra's heads with his sword, but stares in horror at dozens of snarling heads. After one of the heads struck him off of Pegasus, Hercules screamed as he falls right into the swarm of heads. As if they were all of a single mind, the multi-headed Hydra closes in on Hercules as he rapidly slides down a spiral of one of their necks, with the young hero yelling to Phil that he didn't think they covered this in basic training. Arms flailing, Hercules screamed even louder in terror, having never been so afraid in his life. Dodging several heads that gang up to attack him with their jaws, Hercules managed to escape but the monster pinned the hero to a cliffside. Desperate, Hercules wrenched left and right helplessly as the Hydra's heads stared at him, leering over him and licking their lips in anticipation. He turned to face his attacker, and his heart sank as the multi-headed monster positioned for a final strike. But Hercules was not ready to give up and was willing to sacrifice himself by using his strength to smash his fists to the cliff, causing an avalanche that buried him and the Hydra under a mountain of rocks. But while everyone thought Hercules was dead, the Hydra's clenched claw was forced opened by the young hero. Bruised, battered, his sword lost, half of his tunic torn, his cape barely hanging on his back having been torn loose from one of the shoulder clasps, Hercules emerged unharmed and triumphant over what appeared to be a very unbeatable foe.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, the hero-in-training knows the Hydra by name and is referenced a few times. First in "Hercules and the Big Kiss", Hercules swears upon his reputation as a hero to help Cassandra against beasts, like zillion-headed Hydras. At the beginning of "Hercules and the Spartan Experience", while looking at clouds, Hercules pointed at one that he thought looks like a Hydra being slain by a brave hero.
In "Hercules and the Long Nightmare", Hercules had a dream of his adult self being attacked by a three-headed Hydra but he couldn't fight back because he dropped his sword. Hanging by his cape, Hercules was left crying out in desperation. The next night, Hercules dreamed of his teenage self screaming for help before the Hydra swallowed him whole, then saying he couldn't get out and was stuck in its pancreas, before waking up. When Morpheus asks for the hero-in-training's help against Phantasos, Hercules mentions how the Hydra was "as scary as they come". Entering their dreams, both Hercules and Phil face Phantasos, who transforms into the Hydra. Hercules draws a sword that immediately turns into a bouquet of flowers, then tries to run before one Hydra head yanks him into the air again. During the tense moment, Hercules struggles to prevent being eaten by using his feet to hold the Hydra's mouth open with all his might. Hercules is able to escape the Hydra's jaws, unhooking his cape and tries running away before being captured again. Though terrified, Hercules overcame his fear, and bravely defeats the monster. After stopping Phantasos, Hercules told Morpheus that because of the dreams, he wouldn't be afraid if he ever faced a real Hydra, that tackling it in his dreams made it less frightening.
===Nemean Lion===
In the film, the Nemean Lion was among the creatures sent by Hades to kill Hercules during the "Zero to Hero" song segment. However, Hercules easily defeated him with a swift punch and a kick to the rear end thus increasing Hercules' fame. As an artist is painting a picture of Hercules, the hero posed while wearing the Nemean Lion's skin. Frustrated upon overhearing what Phil is talking about, Hercules causes the artist to fail in finishing the painting and leaves, while Hercules himself then takes off the lion skin.
The Nemean Lion has a bigger role in "Hercules and the Hero of Athens". Having grown bored and looking to spread the terror, the Nemean Lion terrorized the employees at the Olive Works tour, until the young hero-in-training Hercules saves the day, albeit clumsily bringing down a building, by knocking the Lion out. Because Hercules could go to prison for the damage he caused, Icarus takes the blame and takes responsibility for defeating the Nemean Lion as well. However, the Nemean Lion escapes after Icarus moonlights as a superhero, the two battle only to have the Lion knocked out again by Hercules, with Icarus taking the credit again. Angry that his friend is getting all the credit, Hercules explains that he defeated the Nemean Lion both times. Icarus, refusing to believe, faces the Lion after it escapes once more without Hercules. Unfortunately, Icarus realizes that he didn't defeat the Lion when the latter suggested that he was knocked out by a demigod. Hercules comes to his aid at the last second, defeating the Nemean Lion once more, while Icarus gives up the superhero act. In "Hercules and the Big Games", the Nemean Lion is among Echidna's children gathered to attack the Big Games taking place in Athens. The Nemean Lion and all the other monsters were defeated by Hercules, before Echidna herself intervenes.
===Caledonian Boar===
The Caledonian Boar was the first beast that the first-class hero Hercules faced during the Zero to Hero montage. He is first seen as one of Hades's pawn pieces being moved into play, and then the scene switches to the giant boar about to charge Hercules. Hercules quickly grabs a bow and arrow, firing it at the beast. A vase painting shows the boar's roasted corpse being served on a plate by Hercules to Philoctetes.
In "Hercules and the Caledonian Boar", young hero-in-training Hercules and Philoctetes go into the woods to hunt down a Caledonian Boar. They eventually find one, but Hercules finds himself unwilling kill it. The boar instead chases and embraces them in front of others who were hunting in the woods during the same time they were.
===Cetus===
Cetus was among the creatures sent by Hades to kill the first-class hero Hercules during the "Zero to Hero" song segment. He appears while Hercules and Philoctetes were rowing a boat through a body of water. While Philoctetes cowered in fear, Hercules grabbed the serpent by the throat and threw him around like a wet towel. A vase would depict Hercules holding the skeleton of the beast.
In the opening theme for Hercules: The Animated Series, Cetus wraps the young Hercules in its powerful coils, only for the entangled hero-in-training to free himself, tie the sea serpent into a knot, and throw it. In "Hercules and the Underworld Takeover", Cetus dwelled in the Styx River when Hercules, Pain, Panic, Chiron, and Amphitryon's sheep encountered him. Instinctively, as Hercules spots the serpent's tail in the river, he initially reacts in fear. The huge river serpent emerges, letting out a loud roar before it lunges at the young hero, lifting him into the air and snapping its mouth. Though afraid, Hercules punches Cetus away, only for the serpent's tail to flick him back to the boat.
===Titans===
The Titans were the giant rulers of the world when it was first created, rampaging until they were imprisoned by Zeus, long before Hercules was born. When the planets were in alignment, Hades freed the Titans and directed them to Mount Olympus, despite the Fates's prophecy 18 years prior that Hades's plan will fail should Hercules fight. Though the Titans were defeated by Zeus and Hercules, while Hercules himself single handedly sent the Titans flying into outer space where they exploded.
One of Titans, a gigantic pink-skinned Cyclops, was sent by Hades to find and kill Hercules, who had earlier made a deal with Hades that had his godlike strength taken away for 24 hours. The Cyclops causes damage through the city of Thebes, such as smashing a Hercules statue and frightening the citizens, until the weakened hero strode out to face him. Meg and the Thebans watched in horror as the Cyclops easily knocked Hercules across the city. Taking his time beating him up badly, the Cyclops sneered and flicked his puny opponent, sending him flying into a pillar. Phil gives Hercules his confidence back as the Cyclops grabs him and decides to finish the faded hero off by biting his head off. Thinking quickly, Hercules shoves a torch into his eye, blinding him and causing him to stumble around. Hercules then uses this opportunity to tie the Cyclops' legs together, causing him to trip and fall off a cliff.
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