Zeus

When the Titaness Rhea gave birth to her six children, their father Kronos was quick to devour them for fear of one of them rising up against him someday. Only Zeus, the youngest, was spared when Rhea tricked her husband into eating a cleverly-disguised rock. Raised on Mount Ida in Crete, Zeus would eventually return to Mount Olympus not only to free his siblings, but to wage war against Kronos and the other Titans (most of whom he threw into Tartarus for all eternity). After the battle, Zeus shared the world with his brothers Poseidon and Hades, claiming the sky as his domain.
== Family ==
* Wife: Hera.
* Lovers: Alcmene, Leda, Iambe, Leto, Semele, Dione, Metis, Maia.
* Siblings: Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hestia.
* Immortal Children: Aphrodite, Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Athena, Bacchus, Discord, Hephaestus, Hermes
* Half-mortal Children: Hercules, Castor, Pollux, Lucius
* Immortal Grandchildren: Strife
== Television Tropes ==
* Plot Tropes:
** The Other Darrin
== Appearances and Mentions ==
== 1.05 - Girl Trouble ==
* On the road to Athens, Iolaus says that Zeus must know some pretty good cooks, and tells Herc "Why don't you just get him to zap one down here?" Hercules replies that he doesn't even talk to his father, never mind ask him for favors.
* Cyane tells Hercules that her tribe was tricked by Zeus, the cruelest god of them all. "Zeus told us to leave our land, and when we refused, he took us by force, turning us over to Zared." Hercules doesn't believe her, claiming "Zeus doesn't harm innocent people."
== 1.19 - The Lure of the Lyre ==
* Hercules is about to head back to the Academy and pass on the offer of meeting Bacchus, but changes his mind when Orpheus says, "How often do ya get to meet one of the sons of Zeus?"
* When Hercules meets Bacchus, Bacchus confirms that they're both sons of Zeus. Hercules asks if Bacchus has ever met Zeus, but Bacchus answers noncommittally, "We can discuss our celestial parent later."
== 1.23 - The Mysteries of Life ==
* When told that Jason is the crown prince, the Barker doesn't believe it and snidely remarks that he's the son of Zeus. Hercules, not catching the sarcasm, grins and is about to introduce himself as a fellow son of Zeus before he's cut off.
== 1.25 - Herc's Nemesis ==
* Hera tells Nemesis that she and her father shouldn't have sided with the Titans against Zeus for control of Olympus. 
* Hercules tells Nemesis that Zeus is his father.
* Nemesis tells Hercules about siding with her father and the Titans against Zeus and how, because of that, she's forced to obey any god who demands a mortal be punished.
* Hercules apologizes for his father pushing her into her lousy job.
* When Iolaus asks why she doesn't retire, Jason says "You just can't quit on Zeus."
* Jason and Iolaus bring up Zeus's protection order on Hercules
* Nemesis tells Stregna that if she harms Hercules, she'll have to deal with Zeus.
* Hercules wonders why Hera hates him, and Nemesis says that the thought that Zeus could love a child that wasn't hers probably caused a jealous rage.
== 1.37 - The Head That Wears The Crown ==
* When Hercules confronts Jason about trying to live up to his father, Jason mocks Hercules for his own obsession with Zeus, and tells him to "grow up", that he's never going to see Zeus.
== 1.38 - Me, Myself, and Eye ==
* Cheiron asks who the center statue is of, and Jason answers that it's Zeus, King of the Gods because the statue is holding a lightning bolt.
== 1.47 - Mila ==
* Hercules tells Mila, "Well, Y-you could be the daughter of, like, you know, Poseidon, or Apollo, or..." "...or Zeus!" Mila chimes in.
* When Mila confronts Hercules, she asks, "What if my father turned out to be some god other than Zeus? Someone like, say, Hades or Poseidon... or even Ares?"
== HtLJ - 4.20 - Twilight ==
* Only what seems like moments after Alcmene's death, Zeus appears to a grieving Hercules in the woods.
== HtLJ - 4.21 - Top God ==
* In the flashback portion of this episode, Zeus appears to Hercules twice. The first time, he is angry that Hercules accepted and ate some ambrosia. The second time, after Hercules has challenged Apollo to a fight, he agrees to make Hercules half-mortal again.
* In the 'present day', Zeus confronts Hercules about the idea of becoming a full god again, believing him to be ready this time. Hercules, after giving it a lot of thought, agrees to the idea and Zeus restores the godhood he'd taken back when Hercules was a teenager.
== External Links ==
* "Zeus" on Hercules-Xena.wikia.com
Category:CanonCategory:CharactersCategory:GodsCategory:Royalty