''Disney's Hercules: The Animated Series'' (commonly referred to as simply ''Hercules'') is an American animated television series based on the 1997 film of the same name and the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

. The series followed Hercules as a teenager, in training to be a hero, prior to the events of the film. The series premiered in syndication on August 31, 1998, and on ABC through its Disney's One Saturday Morning block on September 12, 1998. The syndicated run lasted 52 episodes, while the ABC run lasted 13 episodes.

Plot

The series follows Hercules, as a teenager, training as a hero, as well as trying to adjust to life. With his free-spirited friend

Icarus In Greek mythology, Icarus (; grc, Ἴκαρος, Íkaros, ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, King Minos sus ...

, his future-seeing friend

Cassandra Cassandra or Kassandra (; Ancient Greek: Κασσάνδρα, , also , and sometimes referred to as Alexandra) in Greek mythology was a Trojan priestess dedicated to the god Apollo and fated by him to utter true prophecies but never to be belie ...

, and his trainer

Philoctetes Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea in Thessaly, and Demonassa ...

("Phil"), he battles his evil uncle

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

. Like all teenagers, though, Hercules has to worry about

peer pressure Peer pressure is the direct or indirect influence on peers, i.e., members of social groups with similar interests, experiences, or social statuses. Members of a peer group are more likely to influence a person's beliefs, values, and behavior. A g ...

when the snobbish prince

Adonis In Greek mythology, Adonis, ; derived from the Canaanite word ''ʼadōn'', meaning "lord". R. S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, p. 23. was the mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite. One day, Adonis was gored by ...

ridicules him. The series notably contradicts several events and plot points in the original film.

Episodes

Characters

A majority of the cast from the film reprised their roles for the series. *

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

(voiced by

Tate Donovan Tate Buckley Donovan (born September 25, 1963) is an American actor, comedian and television director. He is known for portraying Tom Shayes in ''Damages'', Jimmy Cooper in '' The O.C.'', and the voice of the title character in the 1997 Disney ...

) – The

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...

-in-training and the son of both Zeus and Hera, in contrast to the original myth of being half-mortal, half-god. Despite this, Hercules has been referred to as demigod throughout the series. Despite being a courageous youth in his hero training, Hercules is still an awkward teenager who clumsily goes about inadvertently destroying things or humiliating himself. *

(voiced by

Robert Costanzo Robert Jason Costanzo (born October 20, 1942) is an American film, television and voice actor. He has an acting career spanning over 40 years and is often found playing surly New York City types such as crooks, low-level workers and policemen, a ...

) – The

satyr In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, σειληνός ), is a male nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, ex ...

hero trainer who serves as Hercules's coach, his best friend and sidekick. In the series, his training with Odysseus and Achilles remains intact. When asked about teenage Hercules' time attending Prometheus Academy, Phil told Megara it wasn't the most graceful period of Herc's life, partly because of Herc's flaws from his awkward phase as well as at one point sinking Phil's island briefly. Phil is one of the few characters from the original movie whose voice actor (

Danny DeVito Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him a Gold ...

) did not return. *

Pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

(voiced by

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...

) – The winged horse "with the brain of a bird" formed from clouds by Zeus, he is the childhood pet and faithful companion of his owner Hercules. *

(voiced by French Stewart) – Hercules' best friend, the boy who escaped from a labyrinth with his father on wax wings appears as a complete nut (he was "brain-fried" by flying too close to the Sun). 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 is very adaptive, hence could adjust to about every situation, except when he is very jealous and acts irrationally. He could become an ultraserious soldier at boot camp or a nearly identical version of Hades himself. Thankfully, at the end of each episode, he reverts to his own odd self. He is also completely obsessed with Cassandra and flirts with her at every opportunity he gets. His father,

Daedalus In Greek mythology, Daedalus (, ; Greek: Δαίδαλος; Latin: ''Daedalus''; Etruscan: ''Taitale'') was a skillful architect and craftsman, seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power. He is the father of Icarus, the uncle of Perdi ...

(voiced by

David Hyde Pierce David Hyde Pierce (born April 3, 1959) is an American actor and director of stage, film and television. He starred as psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom '' Frasier'' from 1993 to 2004, and won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Scree ...

), is a teacher in the academy and Icarus does not acknowledge his parents' divorce. When Icarus graduates, he goes into inventing with his father and makes a fortune, earning the commercial title "Icarus, the Wax-Wing King". *

(voiced by

Sandra Bernhard Sandra Bernhard (born June 6, 1955) is an American actress, singer, comedian and author. She first gained attention in the late 1970s with her stand-up comedy, where she often critiqued celebrity culture and political figures. She is perhaps ...

) – The

Trojan War In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans ( Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and ...

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the ...

appears as an attractive, yet antisocial girl, who has visions of the future (usually bad) once in a while, which are rarely believed. Icarus is obsessed with marrying her, though she has shown she has no reciprocation. She tolerated his presence even before Hercules joined the trio because otherwise, she would have had no friends, but even after she gained Hercules as a friend, she still continues to socialize with Icarus and even admitted to him that she considers him a good friend. After graduating, she joins the Oracle Friends Network. *

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...

(voiced by

Corey Burton Corey Gregg Weinberg (born August 3, 1955), known professionally as Corey Burton, is an American voice actor. He is the current voice of Captain Hook, Ludwig Von Drake, Dale and others for The Walt Disney Company, Shockwave on '' The Transformer ...

) – Hercules' father and king of the gods, he is always ready to provide advice on hero work, but is often prone to mistakes and recklessness, himself. *

(voiced by

James Woods James Howard Woods (born April 18, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for his work in various film, stage, and television productions. He started his career in minor roles on and off- Broadway. In 1972, he appeared in ''The Trial of the ...

) – Ruler of the Underworld as well as Hercules' uncle and nemesis, he is wisecracking, devious, and hot-tempered; he constantly schemes to steal control of Mount Olympus from his brother Zeus. * Pain and Panic (voiced by Bobcat Goldthwait and Matt Frewer) – Two tiny

shapeshifting In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, sorcery, spells or having inherited the ...

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in Media (communication), media such as comics, video ...

s, they are Hades' bumbling henchmen. Many guest stars who have ended up on the show are: *

Jason Alexander Jay Scott Greenspan (born September 23, 1959), known professionally as Jason Alexander, is an American actor, comedian, host and director. An Emmy and Tony winner, he is best known for his role as George Costanza in the television series '' ...

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress and film producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Since her career ...

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* Ed Asner *

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* Jon Cryer * Jane Curtin * Dom DeLuise *

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* Miguel Ferrer *

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* Louis Gossett Jr. *

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* Blake Griffin * Merv Griffin * Linda Hamilton *

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* Jane Leeves *

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* Heather Locklear *

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* Charles Nelson Reilly *

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* Steven Weber *

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Production

Development

The series was produced by Tad Stones, who had previously produced and directed the animated television series ''

Aladdin Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part o ...

''. The directors of ''Hercules'',

John Musker John Edward Musker (born November 8, 1953) is an American animator, film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He often collaborates with fellow director Ron Clements and is best known for writing and directing the Disney films ''The Great Mo ...

and

Ron Clements Ronald Francis Clements (born April 25, 1953) is an American animator, film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He often collaborates with fellow director John Musker and is best known for writing and directing the Disney films ''The Grea ...

, jokingly said to him while the film was being produced: "Hey, Tad, we're doing a pilot for a series". The producers decided that the irreverence of the movie would be captured more easily by setting it within the events of the movie, with Stones declaring that "by ignoring continuity and trying to stay true to the elements of humor and adventure in the film, we came up with a much stronger series that really stands on its own". Since

signed to voice

again, along with most of the cast of the film, many big-name actors were interested in taking part on the show. Over 150 celebrities took a part in the series, some self-lampooning: Merv Griffin played a

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon ( Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and ...

talk show host, game show host

played a riddle-expert

sphinx A sphinx ( , grc, σφίγξ , Boeotian: , plural sphinxes or sphinges) is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of a falcon. In Greek tradition, the sphinx has the head of a woman, the haunches of ...

and

Mike Connors Krekor Ohanian (August 15, 1925 – January 26, 2017), known professionally as Mike Connors, was an American actor best known for playing private detective Joe Mannix in the CBS television series ''Mannix'' from 1967 to 1975, a role which earne ...

, famous for ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private in ...

'', played Athenian policeman Chipacles (named after ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The seri ...

''). Disney's revamping of Greek legend moved to the small screen in the late summer of 1998. Disney's Hercules had the Greek god still in "geek god" mode, before his "Zero to Hero" transformation. In the series, "Herc" was enrolled at Prometheus Academy, a school for both gods and mortals. Since events occur before young Herc meets and falls for the lovely

Megara Megara (; el, Μέγαρα, ) is a historic town and a municipality in West Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, before being take ...

(Meg), he is joined by two new friends Cassandra (voiced by comedian

) and Icarus (voiced by French Stewart).

Animation

The animated television series' episodes and the direct-to-video film '' Hercules: Zero to Hero'' were animated by Toon City Animation, Inc. in Manila, Philippines,

Walt Disney Animation Australia The Walt Disney Company has owned and operated several animation studios since the company's founding on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio; the current Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, Ca ...

, Walt Disney Animation (Japan), Inc., Walt Disney Television International

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, Studios Basara, Tama Productions, Delta Peak Productions, Frontier Pictures, Win Wood Productions, Nakamura Productions, Wang Films Productions Co., Ltd. and Thai Wang Films Productions Co., Ltd., Hanho Heung-Up Co., Ltd., Plus One Animation, Inc., Sunmin Image Pictures Co., Ltd., Sunwoo Animation, Korea, Hana Animation, Jade Animations International Co., Ltd. and a New Zealand studio called Slightly Off Beat Productions NZ Co., Ltd. which was also based in the other countries of

Seoul, Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

Xindian District Xindian District () is an inner city district in the southern part of New Taipei City, Taiwan. Name Xindian's name originated during the Qing Dynasty close to 300 years ago. According to legend, a person named Lin and others came from Quanzh ...

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...

and Japan.

Release

Broadcast

In 2000, ''Hercules'' moved to the now-defunct channel

Toon Disney Toon Disney was an American multinational pay television channel owned by Disney Channels Worldwide, a subsidiary of Disney-ABC Television Group. The channel's target audience was children ages 2–11, and children ages 6–13 during the Jetix ...

, where it continued airing until 2009.

Disney XD Disney XD is an American pay television channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven yea ...

aired the series for the first time in June 2011, when the channel launched in Canada.

Streaming

Currently, the entire series is available on

Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...

, with all episodes being listed as one season.

Reception

Critical

CommonSenseMedia gave the series a rating of 4 stars out of 5, noting that this "better-than-average spinoff has heart and brawn." ''Calhoun Times'' and ''Gordon County News'' gave the series 3 stars out of 4.

Awards and nominations

, - , 1999 , Jennifer E. Mertens, Robert Duran, Paca Thomas, Marc Perlman, Brian F. Mars, Melissa Ellis, Robbi Smith, Robert Poole III, Rick Hammel, Kenneth D. Young, Charles Rychwalski, Eric Hertsgaard, William Kean, David Lynch and Otis Van Osten ,

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for Outstanding Sound Editing – Special Class , , - , 1999 , ''Casey Stone'' for episode "Twilight of the Gods" , Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing – Television Animation – Music , , - , 2000 , ''

'' for playing "

" ,

for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program , , - , 2000 , '' French Stewart'' for playing "Icarus" ,

for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program , , - , 2000 , Marc S. Perlman, Robert Duran and Paca Thomas ,

for Outstanding Sound Editing – Special Class , , - , 2000 , '' Joseph LoDuca'' , ASCAP Award for Top TV Series ,

Home media

Four episodes of ''Hercules'' were reformatted into the movie '' Hercules: Zero to Hero'' and released to home video in 1999. The episode "Hercules and the Yearbook" serves as the linking narrative, with random clips replaced with the episodes "Hercules and the First Day of School", "Hercules and the Grim Avenger" and "Hercules and the Visit From Zeus". Some of the dialogue between Hercules and Meg was altered to fit the episodes. In 2003, a further VHS tape titled ''Hercules: TV Series'' was released. It contained two episodes of the series, ''Hercules and the World's First Doctor'' and ''Hercules and the Secret Weapon''.

References

External links

* * * {{Hercules media 1990s American animated television series 1998 American television series debuts 1999 American television series endings American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series American children's animated fantasy television series American prequel television series Animated television series about teenagers Animated television shows based on films The Disney Afternoon Disney Channel original programming Disney's One Too Disney XD original programming Hercules (franchise) English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Greek and Roman deities in fiction Television series about Heracles Television series based on Disney films Television series based on adaptations Television series based on classical mythology Television series by Disney Television Animation Television series set in ancient Greece