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Hercules (DC Comics)
Encyclopedia
Hercules is a fictional
Olympian god in the DC Universe
based on the Greek demigod
and hero of the same name
.
Hercules first appears in All Star Comics
#8 (December 1941) as part of a Wonder Woman
story, and was created by William Moulton Marston
and Harry G. Peter, in the first of several incarnations. Later versions appeared in Superman #28 (May 1944), created by Jerry Siegel
and Ira Yarbrough, Wonder Woman #105 (April 1959) and Hercules Unbound #1 (October 1975) created by Gerry Conway
and José Luis García-López
.
In the universe of DC Comics
, Hercules
was used on occasion before Crisis on Infinite Earths
as a foil
to Superman
. In these Silver Age
books, Hercules usually appears as a giant
, and frequently tests his strength with the Bible
character Samson
and another giant named Zha-Vam, who he granted strength to, as well as with Superman. In one story he is transported to the 20th century by Lex Luthor
, and, in the guise of reporter Roger Tate, falls in love with Lois Lane
. He gains power from other Gods and puts Superman into a 100 yr sleep with the pipe of Apollo
, saying he will only revive Superman if Lois marries him. However Venus
realises what has happened and wakes Superman up. After this Hercules is tricked into flying back in time with the sandals of Mercury, and loses his memory of the events. In the Golden Age he was mentioned in the origin of the Amazons as having enslaved them by tricking Hippolyta into giving him her golden girdle on the bequest of Ares who hated the Amazons, and was shown as an ugly muscle-bound man wearing a lion-skin. Oddly enough an earlier picture of him in the same comic shows him as a man with black hair and a beard.
In 1975, DC produced a comic book series titled Hercules Unbound, featuring the adventures of Hercules in a post-apocalyptic future. This Hercules looked different from the other DC interpretations - he had long black hair and no beard. The series lasted 12 issues. It made use of characters and concepts, such as The Atomic Knight
s and the intelligent animals from Jack Kirby
's Kamandi
series as an attempt to tie in some of the future series. It was later hinted that this version of Hercules was actually part of a dream suffered by Gardner Grayle, but was later shown to have existed somewhere in the Multiverse and was eliminated during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. José Luis García-López
drew the first six issues and Walt Simonson
drew the remainder of the series. Wally Wood
inked several issues.
spelling — appeared in the pages of Wonder Woman
. George Pérez
, putting Greek mythology
at the center of Wonder Woman's world, relates the tale of Heracles' and his mens conquest of the Amazons
and his rape of Queen Hippolyta, and their revenge upon him.
During Diana's Challenge of the Gods
storyline, she discovered that Heracles was transformed into a colossal stone pilar within Doom's Doorway, and was supporting Themyscira's weight for several millennia. In this stone state he was tormented and scarred by various mythological creatures, feeling the pain inflicted by them but not being able to do anything about it. This was the punishment given to him by his Olympian family for his past transgressions. Gaining his original form back, he begged the Amazons for forgiveness. Though some of the Amazons still harbored hatred for their past rapes and humiliation, most of them were moved by Heracles' newfound humility, and Queen Hippolyta asked her people to search their hearts for the strength to forgive, which they eventually did. Doing so herself, Hippolyta not only forgave Heracles, but shared a brief romance with him before he left the mortal realm to return to his father in Olympus.
Later, John Byrne did an inconclusive storyline in which Heracles appeared in the contemporary world and schemed to take revenge on the Amazons by seducing Wonder Woman. He did this by making an agreement with a mortal Golden Age superhero named Harold Champion. In exchange for his identity, Heracles gave Champion admission into Olympus. Once this was agreed upon, Heracles used the Mirror of Circe to alter his appearance into that of Champion. He proceeded to befriend Wonder Woman as a "new" friend, helping her deal with such problems as a confrontation with a duplicate of the monstrous Doomsday
. Heracles' identity was eventually revealed and he resumed his life on Olympus.
tricked them into splitting up so they could be worshipped by two different cultures at the same time; only after the "War of the Gods
" did the two versions merge again. So in effect, both Heracles and Hercules existed, and they merged into one being during John Byrne's run on the comic.
. Now shaven and bearing an updated version of the armor worn in the Hercules Unbound series, his place in the Wonder Woman comic has been renewed as a fellow agent of Olympus, who occasionally aids Diana and even replaces her in battle. He is referred to as "Wonder Man
" by Cheetah and Nemesis. He temporarily sets up base in the Greek
Embassy
.
Wonder Woman v3 #4 reveals that Hercules lied about his reasons for returning to Earth. As one of the inhabitants of Olympus who rejected Athena's decision to remove themselves from the mortal realm, Hercules journeyed to Tartarus in hopes of recruiting Ares
to aid him in returning to Earth. Instead, he found Circe
who, upon hearing Hercules' story and not wanting to spend eternity in limbo with Athena, decided to partner with Hercules instead. However, this didn't last long, as Circe betrayed him. The two part as enemies once Circe magically binds him to a rock. Some time before the events of Wonder Girl, but after the events of "Who Is Wonder Woman?", Hercules encounters and battles Gog
(who is killing gods and those who claim to be gods). After suffering a blast from Gog's staff, Hercules is incapacitated and encounters Superman and his Earth-22 counterpart. He enters into combat with the two of them, but is ultimately defeated. Hercules' physical appearance here is closer to the one seen in "Who Is Wonder Woman?". In addition, he is described as a "god" (and not a demigod, as in Wonder Girl) and wears gold bracelets instead of the gray shackles Zeus will place on him as punishment.
. Hercules stops the fight by explaining that he's allied with the Furies in hopes of rescuing the gods, or, failing that, starting a new pantheon with them. The Furies have their own plans, though, and are only using Hercules to get to Cassandra. The Furies soon betray Hercules, with Bloody Mary using her bite to gain power over Hercules, forcing him to do what the Furies want. The Furies then kidnap Cassandra's mother to lure her into a trap. Aided by the Olympian, Cassandra goes into battle, being forced to fight her own brother. The Teen Titans and Wonder Woman herself show up to help out, which evens the odds. After Bloody Mary is murdered by the New God killer, Hercules is freed from her spell and immediately saves his sister from being kidnapped by the fleeing Furies.
After being questioned by Wonder Woman, Hercules tells her he was freed by Zeus and sought his closest relative—Cassandra—for help. He explains that Zeus freed him to help stop "the Great Disaster," which Hercules does not know much about. However, there were two conditions for his release: he must always wear his gauntlets to remind him of his punishment (similar to the punishment the gods placed on the Amazons) and he must give up his godhood, becoming a demigod again. Rather than being upset, Hercules is happy to be human again and having his mother's blood flowing through his veins. Although Wonder Woman is initially skeptical, Cassandra vouches for Hercules, telling Diana that he's saved her life twice. Hercules is allowed to remain free, to complete his "labors" and make up for the things he's done.
The series mentions several important facts about Hercules, including his cycle of crime, punishment, and redemption; gods and other beings (Hera and Circe being mentioned by name) using him to commit great evil (such as the death of his family); and his uneasy relationship with the Amazons and Wonder Woman in particular.
The Hercules that empowers the Marvels is apparently different to this Hercules, sharing only his name. He is one of the Lords of Magic and possesses superhuman strength.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
Olympian god in the DC Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
based on the Greek demigod
Demigod
The term "demigod" , meaning "half-god", is commonly used to describe mythological figures whose one parent was a god and whose other parent was human; as such, demigods are human-god hybrids...
and hero of the same name
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
.
Hercules first appears in All Star Comics
All Star Comics
All Star Comics is a 1940s comic book series from All-American Publications, one of the early companies that merged with National Periodical Publications to form the modern-day DC Comics. With the exception of the first two issues, All Star Comics primarily told stories about the adventures of the...
#8 (December 1941) as part of a Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
story, and was created by William Moulton Marston
William Moulton Marston
Dr. William Moulton Marston , also known by the pen name Charles Moulton, was an American psychologist, feminist theorist, inventor and comic book writer who created the character Wonder Woman...
and Harry G. Peter, in the first of several incarnations. Later versions appeared in Superman #28 (May 1944), created by Jerry Siegel
Jerry Siegel
Jerome "Jerry" Siegel , who also used pseudonyms including Joe Carter, Jerry Ess, and Herbert S...
and Ira Yarbrough, Wonder Woman #105 (April 1959) and Hercules Unbound #1 (October 1975) created by Gerry Conway
Gerry Conway
Gerard F. "Gerry" Conway is an American writer of comic books and television shows. He is known for co-creating the Marvel Comics vigilante The Punisher and scripting the death of the character Gwen Stacy during his long run on The Amazing Spider-Man...
and José Luis García-López
José Luis García-López
José Luis García-López is a Spanish comic book artist who works in the United States of America, mostly for DC Comics. He has most recently penciled an arc in Batman Confidential, the Metal Men storyline in the 2009 Wednesday Comics weekly anthology, and, in 2011, one of the stories in The Spirit...
.
Pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
was used on occasion before Crisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
as a foil
Foil (literature)
In fiction, a foil is a character who contrasts with another character in order to highlight particular qualities of another character....
to Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
. In these Silver Age
Silver Age of Comic Books
The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
books, Hercules usually appears as a giant
Giant (mythology)
The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
, and frequently tests his strength with the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
character Samson
Samson
Samson, Shimshon ; Shamshoun or Sampson is the third to last of the Judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Tanakh ....
and another giant named Zha-Vam, who he granted strength to, as well as with Superman. In one story he is transported to the 20th century by Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
, and, in the guise of reporter Roger Tate, falls in love with Lois Lane
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....
. He gains power from other Gods and puts Superman into a 100 yr sleep with the pipe of Apollo
Apollo
Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
, saying he will only revive Superman if Lois marries him. However Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
realises what has happened and wakes Superman up. After this Hercules is tricked into flying back in time with the sandals of Mercury, and loses his memory of the events. In the Golden Age he was mentioned in the origin of the Amazons as having enslaved them by tricking Hippolyta into giving him her golden girdle on the bequest of Ares who hated the Amazons, and was shown as an ugly muscle-bound man wearing a lion-skin. Oddly enough an earlier picture of him in the same comic shows him as a man with black hair and a beard.
In 1975, DC produced a comic book series titled Hercules Unbound, featuring the adventures of Hercules in a post-apocalyptic future. This Hercules looked different from the other DC interpretations - he had long black hair and no beard. The series lasted 12 issues. It made use of characters and concepts, such as The Atomic Knight
Atomic Knight
Atomic Knight is a DC Comics superhero and was briefly a member of the Outsiders team. He is sometimes depicted as one of a group of Atomic Knights, which first appeared in Strange Adventures #117 .-Original Atomic Knights:...
s and the intelligent animals from Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
's Kamandi
Kamandi
Kamandi is an American comic book character, created by artist Jack Kirby and published by DC Comics. The bulk of Kamandi's appearances occurred in the comic series Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth, which ran from 1972 to 1978....
series as an attempt to tie in some of the future series. It was later hinted that this version of Hercules was actually part of a dream suffered by Gardner Grayle, but was later shown to have existed somewhere in the Multiverse and was eliminated during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. José Luis García-López
José Luis García-López
José Luis García-López is a Spanish comic book artist who works in the United States of America, mostly for DC Comics. He has most recently penciled an arc in Batman Confidential, the Metal Men storyline in the 2009 Wednesday Comics weekly anthology, and, in 2011, one of the stories in The Spirit...
drew the first six issues and Walt Simonson
Walt Simonson
Walter "Walt" Simonson is an American comic book writer and artist. After studying geology at Amherst College, he transferred to the Rhode Island School of Design, graduating in 1972. His thesis project there was The Star Slammers, which was published as a black and white promotional comic book...
drew the remainder of the series. Wally Wood
Wally Wood
Wallace Allan Wood was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, best known for his work in EC Comics and Mad. He was one of Mads founding cartoonists in 1952. Although much of his early professional artwork is signed Wallace Wood, he became known as Wally Wood, a name he...
inked several issues.
Wonder Woman
After the reboot of the DC universe in Crisis, Heracles — the GreekGreek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
spelling — appeared in the pages of Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
. George Pérez
George Pérez
George Pérez is a Puerto Rican-American writer and illustrator of comic books, known for his work on various titles, including Avengers, Teen Titans and Wonder Woman.-Biography:...
, putting Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
at the center of Wonder Woman's world, relates the tale of Heracles' and his mens conquest of the Amazons
Amazons (comics)
The Amazons of DC Comics are a fictional all-female society of superhumans, based on the Amazons of Greek mythology. There have been three major incarnations of these Amazons, one before the Crisis, and two after. What two of these groups have in common is that they are the race which produced...
and his rape of Queen Hippolyta, and their revenge upon him.
Challenge of the Gods (comics)
"Challenge of the Gods" was a seven issue comic book story arc written and drawn by George Pérez, with co-writing by Len Wein. It is the second arc of the Wonder Woman "Challenge of the Gods" was a seven issue comic book story arc written and drawn by George Pérez, with co-writing by Len Wein. It...
storyline, she discovered that Heracles was transformed into a colossal stone pilar within Doom's Doorway, and was supporting Themyscira's weight for several millennia. In this stone state he was tormented and scarred by various mythological creatures, feeling the pain inflicted by them but not being able to do anything about it. This was the punishment given to him by his Olympian family for his past transgressions. Gaining his original form back, he begged the Amazons for forgiveness. Though some of the Amazons still harbored hatred for their past rapes and humiliation, most of them were moved by Heracles' newfound humility, and Queen Hippolyta asked her people to search their hearts for the strength to forgive, which they eventually did. Doing so herself, Hippolyta not only forgave Heracles, but shared a brief romance with him before he left the mortal realm to return to his father in Olympus.
Later, John Byrne did an inconclusive storyline in which Heracles appeared in the contemporary world and schemed to take revenge on the Amazons by seducing Wonder Woman. He did this by making an agreement with a mortal Golden Age superhero named Harold Champion. In exchange for his identity, Heracles gave Champion admission into Olympus. Once this was agreed upon, Heracles used the Mirror of Circe to alter his appearance into that of Champion. He proceeded to befriend Wonder Woman as a "new" friend, helping her deal with such problems as a confrontation with a duplicate of the monstrous Doomsday
Doomsday (comics)
Doomsday is a fictional character, a supervillain that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appears in Superman: The Man of Steel #18 , and was created by writer-artist Dan Jurgens. IGN's list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time ranked Doomsday as #46...
. Heracles' identity was eventually revealed and he resumed his life on Olympus.
War of the Gods
In the post-Crisis DC Universe, the Roman Gods existed separately from the Greek ones after DarkseidDarkseid
Darkseid is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 and was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby....
tricked them into splitting up so they could be worshipped by two different cultures at the same time; only after the "War of the Gods
War of the Gods (comics)
War of the Gods was an American four-issue comic book mini-series published by DC Comics in 1991.Primarily centered on the character Wonder Woman, this storyline was intended to celebrate the character's 50th anniversary. It was written and drawn by George Pérez, who would leave the Wonder Woman...
" did the two versions merge again. So in effect, both Heracles and Hercules existed, and they merged into one being during John Byrne's run on the comic.
One year later
A revamped Hercules reappears during the events of One Year LaterOne Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
. Now shaven and bearing an updated version of the armor worn in the Hercules Unbound series, his place in the Wonder Woman comic has been renewed as a fellow agent of Olympus, who occasionally aids Diana and even replaces her in battle. He is referred to as "Wonder Man
Wonder Man (DC Comics)
Wonder Man is the name of three fictional comic book characters in the DC Comics universe. The first is a superhero and his only appearance was in Superman # 163 . The second is Hercules, who uses the name when he replaces Wonder Woman as the representative of the Olympian Gods in Wonder Woman v3, #3...
" by Cheetah and Nemesis. He temporarily sets up base in the Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
Embassy
Diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...
.
Wonder Woman v3 #4 reveals that Hercules lied about his reasons for returning to Earth. As one of the inhabitants of Olympus who rejected Athena's decision to remove themselves from the mortal realm, Hercules journeyed to Tartarus in hopes of recruiting Ares
Ares (DC Comics)
Ares is a fictional character, a supervillainous God appearing in DC Comics publications and related media. Based upon the Greek mythological figure of the same name, he is the god of War and one of the major adversaries of Wonder Woman. He first appeared in Wonder Woman #1, volume 1, published in...
to aid him in returning to Earth. Instead, he found Circe
Circe (comics)
Circe is a fictional character, a villainous sorceress and a major adversary of Wonder Woman appearing in DC Comics publications and related media. Based upon the Greek mythological character of the same name who imprisoned Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey, the comic book incarnation of Circe first...
who, upon hearing Hercules' story and not wanting to spend eternity in limbo with Athena, decided to partner with Hercules instead. However, this didn't last long, as Circe betrayed him. The two part as enemies once Circe magically binds him to a rock. Some time before the events of Wonder Girl, but after the events of "Who Is Wonder Woman?", Hercules encounters and battles Gog
Gog (comics)
Gog is the name of several different fictional characters in the comics published by DC Comics. The first version first appeared in New Year's Evil: Gog #1, , and was created by Mark Waid and Jerry Ordway.-The Kingdom:...
(who is killing gods and those who claim to be gods). After suffering a blast from Gog's staff, Hercules is incapacitated and encounters Superman and his Earth-22 counterpart. He enters into combat with the two of them, but is ultimately defeated. Hercules' physical appearance here is closer to the one seen in "Who Is Wonder Woman?". In addition, he is described as a "god" (and not a demigod, as in Wonder Girl) and wears gold bracelets instead of the gray shackles Zeus will place on him as punishment.
Wonder Girl
A being claiming to be Hercules' father Zeus eventually frees Hercules from his prison and informs him that he must partner with his half sister Cassie Sandsmark. Together Hercules and Cassie try to discover who is attacking the remaining Olympian gods. Soon into their search they are attacked by the Female FuriesFemale Furies
The Female Furies are a group of fictional women warriors appearing in comics published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Mister Miracle #6 , and were created by Jack Kirby.-Team history:...
. Hercules stops the fight by explaining that he's allied with the Furies in hopes of rescuing the gods, or, failing that, starting a new pantheon with them. The Furies have their own plans, though, and are only using Hercules to get to Cassandra. The Furies soon betray Hercules, with Bloody Mary using her bite to gain power over Hercules, forcing him to do what the Furies want. The Furies then kidnap Cassandra's mother to lure her into a trap. Aided by the Olympian, Cassandra goes into battle, being forced to fight her own brother. The Teen Titans and Wonder Woman herself show up to help out, which evens the odds. After Bloody Mary is murdered by the New God killer, Hercules is freed from her spell and immediately saves his sister from being kidnapped by the fleeing Furies.
After being questioned by Wonder Woman, Hercules tells her he was freed by Zeus and sought his closest relative—Cassandra—for help. He explains that Zeus freed him to help stop "the Great Disaster," which Hercules does not know much about. However, there were two conditions for his release: he must always wear his gauntlets to remind him of his punishment (similar to the punishment the gods placed on the Amazons) and he must give up his godhood, becoming a demigod again. Rather than being upset, Hercules is happy to be human again and having his mother's blood flowing through his veins. Although Wonder Woman is initially skeptical, Cassandra vouches for Hercules, telling Diana that he's saved her life twice. Hercules is allowed to remain free, to complete his "labors" and make up for the things he's done.
The series mentions several important facts about Hercules, including his cycle of crime, punishment, and redemption; gods and other beings (Hera and Circe being mentioned by name) using him to commit great evil (such as the death of his family); and his uneasy relationship with the Amazons and Wonder Woman in particular.
The Hercules that empowers the Marvels is apparently different to this Hercules, sharing only his name. He is one of the Lords of Magic and possesses superhuman strength.
Other versions
- A Golden Age superhero, Joe Hercules, had adventures in Quality ComicsQuality ComicsQuality Comics was an American comic book publishing company that operated from 1939 to 1956 and was an influential creative force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of comic books....
's Hit Comics from issue #1 (July, 1940) through #21 (April, 1942). Joe Hercules was an ordinary man from the "North Woods" imbued with superhuman strength who became a circusCircusA circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
strongmanStrongman (circus)The circus strongman is one of many acts found in a modern circus. The strongman demonstrates great strength, power and agility to the audience. The strongman and strongwomen were very popular attractions in the circus in the 19th century....
and crimefighter, not a demigod. This character was purchased, along with Quality's other characters, by DC Comics. He makes a cameo appearance in the 1993 "ElseworldsElseworldsElseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
" miniseries The Golden AgeThe Golden Age (comics)The Golden Age is a 1993 four-issue Elseworlds comic book mini-series by writer James Robinson and artist Paul Smith. It concerns the Golden Age DC Comics superheroes entering the 1950s and facing the advent of McCarthyism.-Plot:...
. Joe Hercules is first referred to in a canonicalCanon (fiction)In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
DC UniverseDC UniverseThe DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
story in StarmanStarman (Jack Knight)Starman is fictional character, a comic book superhero in the , and a member of the Justice Society of America. He is the son of the original Starman, Ted Knight...
, Vol. 2, #35 (October, 1997). He is mentioned in a conversation between Ted KnightStarman (Ted Knight)Starman is a fictional comic book superhero in the , and a member of the Justice Society of America. Created by artist Jack Burnley and editors Whit Ellsworth, Murray Boltinoff, Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and Bernie Breslauer, he first appeared in Adventure Comics #61 .-Fictional character...
(formerly the Golden Age StarmanStarman (comics)Starman is a name used by several different fictional DC Comics superheroes, most prominently Ted Knight and his sons David and Jack.Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Jack Burnley, the original Starman, Ted Knight, first appeared in Adventure Comics #61...
) and SentinelAlan ScottAlan Scott is a fictional character, a superhero in the and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern.-Publication history:The original Green Lantern was created by young struggling artist Martin Nodell, who was inspired by the sight of a New York Subway employee waving a red lantern to...
(Alan Scott, a.k.a. Green LanternGreen LanternThe Green Lantern is the shared primary alias of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first Green Lantern was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 .Each Green Lantern possesses a power ring and...
) and is said to be suffering from Alzheimer's diseaseAlzheimer's diseaseAlzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
.
- During the MarvelMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
/DC crossover JLA/AvengersJLA/AvengersJLA/Avengers is a comic book limited series and crossover published in prestige format by DC Comics and Marvel Comics from September 2003 to May 2004. The series was written by Kurt Busiek, with art by George Pérez...
, Wonder WomanWonder WomanWonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
believed the Marvel Comics' HerculesHercules (Marvel Comics)Hercules is a fictional character that appears in publications by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in Journey into Mystery Annual #1 and was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby....
to be a villain, assuming he had raped his dimension's Hippolyta; however, Marvel Comics' Hercules had simply seduced Marvel Comics' HippolytaHippolyta (Marvel Comics)Based on the Hippolyta of Greek mythology, Hippolyta is a fictional Amazon character within the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:...
with her consent. Ironically, the Marvel Universe version of Hercules is a hero while Hippolyta is a villainess. However, this presents some continuity problems as Diana and her mother had already accepted his forgiveness, and Wonder Woman had not yet reverted to any previous incarnations. It is possible she was using the incident to fuel her rage, but she was still threatening approaching Asgardian gods that she would harm a subdued Hercules at the end of the fight.
In other media
- In 1982, several of the characters from the "Warlord" series received action figures in a line called "Lost World of the Warlord" from RemcoRemcoRemco Industries, Inc. was a toy company founded in the 1940s that was best known for toys marketed and sold in the late 1950s and 1960s, like the Johnny Reb Cannon and Mighty Matilda Atomic Aircraft Carrier. The slogan was "Every Boy Wants a Remco Toy...And So Do Girls!" Remco was founded by two...
. Despite his not being related to the Warlord series, Hercules (from the "Hercules Unbound" era) was one of the figures in the line.