Hercules (Marvel Comics)

Hercules
The Incredible Hercules #126 (Feb. 2009). Art by Ed McGuinness.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Journey into Mystery Annual #1 (1965)
Created by	Stan Lee (writer) Jack Kirby (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Heracles
Species	Olympian
Team affiliations	Avengers Champions Damage Control Defenders God Squad Olympians
Partnerships	Amadeus Cho Tantalus
Notable aliases	The Prince of Power; The Lion of Olympus; Victor Tegler
Abilities	As a demigod, Hercules is immortal and possesses superhuman physical traits, including enormous strength, and is also trained in fighting with all manner of ancient weaponry.

Hercules is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

Debuting in the Silver Age of Comic Books, the character is based on Heracles of Greek mythology, although the name "Hercules" is associated with the version from Roman mythology. The character has starred in three self-titled limited series and been a perennial member of the superhero team the Avengers, appearing in each of the three titles. In 2008, Hercules debuted in his own series titled The Incredible Hercules. The character was ranked 21st in IGN's list of "The Top 50 Avengers", and has appeared in various forms of media including television series and video games.

The character was adapted from mythology by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby.

Hercules debuted in Avengers #10 (Nov. 1964) as a minion of Immortus, although his appearance was revealed in the limited series Avengers Forever #1 - 12 (Dec. 1998 – Nov. 1999) as being an impostor. The character's first formal appearance in the Marvel Universe became Journey into Mystery Annual #1 (1965), which established Hercules as being a rival of the Thunder God Thor.

Hercules became a regular guest star in the title Thor, appearing in issue #126 (March 1966). The character guest-starred in Tales To Astonish #79 (May 1966), and a deadlocked battle with the Hulk established Hercules as a powerhouse. The character teamed up with the Avengers, as of issue #38 (March 1967), but was not yet an official member; he was merely a guest of the Avengers during his banishment from Olympus. In issue #45 of The Avengers, Hercules became a "Full-Fledged Avenger" by way of Goliath's announcement to the press during the first annual "Avengers Day". Hercules also guest starred in Marvel Team-Up #28 (Dec. 1974) and Marvel Premiere #26 (Nov. 1975) before starring along with four other heroes in the Champions which ran for 17 issues (Oct. 1975 – Jan. 1978). After this, Hercules made a guest appearance in Marvel Two-In-One #44 (Oct. 1978).