Hercules: The Legendary Journeys

I was an extra for both Hercules and Zena. They were both being filmed in the same area and were sharing base commodities(?) such as the rest area and food tent. It was in NZ up in Waitakere (Lat 36°53'47.23"S Long 174°30'24.19"E) in this general area. A couple of things that I noticed was that Kevin really looked after the workers on site. He took any new actor that came down from the US and basically told them that there were to be no theatrics/hollywoods towards the staff or else they would be on the next plane back. Also for those that didn't know, Kevin is about 6'3" and in the episode "The End Of The Beginning" there is an actress playing the part of Serena called Kara Zediker who looks only 5'0". They had a scene were the two are walking together and they had to dig a trench and build a rise so they were a more 'managable' size ratio. Looked hilarious.

When fantasy, adventure and comedy collide, they make a great entertaining show that doesn't take itself too seriously. Add to that the stunning performance of the two leads, the beautiful scenery, the highly imaginative plots and the cleverly constructed titles...and you'll have your tasty brew!

I watched this show along with Xena when I was a kid and I was always a bigger fan of Xena but watching the reruns now I have come to appreciate Hercules in whole new light. For one thing the show was a lot more cleverer than I remember, though maybe it's because I grew up and now understand the adult situations better. But I love how they took contemporary society issues and placed them in ancient Greece, and they treated the characters like as if they were a character set in modern times, makes them so easily relatable. Also I love it's sheer positivity. Today in most media our heroes are so jaded and as much as that darkness and complexity is fascinating it is a little demoralizing. Sorbo's Hercules in today's media is almost a breath of fresh air as a character who despite his own tragedies and what he has seen still believes in good and goes out of his ways to not compromise his values.

On a note about mythological accuracy. Most Greek Myths have alternate versions as it is so what would constitute an accurate portrayal? Not to mention that many Greek myths mirror Mesopotamia myths which in turn were practically rewritten by the Romans just replacing Greek names with Roman ones. If you ask me the writers of Hercules were honoring the spirit of mythology by rewriting myths to suit our own society.

Follows the adventures of Hercules (Kevin Sorbo), the demigod birthed by "Zeus" - the king of the gods (and a god himself) and a mortal woman Alcmene. Hercules wanders the earth (Greece mostly) along with his friend Iolaus (Michael Hurst) as vagabonds in search for a job, or to save the princess, or to kill a monster ( giants, you name it, or to bring down a nearby tyrant that has subjugated the people and wants more power. Hercules is pretty much the embodiment of justice, honor and strength and he uses all three of those aspects to solve problems. His friend Iolaus who appears on most of the series episodes is not just the funny sidekick; he's also a formidable ally who adheres to his own principles and can stand on his own, which is a pleasant change form a cliche recipe; still he's a "mere" mortal though. Iolaus is in fact often the primary star, he steals the show with his energetic acting. Over the course of the series the producer (the renown Sam Raimi and crew) have utilized Hurst to the max by using him for many other roles as well. I like the duo, they have good chemistry together, I remember reading way back that the actors became friends too, which is great. The terrific duo kills the bad guys, save the day and some times even get the girls. Note that this is a PG show, so don't expect to see much blood, overly frightening or violent scenes or erotic scenes. Make no mistake, the series still has appeal though to adults. Hercules is often tempted and/or trapped by devious opponents sent by the mischievous Hera, "the all powerful Queen of the gods" and Zeus's wife. For all intents and purposes Hera is the principal antagonist. She's both fervently jealous and utterly furious of her husband who often transforms himself into a mortal man plants himself to earth and chases beautiful women (who wouldn't). Hera wants to get rid of Hercules, the spawn of mortal + Zeus, he reminds her more than anything her husband's wretchedness. Hercules does have various interesting encounters in his journey, even other gods, notable mentions are Ares - the god of war (who isn't bent by vengeance to kill all other gods as in the homonymous video game), Aphrodite and others.

Filmed in the exotically beautiful New Zealand, like the similar show "Zena, Warrior Princess". As far as I'm concerned both of these shows belong in the same universe and we even see some episodes co-starring Zena and Hercules together. The series was my guilty pleasure as a kid, I loved every bit of it. It will mostly appeal to children but it has its adult moments from time to time. The acting is campy to decent at times, the dialogue is cheesy, the plot is self existent per one episode or two and it's mostly corny. The show is entertaining, light hearted, often funny and can prove to be educational for teens with regards to Greek mythology. Never take it too seriously though as it is tongue in cheek. There are over 111 episodes. Choreography of the fights is kind of bad but is intended to be funny, not realistic, it's pretty much childish action (picture Bud Spencer and Terence Hill fist fighting); for this reason it's redeemable. Eventually Hercules (Kevin Sorbo) grows on you and you will find yourself asking for more. The visual effects are passable but nothing special, though the sound effects are mostly comical in nature. Last but not least, I have to point out that I love the score and the intro is very well made and sets up a good mood for what's to come. I love the heroic intro music and theme and it has often slipped in my mind as a remembrance. Others might give this one a lower rating, but I don't think it deserves less than a 6; don't forget it's an action, comedy with a light hearted PG tone to it and all aspects of it are just decent, so I can't give it a mediocre score of 5. Maybe I'm biased a bit, since this series was a part of my childhood but I will go with something higher than that, a deserving 6/10. The show has a refreshing charm to it that is lasting. I still watch it every now and again.

Rating: 6/10 - Decent

This series has been almost completely forgotten but made 90s history together with Xena.

Set in a universe vaguely reminiscent of classical Greece with monster and gods, there is a demigod named Hercules who faces various adventures usually to save himself from the attacks of his stepmother Hera. If you overlook the distortions suffered by classical mythology, the series is not bad.