Publication History
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).
Hercules starred in two limited series by writer-artist Bob Layton, with both set in an alternate universe. A 24th century version of Hercules starred in Hercules #1 - 4 (Sep. – Dec. 1982), which was popular enough to spawn a sequel, Hercules vol. 2, #1 - 4 (March – June 1984). The storylines dealt with Hercules' exile from Olympus, completion of a series of quests and opportunity to leave his past behind and create a new identity.
Hercules remained a constant guest star in both Thor and the Avengers, playing a significant role in the "Avengers Under Siege" storyline in Avengers #270 - 277 (Aug. 1986 – March 1987), involving supervillain team the Masters of Evil. The story lead directly into the "Assault on Olympus" storyline in Avengers #281 - 285 (July 1987 – Nov. 1987), in which Hercules left the team.
The character starred in the self-titled limited series Hercules vol. 3, #1 - 5 (June - Sep. 2005), and guest starred in limited series Thor: Blood Oath #1 - 6 (Nov. 2005 - Feb. 2006), a retrospective story that depicts the second meeting between the Greek god and Thor.
At the conclusion of the "World War Hulk" storyline, Hercules received a self-titled publication when Marvel changed the name of the third volume of the Incredible Hulk series to The Incredible Hercules, effective as of issue #113 (Feb. 2008), and written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente. The series concluded with Incredible Hercules #141 (April 2010), and was followed by the 2-issue mini-series Hercules: Fall of an Avenger (March - April 2010). The mini-series is scheduled to lead into the relaunched new title, Prince of Power #1 (May 2010), also written by Pak and Van Lente.
One 2010 comic includes a development which suggests that Hercules had an off-panel sexual encounter with gay male superhero Northstar at an earlier point in time.
Writers Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente started a brand new Hercules series, entitled Herc, featuring the hero without powers, but wielding mythical arms.
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