Disney was on a tear in the late 90s. We had the movies, sure, but the TV spin-offs were where things got weird. Most people remember Aladdin or The Little Mermaid hitting the small screen, but Hercules: The Animated Series was doing something completely different. It wasn't just a sequel or a prequel in the traditional sense. It was a "mid-quel."
It’s basically high school for demi-gods.
If you look back at the 1997 film, there’s this massive gap. One minute Hercules is a scrawny kid singing about finding where he belongs, and the next, he’s a buff superhero with a workout montage. The TV show lives in that gap. It’s messy. It’s funny. Honestly, it’s a lot smarter than it had any right to be. It ignored the movie's internal timeline almost entirely just to make sure Phil, Pegasus, and Hades could all be in the same room together.
Purists hated that. Kids loved it.
The Zero to Hero High School Problem
The show follows "Young Herc" during his training years at the Prometheus Academy. Think of it as a proto-Sky High. He’s awkward. He’s constantly breaking things because he doesn't know his own strength. But the real magic wasn't just Hercules hitting monsters; it was the social circle.
You had Icarus, voiced by the legendary French Stewart. He wasn't the tragic figure from the myths who flew too close to the sun. Well, technically he was, but in the show, he was a fried-brained, hyperactive teenager who had survived that fall and come out a little "off." Then there was Cassandra. She’s the goth girl before goth girls were a Disney staple. She could see the future, but because of her curse, nobody believed her. It created this cynical, dry humor that balanced out Hercules' earnestness.
Most animated shows based on movies feel like cheap imitations. This one didn't.
Disney Television Animation actually put resources into this. They kept the curvy, Gerald Scarfe-inspired art style from the film. They kept the music snappy. Most importantly, they kept James Woods as Hades.
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Why Hades Carried The Entire Show
Let’s be real. Hades is the best villain in the Disney canon.
In Hercules: The Animated Series, Hades isn't just a brooding king of the dead. He’s a middle manager. He’s a fast-talking talent agent who just happens to live in a pit of fire. James Woods brought a level of ad-libbing and neurotic energy that you just didn't see in Saturday morning cartoons back then.
There’s this specific episode, "Hercules and the Underworld Takeover," where he has to deal with other gods trying to muscle in on his territory. It’s basically a corporate satire. The showrunners, Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley—who later went on to create Kim Possible—knew that the adults watching were probably bored. So, they packed the script with industry inside jokes and meta-humor.
Hades didn't just want to kill Hercules. He wanted to humiliate him, sure, but he also wanted to complain about his employees, Pain and Panic. It made the stakes feel strangely relatable.
The Mythological Soup (And Why It Worked)
If you’re looking for a faithful adaptation of Greek Mythology, look elsewhere. Seriously. This show treats the actual myths like a buffet. It takes what it wants and throws the rest in the trash.
- The Cameos: You’d see Odysseus. You’d see Jason and the Argonauts. They even did a crossover with Aladdin. Yes, Jafar and Hades teamed up. It made no sense chronologically, but it was a 90s kid's fever dream.
- The Modernity: They had "scrolls" that acted like tablets. They had "chariot races" that felt like NASCAR. It was "The Flintstones" but for the Aegean Sea.
- The Gods: Olympus was portrayed like a dysfunctional country club. Zeus (voiced by Corey Burton, taking over for Rip Torn) was the jovial, slightly oblivious dad, while Hera was the stern mother.
This irreverence is exactly why it stays fresh. While other 90s shows feel dated because they tried to be "radical," Hercules was just being snarky. It leaned into the absurdity of a guy with super strength trying to pass a math test.
The "Hercules and the Arabian Night" Crossover
We have to talk about the Aladdin crossover. It’s the peak of Disney’s shared universe experiment.
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Hades and Jafar make a bet. Jafar is dead, obviously, so they meet in the Underworld. It’s a masterclass in contrasting animation styles and character dynamics. You have the fast-talking, fiery Hades paired with the cold, calculating Jafar. Watching Hercules fight Aladdin because of a misunderstanding—the classic superhero trope—was genuinely thrilling for an eight-year-old.
It also served a deeper purpose. It proved that Disney’s TV world was bigger than just one-off episodes. It felt like a lived-in universe before the MCU made that a requirement for every franchise.
Technical Excellence and Voice Cast
The sheer volume of talent in the recording booth was insane.
- Tate Donovan returned as Hercules. Having the lead movie actor stay for the series is a rarity.
- Danny DeVito didn't return for Phil, but Robert Costanzo did an imitation so good most people never noticed the difference.
- The Guest Stars: Jennifer Aniston, Sandra Bullock, and even Vince Vaughn voiced characters.
Why did big stars do a Saturday morning show? Because the writing was good. It was sharp. It didn't talk down to the audience.
Is It Still Worth Watching?
Yes. But you have to accept the "Monster of the Week" format.
Most modern shows are serialized. You have to watch Episode 1 to understand Episode 10. Hercules: The Animated Series isn't like that. It’s episodic. You can jump in anywhere. That’s a lost art. There’s a comfort in knowing that by the end of 22 minutes, the Hydra will be defeated, Phil will be frustrated, and Herc will have learned a lesson about humility.
The animation quality holds up surprisingly well on Disney+. Since it was produced by Disney Television Animation at its peak, the movements are fluid. The colors are vibrant. It doesn't have that "flash animation" look that killed a lot of early 2000s shows.
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What People Get Wrong About the Timeline
People always ask: "How does this fit with the movie?"
The short answer? It doesn't.
In the movie, Hercules doesn't meet Hades until he's an adult. In the show, they interact constantly. In the movie, Phil seems to have given up on training heroes until adult Herc shows up. In the show, he's actively coaching him every day.
Don't try to make the math work. The show exists in its own pocket dimension where the goal is fun, not continuity. If you try to build a timeline, you'll just get a headache. Just enjoy the fact that Hercules is a teenager who has to deal with a prom and the Minotaur at the same time.
Actionable Steps for Fans and New Viewers
If you're looking to revisit this or introduce it to someone else, don't just start at episode one and slog through.
- Priority Episodes: Watch "Hercules and the Arabian Night" for the crossover. Watch "Hercules and the Underworld Takeover" for the best Hades moments. "Hercules and the Prom" is the quintessential teen-drama parody.
- Check the Art: Look at the background art. It’s heavily influenced by 1950s experimental animation and Greek pottery. It’s a visual treat if you actually pay attention to the linework.
- Spot the Voice: Try to identify the celebrity cameos. Half the fun is realizing that a random Greek citizen is voiced by a Hollywood A-lister.
The show remains a high-water mark for the era when Disney was willing to be weird. It took a blockbuster movie and turned it into a sitcom about a kid who was literally a god but still felt like a loser. That’s a vibe that never really goes out of style.
To get the most out of a rewatch, skip the filler episodes and focus on the episodes written by McCorkle and Schooley. Their episodes usually contain the sharpest meta-commentary on the Disney brand itself. You can find the full series on Disney+ categorized under the Disney Channel era collections. For those interested in the production side, look for the "Art of Hercules" books which often feature character designs that were later adapted for the series' simplified but stylistically consistent look.