Hercules:Journeys S1

Having only watched bits and pieces of seasons five and six (which ended just as I was getting into it) I was unsure if I would enjoy the "beginnings". Typically, the first season of any show is it's roughest. However, being a huge fan of Xena The Warrior Princess and the cast of characters on that show (Salmoneus, Autolycus, Ares), I could not pass up the opportunity to watch a similar show that would allow me to enjoy those same characters for awhile longer.

I was pleasantly surprised with the collection. Granted, the acting, effects and storylines will improve as the series progresses, but any viewer can see how much potential this series has! And frankly, for the time, the effects are pretty good! Kevin Sorbo really brings Hercules to life, something that no actor has done successfully in the past. Michael Hurst does an equally amazing job as Iolaus, Hercules' often forgotten side kick. Rounding out the cast for the first season, are Salmoneus - the travelling salesman who steals every scene that he is in! and a very young Xena (who obviously had not been fleshed out yet, compared to the first season of her own show). Ares, at this point, was not fully developed and only appeared within other people's bodies or through creepy voice overs. Kevin Smith's absence was definitely felt in the first season!

The five full length movies that are provided in the collection provide insight into Hercules past life and why he is now on his "journeys". The first movie, Hercules and the Amazonian Women, is relatively forgettable. The acting is awful, the effects are pretty bad and they have stuck poor Lucy Lawless in the role of an amazon warrior. Roma Downey is the head of the amazon warriors and rather bad at it. Forgive the collection this one movie. The next three movies are excellent, Hercules and the Circle of Fire being my favourite, with the perfect blend of suspense, humour and campiness that is expected from this series. The last movie was a bit of a bust, in my mind, as 1/3 of it's time was spent showing flashbacks to the first four movies! Hello? I just watched them! Ai yi yi...

After the five movies, the viewer is then treated to the first 13 episodes of the Hercules and the Legendary Series which comprises the first season. These are good episodes, but not as great as the future seasons because they are still developing who and what they really are.

I was a bit disappointed with the Xena trilogy, only because, as I said before, the character was not fully fleshed out, and Xena the Warrior Princess on her own show seems tougher, more capable and smarter than the Xena on HTLJ. Plus, her romance with Hercules seemed rather convenient, if unnecessary.

One thing I noted while watching these episodes over a very short time, was how often they reuse actors for future characters! One week, Hercules has slayed the King's evil son and the next week that same actor is now a gladiator! They also use the same stuntment to play the evil henchmen in just about every episode, so try not to look at the faces too closely. I was also surprised by how many up and coming actors participated on the show, like Lucy Liu or Karl Urban.

Another aspect of the show to note is the "jiggle" factor. My goodness! They have dressed the women on this show SO scantily! As a female fan, this is doing nothing for me, other than creating an annoying distraction. At first, I thought that I was being too critical, but after listening to Kevin Sorbo and Michael Hurst comment on it too, I knew I wasn't being too picky. In fact, Kevin Sorbo was amazed with some of the things that they had gotten away with and how shameless they were! And Michael Hurst commented that sales of the Wonderbra increased tenfold after the airing of this season. Thankfully, there are many beautiful men cast on the show, Michael Hurst included, and Kevin Sorbo has a body quite worthy of Hercules. So ladies, there is something for all of us! It's not just for the guys!

One feature that I enjoyed probably more than anything else, was being able to watch some of the episodes with either Kevin Sorbo, Michael Hurst or both. Sadly, KS and MH are not in the same room when watching the episode, which I thought would have been more fun! Their observations are often very cheeky or self-deprecating and always amusing! Kevin Sorbo does seem to forget some of the details of the episodes, but after 10 years who can blame him? Michael Hurst impressed me with how much thought and care he put into the character development of Iolaus. And, it is only when you hear these men discuss their fight scenes, that you realize how difficult they really were to orchestrate -- because on screen they make them seem effortless! And I wish that they had provided commentary for the Xena trilogy episodes The Gauntlet and Unchained Heart, because I am sure that they would have had some great stories to share on that!

I am so glad that I bought this collection! I have gone ahead and ordered the next four seasons. It's a splurge, but I can't resist! If this is just the beginning of the journey, I know that it is only going to get better and better!

THE STORY

The critically-acclaimed ï¿Hercules the Legendary Journeysï¿ aired in syndication for 6 seasons from 1994 till 1999. Based on the popular hero from Greek mythology, the story followed the adventures of Hercules and his friend Iolaus as they traveled the earth defending mortals against the tyrannical gods who plagued them, namely his step-mother Hera, Queen of the Gods and his half-brother Ares, the God of War. The seriesï¿ brilliant combination of action and adventure, special effects and adaptation of Greek mythology was a critical as well as commercial success, drawing strong ratings and a cult-following.

THE DVDS:

Disc 1:

Movie 1: ï¿Hercules and the Amazon Womenï¿ ï¿ Hercules and Iolaus embark on one last great adventure before Iolausï¿ wedding. Answering the call to save a village from mysterious monsters they instead find a tribe of Hera-worshipping warrior women who have shunned men from their lives.

Movie 2: ï¿Hercules and the Lost Kingdomï¿ ï¿ Hercules aids a young woman find the lost city of Troy which was banished by Hera.

Disc 2:

Movie 3: ï¿Hercules and the Circle of Fireï¿ ï¿ Hera has stolen fire from mankind and only Hercules, along with the lovely Deianera, can get it back.

Movie 4: ï¿Hercules in the Underworldï¿ ï¿ Hercules is called to help save a village where the people are being sucked underground. In the midst of it all he saves his wife Deianera from the traitorous Centaur Nessus and winds up in the Underworld battling the guard of Hades -- the three-headed dog Cerberus.

Disc 3:

Movie 5: ï¿Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaurï¿ ï¿ Settled down with his wife and kids, Hercules and Iolaus reminisce about their adventures together until they are summoned to a village to help slay a mysterious monster that not even Zeus himself can kill!!

Disc 4:

Episode 1: ï¿The Wrong Pathï¿ ï¿ After Hera kills his family, Hercules sets out to avenge them. With Hercules on his personal quest, Iolaus answers to call to help a village being plagued by Heraï¿s She-Demon who can turn men into stone.

Episode 2: ï¿Eye of the Beholderï¿ ï¿ Hercules helps a town overcome a Cyclops whoï¿s diverting their riverï¿s flow away to Heraï¿s vineyards. Intro: Salmoneus the Traveling Salesman

Episode 3: ï¿The Road to Calydonï¿ ï¿ Hercules aids a cursed people move to the protected and enchanted city of Calydon.

Disc 5:

Episode 4: ï¿The Festival of Dionysusï¿ ï¿ Hercules helps to thwart a devious plot concocted by an ambitious prince and Ares the God of War to overthrow the peaceful King of Meliad.

Episode 5: ï¿Aresï¿ ï¿ Hercules stops Ares and his servant from recruiting an army of teenage boys.

Episode 6: ï¿As Darkness Fallsï¿ ï¿ Hercules must battle Nemis the Centaur, brother of Nessus and servant of Hera, who has kidnapped the bride Penelope. He has one problem though, he is slowly going blind as part of Nemisï¿ plot to kill him and only Salmoneus, the timid traveling salesman, can help him.

Disc 6:

Episode 7: ï¿Pride Goes Before a Brawlï¿ ï¿ Iolaus saves a maiden and battles a group of bandits in the forest. Little does he know that Hera has sentenced him to death and only Hercules can save him.

Episode 8: ï¿The March to Freedomï¿ ï¿ Hercules helps free a group of Easterners from a vicious slave trader.

Episode 9: ï¿The Warrior Princessï¿ ï¿ THE DEBUT OF XENA. To Iolaus she is the love of his life for whom he would kill and die for. To the rest of the world she is a merciless Warlord who is bent on world conquest. What happens when Hercules sets out to stop her once and for all?

Disc 7:

Episode 10 ï¿ ï¿The Gladiatorï¿ ï¿ Hercules and Iolaus free the prisoners of Menas Maxius, ruler of Apropus, who forces them into mortal combat for his own sick pleasure.

Episode 11 ï¿ ï¿The Vanishing Deadï¿ ï¿ Hercules and Iolaus try to stop a senseless civil war between the people of Tantalus concocted as a devious scheme by Ares who wants more dead bodies to feed his dog Graegus.

Episode 12 ï¿ ï¿The Gauntletï¿ ï¿ Xena is usurped by her ruthless lieutenant Darphus. Hercules and Xena join forces to defeat Darphusï¿ army and stop their reign of terror once and for all.

Episode 13 ï¿ ï¿Unchained Heartï¿ ï¿ Ares resurrects Darphus and sends him on a mission to destroy the world and provide enough dead bodies to satiate Graegusï¿ hunger. It will take the combined might of Hercules, Iolaus, Xena and Salmoneus to stop him.

THE DVD EXTRAS

Anchor Bayï¿s put out another solid Season DVD set with an awesome extras package. Among the goodies this DVD set comes with are:

SELECTED EPISODE COMMENTARY

Select episodes feature audio or video commentary by seriesï¿ stars Kevin Sorbo and Michael Hurst. Audio commentary is featured on episodes 2, 5, 7, 9 and 10. Video commentary is featured on episodes 5, 7, 10.

COLLECTIBLES AND CONTESTS

Each season DVD set includes a collectorï¿s edition Hercules coin. You can mail away for a coin holder to house your coins. Also included are entry forms for the Hercules sweepstakes contest for a trip to the Athens Games of 2004.

DISC 8: EXTRAS

Included on Disc 8 are:

1. Hercules screensaver

2. The Chronicles: A comprehensive guide to the Hercules universe including Episode Guides (Scrolls) and character guides for important characters including Mortals, Gods and Creatures.

3. Trivia Game: Test your Hercules knowledge (or pick up some).

4. Director and Actor Bios: Filmographies for ALL actors and directors who appeared in/worked on Season One.

THE VERDICT

Lovers of action-adventure and mythology are bound to fall in love with this series. The ï¿Ancient Greeceï¿ settings and the FX that make up all its evil monsters are awe-inspiring. In all, you wonï¿t be disappointed as you follow along with Hercules and his Legendary Journeys!!

Highest Recommendation

Hercules is executive produced and founded by Sam Raimi(Evil Dead Series and Spiderman). The lead character is played by Kevin Sorbo and he established himself as the best Hercules ever. He was outstanding and could act unlike some of the previous people to play the strongest man alive.

Hercules The Legendary Journeys contains the five original made for TV movies and all 13 episodes that were put out in season 1. The movies are about an hour and 45 minutes long and are great. I've enjoyed reliving the experience of watching them, and enjoy them all a lot except for the Maze of the Minotaur which lacks the originality of the first four. The 13 episodes tell the tales of Hercules, as he goes off and helps people that are in need.

It's a great show with a great cast. Tawny Kitaen plays Hercules wife in the movies. She it totally hot and it's a shame she's gone of the deep end. Anthony Quinn plays the king of the gods Zues. Michael Hurst plays Hercules best friend Iolas and there is also Lucy Lawless and Xena in a couple of episodes. There are a couple of other actors that are in the show that look familiar and can be seen in a lot of Sam Raimi's stuff.

This is a great show. It's awesome being able to just pop a DVD in and watch a great episode from a great tv show. Any fan of mythology has to get this. Any fan of the tv show should get it. You won't regret buying it. Don't miss out on it.