Hercules: Prince of Power #1 (September 1982)

In the world of the Marvel Universe, mythology is very much a reality. After all, Thor is one of the original founding members of its most elite superhero team, the Avengers. But another god has maintained a presence in the Marvel Universe...well, a demigod: Hercules, or Herakles if you're Greek.

First appearing in Journey to Mystery Annual #1 (1965), this version of the mythical hero was introduced by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. A different version of Herc had appeared earlier in Avengers #10 (November 1964), but the Avengers Forever miniseries (Remember when I covered it last year?) established that Herc was an impostor. 

The Annual established that Herc was a regular rival of Thor's. The demigod would be a regular guest in Thor's title, and he would eventually go on to be a member of the Avengers in the 80s. The 80s would be a bit of a heyday for the character.

The comic we're going to be looking at this week is the first issue of his first miniseries. Unusually, this miniseries is actually not canon. Let's take a look at Hercules: Prince of Power #1!

The cover is a Bob Layton piece, and it's pretty cool. It depicts our hero in one of his favorite places, in the middle of a brawl...only he's about to be ambushed by spaceships. I think it's a very well-done cover.

"What Fools These Immortals Be!"
Writer: Bob Layton
Penciler: Bob Layton
Inker: Bob Layton
Colorist: Christie Scheele
Letterer: Rick Parker
Editor: Mark Gruenwald
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The story begins with our man...well, our demigod Hercules, scaling a mountain.

While at first glance, it does seem that Herc is taking up the noble hobby of mountain climbing. In actuality, he's heading back home to Olympus, the domicile of the Greco-Roman pantheon. He's been adventuring among heroes for years, and he can't wait to come home. Our demigod is expecting a big ol' party to be thrown in his honor. After all, he's helped save the world, if not the universe.

However, upon his arrival to Olympus, Hercules is not greeted by partying gods eager to see him.

Page 5, Panel 4

This big blond monster is basically Olympus's doorman. If he doesn't want you to come in, you aren't coming in. Hercules disputes that in the classic Hercules manner: by giving the guardian the gift of combat. The brawl is stopped by some guards. You see, today is basically Zeus's birthday. Like in the classical myths, Zeus is Herc's dad. In Olympus, this day is known as the "The Day of Reflective Silence", so they want Herc to play some silent homage to his dad. 

Herc heads to his room, and finds himself, well...rather bored. He recalls this is why he left Olympus in the first place. It's boring! Herc is visited by a pair of serving maidens, and he sees an opportunity to have some fun. As night falls, Zeus hears some noise from Herc's room. The King of Olympus marches in and catches his son causing a ruckus.

Page 8, Panel 6

Hercules is in troubllllle... Zeus is furious and decides that Hercules has become an insufferable pain and needs to learn some humility. As such, he decides to banish Herc from Olympus. 

Herc thinks Zeus is going to banish him to Earth. Nope. On Earth, Herc is a very powerful being, and it would be hard for him to be humbled there. Instead, Zeus is bashing Herc out to the stars. Out in the universe, Herc is a rather insignificant. As such, he might find some humility out in the stars. The god Apollo gifts Hercules with his chariot with which he'll travel the stars until Zeus determines that Herc's been humbled enough. Just stay clear to supernovas and feed the horses every so often. And with that, Herc is off to find some adventure.

In the Andromeda Galaxy, Herc runs into a fleet of ships belonging to the Colonizers of Rigel.

Page 13, Panel 4

They ask Hercules if he can bring one of their Recorders with them. First appearing in Thor #132 (June 1966), the Rigellian Recorders are robots that basically, well...record anything they witness. The two then travel to the planet Petocco. Hercules is in the mood for a bit of wine, women, and song. And he just may have found it here.

Page 17, Panel 1

As Hercules and the Recorder enjoy some drinks, the engine blows out on an arriving luxury starliner. Meanwhile, Hercules encounters a large muscular blue Hulk-like alien. The Pheragots are from Arago-7. That world's a heavy-gravity one. As a result, Pheragots have very dense molecular structures, which make them incredibly strong. Hercules is pleased by this revelation, as he can give the being the gift of combat. Which he does.

Page 20, Panel 3

However, instead of throwing punches, the alien bursts into tears, which infuriates all the other patrons. You see, Pheragots are strong, but they are known for being one of the gentler alien beings in the universe. And now Herc looks like a big ol' bully.

It's here that Hercules realizes that maybe Zeus had a bit of a point about exiling him. He hears an alarm and learns of the skyliner crashing. Hercules has his flaws. He may be impulsive. He may be a bit dim. He may be hotheaded. He may also be a bit of a drunken boor. But the man is still a hero. He uses his demigod strength to get the passenger-containing part of the fuselage away from the burning hulk of the skyliner. But the ship's gas tank is still burning. And it's going to blow.

Hercules has little time. According to the Recorder, the tank will blow in less than 40 seconds. The demigod grabs a cable and wraps it around the hulk. He then gives it a tug and shows the Petoccans why he is known as the Prince of Power.

Page 25, Panels 1-2

The mighty hammer throw is able to get the burning hulk far enough away from the planet so that its explosion will harm no one. The story ends with Hercules and the Recorder enjoying some drinks, Herc already wanting another adventure. An alien accidentally bumps into him. Herc leaps up angrily and his about to punch him...but decides against it.

I enjoyed this issue. I will admit, I had been wanting to read the Prince of Power miniseries, and I was not disappointed. Bob Layton is primarily known as an artist, particularly if you were following the adventures of a certain Armored Avenger. However, he shows his talents as a writer here. What I did like about this mini-series is that it's a fun adventure starring a demigod who likes his wine, women, and song but is also a hero at heart. I admit, I did find Zeus's reason for exiling Hercules a bit flimsy at first, but Zeus pointed out that Herc had a history of being a rambunctious pain, so it was forgivable.

Layton also turns in some fantastic art here. His characters are very expressive, and there's a good sense of storytelling. His alien designs are really neat, and I'd love to see them in canon Marvel cosmic books. 

If you want to read this for yourself, the Prince of Power miniseries was first collected in a 1988 trade paperback. I think that one is hard to find (I found a copy of it in a collectibles shop). But it was also collected in a 2009 hardcover trade Hercules: Prince of Power. I recommend this miniseries, it's a bit of a hidden gem of 80s Marvel. 

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