Ares In Hercules: The Legendary Journeys As An Ascended Villain

While watching Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Hercules' main enemy was his jealous and angr stepmother Hera who sought to destroy him. I'd just like to wonder why the show left out the whole reason that Hera hates Hercules even more because the latter's name means "Glory of Hera'. So for first two seasons, Ares wasn't all that active but he made some real trouble.


At first, Ares simply acted through disguises like the "Ares Monster" form by dwelling on armor or he possesses Jarton's body to fight his half-brother Hercules. I guess the approach didn't make him too much of a god of war. He had appeared to also possess Jarton's body in one episode and in another disguised himself as a skull during the Festival of Dionysius. But he'd later get more special treatment than his mother Hera.


Ares finally appeared in his human form in Season Three acted by the late Kevin Smith. He was the main villain in Young Hercules and ended up usurping his mother Hera's position as the main villain even if the credits hasn't changed a bit. Hercules ends up journeying the Earth battling the minions of his wicked half-brother Ares than his jealous stepmother Hera. He ends up becoming more active even to fight his half-brother Hercules one on one directly. I felt that it became more consistent to his character to become Hercules' new archenemy over Hera. 


Eventually both Hera and Ares appeared in their human forms together in "Reunions" and in the final episode as well. I always got annoyed by how Hera never showed her true form until Meg Foster became Hera herself. I always felt that Foster herself should have played Hera all along for the whole duration!

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