The ruthless Queen Parnassa of Kastus lost her son, Millius, in battle years ago. Working with Hera, who caused Hercules to suffer amnesia, the Queen formed a plan to make the son of Zeus think he was really Millius, the leader of her bloodthirsty army. But Kirin, Hercules' ""wife"", fell completely in love with him and helped Iolaus to convince Hercules of his true identity. The mention of Deianeira, Hercules' late wife, snapped him out of it before he could pledge his loyalty to Hera. But the victory was a bittersweet one, as Hercules bid farewell to the lovely Kirin.

When they were teenagers, Hercules, Iolaus and Jason banded together to kill the Ghidra, one of Hera's deadly pets. On their journey they met the beautiful young Medea, who decided to join their quest. Soon a love triangle developed in which Medea fell for Hercules while Jason was smitten with Medea. Their jealousies temporarily drove the friends apart, which was Hera's plan all along. But Medea wanted no part of Hera when the angry goddess struck down Jason. Medea healed Jason with her own powers and helped the three friends defeat the hideous, two-headed Ghidra in its lair.

Upon Alcmene's death, Zeus asked Hercules to join him in ruling the gods of Olympus. Hercules, still bitter toward his father, couldn't decide. He recalled meeting Apollo, his half-brother, years ago. Apollo gave him ambrosia, which transformed him into a full god. But Zeus chastised his son, saying he was never destined for full godhood. Chagrined, Hercules relinquished his new powers but still fought Apollo to a draw. he then saved young Ariadne from Apollo's treachery. This recollection resolved Hercules' indecision: He agreed to join Zeus on Mount Olympus, where he could do the most good for mankind.

While Iolaus paid a visit to his mother, Hercules explored Olympus. He was hurt to learn the real reason his father had brought him there: Zeus needed protection from Hera and the other gods, who were conspiring against him. But Hercules couldn't turn his back on his father. Then Zeus allowed Hera to rip away his godhood in order to save Alcmene's spirit from eternal hell. Hercules went to the dark side of Olympus, where he overcame Apollo and Hera in battle. Zeus' godhood was restored, Alcmene returned to the Elysian Fields, and Hercules became a half-mortal again.

Hercules missed the original Iolaus. He remembered when a sacred ruby had been stolen from the head of the stone panther, and he and Iolaus went to retrieve it. Autolycus committed the crime, and he swallowed the ruby. At dusk the stone panther sprang to life, and a fierce battle ensued. When Iolaus grabbed Autolycus around the rib cage to pull him out of harm's way, the ruby srrang free. Hearing this story, Iolaus 2 hoped Hercules didn't expect him to be as brave as the other Iolaus. Hercules responded that no one could be.

The Rock of Arges was cursed by Zeus. Villagers who handled it began to fade out of existance, so Hercules saved them by crushing it. Unfortunately, this caused the curse to transfer to Hercules -- which was exactly what Ares, Deimos and Discord had planned. But Hercules slowed his disappearance through sheer force of will, so Ares sent Deimos to finish the job. Feeling jealous, Discord decided to help Iolaus 2 and Hercules find the remaining two stones. When Deimos and Ares inadvertenly broke the stones, the spell was broken. Hercules returned to normal while Ares was sucked into oblivion.

Autolycus joined Hercules on his way to the First Bank of Greece and promised not to rob it. Once in town, they found Autolycus' ex-wife Luscious starring in a show at Club Nymph-O-Mania. The next day, the bank was robbed and Autolycus' grappling hook was found at the scene of the crime. Luscious was to blame, but Autolycus took the fall and went to jail. To save his friend, Hercules set a trap for Luscious, recovered the loot and freed Autolycus without having to implicate his ex-wife. The events rekindled Autolycus' and Luscious' feelings for each other.