 |  | Not much of a family film |  |
Not to repeat all the wonderful things that those who came before me have said, I must express some of my misgivings of the series. I bought it for my family and at times was embarrassed to sit there with my kids watching this thing. Yes the action sequences were great. Yes, many of the story lines were compelling. On the family values side Hercules generally isn't one of these shameless heroes that are so prominant in today's movie and TV world. He is faithful to his wife and even generally to her memory until he meets Xena. Many positive lessons can be gained from the story lines. On the other hand, the cheese factor and the absurd portrayals of some of the minor characters project entirely too much of the modern world on ancient Greece for those who look for a little depth in their film fare. Also Hercules's pretty much absolute disdain for the gods and complete self-reliance, particularly in the movies is inconsistant with the tone of the original mythological tales. Done correctly, even good pagan stories can teach Christian children about faith and faithfulness. You will not get any of this in Hercules. His self-reliance is again entirely too demonstrantive of rather negative modern attitudes. The violance of some of the movies and episodes in particular will be of concern to some parents, although it does not bother me too much. It does take a dark tone in some episodes and can be a bit scary. Of most concern, however, is the sex factor played throughout the series that makes several episodes and movies entirely inappropriate for children. In nearly every episode there are embarrassingly scantily clad women to begin with. Beyond that there are too many nude scenes. In the Amazon Women Hercules is seen naked on the floor as he is interrogated by the Amazon Queen in a rather lascivious interview that I was definitely uncomfortable with my children seeing. Later the women's raid on their mens village and demanding sex is a bit difficult to explain to kids. In the Underworld movie there was an instantaneous full rear nude scene of a beautiful girl diving in the water. Throughout that movie she actively tries to seduce Hercules to get him to deal with the problem of her people at one point completely disrobing in front of him. On a positive note, Hercules resists the temptation while still helping her. In another episode an oriental girl who has joined Hercules in trying to rescue her fiance discovers Hercules bathing and strips of her clothes to join him. Hercules expresses his discomfort with that, but she explains that that is nothing out of the ordinary in her culture. Hercules responds that in his it is, but accepts the massage she proceeds to give him. In the movie in which he meets his wife Hercules is seen in a sex scene with two women that Hera has fooled him into thinking is the woman that later becomes his wife. When he realizes his mistake he follows her in the buff covering himself with only a pillow. Of all the series, however, the worst episode is the Warrior Princess where Xena is introduced. Xena is seen as a ruthless warrior who completely dominates her commanders and sends them often to their death with the enticement of her sexual favors. Hercules's good friend Iolus is the last to be thus seduced by her. In a later episode after her conversion, though it is not as lewdly done, even Hercules himself is seduced by the warrior princess.
All in all, Hercules is an entertaining show and not at all devoid of value nor values, but it is shallow and definitely not fit for children, and much less hormone laden teenagers. Three stars is probably a little better than it deserves, but two stars sells it short. I'd go with two and a half, were it an option.
July 8, 2008excellent quality for a used product. Highly recommended for they don't make like they used to.
October 6, 2007 | | very different from everything else on TV | |
Many TV shows nowadays all use the same ideas/scenarios that you see on every other show, or they have no real direction and get cancelled after 1 or 2 seasons. Hercules is an exception. The only other show similar to this would have been Xena. While Xena tended to keep the mythology to a minimum, Hercules tended to make it part of the central story. If you are ok with Mythology in your TV, you will enjoy this. Hercules is a good role-model for everybody, adults and children. He is the hero, catching the bad guys and protecting the good guys. He does what is right, even if it is against popular opinion. He helps free some slaves and stops some "games" that force humans to fight to the death. He loved his family and treated them right. He played with his kids, took care of the farm, refused to cheat on his wife, took care of his mother, and helped strangers in need. We can all learn something from Hercules.
July 21, 2007I bought these so that I could watch them with my son, he loves them, just as I loved them when the series was on TV. It is still fun to watch after all these years.
May 15, 2007| | | Hercules The Legendary Journeys - Season 1 | |
I bought this for my son and he loves it. He watches it over and over.
March 17, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
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