Young Hercules

I admit that it has been awhile since I posted anything on the Hercules: the Legendary Journeys franchise. Young Hercules (Keep) was based on Hercules’ early years. It’s interesting to see how Hercules (Ian Bohen) grew up to become the hero we all know so well. He went to an academy, where he met Iolaus (Dean O’Gorman) and Jason (Chris Conrad) of the Argonauts. They all trained in combat together by Cheiron (Nathaniel Lees), a wise centaur instructor.

Soon Jason finds out that his father is dying. In order to save him, Jason, Hercules, and Iolaus gather a team together and head off on a quest to find the Golden Fleece.

There were a few different cartoon shows that had an episode with the Golden Fleece as part of the story line. It wasn’t until I saw this movie when I finally understood the actual story behind it. The Golden Fleece is a magic ram skin that can heal anyone by being wrapped in it. Now that’s amazing.

On their way over, the wicked goddess Discord (Meighan Desmond), as a siren, lures Hercules and his friends onto an island, which by the way is a terrific idea as part of a story about sea travel as well as the cliché of struggling through a bad storm.

It becomes more exciting later on when Hercules and Ares (Kevin Smith) battle it out in a stick fight over fire, much like what Hercules was trained to do, only with fancier moves. It was incredible.

This movie was only the beginning. Shortly afterward, Young Hercules was a TV series, which starred Ryan Gosling instead of Ian Bohen as the lead. Unfortunately, it only lasted from 1998-1999.

I think this version was just as well made as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. After seeing this film, I have a different outlook on that series. I’ll tell ya, it’s definitely been a long road Hercules has been on as a hero.