These are the Twelve best, most epic battles of Marvel's Hercules!

Instead of picking his top ten, I picked his greatest twelve because the number "12" is associated with Hercules due to his 12 Labors and thus seems more appropriate.

12. Hercules vs Iron Man

This battle took place when Hercules was a member of the Champions. This was a done-in-one story where Iron Man was forced to lure Hercules into a trap/fight because Herc's old enemy Typhon was holding the Beast hostage. Their fight was full of action and really showed the strength and durabilty of Hercules as well as relating the respect Iron Man has for the Power of Hercules. This issue sports a great George Perez cover with superb interior artwork by George Tuska.

11. Hercules vs Thor

This fight happened as the first part in a three- or four-part story-arc which, upon ending lead to Hercules becoming a regular guest star in Thor's series and then to his leading role as a founding member of the Champions. Having been deceived by Ares and Pluto, Thor storms Olympus where he is met in battle by Hercules. Their fight, and this cover, is some of John Buscema's best work. The action is fast and relentless!

10. Hercules vs Kly'bn

After leading his newly formed group "The God Squad" across the cosmos and into the realm of the Skrull Gods, Hercules confronts their ultimate deity, Kly'bn, in a battle to shake the heavens! As their battle rages Hercules and Kly'bn prove to be quite evenly matched and Kly'bn even try's to covert Herc into one of his followers! They fight hard and the battle ends in a very climactic and final manner. This issue features interior art by Rafa Sandoval with a cover by John Romita, Jr.

9. Hercules vs Thor

Hercules and Thor meet and fight for the first time ever!!! Thor is accidentally transported to Olympus where he and Thor meet in a clash of arms and egos big enough to shake the Olympus! This is an epic, iconic Silver-Age representation of the action-packed hero-fighting-hero tradition of Marvel. The two godly warriors take turns smiting and talking smack before their battle is abruptly ended. Jack Kirby provides the art and action in this masterpiece.

8. Hercules vs Hulk

The Prince of Power vs the Green Goliath! This battle is a flashback tale of a fight when these two were both unquestionably at the peak of their strength. In order to protect Earth, the mindless, uber-powerful Hulk had been exiled to the Crossroads of Time. From there the Hulk made his way to Olympus where he is prodded and angered by Ares. The threat his power presents to Olympus becomes evident and Hercules is quickly summoned back to Olympus. When their battle commences, Hercules shows strength to match the brutish Hulk and far superior fighting skills. Cover art by Marko Djurdjevic with interior art by Reilly Brown. This issue also includes a reprint of the number four battle on this list.

7. Hercules vs Ares

It's hard to believe this is the only Herc and Ares battle to make this list considering their rivalry goes back over forty years before this fight. In this fight Ares is working with the authorities as an Avenger and Hercules is a fugitive from justice. Ares manages to fool a lot of people about his true nature but not Herc. They finally have it out in a no-holds-barred fight aboard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s largest-ever hellicarrier. This fight defines the rivalry between Hercules and Ares more clearly than ever before. Hercules shows his young partner, Amadeus Cho (and readers) why he's a hero and Ares is not. This issue features interior art by Khoi Pham and cover art by Arthur Adams.

6. Hercules vs Zeus

Hercules faces and battles his own father with his own immortality and the future of the Olympian race's legacy at stake! It seems Zeus has went mad and killed every Olympian God except for Hercules. Sensing something amiss, Hercules returns to Olympus where he try's to save Zeus from his madness. Instead, Hercules is insulted, assaulted and battered by his father. Hercules refuses to fight his father until Zeus crosses a line so extreme Hercules cannot overlook it. Not even from his God, his King, his father. He unleashes a righteous wrath so mighty and so swift even Zeus must fall. It's not as simple as that, though. Story and art by Bob Layton.

5. Hercules vs Typhon

This battle matches Hercules against his worst enemy and closest evil physical rival. Herc's step-mother Hera has taken up with Typhon and is using him as muscle while she attempt to end all life on Earth. Her evil machinations are nearly stopped peacefully without Herc's intervention but when Typhon betrays her and slays both Hera and Zeus, the only one who can prevent Typhon from ending life on Earth is Hercules. Hercules and Typhon square-off in a exceptionally brutal fight which features a couple of surprising twists and a fitting end. Interior art by Rodney Buchemi with awesome cover art by Alex Garner.

4. Hercules vs Hulk

The first and still the best fight between Hercules, Prince of Power, and Marvel's own Green Goliath, the Incredible Hulk! Their battle is an incredibly fast-paced, action-packed throw-down straight befitting the Silver Age of Comics. Hercules had just recently arrived on Earth from Olympus and was taking a train from the East Coast to Hollywood when his trip was delayed due to one of the Hulk's destructive rampages. Hercules, in all his godly ego and hubris, immediately confronted and underestimated the Hulk and continued to do so for most of their battle. The fight shows Hercules easily matching the Hulk blow for blow without any real effort. In fact, Hercules spends as much time bragging about himself as he does fighting. Still, the fight is very entertaining with the kind of action rarely seen in modern comics. This comic features a cover and interior layouts by the King of Comics himself, Jack Kirby. The interior art was finished by another all-time great; Bill Everett, creator of Namor, the Sub-Mariner.

3. Hercules vs Arimathes

Hercules meets and fights the son he never knew he had with the fate of a galaxy and the legacy of the Olympian Gods at stake. The illegitimate son from one of Hercules' one-night-strands (with Layanna Sweetwater), Arimathes had never met his father, Hercules. He had, however, inherited his father's vast super-human strength and durability; powers he used to become the emperor of an entire galaxy! The time comes when the two must confront each other in final battle. It's when Hercules seemingly gives his angry, boisterous son an insurmountable advantage that Hercules teaches his son a lesson using by wit as well as power. Strength on display! Action galore! This Graphic Novel was written and drawn by, in my opinion, the best Hercules scribe and artist . . . Bob Layton.

2. Hercules vs Thor

A classic battle published recently but retroactively set as the second meeting between Hercules and Thor. In this one Thor approached Hercules with courtesy but Hercules was drunk and busy with a bevy of women in a river of wine. Words were exchanged, challenges issued and the battle was joined. The action in this fight is as good as any comic fight I've ever seen. Once again, these two are so closely matched neither seemed able to gain any real advantage. Finally, as unlikely as it may seem, Hercules did indeed gain a distinct advantage! One so great Thor admits to himself that Hercules is, when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, his better. This issue ends in a cliffhanger and is resolved early in the the next issue. Artwork here is by Scott Kolins.

1. Hercules vs Thor

Part of perhaps the greatest "Thor" epic ever created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, this fight comes less than a year after the first appearance of Hercules and is the second fight between Hercules and Thor. This fight is one for the ages! Nearly every panel is pure action! Punches are traded, buildings are uprooted or destroyed, heavy constrcution equipment is effortlessly tossed around as weapons! This fight rages on and on, never getting boring nor allowing the reader to grow weary of it. Contrary to most hero-vs-hero fights of the time, this one ends with a clear/decisive winner, though the winner does not win without help (unsolicited help) from an unseen source.

This is a masterpiece! An all-time great battle! The greatest battle of Marvel's Hercules!

These are, in my opinion, the Twelve Greatest Battle of Hercules!

Great list! Just a few quick thoughts on the various battles:

12. I have not read this one.

11. Only seen scans.

10. Agreed, shows what happens when Hercules gets serious. There is a reason I consider this the highest point of Incredible Hercules.

9. I like this one. I think is also is an example of not only how egotistical both can be it shows how much they have changed over the years.

8. This fight disappointed me because of how short it was. I felt Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed #1 was better. It showcased Hercules's fighting skills as well if not better and showcased his never back down attitude despite being outmuscled one of the rare times of his life.

7. I guess this shows how much Ares changed from his c-list villain status since like you state for all their rivalry this is the only battle that made it on the list.. I like that not only was this one of the few stories that did not gloss over Ares' history, but had him put his war god brain to use. If he had done so more maybe he would not have become a joke on in the Avengers.

Also, didn't Thor one time beat the crap out of Ares with the latter's strength tripled while Hercules casually watched and carried on a conversation with Thor? That and Ares running from mortal Hercules is how low villainous Ares used to be.

6. I like this one by showing Hercules stepping out from his father's shadow even if Zeus's logic left me scratching my head.

5. I like this one because it showed how capable of a tactician two fighters can be. I only felt that for beings of their strength there was not nearly enough collateral damage.

4. Agree with everything you say here.

3. Agreed, Hercules is now in Zeus' sandals.

2. I like this one because it officially noted something I long felt. Hercules should be slightly better in h2h than Thor. At the same time, it is close enough that fights between the two can go either way.

1. Agreed!

Honorable Mention: The battle between Herald of Galactus from Hercules: Twilight of a god and Hercules. It showcased Hercules having to put his wits against not someone necessarily stronger than him physically, but whose powers put Hercules at a distinct advantage for other reasons.

Question: Why do you think so many of Herc's best battles are against Thor and so few against Ares?

@seekquaze:

We disagree on the fight in "Hulk vs Hercules: Unleashed." Though that battle did clearly put Herc's never-back-down, never-give-up attitude and his fighting skills on display, I still think his skills were better shown in "When Titans Collide."

You're right! Thee was a time when Hercules did indeed stay on the sidelines and converse with Thor while Thor battled Ares. This occurred in Thor #222.

I agree 100% about your Honorable Mention ( I wish I'd have thought of having it as an Honorable Mention)! It's like you stated; The future Silver Surfer far out-powered Hercules overall and Herc was on the ropes until the tragedy that spurred him onward to ultimate victory. Now that you get me thinking about it, this one might be worthy of the top Twelve.

@jloneblackheart:

Thank you very much!

Great list mate!

@Deranged Midget said:

Great list mate!

Thanks, friend!

@PowerHerc: this is truly an awesome read. Great work dude.

@Z3RO180 said:

@PowerHerc: this is truly an awesome read. Great work dude.

Thank you, thank you!

I saw a couple of lists describing the Top 10 fights of the Thing and then the Hulk and I liked them.

When someone replied to one of my comments on one of those threads it finally occurred to me; "Make one about Hercules. If you don't someone else eventually will." Picking the battles, deciding the order and writing the blurbs for each one took some time and effort but I thoroughly enjoyed doing it

great list

Looking at this I think he could use some female adversaries. Maybe if Thundra comes back as a villain or maybe Titania since She Hulk is no longer a solo hero. Then again until he gets his powers back he can't take on either :/

@SandMan_ said:

@PowerHerc: If there was only a Hercules vs Superman.

Yes, if only.

I haven't heard from you in quite a while. How've you been?

@Blood1991 said:

Looking at this I think he could use some female adversaries. Maybe if Thundra comes back as a villain or maybe Titania since She Hulk is no longer a solo hero. Then again until he gets his powers back he can't take on either :/

I agree that he needs to be re-powered before he could take on either of these ladies.

Three of Hercules' enemies are women (Hera, Hippolyta and Artume) and though Marvel has published Hercules battling a couple of these ladies, none of the battles are good enough to make this list.

Awesome list! Really love your picks!

Great list! The thing I liked the most was how enthusiatic you were about these fights, that definitely kept me reading.

@TheAcidSkull: @Lvenger: @pulseangel666: @SmashBrawler:

Thanks to everyone of you!

I'm happy you read and enjoyed my rankings of Herc's battles! :D

@evilvegeta74 said:

@PowerHerc: Nice, I just reconized Recorder, who favors Machine-Man in Battle 3. Excellent thread.

Hah! The Recorder and Machine Man do resemble each other.

I never noticed that before but it makes sense since both characters were designed by Jack Kirby (albeit approximately 10 years apart).

Thanks for commenting!

@Sinfulplayerx said:

Awesome! I really enjoyed your presentation and view points. Makes me wish Marvel had a Marvel Now Herc Book. I like these types of forum posts.

Thanks. I'm flattered.

I wish Hercules had his own Marvel Now book, too. Thanks for commenting.

@Thorcules said:

Really great list makes me have a better respect for Hercules. Such a great hero.

Cool and Thanks!!!

Judging by your name, I'd guess you had a decent amount of respect for Hercules before you read this thread.

@thedude4731 said:

GREAT READ MY FRIEND! theirs a thing vs herc in mighty avengers thats also pretty good (herc held back alot though)

your num 2 is diff my favorite

Yeah, have that "Hercules vs the Thing" fight in Mighty Avengers and even though I enjoyed it, I didn't feel it was better than any of the fights I listed here.

My number 2 battle is probably my personal favorite, too.

I went back and forth between those two battles in my mind for quite a while but I decided on the number 1 battle is the greater of the two due to it's equally compelling action, it's creative team (Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, no less) and the way it paved the way for the long standing friendship between Hercules and Thor.

This scene alone, where Thor cannot physically break free from Hercules while simultaneously admitting Hercules is his better in hand-to-hand combat, makes number 2 one of the best ever for Hercules:

@thedude4731: We might still see him in Marvel Now. I'm trying to be patient and optimistic.

Wow. I absolutely love this list. Amazing work!

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek:

Thanks. It was more fun than work, though. :D