Wednesday, May 21, 2014

When Hercules Thirsts, Insurers Tremble


It's shaping up to be Bar Fight Week here at TPPOC!, and we can always count on one god to go looking for one or the other:





Bars have turned out to be the great equalizer where Hercules and mortals are concerned--an environment where Hercules enjoys their company, and, equally important, their adulation. Over a brew, Hercules and the mortal patrons can hobnob loudly and sometimes raucously on equal terms, a place where the Olympian can enjoy entertaining and impressing them with both his strength and his extensive collection of tales.



And man, is it great to have a mortal expense account:



As for the "fight" part--well, the combination of alcohol and the wrong thing said at the wrong time can have near-fatal consequences where Hercules is concerned:





It's interesting to see the rapport Hercules has with the mortals he consorts with. At times we can dismiss it as flaunting his celebrity status among them; but often he seems to genuinely care about their well-being, if only due to how weak and dependent they are in comparison. His long association with mortals throughout history, arguably on a greater and more personal level than Thor's, has given him an empathy toward them that Thor only gained through his time as Donald Blake:



Speaking of Thor, Hercules seems to get into most of his bar altercations when Thor is present. You'd think a mere soda bar would be neutral ground for these two--but hostilities can break out even there, when a little jealousy is involved:




That brawl turns into a full-fledged fight soon enough--though thankfully they took it outside and through the city, leaving this poor owner's shop still reasonably intact.



But, let's not assume that it's only mortal bars that incite conflict. Even in his home of Olympus, Hercules and the Thunder God have been known to get into it in a bar, only this time out of pride:






Zeus probably hasn't given Hercules an expense account--but I'm sure he can set his son up with a few stables that need cleaning in order to make things right with the barkeep.

1 comment:

  1. I'm waiting to see if you have one more "bar fight" in you coz there's one I'm thinking of. The last part, between Thor and Hercules, was that fight covered in one of our other posts?


    The Prowler (never on the winning end of a bar fight).

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