"Hercules and the First Day of School" is an episode of Hercules. Though chronologically the first episode, it would be the 11th aired, premiering on September 12, 1998.
Plot
When the narrator starts to tell a story of Hercules' adventures, the Muses interrupt him by informing him of his greatest challenge: high school. Skeptical, the Muses then proceed to tell the story of how Hercules began his education at Prometheus Academy. Beginning at Phil's Island, Hermes drops on by to wish Hercules luck and remind him to catch the ferry to school, though it ends up breaking during Hercules' rushing jump to board. Already looked down on, Hercules soon befriends Icarus and Cassandra and ends up being humiliated by Adonis, who deems Herc to be a worthless nobody. Wanting to prove himself to the student body, Hercules goes after the two headed cyclops Orthos. Orthos has been told by his mother Echidna to start eating more important people and when meeting Hercules and deeming him not worthy of the effort, they do decide to go attack Prometheus Academy and its most important students. Hercules ends up saving the school from the monster, though Adonis ends up stealing the credit. Hercules doesn't mind and just chooses to accept it and himself.
Cast
- Tate Donovan as Hercules
- French Stewart as Icarus
- Sandra Bernhard as Cassandra
- Robert P. Costanzo as Philoctetes
- Frank Welker as Pegasus
- Diedrich Bader as Adonis
- Paul Shaffer as Hermes
- Wayne Knight and Brad Garrett as Orthos
- Kathie Lee Gifford as Echidna
- Eric Idle as Mr. Parentheses
- Lillias White as Calliope
- Roz Ryan as Thalia
- LaChanze as Terpsichore
- Robert Stack as Bob the Narrator
Songs
Trivia
- This episode appeared as the first segment of the direct-to-video film, Hercules: Zero to Hero.
- Moral: It doesn't matter what everyone else thinks of you, what matters is what you think of yourself.
- Adonis' quote "Twas Beauty that killed the Beast" is a reference to the title of the 1991 Disney animated feature film, Beauty and the Beast.
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