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Hades is the Greek god of the Underworld and the brother of Zeus.

History[]

Hades true form

The true, demonic Hades.

In ancient times, Hades had a love affair with Hippolyta, the Queen of the Amazons. He claimed to have helped her sculpt Diana from clay.

When war broke out between the Olympian Gods and the Titans, Hades made a bargain with the enemy: he would deliver Mount Olympus into the Titans' hands, and in return, he would be given dominion over all humanity. Hades went on to trick Hippolyta into opening the gates of Olympus to the invading Titans, resulting in a battle that "the Muses still sing". Unfortunately for Hades, the gods fought back and eventually prevailed.

Punishment[]

Zeus, the King of the Gods, punished Hades severely for this betrayal - casting him into the Pit of Tartarus (the final resting place of lost souls), where he would rule over the dead for all eternity. Hippolyta, on the other hand, was sentenced to forever guard the gateway to the Underworld as eternal punishment.

3000 years later, Hades was nearly released thanks to Felix Faust, but fortunately the Justice League intervened. In the ensuing battle, he ages Faust into a decrepit old man (as his 'reward of ultimate knowledge'). Before his release and capture of Hippolyta could be completed, he was sucked back into Tartarus from whence he came, keeping him locked up for years to come.

Overthrown[]

When Felix Faust took control of the Annihilator, he headed straight for the gate to Tartarus. With the power of the Annihilator, he got his revenge on Hades for tricking him previously and later torture him after the plan failed. Faust imprisoned Hades in a nearby dimension and exacted torture on Hades until the god revealed the location of valuable tomes that revealed knowledge of dark arts. Faust then proceeded to Hades' library, but Shayera Hol and Wonder Woman were later transported to the same dimension, where they confronted Faust. As part of Zeus' order, Wonder Woman had to restore Hades to the throne of Tartarus. After the Annihilator was destroyed for good, Hades took Faust's spirit away to torture yet again. It was at this point that he revealed to Diana he and her mother created her together. However, this was dismissed by both Diana and Hawkgirl as a lie. Diana cared little for the truth anyway: she knew who raised her, her mother and that was her true parent.

Powers and abilities[]

As a Greek God, Hades possessed magical powers that can be used in a variety of ways: glamouring (he was revealed to have magically concealed his true horrifying form), flight, regeneration of himself and his armor, and teleportation of himself and others. He was also able to breathe fire in concentrated bursts, emerging either as a long stream or single large fireballs.

As the God of the Underworld, Hades's most powerful ability was perhaps necromancy - he was able to control the dead and summon endless legions of them to follow his every order. He also can manipulate the age of others, as demonstrated by his causing Faust to rapidly age with only a touch).

Besides his supernatural powers, Hades possessed tremendous physical strength, being able to give Superman a backhand powerful enough to send him flying backwards and knocking him unconscious. He also seemed to possess either superhuman durability or even near-invulnerability, for he was able to easily shrug off punches from Superman, repetitive blows from the Flash, and explosive Batarangs thrown by Batman which did not even phase him in the least. His reflexes were excellent as well - he was able to flick one of said Batarangs out of the air with minimal effort.

Magic or mysticism appeared to be Hades' only true weakness. During his first encounter with the League, only a magical spell by Felix Faust was shown to cause him noticeable pain (and also removed his glamour to expose his true form). The Annihilator was also able to easily overpower him due to its enhanced properties and tremendous strength.

Appearances[]

Batman: The Animated Series

Justice League

Justice League Unlimited

References[]

  1. Reeves-Stevens, Judith, Reeves-Stevens, Garfield (writers) & Riba, Dan (director) (May 24, 1993). "Fire From Olympus". Batman: The Animated Series. Season 1. Episode 60 (airdate). Episode 63 (production). FOX Kids.
  2. Kuhr, Joseph (writer) & Riba, Dan (director) (January 21, 2002). "Paradise Lost, Part I". Justice League. Season 1. Episode 8 (airdate). Episode 10 (production). Cartoon Network.
  3. Berkowitz, Stan (story) & McDuffie, Dwayne (teleplay) & Riba, Dan (director) (May 28, 2005). "The Balance". Justice League Unlimited. Season 1. Episode 18 (airdate). Episode 18 (production). Cartoon Network.
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