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So. Hulk has been kicked off his title for doing the whole World War Hulk thing. And now SHIELD is going after Hulk’s allies. Hercules and Amadeus Cho are being held, but escape (after a fight with Ares) with a stolen SHIELD laptop. The adventures that follow involve various other Avengers trying to bring Hercules back in, but they are paralleled with Hercules’ mythological labors and his own past (there’s a wonderful, drug-infused flashback to his days with The Champions).
After Black Widow (accidentally) kills Amadeus’ puppy (named “Kirby”), he goes on the warpath. Cho and Herc steal a decommissioned SHIELD helicarrier and Cho infects SHIELD’s systems with viruses and basically cripples the entire organization.
This is a bit too far for Hercules, who sees Amadeus turning into a super-villain. Again referencing the Greek myths, Hercules tells Cho that once he allowed anger to spellbind him, and he killed his own family.
Amadeus relents and stands down.

There’s also a rematch with Ares thrown in that portrays a great battle but also reveals that Ares is jealous of how mortal love Hercules, giving Ares a motivation we’ve not seen before.



The two of them then continue to hide from SHIELD, going to Vermont for the next story arc.