Is Wonderboy for Real? How Hercules gives Disney Romance a New Lust for Life

Calling all Millennials: Grab your disc-man and tamagotchi, and step back in time with me to 1997. We're on the brink of the boy and girl band explosion, with the Spice Girls dominating the charts, Backstreet Boys on the horizon, and scantily clad pop stars like Christina and Britney just about to burst on to the scene. And these aren't just celebrities; they are brands, with full product lines, big budget music videos, and hoards of screaming fans in their wake. At a time when everyone who's anyone is sexualised and commodified, enter Hercules: A Disney movie for the MTV generation, with all the teenage thirst and excessive merchandising to match. 

The tongue-in-cheek, contemporary tone is set from the start with the introduction of the Muses, a Gospel girl group with powerful voices and strong personalities who are in charge of the story. To the point of interrupting the gravitas of Charlton Heston's opening narration to share their take on Hercules (or should be say "Hunkules)'s tale. This is Greek mythology told firmly through the female gaze — and with more than a generous pinch of salt. Our favourite Muse Thalia in particular has the hots for Herc, commenting on his physique and fully siding with the fan frenzy he ignites in the song 'Zero to Hero'. But this is the thing: It's joyful, light-hearted, and relatable to teen culture. This liberating tone sets the scene for a much more female-led romance than we have seen so far from Disney, and and it's as refreshing as a tall glass of Herculade.

"And this perfect package packed a pair of pretty pecs (Ow!)"

On first watching, Hercules shares a lot of DNA with Disney's earlier '90s renaissance outing, Aladdin, which also nods more than once to the commercialism and celebrity culture of the decade (The 'Prince Ali' parade complete with news reporters and cheerleaders is a prime example). Released 5 years later, Hercules re-treads many similar themes. It's a coming of age story, centred around a hapless teenager who thinks he can fast-track himself to glory through fame and fortune; his spirit guide (in this case Danny DeVito's Phil rather than Robin Williams' Genie) tries his best to help our hero follow his heart - rather than his (ahem) hormones - in pursuit of the girl he fancies; the screenplay is scattered with irreverent humour, poking fun at traditional Disney tropes. But there's one element that stands Hercules apart from any previous film in the Disney animated canon; the dynamics of the central romance. 

"It's been a real slice." 

While Aladdin is considered a 'bad boy' among Disney male protagonists, his love interest is a princess so sheltered that she has literally never left the palace walls until meeting him. She may not be as meek and retiring as her predecessors, but by virtue of her situation alone, Jasmine is as innocent and virginal a Disney princess as you can get. In stark contrast, Meg is much more mature than Hercules, in pretty much every way. Her confident physicality and flirtatiousness suggests she is a lot more self-aware than the naive, trusting 18-year-old Hercules, which the more experienced Phil picks up on straight away. As soon as she's introduced, in the clutches of the leering river guardian, she rejects Hercules' rescue attempt, claiming "I'm a damsel. I'm in distress. I can handle this. Have a nice day. [*wink.*]" She's immediately suspicious of Hercules' unguarded gallantry, coining him "Wonderboy" and assuming his chivalrous behaviour is an "innocent farm boy act" intended to manipulate her.

"Have you tried wishing him back into the lamp?"

Meg is not the kind of woman that a traditional Disney 'prince' would normally go after: she's cynical, untrusting, and a self-proclaimed expert at "man-handling." We are explicitly told that she has had — and lost — at least one previous romantic partner, which leads us to her biggest 'strike' of all: she's in cahoots with the villain. Unlike in Aladdin, where the charming rogue tells a few white lies to get into the princesses' good books, the roles here are reversed and the stakes raised. Having entered into a deal to become Hades's slave to save her previous beau, Meg is bribed into deceiving Hercules, using her feminine charms to get close to him and find out his weaknesses. In exchange, Hades promises her freedom, something which you can't blame a girl for considering. 

Rather than villainising Meg's actions, we are privy to her impossible situation from the outset, and can see her secretly falling in love with Hercules for real, despite her best efforts not to (there's even a whole song about it). In this way, we still root for their relationship, sure that true love will conquer all; this is still a Disney film, after all. The only person who tries to shame and take advantage of Meg's "curves" is Hades, the villain whose opinion we have no stock in. 

"Did you start Bridgerton without me?"

True, Meg's "man-handling" isn't subtle: like the Muses, she openly admires Hercules' physique, making him stammer as she comments on his "rippling pectorals." This frustrates Phil and Pegasus, who see her as a distraction for their champion, but at no point do they judge her for her sexuality alone. Phil is already positioned as a womanizer, chasing after Nymphs, while Pegasus is tricked by a vision of a particularly sultry lady horse later in the film. Meg's pursuit of Hercules is fair game in a world where all the goodies are looking for some spicy action.  

Lust is not a new phenomenon in the Disney canon, but usually only the villain openly succumbs to such 'unwanted shallow and vain thoughts' (think Frollo lusting after Esmerelda or Jafar after Jasmine, or Gaston... after himself) whereas in Hercules, almost every character is allowed to have a little ogle at the opposite sex. Like the boyband and girlband '90s era, Ancient Greece has a similar reputation for being a time where all genders have free-rein when it comes to be a poster boy or girl, and all sorts of freaky stuff was going down between the Greek gods alone. It's no surprise then that, while Meg clearly has sex appeal, Hercules is far and away the most objectified character in the film. He's the one with the god-like body and personal trainer, after all. 

"I GOT HIS SWEATBAND!"

This is precisely what makes the central romance of Hercules so progressive: the film accepts that infatuation is a realistic component to falling in love, and then honours both characters as they grow to deeply care for one another. The more compelling and important story by far is not how Hercules will fight off monsters and gods to claim his place on Mount Olympus, but how his love and trust in Meg can bring the two together to succeed as a team, against the odds. The trials of Hercules are even re-written to make his love for Meg pivotal to his success. 

As his daddy Zeus wisely says, "A true hero isn't measured by the size of his strength, but by the strength of his heart." (Clearly the studio is glossing over some of the head god's more colourful romantic moments, but we'll let it slide.) The point being, Hercules has to sacrifice something precious  - his god-like strength, which he believes is his only route to Mount Olympus - in order to prove his love for Meg is more than skin deep. This becomes more important than all the fame, fortune, and accolades he's achieved. 

Me after jogging up a slight incline for 20 seconds

Crucially, it's Meg's reciprocal sacrifice in saving his life (by getting crushed by a pillar destined for him) that she is taken to the underworld, where Hercules has to strip away all of his ego and risk his own life to retrieve her by diving into deathly waters. The image of him rapidly aging and withering as he strives to swim down to her is truly harrowing - and this proves to be the heroic act needed to truly become a god. 

Fortunately, it works out much better for them than Orpheus and Eurydice, which allows for the olive on top of the... pitta. Hercules makes a bold decision. Instead of realising his goal of joining his family on Mount Olympus and becoming a true god, his love for Meg literally brings him down to earth. In a twist to Disney tradition, their union doesn't make Meg a princess, but makes Hercules a pauper. They may have caught each other's attention through nothing but raging hormones, but their happily ever after is as solid as his muscular arms. No Disney love story before or since has felt this sexually liberated and weighed in the woman's favour. You go, girl. 

She kissed herself a mortal