HEBE 

Real Name: Hebe Panhellenios

Identity/Class: Olympian god

Occupation: Goddess of youth; cupbearer of the Olympian gods

Group Membership: FEAST, Olympian Gods, Olympus Group

Affiliations: Athena, Avengers (Amadeus Cho, Quicksilver, Spider-Man (Parker), Spider-Woman (Drew), USAgent, Wasp (Pym), Wolverine (Logan/Howlett)), Hercules, May Parker, Zeus, many vagrants (including Horace)

Enemies: Amazons, Argus, Cronus, Vali Halfling, Hera, Norman Osborn, the Titans, Typhon,

Known Relatives: Zeus (father), Hera (mother), Gaea (great-grandmother), Ouranos (great-grandfather, deceased), Cronus, Rhea (grandparents), Demeter, Vesta (aunts), Chiron, Pluto, Poseidon (uncles), Hercules (former husband, half-brother), Alexiares, Anicetus (sons), Ares, Hephaestus (brothers), Eileithyia, Eris (sisters), Apollo, Dionysus, Hermes (half-brothers), Artemis, Athena, Persephone, Venus (half-sisters), Cupid (nephew), Aeneas, Deimos, Phobos (nephews, deceased)

Aliases: Juventas, Ganymeda, Dia

Base of Operations: Olympus

First Appearance: Ka-Zar I#1/2 (August, 1970)

Powers/Abilities: Hebe possesses the conventional Olympian godly attributes of superhuman strength (Class 25), physical properties, vitality, and functional immortality. She has not aged since reaching adulthood, is immune to harm from conventional means of injury and cannot suffer from any Earthly disease. Should she indeed incur a non-fatal wound her godly metabolism enables her to recuperate at a superhuman rate of speed. Hebe may also possess other magical abilities yet to be revealed. In her station as the goddess of youth, she is able to magically restore the youth and vitality to mortals and animals if they have reached an advanced age. Other powers she may possess include limited precognition, the ability to fly at great speed, and the power to change her shape to that of any mortal and many animals. Hebe may also be able to teleport between dimensions such as from Olympus to Earth.

HISTORY: (Greek myth) - Hebe is the youngest daughter of Zeus, king of the immortals of Olympus and his queen, the goddess Hera. In ancient times, Hebe was regarded as the goddess of youth and the servant of the Greco-Roman gods. It is said that she would pour the nectar of the Olympians when they had their feasts. Legends also state that Hebe would prepare the bath of the war-god Ares and would help Hera to her chariot.

Hebe did not appear to have much traffic with the ancient Greeks and Romans in comparison to her fellow Olympians. The only known account of her dealing with a mortal involved Iolaus, the nephew and former charioteer of Hercules during his days on Earth prior to ascending to Olympus. Iolaus, now elderly, was about to engage in personal combat with King Eurystheus, a cousin of Hercules who the demigod also had to serve during his Twelve Labours for immortality. Iolaus requested to Hebe that he have his youth again for one day so that he could fight Eurystheus, and this Hebe granted.

(Greek myth/Incredible Hercules#129 (fb) ) - Upon Heracles' mortal death and subsequent transformation into the god Hercules by Zeus, he took Hebe as his wife and she bore him two sons named Alexiares and Anicetus.

Hebe was worshipped under the name of Dia by the Phliasians and similarly was worshipped in ancient Rome under the name of Juventas. She was also called Ganymeda after the boy Ganymede who was taken to Olympus by her father Zeus and was said to have taken over Hebe's position as cup-bearer of the gods.

(Assault on New Olympus Prologue#1 (fb) ) - After getting married to Hercules Hebe showed him all the wonderous things in Olympus, which he didn't know yet. Eventually Hercules lost interest and grew more distant from Hebe until he one day just disappeared.

(Ka-Zar I#1/2)- In recent times, following an argument Hercules had with Zeus, Hebe tried to help him, but he told her that until he put things right with Zeus, she was not to be seen with him. She related this to Zeus, and told him that Hercules had left Olympus. Ares was able to manipulate this situation, convincing Zeus to send the Huntsman after Hercules.

(Hulk vs. Hercules: When Titans Collide#1 (fb)) - Hebe observed as Olympus was assaulted by the Hulk, Cronus and creatures such as the Gigantes.

(Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed)- Hebe brought nectar to Hercules after he had been teleported to Olympus by Zeus.

(Incredible Hercules#123) - Hebe served coffee at the Olympus Group meeting her mother called in and accidentally dropped it.

(Incredible Hercules#127) - Working as Hera's secretary Hebe greeted Norman Osborn and was totatlly overwhelmed by her job. When she heard that Hera planned to go after Athena and her allies (including Hercules) she planned to help them.

(Incredible Hercules#128 (fb) - BTS) - Hebe called Norman Osborn to inform him that the Olympus Group was going to roll out Continuum without his approval, which angered Osborn. She then told Osborn that he could find Hera at the Excello Soap Company.

(Incredible Hercules#128) - Hebe went home welcomed by her many cats and then went to her Hercules shrine. She still hoped that they would be together again.

(Incredible Hercules#129) - With the info Hera got from Osborn she deduced that Hebe had betrayed her and attacked her at the Olympus Group HQ. She tossed Hebe out a window, but Hebe survived the fall thanks to her regenerative abilities. She fled to find Hercules and get his help.

(Incredible Hercules#131) - Hebe went to Avengers Mansion to look for Hercules, but nobody was there.

(Incredible Hercules#135) - Hebe took residence in caves in the Inwood Hills Park. Drawn to her many vagrants became her followers. After some complaints the police was ordered to clear the vagrants out, but instead they brought FEAST's May Parker to the caves, so she could talk to Hebe and her followers. After telling Horace, one of the vagrants, to not attack the police, Hebe listened to what May had to say.

(Incredible Hercules#137) - Hebe started cooking at the FEAST in Alphabet City where she cooked Ambrosia for the vagrants. Hebe thought she wasn't ready to date again, but May nonetheless introduced her to her nephew Peter Parker.

(Assault on New Olympus Prologue#1) - Vagrants all over the Tri-State area started coming to the FEAST Hebe worked at to eat her food. Hebe and May Parker gave a TV interview about Hebe's work for FEAST. Amadeus and Athena saw her on TV and called the Avengers and luckily got Hercules on the phone to tell him about Hebe talking on TV. Hercules called in the Avengers to help him reunite with Hebe. Meanwhile Hebe had lunch with Peter Parker and told him a bit about her life and her marriage to Hercules and how he left her. Peter tried to comfort her when she began to cry, but unfortunately Hercules appeared right at the moment when Peter kissed Hebe and hit Peter through a wall. Hebe berated Hercules, who went after Peter for defiling the gods. Hercules got into a fight with Peter's alter ego Spider-Man and they fought until Hebe stopped Hercules from further injuring Spider-Man. They reconciled when Hercules told Hebe that she was never the problem in their marriage, but that it was him and the fact that he never liked it to be an immortal god and that his spirit could never be tamed, which Hebe admitted was the reason why she loved Hercules. They then kissed and listened to Athena revealing Hera's plan to destroy humanity.

(Incredible Hercules#138) - Yellowjacket used a mental imager for Hebe to use, so she could show the Avengers everything she knew about the Olympus Group Tower, its defenses and the whereabouts of Continuum. Amadeus Cho had a plan how to breach Hera's defenses. Hebe went to OGT to clear out her desk, but Hera wanted to talk to her. Hera revealed her plan to destroy Earth. Argus informed Hera that a miniature ship was hidden in Hebe's wrist bracelet. Hera attacked Hebe with a powerful lightning bolt, destroying the ship and severely injuring Hebe. An ambulance arrived to take care of Hebe, which was actually the plan because inside the ambulance the Avengers were hidden. Hebe healed from her wounds and was then told to hide in the ambulance by Amadeus so she wouldn't distract Hercules.

(Incredible Hercules#141) - Hebe healed Wolverine while Hercules battle Typhon at the Continuum portal. Hebe and the Avengers rushed to Athena, who revealed to them that Hercules sacrificed himself to save the world. Hebe mourned Hercules.

(Hercules: Fall of an Avenger#2 (fb) - BTS) - When Amadeus Cho arrived at the Olympus Group Tower Hebe accepted him as her new boss.

(Hercules: Fall of an Avenger#2) - Unable to enter herself Athena followed Hebe to Amadeus' office. Hebe informed Amadeus that Mr. Halfling had called and that he had a visitor (Athena).

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#1) - Hebe met with Amadeus at Gammaworld, New Mexico when he delivered the unconscious Griffin there. She was angry that he was late and informed him the board wanted a metting to reivew the financials because they were losing so much money and that computers were crashing all the time. Amadeus showed her a half trillion dollar expensive multiversal scanner Bruce Banner had been building for him. Though she was angry at him at first for the cost she hugged him when he told her that he needed it to search for Hercules, who he knew was not dead because he was not in Hades.

   Hebe later led Vali Halfling of the Pantheon to a meeting with Amadeus, who attacked Vali's hologram immediately. Hebe considered it rude, but Amadeus explained her that he was a bad guy. Vali offered Amadeus to work together to gain divine omniscience and asked him to provide the ambrosia Hebe had the receipt to. Amadeus knocked him out and stole the scroll with the info to gain divine omniscience to find Hercules. Hebe wasn't sure Amadeus should do it that way.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#2) - Hebe called security to the boardroom to pick up Vali and his guards and bring them to New Tartarus. One of the guards got up and revealed himself to be Vali, who put his gun to Hebe's head and forced her to bring him to Promethean Flame. Her guards let them pass because Vali threatened to shoot her with mistletoe bullets. Vali knocked Hebe out, stole the ambrosia and extinguished the Promethean Flame. Without the flame Hebe lost her eternal youth in an instant and became an old woman.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#2 - BTS) - Hebe was imprisoned.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#2) - After Athena got caught by Vali's men she was put into the same cell as Hebe.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#3 - BTS) - Hebe was still in her cell while Athena plotted with Delphyne Gorgon to regain their youth and escape.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#4) - Hebe and Athena were still in their cell, but regained their youth when the Promethean Flame was reignited.

(Chaos War#2) - When the omnipotent Hercules teleported into the Olympus Group Building Hebe ran towards him, but he warned her of touching him because his new powers made it unsafe to come near him. A saddened Hebe mourned that they were again together, but yet apart. Hercules then led Hebe to the outside and showed her the result of the Chaos King's attack on Earth, hundreds of heroes trapped in a state of waking sleep. Hebe was left behind in New York.

(Chaos War#4 (fb) - BTS) - Hebe was one of the Gods summoned by Gaea and Pele to Halemaumau Crater on Hawaii.

(Chaos War#4) - After another losing effort agains the Chaos King Hercules gathered with the other surviving Gods of Earth in the Halemaumau Crater on Hawaii. Hebe gave him a hug and listened to Amadeus Cho's plan to move Earth's population to Hera's ersatz universe Continuum. Hebe wanted to know if he was sure he could do that and he told her that he could with Hercules' All-Father powers to aid him.

(Herc#6.1 (fb) ) - After losing his divinity Hebe helped him to his feet. She watched as Hercules grew depressed when the Gods gratitude towards him didn't last. Eventually he began hearing prayers from Earth during his sleep. He left Hebe when she asked him who would even pray to him.

(Herc#6.1 (fb) - BTS) - After Hercules was kicked out of the Bacchanalia, when he woke up too early, he was sent home to his wife Hebe, though he never arrived.

(Herc#6.1) - Hermes visited Hebe to ask her about the whereabouts of Hercules. Distrustful of him Hebe lied that Hercules had been with her all night, but Hermes saw through her lie immediately. Though Hermes quickly refuted her fear that he was working for Hera she didn't trust Zeus, who had actually sent Hermes, to be fair either. Hebe asked Hermes to remind Zeus how Hercules had defeated the Chaos King and then sacrificed his power to reality, including Mount Olympus and the Olympians afterward. She told Hermes how hard it was for Hercules after losing his divinity and how he followed prayers to him from Earth to Brooklyn.

Comments: Adapted by Allyn Brodsky and Frank Springer.

According to some Greek myths, Hebe was supplanted in her position as cupbearer by the mortal Ganymede whom Zeus brought to Olympus and transformed into a god. Other myths state that Ganymede served Zeus in particular.

by Alex K and Prime Eternal. Updates by Markus Raymond.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Hebe should not be confused with:

  • Ganymede, moon of Jupiter
  • Ganymede, of the Spinsterhood, @ Silver Surfer III#80

images:
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#1, p18, pan1 (main image)
Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed#1, p38, pan3 (in Olympia)
Incredible Hercules#127, p14, pan3 (Hebe VS Computer)


Appearances:
Ka-Zar I#1 (August, 1970) - Allyn Brodsky (writer), Frnak Springer (pencils), Dick Ayers (inks), Stan Lee (editor)
Incredible Hulk: Hercules Unleashed (October, 1996) - Peter David (writer), Mike Deodato (artist), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Hulk vs. Hercules: When Titans Collide#1 (June, 2008) - Greg Pak, Fred Van Lente (writers), Khoi Pham, Paul Neary, Dennis Calero, Eric Nguyen, Reilly Brown, Carlos Cuevas, Terry Pallot, Chris Sotomayor, Bob Layton (artists), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#123 (Janaury, 2009) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Clayton Henry & Salva Espin (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#127 (May, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Dietrich Smith (pencils), Cory Hamscher (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#128 (June, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Dietrich Smith (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#129 (July, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Ryan Stegman (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#131 (September, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Ryan Stegman (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#135 (November, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Rodney Buchemi (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#137 (December, 2009) - Fred Van Lente & Greg Pak (writers), Rodney Buchemi (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Assault on New Olympus Prologue#1 (January, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Rodney Buchemi (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#138 (January, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Rodney Buchemi (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hercules#141 (March-April, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Rodney Buchemi (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Hercules: Fall of an Avenger#2 (June, 2010) - Greg Pak, Fred Van Lente (writers), Ariel Olivetti (penciler/inker), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#1 (July, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writrers), Reilly Brown (pencils), Terry Pallot with Jason Paz (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#2 (August, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writrers), Reilly Brown (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#3 (September, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writrers), Reilly Brown & Zach Howard (pencils), Terry Pallot & Zach Howard (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#4 (October, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writrers), Reilly Brown & Adam Archer (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Chaos War#2 (December, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Khoi Pham (pencils), Thomas Palmer (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Chaos War#4 (February, 2011) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Khoi Pham (pencils), Thomas Palmer (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Herc#6.1 (October, 2011) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Mike Grell (pencils), Jason Paz & Jeff Huet (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)


Last updated: 09/29/16

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