GIANTS
Classification: Extradimensional Race (Olympus) (13th BC to Modern)
Location/Base of operations: Ossa and Pelion in the dimension of Olympus, formerly Phlegyra in the area known as Thrace (modern Greece and Bulgaria)
Known Members:
Agrius, Alcyoneus, Callias, Clytius, Enceladus, Ephialtes, Eurymedon, Eurytus, Gration, Hippolytus, Mimas, Pallas, Polyboetus, Porphyrion,
Thoas (all deceased),
Hopladamus, "Long Hair," "Bearded One," "One-Eye,"
Affiliations: Cronus, Gaea, Zeno
Enemies: The Gods of Olympus, The Hulk,
First Appearance: Hulk: Hercules Unleashed (October 1996)
Powers/Abilities:
History: (Greek/Roman Myth/Incredible Hercules#130) - The Giants of Olympus are the progeny of Gaea, the primeval goddess of earth, who conceived them mystically from the blood of Ouranus. Among them, the giant Hopladamus protected and aided in concealing the Titaness Rhea that she might give birth to Zeus without fear of ill treatment from Cronus, her husband. As a young god, Zeus overthrew Cronus and the Titans and imprisoned them in Tartarus. Gaea had searched for a plant to make the Giants immortal as the Olympian Gods and the Titans before them, but Zeus withheld Helios, Eos and Selene from giving light to earth for Gaea to find it, and by finding it himself in the darkness, he managed to keep the Giants from obtaining it.
The
Giants were prophesied by the Titaness Themis to be indestructible and could not
be killed by god or immortal. Zeus obtained the help of his mortal son,
Hercules, to battle them, who being born of a mortal was neither a god or
mortal. Under the leadership of Eurymedon, the giants attacked Olympus by
hurling huge rocks and flaming oaks upon the Olympians. Among the Giants, the
strongest were Alcyoneus and Porphyrion. Alcyoneus was immortal only in the vicinity of his homeland of Pallene.
Hercules shot him with his arrows dipped in from the blood of the Hydra and
dragged him belong Pallene where he died. Porphyrion attacked Hercules and would
have raped Hera, but Zeus struck him with a thunderbolt and Hercules killed him
with an arrow. Ephialtes was killed in a joint manner with Apollo also hitting
him with an arrow in the left eye while Hercules hit him in the right eye with
an arrow. Dionysus used his thyrsus and managed to kill Eurytus with it. Hecate
burned Clytius with torches and Hephaestus hurled molten metal with deadly aim
upon Mimas. Enceladus fled west, and was crushed in an avalanche near Sicily
created by Athena. She then turned and flayed the giant Pallas and used his skin
on her shield. Neptune pursued Polyboetes through the Aegean sea to the island
of Cos and threw a part of the island atop of him which became the island of
Nisyrus. Hermes borrowed the cap of darkness from Pluto, god of the dead, to
become invisible and slew Hippolytus. The Fates killed Agrius and Thoas with
clubs of bronze while Eurymedon.
The rest of the giants were routed by Triton, son of Neptune, blowing a conch shell along with the raucous braying of wild asses ridden into the battle by the satyrs of Olympus. They were then felled by thunderbolts created by Zeus and finished off by Hercules' arrows tipped from the blood of the Hydra. Gaea, crying out from the blood of the Giants spilled on earth, then gave birth to her most loathsome and most formidable son, Typhon.
(Hulk vs. Hercules: When Titans Collide#1 (fb)) - In recent years, a blind Titan named Zeno and one-armed giant named Callias encountered the Hulk by the entrance to Tartarus as they held a meal to honor their brethren consigned to that realm. The Hulk shared their meal until they were attacked by Ares, which led to the Hulk attacking Olympus, convinced by Callias and Zeno that they were his enemies. Callias and Zeno had their fellow giants join them in breaking the seal to Tartarus, unleashing Cronus upon Olympus. They attempted to overthrow Olympus, but Hercules and the Hulk led the Gods of Olympus against them. During the clash, Hercules slew Callias and Zeno. Hercules ultimately resealed Tartarus.
(Hulk:
Hercules Unleashed) - Years later, the Hulk became a guest of the Olympian
Gods following a confrontation with Hercules. As he looked for a way back to
Earth, Hercules told him of a short path to Greece and a longer much arduous
path through the regions of Ossa and Pelion filled with "Giants, a rogue
Titan, a Cyclops or two." Not being in any sort of hurry, the Hulk took the
longer path with Hercules guiding the way - clashing and fighting Giants along
the way.
Comments: Adapted by
Mythologically, it is believed that most of the myths are thinly veiled accounts of historical events and that the battle of the Olympian Gods and the Giants (The Gigantomachy, Apollodorus), may actually be based on nearly forgotten wars the Ancient Greeks had against barbarian hordes from the North (possibly Celts). This theory coincides with translations of Scandinavian myth that the Asgardian Gods were originally powerful Germanic kings at war with the Celts (Giants) while the realms of Niffleheim, Alfheim and Svartalheim represented Iceland, Finland and Ancient Poland, respectively.
There are at least two other groups of
Giants: the Curetes who protected Rhea and the infant Zeus, of which Hopladamus
may be a member, and then the Gegenees ("earthborn"), who Hercules and
the Argonauts killed in Mysia on behalf of King Cyzicus of the Doliones
tribes.
In Hulk: Hercules
Unleashed, Hercules suggests that there are other parts within the Olympian
dimension just as the Asgardian dimension is made up of various regions. Of
these regions, Ossa and Pelion are also known as the two mountains which the
giant sons of Neptune, Otus and Ephialtes, piled up to reach Olympus. Pelion is
also the home of the wise centaur, Chiron.
A list of Olympian gods
who did not take part of the war with the Giants: Ares, Artemis, Demeter, The
Furies, The Muses, Pan (could be counted among the satyrs), Persephone, Pluto
(Hades - he did give Hermes a hat), Venus (Aphrodite) and Vesta (Hestia). Ares
was imprisoned in a vase by Otus and Ephialtes, the sons of Neptune (Poseidon),
but this story occurs perhaps as much as twenty to thirty years earlier during
the reign of King Aloeus of Sicyon.
Profile by: Will U
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Giants of Olympus are not to be confused with:
Images:
Hulk - Hercules Unleashed, page 49, full page
"Long Hair," - Hercules Unleashed, page 49
"Bearded One," - Hercules Unleashed, page 49
Issues:
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#130 (August, 2009) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Ryan Stegman & Rodney Buchemi (pencils), Terry Pallot (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Last updated: 05/19/08
Any Additions/Corrections? Please let me know.
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