Record of Ragnarok: Why Did Hercules Fight for the Gods?

Season 2 of Record of Ragnarok began when it was announced that the fourth round was going to begin, and that was when Hercules decided to be the one to fight on the corner of the gods in round four against whoever the Valkyries had on their corner. In that regard, it was clear that the gods had a powerhouse on their side because Hercules was just as strong and as heroic as any other god. But the thing is that he was actually human before he became a god. So, why did Hercules fight for the gods?

Hercules fought for the gods because he must have realized that this was the only way for him to save humanity. Fighting for the gods meant that he could earn favor with the other gods so that he could try to convince them to save humanity instead of destroying it, as he loved humankind so much.

The fact that Hercules fought for the gods to try to save humanity is an admirable trait of his, as he still loved humankind so much that he was willing to talk the gods into saving them. Nevertheless, he would have been a great asset to mankind if he had fought for them instead. So, with that said, let’s talk about Hercules and his decision to fight for the gods.

Hercules’ History Explained

Back in season 1 of Record of Ragnarok, we saw how humankind was able to prove that humans can indeed bring gods down, as that was what happened when Sasaki Kojiro defeated Poseidon in a hard-fought battle. Of course, that meant that the gods were now serious enough in their attempt to bring humankind down as they needed to field some of the strongest gods that they had in their corner. That was when season 2 started with the announcement that it was Hercules who was going to represent the gods in round four of the tournament.

Of course, the hint that Hercules was a demigod and not a pure god was given early on in episode 1. However, in episode 2 of season 2, that was when Hercules’ life story was told, as it was important for viewers to understand what kind of a person he was and what allowed him to become a god in his own right.

Hercules started out as a young human boy named Alcides, who had a deep disdain for bullies and was always on the side of justice. He tried his best to fight for his friends so that he could protect them. On top of that, he also made sure that he fought against the injustices of the world despite the fact that he started out as a scrawny kid that didn’t have any power.

Still, Alcides trained night in and night out to make sure that he could become strong enough to protect the people that he cared about and to fight the injustices of society. He became the strongest warrior of Thebes in Greece. However, that was also the time when the gods convened in the Council of Valhalla to determine the fate of Thebes, which had become a breeding ground for evil and selfish humans. Ares, who had jurisdiction over Thebes, decided to come down to Earth to smite the people of that city.

Despite the fact that the people of Thebes had already accepted their fate, Alcides blocked the path of Ares and his army. Of course, he didn’t stand a chance against a god because he was just an ordinary human being. But that didn’t stop him from trying. And he even went as far as drinking Zeus’ blood so that he could obtain the powers of a god, just like how the legends say that Achilles became invincible when he drank the blood of Zeus.

Alcides, due to his heroic heart, transformed into a god that decimated Ares’ army and fought the Greek god of war to a standstill. He wasn’t going to allow Ares to destroy Thebes because, despite the fact that the people of that city were not the best humans, he still loved them for who they were. That was when Zeus arrived to break things up between the two powerful men.

Zeus invited Alcides to become a god. Of course, Alcides did so under the condition that the gods would not touch humanity. That was the reason why humankind was left untouched by the gods for 4,000 years until the events of the Record of Ragnarok. Alcides eventually became Hercules when he received his godly crown.

Why Did Hercules Fight For The Gods?

Of course, it is clear that Hercules was never a god from the start. He was an ordinary human being with a heroic heart that allowed him to survive the blood of Zeus to become a powerful god that was strong enough to fight Ares on par. But if he was human, why did Hercules fight for the gods?

Hercules fought for the gods because he believed that this was the only way for him to save humankind. The truth was that Hercules still loved humanity so much despite the fact that he knew that humans could be malicious. That’s because he also knows that humans are capable of more than just malice as they can be kindhearted people that can grow and love.

In that regard, he believed that fighting for the gods was the only way for him to save humankind because it would allow him to get in favor of the gods. This is similar to what happened 4,000 years ago when he had just become a god after drinking Zeus’ blood. He gave himself to the gods so that he could save humankind, as Zeus made a promise that he and the other gods won’t meddle with human affairs ever again.

As such, Hercules thought that he could do the same as well. By participating in the tournament as a god and winning, he could get on the good side of the gods to convince them that humanity is still worth saving. Of course, he could have just fought on the side of humanity to help them win one round, but there was no assurance that humankind would defeat the gods.

In that regard, Hercules must have thought that there was no way for humanity to win that tournament against the gods, and that was the reason why he decided to fight for the gods so that he could convince them to save humankind. Nevertheless, this did not work out in his favor, as he wasn’t even able to win his fight against Jack the Ripper.