Mythology Explained

Achilles and Hercules, each given every weapon, armor and enhancement, are compared here in a head-to-head, Hercules kept to his most powerful mortal version since fielding his god version wouldn't seem sporting.

Circe, the witch from The Odyssey who transforms Odysseus's men into pigs, through her origins and how the Circe seen on screen in Christopher Nolan's Odyssey differs from the Circe of myth.

A couple of chapters from the Iliad culminate in the gods of Olympus attacking each other after Zeus sends them down to join the Trojan War directly, supporting either side.

Achilles, son of Peleus and the sea-goddess Thetis, one of 50 Nereids and daughters of the sea-god Nereus, was the great-grandson of Zeus and the greatest warrior in Greece.

Reports that Elliot Page plays Sinon in Nolan's Odyssey lead into Sinon himself: his role in the Trojan Horse story, how he tricked the Trojans, and why he is originally absent from Homer's Odyssey, appearing in Virgil's Aeneid.

The armoured giants briefly shown in the Odyssey trailer are the Laestrygonians from Homer's Odyssey, giant cannibals encountered by Odysseus in Greek mythology.

Homer is vague about Helen of Troy's appearance but is far more specific about Achilles, whose true look is examined here against the recent Odyssey casting controversy.

Since Lupita Nyong'o was cast as Helen of Troy for Nolan's Odyssey, discussion has turned to what Helen actually looked like according to Greek mythology.

The 12 Olympians lived on Mount Olympus in Thessaly, the highest mountain in Greece, entered through a gate of clouds watched over by the seasons.

Oceanus was the very first Titan and, on some readings, perhaps the very first god of any kind, including Primordials, Titans and Olympians, in all of Greek mythology.

Seven of the most devastating weapons in Greek mythology are counted here, starting with Medusa's head, one of three Gorgon sisters whose gaze turned onlookers to stone.

Ten of the most powerful male gods in Greek mythology are counted here, their powers often dwarfing those of the other deities in the Greek mythos.

Starting with Nyx, the personification of night and one of the first-generation primordial deities, this survey names the ten most powerful goddesses in Greek mythology.

Hercules had to complete 12 nigh-impossible labors because of Hera's vindictiveness toward Zeus's illegitimate son; this ranks them from least to most dangerous.

Moros was the Greek god of Doom, the inevitability of death, the divine personification of the idea that no one can cheat death or escape their destiny.

Nyx, a primordial deity and the personification of night, is examined through her role in Hesiod's Theogony, her appearance in the Iliad, and whether she was more powerful than Zeus.

Nemesis personified retribution, visiting punishment on the guilty; some myths present her as human-like, though she was often conceptualized as an omnipresent force, not a physical entity.

Zeus, perhaps the greatest monster slayer in mythology, is examined here through the Greek cosmology and the chronological, cataclysmic conflicts by which he defeated the Titans and became king of the gods.

An elaborate scenario in which Hades usurps Zeus and rises to become king of Olympus, harnessing the modern portrayal of Hades as evil, though compared to his brothers Zeus and Poseidon he was downright chivalrous.

Athena, daughter of Zeus and the Oceanid Metis, was the goddess of wisdom and war, known as Minerva to the Romans, and one of the most popular gods in Greek mythology.

Three sons of Zeus, had they reached adulthood, would have grown powerful enough to succeed their father, either by force or by his own blessing, though prophecy itself seemed to contrive to keep Zeus enthroned.

Sisyphus, a man too clever for his own good, became a figure synonymous with inciting the wrath of the gods and an enduring symbol of futility and eternal struggle.

Prometheus, a Titan who betrayed his own kind to join the gods, became the champion of humanity by stealing fire from Zeus, earning the punishment of an ever-regenerating liver devoured daily by an eagle.

Zagreus, son of Zeus, was destined to become the next king of the Cosmos, evidenced by Zeus seating him on his throne and arming him with lightning, though he is not a prominent figure in mainstream Greek mythology.

Oceanus, eldest of the 12 first-generation Titans, personified the great river that encircled the world, leading this account of the five mightiest male Titans in Greek mythology before Zeus and the gods.

Hades, lord of the underworld, and Poseidon, lord of the sea, are compared here on weapons, sphere of influence, raw power and combat ability to determine which god would win.

In his darkest moment, Hercules murdered his own wife and three sons; the tragedy of his life ends with him ascending from the funeral pyre to godhood.

Six times, according to Greek mythology, the Greek gods came close to exterminating humanity entirely, a recurring pattern examined across the different myths in which it occurs.

Asclepius, the greatest healer in Greek mythology, became so adept at healing that he could bring the dead back to life, no longer limited by the fragility of flesh.

Hesiod's Theogony names all 12 elder Titans as the eldest children of Gaia and Uranus, born before the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires, the trio of hundred-handed giants.

The Primordial Deities of Greek mythology are gods older than Zeus and the Olympians, older even than the Titans; the Olympians rule the world, but the Primordials are the world itself.

Typhon, the most powerful monster in Greek mythology, is examined in greater detail through The Library of Greek Mythology's account of his battle with Zeus and the gods' flight to Egypt.

Dionysus, known as Bacchus to the Romans, was the god of wine, sacred to both the ivy and the grapevine, kept company by Satyrs, Silens and Maenads.

Five Greek monsters so powerful even the gods and Titans feared them, starting with Medusa, born a Gorgon with her sisters Euryale and Sthenno to the sea gods Phorcys and Ceto.

Ares and Athena, both Olympians and children of Zeus, are compared here as gods of war through the myths each features in and their roles in the Titanomachy, the Gigantomachy and Zeus's battle against Typhon.

Whether an immortal life can truly be snuffed out, and whether a rampaging figure like Kratos could actually destroy every divine being on Olympus, is explored here through Greek mythology's monster myths.

A second list of Greek monsters follows the first, which covered Typhon, the hundred-handed Hecatoncheires, the war-born Giants, Medusa and the Cyclopes who armed the gods.

A further look at Greek monsters that made gods and Titans tremble, following an earlier video on Typhon, the Hecatoncheires, the Giants, Medusa and the Cyclopes.

Nyx was one of the Protogenoi, the first powers of existence, older than the Olympians; she ruled no single place or domain, yet even Zeus knew better than to cross her.

The Library of Greek Mythology, attributed to Apollodorus, describes Typhon chasing the gods out of Olympus, cutting the sinews from Zeus's hands and feet, and imprisoning him in a cave.

Hyperion was a primeval solar deity, father of the sun, the moon and the dawn, one of the 12 first-generation Titans who helped castrate Uranus before being cast into Tartarus.

Gaia, the Earth itself, was to the ancient Greeks the foundation of reality and the ever-enduring mother of gods and monsters, who also schemed and unleashed creatures that nearly ended Olympus.

The Greeks named the void before gods, Titans, earth or sky Chaos: the raw source, more than simple disorder, from which earth, sky, gods, monsters and fate itself emerged.

A king beloved by the gods, granted a seat at their table, betrayed their trust so vilely that even the Olympians were horrified, earning one of Greek mythology's most creative punishments.

Zeus, king of Olympus and wielder of lightning, is often called the most powerful Greek god, yet he could be outwitted, resisted and was, in some cases, afraid.

The one who ruled before Hades, brother to Zeus and ruler of the dead: a suffocating darkness so complete that even the gods feared it, which gave birth to death, to night and to fate itself.

Salmoneus, cursed and condemned by the gods, scorned them out of hubris, impersonating Zeus by tossing torches and dragging pots to simulate lightning and thunder before Zeus struck him down.

The Hecatonchires were a monstrous trio of giants named Briareus, Cottus and Gyges, each with 50 heads and 100 arms, imprisoned within Gaia before helping defeat the Titans and becoming guardians of Tartarus.

Greek mythology tells of five races of humanity, gold, silver, bronze, heroic and iron, created in succession through divine experimentation, one of three separate Greek myths about the creation of humanity.

Cratos, the Greek god of strength, who shares a name with the God of War protagonist, played a smaller role than most gods: a guardian of Zeus' citadel who betrayed the Titans and chained Prometheus.

Chiron, the immortal centaur who begged for death, was quite the aberration among centaurs, half-man and half-horse beings who lived in mountains and forests and were raucous, rowdy and prone to revelry.

In the primordial past the world existed in different configurations; using those as precedent, this explores what might happen to the sky, the earth and the gods if Atlas ever dropped it.

An ancient winged goddess, closely connected to Zeus and revered by warriors and athletes, is examined here through her forgotten origins and the meaning behind her wings and laurel wreath.

Ares, the Greek god of war known as Mars to the Romans, is discussed here as a deity notably out of favour with Zeus.

Asclepius, the greatest healer in Greek mythology, was the son of Apollo and was trained by the immortal centaur Chiron, before Zeus killed him for gaining the power to raise the dead.

Nike, the winged goddess of victory in Greek mythology, inspired the name of the sporting brand, though many picture only the swoosh, not the goddess herself.

Adonis, one of the most handsome men in Greek mythology, was born from a tree trunk and became the object of Aphrodite's infatuation, doomed to die before old age could touch him.

The five rivers of the underworld, Styx, Acheron, Lethe, Phlegethon and Cocytus, descend from the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, most water deities being their children.

Hercules ascended to godhood at the end of his life, but leaving that version aside, this asks whether the mortal Hercules was stronger than the gods, or at least possessed a god's strength.

Enyo, the Greek goddess of slaughter and bloodshed, was a war deity alongside better known gods like Ares and Athena, said to revel in the destruction of armies and cities.

Zeus's lightning bolts are widely regarded as the most powerful weapon in Greek mythology; this traces where they came from, who made them, who transported them and whether the supply was limitless.

Five of the most powerful gods in Greek mythology are counted here, their powers often dwarfing those of the other deities in the Greek mythos.

Zeus's many confrontations with Prometheus, his attempt to keep meat from humanity, his theft of fire, his near-genocide of humankind and his conduct toward women are weighed to ask whether he was the most evil Greek god.

Detached from how she is usually portrayed, Gaia's role in the sequence of great conflicts that made up Greek mythology's creation myth is examined here to ask whether she was in fact evil.

Three sons of Zeus, had they reached adulthood, would have grown powerful enough to succeed their father, either by force or by his own blessing, yet none of them survived past childhood.

Despite losing to the gods, and every belligerent Titan except Atlas imprisoned in Tartarus, the Titans are examined here for whether they were in fact more powerful, given how much outside weapons and reinforcements augmented the gods.

Starting with Gaia, five of the most powerful goddesses in Greek mythology are counted here, their powers often dwarfing those of their male counterparts.

Five of the most powerful sea monsters in Greek mythology are counted here, excluding the Hippokampoi and the fish-tailed, lobster-clawed Ichthyocentaurs from the list.

Five times in Greek mythology Zeus came closest to permanent incapacitation, whether through banishment, imprisonment or dismemberment, starting with the insurgency led by Hera, Athena and Poseidon.

Zeus, the lightning-bolt-wielding, titan-destroying king of the gods and the best known deity in Greek mythology, is examined here as he pertains to the Greek creation myth.

The Primordial Deities are presented here as the original gods, the beings who preceded the gods themselves, in this Greek mythology profile from Mythology Explained.

Atlas, the cursed Titan, and why he was the Titan too powerful for Tartarus.

Cronus escaped from Tartarus and afterward became king of the Isles of the Blessed, Greek mythology's version of heaven, following his earlier defeat by the gods.

Atlas, the Titan condemned to hold up the sky for eternity, was singled out for a punishment worse than being cast down into Tartarus, unlike the other Titans defeated in the Titanomachy.

The all-out war between the gods and the Titans, so devastating it remade the face of the earth and so important it decided who would rule the cosmos, with the events that led up to it.

Perseus, whose apotheosis was slaying Medusa with help from Hermes and Athena, opens this account of the five greatest heroes in Greek mythology.

Argus, called the Panoptes or All-Seeing-One, was the monstrous giant Hera set to guard Io, a woman Zeus had transformed into a cow, with accounts of his eyes ranging from four to a thousand.

Typhon, son of Gaia and Tartarus, was the most powerful monster in Greek mythology, perhaps, if weapons are set aside, more powerful even than all of the gods combined.

The Giants, described by Apollodorus as unsurpassed in size and unassailable in strength, fought the gods in the Gigantomachy, the war examined here alongside the events that led up to it.

Perseus and Hercules, two of Greek mythology's A-list heroes, iconic in ancient times and still famous in modern pop culture, are compared here to determine which is more powerful.

Cronus is presented here as one of the most famous Titans in Greek mythology, the subject of this installment of Mythology Explained.

Uranus was one of the primordial deities and the personification of the sky in Greek mythology, discussed here as father of the Titans in this profile from Mythology Explained.

Hypnos, twin brother of Thanatos, was the Greek god and personification of sleep.

Zeus, the thunder-wielding ruler of Olympus, is usually seen as the ultimate symbol of divine power, but his reign was built on borrowed fire.

The Greek god Priapus, whose massive organ was no genetic gift: it was one symptom of a very permanent curse, and though he appeared to embody vitality, he was cursed with impotence.

The Erinyes, called the Furies by the Romans, were a triumvirate of vengeful spirits who punished transgressors, unleashing their wrath above all on those who committed blood crimes against family.

Nephele was a cloud nymph created by Zeus in the likeness of Hera to test Ixion, a man infatuated with Hera; Ixion failed the test and was bound to a spinning flaming wheel in Tartarus.

Chaos, in Greek mythology, was the first primordial deity to come into existence, the manifestation of the great void that predates all else, its power resting on its primacy in the creation myth.

Tartarus was one of the first-generation primordial deities to emerge from Chaos, alongside Gaia, Eros and Erebus, and this asks whether any god, Titan, hero or monster ever escaped it.

The Aloads, Otus and Ephialtes, giant twins in Greek mythology, abducted Ares and imprisoned him for 13 months, stacked mountains to reach Olympus, and tried to abduct Hera and Artemis.

Zagreus, the first incarnation of Dionysus, was given the lightning bolt by Zeus, who intended him as his heir, before Hera set the Titans on him and tore him to pieces.

The Hecatonchires, a trio of incredibly powerful monsters born to Gaia and Uranus, overwhelmed the Titans and struck fear into the hearts of the gods themselves in Greek mythology.

Tartarus was the great abyss beneath Gaia, one of the primordial deities, existing both as a god and as the infernal plane of the underworld reserved for unforgivable crimes.

An unborn god, fated to overthrow Zeus and become the most powerful god in all of Greek mythology, would have forced every other god to bend the knee or face destruction.

Thanatos, the Greek god of death, is discussed here as the inspiration for Thanos, in this straight-to-Greece profile from Mythology Explained.