Written by Gerry Conway
Directed by Charles Siebert
This episode provides examples of:
- Adaptational Villainy: The curse is attributed to three cyclopes brothers led by Arges. In the myths, Arges and his two brothers were loyal allies of the Olympians during the war with the Titans and remained so afterwards. Here, the brothers rebelled against the gods and were cursed by Zeus with blindness (having their eyes turned to stone). Also, nothing is ever said of them helping fight the Titans in the first place.
- Annoying Laugh: Deimos. Hercules has heard it enough times that he is able to see through the old man disguise.Deimos: How'd you know?
Hercules: Your annoying laugh.
[Deimos starts laughing]
Hercules: [frustrated] That wasn't a compliment! - Argument of Contradictions: A little zapping from Discord causes Deimos to do this with himself. A pronounced normal voice sees Discord's side of things, while a cartoonish voice is constantly argumentative no matter what. This back-and-forth inevitably devolves into "Is too!"/"Is not!" shouting. It happens again in the end when Discord leaves Deimos locked up in the Halls of War.
- Bad Boss: In the face of Discord and Deimos childishly getting into it with each other, Ares opts to resolve the situation by slapping them across a very long field. He promises to do even worse, if they don't work things out. He later alludes to reacting very poorly when minions prove him wrong (though he's giving Deimos a break this one time).
- Bait the Dog: While snooping around the storehouse, Iolaus II bumps into a woman claiming she was trying to hide from the mob. When they come upon the cursed stone, she advises him to not touch it. She's really Discord in disguise and just trying to ensure that it's Hercules, not Iolaus II, that takes on the curse. As a bonus, Discord's disguise somewhat resembles Iolaus II's lost love, Nautica.
- Batman Gambit:
- Deimos found one of the cursed stones and placed it in a village's storehouse, ensuring that would contaminate the food and spread the curse to dozens of people all at once. He correctly banks on Hercules being willing to take on the curse in order to save all these innocent lives. Discord has to step in and ensure Iolaus II doesn't touch the stone for it to succeed, though.
- Hercules has successfully convinced the mob to knock it off, so Deimos (in the form of an old man) gins them up again. He preys on their fears of death and of angering the gods, as well as on how Herc is known to not have to worry about either of those things.Old man: You may not fear death, half-god, but we do! The gods have cursed this village!
- Beware the Silly Ones: Deimos is silly, hammy, and a questionable god of terror, but he came up with and executes a plan that nearly gets Hercules killed.
- Big "SHUT UP!": Discord hit Deimos with a spell that causes him to keep arguing with himself. By the time Ares finds him, Deimos is in a constant loop of "Is not!"/"Is too!" screaming. An irritated Ares shouts this, while blasting him free.
- Call-Back:
- Ares is looking for a new second-in-command, referencing how Strife died last season.
- Iolaus II has no love for Discord over the mess that happened with Nautica.
- Casual Danger Dialogue: After taking on the curse, Hercules quips that he can now sneak into a theater without paying. When Iolaus II doesn't laugh at that, he makes another invisible pun. Iolaus II chastises him for cracking jokes at a very bad time.
- Curse: As punishment for rebelling against the gods, the three cyclopes were cursed by having their eyes turned to stone for the rest of their days. Before dying, the last cyclops put a curse on the three stones: since sight was taken from the cyclopes, contact with the stones would take people from sight. A cursed person progressively fades away, with complete invisibility meaning death. Someone shattering one of the stones causes that person to take on the curse, while those that were turning invisible are returned to normal. Through the course of the story, Hercules takes on the curse, Discord and Deimos later get stuck with it, and finally Ares.
- Cynic–Idealist Duo: As Hercules becomes resigned to not getting out of the curse in time, Iolaus II points out he's supposed to be the cynical one in this partnership.
- Despair Event Horizon: The cursed villagers are resigned to impending death, saying that not even Hercules can stop what's happening.
- Didn't See That Coming: Deimos didn't anticipate that Hercules being a half-god would give him more time to fend off the curse.
- The Dragon: Ares is considering giving Strife's old second-in-command position to Deimos, which doesn't sit well with Discord (the current holder of the title).
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: After Hercules takes on the curse, this possibility gets thrown in his face.Deimos: Heroes don't always die in battle or in bed, Hercules.
Discord: [revealing herself] Sometimes, they just [waves] fade away. - Enemy Mine: Discord ends up helping Hercules and Iolaus II purely out of self-interest.Discord: Look, Hercules, you know how much I hate you, but right now, stopping Deimos is more important to me.
- "Eureka!" Moment: Iolaus II thinks to deal with Ares by tossing him the remaining cursed stone.
- Evil Is Hammy: Deimos is constantly laughing and twitchy.
- Eye Scream: The cursed stones are actually the eyes of three cyclopes. Zeus punished them for rebelling against the gods by blinding them this way. The three cyclopes remained that way until they died.Hercules: Good old Dad.
- Face Death with Dignity: Hercules expects to die once he fully fades away. Just before he vanishes, he calls Iolaus II a hero.
- Fainting: Iolaus II's reaction to Hercules being invisible but still alive.
- Fake Ultimate Hero: It turns out that Strife was this to Deimos. He believes his dearly departed cousin was genuinely feared and respected rather than a goofy idiot held in contempt even by his own allies.
- Fight Magnet: Just as Hercules settles in to eat some breakfast, he hears someone off in the distance screaming for help.Hercules: Amazing. Everywhere I go.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: When Hercules takes on the curse, the woman that Iolaus II befriended is laughing along with Deimos. She is soon revealed to be Discord in disguise.
- Good Cannot Comprehend Evil: Averted. Hercules doesn't trust Discord herself, but he does trust her to do what's in her self-interest and how that currently aligns with his predicament.
- Greater Need Than Mine: Hercules has a pretty good idea where to start looking for the other two cursed stones and only has so much time to succeed, but according to Discord, he still stopped to help clean up the village first because people needed help. She is disgusted by this virtuous display.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Hercules takes on the curse so that the villagers will be spared. He, of course, tries to ensure he doesn't end up dying, but he's prepared for that possibility.
- Hidden Depths: Iolaus II demonstrates some serious acrobatic skills, during his morning workout. Hercules is impressed.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Discord hands Deimos one of the cursed stones and then knocks it out of his hands, so that when it shatters, he'll be hit with the curse instead. That part works; him grabbing onto her and refusing to let go presents an obvious problem for her.
- Honor Before Reason: Despite finding the other two cursed stones, Hercules is hesitant to let someone else take on the curse. He'd rather find another way, despite his time running out.
- I Owe You My Life: Iolaus II says everything good in his life is because of Hercules, and he wants to do something to repay the debt. Hercules tells him to just keep making those tasty waffles.
- I Warned You: With Ares chucking rocks at Hercules, Iolaus II tosses the unaware war god the final cursed stone. Hercules warns Ares not to throw it, but the war god doesn't listen and gets hit with the curse soon afterwards.
- Insult Backfire: After walloping him once again, Hercules outright calls Ares a masochist. Ares has no idea what that word means, but he actually likes the sound of it.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Ares takes a moment to comment on how Strife and Deimos look so much alike.
- Little "No": Iolaus II, after Hercules is already starting to fade away.
- Madness Mantra: To prevent Hercules from finding the remaining stones, Deimos works up the mob into going after him. The leader just keeps shouting over and over again, "Hercules must be stopped, even if it means killing him!"
- Mirthless Laughter: Iolaus II upon seeing he's been cornered by Ares.
- Neck Lift:
- Hercules when revealing he's seen through Deimos's old man disguise.
- Ares does this to Deimos when reprimanding him for failing to finish Hercules. He later does it to Iolaus II when holding him hostage.
- The Needs of the Many: Hercules shatters the stone and takes on the curse so that the villagers will be spared.
- Noodle Incident: Arges leading his brothers in a rebellion against the Olympians, resulting in Zeus cursing the three of them.
- Not a Morning Person: Averted once again. Iolaus II is up very early, having already cooked breakfast and wrapped up his morning exercises before Hercules even wakes up.
- Not Quite Dead: Hercules completely fades away, but unlike the mortal villagers, he's simply rendered invisible and otherwise alive. Deimos reasons that his half-god nature has given him extra time.
- Oh, Crap!: Deimos right before Ares sends him flying into a tree.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Iolaus II being in a positively good mood in The Teaser takes Hercules by surprise, given his usual cynicism.
- Race Against the Clock: According to the lead villager, people afflicted with the curse are dead in less than a day. Even after becoming completely invisible, Hercules gets at least until sunset, due to being a half-god.
- Rapid-Fire "No!": Deimos after Discord ensures he'll take on the curse by causing him to drop one of the stones.
- Sadistic Choice: Hercules is put in this position, as he can either let the fading villagers die or take on the curse himself and suffer the same fate.Iolaus II: What kind of a choice is that?
Deimos: Well, it's the only one he's got, if he wants to save the villagers. [chuckles] It's quite a dilemma, isn't it? [laughs] - Shaming the Mob: Hercules when condemning the mob for lashing out against their cursed friends and neighbors. It works, until Deimos gets them worked up again.
- Something We Forgot: After getting hit with the curse, Discord and Deimos figuratively and literally disappear from the story. After Ares becomes cursed, Discord returns to show she's back to normal. Hercules asks what happened to Deimos, to which Discord says, "He's hanging around somewhere." Deimos is then shown hung upside down in the dungeon of the Halls of War and once again forced to argue with himself.
- Spanner in the Works: Deimos worries that Iolaus II going to the storehouse instead of Hercules will completely upend his plan. Discord poses as a mortal woman to prevent this from happening.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: Deimos placed one of the stones in the village's storehouse, which contaminated the food and caused multiple people to be afflicted with the curse at the same time.
- This Is Gonna Suck:
- Iolaus II heading to the storehouse prompts this reaction from Deimos, who dreads his plan falling apart and Ares punishing him for it.
- Ares right before getting hit with the curse.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Due to being played by the same actor, Deimos is the spitting image of Strife outside the different hair.Ares: They, uh, they look enough alike, don't you think?
Deimos: Do not! I'm taller, and he's dead! - Unwitting Pawn: Deimos preys on the other villagers' fears of fading away to ensure they make things difficult for Hercules and Iolaus II.
- Villain Has a Point: For all the grief she gets about it, Discord reminds Iolaus II that he never would've met Nautica in the first place, if not for her earlier scheme.
- Woman Scorned: Discord doesn't take kindly to being iced out as second-in-command and not getting any credit for helping moving the plot along. She hangs Deimos upside down (twice) and opts to help Hercules get out of this mess.
- The Worf Effect: The brawl in the quarry goes very badly for Ares. Granted, Ares is forbidden from going all out on his protected half-brother, but Hercules outright comments on how he's been wiping the floor with the war god lately and how he finds it rather boring.
- Worth It: After taking on the curse, Hercules looks around the room and is pleased to see the various villagers recovering.
- Would Hit a Girl: Hercules has to stop Iolaus II from trying to strangle Discord.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: About to fade away, Hercules tells Iolaus II that he saved a lot of people by bringing him the cursed stone and talks to him about being a hero.Iolaus II: Well, easy to say, harder to accept. Y'know, everything I've learned about courage or bravery in this world, I-I've learned from following your example, and I guess I—
Hercules: Iolaus, before we met, you saw yourself as a jester, so that's what you were. I saw you as a hero who didn't know it yet. Once you saw yourself that way, too, well, that's what you became. We are who we perceive ourselves to be. - You Did the Right Thing: Iolaus II kicks himself for Hercules's condition, as he was the one who found the cursed stone. Hercules reminds him that if he hadn't, a number of innocent villagers would've died.
- You Fool!: Discord's frustrated response to Deimos ensuring she gets hit with the curse, too.
