1.41 - Adventures in the Forbidden Zone

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Title	Adventures in the Forbidden Zone
Episode #	Season 1, Episode 41
First aired	February 24, 1999
Directed by
Written by
Summary	A new cadet, Theseus, talks big but freaks when Hercules is attacked by an ogre under the sand.

FoxKids Spoilers

In the middle of a tough drill, a young man steps in and deftly handles HERCULES. It's THESEUS, self - proclaimed Spartan war hero. He says he heard about Cheiron's academy and thought he'd check it out. Now that he's seen it, he believes himself better suited to instruct than learn. Theseus shows Cheiron his credentials, and Cheiron agrees. IOLAUS, LILITH, and all the other cadets except Hercules quickly fall under the guy's spell. Theseus notices Herc resistance and pushes him hard. Finally push comes to angry shove, and Theseus challenges Herc to a chariot race (an ancient drag race). Herc accepts. But when the two fierce competitors keep driving into a 'forbidden area,' they're attacked by a man-eating ogre. In a real fight, Theseus suddenly panics, and both he and Herc are captured and caged, soon to be the ogre's next meal. Theseus admits he's a fraud. He's no war hero, but a deserter who, though skilled, didn't have the courage for real combat. His confidence is all show. Herc gives Theseus a pep talk, and they outsmart and defeat the ogre. When they return to the academy, and Theseus confesses his deception to Cheiron, they discover Cheiron had known about Theseus' lie for a while but felt the young man would learn more by earning the consequences of his lie than from any lecture Cheiron could give.
Hercules clashes with a new cadet named Theseus (Mfundo Morrison), and their rivalry leads to a chariot race that is run next to an area called the Forbidden Zone, from which mortals never return.