33 Anime, Cartoons and Graphic Novels inspired by Greek Mythology

1. Ulysses 31 (French-Japanese Animated series)

1981-1982, 26 half-hour episodes

This futuristic myth is about Odysseus (known as “Ulysses” in Latin) and his son, Telemachus, trying to make it back to earth in their spaceship after destroying the giant metallic Cyclops, which has angered the Greek Gods.

The French-Japanese animated TV series, Ulysses 31, is thankfully available with English sound.

Every fan of Greek Mythology should see this very imaginative anime. Ulysses 31 is set in space in another weird universe making it very mysterious like a dream that only Morpheus could conjure up.

One of my favorite scenes in this brilliant anime is when Hermes makes a surprising appearance when you least expect it.

Here’s a list of the episodes with International English titles – French titles:

Ulysses 31 – Animated series episodes:

2. Blood of Zeus

Blood of Zeus premiered on Netflix on October 27, 2020. 

3. Mythic Warriors: Guardians of the Legend (Animated series)

1998-2000, 26 episodes (Canada)

4. Jason and the Heroes of Mount Olympus (French Animated series)

2002, 26 episodes

Jason and the Heroes of Mount Olympus – Animated series episodes:

5. Percy Jackson and the Olympians – The Graphic Novels

I’m not really sure whether I should be recommending the Percy Jackson graphic novels to you.

Everyone should read all of the books first because the books are so amazing that your imagination will come to life. Checkout the graphic novels after you’ve read the books.

• The Lightning Thief: The Graphic Novel
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters: The Graphic Novel
• The Titan’s Curse: The Graphic Novel
• The Battle of the Labyrinth: The Graphic Novel
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians The Last Olympian: The Graphic Novel

6. Saint Seiya (Japanese Anime series)

1986-1989, 114 episodes (also known as Knights of the Zodiac)

Here is the fantastic opening song intro for Knights of the Zodiac (I Ran – Bowling For Soup).

Saints have sworn to defend the reincarnation of Athena in a power struggle against the Greek Gods who want to rule the earth.

The young spirited Seiya is another hopeful who has trained long and hard for the Sacred Armor of Pegasus so he too can become one of Athena’s saints. This was a very popular anime in the 80s.

7. Hercules and Xena – The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus (1998)

This animated cartoon is based on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess. Both of these television shows were cult hits back in the 1990s and early 2000.

8. Class of the Titans (2005-2008)

2 Seasons, 52 episodes

9. Disney’s Hercules: The Animated Series

1998-1999, 67 episodes (Hercules TV Series IMDb Page)

Hercules: Zero to Hero (Episodes 66-67)

10. Wonder Woman (2009)

DC Animated Movie, 75 minutes

The Amazons defeat Ares, the God of War, and hold him prisoner on the hidden island of Themyscira. The day comes though when he escapes.

Wonder Woman comic books:

• Wonder Woman Archives: Volume 1-4
• Wonder Woman Volume 1: Gods and Mortals

11. Hermes: Winds of Love (Anime movie)

1997, Japanese Animation, 117 minutes

Hermes attempts to remove Crete’s King Minos from power in this loose adaption of Greek mythology.

As a nice change, Hermes is partnered with Aphrodite.

12. The Olympians (Graphic Novels)

By George O’Connor

A graphic novel series that focusses on one particular Greek God or Goddesses at a time.

• Olympians Book 1: Zeus: King of the Gods
• Olympians Book 2: Athena: Grey-Eyed Goddess
• Olympians Book 3: Hera: The Goddess and Her Glory
• Olympians Book 4: Hades: Lord of the Dead
• Olympians Book 5: Poseidon: Earth Shaker
• Olympians Book 6: Aphrodite: Goddess of Love
• Olympians Book 7: Ares: Bringer of War
• Olympians Book 8: Apollo: The Brilliant One
• Olympians Book 9: Artemis: Wild Goddess of the Hunt
• Olympians Book 10: Hermes: Tales of the Trickster
• Olympians Book 11: Hephaistos: God of Fire

13. Hercules (Walt Disney’s Hercules) (1997)

14. Metamorphoses (aka Winds of Change) (1978)

Animated cartoon, 80 minutes – Japanese Title: Hoshi no Orpheus (Orpheus of the Stars)

This is the Japanese trailer of Orpheus of the Stars. The full movie in English seems to be available on YouTube.

Five ancient Greek myths are retold:

1. Perseus cutting off Medusa’s head.
2. Actaeon is turned into a deer for observing a bathing Goddess.
3. Hermes appears in a tale of envy.
4. Orpheus descends into Hades in an attempt to bring back Eurydice.
5. Phaeton loses control of the sun God’s chariot.

15. Olympos (Manga)

2007-2009, Manga with 12 Chapters (also known as Olimpos or Olympus)

Apollo imprisons Ganymede, the handsome Trojan prince, in the Garden of the Gods. Why you may ask? Read Olympos and find out.

16. It’s a Greek Life (1936)

Animated short, 7 minutes

Mercury (Hermes) wants his winged shoes repaired by the centaur smithy.

17. Pegasus, The Flying Horse

Voiced by: Mia Farrow

This was one of 6 animated stories made in the early 1990s which was part of the Stories to Remember compilation. Another story that is part of this animated series is Beauty & the Beast.

There’s a DVD available from Amazon with both stories on it.

Here’s a preview of Pegasus, The Flying horse

Here’s the full 24-minute story of Pegasus, The Flying Horse

18. Space Sentinels (1977)

1977, 13 episodes (Originally titled The Young Sentinels)

A trio of superheroes including Hercules, Mercury, and Astrea, band together to protect mankind from Morpheus and other antagonists.

1. Morpheus: the Sinister Sentinel
2. The Time Traveler
3. Space Giants
4. The Return of Anubis
5. The Prime Sentinel
6. Loki
7. The Sorceress
8. The Wizard of Od
9. Fauna
10. The Jupiter Spore
11. Voyage to the Inner World
12. The World Ship
13. Commander Nemo

Space Sentinels – Intro (Opening)

19. Arion (1986)

118 minutes

The feature film tells the story of Arion, who as a child was taken by Hades, God of the Underworld. He’s told Zeus is responsible for the hardships.

Here’s a review of Arion (1986).

It’s based on the Manga (1979-1984) written and illustrated by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.

20. The Mighty Hercules (1963-1966)

128 very short animated episodes that were shown on television in the 60s and 70s.

Cartoons featuring Hercules started off with The Mighty Hercules. Most of the Hercules episodes also contained some sort of moral teaching.

21. Shazam! (1974-1977)

26 episodes

Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles and Mercury offer wisdom to a young hero in the making. This TV show blends Greek myth animation with real life actors. This opening intro is great.

22. Olympus Guardian (Anime movie and TV series)

2005, 87 minutes (South Korean Animated series)

This animated fantasy/action movie based on Greek mythology was created from an anime series with the same name.

The original series of Olympus Guardian (2002-2003) ran for 39 episodes.

Olympus Guardian episode 2

23. Bit the Cupid (1995-1996)

48 episodes

Japanese Title: ビット・ザ・キューピッド
Italian Title: Cupido pizzica cuori

Bit the Cupid was also available in English but it is near impossible to find.

It is a show with a zany take on Greek mythology where the Gods are cast as youngsters. Cupid, Zeus, Apollo, Hermes, Venus, Hades, Demeter, Rainbow Megami Iris, Perseus, Artemis, Mars, Bacchus, Leda, Hera and Andromeda all make an appearance.

This is the first Japanese show composed primarily of computer generated images.

Fox Family Channel aired the program in syndication for a brief run, but Bit the Cupid didn’t become a huge hit with American audiences.

24. Russian Greek Myth Animations

Most of us will have to watch the Greek myth animations with English subtitles.

Five Greek myth animations below were directed by the same woman, Alexandra Snezhko-Blotskaya (1909-1980):

1. The Return of Olympus (1969) (aka Heracles)
2. The Labyrinth (1971)
3. Argonauts (1971)
4. Perseus (1973)
5. Prometheus (1974)

Five Greek myth animations were directed by Anatoly Petrov (1937-2010):

1. Heracles and Admetus (1986)
2. The Birth of Eros (1989)
3. Daphne (1990)
4. The Nymph Salmacis (1992)
5. Polyphemus, Acis and Galatea (1996)

25. Mischief of the Gods (Japanese Anime)

2014, 12 Episodes – Known as Kamigami no Asobi in Japanese

Zeus sets up a school for the Gods, so they can learn what it feels like to be human.

There’s also a visual novel of the same name.

26. Reign: The Conqueror (Japanese Anime series)

1996-1997, 13 episodes (also known as Alexander Senki)

It’s also available as a 90-minute film. Released on October 7, 2000.

The bizarre tale of Alexander, the son of Philip II, king of Macedonia and Olympias.

Here’s the English opening of Reign The Conqueror, the story of Alexander The Great.

27. Pygmalio (1990-1991)

39 episodes

Kurt goes on a quest to defeat Medusa.

28. The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (1976)

This cartoon with Greek myth associations will teach you how good a life the Olympians have.

I really enjoyed watching The Twelve Tasks of Asterix. It grew on me as I watched it.

29. Little Pollon (1982-1983)

Based on the 1977 manga Olympus no Pollon (Pollon of Olympus) by Hideo Azuma.

Unfortunately, the Anime doesn’t seem to be available in English.

30. 300 (Graphic Novel) (1999, Author: Frank Miller)

300: Comparing the film to the comic

31. The Golden Touch (1935)

https://youtu.be/YSxgnhkgdUo

32. Mighty Mouse in the Trojan Horse (1946)

Click here to play Mighty Mouse in the Trojan Horse.

33. The Godyssey (Comic Book)

The Greek Gods are pissed off with Jesus Christ, which is understandable.

This is why the Greek Gods and Goddesses rule. They encourage imagination.

A Timeline of Special Mentions:

Here are some more stories containing Greek mythology references that could be of interest. Click on the blue links to watch them on YouTube.

The Centaurs (1921) 3 minutes – A short animated clip that survives from a lost 1921 film called “The Centaurs” by Winsor McCay.

Playful Pan (1930) – A Silly Symphonies animated Disney short film. Pan comes to earth.

King Neptune (1932) 7 minutes – Silly Symphonies. King Neptune sends an array of sea creatures to help rescue a mermaid who has been captured by pirates.

The Goddess of Spring (1934) 9 minutes – Silly Symphonies. In this case, they have portrayed Hades, God of the Underworld, as the devil.

Disney’s Fantasia (1940) – Hopefully, the real Dionysus doesn’t look anything like this cartoon character.

Popeye Meets Hercules (1948)

The Story of King Midas (1953) – Puppet Animation, 10 minutes

Created by Ray Harryhausen, the genius behind the most awesome Greek myth movie ever made, Jason and the Argonauts (1963).

Run, Melos (1981)

Fire From Olympus (Batman: The Animated Series) (1993, Episode 60) – Maxie Zeus steals an experimental weapon.

The Odyssey (1987)

This cartoon by Burbank Films Australia is about 60 minutes long. Click here to play The Odyssey.

The Amazing Feats of Young Hercules (1997)

Sailor Moon (1995-2000) – Offers some Greek mythology references.

What’s New, Scooby Doo?: It’s All Greek to Scooby (2004) –  Shaggy purchases a mysterious amulet that causes a pestering archaeologist and centaur to pursue him.

Heroic Age (2007) – 26 episodes, Anime TV series. Based on stories around Greek mythology, especially those involving Heracles and his twelve labors.

Wrath of the Titans (2010) – Animated film

Gods & Heroes – Netflix has supposedly ordered 8 episodes, with a release date still to be announced. Hopefully it might be released sometime in 2019.

Greco-Roman mythology in Marvel Comics as shown in Wikipedia. Characters include Achilles, Ares, Artemis, Athena, Hebe, Hecate, Hera, Hercules, Hermes, Midas, Minotaur, Neptune, Pluto (Hades), Typhon, Venus, and Zeus.

Olympian Gods (DC Comics) – Greek mythological figures appeared primarily in Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, and Aquaman comics. Refer to Wikipedia: Olympian Gods in DC Comics

On top of all this, there are heaps of Youtube videos and other video sharing sites offering a huge variety of animations based on Greek Mythology themes. There are literally hundreds of short animated Greek myths you can watch online.

Whatever Greek myth you’re interested in will most likely exist in animated form online. Say for instance you want to see a video about Pandora’s box, just type in Pandora’s box followed by Anime, Animation, or Cartoon in Google.

The biggest problem will be finding the best video to watch. The same thing applies to all of the other Greek myths including that of Narcissus and Echo.

This awesome list of Anime, Cartoons, and Graphic Novels inspired by Greek Mythology should keep you pretty busy for a while anyway.

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