The myth - Aphrodite, Olympian goddess of love and sex and the counterpart of the Roman Venus. In Homer's Iliad she is said to be the daughter of Zeus and Dione, one of his consorts, but in later legends she is described as having sprung from the foam of the sea and her name may be translated "foam-risen." In Homeric legend Aphrodite is the wife of the lame and ugly god of fire, Hephaestus. Among her lovers was Ares, god of war, who in later mythology became her husband. She was the rival of Persephone, queen of the underworld, for the love of the beautiful Greek youth, Adonis.
The character - Aphrodite is probably the most energetic, fun-loving, and enthusiastic Olympians of them all. This is not always a good thing. Aphrodite's charisma has landed half of Greece into hot water in one way or another. She's the goddess of love and she means well enough, but sometimes she's just too carefree for everyone else's own good. Aphrodite is THE original valley girl, sprouting phrases like 'bitchin'.' 'far out,' 'radical,' 'tubular,' or greeting her brother, Hercules, with a "Hey, baby bro!" If she's not having a fight with Hephaestus, then she's complaining about a bad hair day or a broken nail.
As the goddess of love, Aphrodite is one of the more compassionate gods of Olympus. As a god, though, it is still in her nature to be self-centered. Nonetheless, she's actually proven to be somewhat of an ally to Xena and Gabrielle. While Aphrodite is no warrior, she is still a powerful goddess and has, as mentioned before, what too few gods have-a heart. She's a sucker for a love story, too.
