Iolaus of Thebes was the loyal traveling companion and best friend of Hercules.

By the age of two, Iolaus was stealing cookies from local vendors. This was the start of his boyhood troubles where he broke the law. In one episode, this past kept him from obtaining a job.

As a teenager, Iolaus trained at Cheiron's Academy. It was there that he met Hercules and Jason of Corinth. This training coupled with "old hunter's tricks" give him the talents that allowed him to become a hero. The "old hunter's tricks" involve things from slowing his heart beat down to picking locks. One of his famous qotes is after a certain ting he might have done he would often say 'an old hunter's trick' (many times he and hercules jinx this because of both knowing what he will say).

Iolaus had a cousin, King Orestes, that looks just like him (and was also played by Michael Hurst). On two occasions throughout the Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, he trades places with him in order to fight evil and preserve his cousin's kingdom.

Iolaus is fond of festivals and women. His fondness for women led him to a romantic relationship with Xena she used to get to Hercules. In one HLJ and XWP crossover, Gabrielle and Iolaus both flirt with each other, but nothing became of the encounter.