Princess, later queen, Melissa was the daughter of King Tolas of Alcinea. Although somewhat spoiled and rather naive, she was aware of her faults and genuinely cared about her kingdom. Her sister, Princess Alexa, killed Tolas and briefly usurped his throne. With the assistance of Hercules and Iolaus, Alexa was imprisoned and Melissa became queen. Melissa was initially reluctant to follow through on the marriage to Prince Gordius that her father had planned, but changed her mind upon meeting him. The pair agreed to wed while administering their kingdoms jointly. (HTLJ "War Bride").
Later, Queen Melissa testified for Hercules when he was being prosecuted by Spencius. Hercules' defense lawyer, Dirce, commented that Melissa was "uncommonly beautiful". (HTLJ "Hercules on Trial").
Dirce's compliment to Melissa was an in-joke on the fact that Melissa and Dirce were played by the same actress. "Melissa" means "honeybee" in Homeric and New Testament Greek.
