This puzzle is part of the ‘Twelve Labours’ series, but can be solved independently. Previous instalments can be found here: Prologue | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05
Hercules looked down at his to-do list and sighed; he always hated getting his hair cut. Stymphalian Beards had only recently set up shop in Athens, a product of the ‘hipster’ movement sweeping his neighbourhood of late. Introducing himself to the barber, Hephaestus, Hercules took a seat as directed and waited his turn in line.
Looking around, Hercules noticed that he was the only person in the room who was clean-shaven - everybody else had a beard (and clearly used some kind of wax on it). Trying not to look too uncomfortable he tuned in to the song playing on the radio (Nelly Furtado) and cast his eyes up at a poster nearby, which showed examples of many of the styles a bearded gentleman might choose:
“You like, yes?” said Hephaestus, spotting him reading. Hercules jumped.
“Er, I guess so, but, um…”
Hephaestus, still gripping a customer’s beard in his hand, leaned towards him. “You are Hercules, no? I suggest you take a good look at that poster while you wait – might give you idea...”
“Okay, but I’m really not-”
“Idea about something I have to give you for your mother...”
Hercules breathed deeply. “Here we go again,” he thought.
TASK: Solve this enigmatic puzzle (entirely contained within the poster) to identify a single word describing something Hephaestus needs to pass on to Hercules’ mother.
All images taken from Wikipedia pages, image credits as follows (numbered from top left): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20). Poster text available in source for copy-paste purposes.
Disclaimer: Inclusion of a person in this quiz does not necessarily imply that the OP endorses their politics, actions or the quality of their movies...