This is the follow up to Destiny, and is another brilliant
episode. Very much a solution to the LL's accident problem, the
writers combined to produce this wonderful story that has some of
the most touching scenes ever, as well as the sure-fire winner of
guest star Bruce Campbell as the King of Thieves Autolycus.
In the grimmest of openings, poor little Gabrielle is taking
Xena's body back to Amphipolis to be buried next to Lyceus. After
a surprise meeting with Iolaus, she is met by Ephiny and the
Amazons. The group includes the new queen Velasca, who has killed
queen Melosa in fair combat and is claiming the throne. Gabrielle
must decide whether to stay and become the new queen at Ephiny's
urging. Meanwhile, Xena is not dead- surprise, surprise!- and has
entered Autolycus' body. She wants him to steal her body back and
help her get the ambrosia needed to bring her back to life. This
task is made more complicated when Gabrielle decided to give Xena
an Amazon funeral pyre! Naturally every thing works out alright
in the end and Xena gets her ambrosia.
I was incredibly impressed with Renee O'Connor's acting in this
episode. She has a number of monologues to Xena's coffin, or
talking about Xena that she pulls off with real feeling. She also
fully convinces as the Amazon princess, being persuaded to take
on the mask of the queen. It is she that holds this episode
together. I am a big Lucy Lawless fan, but thanks to a good story
and excellent script, Lucy's virtual absence is barely noticed
-although we hear her voice quite a lot. It is interesting to
notice how even though Lucy is in this episode for a couple of
scenes, she barely moves at all! This must have been soon after
that accident.
There are so many memorable moments in this episode it is hard to
pick some out, but Gabrielle's meeting with Iolaus is a nice
crossover between the series (which I was delighted to see was
mentioned when Xena and Gab guested in a recent Herc episode and
Xena thanked Iolaus for looking aftr Gabrielle while she was
dead.) Gabrielle's crowning ceremony, complete with Velasca's
attempt to abort it is notable for Gabrielle showing her teeth as
queen, and the following scene where Gabrielle talks to but
refuses to say goodbye to Xena is a real tear jerker. Have your
kleenex ready, as it always gets me(sob!) Then we have the
hilarious sight of Autolycus disguised as an Amazon- still with
beard mind you!
For many of us the scene between Gabrielle and Xena
in the dreamscape sort of setting is a beautiful one. Subtext
fans really liked The Kiss, but that whole scene is another
wonderful one. I know many male fans that greatly appreciated
Gabrielle's new Amazon outfit- little more than a suede bikini
really, but I liked the necklace and jewellery. This is one of my
all time favourite episodes. 10/10.
In this third episode dealing with Xena's death and
Gabrielle's ascent to the Amazon throne, we have the return of an
old friend- Callisto! Gabrielle is passing on the queen's mask to
Ephiny when Velasca appears to spoil the party. She has with her
a lille bag of ambrosia and eats some in front of the surprised
Amazons. As a goddess, she then sets out to get her revenge on
Gabrielle, Xena, Ephiny and the rest. As Xena says, to defeat an
immortal, they NEED an immortal. Xena decides that they will ask
Callisto to help them. In the Hercules episode, Surprise,
Callisto was brought back to life by Hera to get Hercules. Her
reward is immortality, but Hercules trapped her in an old temple.
So Xena and Gabrielle go to get her- despite Gabrielle's
misgivings. Callisto isn't the ideal ally, but Xena tempts her
with the amrosia, one bit of which will turn Callisto into a god
too. With her help, Xena leads them to a lava pit, and while
Callisto and Velasca fight it out on a rope bridge, Xena cuts it
to send them into the molten rock and (hopefully) entomb them for
eternity.
There is a limit to how often Callisto can be brought back, but
this episode is one of the better Callisto ones, thanks to Hudson
Leick's slightly less manic performance. Her taunting of
Gabrielle is horribly in character and delightfully wicked.
Particularly interesting is Callisto's condition that Xena must
confess to her crimes. She does this in a small village similar
to Cirra, and Lucy Lawless is as good as ever at the soliliquies.
It is a different twist to Callisto's character, and the follow
up scene where Gabrielle tries to ask her about how she felt when
Xena was confessing her crimes is a chilling reminder to her that
there is no point in trying to figure her out. Hudson Leick
carries these scenes off very well. Melinda Clarke as Velasca is
a pretty good baddie, looking like an Amazon Terminator. You have
to wonder why she didn't just kill Gabrielle right at the start,
or at least follow the Amazons to their hiding place- after all
she IS a god. Xena's bungee jump to save Gabrielle at the end is
wonderfully improbable, and the ending leaves the door open for
the return of either character. This is another good episode that
closes this little story arc nicely, and while Xena, Gabrielle
and Callisto are an unlikely team, the episode works well. The
big question for Amazon fans though is where is Eponin? The
weapons instuctor from Hooves and Harlots had quite a few fans.
8/10
A recent internet poll had this episode topping the charts as
the fans' favourite. It is totally different from anything else
and is also notable for being Michael (Iolaus) Hurst's first Xena
episode as director. It follows a day in the life of our
favourite duo, from waking up to going to bed. It is divided into
ten sections each with an on screen title.
Xena and Gabrielle are woken up by an attack from a troop of
soldiers from Zargreas' army who are on a looting mission and
want to keep Xena out of their way. They also meet a man who asks
for their help to defeat a giant who is going to attack their
village. Xena comes up with a way of helping both villages- of
course.
This episode features Xena and Gabrielle as we have never seen
them before, squabbling, playing 20 questions, teasing each
other, having a bath together, dealing with an amorous fan of
Xena's and Gabrielle's attempts to catch Xena by surprise. There
is a lot of humour but also a good story too as Xena manages to
defeat a warlord and the giant Gareth, while also inventing kite
flying, catching fish with her bare hands and playing matchmaker.
Almost every scene either has a memorable line or a moment of
visual humour. Some have seen the two villagers Hower and Minya
as representation of Xena fans! Either in love or fawning over
Xena, in their 'I'll do anything for the Warrior Princess' mode.
They are certainly comical characters. The broad humour may not
what all Xena fans would go for- seeing Xena go outside the
boundaries of what we expect of her may damage her image for
some. This was also a very big favourite for fans of the subtext
of the show who enjoyed the bathtub scene and Xena and
Gabrielle's bantering. Not the sort of episode that could be done
again really, but after the drama of the Destiny/Quest/Necessary
Evil story, this episode shows the range and variety of the show.
Excellent. 10/10.
*WARNING-JOXER HEAVY EPISODE!* Another script that was handy
to have after Lucy Lawless' accident, this is a very Xena-lite
episode that features Joxer being caught in the middle of a tiff
between Aphrodite and her son Cupid.
After Xena heads off to the palace of King Lias, Gabrielle is
left alone for a bit and who should she be unlucky to meet up
with but Joxer.(My... Ancient Greece IS a small world.) Cupid and
Aphrodite argue over a young couple whose marriage will result in
many of Aphrodite's temples being demolished. She casts a spell
on Joxer that turns him into a super smooth dashing hero whenever
a bell rings. After a few dazzling fights, Joxer is arrested by
the warring kings and Gabrielle must help release him and get a
bell to ring so that he can become the hero again. She must also
find a way to break Aphrodite's spell. This comedy episode
acknowledges the debt to the classic Danny Kaye film 'The Court
Jester' that had several similar sequences.
Now I am not a Joxer-hater, but this episode didn't do much for
me. I find the character very irritating. OK, so I know he is
supposed to be, but he is SUPER-irritating here! If we don't get
Xena in an episode, we at least want a better deal for Gabrielle,
who has to play straight man to Joxer. The story is weak and
lacking in originality. Watch The Court Jester for a much funnier
take on the theme. Cupid and Aphrodite's surfer dude and babe
speech patterns are a matter of taste but Alexandra Tydings and
Karl Urban are pretty popular amongst fans. This is probably my
least favourite episode of all, however listen out for Joxer's
theme song- irritatingly memorable, and Gabrielle's response to
getting kissed by the super hero. A must for Joxer fans, although
the rest of us would much rather have seen what Xena was up to at
King Lias' palace and find out how Princess Diana is. 5/10.
Meleager the Mighty returns but he is in serious trouble. Xena
and Gabrielle arrive in town just in time to hear him be
sentenced to hang for murder. Gabrielle has so much faith (you
might almost say Blind faith) in her pal that she tricks
the guards and helps him escape. Xena is not so sure and after
Gab is almost lynched, she agrees to catch and return Meleager,
much to Gabrielle's dismay. The pair are at odds and Xena only
persuades Meleager to return by making him consider Gabrielle's
position for breaking him out. However, when hearing his story
about the circumstances she realizes that he is innocent and Xena
knows who the killer is! How can she save Meleager but see
justice done?
This is quite an interesting episode for Gabrielle's character.
We see her fall out with Xena and act on her own to try and save
her friend Meleager, who first appeared in Season One's The Prodigal. To see Gabrielle and
Xena not working together for once is certainly different.
Gabrielle is seen to be either too trusting and naive, or a true
and faithful friend. Her strong belief in Meleager is seen to be
hero worship and putting people on too high a pedestal when it
looks as if he is guilty. Xena warns Gabrielle about this, and
encourages her to be more forgiving than her 'friends don't lie'
statement. Gabrielle was a bit harsh in her condemnation I
thought.
Where I feel this episode lost it was in the character of the
judge who sentences Meleager, Arbis. At the beginning, Xena says
she has heard of him and knows him to be fair. However, about
half way through he suddenly becomes the conniving villain who is
behind it all. I think this weakened the story. To show Xena
correcting a true injustice without recourse to having the
honourable judge become a pantomime villain would have been more
believable. It felt like a cop out- as did the very sudden
ending. Not EVERYONE in a position of power has to be corrupt.
For example, the episode Cradle
of Hope was all the better for having King Gregor be a good
and honest man. However, I like Meleager, and the plot of having
Xena and Gabrielle on opposite sides in terms of their belief in
him was quite a good one. 7/10.
While out shopping, Gabrielle is kidnapped and a young fighter
tells Xena he has killed her. Xena and the young man, Palaemon,
fight. During this, Xena is splashed in the eyes with oil causing
temporary blindness that can only be cured by washing with a
particluar herb available only in Athens. Instead of heading that
way though, Xena chains herself to Palaemon and gets him to help
her rescue Gabrielle in return for another shot at killing her
once she regains her sight. Meanwhile, Gabrille has become
embroiled in a plot by the king's minister Apex. He wants her to
marry the king, who is actually dead! By doing this he will
somehow get the throne. Xena and Palaemon must storm the castle
and rescue Gabrielle from a ritual cremation along with her dead
groom.
I liked this story, although it is flawed. One of the main
problems is Gabrielle's role in this episode. She makes one
feeble attempt to escape, and that's it. She is far too passive.
Why would she agree to marry a man she doesn't know and has never
met? Her role in this episode is mainly as comic relief. Her
scenes with the fashion and etiquette guru Vidalis are very
funny, and I loved her little chat with her husband to be about
how all the men she gets serious with end up dead, and her
comments about being, 'more of a redhead really.' Meanwhile, Xena
and Palaemon are having the dramatic stuff happen to them. The
hand cuffing is reminiscent of Hitchcock's The 39 Steps, where
the hero handcuffs himself to a girl to get her to help him. Xena
again shows her great humanity in being willing to give up her
sight to save her friend, and then is willing to undo the chains
and sacrifice herself rather than dragging Palaemon over a cliff
with her. The puppyish enthusiasm of Palaemon for her more
bloodthirsty victories prompt Xena to complain that 'those aren't
pleasant memories for me!' She sees through him, as he is not the
killer he claims to be.
I loved the character of Vidalis- a clearly gay character who
chases after Palaemon at the end! He is played by Sydney Jackson
who was the storekeeper in Dreamworker.
His criticism of Gabrielle for having 'the hand gestures of a
wagon driver', and covering up 'that peasant muscle' are high
points. He also popped up in the classic Aussie soap Prisoner
Cell Block H the other day. Is he an Aussie?
Lucy Lawless does a pretty convincing job of playing blind. No
wandering about with arms outstetched for Xena. She stares
blankly for the most part and makes Xena's plight believable. The
only wobble is when Xena runs to save Gabrielle from burning and
runs neatly *around* some obstacles in a non-blind way. This
episode is another strong one for Xena and Gabrielle's bond. Xena
is prepared to sacrifice her eyesight for her friend, and
Palaemon turns away looking as if he is intruding during their
reconciliation when Xena lifts Gab out of her coffin. Forget
about Gabrielle's uncharacteristic behaviour and there is a lot
to enjoy in this episode. 8/10.
A script that had been around for AGES that again mixes myth
and the Xenaverse. This episode was also notable for Poseidon,
who appears in the opening credits, finally making an appearance.
Xena and Gabrielle are trying to enjoy nature when they come
across a fight on a beach. Coming to the lone warrior's aid, they
discover he is the King of Ithaca, Ulysses(or Odysseus in Greek
myth.) He and Xena take an immediate liking to one another.
Ulysses is an enely of Poseidon, god of the sea- which is a
problem when trying to reach your home island. Xena and Gabrielle
agree to help him sail home. Gabrielle gets very seasick, while
Xena and Ulysses get close. When they reach Ithaca, they find
that Ulysses wife Penelope is not dead after all, and Xena
pretends that she cares nothing for him to give hima chance to be
reconciled with his wife. Even when he figures it out, she
refuses to come between Ulysses and his rightful kingdom.
Of all of the myth type stories, this one is one of the better
ones. John D'Aquino is very dashing and appealing as Ulysses. I
haven't been impressed with many of the supposed partners for
Xena- Petracles(a creep), Marcus(too dull), Caesar(too
unloving!), Hercules(too contrived), but I liked this one.
However, romance for either of the leads has little long term
future as this is a two girl show. There are nice parallels with
Xena's attitude to Perdicus, when Gabrielle asks Xena what her
intention are, and wishes her to follow her heart. I liked the
boat-which reappears in Lost Mariner and Hercules' finale
'Atlantis', and look out for the canoe that is also seen in The
Price. Poor Gabrielle's seasickness got a few cheap laughs, but
we all like to see others suffer a bit! I also liked the fact
that Xena made reference to the Trojan War from the episode Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts and that
she fought for Troy. In the stories, it was Odysseus(or Ulysses)
that came up with the wooden horse trick. Also of note is the
scene with the Sirens, women whose beautiful song lures men to
their deaths. Xena outsings the Sirens! OK, so I thought her song
was a bit naff actually and their's was rather pretty, but it was
a nice touch. A good mixture of Greek myth and our Xena. 8/10.
Xena and Gabrielle get caught up in a conflict between an army
and a vicious, homicidal tribe called the Horde. To save
themselves and the garrison of soldiers, Xena brings some of her
old skills to bear. Before she knows it, Gabrielle is getting a
glimpse of the warlord Xena, and she is shocked by her
callousness and ruthlessness. The pair clash after Xena instructs
Gabrielle not to feed the dying soldiers as she is running the
sick bay. Gabrielle rebels and defies Xena by going out to give
water to the dying Horde men, bringing the conflict to a head.
This episode apparently used up most of the extras budget, and
the battle scenes are certainly quite epic. The episode opens
deceptively playfully as Xena and Gabrielle are fishing together
and tease and banter as usual. However, the chilling scenes of
many axed bodies floating downstream soon shatterd the idyll, and
after a brief canoe chase, Xena and Gabrielle arrive at the
garrison, where most of the action takes place. Here they find a
bunch of deeply demoralized soldiers, who believe their deaths
are inevitable in the face of the relentless Horde. That Xena
should take charge is inevitable as her leadership skills are all
that could save them, but I did feel that Xena switched from
motivator to fierce commander a bit quickly. I mean, one minute
she's telling a soldier to pull himself together, the next she's
yelling 'We're gonna kill then all!' and waving her sword around.
Xena switch from playful friend to ruthless commander and back
again just can't be fitted in completely believably in 40 minutes
or so. I think they should have stretched this one to two parts
as the story is certainly strong enough. It is Xena's dark side
that facinates many fans, and to see her in action as the Warrior
Princess is something we have waited a long time to see. However,
to have her change so quickly and to be so hard on her best
friend Gabrielle who she doesn't need to be the warrior with, is
a slight quibble.
This is one of the darkest episode ever I think. The light
hearted fishing scene at the start doesn't prepare us for the
bloodiest adventure for ages. What is also interesting is Xena's
attitude in this episode. For once, she is inflexible. Normally,
Xena's improvisations and quick thinking are a hallmark of her
success. Here she is set on her course of action as soon as she
hears who her enemies are. Even before they arrive at the
garrison she warns Gabrielle that it is going to get ugly. Also,
Xena is basically wrong in this episode. Her plan would not have
worked as her scout didn't make it for help. It was only
Gabrielle's intervention that enabled her to take part in her one
on one with the Horde's leader. The final acknowledgement that a
permanent solution will not be reached by the sword, but by
talking, is a very forward thinking approach by Xena, who
generally sticks to the sword for her solutions.
Once again Lucy Lawless does wonderfully well, becoming quite
fearsome as the old Xena. That the changes in Xena are rather
abrupt is down to the script rather than her. Obviously Xena has
been teaching Gabrielle more about both fishing and healing! This
episode is a very dark and enthralling one, but I just wish it
had been longer. 8/10.
That boat from Ulysses returns as the ship of Cecrops(Tony
Todd), the cursed lost mariner of the title. An opening scene
shipwreck leaves Gabrielle drifting with no sign of Xena. She is
picked up by Cecrops and his crew, and she soon learns that this
ship is one that no body can leave- ever! Meanwhile, Xena has
been washed up on the shore, and is being pursued by pirates. She
is desperate to get to Gabrielle, even when she learns whose ship
it is. A ridiculously improbable leap gets her there. Next, Xena
tries to help Cecrops break the curse and free himself- and of
course, Xena and Gabrielle.
Another strong episode written by Steve Sears, one of the best of
the staff writers, this one is especially notable for the
character of Cecrops who is a truly facinating- and genuine
mythical- character. Tony Todd is a fine actor who has guest
starred in many series, and was especially menacing in the film
Candyman. Here he is a complex character. At first it seems he is
a callous pirate, but it is soon apparent that he is a noble man,
and one worth saving. Another thing that leaps at you from this
episode is Xena and Gabrielle's bond. Xena goes to incredible
lengths to get on board a ship she knows to be cursed to save her
friend and their hug on the deck is very touching. Xena's escape
from the pirates and jump onto the ship is a brilliantly
impossible scene. Her leap is even more gravity defying than
usual! Once again Xena goes up against Poseidon, and he REALLY
seems to dislike her, trying to use her against Cecrops.
Gabrielle's seasickness is again a comedic element, although this
time Xena shows her a cure involving pressure points that has Gab
chewing pretty gross looking squid as her tastebuds aren't
working correctly. The action is slightly slower on board the
ship, and the solution to Poseidon's curse is a bit lame, but
this is another very enjoyable episode that has our stars getting
wet a lot, and more sea fun for Gab. Look out for the leader of
the pirates, Basculis played by Nigel Harbrow. He was Lord Koulos
in The Black Wolf- and looks identical here. 8/10.
This years finale is a comedy that I didn't rate that highly.
It features Karl Urban (again) as Cupid, whose infant son steals
his dad's bow and arrows, and consequently causes mayhem when
people fall for the most unlikely partners. This episode sees the
return of Draco, who Xena falls for. Gabrielle gets hit and falls
for Joxer, Draco then falls for Gabrielle. Meanwhile, Joxer
REALLY falls for Gabrielle without the aid of an arrow. In
amongst the lurve, Xena and Gabrielle are supposed to be
protecting a large group of Hestian Virgins from the slaver
Draco, and Joxer turns up to help. Naturally Xena being in love
with Draco does hinder their plan.
OK, so there are some funny moments in here, but I thought this
was too much like a slapstick Benny Hill episode, involving lots
of chasing around and innuendo. We see Xena as a mushy slave to
love, Gabrielle as a bit of a vamp frankly, and Joxer as idiotic
as usual. I like Draco. I think Jay Laga'aia, who plays him is
charismatic and Draco is a strong character. The tease scenes
with Xena and Draco arm wrestling and Gabrielle and Joxer
smooching and singing that awful song are a straight steal from
the opening of Altared States, with giggling and suggestive
dialogue as the camera pans over scattered clothing before
revealing the couples. I enjoyed the scene with Xena taking a
cold bath and Gabrielle revealing her love of Joxer to Xena.
I usually like the comedy episodes a lot, but I didn't really
enjoy seeing Xena humiliated, and Gabrielle with the horrid
Joxer. The producers seem determined to make us love him. The
final scene with Joxer realizing Gabrielle finds the idea of them
in love as laughable, and his sad face being the fade out just
made me want to punch him! Here's how to make us like him; don't
put him in so many episodes, or try to manipulate us into loving
him! I also thought Karl Urban was hammy as Cupid, and
the virgins running up and down the temple was silly. It is
interesting that love turns Xena into soppy mush with low self
esteem, while Gabrielle really flourishes and becomes quite
fearless- even defending Xena.
Look out for the solo Hestian virgin in the temple- check out
those shoulders and guess who it is! Great disguise Xena. Also
listen out for Gabby's terrible tuneless singing- much worse than
Joxer who can at least hold a tune. We also see Xena putting on
her own armour- which I don't remember seeing before. Watch out
for the funniest bit as those love arrows go into unsuspecting
villagers at the start, causing a boy, a cow and an older man to
go running from unlikely suitors. Not a favourite of mine, and a
bit of a disappointing one to end the series on. In my
opinion..Here's to series 3! 6/10.