S5 spoilers and rumours

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CHERRY HILL XENA CONVENTION REPORT
SATURDAY, AUGUST 21,1999
The Surprise Video was our new and, some would say, improved Gabrielle on the set, introducing the up-and-coming Blooper Reel that we all have seen before -- but she did look cute in her long suede coat and boots and, of course, did the prefunctory trip out the door. Then Sharon gave us a slide preview of the upcoming season. For "Fallen angel," a very gargoyle-looking creature -- possibly Callisto???? -- Gab is shown with her new weapon -- sais -- for the ep, and Xena is sporting a very red cocktail-looking dress for the "Chakrum" ep. And Ares fans will be glad to know HE'S BACK in this ep also. "Animal Attraction" shows us a very pregnant Xena, still with sword in hand and on Argo. "Them Bones, Them Bones" is the return of Alti -- and in, I must say, a very sexy blue leather jumpsuit. Gab is shown in leather suede, almost a Peter Pan outfit, with a bow and arrow and what looks like red war paint on.

Sharon said the next season will focus on Xena's future and destiny and Gab will realize that they are very much alike and will search for how she fits into Xena's life now. Then came the Salmoneus Video, and FRAN TOOK A LUNCH BREAK. Alti has a video, but it is all weird music and the only words are: "I'm goin to steal your soul" ... a bit cheesy.

Then Claire took the stage and all hades broke out -- she has a big fan base already. She said her New Jersey fans are very supportive and she knows how many she has from the Internet. She told us that Alti was inspired by the Wicked Witch of the West, from "The Wizard of Oz," then she told us how she coerced a new costume out of the costume designer by whining to Lucy, who jumped in to help her in true Xena fashion. She told us CALLISTO HAS A CHANGE OF HEART AND WE WILL FALL IN LOVE WITH HER ALL OVER AGAIN. Claire was asked if she would like to have a scene in which she kissed Xena -- "I'd love to kiss Lucy, I mean Xena, of course," Claire said she reads all email and her web page will have major revisions soon!
Next was a video of the Australian "60 minutes" report on Xena; quite entertaining to see the Auckland Park sites from the air. Daisy was in it, but you couldn't see her face, but it looked as if she has red hair. Sharon then had a slide show titled "The Evolution of Xena," which I thought tedious to us nutball fans -- anyone attending a convention is at least close to this.

Then Bruce Campbell came on stage. Bruce loves to play the audience and turned the questions on them. There was an guy in an Autolycus costume in the front and Bruce asked him to do a flip, and Bruce did one first and the fan matched him! What fun! He was asked how many takes for the "Quest" ass-grabbing in the Kiss scene and he said, "We did it over and over again, and all I can say is, Renee is in very good shape. When asked whether he thought the Kiss was subtext, he replied, "It seemed pretty maintext to me." He also directed the last Hercules ep and said, "I believe we did a satisfactory wrap-up to a cool show." A little girl asked him why he didn't marry Xena if he was in love with her and he answered, "I would have, but her producer did."

PART 2

AUGUST 22, 1999
Breakfast
We stood in line for entrance into the Ballroom with anticipation. I wondered, how would they do this?? Well, they let us in and we went to one of the tables that were all round, and I immediately noticed that some in the corner front had RESERVED on them, so we grabbed a table close by. But I was soon to see that was unnecessary. The first to arrive at the buffet table -- which was very well-appointed, from fruit to sauage to biscuits -- was Robert Trebor. He was not staying for the con, but agreed to have breakfast with fans for this charity event. Robert and Bruce Campbell occasionally threw a zinger joke accross the room at each other, but very good-natured, and you could tell they are very good friends for real.
Our table lucked out when Bruce came in and said loudly, "Now, where is there an empty seat/" Of course, we all pointed and screamed, "Over here!" Bruce sat with us as we ate breakfast, and we all chatted as if he knew us for years. The Long Islanders at the table answered his questions about "that Joey Buttafuoco thing." Then he asked us to go around the table and tell him our name and what are jobs were.
At this point, applause hit the room as Jacqueline Kim arrived. Bruce told us "a lot of actors are scared to death" to do something such as this -- sit and chat with fans at breakfast, but he personally loves it, because he is isolated from fans and needs their feedback, and cons are one of the only ways to get such direct feedback. When he finished eating, he started table-hopping. After he left, I went over to where JK was and posed for a few pics. She admired my "The Debt" T-shirt, saying, "Oh, you have one too." Then I thought my camera wasn't working, and she said, "I think the eye is better for memory than the camera anyway." She smiled at me and I thanked her for her patience.
In a little while, Claire Stansfield stopped by to chat. She feeds off the fans and is quite comfortable. We talked about her asthma, her vacationing when she left in Cape Cod and the fact she has a personal trainer she shares with a couple of friends because of cost. She said she lost wieght on a lo-/no-carb diet. She was very accomodating for mucho pics. She is extremely tall for this small reporter to stand next to. I already was becoming a fan, but her friendliness and sense of humor cinched it! That about did it for the breakfast -- all but a quick pic with Robert Trebor before he packed it in. JK was not long at the breakfast and didn't eat with us as the others did. But it was definitely the BEST FUN FOR THE MONEY AND THE ENTIRE WEEKEND and something as a fan, I will always to remember!

Breakfast with the stars was like going to visit gods on Olympus. But back to con reality. We all went, after a two-hour break, to shop or drop off film for quick developing. We suffered through AV equipment failures and the same videos. Sharon's slide show on the EVOLUTION of Gabrielle, although well intentioned, still missed the mark for me. But with questions from the fans, we learned:
* Lucy and Renee will never do a con together until the series is over.
* Creation will continue to have cons after the series is finished "as long as you come."
* Allison Wall, along with Cyane, are on a short list to get for upcoming cons.
* No guests have been confirmed for Pasadena con yet.
Then Claire came on stage, and repeated how she got the part and took questions. She said ALTI does something so bad this season, she was afraid to do it because Lucy was very pregnant! Claire told us it takes one hour to put on Alti makeup. She also spoke about ageism in Hollywood and how older or younger woman get more parts.
Then Bruce came on, and kidded with the audience for awhile and challenged fans to ask questions never asked before. He said he likes directing and acting the same. "God Bless 'The Blair Witch Project' for getting such a film out and proving it can be done cheaply. This is a great boost to the independents," he said. He also announced he has sold a book for publishing in 2000 called "Confessions of a B-Actor." Then he read some of his good and bad email and gave us his addy: BCact@aol.com.
He spoke about "The Way" controversy without taking sides, and said Rob consulted theologians before it hit the air. But, yes, TV is all about sponsors and the TV stations are just doing what they have to. The next video was the best I've ever seen -- I would give a pint of blood or a week's salary to own. And, yes, it was all about subtext. For those of you who missed the polling Sharon did on the lists, this is what she put together as the top 10 favorite Xena moments.

#10: BTL scene where Gab paints on Mendhi and they send Alti back to Hades.
*9: Ides of March, the scene I call the Gab slaughter/protecting Xena scene.
*8. Altared States: A drugged Gab tells Xena, "Gods, you are beauutiful."
*7 Bitter Suite: The song, the Love of your Love, and Gab pulling Xena into forgiveness.
*6 ADITL: hot tub scene -- of course -- duh!
*5 Callisto: fireside chat scene where Xena tells Gab not to change.
*4 Ides of March: The tender parts of prison scene -- goodbyes.
*3 One Against an Army: when Gab strokes Xena's hair after her nightmare and her accepting her death and Xena saying, "Not even death will separate us, Gabrielle."
*2 The Quest: the Kiss.
and the #1 Xena fave moment:-- Is There a Doctor in the House?: the CPR scene!

OH, BUT WHAT A VIDEO -- I LAUGHED AND CRIED, THEN CRIED FOR MORE!

Then the lights went up and on stage came Jacqueline Kim. She appeared a little nervous, but her first comment was, "Wow, what a friendship Xena and Gabrielle have. I am impressed with this. I have to start watching the show more! (she had watched the video with us before coming on stage)." She said she got the part because her agent sent her the script and she liked it. R.J. had written an Asian woman who was powerful and spiritual, and that appealed to her. She is Korean-American and studied Buddhism for 10 years and has been involved more recently with Tai Chi. She reasearched the part by watching some "Hong Kong" movies. She said it was fun working with Lucy. The pin Lao Ma sent to Xena represented all she taught Xena -- she didn't think it was a message for revenge. She told us she has a theatre background and she can sing. She has always wanted to play a funny or fool character such as the one Joxer plays. She plays guitar and flute. Her latest project is a movie called "Brokedown Palace." When asked if she would do another Xena -- she said all the bringing back to life they do is a bit cheesy -- but if the script were good enough, she would be interested. The dance scene in "The Debt" was a concern of hers -- she told the writers it was not subtle, it was too maintext, and what makes Xena and Gabrielle work is the subtlety of the relationship. She also told us that when she arrived to do the ep, one of the Kiwi actors wanted to know when she would start speaking in a Chinese accent as they were. Her response was -- "Xena is Greek and she doesn't have an accent -- what accent?" She told us she fought over that for a day until they gave in. I personally am glad she did -- her integrity and the character profited by it. When asked what she thought of "all this," she said she thought con-goers are here for an "aggressively good time." JK was gracious to us all during the con and I was truly impressed with her. She has good focus on who she is and her intellegence as a actress and a human being shines through.

This was a great con!
Your humble reporter,
Fran, the Bard of Berlin

(23/7/99)
Lucy Lawless has been confirmed as a guest voice artist on The Simpsons episode airing in the USA on Hallowe'en - October 31st 1999. Anyone taping this?
Emmy nomintion for Joe LoDuca again after losing out with The Bitter Suite last year. Wasn't it The Simpsons that won?! Jay Laga'aia (Draco) appeared on a radio programme recently discussing his return to the show. It will feature Draco in some sort of music contest!!

(17/7/99)
Lucy Lawless was interviewed on ET and was talking about what is coming up. Xena will be in lots of different costumes for the early episodes. Latest pictures suggest a Chinese theme. The father of Xena's baby will be revealed in the 100th episode. Lucy also said Xena would be using her psychic rather than physical powers in the next few eps. A return of that power from The Debt??
Soon to depart writer Steve Sears claims all fans will like the explanation of Xena's pregnancy...hmm...He also said Gabrielle would be more of a help to Xena this season and not be off finding herself. Guess someone has to bash heads while Lucy is pregnant.

(9/7/99)
First look at new outfits for Xena and Gabrielle in S5 - via the Official Creation Web Site.

Rather nice!! Can we assume they survive the crucifixion then?

(26/6/99)
There were rumours this week that head writer RJ Stewart, responsible for many of the best scripts has also left the show on the heels of fan favourite Steven L Sears, but apparently RJ has NOT gone, he is merely dividing his time between Xena and the new series for Renaissance Pictures coming soon. Cleopatra 2525 and another one whose name escapes me.
An online chat with Steve Sears added a few titbits about Gabrielle having a new look and that fans WILL like how Xena's pregnancy is handled.
Alexandra Tydings interviewed in Xposé talked of returning to NZ to film, which presumably means Aphrodite in Xena.
Not too sure about this, but someone said that Amarice may turn out to be Callisto's sister!

(19/6/99)
Jennifer Sky who played Amarice in Endgame and Ides of March has been signed up for 3 or 4 episodes of S5. Interesting rumours - daft as they sound - that Rob Tapert will appear as some sort of godly being to father Xena's child! Hmm...
Hope this one is true though, Jay Laga'aia who played Draco, one of my favourite bad boys, has spoken of a return for him in another musical episode as he apparently has a good singing voice!
Another intriguing titbit, Lucy Lawless is said to be adding her voice to an episode of The Simpsons! Real fame at last for Lucy!

(7/6/99)
Of course, there are more questions than answers for S5. How will Lucy Lawless' pregnancy be handled? Will Xena get pregnant? This was the gist of a recent post from Lucy herself.
An even bigger question is how will the crucifixion and apparent deaths of Xena and Gabrielle in Ides Of March be explained? Much speculation that there might be Uber incarnations of Xena ond Gabrielle - maybe a return for Janice and Mel, but all indications are that Xena and Gabrielle themselves will return. A Joxer episode is lined up featuring the third brother, Jace.(bet you can't wait for THAT one!), plus another Callisto episode will probably open the series. Alti returns according to Claire Stansfield. Possibly brought back by a young Amazon who finds her bones. Plus, the origin of Xena's chakram may be explored.

Sharon Delaney from Creation Entertainment has added a few teasers. Gabrielle's new look is said to involve leather and Xena herself will also change her look a few times.

Titles of forthcoming episodes;
Fallen Angel
Chakram
Succession
Dem Bones, Dem Bones
Animal Attraction

More soon.

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