Xena: Warrior Princess Forums

Well, it is probably fairly pointless at this stage, but since I have returned (briefly) to tvDOTcom and have been cruising through the forums, I realised that I never actually finished my part in the Xenathon, which was my review of the final episode. I left in such a hurry last time I must have missed it.

So, I thought I would go ahead and give my final thoughts, and I can feel like I've finished my part for good. I just want to say again that I really appreciate everyone who put their time and thoughts into the Xenathon - I enjoyed it so much and I really feel like we achieved a lot of understanding and thought-provoking discussion during the time it was running.

Is There A Doctor In The House?

I find this to be an interesting episode. Many, many fans claim it to be their favourite of season 1 and one of their favourites of all time. I can't say it falls into either category for me. It is a good, solid episode, with a particularly important scene extending the women's relationship, but to me it just doesn't take the show to another level, which is the key criteria for an episode to make it into my top list.

However, it is by all accounts a powerful episode, and a thoroughly entertaining one. Xena playing ER is impressive, if a little on the unbelievable side. You really just need to overlook the far-fetched bits, however, and appreciate the themes underlying the action.

One particular point which has been mentioned was Xena's clear contempt for the priest's attitude that the best way to save the critically injured was through prayer. Xena has always shown her utter lack of faith and clear disdain for the gods, and I thought this was a perfect moment to raise this point. As a non-believer, I find little more frustrating than hearing people talking about 'putting their faith in god' rather than taking a stand and taking some responsibility for situations and their reactions to those situations. I liked that Xena was able to embody this view and then put her talk into action to prove that trusting in yourself holds much more value than blindly trusting a higher power. Really nicely captured. What really would have thrown the message into turmoil, however, would have been if Xena, while attempting to save Gabrielle later in the episode, had asked the gods for help - where would this have left questions of faith?

I thought the return of Ephiny was a nice touch, if a little oddly placed. Ephiny was always an original character, and plays a good recurring role throughout the series, but in my opinion she deserved much more air time than she was given. Slotted into this episode she fades into the background, and that is a shame. One point I think was overlooked was the potential to use Xena's loss of Gabrielle in contrast to Ephiny's loss of Phantes. I don't feel like Ephiny was given enough credit for how well she was coping after the loss of her soul mate, and given the emphasis on Xena potentially having to live without Gabrielle, it could have been effectively compared to how hard it must have been for Ephiny, trying to see a future without Phantes.

I'll pick up, here, on Ianic's point regarding Gabrielle's ability to save herself in battle, yet her stubborn refusal to use her skills to save her own life. I have no doubt that Xena is now well aware that (deep-down) Gabrielle possesses the skills required to defend herself, and others, in battle. Xena has helped her develop these skills over time and we have seen a large improvement in Gabrielle's tactics in the last few episodes. Unfortunately, what Gabrielle still lacks is the willingness to take a life. In battle the difference between living and dying could potentially be your willingness to take the other person's life. Xena has lived with this knowledge from a very young age and, given how hard she has worked to teach Gabrielle and save her, it must be an incredibly frustrating situation to know that despite all her efforts, Gabrielle is still more willing to die than to take another's life. Given that Gabrielle is still not fully aware of where their relationship is headed, it is understandable that she does not take the loss of her own life as seriously as she would later on, in the knowledge of what it would do to Xena.

Which I suppose leads us, in a roundabout way, to the most important scene of the episode, Xena saving Gabrielle from the brink of death. I have to admit that this scene always leaves me in tears, just the raw emotion on Xena's face throughout does it to me every time. I find that critical moments in the series send me on a rushed journey remembering all of Xena and Gabrielle's time together - making it even more emotional. This scene (like the others) is a tribute to the acting skills of Lucy and Renee, in this case most particularly Lucy. Her grief and distress is so real and so sad, that you can't help crying with her. What makes this scene so important is the subtext angle of it all. Anyone with any doubts about how Xena feels about Gabrielle is left feeling confident that this is a woman in love. Xena's reaction to Gabrielle's death is far beyond that of a friend losing a friend - in a split second Xena has realised what this loss will mean to her life and her utter despair and grief is evident in her eyes. It is frustrating that Gabrielle is still unable to express any of her own emotions and that, at least at the present time, Xena is still alone in her unrequited love for Gabrielle. The value of this scene is that there is no longer any doubt for fans where Xena stands - she is in love with Gabrielle and, while willing to disguise her feelings to protect Gabrielle, at least has no question in her own mind.

So, this is a great episode. Not one of my favourites, but a strong overall and important subtext moment. If I had to pick my favourite of the season, "The Reckoning" would win hands down. Something about that episode just stands out to me as being incredibly important in the series development, as well as in the development of our girls' relationship. While it rarely gets a look in from fans, it is the one episode I find my mind continually drawn back to. "Callisto" is also an award winner in my books, and "The Greater Good" definitely deserves a look in.

I just feel like Season 1 is a very powerful season, and should never be underestimated or overlooked in terms of its power, emotion or importance. I think we have proved through our discussion just how much the season means to fans, and I think that of all the seasons, it is this one that really deserved our attention. So, thanks again everyone.

I left too after this new Tv.com layout was put forward. I miss the old layout!

But anyways, it's nice to see everyone again and that the Xena forums are going strong still.

"Orphan Of War"

Original Air Date: 9/30/1996 ; Discussion Date 5/11/2009

Disclaimer at end of episode: No Sleazy Warlords who deem it necessary to drink magic elixers that turn them into scaly centaurs were harmed during the production of this motion picture...

Orphan Of War:

First episode for Season 2, Xena and Gabrielle find themselves into Centaur Land. She soon finds out that Dagnine, a soldier in her former army, has attacked the Centaurs for the sacred Ixion Stone. We find out that Xena has a son that she has given up to Kaleipus (head of the centaurs) as a baby. We find out that Xena and the Centaurs were enemies, and part of their truce was that the centaurs take Xena's baby and raise him, because Xena was scared that the baby would become a target for all her enemies, and she did not want to see her son fall into her evil ways.

In my opinion, this was not that great of a season opening. With the last few episodes in Season 1, I think that Xena: Warrior Princess was progressing, but this episode took a step back. The special effects in the episode were not all that great. However, it was still much better than those in Hercules: Legendary Journeys! And for only being on the second season, with not much of a budget, I guess it was alright.

Great points of the episode is that we learn a little more about Xena's past. We learn about Borias and what he did to help the Centaurs. We also see that Gabrielle is becoming more of an important and trusting part of Xena's life. Although, I feel as if Gabrielle may have been stepping over the lines in wanting to tell Solan that Xena was his mother. That is something that only Xena should do, and for Gabrielle even to feel that she would tell Solan the truth was wrong. However, Gabrielle did realize that she was in the wrong, and admitted it to Xena, thus gaining more of Xena's trust. We also see how much better Gabrielle is getting with her staff!

This was not one of my favorite Xena episodes, but it was still enough to keep my attention. Although like I stated before, this episode was a step back from the prior episodes in Season 1. However, it was very important for us to learn about Solan and some of Xena's past secrets. So with that, it made out to be decent viewing!

ORPHAN OF WAR

After the build up that a show creates throughout its first season, the eagerly anticipated second season is always going to be judged a little harshly by fans. However, there is nothing within this episode that I think fans could complain about. As a season opener it is entertaining and, in my opinion, it works well, and is most effective at drawing us back into the series. It also brings in a whole range of new subject matter, opening up a whole new chapter in Xena's life, and that is always worth watching. As everybody knows by now, I find Xena's dark past to be the most interesting thing about her character, so I find any reference to her past deeds extremely fascinating, and I believe that flashbacks alone can lift a mediocre episode into the "great" category.

It is interesting that I enjoyed this episode as much as I did as I really am not a fan of the mother-child moments that occur throughout the series. The writers/producers depend on these relationships a great deal throughout the series, with the Xena-Solan, Gabrielle-Hope, and Xena-Eve story-arcs among the biggest and most significant in the show. For whatever reason, I do not find these relationships particularly genuine or interesting, and the early Xena-Solan relationship is the same. Something about it feels very forced, although, this could also be seen as a very truthful portrayal, and Xena certainly would have been awkward around her now-grown abandoned son. However, having said that I am not a fan of the mother-child storylines does not mean that I don't enjoy the episodes themselves. I think that writing a child into the series is a great plot twist, and for Xena to have given up her son the way she did is quite tragic and very much a reflection of how far Xena has come as a person.

What I also like is the emphasis on how Xena's relationship with Solan has already created a rift between Xena and Gabrielle that, as we see in Season 3, eventually becomes a chasm that cannot be bridged by the pair. Having this (until this point, unknown) child suddenly become a part of Xena's life again takes Xena and Gabrielle's relationship to a different level, where suddenly the things that are left unsaid matter more, and the bigger picture starts to matter in a way it never has for the two. Honesty and trust is such an enormous part of any relationship, and this is one area that Xena struggles with a great deal. Gabrielle, used to people being honest with her all her life, sees the omissions Xena makes regarding her past as being as good as a deception, and rightly so. Xena is still emotionally unable to be completely open and to truly trust Gabrielle, as I believe she still doesn't trust herself.

The other excellent part of this episode is our villain-of-the-week, Dagnine. Apparently it is just me, but I just loved Dagnine! I found him to be funny, witty, exciting and anything but your typical warlord. His comment in the tent when asked by his seer: "Sir, if this doesn't work...??", to which Dangine replies: "If this doesn't work... One of you gets my tent, the other one gets my horse" had me in stitches! There is no doubt that Dagnine had all the good lines. As Xena said herself, he certainly is charismatic! I find it extremely refreshing to see an authentic and original villain brought into the mix, and looking back now I still believe that Dagnine is one of the best. Xena certainly hung around with the wrong crowd in her dark days.

This episode has good points and bad points, but the good points win out, making this a solid introduction to season 2. By no stretch of the imagination is this one of the season's best; Season 2 had many many fantastic episodes, but this one serves it's purpose and is thoroughly enjoyable along the way. In terms of character/storyline development, it may be hard to see at this stage the significance of this one. But this episode has created the first of many cracks to develop in Xena and Gabrielle's relationship, and these cracks multiply to eventually fracture the pair completely. Looking at the episode in that context, it is an important moment.

Orphan of war

Season 2 opens us up to another detail of Xena's past as she and Gabby track down a former warrior from her army, Dagnaine. Xena reveals she has a son whom she left in the care of Kaleipus, the leader of the centaurs. We take a trip down memory lane to see that happen and I really felt for Xena, walking away from her baby.

Now all these years later Xena's son, Solan, has come to hate her as he thinks that she killed his father, but was never told that his mother was really Xena. I actually liked that Kaleipus gave him a nice image of a mother when Xena wasn't really mommy material at the time. A plus in this episode was that we get a better image of Borias in what he did to help the centaurs.

When Solan gets caught by Dagnine's thugs Xena is in full protective mode and races to save him. It has always amazed me how she can get into the ememy's camp and into the leader's tent without being seen. That along with her uncanny ability to jump through the roof from the ground. In her rescue attempt I had to say 'come on Xena why hang over a pit when you can run away?' and how ironic is it that Dagnaine's camp was right over the entrance to the Ixion caves? As Xena and Solan get to the alter where the Ixion stone should be, they find it missing and a pair of handprints on the alter. Xena assumes Borias found it and hid it. In the escape Solan drops his sword and the stone drops out, giving Dagnaine all the power he was looking for. I have to give kudos to the creative team behind centaur Dagnaine. He was ugly but still cool!!

In the final fight between Xena and centaur Dagnaine, he has Borias' sword and tells Xena that he was the one who killed him the night Solan was born. She makes quick work to get him into position to set off a giant crossbow to kill him once and for all. When the time comes for Xena and Gabby to leave, Xena finds Solan by a lake and he tells her that he doesn't hate her anymore and that he's not a warrior. He throws Borias' sword into the lake, Xena tells him that his mother would be very proud. She decides not to tell him the truth and leaves it at they're friends. She then walks away, again.

"Remember Nothing"

Original Air Date: 10/17/1996 ; Discussion Date 05/14/2009

Disclaimer at end of episode: Xena's memory was not damaged or.....What was I saying??

"Remember Nothing"

2nd episode of Season 2, Xena and Gabrielle find themselves heading to the Temple Of The Fates. Upon getting to the Temple, the Temple is attacked and Xena and Gabrielle do what they do best.... Protect. We find that Xena takes the life of a young boy who was a soldier, and wishing that she could change that, and the boy could have his life back.

This is our first encounter with the Fates, and we learn how cryptic they can be. They allowed Xena to go back to a time where Xena never became a warrior. They took her back to when her brother Lyceus was still alive. The conditions of Xena staying in that time is to never shed blood in rage.... Never be a warrior. This of course all comes with a price.....

Instead of losing her brother, Xena quickly learns that her mother is dead. She is very upset and realizes that Gabrielle is not in her life either. Xena is trying to adjust to this "new" life when she realizes that Gabrielle is still around, but as a slave to a Warlord. Xena then does everything she can to save Gabrielle, who does not even know Xena, from the life of a slave.

I think this is such a great episode. One of the first episodes that puts Xena and Gabrielle's love to the test, and that they are destined to be together. The back story was interesting as well, but not the main point of the episode. I think that it was meant to show that no matter what, Xena and Gabrielle belong together.

All in all, this is definitely one of my favorite episodes of the series, and the first in an "alternate" life. "Remember Nothing" stands at best in this category of episodes, only to be surpassed by Season 6 "When Fates Collide".

In a funny little bit about the opening scenes.... Gabrielle is still in her Season 1 peasant clothes while traveling with Xena!!!