Xena
Encyclopedia
Xena is a fictional character
from Robert Tapert
's Xena: Warrior Princess
franchise. She first appeared in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
, before going on to appear in Xena: Warrior Princess TV show and subsequent comic book
of the same name. The character has also appeared in the spin-off animated movie The Battle for Mount Olympus
, as well as numerous non-canon
expanded universe
material, such as books and video games. Xena was played by New Zealand
actress Lucy Lawless
, although the original choice was the British actress Vanessa Angel
. She commonly wore a tight leather skirted outfit.
Xena is the protagonist
of the story, and the series depicts her quest to seek redemption for her past sins as a ruthless warlord by using her formidable fighting skills to help people. Xena was raised as the daughter of Cyrene
and Atrius in Amphipolis, though the episode "The Furies" raised the possibility that Ares
, might be Xena's biological father. She has a brother who is dead; she visits his grave to speak with him in "Sins of the Past." In Hercules, during her two first episodes, Xena was an outlaw
, but in the third (and last), she joins Hercules
to defeat Darphus, who had taken her army. Once accompanied by her lover Borias and known as the "Destroyer of Nations," she is accompanied by the young Gabrielle she become "Defender of the Elijans," and of numerous unnamed others. Aware that the character of Xena had been very successful among the public, the producers of the series decided to create a spin-off
series based on her adventures.
The character Gabrielle
, introduced in the first episode, becomes Xena's greatest ally; her initial naïveté helps to balance Xena and assists her in recognizing and pursuing the "greater good".
, although Lawless had already appeared as the character Lyla on the episode "As Darkness Falls", on February 20, 1995. Xena was originally conceived to die at the end of the third episode, "Unchained Heart
", but when the studio decided they wanted to do a spin-off
from Hercules, the producer Robert Tapert
said that Xena was the best choice, since she was largely well-received by television critics and fans and had a full story to be explored. The studio wanted to do something about Jason
and the Argonauts
, but Tapert said that show would have too much of the same feel as Hercules.
The original choice to play Xena was the British actress Vanessa Angel
, but she fell ill and was unable to make it to the set. The role was also offered to four other actresses including Melinda Clarke
who would later play Velasca
in season 2. Ultimately the role was given to Lawless as she was already a resident of New Zealand
. Lawless had several problems playing the character due to the violence scenes, getting cut by swords and being hit in the head, and also in 1996 while rehearsing a skit for "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
", she fractured her pelvis when she was thrown clear from her horse. As a result, several episodes of Season 2 had to be edited to accommodate her recovery, and some of them were changed so Lawless could have a very slight appearance, and the crew created some brand new episodes.
in the Hercules episode "The Warrior Princess"; about ten years into her career of pillaging and marauding, Xena meets Hercules. Initially, she sets out to kill him. In "The Gauntlet", her army turns against her, believing Xena has become weak after she stops her lieutenant Darphus from killing a child in a sacked village
. She runs a gauntlet
, and survives, becoming the only person ever to survive the gauntlet. She then fights Hercules, in the hope that she will regain her army if she can bring back his head. Xena seems to be getting the upper hand until Hercules' cousin intervenes, making no real difference himself but inadvertently giving Hercules his sword, allowing him to fight Xena on equal ground and defeat her. However, Hercules refuses to kill Xena, telling her, "Killing isn't the only way of proving you're a warrior." Touched and inspired by Hercules' integrity, and by the fact that he too suffered the loss of blood kin as she did and yet chooses to fight in honor of them, she decides to join him and defeat her old army. In "Unchained Heart
", Hercules tells Xena that there is goodness in her heart, and the two of them share a brief romantic relationship, before Xena decides to leave and start making amends for her past.
. Xena saves the young women and Gabrielle is left in awe of the Warrior Princess' abilities. Gabrielle persuades Xena to let her be her traveling companion, and over time, Gabrielle becomes Xena's dearest friend. During the pilot, Xena returns to her home town, Amphipolis, where she eventually reconciles with her mother, Cyrene. She also visits the grave of her brother Lyceus to 'speak' with him. When Xena confides that it is difficult to be alone, Gabrielle, standing in the doorway of the crypt, tells her, "You're not alone."
One may wonder how it is possible for Xena to be a princess when she apparently comes from a humble village where her mother lives the life of a commoner. According to Steve Sears, a Xena writer and producer, Xena's troops gave her the title "Warrior Princess." The episode "The Debt II," provides another explanation. When Lao Ma declares that Xena will help her rule, she says: "You will be my warrior princess."
Soon after the start of her journeys with Gabrielle, Xena runs into Ares
, who has evidently known her since her warlord days and he tries to seduce her into joining him as his Warrior Queen, efforts that she repeatedly thwarts. She also encounters a formidable warrior woman named Callisto
, whose family was killed by Xena years ago.
Xena's subsequent life is marred by many tragedies. Her son Solan, who never came to know her as his mother, is killed, with the help of Callisto, by Hope
, Gabrielle's demonic child, and she nearly loses Gabrielle more than once. Marcus, a warrior, close friend and lover from her warlord days, whom she persuades to follow her in choosing good, is killed while doing his first good deed. Later, he is allowed to briefly return to the world of the living to help thwart a vicious killer who has escaped from the underworld. He and Xena spend a night together before Marcus has to return to the other side. She is too late to save her mentor and friend Lao Ma
from being tortured to death by her own son, the emperor Ming T'ien. Finally, she and Gabrielle are crucified by the Romans on the Ides of March
, as Caesar
, previously an ally, is betrayed and killed by Brutus. They are later revived by a mystic named Eli
with the spiritual aid of Callisto, who by that time had become an angel after being killed by Xena.
On season 5, Eve
, the miracle child Xena conceives after her resurrection (again through the efforts of the redeemed Callisto), is prophesied to bring about the Twilight of the Olympian gods and the birth of Christianity
; to escape the gods' persecution, Xena and Gabrielle fake their deaths, but their plan goes awry when Ares buries them in an ice cave where they sleep for 25 years. During that time, Eve is adopted by the Roman nobleman Octavius and grows up to become Livia, the Champion of Rome, and a ruthless persecutor of Eli's followers. After her return, Xena is able to turn Livia to repentance, and Livia takes back the name Eve and becomes the Messenger of Eli. After Eve's cleansing by baptism
, Xena is granted the power to kill gods as long as her daughter lives. In a final confrontation, the Twilight comes to pass when Xena kills most of the gods to save her daughter, with the help of God
and Archangel Michael
, and is herself saved by Ares when he gives up his immortality to heal the badly injured and dying Eve and Gabrielle, with Xena later helping him regain his godhood.
Xena's quest for redemption ends when she sacrifices herself to kill the japanese demon Yodoshi, and decides to stay dead so the souls of the 40,000 she (accidentally) killed years ago could be released into a state of peace. However, her spirit is seen with Gabrielle in a ship shortly afterwards.
According to the darsham, Naima, this is only one of many lives Xena will live throughout the ages. In many of those lives, she will walk a path together with her soulmate
Gabrielle furthering the cause of good against evil.
marks the first appearance of Xena outside of the television series. She also appears in the comics series Xena: Warrior Princess
, originally released by Topp
and Dark Horse Comics
, and in 2007 Dynamite Entertainment
acquired the rights to the book upon discovering the show still had many fans.
Xena is a playable character
in the videogames Xena: Warrior Princess
, and a selectable character in The Talisman of Fate
. In 1999, Lucy Lawless also appeared in the animated television show The Simpsons
dressed as her Xena character, during the Treehouse of Horror X
.
Xena has enjoyed a particular cult status in the lesbian
community. Some of the lesbian fanbase see Xena and Gabrielle as a couple and has embraced them as role models and lesbian icons. A group called The Marching Xenas has participated in many gay and lesbian pride parades.
A subject of much interest and debate among viewers is the question of whether Xena and Gabrielle are lovers. The issue is left deliberately ambiguous by the writers during most of the show. Jokes, innuendo, and other subtle evidence of a romantic relationship between Xena and Gabrielle is referred to as "lesbian subtext" or simply "subtext
" by fans. The issue of the true nature of the Xena/Gabrielle relationship caused intense shipping
debates in the fandom, which turned especially impassioned due to spillover from real-life debates about same-sex sexuality and gay rights.
Many fans felt that the sexual nature of Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was cemented by an interview given by Lucy Lawless
to Lesbian News magazine in 2003. Lawless stated that after the series finale, where Gabrielle revives Xena with a mouth-to-mouth water transfer filmed to look like a full kiss, she had come to believe that Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was "definitely gay... there was always a 'well, she might be or she might not be' but when there was that drip of water passing between their lips in the very final scene, that cemented it for me. Now it wasn't just that Xena was bisexual and kinda liked her gal pal and they kind of fooled around sometimes, it was 'Nope, they're married, man'."
The Xena fandom also popularized the term Altfic (from "alternative fiction") to refer to same-sex romantic fan fiction
. Many fans felt the term slash fiction
carried the connotation of being about male/male couples only and was not a good description for romantic fan fiction about Xena and Gabrielle.
icon. The television series, which employed pop culture references as a frequent humorous device, has itself become a frequent pop culture reference in video games, comics and television shows, and has been frequently parodied and spoofed.
Xena has been credited by many, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon
, with blazing the trail for a new generation of female action heroes such as Buffy, Max of Dark Angel
, Sydney Bristow of Alias
, and Beatrix Kiddo a.k.a. the Bride in Quentin Tarantino
's Kill Bill
. The director Quentin Tarantino is also a fan of Xena. It is interesting to note that after serving as Lucy Lawless's stunt double on Xena, stunt woman Zoë E. Bell
was recruited to be Uma Thurman's stunt double in Tarantino's Kill Bill. By helping to pave the way for female action heroes in television and film, "Xena" also strengthened the stunt woman profession.
In 2005, the team that discovered the dwarf planet
nicknamed it 'Xena' in honor of the TV character. On October 1, 2005, the team announced that had a moon, which they had nicknamed "Gabrielle". The objects were officially named Eris and Dysnomia
by the International Astronomical Union
on September 13, 2006. Although the official names have legitimate roots in Greek mythology, "Dysnomia" is also a synonym to the word "anomia", which means "lawlessness" in Greek , perpetuating the link with Lucy Lawless.
In 2006, Lucy Lawless donated her personal Xena costume to the Museum of American History. In an interview the same year with Smithsonian magazine, she was asked the question "Was the Warrior Princess outfit comfortable?" and she responded:
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from Robert Tapert
Robert Tapert
Robert Gerard Tapert , sometimes credited as Rob Tapert, Robert G. Tapert, or Rip Tapert, is an American film producer, best known for his co-founding of, and his subsequent work with, the Renaissance Pictures company....
's Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess is an American–New Zealand supernatural fantasy adventure series that aired in syndication from September 4, 1995 until June 18, 2001....
franchise. She first appeared in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys is a television series, filmed in New Zealand and the United States. It was produced from 1995, and was very loosely based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles...
, before going on to appear in Xena: Warrior Princess TV show and subsequent comic book
Xena: Warrior Princess (comics)
Xena: Warrior Princess comics, are spin-offs from the series of the same name, itself a spin-off series of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.Topps Comics and Dark Horse Comics created a series of comics tying in to the property...
of the same name. The character has also appeared in the spin-off animated movie The Battle for Mount Olympus
Hercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus
Hercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus is a 1998 American animated action adventure direct-to-video film starring the voices of Kevin Sorbo, Lucy Lawless, Michael Hurst, Renée O'Connor, Kevin Smith, and Alexandra Tydings, all reprising their roles from Hercules: The...
, as well as numerous non-canon
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
expanded universe
Expanded Universe
The term Expanded Universe is generally used to denote the 'extension' of a media franchise with other media...
material, such as books and video games. Xena was played by New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
actress Lucy Lawless
Lucy Lawless
Lucy Lawless, MNZM is a New Zealander actress and singer best known for playing the title character of the internationally successful television series Xena: Warrior Princess....
, although the original choice was the British actress Vanessa Angel
Vanessa Angel
- External links :...
. She commonly wore a tight leather skirted outfit.
Xena is the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the story, and the series depicts her quest to seek redemption for her past sins as a ruthless warlord by using her formidable fighting skills to help people. Xena was raised as the daughter of Cyrene
Cyrene (Xena)
Cyrene is a fictional character in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess. She was portrayed by the actress Darien Takle.- Character history :...
and Atrius in Amphipolis, though the episode "The Furies" raised the possibility that Ares
Ares (Hercules and Xena)
Ares is a character on the television shows Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Young Hercules. He was portrayed by New Zealand actor Kevin Tod Smith...
, might be Xena's biological father. She has a brother who is dead; she visits his grave to speak with him in "Sins of the Past." In Hercules, during her two first episodes, Xena was an outlaw
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
, but in the third (and last), she joins Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
to defeat Darphus, who had taken her army. Once accompanied by her lover Borias and known as the "Destroyer of Nations," she is accompanied by the young Gabrielle she become "Defender of the Elijans," and of numerous unnamed others. Aware that the character of Xena had been very successful among the public, the producers of the series decided to create a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
series based on her adventures.
The character Gabrielle
Gabrielle (Xena)
Gabrielle is a fictional character played by Renée O'Connor in Xena: Warrior Princess. She is referred to by fans as the Battling Bard of Potidaea. Her trademark weapons are the Amazon fighting staff and later, the sais...
, introduced in the first episode, becomes Xena's greatest ally; her initial naïveté helps to balance Xena and assists her in recognizing and pursuing the "greater good".
Creation and production
Xena was developed in 1995 by John Schulian as a secondary character for Hercules: The Legendary JourneysHercules: The Legendary Journeys
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys is a television series, filmed in New Zealand and the United States. It was produced from 1995, and was very loosely based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles...
, although Lawless had already appeared as the character Lyla on the episode "As Darkness Falls", on February 20, 1995. Xena was originally conceived to die at the end of the third episode, "Unchained Heart
Unchained Heart
"Unchained Heart" is the 13th episode and season finale of the first season of the television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Written by John Schulian and directed by Bruce Seth Green, it first aired in the United States on May 8, 1995....
", but when the studio decided they wanted to do a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
from Hercules, the producer Robert Tapert
Robert Tapert
Robert Gerard Tapert , sometimes credited as Rob Tapert, Robert G. Tapert, or Rip Tapert, is an American film producer, best known for his co-founding of, and his subsequent work with, the Renaissance Pictures company....
said that Xena was the best choice, since she was largely well-received by television critics and fans and had a full story to be explored. The studio wanted to do something about Jason
Jason
Jason was a late ancient Greek mythological hero from the late 10th Century BC, famous as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcus...
and the Argonauts
Argonauts
The Argonauts ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology who, in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, the Argo, which was named after its builder, Argus. "Argonauts", therefore, literally means...
, but Tapert said that show would have too much of the same feel as Hercules.
The original choice to play Xena was the British actress Vanessa Angel
Vanessa Angel
- External links :...
, but she fell ill and was unable to make it to the set. The role was also offered to four other actresses including Melinda Clarke
Melinda Clarke
Melinda Patrice Clarke is an American actress who has primarily worked in television. Clarke is best known for playing Faith Taylor on the daytime drama Days of our Lives, the manipulative and cunning Julie Cooper-Nichol on The O.C., and the professional dominatrix Lady Heather on CSI...
who would later play Velasca
Velasca
Velasca is a fictional character in the popular TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. In her tenure on the show, she served time as the Amazon Queen after defeating her adoptive mother Queen Melosa for the crown. Also during her time as a deity, she dubs herself the "Goddess of Chaos"...
in season 2. Ultimately the role was given to Lawless as she was already a resident of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Lawless had several problems playing the character due to the violence scenes, getting cut by swords and being hit in the head, and also in 1996 while rehearsing a skit for "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that initially aired from May 25, 1992 to May 29, 2009, and resumed production on March 1, 2010. The fourth incarnation of the Tonight Show franchise made its debut on May 25, 1992, three days following Johnny...
", she fractured her pelvis when she was thrown clear from her horse. As a result, several episodes of Season 2 had to be edited to accommodate her recovery, and some of them were changed so Lawless could have a very slight appearance, and the crew created some brand new episodes.
Origins on Hercules
Xena originally appears as an outlawOutlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
in the Hercules episode "The Warrior Princess"; about ten years into her career of pillaging and marauding, Xena meets Hercules. Initially, she sets out to kill him. In "The Gauntlet", her army turns against her, believing Xena has become weak after she stops her lieutenant Darphus from killing a child in a sacked village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
. She runs a gauntlet
Running the gauntlet
Running the gauntlet is a form of physical punishment wherein a captive is compelled to run between two rows—a gauntlet—of soldiers who strike him as he passes.-Etymology:...
, and survives, becoming the only person ever to survive the gauntlet. She then fights Hercules, in the hope that she will regain her army if she can bring back his head. Xena seems to be getting the upper hand until Hercules' cousin intervenes, making no real difference himself but inadvertently giving Hercules his sword, allowing him to fight Xena on equal ground and defeat her. However, Hercules refuses to kill Xena, telling her, "Killing isn't the only way of proving you're a warrior." Touched and inspired by Hercules' integrity, and by the fact that he too suffered the loss of blood kin as she did and yet chooses to fight in honor of them, she decides to join him and defeat her old army. In "Unchained Heart
Unchained Heart
"Unchained Heart" is the 13th episode and season finale of the first season of the television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Written by John Schulian and directed by Bruce Seth Green, it first aired in the United States on May 8, 1995....
", Hercules tells Xena that there is goodness in her heart, and the two of them share a brief romantic relationship, before Xena decides to leave and start making amends for her past.
On her self-titled show
During the series pilot, "Sins of the Past", Xena finds the way to redemption to be more painful than she thought. Haunted by her past transgressions, she is about to give up on her life as a warrior completely. As she strips off her armor and weaponry and buries them in the dirt, she sees a group of village girls being attacked by a band of warriors. In the group is GabrielleGabrielle (Xena)
Gabrielle is a fictional character played by Renée O'Connor in Xena: Warrior Princess. She is referred to by fans as the Battling Bard of Potidaea. Her trademark weapons are the Amazon fighting staff and later, the sais...
. Xena saves the young women and Gabrielle is left in awe of the Warrior Princess' abilities. Gabrielle persuades Xena to let her be her traveling companion, and over time, Gabrielle becomes Xena's dearest friend. During the pilot, Xena returns to her home town, Amphipolis, where she eventually reconciles with her mother, Cyrene. She also visits the grave of her brother Lyceus to 'speak' with him. When Xena confides that it is difficult to be alone, Gabrielle, standing in the doorway of the crypt, tells her, "You're not alone."
One may wonder how it is possible for Xena to be a princess when she apparently comes from a humble village where her mother lives the life of a commoner. According to Steve Sears, a Xena writer and producer, Xena's troops gave her the title "Warrior Princess." The episode "The Debt II," provides another explanation. When Lao Ma declares that Xena will help her rule, she says: "You will be my warrior princess."
Soon after the start of her journeys with Gabrielle, Xena runs into Ares
Ares (Hercules and Xena)
Ares is a character on the television shows Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Young Hercules. He was portrayed by New Zealand actor Kevin Tod Smith...
, who has evidently known her since her warlord days and he tries to seduce her into joining him as his Warrior Queen, efforts that she repeatedly thwarts. She also encounters a formidable warrior woman named Callisto
Callisto (Xena)
Callisto is a fictional character in the fantasy TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. She features as the most frequently recurring villainess on that show. She also makes appearances on three episodes of the parent show Hercules: The Legendary Journeys...
, whose family was killed by Xena years ago.
Xena's subsequent life is marred by many tragedies. Her son Solan, who never came to know her as his mother, is killed, with the help of Callisto, by Hope
Hope (Xena)
Hope is a fictional character in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess. She is the daughter of Dahak, born of Gabrielle. Hope is a recurring villainess in the third season, portrayed by Amy Morrison and Renée O'Connor.-Character history:...
, Gabrielle's demonic child, and she nearly loses Gabrielle more than once. Marcus, a warrior, close friend and lover from her warlord days, whom she persuades to follow her in choosing good, is killed while doing his first good deed. Later, he is allowed to briefly return to the world of the living to help thwart a vicious killer who has escaped from the underworld. He and Xena spend a night together before Marcus has to return to the other side. She is too late to save her mentor and friend Lao Ma
Lao Ma
Lao Ma is a fictional character in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess. She is portrayed by Korean-American actress Jacqueline Kim. Lao Ma is first introduced in the series in a two-episode story arc comprising The Debt Part I and Part II. The first episode has Xena, relating to Gabrielle...
from being tortured to death by her own son, the emperor Ming T'ien. Finally, she and Gabrielle are crucified by the Romans on the Ides of March
Ides of March
The Ides of March is the name of the 15th day of March in the Roman calendar, probably referring to the day of the full moon. The word Ides comes from the Latin word "Idus" and means "half division" especially in relation to a month. It is a word that was used widely in the Roman calendar...
, as Caesar
Caesar (Xena)
Caesar is a fictional character from the television series Xena: Warrior Princess loosely based on Julius Caesar. He is portrayed by New Zealand actor Karl Urban. Caesar is a recurring antagonist in seasons two and three, with a guest appearance in season six as well as being the main antagonist of...
, previously an ally, is betrayed and killed by Brutus. They are later revived by a mystic named Eli
Eli (Xena)
Eli is a fictional character from the television series Xena: Warrior Princess. He is portrayed by American actor Timothy Omundson.-The Devi:...
with the spiritual aid of Callisto, who by that time had become an angel after being killed by Xena.
On season 5, Eve
Eve (Xena)
Eve | Livia is a fictional character created by Robert Tapert for the popular TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. She is portrayed by Adrienne Wilkinson...
, the miracle child Xena conceives after her resurrection (again through the efforts of the redeemed Callisto), is prophesied to bring about the Twilight of the Olympian gods and the birth of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
; to escape the gods' persecution, Xena and Gabrielle fake their deaths, but their plan goes awry when Ares buries them in an ice cave where they sleep for 25 years. During that time, Eve is adopted by the Roman nobleman Octavius and grows up to become Livia, the Champion of Rome, and a ruthless persecutor of Eli's followers. After her return, Xena is able to turn Livia to repentance, and Livia takes back the name Eve and becomes the Messenger of Eli. After Eve's cleansing by baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
, Xena is granted the power to kill gods as long as her daughter lives. In a final confrontation, the Twilight comes to pass when Xena kills most of the gods to save her daughter, with the help of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
and Archangel Michael
Michael
Michael is a given name that comes from the , derived from the Hebrew question מי כמו אלוהים? meaning "Who is like God?" In English, it is sometimes shortened to Mike, Mikey, or, especially in Ireland, Mick...
, and is herself saved by Ares when he gives up his immortality to heal the badly injured and dying Eve and Gabrielle, with Xena later helping him regain his godhood.
Xena's quest for redemption ends when she sacrifices herself to kill the japanese demon Yodoshi, and decides to stay dead so the souls of the 40,000 she (accidentally) killed years ago could be released into a state of peace. However, her spirit is seen with Gabrielle in a ship shortly afterwards.
According to the darsham, Naima, this is only one of many lives Xena will live throughout the ages. In many of those lives, she will walk a path together with her soulmate
Soulmate
A soulmate is believed by some to be the person with whom one has a feeling of deep or natural affinity, similarity, love, intimacy, sexuality, spirituality, or compatibility. A related concept is that of the twin flame or twin soul, which is thought to be the ultimate soulmate...
Gabrielle furthering the cause of good against evil.
In other media
Xena has appeared in all of the series spin-offs, usually as the lead character. The animated movie Hercules and Xena: The Battle for Mount OlympusHercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus
Hercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus is a 1998 American animated action adventure direct-to-video film starring the voices of Kevin Sorbo, Lucy Lawless, Michael Hurst, Renée O'Connor, Kevin Smith, and Alexandra Tydings, all reprising their roles from Hercules: The...
marks the first appearance of Xena outside of the television series. She also appears in the comics series Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess (comics)
Xena: Warrior Princess comics, are spin-offs from the series of the same name, itself a spin-off series of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.Topps Comics and Dark Horse Comics created a series of comics tying in to the property...
, originally released by Topp
Topps Comics
Topps Comics is a division of the American trading card publisher and gum/candy distributor the Topps Company, Inc. that published comic books from 1993–1998, beginning its existence during a short comics-industry boom that attracted many investors and new companies...
and Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
, and in 2007 Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
acquired the rights to the book upon discovering the show still had many fans.
Xena is a playable character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
in the videogames Xena: Warrior Princess
Xena: Warrior Princess (video game)
Xena: Warrior Princess is a beat 'em up video game that was released on the PlayStation, developed by VU Games and published by Electronic Arts, based on the television series.-Storyline:...
, and a selectable character in The Talisman of Fate
Xena: Warrior Princess: The Talisman of Fate
Xena: Warrior Princess: The Talisman of Fate is a fighting video game that was released on the Nintendo 64, developed by Saffire and published by Titus Software, based on the television series.-Characters:*Xena*Gabrielle*Autolycus*Joxer*Caesar*Ares...
. In 1999, Lucy Lawless also appeared in the animated television show The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
dressed as her Xena character, during the Treehouse of Horror X
Treehouse of Horror X
"Treehouse of Horror X" is the fourth episode of The Simpsons eleventh season, and the tenth annual Treehouse of Horror episode, consisting of three self-contained segments. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on Halloween 1999. In "I Know What You Diddily-Iddily-Did", the...
.
Characterization and controversies
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
community. Some of the lesbian fanbase see Xena and Gabrielle as a couple and has embraced them as role models and lesbian icons. A group called The Marching Xenas has participated in many gay and lesbian pride parades.
A subject of much interest and debate among viewers is the question of whether Xena and Gabrielle are lovers. The issue is left deliberately ambiguous by the writers during most of the show. Jokes, innuendo, and other subtle evidence of a romantic relationship between Xena and Gabrielle is referred to as "lesbian subtext" or simply "subtext
Subtext
Subtext or undertone is content of a book, play, musical work, film, video game, or television series which is not announced explicitly by the characters but is implicit or becomes something understood by the observer of the work as the production unfolds. Subtext can also refer to the thoughts...
" by fans. The issue of the true nature of the Xena/Gabrielle relationship caused intense shipping
Shipping (fandom)
Shipping, derived from the word relationship, is the belief that two fictional characters, typically from the same series, are in an intimate relationship, or have romantic feelings that could potentially lead to a relationship. It is considered a general term for fans' emotional involvement with...
debates in the fandom, which turned especially impassioned due to spillover from real-life debates about same-sex sexuality and gay rights.
Many fans felt that the sexual nature of Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was cemented by an interview given by Lucy Lawless
Lucy Lawless
Lucy Lawless, MNZM is a New Zealander actress and singer best known for playing the title character of the internationally successful television series Xena: Warrior Princess....
to Lesbian News magazine in 2003. Lawless stated that after the series finale, where Gabrielle revives Xena with a mouth-to-mouth water transfer filmed to look like a full kiss, she had come to believe that Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was "definitely gay... there was always a 'well, she might be or she might not be' but when there was that drip of water passing between their lips in the very final scene, that cemented it for me. Now it wasn't just that Xena was bisexual and kinda liked her gal pal and they kind of fooled around sometimes, it was 'Nope, they're married, man'."
The Xena fandom also popularized the term Altfic (from "alternative fiction") to refer to same-sex romantic fan fiction
Fan fiction
Fan fiction is a broadly-defined term for fan labor regarding stories about characters or settings written by fans of the original work, rather than by the original creator...
. Many fans felt the term slash fiction
Slash fiction
Slash fiction is a genre of fan fiction that focuses on the depiction of romantic or sexual relationships between fictional characters of the same sex...
carried the connotation of being about male/male couples only and was not a good description for romantic fan fiction about Xena and Gabrielle.
Reception and legacy
Xena: Warrior Princes has been referred to as a pop cultural phenomenon and feminist and lesbianLesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
icon. The television series, which employed pop culture references as a frequent humorous device, has itself become a frequent pop culture reference in video games, comics and television shows, and has been frequently parodied and spoofed.
Xena has been credited by many, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
, with blazing the trail for a new generation of female action heroes such as Buffy, Max of Dark Angel
Dark Angel (TV series)
Dark Angel is an American biopunk/cyberpunk science fiction television series created by James Cameron and Charles H. Eglee. The show premiered in the United States on the Fox network on October 3, 2000, and was canceled after two seasons...
, Sydney Bristow of Alias
Alias (TV series)
Alias is an American action television series created by J. J. Abrams which was broadcast on ABC for five seasons, from September 30, 2001 to May 22, 2006...
, and Beatrix Kiddo a.k.a. the Bride in Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
's Kill Bill
Kill Bill
Kill Bill Volume 1 is a 2003 action thriller film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is the first of two volumes that were theatrically released several months apart, the second volume being Kill Bill Volume 2....
. The director Quentin Tarantino is also a fan of Xena. It is interesting to note that after serving as Lucy Lawless's stunt double on Xena, stunt woman Zoë E. Bell
Zoë Bell
Zoë E. Bell is a stuntwoman and actress from New Zealand. Some of her most notable stunt work includes doubling for Lucy Lawless on Xena: Warrior Princess and for Uma Thurman in Kill Bill. As an actress, she has appeared both on television and in feature films and also starred in the web series...
was recruited to be Uma Thurman's stunt double in Tarantino's Kill Bill. By helping to pave the way for female action heroes in television and film, "Xena" also strengthened the stunt woman profession.
Dwarf planet
A dwarf planet, as defined by the International Astronomical Union , is a celestial body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be spherical as a result of its own gravity but has not cleared its neighboring region of planetesimals and is not a satellite...
nicknamed it 'Xena' in honor of the TV character. On October 1, 2005, the team announced that had a moon, which they had nicknamed "Gabrielle". The objects were officially named Eris and Dysnomia
Dysnomia (moon)
- References :...
by the International Astronomical Union
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
on September 13, 2006. Although the official names have legitimate roots in Greek mythology, "Dysnomia" is also a synonym to the word "anomia", which means "lawlessness" in Greek , perpetuating the link with Lucy Lawless.
In 2006, Lucy Lawless donated her personal Xena costume to the Museum of American History. In an interview the same year with Smithsonian magazine, she was asked the question "Was the Warrior Princess outfit comfortable?" and she responded: