Been There, Done That
In a nutshell: The same day is repeating over and over for Xenauntil she can set a few things straight.
OK, that's it, this show is now getting dangerous: X:WP nearly killed me
this week. When Xena sat bolt upright and buried her chakram in Joxer's
chest, then contentedly went back to sleep with her thumb in her mouth
while Gabrielle stammered incoherently in horror, I thought I was going
to have to call the paramedics. My sides are still aching.
Mind you, I'm not a Joxer-hater. I'm a rise-and-shine hater, and did feel some triumph on that count. But even funnier was how perfect it was for Xena to decide, just once in all those days, to kill 'em off, let the gods sort 'em out, and take a day off. Getting skewered by arrows the day before will do that to you.
We've had a lot of dramatic episodes start off with a light comedy scene, so I suppose we're due for a comedy to start off with some nice drama. Joxer's death was potently done; his bloody head in Gabrielle's arms and her tears by the funeral pyre were near-exact duplicates to Perdicus's death and funeral scenes. Xena's sympathy - and her own sadness for Joxer - were touching, too.
MAJOR subtext alerts! Xena and Gabrielle fall asleep in each other's arms, Xena juggles turnips in front of Gabrielle's chest while she talks about seizing the day, and when Xena finds Gabrielle alive the morning after her death, she pulls her into a rough and tumble embrace that gets burst into by Joxer's arrival. For around a full season now, I've been waiting for some character to cock his or her head to the side, look at Xena and Gabrielle, and mutter "I wonder if they... nah!" I thought for just a second there that the time had arrived, but Joxer is far too innocent and eager for such an idea to even cross his mind. His "group hug!" conclusion instead was priceless.
The best, though, was the hickey alert. Xena's sidelong glance and Gabrielle's studious examination of the side of the road were classic.
To give equal air to the subtext-con view, there are, as always, plenty of alternate explanations: Gabrielle needed enormous comfort, Xena was very glad to see Gab still alive, and maybe the hickey reactions were disbelief at the ridiculousness of the idea or memories of that guy in the tavern last night who was the source of said mark. The debate can rage unabated without any ground gained by either camp, but it sure is fun to watch a gasoline can get thrown into the fire.
The greatest chakram throw in history! By my count, the chakram caromed 30 times through the town. The round killing thing gets to see a lot of action this episode - besides offing Joxer and travelling throughout the village, it also gets to slaughter livestock.
"Maybe it's the rooster." "Kurraaa kwa kurrrra-BAH!"The golden nuggets of this episode, though, were the reactions, especially Gabrielle's responses as Xena rages through the day. The blank look of stupified fury on her face when Xena leaves her and Joxer tied up; and her amazement in the barn, with her hands resting quietly on her knees while Xena rants incoherently, are fantastic. I also adored Xena's temper tantrum, complete with leg kicks and Yosemite Sam-style cursing.
Joxer quote of the episode:
"Hey, if you need a big goose egg, I'm your man."I thought Xena showed remarkable restraint in this episode. I expected her to go ballistic after Joxer's death, and when they killed Argo, I was waiting for her to level the village and burn it all to the ground. For an episode with a high violence count, surprisingly little of it was caused by our Warrior Princess.
But while Xena's butt-kicking was kept to a minimum, Gabrielle's battle skills shone when Xena was calmly measuring out her chakram shot. Gab got disarmed (by her best buddy) and still managed to keep the raging villager at bay before finally getting her staff back to finish pasting him. Way to go, Gab! Even an extra gets some good fight time: did you see that peasant girl beat the stuffing out of the nobleman? As Xena said with such pride, "Good girl!"
One beef with the episode: WHAT was up with the final day repeating one last time? Or I assume that was what happened: Xena fixed the day, then it repeated one last time, a bit different, with all the problems fixed. Confused the heck out of me. At first, when Joxer came in and Gabrielle popped up, I thought they were playing a really vicious joke on Xena, but it turned out that they didn't have a clue. Shouldn't the next morning have just been... the next morning? No barn, no breakfast, no rise-and-shine?
The episode ended on an awfully sitcom-y note, with a shared belly laugh between the stars, but since it included the amazing sight of Xena participating in the belly laugh, I'll forgive it happily. Just don't make it a habit, guys, please.
Return to the Wool-Gatherings.
Rate-A-Xena is brought to you by the letter omega, the number IV, and Beth Griese. Feel free to send any comments or questions my way!