Amac Productions

A Xena-lite episode this week!

I apologize for the tardiness! But better late than never!

On with the review!

This week we’re treated to a Joxer, Autolycus, Gabrielle adventure with an evil twin twist. Which while one I never truly care for, is done super well here.

I truly adored the moment that Jett and Joxer catch up with each other.

It was written like a sibling relationship. The idea that someone has grown up with you and seen all your less than stellar moments. He knows where all your buttons are. There’s inside jokes and taunts.

Despite the horrible let’s make the same actor talk to himself and it never quite looks right, Ted Raimi actually pulls it off remarkably well. I think he’s only bested by Lucy Lawless.

I do not enjoy the gag of this shot.

Where every show or movie is like, look how good we spliced this together. You can barely tell at all that they’re the same person. I can.

Every time.

They’re never quite looking at what they’re supposed to.

Never quite lined up properly.

There’s always something that belays that this is the same actor trying to remember where they stood before during the first half of filming the scene. It never looks great and tends to get overused.

See Vampire Diaries.

I think Ted does a nice job and the show doesn’t linger too much on the shots of them together. Plus, Ted does a good job of keeping his characters moving through the shots to avoid it seeming off.

Aside from that annoying detail, I enjoyed this episode way more than I thought I would.

First off, Autolycus is always a bonus.

I truly wish he’d appear more often, because as said in this episode, he has a heart of gold. Like the moment when he thinks that Joxer is Jett and he desperately tries to relay that information to Gabrielle so she isn’t killed. It’s really sweet to see how much he does care.

I could have done without the weird flirting between him and Cleopatra. That was just no.

Like, I felt like an intruder in the room.

I felt that way when she flirted with Xena at the end of the episode but that’s beside the point. Just felt like it was not meant for my eyes, just theirs. You know?

I must commend the actors for making it feel more personal.

I also love Gina Torres. I’m never mad when she shows up. Also, she tends to show in the most unexpected places because I did not know she was in Xena. Like ever.

It was a delight for her to appear.

Autolycus is a highlight though. Love Bruce Campbell.

I did not need the scene of her getting naked and him watching. Like ew. Just not a thing that would fly today. There are very few moments when this show reveals that it was made in a time where lewd things like that were taken differently. More easily. More acceptable.

Given how much this show pushes the boundaries and limits of what they’re allowed to show for the LGBTQ community, and how well they handle it.

It’s weird to see a slip into the time it was produced.

Xena so often feels ahead of it’s time that to have a moment that felt very 90s gross humor just stood out.

So Xena, please more Autolycus, but the heart of gold version.

The one who didn’t want the guards to leave because she would die. Or that though quickly to convince Jett not to murder him. The one who insisted Gabrielle’s complicated plan was the right move.

Though he did have a point. Her plan revealed that her own guard was trying to kill her.

That Autolycus.

Please and thank you.

Also, I have to admit that I’m not entirely sure when this happened but I was not annoyed by Joxer in this episode. I actually have come to… like him…?

When did that happen?

Jeez.

His moments with his brother where he reveals how much he’s grown. While it’s not exactly as he portrays it, it is the truth, nonetheless.

He has grown.

This Joxer is wildly different than the one who was absolutely terrified every time Callisto opened her mouth.

Here, he stands up to the bad guy. And not just any bad guy, but his own brother.

That might be even harder than standing up to a regular bad guy. To look someone in the eyes who knows you, who believes one thing about you, and something you believed about yourself too for so long. Confront them and say this is who I am now.

I can’t imagine the amount of people who needed to see that.

That even Joxer can face his family.

Face who he really is.

Because he’s the black sheep of his warlord family, but that’s okay.

People will like him all the same. Because as much as Gabrielle might not want to admit it, she does care for Joxer.

Xena – ironically – appears more willing to admit she likes Joxer. Her comment about Aphrodite not being able to give him anything he doesn’t already have to cheer him up. Coupled with this episode where she pays for his release without hesitation.

The moment she sees him, she sorts out his release.

Sends him off to do her a favor.

I love that Xena has this weird soft spot for him, because it gives the audience like me a reason to care about Joxer.

She rolls her eyes at his antics but is never really annoyed by them. Or even upset. She’s just decided that that’s Joxer and how he is. He can be useful and is a good person. If she keeps an eye on him, he’ll more than likely survive this life.

And not fall into something terrible, as he so desperately wanted to before.

He wanted to be like his family, but Xena and Gabrielle’s influence have allowed him to embrace that he’s not like that. He could be good. He could be his own kind of hero.

Helping them, helps the world.

And while he still tells tall tales, he’s far more content with who he is now than he was before.

Willing to stand up to his brother.

Also, oh dear, I think they said there’s another one. Jace?

Oh dear.

I must confess, I did enjoy Jett just killing someone for his brother because no one is allowed to hurt him. Except him.

Jett’s last bit of advice to Joxer was sweet. I loved that they came so far in this episode. Jett wasn’t really mad at his brother for standing against him. If anything, he respected what his brother did. How far he’s come as a man and is proud of him for standing in what he believes in.

Even if they’re on opposing sides.

Plus, his friendship with Xena ensured that Jett wasn’t executed for his actions. Merely sent away for like in the same place as dear ole dad.

As far as outcomes, Jett’s is pretty good.

Now, I never like the episodes where we don’t have Xena nearly as much as we should, but it somehow worked this episode really well.

I loved that she appeared just in the nick of time to save everyone and everything. Love all the locks on the jail cell because Autolycus couldn’t not brag about his title.

Xena just breaking the locks instead of a key or picking them. Love that.

Xena wondering why they didn’t just tell Cleopatra she was in danger.

Well, I mean, I could almost understand this. Xena has a reputation backing her up if she makes a cold approach to royalty. Gabrielle’s reputation is that of Xena’s sidekick or bard or little blonde that follows her around. Arguably, Xena would have way more weight in just walking up to Cleopatra to warn her that someone is trying to kill.

Unlike Gabrielle.

So I could see Gabrielle making an argument for why that might not have worked.

However, the rest of her convoluted plan was a bit much.

It’s also a bit at odds with the Gabrielle we saw defend her own village without Xena’s help. Or deal with Aphrodite giving Joxer a bell to make him break up a couple.

We’ve seen Gabrielle manage on her own fine without Xena before and this isn’t more stressful than either of those situations.

A village could have been lost.

Two kingdoms could have gone to war.

A rightful Queen could have been killed.

Stakes felt pretty even to me.

It was a weird choice to randomly almost dumb Gabrielle down for Xena to pop in and be the hero. Especially, when she flat out asks why Gabrielle didn’t take the obvious route.

Which again, Gabrielle appearing with a no one like Joxer and the King of Thieves might appear suspect. Doubt the guard would have let her tell Cleopatra either.

I don’t know. That moment didn’t land right with me, because Gabrielle has been watching Xena.

Even Xena pointed out how far Gabrielle had come when Xena was tracking her down to kill baby Hope. Gabrielle even knew that Xena would not be far behind her as she raced far enough to get Hope to safety.

Like this didn’t feel like the same person.

But there’s also a part of me that wants it to make sense narratively and I feel like it all ties back to the weird things that have happened this season.

Gabrielle and Xena found themselves at odds. Xena didn’t get there in time to rescue Gabrielle. They found themselves at odds again. There’s a weird crack in their relationship as they’re both keeping secrets from the other that has never happened before.

So while it may appear that Gabrielle was dumbed down for the episode, it also appears like she’s still caught up in the recent events.

Can she rely on Xena to save her every time? Because now she has proof that she may not always be there? So if she’s not? Can she stand on her own?

What about if Xena discovers the truth about Hope? Will she be tossed aside? What will happen? Will she need to out maneuver and outthink Xena?

Does all this lead to a moment of second guessing herself in this episode?

Thinking that she can do this and she can. She has. But what if she can’t? What if she doubted herself and her choices enough to make the wrong ones leading to the events this episode?

I think when things make sense narratively and this is how I opt to view this episode. There’s a part of Gabrielle second guessing her relationship to Xena. That it will always be as it has been.

But there’s a part of her that doubts because she lied.

Hope is out there somewhere.

Doing who knows what.

What do you guys think? Drop me your thoughts!

Oh, and someone mentioned in a comment that I missed that they said ‘I love you’ for the first time. Did I? Where? I must go back and find the moment.

Maybe I’ll even give it, it’s own special review to make up for my mistake!

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