EPISODES MARRIED WITH FISH STICKS & ANTONY & CLEOPATRA

I'm watching Xena episodes that I had never seen before via Netflix and via Heroes & Icon's TV channel. I had never seen Married With Fish Sticks and I had heard others complaining that it was the goofiest, silliest and worst comedic episode of Xena. But I found myself enjoying it. It seemed to be a parody of Married With Children, but the look of the sets/colors of the clothes, underwater/seaside community setting made it look 1950/1960's a bit like a beach movie think Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. At one point in the episode, when Gabrielle is told how she met the guy (Joxer) whom she married to live under the sea, she's wearing heart shaped sunglasses and she's sucking on a lollipop. It looked a bit like the remake of Lolita which I think was out in the 90's. Very weird, very campy, I loved the Muppet octopus baby. But it was really very strange. I wonder why they would even write an episode like that. The comedic touches from Season 3 were much better i.e. The Quill Is Mighter Fins Femmes and Gems, A Day In The Life, and my favorite THE PLAY'S THE THING was much better.

Antony & Cleopatra I had not seen before. Heroes & Icon channel is skipping some of the episodes of Season 5. I was upset about it but luckily I got caught up via Netflix. They skipped the part involving Ares putting Xena and Gabrielle into ice hibernation/coma for 25 years, and how they even got to that point when Xena faked her death to trick the gods into thinking Eve was dead. I'm surprised they would not show this on TV. They literally went from the episode Antony & Cleoapatra to Livia skipping Looking Death In The Eye which is very important and integral to the storyline.

I did not enjoy Antony & Cleopatra. I don't like how they took creative liberties with the actual historical well documented and famous Mark Antony and Cleopatra story. We know that she teamed up with Mark Antony fought in the Battle of Actium against Octavian, Octavian wins, Marc Antony's army deserts him and he kills himself, and Cleopatra committed suicide by snake bite. They have Brutus sending Cleopatra a "killer" letter which has an asp in it that bites her while she's taking her milk bath? Seriously? And also the actress portraying Cleopatra in that episode is not the same Cleopatra from an earlier episode involving Joxer and his half brother Jett. I don't like that Xena pretends to be Cleopatra, has sex with Marc Antony, and that Gabrielle kills Brutus and Xena kills Marc Antony. It does not fit with the personalities/characters we have come to love. How have they gone from spiritual transformation in India, surviving the Crucifixion by the Romans through resurrection, following Eli's message of non violence to just brutally killing Romans? I know they never liked the Romans and yes they are terrible people in the context of this show but it was not like Xena and Gabby to plan this attack on 2 powerful Romans Brutus and Marc Antony. I don't care how they justify it but involving Cleopatra and Egypt in this "revenge against the Romans" scenario does not work.

Just my thoughts.