MovieChat Forums > Xena: Warrior Princess (1995) Discussion > Confused about early Xena

Confused about early Xena

posted 8 years ago by enyala
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Xena first appeared in Jerkules as a blood-thirsty warlord set on conquering the known world by killing the son of Zeus and sticking his head on a pike as a warning for those who would still dare oppose her.

She'd send men to their deaths and murder in cold blood, not to mention turning best friends into bitter enemies and hissing like a wild banshee swearing revenge.

Then all of the sudden 2-3 episodes later Xena has a warrior's code and rescues babies (before she was betrayed by Darfus & the Gauntlet). What exactly happened in between to change her like that?

[–] JebusCripes 8 years ago

The writers.

John Schulian, the head writer for Hercules wrote the Warrior Princess. Writing a cliche evil female character who uses her sexuality to manipulate men and dispose of them. The episode plays like a Men's Right Activist screaming "Women are eeeeeviiiiil". Note Iolus is completely absolved of his terrible and stupid behavior and its all Xena's fault because she used her sexy self. Even though the plan was always for Xena to reform at the end of her for some reason they made her completely ruthless. It's an incredibly sexist episode that plays on the notion that men are stupid and horny and women will use their bodies to manipulate them.

A different writer wrote the Gauntlet which made Xena more of an pride warrior woman (compare Xena in her first appearance when she stands around and lets her army face Hercules where as her she'll take him on one on one) with a code of honor to make it more palatable that she could reform. . Xena's gender is also made mostly incidental

Schulian had no actual involvement in Xena's own show so a much better character came there.