Xena
Xena is a fictional character from the Xena: Warrior Princess franchise, portrayed by New Zealand actress Lucy Lawless and co-created by Robert Tapert and John Schulian. She first appeared as a villain in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys before joining forces with Hercules. Xena was popular with fans, so the producers decided to create a spin-off with the character in the starring role. She later appeared in the subsequent comic book of the same name, as well as the spin-off animated film The Battle for Mount Olympus, and non-canon expanded universe material, such as books and video games.
For the television show, see Xena: Warrior Princess. For other uses, see Xena (disambiguation).Xena
"The Warrior Princess" (1995)
"A Friend in Need, Part 2" (2001)
Robert Tapert
John Schulian
Sword, chakram, whip, breast dagger
Cyrene (mother)
Nelo (father; deceased)
Lyceus (brother; deceased)
Toris (brother)
Solan (son, with Borias; deceased)
Eve (daughter; reincarnation of Callisto)
Unnamed maternal grandmother
Mel Pappas (descendant)
Melinda Pappas (descendant)
Melinda Pappas II (descendant)
Jonah (grandson)
Xena is the protagonist of the story, and the series depicts her on a quest to redeem herself from her dark past by using her formidable fighting skills to help people. She is joined by the bard Gabrielle, and together they go up against ruthless warlords and gods in the ancient mythological world. Xena was raised as the daughter of Cyrene and Atrius in Amphipolis; though the episode "The Furies" raises the possibility that Ares might be Xena's biological father, it is never pursued further. She has two brothers, the younger of whom is dead.
Appearances and development[edit]
Origins on Hercules[edit]
Xena originally appears as a villain in the Hercules episode "The Warrior Princess". Ten years into her career of pillaging and marauding, Xena meets Hercules. Initially, she sets out to kill him.[6] In "The Gauntlet", her army turns against her, believing that she has become weak after she stops her lieutenant, Darphus, from killing a child in a sacked village. Xena 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 Iolaus intervenes, inadvertently giving Hercules his sword, which allows 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". Inspired by Hercules' integrity, and by the fact that he too lost family and yet chooses to fight in their honor, she decides to join him and defeat her old army.[7]
In "Unchained Heart", the two share a brief romantic relationship before Xena decides to leave and start making amends for her past.[8]
In other media[edit]
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 Olympus marks the first appearance of Xena outside of the television series.[29] She also appears in the comics series Xena: Warrior Princess originally released by Topps and Dark Horse Comics. In 2007, Dynamite Entertainment acquired the rights. This resulted in Dynamite Entertainment's spin-off comic book series Xena: Contest of the Pantheons and Dark Xena. This last takes place after the television series ended.[30]
Xena is a playable character in the videogames Xena: Warrior Princess, and a selectable character in The Talisman of Fate.[31][32] In 1999, Lucy Lawless also appeared in the animated television show The Simpsons as Xena during the Treehouse of Horror X.[33] In the video game League of Legends the character Sivir has a skin titled "Warrior Princess" that resembles Xena.
A statue of Xena made an appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, confirmed by the film's director Sam Raimi. However, the statue did not indicate any bigger relation to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and only served as a fun easter egg with no narrative subtext.[34]
Reception and legacy[edit]
Lesbian subtext and debates[edit]
Xena has enjoyed a particular cult status in the lesbian community. Some of the lesbian fanbase see Xena and Gabrielle as a couple and have embraced them as role models and lesbian icons.[35] A group called The Marching Xenas participated in many gay and lesbian pride parades.[36]
A subject of much interest and debate among viewers is the question of whether Xena and Gabrielle are lovers.[37][38] 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 are referred to as "lesbian subtext" or simply "subtext" by fans.[37] 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.[38]
In a 2003 interview with Lesbian News magazine, Lawless stated that after the series finale, she had come to believe that Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was "Gay. Definitely... 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'."[39]
The Xena fandom also popularized the term Altfic (from "alternative fiction") to refer to same-sex romantic fan fiction.[40] Many fans felt the term slash fiction carried the connotation of being only about male/male couples and was not a good description for romantic fan fiction about Xena and Gabrielle.
Inspired by episodes that featured Xena and Gabrielle sharing past lives or living in alternate timelines, Xena fanfiction writers created an original new genre known as Uberfic.
She was ranked No. 3 in AfterEllen.com's Top 50 Favorite Female TV Characters.[41]