80: 5x16 "Lifeblood"

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, we’re going back in time, all the way back to 1997 when Rob Tapert thought he could sell the world on ‘Selma Blair goes to Prehistoric Times to Teach the Amazons How to Dance!’ Vera, Katie, and Livy are listening to their ancestors with 5x16 “Lifeblood,” a clip show cobbled together with footage from Renaissance Pictures’ unsold pilot, Amazon High. We discuss the surprising reason why Katie has affection for this episode, Amazon High’s all-star cast, our fave Selma Blair movies, and the weirdness of TV pilots. Plus: Xena and Gabs are also there, sort of, doing not much of anything; baby Eve steals the sai and the scene; and we love Claudia Black, Claudia Black’s voice, and also Claudia Black’s hair.

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79: 5x15 “Married with Fishsticks”

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST!!! This week, Vera, Katie, and Livy break out their bikinis and put little umbrellas in their Tiki drinks for 5x15 “Married with Fishsticks,” which according to some fans is the worst Xena episode ever made, but according to us is a work of unrivaled genius. Get ready for a Party Podcast as we dive into this heteronormative nightmare land of fishfolk, synchronized swimming, and water beds! We discuss this ep’s surreal visualization of Gabrielle’s inner life and past trauma, its immersive worldbuilding through production design, its pastiche of sources as varied as Esther Williams, the Simpsons, and Overboard, and its criticism of the romantic comedy genre as inherently creepy and abusive. Plus: guest hosts Salmonia, Crawfia, and Tuna with a cameo appearance by Lil Prawn, Jane Holland finally finds her niche, prejudice and the patriarchy in Bikini Bottom, and our favorite character, BABY ROE!!!

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78: 5x14 "Amphipolis Under Siege"

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, it’s a battle on the home front! Vera, Katie, and Livy return to where it all began with 5x14 “Amphipolis Under Siege,” a rousing episode that marks the beginning of the show’s return to form. We discuss comeback kid R.J. Stewart’s strategic use of Xena continuity to remind the audience why they fell in love with the show in the first place, Xena back in her beloved Warrior Princess duds!!!, Ares as an object of pity and sympathy, and the long overdue introduction of Athena, a magnificent character underserved by not enough screen time and not enough costume. Plus: dusty temples, Cyrene remains the greatest, our frustration with long cons, textual girlfriends, Casablanca, and what an Ares/Xena/Gabs threeway would look like. Glede ma glede!

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77: 5x13 "Eternal Bonds"

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, Chris Manheim is at it again! Vera, Katie, and Livy are getting hot and heavy with 5x13 “Eternal Bonds,” a.k.a. A Very Hetero Episode that is nonetheless very attuned to the characters and kicks off the quality upswing as we enter the back half of Season 5. We discuss the show’s handling of Baby Eve, poopy diapies and all, the moral complexity of exposing a child to a life of violence and the intimate beauty of the breastfeeding sequence. Plus: The B word, Ares goes downtown in dreamland, Xena chops it out, the Beesley dunes, Gabrielle and Joxer resolve their issues through the magic of hurt/comfort, and Ares reduces Vera to singing boy band hits of the 90’s. The power, the passion, the podcast!    

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76: 5x12 "God Fearing Child"

Oh baby, it’s time for another episode of XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST! Vera, Katie, and Livy have a special delivery with 5x12 “God Fearing Child,” and ARGH get out of the way, Hercules!! We discuss this episode’s mothers and fathers, as Xena reckons with the specter of Solon just as she’s about to give birth, and Hercules reckons with his daddy issues which no one cares about. Plus: the dysfunctional family unit of Zeus, Hera, and Ares; Meg Foster on Cagney and Lacey; Ares’ manipulative sincerity; Gabs is invisible which is awesome but also we can’t see her arms anymore, boo; the afterlife makes no sense; and Xena lost her pants just in time! "Heeeeeey!"  

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