elsieaustin

Commenting as I'm reading through this time. You know, for an episode where the summary says it's a comedy, there are some serious clips in the opening montage. I'm shivering all over again reading the reconciliation between Ares and Athena.

Oh, that is awesome: Xena, Ares, Gabrielle, and Eve acting just like a family who's been cooped up inside together too long on a rainy day. So Xena actually manages to cry in the game. I'm impressed.

Awww, so Gabrielle still isn't as famous as Xena. I got the feeling they moved past a lot of that during the third and fourth seasons, though, and Xena passed the mantle completely to Gabrielle in FIN, so I get the impression Gabrielle's acting, saying the familiar thing in order to say the familiar thing.

Ares is allergic to farming.

"Some mistake --oops, there goes Troy!" harder. I love the way the Olympians act like they're playing with the human race the way that kids play with Legos. Do they all have their powers back, then?

Oh, my, cheers for the different Olympians!!! *struggling to stop laughing so I can get back to typing*

I think that's a nice touch, that Hera's gone all the way from abusing humans out of jealousy, to protecting them as her children. Even before I knew that GFC was like the conclusion to H:TLJ, I thought Hera's conversion was insightful, and believable. When she saw humanity as an interference, she didn't see humans as people. Then, when she suddenly saw human beings as her children--as the way she'd have to go on in the world even when her time was up--she decided that no parent should outlive her children, and that she would fight Zeus for Hercules' and humanity's sake. I can see her getting back into the world and building a kindergarten.

Xena should charge a consultation fee, LOL. Salmoneus would approve.

ROTFL! Just like I'd been waiting for someone to call Hermione a know-it-all...I hadn't realized I'd been waiting for Xena to call Gabrielle a know-it-all 'till this moment. They really are equals now, aren't they? Xena isn't afraid of hurting Gabrielle, and Gabrielle doesn't feel inferior to Xena.

"The gods need people more than people ever needed them."

You know--and this is something that I think applies to X:WP as a whole series and not just this shipper episode--sometimes talk of the Olympians reminds me of a scene in David Eddings' The Tamuli. The child-goddess Aphrael, in her human form, unexpectedly gets sick. The human protagonist of the story, her father Sparhawk, says that she can't get sick, and wonders what's going on. It was because the villians were killing her worshippers all over the world, and she was so dependent on their love. Back to this story. It seems like...well, there's a whole realm between monotheism and polytheism. But the polytheistic systems seem to have the gods dependent on humans just like that--if there are enough of them, it means that they were either created in some way or they need something to have their followings in this world, from humans, like Dahak did, even.

*snickering* Okay, the interaction between Xena, Gabrielle, and Ares, is already like that between wife, sister in law, and husband/brother in law. "What did I do now?" LOL. I think that something essential changed in the relationship between Xena and Ares, in hell in the last episode.

Graffiti all over Hades throne? Man, I'm putting a lot of LOLs in here, but this is a funny episode. It makes sense, though. Thanks for answering my question--that it was like hell was beyond Tartarus (just like I would guess Heaven was beyond the Elysian Fields and Eternity beyond the Amazon afterlife).

"I tried to set Cerebus on [the gamblers] but he took a punt on Athena." Too clever!

Reading the interaction between Hades, Athena, and Hera, I'm reminded of Gabrielle in the very first season: "What we have here is a failure to communicate."

I love the way Gabrielle's bard skills are going to be the most useful in solving this problem. That's another of the age-old debates--does being used to depending on someone else (the way these townspeople were on the gods) make them unable to do things for themselves? You have to see a possible solution before you can act on it, and these people weren't even considering answers that didn't involve the gods. I'm sitting here mentally yelling, "Hire more staff for the kindergarten!" But I think it seems obvious to me and truly not to them. It's a subtle danger of having the Olympians in the world: it narrows the way people think (just like that virgin found in Many Happy Returns.)

Hmmm, Hades, hate to break it to you, but "lord" doesn't rhyme with "underworld" either. It's almost impossible to find a rhyme for "world" that doesn't sound stupid in a sentence ("curled," "hurled," "unfurled"...nothing fits).

The interaction between Ares and Xena is priceless here. Xena does that--she comes up with plans she doesn't explain thoroughly--and I think it'll become almost a game for Ares to try to figure them out for himself.

"an extra from Buffy the Vampire Slayer who walked on to the wrong set." I don't suppose you'll be bringing the Bacchai into the shipper seasons, will you? (*pleading look*)

"Mother? Oh, she'd get an idea...something you'd never see coming...and then once you found out what it was, you'd slap yourself on the knee and say..." That was about how I felt when I was watching Xena work things out in Sacrifice I and II.

LOL, Aphrodite's so funny. She has such a great matter-of-fact attitude about her powers and her place. I can just see her checking out the guys rather than trying to solve the riots in the town.

Oooh, "If I win, you have to stay away from Xena for a whole week." Aphrodite knows Ares way too well.

Hmmm, Hades' speech didn't seem so bad to me. Sometimes "I need you" rather than "I'll give you x,y,and z" can be an even more powerful draw. One of the things I look for the most in faith in general is the sense of direction and purpose--a task to do.

Gabrielle invents building blocks, as well as charades! Cool!

"You see, you don't really need the gods to give you what's best for you or your children. If you put your mind to it, you could do it all on your own." Oh, dear, my mind starts running in some different directions regarding religion and independence. I think that it's only immature faith that depends on God/gods for the mundane daily things. You realize what you can do for yourself, and then you find you need God for something quite different. Anyway, though, on a global level, I think that sometimes getting a bunch of people even to reach step 2 is quite an achievement, and I'm enjoying watching Xena, Gabrielle, Ares, and team do it here.

Oh, dear, I'm picturing Aphrodite in a severe white dress.

It was great to see Virgil again.

And Gabrielle teases Xena about Ares. Those two can still talk without words...

These episodes just keep getting better. Thanks!

Sally

The opening scene was great. I didn't get it the first time I read through it...but I went back and re-read and I was like The Rescue of Andromeda!!! Wish I could have seen this one on tv [but my imagination had fun with it]

I'd think you'd be out there trying to rebuild your own fan base instead of hanging around me all the time.

So Ares has been around alot...like the sound of that!!:P

Also the little witty conversation between Xena and Ares at the end of Act II and then in the beginning of Act III...

Xena appears in the doorway, looking
a little flushed. There is a swish that sounds like Ares disappearing. Xena shuts the door hastily...

Is this what I think it is...*eg* I wonder what could have POSSIBLY happened during the commercial break *eg*

And the bet between Ares and Aphrodite was priceless!!! Wonder what would Ares had done if he had lost!!

Ryan:

What an episode! Who knew you could conclude such a dramatic action-packed arc with a hilarious comedy episode! Of course the gods are at it again, fighting over who will get a temple in a local village. I really enjoyed the cheer from the followers of Hera and Athena. I can almost just picture it being an episode.

Man Hera was sure being cranky in this episode. I guess spending some time in Hell had an effect on her attitude. Last we saw her she was going up against Zeus and talking about how she really cared about mortals. Now she is arguing over a temple!

Adding Hades to the mix was an interesting twist and in the end he becomes the patron god. I really like how the message of Eli remained though how mankind doesn't need gods, they can do things for themselves.

Overall it was a wonderful (hilarious) episode.

9.5/10

Is their ever a bad episode? Great job guys