the premise of Xena: the beautiful, formerly evil warlord Xena is on her quest for redemption, accompanied by her best friend (and possibly lover) Gabrielle, a naive peasant turned amazon bard. together, they wander through a fantasy world loosely based on the ancient world, battling evil, living through dumb comedy and wailing melodrama and generally kicking ass.
if that sounds like the most idiotic thing ever to you, don't even bother with this series; "Xena" is definitely not for everyone. but if you like strong female leads and the ridiculous mix of action, fantasy, comedy and melodrama, then you will love this. i think whedons "buffy the vampire slayer", tarantinos "kill bill" and claremonts 80es work on "x-men" are comparable references.
but don't set your expectations too high: Xena is dumb and trashy. there are fans who think that the series is intelligent in some way. i disagree, although i consider myself a fan as well. the acting is a mixed bag; Lucy lawless plays the titular heroine to perfection and she has great chemistry with co-star Renee O'Connor, but her limited range shows whenever she is asked to play an other character (which actually happens quite often). the other actors vary from impressive to not-so-great to downright terrible. the writing is even more shaky; the plots are often ropey and sometimes incomprehensible, logic goes flying out the window on a regular basis, and plot-convenient coincidences and deus ex machinae are waiting behind every corner. worst are the often unfunny comedy parts. more often than not, its all a ridiculous mess. but then again, the series never takes itself too seriously, so its all good and fun. just don't expect "Xena warrior princess" to be as carefully written as "buffy" or as hipstery clever as "kill bill".
if that sounds like the most idiotic thing ever to you, don't even bother with this series; "Xena" is definitely not for everyone. but if you like strong female leads and the ridiculous mix of action, fantasy, comedy and melodrama, then you will love this. i think whedons "buffy the vampire slayer", tarantinos "kill bill" and claremonts 80es work on "x-men" are comparable references.
but don't set your expectations too high: Xena is dumb and trashy. there are fans who think that the series is intelligent in some way. i disagree, although i consider myself a fan as well. the acting is a mixed bag; Lucy lawless plays the titular heroine to perfection and she has great chemistry with co-star Renee O'Connor, but her limited range shows whenever she is asked to play an other character (which actually happens quite often). the other actors vary from impressive to not-so-great to downright terrible. the writing is even more shaky; the plots are often ropey and sometimes incomprehensible, logic goes flying out the window on a regular basis, and plot-convenient coincidences and deus ex machinae are waiting behind every corner. worst are the often unfunny comedy parts. more often than not, its all a ridiculous mess. but then again, the series never takes itself too seriously, so its all good and fun. just don't expect "Xena warrior princess" to be as carefully written as "buffy" or as hipstery clever as "kill bill".