THIS WEEK IN XENA NEWS.... TWXN 48 11/26/96 Brought to you by Xena: Media Review (XMR): http://www.teleport.com/~gater/IAXS/IAXS.html XMR is a periodic annotated world press review of reports regarding the internationally syndicated television show XENA: Warrior Princess (1995 - ) and the castmembers, Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor. For a free e-mail subscription send "subscribe XMR" to ktaborn@lightspeed.net. Excerpts from the following cites will appear in future issues of XMR. [512] 11-20-96 THE DENVER POST. Wednesday. Page G-01. 1011 words. "It's no wonder this woman has become Xena: Worldwide Cult Queen" By Joanne Ostrow COMMENTARY: This article not only contains information not ever released before but is Ms. Lawless' first substantive interview after her injury while taping the Tonight Show with Jay Leno (10/08/96). Ms. Ostrow is obviously very familiar with her topic. Her demeanor exhibits respect for the subject, admiration of the interviewee, and a sincere interest in the edification of her readers. Ms. Ostrow began the article by introducing Ms. Lawless as "TV's reigning female powerhouse, savior of the oppressed, crusader against barbarians and fascination of fan clubs around the world." She also added that Xena was "a great role model for little girls who feel less than empowered by Barbie." In two sentences Ms. Ostrow captured the essence of the phenomenon of XWP. First, the Xena character is the toughest female probably ever to grace the tube (barring a nun or two). Xena is independent to a fault and she is the person who does the rescuing if any rescuing is to be done. Strong enough to lift grown men and fling them across a room and to catch people flying past her with one arm, "powerhouse" is perhaps too weak a word to use to describe Xena. I won't even get into the metaphorical uses of the word. Second, the moral battle which rages inside Xena propels the series into darker and more greyer areas that its sibling show HERCULES ever could. Xena's path to redemption allows her to explore the moral ambiguities of life while also becoming the Lone Ranger of pre-Myceanean Greece. Third, the show has reached official cult status with die-hard fans flying across country merely for a chance at a peak at Ms. Lawless, and others devoting massive amounts of their free time to maintaining web pages, writing articles, planning gatherings, hanging out in IRC, the NetForum, or newsgroups. Almost every aspect of the show from hair color and use of leather through story arcs and director's quirks have been discussed ad nauseum on-line and off. Heck, even news articles written by members of the press get analyzed and reviewed on-line. Fourth. This all comes at a time in US history when the consciousness of both men and women are in the painful and awkward process of being raised. What does it mean to be a woman? What kinds of role-models and examples do women, men, and children have in real-life and in fantasy and fiction? Now, at least in the fantasy realm, we have Xena, Warrior Princess. No doubt about it, Xena is more empowering than Barbie. After strongly identifying the character Xena with Wonder Woman, Ms. Ostrow continued by describing the show as "part camp, part live action, part animation and all courageous. Double entendre and mythic escapades elevate what could have been silly action-adventure series set in ancient times into something grander." This sense of grandness and uniqueness that Ms. Ostrow referred to has inspired fans to exhibit what looks like to many outside the circle as a religious devotion to the series. I am sure it shocks and amazes many of the production people of XWP, just as it frightens or bemuses the members of the stricken one's family. Nevertheless, this is happening. And it is growing. The word "camp" is brought up many times in context with XWP (not just by Ms. Ostrow), but as Liz Friedman (a producer of XWP) in a Boston radio interview taped in October 1996 observed, the show's characters take themselves and their situations completely seriously. The 'camp' aspect is therefore what the audience brings to the show, not what the show gives to the audience. Nonetheless, the show abounds with double-entendre, in-jokes, sly Kiwi tom-foolery, and some of the most clever writing to be seen on television in years. As icing on the cake, the series is presented on the spacious background of the myths of ancient Greece and of the ancient world. Nothing is sacred and everything is anachronistic. On reviewing XWP's presence on the internet, Ms. Ostrow wrote, "Online, a web search elicits 7,271 entries for 'Xena: Warrior Princess.' Among them is 'Whoosh!, the Journal of the International Association for Xena Studies,' a rather cerebral collection of sometimes academic articles about 'XWP,' like a recent analysis of 'visual metaphor' in the series. No joke." The visual metaphor article referred to can be found in On-Line WHOOSH #3 (http://www.users.interport.net/~bsquared/whoosh), still current, as "Visual Metaphor in XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS" by Carmen Carter (ccarter@shentel.net). When I am not editing XMR, I am usually editing WHOOSH. This report is WHOOSH's first mention in the LEGITIMATE press. I could now, of course, go on a mini-essay on why WHOOSH exists (no joke!), but I will save that for WHOOSH. Ms. Ostrow then briefly mentioned the large viewing audience (very large for a syndicated market), where the series was shot (New Zealand), and informed us that "Each hour boasts live action aided by animation, computer graphics and plenty of prosthetics and makeup." Then, after describing the accident of 10/08/96, Ms. Ostrow began her interview with Ms. Lawless which was conducted by phone. Ms. Lawless spoke on many topics. On her current physical state: "I can walk without crutches, but the specialist doesn't want me to go without them completely yet. It's a box of birds, as we say down here." Ms. Ostrow offered the following translation: "a day at the beach. Delivered with heavy sarcasm." On her mobility and therapy: "I can take the car to shop and muck around a bit, but I can't walk even half a kilometer. We want to know that I am healing in the optimum amount of time. The bones are the least of the worry, it's the soft tissue. But I'm taking all care and swimming every day." On what she planned for her first week back at work: "light duty: I play dead." On her recovery Ms. Lawless stated, ""I've really learned about the indomitable human spirit. Happiness is a choice. You grieve, you stomp your feet, you pick yourself up and choose to be happy." On the appeal of Xena: "She's a different kind of hero. I think it's becoming a phenomenon for the '90s. We strongly oppose violence against women, we never play sexual violence, it's degrading. The fastest-growing audience who are now taking control of the remote are women. This show has caught a wave." On Xena's relationship with Gabrielle: "We talk about it on set. We're all aware of how different sectors of our audience perceive the show. If you're talking about the lesbian element, we are aware and we're not afraid of it. This is a love story between two people. What they do in their own time is none of our business." On upcoming episodes: Ms. Lawless offered that the audience may see "what happens between the fights. I'm looking forward to it." On fan interaction and on-line discussions: "All audience members and speculation are welcome, as long as people aren't nutters, as long as they aren't stalkers, you know." On her fame: "When I'm here I'm just a working girl. I don't go out to openings, I don't want to be what I call a schlebrity. You know, it's celebrity as opposed to fame. One is hollow; one is earned." On her therapy: "I want to be a happy, agile old lady." Ostrow also reported that 1. Some episodes of XWP are being rewritten to work around Ms. Lawless' injury, "so that Xena's voice or spirit will be a presence in every hour although she may not be on camera." 2. XWP's premiere in France was seen by half of the television audience. 3. Ms. Lawless was disappointed by the lack of Xena costumes during Halloween. 4. Ms. Lawless is currently "Resting at home, reading 'The Liar's Club' by Mary Carr and listening to Nina Simone." 5. Ms. Lawless's daughter visits the set on Fridays, handing out "biscuits" to the crew.