Episode 3 & 4: Dreamworker & Cradle of Hope
Pop culture influences and disparate thoughts for a confusing episode
SEASON 1, EPISODE 3: DREAMWORKER
DEVIN:
We open in a forest clearing, and Gabrielle is gathering firewood with Xena’s sword, imagining herself a warrior. As Xena tries to explain why it’s better in the future for Gabrielle to run (wisdom over war!), should she encounter a problem, they are accosted by brigands.
“What’s that?” “Trouble.”
They go after Gabrielle (the one with the sword!) but reliably Xena deals with them. After they tidily do away with the threat and ride off, someone’s been watching them from the bushes. They get to a town for supplies.
Something about the town is suspicious, and after a confusing ambush Gabrielle disappears. It turns out a local mystic devoted to god named Morpheus has taken her. Every solstice the mystics up the mountain require a maiden sacrifice, and the village usually sends away its young women. Too bad for Gabrielle, the only maiden in town.
Up on the mountain, it turns out Gabrielle will have to face a series of challenges, including a fight to the death, and if she survives, she will become the Bride of Morpheus. She’ll be tricked into killing to survive, and as soon as she does that, she’ll be sacrificed. Xena finds a blind ex-mystic who tells her that “a woman, with a dark past, strong and brave!” will be the one to defeat Morpheus. Xena drinks a potion from the blind ex-mystic to prepare herself for the mission ahead, she must enter a dream state (I think?) while the blind ex-mystic guards her body (“don’t worry, I’m a gentleman” he tells her. Ew!). Morpheus will try to use Xena’s own mind against her, he warns, and off she goes.
A huge theme of the early part of this series, of course, is that Xena is running from her past. So when she’s faced, in her dream state, with all the men she’s ever killed, with their names and pasts and families, she knows it’s a trap. They tell her to kill them, but instead she smashes the sword, yelling for Morpheus. Meanwhile in the temple, the priest of Morpheus can sense Xena has entered the dream realm and sends off his men to find the blind mystic. Gabrielle is ready for her first challenge. She’s given a sword to defend herself and sent off into a labyrinth.
This whole sequence seems as though it’s loosely based on the Perseus, Ariadne, and the Minotaur? A maiden is sent into a labyrinth, and stalked by a beast with horns (though here it’s just two men in horned hats). But Gabrielle cleverly evades them by ducking at the right moment and having them kill each other.
No matter, there are more challenges ahead!
Xena encounters Gabrielle in her dream state. Tell me something I don’t know, Xena tells her. After passing the test, they realize their dream states have crossed. Before Gabrielle is pulled to wakefulness, Xena tells her that all they want is for her to lose her ‘blood innocence’. Gabrielle re-enters the labyrinth passageway (this time looking more like a particularly bad local theatre’s interpretation of hell), and is soon accosted by soldiers. She tosses her sword away, to avoid accidentally killing anyone, and then grabs one of the soldiers’ spears and knocks off the spear head.
And just like that, Gabrielle has acquired one of her characters’ most iconic props, her ...stick! Staff? Does it have a name like Xena’s chakram? Only time will tell.
She talks enough to have several of the soldiers’ kill each other and wins the second challenge without spilling a drop of blood on her own.
Back in the dreamscape, Xena finally meets her most worrying adversary so far, herself. But she won’t be tempted by her previous life, that’s not who she is anymore. As she fights herself, Gabrielle is facing her third challenge and it’s looking pretty bad. But Xena realizes …. Okay the climax is confusing. Just as her body is about to be murdered by soldiers of Morpheus she enters a portal (?) and emerges in the theatre where Gabrielle was about to lose. Xena kicks some ass, Gabrielle punches the head priest in the nose, and boom, the day is saved.
Also the blind mystic gets his job back and can see again. The town’s maidens are forever saved!
And Morpheus’ priest’s name is Manus, I discovered in the last 3 minutes.
SAGAN:
It’s so funny that you mention the Minotaur, because it reminded me of when we used to watch Sinbad (which we started watching before Xena and Hercules)... and I distinctly remember our dad watching it with us and indignantly saying things like, “Sinbad isn’t the one who defeated Medusa—it was Perseus!”
As far as I remember, all three of these shows from our childhood—Sinbad, Hercules, and Xena—routinely borrowed classic stories and repackaged them to suit their needs. Love it.
Anyway, yes: this episode doesn’t outright have the Minotaur in it (which I totally remember being another character that Sinbad defeats, by the way. He really loved taking credit for Theseus and all these other heroes), but absolutely carries the same themes of the quest through the labyrinth.
Other pop culture thoughts that came up for me while watching this episode were The Matrix and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Of course, Morpheus in The Matrix is named for the god of dreams, but it’s also interesting to see how Elkton (the blind ex-mystic) plays the role of basically tempting the hero of the story (Neo/Xena) to trust them completely with their mind in the *dream world* in order to accomplish their goal. It’s a balance of trust and risk: Neo accepts a pill, Xena drinks a potion.
Speaking of which! I fell into a Google rabbit hole and discovered that a few awesome actors from The Matrix (including Anthony Ray Parker, Julian Arahanga, and Gina Torres) actually played a role in an episode here and there on Hercules and Xena!
On another note: Xena was released 2 years before Buffy was released, and as someone who adores Buffy, you can really see how much this show paved the way for Buffy. Xena is iconic in part because it’s the first show of its kind that portrays women as badass heroes while also having a soft & sensitive side, and with the dramatic edge corresponding with comedic campy flair—to me, this is the hallmark of a perfect show. (Disclaimer: I do not condone Joss Whedon’s abusive behaviour in any way.)
Anyway, the theme of perceived innocence in this episode is too good.
Exhibit A:
“It’s the most beautiful sword I’ve ever seen, and believe me, I’ve handled plenty,” Gabrielle says when she’s shopping for weapons.
Then, when Xena notices that Gabrielle’s new breast dagger (AKA a dagger that goes between the breasts with a handle that rests on them) makes her breasts look bigger:
“You didn’t find a sorcerer to enhance your motives, did you?”
And Gabrielle’s comment when Xena takes the breast dagger to keep it for herself:
“It’s not like your breasts aren’t dangerous enough.”
(On another note, I’m totally obsessed with the breast dagger and I want one for my own.)
Also, this line from Gabrielle when she’s trying to get out of marrying Morpheus:
“Take my word for it, I’m not the wifey type. That doesn’t matter? Well, what does matter? I’ve got lots of faults.” Have I mentioned how much I relate to Gabrielle?
I’ve been paying more attention to the New Zealand accents since you mentioned it last episode, and you’re right—they’re so noticeable and delightful!
DEVIN:
Okay so you’ve been much more successful in catching all the pop culture crossovers and influences than I have here. I like the strength of the origin stories being built in this episode - from the slow trustbuilding that Xena and Gabrielle have with each other, and the dream sequences. I feel like dream sequences play a big role as we go on but I can’t remember.
We spoke the other day about whether we should be watching this all first before we start writing about it episode by episode, but I think you’re right that it’s more fun to have only a faint memory or familiarity with what’s about to happen. It’s sort of like watching it for the first time but… dream like? Sorry, couldn’t help myself.
Gina Torres is someone to look forward to in coming episodes! I can’t remember who she plays, this should be fun.
SAGAN:
Yes! The trustbuilding between them is delightful. It’s so sweet how Xena is trying to protect Gabrielle. The way that Xena is portrayed with massive walls up, yet with all of her soft spots—love it.
I’m enjoying the underlying messages in this show, too. Like, when Gabrielle insists she wants to learn how to fight, and Xena says: “When you pull a sword, you have to be ready to kill.” This is the EXACT lesson we were taught when we went to the shooting range that one time together. And I don’t feel like enough shows really make a point of stressing that kind of thing.
I mean, I am completely obsessed with action/adventure movies and TV shows… and I love fight scenes… but I also kinda wish that more shows would make a point of mentioning the seriousness of using weapons. This was handled really well in this episode: it’s given the seriousness and space it needs, amidst all the humour and fighting antics.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
“You didn’t find a sorcerer to enhance your motives did you?” Xena, eyeing Gabrielle’s cleavage after she buys a knife to hide in her decolletage.
“You’re waiting for the right moment to tell me “I told you so,” aren’t you?” “No… I’m waiting for you to say it for me.”
“Get the little one! She’s got a sword!”
Aye aye aye aye aye ayes: Xena - 1, and Gabrielle -1!
SEASON 1, EPISODE 4: CRADLE OF HOPE
SAGAN:
This story begins with a king (Gregor) hearing an oracle’s prophecy about an orphaned child (born of one of his servants) who will one day occupy his throne. “His birth has affected the course of events in motion!” The king’s advisor, Nemos, convinces King Gregor that the child is a threat and should be killed. When the servants find out, they put the baby in a basket and send it down the river (hello Moses retelling!).
Next moment, we have Xena calling Gabrielle “a sleepy head,” Gabrielle thinking that the crying baby is actually a cat (TBH I can relate to making that assumption), and our two heroes stumbling upon Basket Baby and taking it under their wing.
Soon after, Xena and Gabrielle rescue a woman named Pandora (yep, she’s the granddaughter of THAT Pandora who opened *the box*) from a mob, and our trio are set upon soon after when Nemos discovers that they have the baby. Unfortunately, the king’s men steal Pandora’s box so they can do a trade for the baby… and we find out that the box is set to open automatically at midnight, or else hope escapes from it. Our heroes are running out of time to get that box back…
Xena meets with King Gregor and Nemos, and Gregor accuses Xena of being a villain. Gregor genuinely cares about his people, which makes Xena reassess her earlier assumption of him. Nemos, on the other hand, of course plays the role of Evil Advisor (he even has a goatee reminiscent of Jafar! Alas, no talking parrot), and just wants to take over everything and keep it for himself. Also, he insists on watching servants dance so he can *choose* one of them (spoiler alert: he chooses Xena, who’s there undercover and promptly knocks him out so she can steal the box).
There’s some weird cultural appropriation with the dancing, and Xena is also dressed a lot like Wonder Woman—this one dance scene alone is something I feel like we could write three separate articles about to analyze in their entirety.
Xena manages to find Pandora’s box in the king’s chamber. That’s also when she realizes that King Gregor is mourning his dead wife and son. Xena takes the box and escapes out the window, but then gives the baby to the King and they have a nice moment where she tells him to fulfill the prophecy by adopting the child. He happily obliges and realizes Xena’s not the villain he thought she was.
But then! Nemos appears and tries to steal the baby, so Xena steals it before Nemos can, and then there’s a whole bit where Xena/Gabrielle/Pandora are trying to keep the baby from the king’s warriors and tossing it around a bunch (as one does in these situations, naturally).
The episode wraps up with Xena killing Nemos (while the townspeople cheer), and Gregor adopting the baby while marrying Pandora. Also, in a comedic moment, Gabrielle accidentally knocks over Pandora’s box so that it opens (gasp!), and that’s when she and Xena realize: the box is empty! “Hope has been and always will be safe… it’s inside every one of us.”
Iconic quote:
Nemos, thinking he’s going to have sex with Undercover Xena: “You spoke of pleasure?”
Xena, knocking him out: “...And you spoke of pain.”
This show really epitomizes 90s girl power, and in an extremely badass way—Xena saving Pandora from a gang of mediocre dudes is an excellent representation of that. Likewise, we’ve got these women who think the orphaned baby is adorable and simultaneously have zero idea how to take care of it: Gabrielle comments that the baby has her nose one moment, and then they spend the episode all referring to it as “our baby,” and then 20 minutes later they’re tossing the baby around (safely! To save it!) in an entirely un-nurturing manner.
And this: “Why’s he cryin’? You holdin’ him wrong or somethin?” The way that Xena and Gabrielle are totally unequipped to care for a baby is also extremely relatable, and their admiration for how Pandora is equipped for parenthood is very beautiful. In this show, you don’t see women pitted against each other—rather, they admire and appreciate and support one another while they all make their completely different life choices.
Also, the whole thing where Gregor is a nurturing father figure who detests Xena at first because he thinks she’s a ruthless killing machine is an interesting stereotype flip.
DEVIN:
There is a lot happening in this episode, plot-wise and mythology-wise: Moses AND Pandora? Okay sure!
I have lots of disparate thoughts about this episode and they’re not cohesive (I would argue, similar to the construction of this episode) so I’m just going to list them:
Firstly, I have to just remind ourselves how truly enjoyable and silly this show is. The costumes and hair in this episode are really something else. King Gregor has a fluffy mullet, and you correctly identified the horrific combination of the dancers’ outfits and Nemos’ goatee. The dancing/choosing-a-woman/seduction scenes are peak camp, I can’t imagine anyone writing or performing any of those seriously. The sound mixing is perfection, with the whooshing of jumps and flips, the cracking of whips, the thwacking of punches.
I have a point of contention about the plot though (lol). I don’t know if I followed the baby’s parentage correctly: I was under the impression that the baby (newly named baby Gabriel) was Ophelia the servant’s baby, but then they just casually give him away to the king. Likewise, I was confused that Xena handed over the baby to the king and then promptly stole him back when Nemos walked in. This was of course followed by the most outrageous market fight scene ever, wherein the baby was tossed between Xena and Gabrielle four times. Who birthed the baby??? And why is everyone okay with tossing the baby through the market FOUR TIMES.
Finally: Pandora’s box. In future episodes and seasons, Gabrielle has an evil daughter named Hope, right? Is this foreshadowing or is this all completely disparate from that later narrative? I thought at the end when they knock the box off the pedestal and it opens to reveal its empty insides that it was going to imply something, but now I’m not so sure.
Also for the record, in the end Moses escapes Egypt and leads the Jews to the promised land. Baby Gabriel just gets given to the guy who put out the death warrant on him. I’m not sure if this is an effective mix of stories and genres.
Finally, I don’t know if you noticed but they show Gregor’s castle twice and did you recognize it? It’s Mont-Saint-Michel photoshopped into a lush valley.
SAGAN:
Baby’s parentage was glossed over, but I watched this episode like 3 times, so I can clear that up for you: it was the baby of a servant who died. The other servants were taking care of it.
I TOTALLY forgot that Gabrielle’s evil daughter is named Hope! That can’t possibly be a coincidence. That must be foreshadowing! Especially given how much they toss the baby around. I’m not sure that Gabrielle is best suited to being a parent. That might be the first indicator for how she birthed an evil child.
On another note, let’s talk about the Xena/Gabrielle relationship. One of the most progressive elements of it, to me, is how they have a seemingly platonic relationship one moment and then a sexual relationship the next moment. I would argue that we as the viewers don’t necessarily know if they’re gay or bisexual or pansexual, for example—and that’s the point. We get to project our own ideas and identity onto them. And there’s a great relationship anarchy theme going on throughout the show.
*What* exactly their relationship is, feels like a non-issue—and I kind of love that. I could totally envision their relationship changing over the seasons without issue: at some points platonic, at other points romantic, at other points sexual, and so on. You can imagine anything happening off-screen for their characters, and because of that, you as the viewer can project your own imagination onto them. That’s really impressive character development to leave so much ambiguity, without closing the doors on any specifics of their relationship dynamic. I think we’d be hard-pressed to find many other shows that can achieve this kind of thing.
Somehow I did not recognize Mont-Saint-Michel. Guess I’m going back for a fourth watch.
DEVIN:
Three times is too many times to watch this episode! Xena and Gabrielle’s relationship is the best thing about this show, for sure. I love that the first scene with Gabrielle in this episode, she’s casually draped over the ground delicately like someone playing a damsel in a high school musical, but then makes fun of herself for sleeping on rocks the next second -- and the realization as well that the only person she’s trying to look graceful for is… Xena? Maybe I’m reading too much into it too early.
I realized watching this episode and the ones following it that even though Xena was my favourite growing up, Renee O’Connor is such a scene-stealer - embracing the silliness of every scene, right down to the baby-tossing - that Gabrielle is becoming my favourite character already.
...Even if she isn’t suited to being a parent! I honestly cannot remember the circumstances that lead to both women becoming mothers, but as far as I remember the tragedy is that that’s the situation that truly destroys them and the relationship they previously had. If that’s not a dark metaphor I don’t know what is. Remind me to note down who writes these episodes so we can check back later about the Hope references.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS:
Number of times the baby is tossed through the marketplace: 4
Number of aye aye aye ayes: Zilch. :(