From: owner-chakram-refugees-digest@smoe.org (chakram-refugees-digest) To: chakram-refugees-digest@smoe.org Subject: chakram-refugees-digest V2 #77 Reply-To: chakram-refugees@smoe.org Sender: owner-chakram-refugees-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-chakram-refugees-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk chakram-refugees-digest Monday, March 25 2002 Volume 02 : Number 077 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [chakram-refugees] <> ["Cheryl Ande" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Mar 2002 22:28:17 -0500 From: "Cheryl Ande" Subject: [chakram-refugees] <> @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When I first saw The Furies I was very impressed with it as a stand alone episode. There is a terrific over the top performance by Lucy as the mad Xena shuttles between stooge-like antics and barely contained destructive rage. Kevin Smith is wonderful as the manipulative Ares. The plot is intriguing - we are left wondering why Xena's father wanted to kill her as a child - is Ares her real father or was there some other motive for her father's murderous rage? The only quibble I had about the episode was Darren Taekle's performance - as Xena's mother she seemed fairly unmoved when Xena takes off to kill herself. She just goes about her business cleaning up the inn - I though that was odd. Now on viewing it again I realized that this episode introduces themes that will be explored through out the third season. First is the power of the will. In this episode Ares urges Xena to use her will to control her life - to throw off the constraints of morality, kill her mother, and thus become a law unto herself. In The Debt we again revisit the role of the will in Xena's life - Young Xena lives the willful life unfettered by morality but Lo Mao will attempt to teach her to control that will for good. Indeed thought out the season Xena will grapple with her overwhelming need to control events in her and Gabrielle's lives until it brings tragedy to both women. The second theme is the destructive power of lies and secrets. Cyrene keeps the murder of Xena's father a secret from her daughter thus putting Xena in danger not just in this episode but also in The Ties That Bind. It also may have led to Xena's eventual alienation from her mother when Lycius was killed - - a mother cannot be close to a child if she has to keep such a horrible secret from her. Xena and Gabrielle certainly prove that secrets and lies can certainly lead to tragedy. The third season can be seen as an examination of the destructive power of deceit. At one point Xena in her madness rants that human beings a mere playthings for the gods, using us for their amusements thus introducing the last major theme of season 3. Gabrielle in the third season becomes the plaything of the gods. See is used by Dahok to bear his child, Ares manipulates her twice, and Hope uses her maternal instincts to destroy her friendship with Xena. Well that's it for now. been There, Done That is also up this week but the will have to wait until later. I'm sleepy. CherylA ========================================================= This has been a message to the chakram-refugees list. To unsubscribe, send a message to majordomo@smoe.org with "unsubscribe chakram-refugees" in the message body. Contact meth@smoe.org with any questions or problems. ========================================================= ------------------------------ End of chakram-refugees-digest V2 #77 *************************************