Although I'm tempted to compare Giant Killer to Altared States, Giant Killer isn't nearly as good an episode.
That brief half-smile Xena gives Goliath when they first greet each other is very nice. The age of the actor portraying David was about right. In fact, the actor did a pretty good job with the characterization. David was too quick to judge Xena, but I'm sure she's used to that by now. Check out Gabs, the compulsive shoplifter! Doesn't she and Xena have some food they can give to the Israelites? David wrote a Psalm about Xena? Hmm...maybe they should keep looking in the location of the Dead Sea Scrolls...there might be some more scrolls of interest there! The Philistine leader's smooth voice was driving me crazy...then it finally hit me...Gurkhan! I checked it out, and that was right. I had never put two and two together until now. I love that man's voice! Very foolish, yet brave of Gabs to put her head down on top of David's...two heads are better than one! Especially when you're lopping them off! In the first third of the episode, Gabrielle comes to David's rescue twice, only to have Xena come to Gabrielle's rescue both times! Argo is doing a fine job of chasing off a few bad guys on her own...what a horse! It looks like David's men chase all the horses off...but when Xena yells "To the horses!", all the horses are suddenly standing around again. While the others ride off, Xena holds her hand behind her back waiting for Gabs to jump on. That's something we don't see very often...I guess because it's seldom Xena leaves a dangerous situation in a hurry. Then, take note, when they Xena and Gabrielle finally take off on Argo, Gabrielle's face is hidden deliberately. Could it be there was an imposter on the horse? Once again, Xena doesn't want an apology from David. I do like the way Xena treated Saul with respect. It was kind of sad to see Gabbers' attraction to David dashed. David was NOT married to a Sarah, at least according to my Bible. It's kind of cool to see how quickly Gabrielle can shift gears. One minute she has a small heartbreak, and the next minute she's at Xena's side giving the Warrior Princess some moral support. As if Xena didn't carry enough guilt, she has even more now in regards to Goliath. Xena has described being hurt an awful lot in past battles. It doesn't surprise me, but the amount of fighting she does now, she rarely gets hurt. Very nice hand-holding...Xena didn't shy away from the touch which is a good sign of the deepening relationship. I'm sorry, but I really don't want to have to look at a giant's hairy legs! When Xena is running from Goliath, goading him to chase her, she runs across the same ground more than once. Nice ricochet of the chakram from helmet to helmet...good thing all the men were nearly the same height though. If there were any tall guys in the bunch, they could have lost a nose! Was Xena trying to hide the salt from Goliath? It was an awfully big bag...I guess giant's have lousy eyesight. It's more likely they're cross-eyed from having to peer past that noseguard all the time. I thought it was very nifty how Xena and David were both having the same thoughts...that David would have to be the one to kill Goliath. The real David was one of the greatest military tacticians ever, and this scene was true to form. I understand why Goliath felt he had to go against Xena. I didn't like the Biblical Goliath. I wish I didn't like this one. I get goosebumps every time David reads the 23rd Psalm. But when the camera is on Gabrielle, notice how David's voice sounds different. Bad example of looping, I'd say. I love Xena's "You might wanna mention the weather to...Him." Even though she's not a follower, she at least believes He might be up there! Listen to the off-screen voices when David begins to fight..."A boy!??! We want Xena! Squash the kid, Goliath!" Once again, Xena's knowledge of physics saved the day! Why didn't Goliath just move out of the path of the beam? I really, really hate that image of Goliath laying there with his eyes bleeding. Blech! The ending was sad, but sweet. I'm glad Xena got the chance to avenge the death of Goliath's family eventually. Giant Killer isn't necessarily a bad episode, in my opinion...there just isn't much going on. Definitely, a middling episode. Here are Gary's thougts: The story opens with Xena and Gabby in a graveyard at night.This is an unusual one,because the skeletons are of giants. Xena tells Gabby that she made a promise ten years before to meet her friend there,so they wait for a few minutes. Gabby,wide-eyed,sees the giant,and Xena tells her that the giant is her friend. Gabby goes away for a while so that Xena and her friend can "catch up". Strange that Xena does not tell Gabby the giant's name. The warlord Dagon calls him Goliath. Gabby runs into a war party with captives. Dagon says that she will be another addition to the group. David,a captive,tries to stop Gabby from being captured,and he is hit with Dagon's staff. Gabby fights,and Xena appears,doing her usual stuff,and knocking Dagon down. Goliath appears and Dagon realizes that Goliath is Xena's friend,and invites Xena and Gabby to his camp. At the camp,the Israelites,with Jonathan and his brother David,are put into a dungeon while Xena and Gabby are invited to dine with Dagon. He explains that the Israelites are thieves----they hunted on Philistine land. Gabby sneaks food from the table into her pack for the captives. Dagon wants Xena to join him,but she refuses. Gabby goes to the jail and gives David the food. David heard of Xena's past before,and does not like her,even tho she saved them from Dagon in the woods. Gabby tries to get him to believe that Xena is good now. He is like Gabby---he writes poetry,mostly psalms. A guard appears alone,and pushes the captives out of the way...there is a tunnel being dug,and he discovers it. David's people are led out and will be executed because of the attempted escape.Gabby convinces Dagon that nobody escaped,and that it is too much to kill them all. He says okay...just kill David. David is led to the chopping block,and Gabby puts her own head over his,saying that she will die too if Dagon does not let David go. Dagon says kill them both. At that moment,back from trying to persuade Goliath from staying with Dagon,Xena tosses the Chakram,as in the Black Wolf,and knocks the headsman's axe from his hands. Gabby does a roll and then uses the axe to cut the ropes holding David. There is the general Xena-soldiers fight,with some unusual stunts,as using a wagon wheel to stop a bunch of thugs. They all escape,and go to David's dad's place....dad is the King,and Jonathan will be next in line. David is writing later,and Gabby brings him some soup. He and she talk of writing,and it is clear from Gabby's smile and flirting,she is interested in David. His fiancee arrives with more food,and David tells Gabby that he is engaged. Gabby leaves calling herself dumb for thinking that she had a chance with David. She sees Xena on the balcony and Xena tells her why she is in Goliath's debt. Ten years before,Gareth,another giant,fought Goliath,with Xena fighting on Goliath's side. The enemy trapped Xena and Goliath left his family to save Xena,with his family being killed by Gareth because Goliath was not there to protect them.This scene is very moving,and Gabby holds Xena's hand in both of hers,as if to reassure her. Xena challenges Goliath to a fight,saying if she can hit him above the bridge of the nose with her Chakram,it will kill him. She does not want to kill him,but he is fighting on the wrong side. The nextt day,Goliath appears with a helmet,otherwise unarmed,and chases Xena around the town,wrecking a lot of stuff. Dagon's men pull a sneak attack with arrows,and Xena's Chakram disables the archers. Trapped in a corner,Xena throws a bag of salt into Goliath's face and temporarily blinds him,so she can escape. Jonathan is killed in this battle,so David is left in charge. His father the king is not too involved in this campaign.Xena says she cannot kill Goliath---it must be an Israelite,because they need their own leader to believe in. David realizes this too,and says he will fight Goliath. Xena has the men polish their shields,and the next day the final fight begins. It is cloudy,and Xena tells David to ask his one-god for better weather. Goliath,with his helmet,and now a huge sword,arrives,and fights David,who dodges the sword and tries to hit Goliath with a rock from a sling. The sky clears,the sun is out,and Xena gives the order to focus the sunlight onto Goliath's face. He takes his helmet off,and David hits him with a rock,mortally wounding him. The two groups then fight,and David's men win. Dagon rides off saying it isn't over. Dying,Goliath asks Xena if he will see his family on the other side. Xena says she does not know,and that he can go now---his war is over. He dies,and Xena and Gabby leave. Good points: The army of Dagon is camped in the open,so all appear dirty,while David's men,in the castle,appear clean. The special effects are very good,even up-close,and one minor flub is during David's fight with Goliath---the shadows of the two figures are at different angles..Xena had told Goliath that personal hate and vengeance are wrong,but you can't help wondering why she says that after what we have seen in six years,especially when she drags Gabby behind the horse in Bitter Suite. If there ever was a scene where Gabby should have been kissed,it was when she was with David...she really looked as if it were going to happen.It was a great close-up.For us Gab-fans,it was a great scene. Also,Gabby really keeps proving that she is an expert with her fighting staff. Here's how Andrew felt about Giant Killer: Xena and Gabrielle go up against the Philistines as XWP revisits the Old Testament. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * XENA AND GABRIELLEWe learn a little more about Xena's past here. She and Goliath had been allies against a giant named Gareth 10 years earlier (after Cortese attacked Amphipolis but before Xena became evil). Goliath saved Xena's life, but at the cost of his own family, something which haunts the Warrior Princess to this day. She does everything she can to talk Goliath out of fighting for the Philistines, but eventually puts the Greater Good before her friendship. Not only does Xena tell the Israelites of Goliath's vulnerable spot, she comes up with a plan to make him expose it by reflecting the sun's rays to make his helmet too hot to wear. She also realises that for reasons of Israelite morale it must be David who kills Goliath to avenge Jonathan's death. It's a typically brave and generous act for Gabrielle to sneak food in to the Israelite prisoners. She also impulsively throws herself over David in an attempt to prevent his execution. She is obviously attracted to David - as a warrior poet he seems a perfect match - and she's clearly shaken when she learns he's betrothed. Nevertheless, Gabrielle encourages David to go public with the psalms he writes, and becomes the first person to hear Psalm 23 recited. GENERAL OBSERVATIONSThe giants' burial ground is impressive, as are the special effects that make Goliath look so huge (however, see "Little Problems"). I like Todd Ripon's portrayal of Goliath as a decent man driven by revenge to choose the wrong side in a battle he's destined to lose. Particularly effective is his surprisingly gentle voice. Dagon's parents must have believed their son had a great future - they named him after the principal Philistine god. He says "We're going to bring civilisation to the Israelites", and the Philistines were in fact more technologically advanced than Saul's people. David and Jonathan were not actually related, but they did regards themselves as brothers, as they do here. David has also written about Xena - they cut THAT out of the Old Testament! He talks of the Israelite God as superior to the Olympians, which is again accurate. At this time the Israelites were not monotheistic. They acknowledged the existence of other gods, and occasionally lapsed into worshipping them. This story ran considerably over time. The cut footage (in which Xena avenges Goliath and his family) was later used in A DAY IN THE LIFE. LITTLE PROBLEMSAccording to the Bible, Goliath stood "6 cubits and a span" tall. A cubit is usually assumed to be 18 to 22 inches in length, which would make Goliath anywhere from 9 feet 9 inches to 11 feet 11 inches tall (a span was half a cubit). When we first see Goliath standing in front of Xena he appears to be between 10 feet 6 inches and 11 feet tall. Allowing for a cubit of 20 inches, this fits the Bible account. In every other scene, however, he appears much larger, anywhere from 14 to 17 feet tall. A little consistency would have been nice! Goliath was actually a Philistine, not a wandering mercenary as shown here. He came from Gath, in what is now the Gaza Strip. Gaza was also a Philistine city, and Goliath's people gave their name to the area - Palestine. Presumably Xena was wounded defending the area around Amphipolis from Gareth's army. If that's the case, why did Goliath take his family's bodies back to Palestine? As we learn in A DAY IN THE LIFE, there's at least one giant's burial ground in Greece. I don't know what language David's writing, but it doesn't look like Hebrew, and shouldn't he be working from right to left? He also says that Jonathan will be the Israelites next king, yet I believe David had already been anointed as the future king before he fought Goliath. Also, Jonathan outlived Goliath by many years, dying in battle along with his father on Mount Gilboa. Sarah? Who the heck is Sarah? David's first wife was Saul's daughter Michal. Why is Xena obsessed with getting Goliath to take off his helmet? A ballista like the one constructed in ORPHAN OF WAR would have killed him just as surely, and from a far greater distance. Gabrielle tells David "This One God stuff is a new concept for me." What about the One God of Antaeus in ALTARED STATES? Maybe henbane-laced nutbread causes amnesia! The whole point of the polished shields is to reflect the sun's rays, and Xena is waiting for the clouds to clear. When Goliath attacks David, however, the sun is clearly out, as everyone has a sharply defined shadow. This shows the sun to be at the Philistines' backs, but when the reflected rays strike Goliath he's facing into the sun - you can even see the Israelite army behind him! As Dagon prepares to flee he snarls "This is far from over!" Despite this threat neither he nor the Philistine army are ever seen again. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Not the most memorable of stories, although it has its moments. There are quite a lot of holes in the plot, but TPTB don't play as fast and loose with the Old Testament as they will with the New Testament in Seasons 5 and 6. This episode is most noteworthy for being the prequel to the most popular XWP story ever - A DAY IN THE