This is a fine hour of television, by any standards, and I found the acting to be even more than superior than usual.
It would easily crack my top ten, if it weren’t for one thing. It is just so sad and painful to watch. It starts out innocuous enough. The fact that Xena has been keeping track (one year, two months, and twelve days) since seeing Solan is pretty amazing! Xena is suddenly saying her own son’s name wrong. She is pronouncing it with the emphasis on the second syllable, using a soft a sound. Everyone else calls him “Solun”. I’ll bet David Taylor has grown a foot since his last appearance in Orphan of War. Another year or so, and he would be as tall as Lucy. “Some trackah, huh?” That’s Xena’s accent slipping as she brags on Solan to Gabrielle. When Kaleiapas says, “That’s why the delegates brought their children”, Xena puts an arm around Solan and smiles proudly. It doesn’t take a genius to realize that was a very revealing move. It’s interesting that Gabrielle cheats in her footrace with Solan, just as did earlier with Xena in The Furies. What is it about that family? I hate Fayla’s eye crossing before she passes out. Too over the top for me! Would the daughter of Dahak really pass out by the appearance of Callisto, anyway? Xenan is a little cutie…with curls just like his mama. But shouldn’t he only be about a year and a half old? Do Centaur children mature amazingly fast? Ephiny is very much in tune with Gabrielle…She realizes something is wrong almost immediately. Callisto stops to smell the flowers? I don’t think so! It makes much more sense when she starts burning things. Ephiny says, “Word has it that Xena helped Bodecia defeat Caesar”, and Gabrielle agrees with that. Did she? The last I remember, Xena was leaving Bodecia on her own so she could save Gabrielle from the temple of Dahak. Gabrielle really and truly loves Hope, despite all she’s been through. It’s touching…sort of. Now I know Xena is smart, but how could she really identify the desecrations as Callisto’s handiwork? Where did the name “Lucas” come from, and why does it sound so funny to me? Gabrielle’s getting pretty good with her tracking. Fayla made virtually no sounds, and Gabrielle was able to capture her easily. No wonder Gabs didn’t recognize Fayla…that little girl wasn’t very pretty, and didn’t look anything like her mother! Xena “sensed” Callisto earlier? Does she have the “Ares sensation” with Malibu Xena too? Fayla says her message is, “She knows your secret and she’s going to take it to the grave.” That had to freak Xena out, knowing it was Callisto saying it! Callisto has NO future as a barber. Ouch! Kaleiapas grabs Solan’s arm rather roughly, and watch Xena react, as if her first impulse is to protect her son from…his father. How does Solan think he came to live with Kaleiapas? Does he believe Borias gave him to the Centaurs? Xena does a great job talking Solan into doing as Kaleiapas says. Solan really respects her, and listens to her. He listens to Xena more than his own father. Xena and Solan have very similar smiles. Ephiny seems more butch in this episode than she usually is. What is Xena doing running around with a Jawa? I can’t help but adore the smug little smirk Xena gives Callisto when called “Clever girl.” “Auntie Callisto?” Eesh! I find myself wondering what all of Xena’s thoughts were when she found Kaleiapas dying. Was she already wondering who would take care of Solan? It breaks my heart when Solan asks, “Why does everyone I love die?” Xena starts to say she loves him, but changes it to “many, many friends.” Would it have been so wrong for her to tell him she loved him? A moment later, he asks, “We are friends, aren’t we?” and she hastily agrees. Xena is pronouncing his name correctly now, by the way. You can’t blame the kid for wanting to live with Xena…who wouldn’t? Can you imagine the thoughts that must have raced through Xena’s head when Solan tells her he wants her to take him with her? Xena refers to Kaleiapas as one of the “finest people” she knew. Is a centaur a people? I have to give Kaleiapas some credit. He told Solan that Xena would always be there for him. Xena tries to talk Solan out of coming with her, but she isn’t trying very hard. It’s easy to see her pleasure when she finally gives in. She tells him they’ll have a lot to talk about on the road. Is she going to tell him the truth about who his mother is? I like Fayla’s comment, “That half-assed old man.” And for some reason, I really like it when Callisto calls Fayla “weak as a kitten.” Gabrielle looks far too young to be Fayla’s Mom. At this point, I still feel a little sorry for Gabs. Her love for Hope is real, but it also overshadows her better judgment. I mean, I can’t blame her for wanting to hide Fayla, but really, shouldn’t she have taken the smart route and sent Fayla somewhere else to hide? Xena’s sixth sense is in overdrive again. Check out the double take Gabs gives her as she relays Callisto’s plan to Xena and Ephiny. Xena doesn’t believe in Fayla, even before she knows who she really is. When her and Gabs start arguing, it becomes painful to watch. They are extremely angry with each other. Gabrielle claims Hope is the victim here, but Xena won’t listen. And then Xena says Hope is still young and “poe…i…sin” will kill her. That’s how Lucy pronounces it. Xena argues that Hope isn’t a child…but she was just saying she wasn’t mature. So what does that make her? I dunno if I agree with that, anyway. Xena’s emotion is palpable when she learns Gabs sent Hope to Kaleiapas’s hut. Then she’s out of there like a shot! What follows is one of the most difficult scenes of the whole show for me to watch. I’d rank it in the top three. For some reason, Xena looks extremely tanned in this one. When Xena tells Gabrielle “get out”, her voice cracks so much it doesn’t sound like her at all. The “Go!” is much more in character though. It gets to me every time Xena tells Solan, “Your mom is here…just like you always wanted.” David Taylor does a fantastic time playing dead. I only saw him flinch once, and it was slight. He particularly does a terrific job when Xena is screaming out her pain. How did he manage to keep so still? I can’t even begin to understand how guilty and horrible Xena must be feeling during this scene. She thought she was finally going to get to know her son, and then he was taken away from her. By now, is Ephiny filled in on the situation? She didn’t seem extraordinarily sympathetic toward Xena. The biggest problem in this one is a lack of communication between Xena and Gabrielle. They are together for just a very few moments during the course of the episode. If they had talked sooner, a lot of their strife could have been avoided. I woulda thought Hope could have heard “Solan” from anyone…or met him sooner. It didn’t seem unusual to me that she would know his name. After shooting the arrow through Callisto, Xena just stares at her, and wow, is she ever pissed! The close up is frighteningly excellent…nostrils flaring, a slight sneer…Wow! Xena flinches when she shoots a bow and arrow. Did Xena really think a bunch of arrows would get Callisto’s attention, or was it just to get Callisto’s attention? Callisto’s words are harsh…”Like to kill me? Wish you could.” Callisto catches Xena’s sword midstroke, then uses it like a Louisville slugger to whop Xena backward quite a distance. Xena still looks pretty scary in the cave. She’s trying to act as if she isn’t feeling anything. Callisto tries to tell Xena that she’s won the war, but Xena’s response is great. “Oh, it’s not that simple. I won’t let it be.” And later in the fight: