The Quill is Mightier...
Of all the Xena-lite episodes, this one was probably my favorite. There are some very funny moments in it.
At the beginning, were the kids supposed to be in an ancient temple, or was it supposed to be modern day? Not only were the sayings they were using current (Xena's Da Bomb), which I know doesn't really mean anything, as modern phrases were constantly being used on the show, but also, the kids were using a modern day paint sprayer.
And why was there a focus being put on Aphrodite's temple? The kids ran away yelling, "Aphrodite blows!" What had she done to Xena?
Check out the way Aphrodite holds the pillows up to her chest…like she doesn't already have enough padding!
Gabrielle (and everyone else) writes in the scroll from left to right. Is that correct? I know many ancient languages were written from right to left. That's how Gabrielle writes in The Rheingold.
Gabs is doing the same "grab a staff, jab into the ground, and run around in circles across bad guy's faces" as Xena does!
I know it's all made up, but I really don't care for all the cartoon action Gabs does with her staff…the pirouette…and the Russian dance on top of it.
But Gabrielle/Renee certainly seems to enjoy it!
And she brings new meaning to the term "abs of steel'.
Somehow, I always think it's vaguely vulgar when we see Joxer's face from beneath Gabrielle's arched back.
Gabrielle is immediately thrilled when she realized what she had written in the scroll had come true. Shouldn't she have been concerned about where this power suddenly came from?
Wow…that was a very long teaser!
Joxer had trouble reading Gabrielle's scroll, but did just fine in Forget Me Not. He must have signed up for Hooked on Phonics!
"Gabrielle awoke with a jerk". Come on! Would Gabbers really write a phrase like that? And besides that, I don't consider Joxer a jerk. A little dense and clumsy, but not a jerk!
What's the significance of "kinsman's sword"? Is it a family heirloom, or does it mean something else?
When did Aphrodite get red hair? She's kinda got the Gabrielle syndrome in this one!
The music in the tavern scene is directly from A Day in the Life. No wonder Minya shows up later!
When the Barbarians are riding back and forth as Gabrielle keeps changing the scroll, the sky is a weird red/pink color. I wonder if that was real?
Joxer suggests Gabs edit her scrolls…and she ignores him, only to come up with the brilliant idea of editing her scroll! Poor Joxer!
I love Aphrodite's line to Ares about the scroll spell…"Exsqueeze me! It worked…kinda."
Joxer is halfway sensible in this one, except for the waking with the jerk part.
I wonder if Alexandra Tydings ever got embarrassed running around in her nightgown? I'd imagine she got cold!
Xena's leather is important to Ares…hmmm…
Boy, Minya sums it all up…"Who's the stud, the dork, and the bottled blonde?"
What's up with the dirt smudges on Aphrodite's face? Couldn't Gabrielle show her how to use a washcloth?
I love Ares' machine gun laugh!
Joxer inventing the beer hat was brilliant! Very, very funny and clever!
The rather effeminate man looking for his kinsman's sword was named Scabbarus. What a name!
Ares delivery on the following is really funny…"Those caves are gonna' start getting pretty full."
Ares is very, very funny in this one. His reaction to seeing the three naked Gabrielle's is the best of all three…and it just keeps going.
What's up with the little squeaking noises the three naked Gabrielle's make? She was a happy little set of triplets, wasn't she?
Minya really does sleep with Xena's whip! I don't know quite what to make of that!
I am so glad Gabrielle was gracious when Joxer gave her the necklace! I would have hated to see him get his heart broken again!
I love Joxer's apology…"I mean…just sorry for the three naked you's and everything…."
Gabrielle sends Aphrodite and Minya "where it's raining dinars". She and Ares were going to town. Isn't town where it was raining dinars?
Ares does a pretty fair impersonation of Xena's steely gaze!
It's hysterical that Gabrielle and Ares warm up to each other over Xena.
It's a very funny scene, and a precursor to Old Ares Had a Farm.
There are lots of familiar faces in this one.
I even found the cave chase scene kind of funny, just because each and every one of them runs around like an idiot.
When I got the sixth soundtrack, and the music for the "Go-go Gabrielle's" started up, I grinned like a loon. That music is SO catchy, and instantly brings to mind the images of the bard in nude triplicate.
But what's up with the holding hands and skipping bit?
I like the Thelonius's line after seeing the unusual procession…."If that's not a sign from Ares, I don't know what is."
I cringe every time Aphrodite says, "I'm new to this mortal hygiene thing, okay?" I don't find that funny in the least!
Xena is the voice of reason in this episode, although I love her expression as she describes the group she saw…she say "three naked Gabrielle's" like she still doesn't quite believe it.
And I love this exchange:
Xena (to Gabrielle): Did you write that limerick?
Joxer: I did.
Xena: Figures.
Xena is being very sweet to Gabrielle, and at the same time, smacking Joxer around pretty good with a fish.
If Xena would have shown up sooner, they all could have saved themselves a whole lot of headaches. She had the whole problem solved in about a minute and a half.
Mortal Ares has a rather sensitive nose.
Xena's fighting with the fish is kind of stupid, but at the same time, kind of fun to watch.
I loved it when she through the starfish, complete with the little noise it made.
Love Ares' little dig, "I think I know a squid when I see one." It's an inside joke referring to Lost Mariner, where Gabs kept eating octopus, but it was referred to as "squid."
An eel chakram! And Xena made it fly just like the real deal! She truly has many skills!
And the swordfish was another genius weapon!
Ares seemed to be giving Gabs a sincere look at the end. I was fooled too.
She grins away at Ares sending lightning bolts into the bad guy's butt.
I like the end…Xena, Gabrielle, and Joxer look very comfortable standing there together.
All in all, The Quill is a very entertaining episode. It was great to see Gabs, Joxer, Ares, and Aphrodite get to have some real fun.
This is how Gary felt about this particular episode...
This comedy was pretty funny in most respects,with Aphrodite angry because
of some kids desecrating her temple. Ares says that Xena will be more adored
that Aph,and it is all Gab's fault....her "busy quill." Actually,it was the
scroll that was mightier.
We see the warlord looking thru the same telescope that was in Orphan of
War.Ares wants him to pillage the valley,but with Xena around,it would be
hard.
Gabby wants Xena to be enthusiastic about Gab's new clean scroll.Xena says
it smells like musty old leather,and goes to sleep. Meanwhile,Aphrodite
enchants the scroll so that whatever is written there comes true..a way to
get to Xena...how that is,we are not told.
The "Kinsman's Sword" is the same one in Prometheus,or a close look-alike.
I liked Joxer's "drinking helmet" when Gab writes the drinks are "on the
house".
Gab writes that war (Ares) and the power that enchanted the scroll(Aph)
would lose their powers. Ares and Aph fall from the sky...brother and
sister.They are now mortal,and Aph can't get the hang of personal hygeine.
Notice,as opposed to the Caligula episode,since Love and War have no
godhood,nobody falls out of love in this episode.Joxer loves Gab.
Gab's fight against the five barbarians in the beginning was
entertaining,with Gab using ingenious tactics...she also has a sword bounce
off her abs of steel.
The whole point of the scroll is that they have to write something in it to
put things back.Gab is not enchanted---only the scroll is. Even Joxer
manages to write in three naked Gabbys,so why didn't Ares or Aph try to fix
things? After all,Aph was the one responsible for making the scroll
work...she above all should be able to fix things.But,that would end the
episode.
Gabby to Joxer:"You wrote on the scroll!?"
Same intensity as towards Xena when Xena uses the scroll as tiolet paper in
A Day in the Life..."You used my scroll!?"
Funny...Aph can't get the hang of being mortal...she burps and snores,not to
mention that without bathing,she is starting to smell bad.This is seen in a
few scenes where people recoil from the smell.She is also dirty. Ares eeems
to have no trouble,tho.
Joxer sells his dad's sword scabbar to a peddler to buy Gabby a
necklace...she is furious with him because she put the scroll in it for
safeleeping.Where was Joxer going to holster the sword?
Why does the trader want the scroll? He cannot know it is enchanted. He
makes it rain dinars when he has it.
Plenty of scenes where Gabby tweaks Joxer's nose and slams him around...just
like old times.
Why does Joxer go to the cave to wait? He isn't forced to go because Gab
does not have the scroll to write him there.
The scene where Ares and Gab were walking and warming up to each other was a
good one,but at the end,each agrees that they didn't like it.For a
minute,and at the end where Ares looked at Gab,I thought he was really
liking her,but no...he says"What's this"? on her top,and pops her lightly on
the nose when she looks.
The chase scene in the cave was like in Comedy of Eros,with the same
music,and a little speeded-up action.Why does everyone want the scroll? How
many are aware of its powers?
Running from the cave at the end is the peddler,3 naked Gabs,the
barbarians,the sword guy,and Minya.The warlord sees it as a sign to attack.
Xena arrives with a wagonload of fish and had followed the scrolls
directions to ultimately find Gabby.
Ares can berely speak because of the smell...Aphrodite says "I am new to
this mortal hygeine thing".
Unless the chase scene got changed,Xena says that it was the barbarians,THEN
the naked Gabs running...
Aph says her charm was "lies make the world go round 'till truer words are
written down",so Xena tells Gabby to write exactly what she sees and uses up
the scroll,to put all back as it was.
The fish fight was good...reminiscent of the fight in Altared States.
In one scene during the fight,all are just watching Xena take on the
army.Ares and Gabby are kneeling on the ground,but all are seated in the
next scene.Why kneel? Were they praying?
Joxer and Minya kiss at the end when Aph gets her powers back and puts a
mini-spell on them for fun.Ares tosses a couple fireballs at a retreating
soldier...why doesn't he die from that? In fact,nobody gets killed...just a
lot of fun.
This episode was enjoyable because it featured a running gag of Gabby waking
up "with a jerk"(Joxer)...he doesn't get it until the end,but everyone else
had a good laugh.
Gabby covering her face with the feather was cute...she was supressing a
smile at Joxer's confusion."what's so funny about waking up?"I give the episode a B
for just some light-hearted enjoyment.
Here are Andrew's thoughts:
Gabrielle learns that writing fiction is harder than it looks, as a vexed Aphrodite places a spell on her latest scroll.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
XENA AND GABRIELLE
Xena clearly isn't the literary type, and doesn't understanding Gabrielle's fascination with writing. Gabby, on the other hand, soon gets into the swing of writing heroic fiction, with herself as the hero. The effects of Aphrodite's spell are startling to say the least, and it's fun to see Gabrielle mimicking Xena's acrobatic style with a few nifty innovations of her own. The part where she "deflected the thrust of a sword with her mighty abs" ed me up the first time I saw it.
It's typical of Gabrielle that she wants to use her new-found powers to make the world a better place, and the consequences of Aphrodite's sabotage are often hilarious, one of my favourites being "the drinks are on the house!"
Gabrielle seems to be in denial over Joxer's feelings for her. She convinces herself that the words in his limerick "he saw through love's eyes" refer to Aphrodite. Speaking of denial, what about Gabby and Ares? After displaying her skill at tracking (learned from Xena) the bard bonds with the God of War, thanks to their mutual admiration for the Warrior Princess. This leads to an uncomfortable moment and one of the funniest exchanges of the episode:
A: "We were starting to warm up to each other there, weren't we?"
G: "Yeah…we were."
(Pause)
A: "I didn't like it."
G: "Right back atcha."
A: "Okay."
We also learn that Gabrielle doesn't write action scenes well, relying on metaphors such as "Xena burst on the scene in a blaze of glory". Joxer rightly points out that this could lead to them having to pick Xena up in a million pieces!
GENERAL OBSERVATIONSIt's interesting to see that Ares holds Gabrielle responsible for Xena's growing popularity. He tells Aphrodite "I only made the warrior. She created the legend."
There are a couple of good running gags in this episode. The first is the reason for Joxer's sudden appearance due to the line "Gabrielle awoke with a jerk", which crops up several times. The second is the situation faced by Thelonius, surely the Xenaverse's most put-upon warlord! He and his men spend most of their time waiting for Ares to signal that it's safe to attack, leading to another hilarious "dead bird" gag. (Hilary J. Bader also wrote BEEN THERE, DONE THAT, which explains a lot. Remember the ed rooster?) The increasingly bewildered barbarians are also good for a laugh.
Aphrodite soon works out that Ares is trying to pull a fast one, so that Gabrielle will write Xena as the kind of warlord who'll do his bidding. Unfortunately, they both lose their powers thanks to the scroll. Joxer has his bright moments, inventing the foam dome (ye gods!), suggesting that Gabby edits her work more carefully, and that they describe Xena rather than just naming her. Ares' contribution to this is to growl "Leather!" in a -laden voice! This plan also backfires, and it's nice to see Xena wannabe Minya ing her whip again as a result.
Joxer's attempt to cheer Gabrielle up with a limerick is well-meant, but using her scroll isn't the smartest thing he's ever done. Still, the results are eye-catching to say the least - three Gabbys, go-go dancing behind a strategically placed clothesline.
THREE Gabbys?! Excuse me, I think I'll just go and lie down for a while…
Okay, I'm better now.
Has anyone else noticed that when gods in the Xenaverse lose their powers, they always head for the nearest tavern to get smashed? Aphrodite REALLY goes downhill fast in this episode, learning that there's more to feminine hygiene than meets the eye or the nose!
Joxer again shows his feelings for Gabrielle by trading his scabbard (the only thing his father ever gave him) for a necklace. Sadly, this is where Gabby chooses to hide the scroll, believing that Joxer would never part with it. This leads to even more frustration for the bard!
Someone at RenPics certainly thinks fish are funny! If the early scene in ALTARED STATES was the appetiser, this is the main course. Xena use a starfish as a shuriken, an eel as a chakram and a swordfish as a javelin. Joxer is in his element providing the commentary, with both play-by-play ("Bam! Bam! Two quick bass.") and colour ("I guess she did that just for the halibut!") Unlike Ares, he can also tell the difference between an octopus and a squid. This gag appear to be a reference to the "raw squid" Gabby at in ULYSSES, which was actually octopus.
FAMILIAR FACESPaul Norell (the peddler) played a similar character in PROMETHEUS. He is, of course, better known to Hercules fans as Falafel, the world's worst fast food cook.
LITTLE PROBLEMS
Even if those primitive "aerosols" could be squeezed hard enough to work, wouldn't it be easier to just use a brush? The graffiti's fun, though!
Gabrielle sends the barbarians, Scaberus and the Gabbys to the caves, but why does the peddler go there? Has he read the scroll and decided to check out the Gabbys for himself? Would you blame him?
It's smart of Gabrielle to send the scroll to Xena, but why is it necessary for Xena to sort things out? I can't help feeling that in a Season 2 episode Gabby would have been able to come up with a solution herself. Xena solves the problem in a matter of seconds, making everyone else look pretty slow, especially Aphrodite. After all, she ought to know how to counteract her own spells.
Minya says the barbarians "stopped fighting and went back to barbaria", but what about Scaberus and the Gabbys? Did they just disappear?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
This is a funny enough stand-alone episode, but it marks the beginning of a decline in XWP's comedies into slapstick and farce. Most of the humour is provided at the expense of the principal characters, with much of the wittiness of earlier comedies being lost. Still, it's better than MARRIED WITH FISHSTICKS!
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