Sacrifice Part 1
This is the first half of the third season ender.
At first, I thought aliens were landing.
I was really surprised to see Callisto didn't turn that pig to bacon.
The dancing women were wearing Amazon masks.
Xena can read lips. Why doesn't that surprise me?
Those guys looked like clansmen.
Saraphin was rather butch.
Isn't a Seraphim an angel? Oh yeah, that's seraphim!
Xena is extremely feral as she chases after Seraphim and kills that little guy behind her back.
Boy, Callisto really wants to be an aunt, doesn't she?
Gabrielle does exactly what Xena says without hesitating.
Xena's irritated that she didn't notice Ares sooner.
Who does Xena always go off alone to meet with Ares?
Xena and Ares are almost having a conversation.
Is it coincidence that Dahak's dancers wore hawk masks?
Xena did a great job fooling them.
She fights with her robe, but it's kind of sloppy.
Callisto tells her, "Just trust me…you're going to love it. Well, at least half of it."
Xena's sarcastic reply is "Oh, goody."
How was Xena able to tell it was Dahak and Hope?
Gabs leads Saraphin away saying, "It's okay." How could it be okay?
Ares approaches Xena, and she sheathes her sword. She seems to struggle a bit with it.
Her voice is shaking with emotion, and Gabs misunderstands when Xena says she needs to listen to Ares. Gabs thinks she means taking up an army. Xena means she's taking it too personally.
Gabs and Seraphim got in trouble a lot. They'd get in trouble for swimming in a river near Saraphin's house.
Xena walks up to Gabs with a "Hey."
Xena tells Gabbers not to turn her back on Saraphin. That sounds very familiar.
Xena's sure got courage…she isn't afraid at all to go after Callisto.
Course, some might call that stupidity.
Xena stabs Callisto who says, "Ouch, don't do that."
Callisto: Can you say nighty-night?
Xena (after kicking her ass): Nighty-night.
Gabrielle is known as the Betrayer, which I find interesting and ironic.
The villagers were acting like Zombies.
I like that Saraphin doesn't want to go to safety, so Xena punches her in the face.
One of the villagers trying to get in looks very much like first season Gabrielle, down to the outfit and the blonde hair. Check it out!
Saraphin: "You are the Savior of the world, Gabrielle." What happened to her being the Betrayer?
The first time I watched this, I was pretty well convinced that Gabrielle had turned traitor.
Xena admits it almost convinced her too.
Once again, Gabrielle is placed in a very precarious position.
Ares grabs her, then whispers, "Sh, sh, sh, sh," in her ear.
What a burden for Gabrielle! If Xena kills Hope, according to the Fates…Xena…will…die…
Saraphin was bound and determined to bleed!
That stuff Renee was in looked gooey! She did a great job with her "emergence".
Just by arching an eyebrow, Renee manages to make herself look very different, and very evil.
Stay tuned for Part 2! Here’s what Gary says:
In the opening scene, we see Callisto emerging from some sort of vortex,
coming back to earth. We learn that she was put there by Hercules as a
punishment involving the Hinds Blood Dagger, which can kill gods. Also, Ares
hates her too for killing his friend Strife with the Dagger.
In the next scene, we see Xena and Gabby watching some kind of ritual,
involving a human sacrifice. They are there at the request of a girl named
Serafin's parents to bring her home. She in under the influence of the cult
of Dahak and Hope.
There are a lot of black-robed figures in a circle, and Serafin is led to a
scaffold where she will be killed so that her blood can open the way for
Hope to come back into the world. There is the Priest of the Flesh, and Ser
is the Priestess of the Blood. Xena, reading the lips of the priests, knows
what is going on. Xena throws the Chakram to cut the spear the second priest
holds, and she and Gabby fight the cultists to save Ser. Xena never uses her
sword against the unarmed guys, but Gabby uses her staff.
The girl runs away and Xena gives chase, only to see Callisto cutting the
throat of the Priest of the Flesh. Xena stabs a guy who jumped off a
rock...why not just stomp him as she did the others? Xena looks pretty grim
as Cal disappears with the body, since Cal was buried in a cave-in in
Maternal Instincts.
Cal arrives at a cave where we hear some awful grunting noises and says
"Hi, honey...I'm home." and "hello Pumpkin...Auntie Callisto is here. Shall
I carve, or will you?"
Xena meanwhile thinks that it is not Cal who is going to have a lot of
temples built. It has to be someone else...nobody but Hope.
Ares appears and he tells Xena that he thinks it is Cal who is behind the
cult, and he is also looking for the Hinds Blood Dagger. I did not see the
show, but I believe that there was a Golden Hind, and when it was killed,
Cal took some of the blood. Iolas smeared some of it on a dagger when he
stole the blood-filled locket from Cal. Ares wants an alliance with Xena, but she says no.
The other priest says that the Flesh-priest will be replaced and now is the
time for the Blood-priestess. How did Xena make the switch, even tho she
wears a mask? Why replace the Priest of the Flesh if his job is done?
When the priest tries to stab her, she is wearing her armor and jumps down
and fights the now-armed cultists. She uses a cloak as a weapon
against the thugs.
Cal arrives and then fights Xena, even tho Cal is a goddess and immortal.
She just likes to toy with Xena. She says she is not glad to be there...it
is a continuance of Maternal Instincts when she just wants to die. Cal says
Xena can only delay her. At this time, Ares arrives, and Cal hits him with a
fireball, and NOTE...he is not affected. He will be later by another
one...in fact, he catches one and throws it back at Cal.
Cal grabs the second priest and disappears. Gabby has Seraphin, who actually
WANTS to be killed for Hope. She does not know who Cal is, and the girls
know for sure that Hope is loose again, building a power base.
Ser calls Hope the savior of the world...Xena says "your goddess killed my
child."
Now Ares knows the truth. He must raise a huge army to fight Hope and Dahak.
Xena is pained, but Ares says that she is taking it too personally. Xena
admits that anger clouds the mind and prevents focus.
She figures that Hope cannot make an appearance yet and is weak. She says
Hope can be killed in her mortal form.
Cal and the priest are at the cave, which he suddenly recognizes as the cave
of the Sister Peaks. This was never really explained, and we hear mention of
this sister a few times. Cal wants to kill him outside the cave....why not
take him inside and do it near Hope? He says that he is not one of the
Chosen Ones, and would gladly be killed if it would release Hope, but
Seraphin is the Chosen One.
Note: How does Cal know about Hope in the first place where she is and what
she wants? She guessed the Flesh Priest's use, but why take this guy back?
There is s silly scene where Ares is in the middle of nowhere talking to one
warrior. He wants this guy to go everywhere and raise a big army and meet
Ares later. This guy runs off...he never even has a horse. How is one man
supposed to cover a whole country and gather an army overnight?
Ares then sees a huge flame erupt from the ground...it can be nobody but
Dahak.
POINT: If it takes Hope to be reborn and blood to release Dahak, how does he
get out to talk to Ares?
Gabby and Ser talk over old times, and Ser cannot be convinced she is
brainwashed. Ser says people have to die for the Greater Good and that Hope
will return FROM THE SISTER PEAKS and will be the bearer of The Destroyer to
bring peace under Dahak. Gabby admits that Hope is her daughter and Ser thinks it is great, knowing that the good in Hope is from Gabby.
In the cave is the skeleton of the first priest. Hope has been chowing-down
on it and now is seen as a cocoon, writhing and making chewing noises. Cal
tells the priest that she must know if Hope understands why Cal is helping
her...again. The priest must touch Hope, like Mr. Spock did to the Horta on
the old Star Trek for a direct communication.
He asks if Cal really wants to die as her only reward...Cal says yes...she
wants it all to end...no life, no Tartarus, no memories.
Cal senses that Hope has scary powers, but Hope is only a half-god...Cal is
a full-god.
Xena says that the people in the area are simple and would follow the cult.
If that is so, why are they rounded up and captured to be led to the
slaughter? Xena must deal with Cal first so she can then kill Hope.
There is the mention of the Sister Peaks again meaning "the same general
area". Is it the village of Peaks?
How does Xena know where the cave is unless she got somebody to tell her?
Cal senses her outside and goes to meet her. They fight in the cave, and
Xena cuts off Cal's hand, which grows back at once. Cal knows enough not to
use her powers in the cave, or she will be buried again. Xena leads her
outside and Cal throws a fireball, which bounces off some shields, and poor
Cal is buried again in an outside cave-in...momentarily while Xena goes in
to kill Hope.
NOTE: why don't these gods dematerialize instead of watching the rocks fall on top of them?
Inside, Xena sees Hope and draws her sword. Ares materializes and leaves
with Hope...he has switched sides. Evidently, Dahak made a deal with Ares.
If Ares will serve him and protect Hope, Ares will be spared while his
family, the Olympian Gods, will die. Traitor.
Ser calls Gabby the Mother of the Betrayer, meaning that Gabby poisoned and
killed Hope before. Hope is supposed to be the balance of good and evil with
Gabby and Dahak.
Xena guesses that the Halls of War, Ares' place, is where Ser must go to
meet Ares and Hope. She sets up a scene where Gabby will pretend to let Ser
go so that Ser will lead them to the Hall. Funny after all the years Xena
knew Ares, that she didn't know where it was...only the general area.
In a scene like Night of the Living Dead, the girls see the villagers moving
slowly, zombie-like, chanting "priestess of the blood." Xena punches out a
few of them so that Gabby can take Ser to a hut for safe-keeping. Xena
arrives as the mob breaks down the door, helps Gabby thru the roof, and has
to knock Ser out and jump to the roof with her to escape.
Ser is tied up and Gabby hears that Hope loves Gabby. Xena leaves for a
while like in Forgiven to give Gabby the chance to let Ser go, per the plan.
Ares says he has one card to play...he grabs Gabby and takes her to the
Fates' place where Gabby holds a thread, and knows at once that it is Xena's
life-thread. Ares reminds Gabby she owes him for getting her to Chin, and
she must tell Xena that Xena will die if she kills Hope.
The Fates say the burden is on Gabby now. Why was Gabby left alone for Ares
to kidnap?
In the Hall, we see that Hope's cocoon is on the throne. Ser arrives, and
Xena is right behind her. Cal escapes the rockslide and instantly knows
where everyone is...how? She appears, and Xena is fighting the priests. One
wounds Ser with a sword, and she uses her blood to put on the cocoon,
allowing Hope to get out. Gabby knocks Xena over, stopping her from killing Hope, and Hope is free, looking just like Gabby. Cal laughs and this ends Sacrifice 1.
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Season 3
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