January 2021 Archives

Looking back at the Hercules television series starring Kevin Sorbo, and its spin-off Xena: Warrior Princess, it is difficult to pin down just when the shows were set. This is due to the Xenaverse (as the show's setting is commonly known) drawing off a number of historical and mythological sources.

The mythos of ancient times continues to live on in a variety of new forms. Series like American Gods mix the deities of dozens of cultures to tell new stories in a modern setting. Video games like the God of War franchise do the same thing, allowing players to interact with the monsters and gods of old. Yet despite the variety of new tales that have been told over the past 25 years, Hercules and Xena have retained their following.

Because of that legacy, many still wonder how the two series managed to build their shared universe and just when exactly it was meant to take place. It doesn't help matters that the show was intentionally anachronistic in its costuming, with Hercules sporting a sleeveless shirt and trousers rather than a Grecian tunic and the love goddess Aphrodite favoring modern lingerie whenever she appeared. Here's a breakdown of how the Xenaverse came into being and just when the events of the shows were meant to take place.

Xena: Warrior Princess' Timeline Established A Historical Setting

Screenrant
The Xenaverse presented a fully developed world mixing historical events and mythology, but when did the adventures of Hercules & Xena take place?

Premiering in the fall of 1995 alongside Hercules: The Legendary Journeys Season 2, Xena: Warrior Princess quickly eclipsed the show that inspired it. The new series centered on Xena as she traveled the world with aspiring bard Gabrielle, seeking redemption for her evil past. In expanding its setting and establishing Xena's history before encountering Hercules, Xena: Warrior Princess became equal parts historical epic and fantasy. This increased scope was part of the reason for Xena's longevity and part of why it remains a cult classic to this day.

Xena was established as having a long rivalry with Julius Caesar (played by a young Karl Urban) and Caesar was one of the series' main antagonists until his death in the Season 4 finale, "The Ides of March." This established a rough chronology for when both series took place, with Caesar having been assassinated in 44 BC. It should be noted, however, that neither show was ever concerned with historical accuracy, even after they began utilizing notable historical figures. For instance, one episode of Xena: Warrior Princess Season 6 pitted Xena and Gabrielle against a divinely empowered Caligula, who was depicted as the Emperor of Rome some 25 years after Julius Caesar's death. In our reality, Caligula did not become Emperor until 37 AD. The show also made references to the Lao Dynasty and Ming Dynasty of China, which would not come to exist until many centuries after the fall of Rome.

How Xena: Warrior Princess Expanded The Mythology

Beyond utilizing real-world historical figures, Xena: Warrior Princess also began to utilize mythology from outside the era of Classical Greece. Hercules: The Legendary Journeys followed suit, with both series going on to tackle Norse mythology, bringing characters like Odin and Thor into play. In the episode "Norse by Norsewest," Hercules took the place of the god Höðr in being manipulated by Loki into accidentally killing Balder with a dart made of mistletoe and setting up the start of Ragnarok. Xena: Warrior Princess reworked Xena into the Ring Cycle, making Xena into both a contemporary of the valkyrie Brunhilda and the Dane hero Beowulf. Xena was also revealed to have had traveled to Asia and received training as a samurai, albeit in armor that was not historically accurate and protected very little.

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Renee has updated her site to include the following news on her official site

January 24, 2021

Hello Friends, I will be pushing back the Shakespeare monologue class, and the Sanford Meisner Technique class, for at least six months, as I focus on producing and editing. I am producing a podcast about the Austin culture scene, specifically around the time frame of the late 1960’s, with Eddie Wilson and Jason Mellard as the co-hosts, also featuring very special guests intrinsic in the folklore. To say I am fortunate to be a ‘fly on the wall’ during these intelligent retrospectives into what ‘made’ Austin weird, gives it little justice. I will keep you all updated on the progress as we continue. -Renee

The following is from Renee via her Official Facebook Page

This was the painting I started to ease my distress on election day, looking to stay hopeful for a CHANGE, with a determined vision for a United States, and good will towards ALL. I know it is possible, because there is an eternal quality of light in each of us, no matter how destructive our actions yield on each other.

BE AWARE that our individual actions (or inaction) can either feed the beast (metaphorically speaking) or it can look to change, within our own hearts. It is the most challenging 'work' anyone can ever really do.
I am keeping my head looking up, and ahead, for insightful and inspired leadership!

Reposted with Renee's permission from her Official Facebook Page

The following is from Renee via her Official Facebook Page

I hope each of you are doing your best to stay (masked) and healthy while we look to support our frontline workers trying to save lives, of our dear families and friends. It is still unbelievable to me that we have lost so many lives. I hope you take what you need from this painting I made during 2020, working hard to rise above my own, very colorful feelings about the state of our world. I wish you a 'Happy New Year' with a grateful heart.

Reposted with Renee's permission from her Official Facebook Page

Major TV debuts from the year you were born
As the landscape of TV continues to shift, it’s always a good time to pause and look at the medium’s history. Although the latest buzzy Netflix show dominating everyday conversations is normal, television is one of the youngest art forms around. The first American TV station began broadcasting in 1928, but television didn’t really start growing into the influential, widespread phenomenon that it is now until the 1950s.

Stacker conducted manual research to compile a list of notable television debuts from the past 70 years, listing one show for each year and using a variety of unique sources. When selecting TV shows to add, Stacker looked for series that were not just popular when they were airing, but remain influential and iconic in pop culture to this day.

1995: Xena: Warrior Princess
Originally greenlit as a spinoff of the TV series “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys,” this fantasy series follows Xena, played by Lucy Lawless, a powerful warrior who seeks to resolve her past wrongs by helping those in need. “Xena: Warrior Princess” gained a particularly strong cult following, with TV Guide naming it one of the top cult shows ever made.

See full list here

Paul Robert Coyle has a new book called WORDS, STARSHIPS AND SUPERHEROES: From Star Trek to Xena to Hercules, A TV Writer’s Life Scripting the Stories of Heroes by Paul Robert Coyle

Purchase from (kindle / print)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08M953MG2

or direct from the publisher
https://jbmj-book-store.myshopify.com/products/swords-starships-and-superheros

Besides writing for hit TV series such as Crazy Like a Fox and Jake and the Fatman, Paul was a writer for Xena: Warrior Princess, a writer/producer for Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, and a writer for three Trek series ? Star Trek: The Animated Series; Star Trek: Voyager; and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Paul also wrote for other genre series such as Superboy, The Dead Zone, and Space Precinct. And now, with this book, Paul takes the reader behind the scenes of these popular shows and many others.

Excerpts

My first pitch meeting at XENA

The Xena offices were in a bungalow-like building in Studio City, a mile or so off the Universal lot. (Today a row of condos occupies the block.) At my meeting, all the big guns turned out. The Xena writing staff consisted of three people. There was R.J. Stewart, showrunner … Steven L. Sears, Supervising Producer … and Chris Manheim, Story Editor. (I recognized Chris’s name from Murder, She Wrote and other credits. I’d naively assumed it was a guy. She isn’t.) Also there, crammed into R.J.’s office for my pitch, were Executive Producer Rob Tapert, and Liz Friedman, Producer. Oh, and Alex Kurtzman, whose title was something like Creative Associate.

It was overwhelming. I expected to be meeting with R.J., maybe one other staffer. Everyone who had anything to do with the show creatively was there! Were they expecting Aaron Sorkin? Did they gangbang every freelance pitch? Well, I figured if they hated my stories and I wasted everyone’s time, at least they could have a production meeting after I’d gone. Or a séance.

Actually, nobody was the least bit intimidating. They were all friendly, in fact. I’ll spare the details of the stories I pitched, because I mostly don’t remember them. I blacked out and went into auto-drive mode. And after all that research into Greek mythology, the one they liked was – “How about a version of Agatha Christie? Xena’s swept up in a deathmatch among warlords. They’re trapped in some Gothic castle, killing themselves off one by one.”

A wave of enthusiasm seemed to sweep the room. (Which beats a wave of nausea any day.)
And just like that, I was a Xena writer.

On writing Xena

I had an idea for a scene. “Why does Callisto go along with Xena’s proposal? I know, it’s so she can get her hands on the ambrosia. But that’s just the MacGuffin. It’s just plot. Why does she really do it? I mean, emotionally?”

I already had the idea. This was in line with one of my personal rules: Don’t criticize something – a plot point, a line of dialogue – in your script, or especially in someone else’s – unless you have a “fix.” (That’s the best tip I always pass along to writing students.) I pitched mine …

“What if Callisto says, I’ll help you on one condition. There’s something I want you to do first, Xena.”

Her plan is to put Xena through an emotional hell. Xena’s backstory was that she was a badass warrior; her army wiped out Callisto’s village of Cirra. Young Callisto saw her parents slaughtered in front of her eyes. Xena’s thing now is to atone for her past, but she’s never made a public mea culpa. “That’s what Callisto demands of her now,” I said. “Stop in a public square, and make a confession. For the world to hear.”

A simple scene. It wouldn’t take long, and it wouldn’t detract from the mission to lure Velasca to a box canyon, where Xena planned a trap. But this set off a shitload of objections from Liz Friedman. Liz was a fierce protector of Xena’s character, of her mantle as The Hero. There were unwritten rules I wasn’t aware of.

Xena can’t be tricked.

Xena can’t be made to do something she doesn’t want to do.

If Xena makes this speech, it has to happen in such a way that Callisto gains no satisfaction from it.

And on and on and on. Liz was stubborn, she was passionate. And she was right. I put the scene in, and somehow made it work for her.

On meeting Lucy Lawless

One day at the Renaissance office, I met Lucy Lawless for the first time. This was months after her injury; she’d resumed filming, and was back on a break. What a surprise, finding Lucy – at that point one of the most famous faces in the world – just hanging out. Of course, she was there because she was dating Rob. She seemed a little tired that day, and I think she was comfortable being in the Renaissance offices because nobody made a fuss over her. We were introduced, but it wasn’t until subsequent meetings, including on the Xena set in New Zealand, that I got to have a few longer chats with her. Lucy was always charming and approachable, a “real person.” Luckily, even though I was on staff at Hercules, I wasn’t done writing for Lucy. I handled all her crossover guest shots on Hercules, and later wrote several more Xenas.

On dealing with fans

After the Xena season finale aired in May 1998, I spent that summer hiding from the fan community. I was sitting on a big secret – that Renee/Gabrielle would be back, after all. I skipped speaking at conventions. I could’ve stuck with, “My lips are sealed,” but I was afraid of spilling something inadvertently. Better to avoid the spotlight.

There has been controversy in the fan community for years over the death of Callisto. That is, in Xena’s killing of Callisto. The setup was, Callisto wants to die. More specifically, she wants oblivion. She makes a deal with Xena – in return for her help defeating Dahak and Ares, she wants Xena to use the Hind’s-blood dagger – the only thing that can kill a god (remember, Callisto achieved godhood when she ate ambrosia) – to kill Callisto. Xena agrees.

Then, when Callisto witnesses Gabrielle’s unexpected plunge into the lava pit, she (Callisto) is overjoyed. She decides she wants her life back after all. “It finally makes life worth living again! And I have YOU TO THANK, XENA!!”

Xena thrusts the knife into her heart, with a simple “No more living for you.”

Of all the questions from fans I’ve ever gotten, this may be the biggest. “Callisto said that to trick Xena, right? To trick her into using the Hind’s-blood dagger to kill her?” It’s often a statement, not a question. Hudson Leick, Callisto herself, subscribes to this theory, saying as much on her commentary track to “Sacrifice 2” on the Anchor Bay Season III DVD release. “But I understand if I had to pretend,” Hudson says on the audio track, “so I can get Xena to actually obliterate me.” (As the actress playing Callisto, she understandably needed to see Callisto as the prime mover in the scene.)

Once and for all, everybody, the author’s answer is: No, Xena wasn’t “tricked.” Callisto didn’t manipulate her. (Sorry, Hudson.) In that moment, Callisto really did want to go on living. But Xena gave Callisto the thing she’d promised her in the first place: death.

No need to overthink it. Sometimes a thing is just a thing.