06/13/98
Two very different Reviews, but Three Excellent Stories.
Thank you to those who've been reviewing stories. It is much appreciated!! :)
So you want Xena stories with a force that yanks you in, keeps you in, and doesn't spit you out until you've read the last word? You want stories with a little action, a little drama, and a lot of heart? You want stories that pit Xena and Gab with everything they've got against the Forces Of Evil that just won't quit?
Then boy-o-boy, have I gotta story for YOU!
Two stories, actually, by two different writers, each one unwilling to wait for the third season finale to be aired, each one convinced that the ultimate ending to the tale of the Big Bad Demon had yet to be written... and each one has made a pretty good stab at it.
Both stories run approximately forty pages, and can be read in one evening. Long enough to provide a meaty characterization and plot, not so long that you need to spend all week racing to find out How It Ends.
The first one, "The Sword And The Serpent," by Marina Frants, begins in Mount Olympus, with Ares trying, in vain, to convince the other gods that Dahok is not to be toyed with. Before he's done, Ares is forced to seek help in the least likely of places, in realms both mortal and immortal. The author has a generous cast in this tale, which includes not only Xena, Gabrielle and Ares, but Hercules, Iolaus, Nemesis, and cameos by a whole bunch of immortals from inside and outside of Olympus.
The second one, "Death Wish," by Larry Dudock, also involves a team-up of mortals and immortals to defeat the Forces of Evil. This tale prominently features the most popular characters from the series, with in-depth examinations of Xena, Gabrielle, Hercules, Iolaus, Ares, and Callisto. The story has a unique twist, in that Xena, Gabrielle, and their newfound allies can defeat Dahok only by staring down their innermost fears and weaknesses. Dudock is also an author who is not afraid to tackle some hard issues, such as whether Gabrielle's 'blood innocence,' portrayed positively in the series, was ever really all it was cracked up to be. The Gabrielle shown here is a woman who has evolved in her beliefs since the beginning of the series: a woman who is well aware that being in the service of Life sometimes requires killing those who would destroy life. This view of Gabrielle, which takes the third season of the show seriously, is an honest and welcome one in this reviewer's eyes. Well worth your time.
Our story begins innocently enough with Gabrielle secretly hankering to experience a leetle bit more of her dark warrior. She plans a brief walkabout on Xena's wild side, perhaps to retrieve some meaningful souvenir from the deeply shadowed caverns that hold the former warlord's sins of the past - which both warrior and bard have designated "Off Limits," "Caution: Danger Ahead," "Proceed at Your Risk" for their own and others' protection. Being Gabby, the redhead plunges ahead. Silly old signs. Oh, and neglects to tell Xena. Who follows her in anyway. They lose sight of each other. They lose themselves. They lose us, and we them. Suddenly we are afraid. Are we lost, too?
Among many things, "Pet" is a haunting, provocative, beautifully written psychological thriller about the mysteries of love. Full of paradoxes, ironies and twists, it turns many of our assumptions inside out and upside down. What should comfort chills to the bone. What hisses and crackles entices. We hope one minute, then dread the next that the way in is also the way out. And all we have to go on is our own sense of things. This is definitely an "adult" story. A torturous, heart palpitating climb/descent with no safety line visible - at least not one appearing strong enough to save. There is much sex, some violence, and a little violence mixed with sex. Heed the warnings posted. If you risk entering and make it through, you may leave remembering in every nerve what being alive and in love can mean.
If you have questions or comments you can e-mail me at: prosper4@ix.netcom.com
Unkind Comments will be wasted.
(c)March 1998