Xena: Warrior Princess in popular culture

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Xena: Warrior Princess has been referred to as a pop cultural phenomenon and feminist icon.[1][2][3] The television series, which employed pop culture references as a frequent humorous device, has itself become a frequent pop culture reference in video games, comics and television shows, and has been frequently parodied and spoofed.

Xena shown in the series The Simpsons.
Xena shown in the series The Simpsons.

Xena: Warrior Princess has been credited by many, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon, with blazing the trail for a new generation of female action heroes such as Buffy, Max of Dark Angel, Sydney Bristow of Alias, and the Bride in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.[4]

Xena and Gabrielle's relationship (see Influence on the lesbian community) has been cited as one of the reasons why the series has been so popular, coupled with the denials of her character's lesbianism from Lawless while the series was running.[5] United States of America (U.S.) Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been nicknamed "Warrior Princess" by her staff.[6]

Contents

[edit] Xena: Warrior Princess in contemporary culture

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been nicknamed "Warrior Princess" by her staff.[7]

[edit] Astronomy

In 2005, the team that discovered the dwarf planet 2003 UB313 nicknamed it "Xena" in honor of the TV character. On October 1, 2005, the team announced that 2003 UB313 had a moon, which they had nicknamed "Gabrielle". The objects were officially named Eris and Dysnomia by the International Astronomical Union on September 13, 2006. Although the official names have legitimate roots in Greek mythology, Dysnomia is also Greek for "lawlessness", perpetuating the link with Lucy Lawless.

[edit] Costume donation

In 2006, Lucy Lawless donated her personal Xena costume to the Museum of American History.[8] In an interview the same year with Smithsonian magazine, she was asked the question "Was the Warrior Princess outfit comfortable?" and she responded:

Not at first, because they would put boning in the corset. It would cover up those little floating ribs that are so important for breathing, so I'd feel like I was having panic attacks. But it just became a second skin after a while. It was very functional, once I got over the modesty factor. I admit to being a little bit embarrassed the first couple weeks because I'd never worn anything so short.

—Lucy Lawless,  Smithsonian, November 2006, page 44


[edit] Fandom and Unnoficial Sequences

[edit] FanFics

The popularity of Xena has led to websites, online discussion forums, works of Xena fan fiction and several unofficial fan-made productions[4]. Followers of Xena (Fandom) has written numerous fanfictions on the series. To get an idea, in January 1998, there were a total of 1.598 Fanfics going through the network[9]. The fans have popularized the term to refer to Fan Fiction altfic about loving relationships between women[10]. Many believe that slash term refers only to relationships between men and not truly describe the Fan Fiction romantic about Xena and Gabrielle, that they prefer the term altfic. In honor of the character of Gabrielle, fanfictions writers on the series were dubbed bards.[11]

A special type of Fan Fiction on the series are Uber, or Uberfic, a term coined in 1997 by Kym Taborn, the website Whoosh.org fan. The Uberfic Eve are stories in which Xena, Gabrielle, and other characters appear in different cultures and eras, from prehistory to the distant future, through reincarnation or supernatural means. Stories like these began drawing on the episode set in Macedonia, The Xena Scrolls, starring descendants of Xena, Gabrielle and Joxe living in 40 years[12]. In subsequent episodes of the series also appeared in various incarnations Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer in India[13] and the United States[14].

Once the series, several seasons virtual were created by fans and released on the Internet, continuing the plot from the end of the series. These include Virtual Seasons subtext of Eve. In addition, the fanfic has inspired artwork published in several websites fans, whether paintings or drawings and designs by computer.



[edit] Influence on the lesbian community

Xena kissing Gabrielle.
Xena kissing Gabrielle.

Xena has enjoyed a particular cult status in the lesbian community. Some of the lesbian fan base sees Xena and Gabrielle as a couple and has embraced them as role models and lesbian icons.[15] A group called The Marching Xenas has participated in many gay and lesbian pride parades.[16]

A subject of much interest and debate among viewers is the question of whether Xena and Gabrielle are lovers.[17][18] The issue is left deliberately ambiguous by the show's writers. Jokes, innuendo, and other subtle evidence of a romantic relationship between Xena and Gabrielle is referred to as "lesbian subtext" or simply "subtext" by fans.[17] The issue of the true nature of the Xena/Gabrielle relationship caused intense shipping debates in the fandom, which turned especially impassioned due to spillover from real-life debates about same-sex sexuality and gay rights.[19]

Some fans felt that the sexual nature of Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was cemented by an interview given by Lucy Lawless to Lesbian News magazine in 2003. Lawless stated that after the series finale, where Gabrielle revives Xena with a mouth-to-mouth water transfer filmed to look like a full kiss, she had come to believe that Xena and Gabrielle's relationship was "definitely gay... there was always a 'well, she might be or she might not be' but when there was that drip of water passing between their lips in the very final scene, that cemented it for me. Now it wasn't just that Xena was bisexual and kinda liked her gal pal and they kind of fooled around sometimes, it was 'Nope, they're married, man'."[20] However, in the interviews and commentaries on the DVD sets released in 2003-2005, the actors, writers and producers continued to stress the ambiguity of the relationship, and Ares was also considered at least as a potential love interest for Xena.[18]

The Xena fandom also popularized the term Altfic (from "alternative fiction") to refer to same-sex romantic fan fiction.[21] Many fans felt the term slash fiction carried the connotation of being about male/male couples only and was not a good description for romantic fan fiction about Xena and Gabrielle.

[edit] Uberfic

See also: Uberfic

Uberfic is a kind of alternative universe fan fiction in which characters or events are portrayed somewhat closely to original canon but usually in a different time period, many times featuring the ancestors, descendants or reincarnations of canon characters. The term originated in Xena: Warrior Princess fandom. This sort of story was used by the series itself, beginning with the second season episode "The Xena Scrolls".[22]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Blackwell Synergy - J Popular Culture, Volume 32 Issue 2 Page 79-86, Fall 1998. www.blackwell-synergy.com. Retrieved on 2008-03-01.
  2. ^ Atara Stein, "XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS, THE LESBIAN GAZE, AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF A FEMINIST HEROINE " (1998).
  3. ^ Janet K. Boles, Diane Long Hoeveler (2004). Historical Dictionary of Feminism. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0810849461. 
  4. ^ a b What we owe Xena. Cathy Young. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  5. ^ Whatever Turns You On: Becoming-Lesbian and the Production of Desire in the Xenaverse
  6. ^ 'Warrior Princess' to the White House?. BBC News. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  7. ^ 'Warrior Princess' to the White House?. BBC News. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  8. ^ Smithsonian magazine. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution. Page 44: "Lucy Lawless, star of Xena: Warrior Princess, which aired from 1995-2001, has given her signature costume to the Museum of American History."
  9. ^ Xena Fanfics. Eidel. Retrieved on 2008-03-18.
  10. ^ Xena Fanfics out of the closet. Lo. Retrieved on 2008-01-13.
  11. ^ Bards
  12. ^ "The Xena Scrolls". Xena: Warrior Princess. 1997-01-13.
  13. ^ "Between the Lines". Xena: Warrior Princess. 1999-02-15.
  14. ^ "Deja vu all Over Again". Xena: Warrior Princess. 1999-05-17.
  15. ^ Xena and Gabrielle: Lesbian Icons. AfterEllen.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  16. ^ Top Ten TV - Sex Bombs. warriorprincess.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  17. ^ a b Leonard, Andrew (1997-07-03). Who Owns Xena?. Salon Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-02.
  18. ^ a b Young, Cathy (2005-09-15). What we owe Xena. Salon.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-02.
  19. ^ Young, Cathy (2005-09-15). What we owe Xena. Salon.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-02.
  20. ^ Lucy Lawless. Lesbian News. Retrieved on 2006-10-31.
  21. ^ Lo, Malinda. (4 January 2006) Fan Fiction Comes Out of the Closet AfterEllen.com. Accessed 19 July 2007.
  22. ^ Definitions (2006-02-26). Retrieved on 2007-02-04.

[edit] See also

There are several other examples of female warriors in popular culture:

[edit] External links

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