This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, in Alder we trust! Vera, Katie, and Livy are witchbombing in Minisode 42: Motherland: Fort Salem. We discuss the rich worldbuilding of this underseen Freeform gem, its huge cast of complex female and non-binary characters, its unique take on witchcraft tropes, awesome sound design, and unabashed queerness. TLDR we’re all General Alder’s biddies! SKA! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/xenawarriorpodcast  iTunes: http://apple.co/2f0NAIM Spotify:...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, the owls are not what they seem! Vera, Katie, and Livy are rocking out at the Roadhouse for Minisode 41: Twin Peaks. We discuss the original 1990 show, David Lynch’s unjustly maligned follow-up film Fire Walk With Me (which just might be the key to everything), and the remarkable anti-revival revival, the Showtime series Twin Peaks: The Return. Plus: the long shadow of Laura Palmer, the primal images and sound design of David Lynch, visions of BOB in a New...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST: bow down, bitches! Vera, Katie, and Livy are back from camp in Minisode 40: Xenite Retreat 2022! We discuss the long-awaited return of this unique Xena-themed gathering and give a rundown of our many adventures there, including meeting crusader for better queer storytelling Katherine Fugate, attending the West Coast premiere of Xena: Warrior Musical, and best of all, getting to hang out with so many amazing Xenites. Plus: Vera becomes Hades 2, Katie...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, buzz buzz buzz! Vera, Katie, and Livy are talking about one of our favorite new TV shows in Minisode 39: Yellowjackets. We discuss the unique storytelling of Showtime’s blockbuster genre hybrid, the tremendous performances, the vivid evocation of high school in the 90s, the note-perfect needle drops, and how deftly this show avoids falling into the mystery box trap. Plus: our own high school sports careers, Vera finally appreciates Melanie Lynskey and...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, move over necessity, Xena is the new mother of invention! Vera, Katie, and Livy discuss Xena’s many historic accomplishments in Minisode 38: Xena Did It First. We pick our favorite Xena inventions, from TV CPR to centaur cesarean sections to Caesar himself (maybe not her proudest moment). Even Gabs gets in on the action, inventing tap dancing and writing both the Iliad and the Bible. We have these ladies to thank for basically all of world history! Plus: we...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, reunited and it feels so good! Vera, Katie, and Livy are very thankful for Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor in Minisode 37: My Life is Murder (The One With Renee). We’re discussing the big episode, you know the one! It’s a family affair, with Michael Hurst in the director’s seat, Renee’s son joining his mom in front of the camera, and a whole lot of cameos, subtext references, and secret messages just for us! Plus: we’re also talking about Lucy and Renee on...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, it’s the match of the century! Vera, Katie, and Livy enter the ring for Minisode 36: Xena vs. Buffy Deathmatch! Join us as we referee a series of match-ups that will test our fannish loyalties and our hearts! Who will win when Joxer meets Xander? When Callisto meets Faith? When Gabs meets Willow? Waaaaaah, don’t make us choose! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/xenawarriorpodcast  iTunes: http://apple.co/2f0NAIM Spotify:...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, we’ve got recs! Vera, Katie, and Livy are talking fave summer entertainment in Minisode 35: Recs Roundup! It’s been a busy summer and we’ve watched and read many things! Join us as we discuss For All Mankind, Girls5Eva, Gideon the Ninth, Cruel Summer, Evil, Fear Street, and more. Plus: a sneak peek at upcoming minisode topics Black Widow, Motherland: Fort Salem, and of course, My Life is Murder! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/xenawarriorpodcast  ...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, clear eyes, full bra, can’t lose! Vera, Katie, and Livy are off to the Ghost River Triangle for Minisode 34: Wynonna Earp, the little Syfy show that could. We discuss this Weird Western’s indebtedness to Xena and Buffy, its commitment to putting a happy queer relationship onscreen, and the obstacles it overcame with the help of its fervent fandom. Plus: Canadian production values, that time Lucy Lawless was almost cast as Mama Earp, never forget Doc...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, Black Alert! Vera, Katie, and Livy journey into the unknown with Minisode 33: Star Trek: Discovery. We discuss the production troubles that led to successive showrunner changes and reboots, and the fascinatingly divergent iterations of the Star Trek universe that resulted, from Season 1’s explorations of imperialist warmongering and fascism to Season 3’s celebration of diversity and empathy, all of it built around the fascinating main character of Michael...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, it’s a bard’s tale! Vera, Katie, and Livy have their quills out and ready for Minisode 32: Xena Fanfiction. First we discuss our own fanfic histories as both readers and writers, and unpack the vital role fanfiction plays in fandom. Then we dive into Xena fic: its evolution as the show aired; its many genres and subgenres including alt, gen, Uber, Conqueror, and FIN fix-its, and the profound effects fanfic had on the TV show’s production, the lesbian...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, care to join us for a Clandestine Glove Lunch? Vera, Katie, and Livy are pining and yearning in Minisode 31: Coming Out of the Corset, a discussion of Hollywood’s hottest new genre: Lesbian Period Dramas! We take five recent examples: The Handmaiden, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Ammonite, The Favourite, and Carol, and explore their similarities in structure, tone, symbols, and themes, as we wrestle with some burning questions like, why are these women always...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, what’s that sound? It’s Minisode 30: Whoosh.org! Vera, Katie, and Livy talk about the sprawling Xena website central to the fandom when the show was airing, and which continues to be an information hub today for fans both old and new. We discuss our own experiences using Whoosh.org to research our podcasts, and we also share the experiences of Whoosh webmistress Kym Taborn, who has seen everything there is to see in Xena fandom! Plus: the breadth and...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, the world of men do not deserve her! Break out your Lasso of Truth for Minisode 29: Wonder Woman. Vera, Katie, and Livy are talking about both of director Patty Jenkins’s big screen takes: Wonder Woman and Wonder Woman 1984. We discuss the original film’s unique WWI setting, its mythic depiction of Amazons and their secret island of Themyscira, and the character-driven storytelling so rare in a superhero film. Then we move on to WW84, debating whether its...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, she saved the (known) world a lot! This week, Vera, Katie, and Livy return to Sunnydale in Minisode 28: Sorry Buffy, Xena Did It First! We explore the many thematic elements shared by these two series in an attempt to solve the ultimate mystery: was Joss Whedon watching Xena and just how much stuff did he steal from it? Our evidence includes: Faith as Buffy’s dark mirror much like Callisto is Xena’s, Ares and Spike as reformed baddies in leather pants,...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, the data tells the story! Vera, Katie, and Livy are crunching the numbers in Minisode 27: Fins, Femmes, and Fractions. We re-evaluate an episode of Xena we’ve never given many kudos to, based on the rating system devised by two of our generous patrons! Will we appreciate it more if the data supports it? We’ll see! Plus: objectivity and subjectivity, cold nineties lipstick, how does math work?, are we evaluating Xena or are we evaluating ourselves?, Xena...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, ZOMBIIEEE-EEEE-EEE! Vera, Katie, and Livy sink their teeth into Minisode 26: Resident Evil. We discuss the video games that started it all, the surprisingly still good original film, the fantastic early aughts trend of mid-budget female asskicker movies, all the iconic setpieces, lewks, characters, and femslash ships. Then: we talk about some of the horror films and TV we’ve been watching this spooky season! Plus: under my umbrellaaaa, our little hellhound,...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, kill them all! Vera, Katie, and Livy enter the arena with Minisode 25: Spartacus. Don’t judge this Starz show by its bawdy bloody reputation -- it’s a modern TV classic that combines the best of Xena and Buffy. We discuss Spartacus’s grand ambitions, its distinctive visual look, its deeply human characters, and its playful use of language to evoke the past. Also: did we mention Lucy Lawless is there, giving her most indelible performance since Xena? Plus:...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, Happy Xenaversary!!! Vera, Katie, and Livy are celebrating the 25th anniversary of Sins of the Past in Minisode 24: Our 25 Favorite Xena Things! In which we make a very scientific list of all things we love about Xena, including Xena’s murder smile, Gabrielle’s plot-motivated haircut, SPLISH SPLASH, patented soft voice, BOOB TOUCHES, doppelgangers, ABS, the way Xena says ‘Ares,’ flipping it out, and GOONS! Happy 25th!!! The power, the passion, the...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, sorry baby! Vera, Katie, and Livy are dressed to kill in Minisode 23: Killing Eve. We discuss all three seasons of the hit BBC America series, a genre-bending boundary-busting queer feminist comedy thriller, the galaxy-brain ideas of head writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge, stars Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer’s career trajectories, and our fave scenes, lewks, and kills. Plus: the dame-off that never happened, Livy’s least favorite trope, “British hot,” do villains...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, the subtext here is rapidly becoming text! Vera, Katie, and Livy are rounding up all our favorite Xena/Gabrielle moments in Minisode 22: Subsext and Soultext. We discuss the fan terms “subtext” and “maintext,” the differences between these two forms of queer storytelling, and how the show evolved over time until it became the big gay poem of our dreams. Plus: the return of Lil Prawn, fisting a fish, forgiveness threesomes, Callisto slips in a kiss, and how...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, Volcano Maaaaaan! Vera, Katie, and Livy are watching an episode of *record scratch* Hercules?! It’s Minisode 21: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Mount Doom, in which we discuss 5x12 “Sky High” with special guest star Ephiny! We celebrate our favorite centaur-loving lady, her magnificent hair, and her new reed-dart throwing powers. Then Vera has an announcement to make: she has finally watched an Indiana Jones movie that isn’t Kingdom of the Crystal Skull!...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, command us, mistress! Vera, Katie, and Livy journey to the Midlands in Minisode 20: Legend of the Seeker. We deep-dive into RenPix’s mid-aughts return to syndicated fantasy television, discussing our favorite episodes, the Ayn Randian source material, the gorgeous visuals (especially SLO-MO KAHLAN HAIR) and the many Xena actors and directors involved in bringing Seeker to the screen. Plus: you always need a funny wizard, Panis Rahl is a dick, Cara...

This week on XENA: WARRIOR PODCAST, we live to vid! Vera, Katie, and Livy are exploring every aspect of fanvids and vidding in Minisode 19: The Power of Vidding. We journey through the history of vidding from Star Trek slideshows to VCR vidding to the digital revolution to Instagram edits, not to mention our own vidding histories (or in Livy’s case, lack thereof). We discuss how a good vid combines source video and a song to create a brand-new art object with its own argument and narrative....