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A Conversation with a Veteran Xenite
27 Plays1 month ago
In today's episode, I talk to Girl4Music (Emma, she/her) who has been a Xenite since it first aired! We had a lot of fun discussing her first thoughts on the show, Xena as queer representation, what it's like to meet Lucy and Renee, psychic skills, failed fanfic ventures, and, most importantly, how you can find all of the answers to life's questions on her Tumblr. (Seriously go check it out @Girl4Music)
If you would like to be a guest on the pod, fill out the form by clicking the link below or you can email me talkxenatomepod@gmail.com and don't be discouraged if I don't get back to you right away! You will not be forgotten!
Socials:
Podcast twitter: @talkxenatomepod
Host twitter/tumblr: @ellisthemighty
Guest tumblr: @Girl4Music
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Transcript
Introduction to Emma and her Xena journey
00:00:18
Speaker
Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of Talk Xena to Me, which is the podcast where I, Talk to my fellow Zenites about our experience with Xena and in the fandom.
00:00:30
Speaker
Today we have another ah special guest. If you would like to introduce yourself. hi I'm Emma. um I'm known as Girl for Music month on social media. I don't really do much social media now, so it's just Tumblr and Discord. But I'm known as Girl for Music on there all the time, capital G, IRL, number four, capital M, U-S-I-C, and then your various sad social medias.
00:00:57
Speaker
I'm ah a Xena Knight. I have been since since its first broadcast in syndication in 1997. So I've been ah have been a fan for a long time. i know a lot about it and Other than that, I like to sing, I play guitar and piano, I um like writing a lot, I do a lot of meta writing on my Tumblr, mostly Xena, but other shows as well.
00:01:25
Speaker
um I currently work as a ward hostess in a hospital in the UK. Oh, wow. That's not very exciting, so I won't go too far into that.
00:01:38
Speaker
Yeah, like, and just doing the thing, doing the fan thing, is what I call it. Yeah. Awesome. Well, hey, you know what, you took out a lot of my intro questions for me.
00:01:53
Speaker
Oh, okay. That's great. um Well, I can go deeper into them if you want. Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. um i So I really want to talk about this sort of watching it as it's being aired.
00:02:09
Speaker
um Because I am a little baby and I was not alive. um So um that's always so crazy to me that this fandom is just so...
00:02:24
Speaker
old and robust um and and so lively.
Discovering Xena and its cultural impact
00:02:30
Speaker
um So I guess how did you in the 90s, how did you get into Xena? How did you find it?
00:02:36
Speaker
Okay, a lot of people ask me this question and they think I'm going to say that I found Xena through Xena, but no, I found it through Evil Dead, through Rob Tappert, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell. And I followed their career going forward as a youngster because my dad was a very big Evil Dead fan.
00:02:55
Speaker
So I watched all the movies with him and then I just followed, um as as I grew older, i fox started following their career and then got to Xena. Well, Hercules first, but then got to Xena and um fell in love, basically. So, ah yeah, a lot of people think it's the other way around, but no, no, through Evil Dead.
00:03:17
Speaker
Yeah. um Wow. Yeah, and like I said, ah the first episode I ever saw was the bittersweet, believe it or not, the musical episode. So you can imagine my young brain. What place jump in Yeah, you can imagine my young brain seeing that. I was like, wow. Wow.
00:03:39
Speaker
I was fascinated just with the fantasy of it and everything and obviously the romantic parts, which I didn't really understand then, but then I kind of like figured it out later on. I was so into that them and their relationship because of that. I just didn't pick it up until later, you know what I mean? Yeah, absolutely.
00:03:58
Speaker
Yeah, um and the first of episode was the bit sweet and it's also my favourite episode of the whole show as well, so there you go. That's that's so fair. that's Yeah.
00:04:10
Speaker
ah it's I mean, talk about a masterpiece. Oh yeah. Absolutely crazy. Yeah, and everybody says it's Buffy, and it's like, nope, Xena did it first. first.
00:04:21
Speaker
Question mark. Ask exclamation point. Yes. Yes, absolutely. I love that. i love how Xena did it first. i I ah stole, i didn't steal, but we, it's I'm a big fan of Xena Warrior podcast and that was their whole thing. yeah, yeah. They started that. thing So I, anytime, this is the second time someone said it on this podcast. So I think it's funny that it just keeps. Oh, it's a well-known mantra and it should be.
00:04:51
Speaker
It should be. People need to
00:04:56
Speaker
Yeah. Absolutely. So, um, Obviously, Xena's an American show and New Zealand, but um was it very popular in the UK?
00:05:09
Speaker
um It's hard to say because it aired on Channel 5. So with syndication, I'm sure you know what syndication is, but I'll just explain it for your for your viewers. Yeah.
00:05:21
Speaker
Listeners, sorry. What syndication is, is where they don't sell it to a network. What they do is they give it to, like, different TV stations, like, throughout different countries, and so they can fill their time slot in whatever gaps they have in, you know, that their ah tv sedate TV station. So it was a very popular syndicated series at the time, but there was a lot of them around. So... um I don't know if UK found it... ah I don't know if it was too popular in the yeah UK, but it definitely was in America and, of course, New Zealand, but also other places like all the eastern countries, like India, Japan, China, which kind of made sense because there are episodes for China and, and um you know, different countries.
Understanding the Xena-Gabrielle relationship
00:06:10
Speaker
yeah So it's hard to say. i would i would them answer that with. Yeah.
00:06:18
Speaker
Yeah. yeah and Yeah, that's fair. i mean, it's not like you have a survey or anything. the I could make one. You could. You could. Oh my god, I started a podcast. I'm going to start doing statistics on the side.
00:06:34
Speaker
Lovely. that's I'll finally i leave my mathematics. ah like i'd have to i'd have to yeah I'd have to shove it off on other people because I have no math skills at all.
00:06:46
Speaker
Yeah. um It's bad. So you said earlier the the stuff out, the Xena-Gabrielle relationship and stuff like that didn't hit you right away.
00:06:59
Speaker
um Do you know when it did? When that clicked you? Well, I was, I grew up Christian, like in a strict Christian household. So, um...
00:07:12
Speaker
I didn't quite see it then. But the thing is, is I did understand it as a love story. I just didn't think of it in in a romantic sense back then. But as I grew older, um so like 10 to 15...
00:07:27
Speaker
I noticed like that the relationship was something that I felt really um inspired by, i should say. And then I just kind of just picked it up from there. Like, oh, it's it's it's a romantic love story. Because then I watched it back, like kept watching it over and over again and kept getting more in insight. Because there is a mantra that I talk about with Zina. I said, you never see anything that's not already within your own consciousness. Which means that um as you grow up and you you ah gain more um knowledge and experience, your mind starts to change your experiences.
00:08:07
Speaker
um You start to understand more and comprehend things that you never did, you know, as as a child or, you know, when you were younger. So it's with TV shows, I feel like they're what they what they need to be for you without you really knowing it.
00:08:22
Speaker
But you'll notice it when you when you grow up. It kind of grows with you, I guess. You you grow with it and it grows with you. So that's what Xena was like for me growing up. So it was like, in it was my everything, basically. um Like I said, I'm a better writer about this kind of stuff, but I'm trying my best. Don't judge. That's okay. Listen, you already you already got the Tumblr promo out of the way. They can they can go read.
00:08:50
Speaker
Yeah, true. And I do have a little punch and death there.
00:08:59
Speaker
um Yeah, it's it's something that just kind of just inspired me and crept up on me as as I grew up. I guess when I started realising that those relationships were, you know, because it was really hard back then. In the 90s, people don't understand, like...
00:09:15
Speaker
Now, that they they don't understand the situation of how you had to basically hide the gay in plain sight or the queer in plain sight. But Xena was basically the first one to do that, is to make it long term. So they were very brave, very brave doing that. And I talk about that a lot of my Tumblr um because I need people to understand like how how much that mattered, you know, and why Xena is a legacy in the LGBTQ community.
00:09:44
Speaker
um Yeah. So yeah, yeah, that's basically it. Yeah. e Yeah, I always find it so incredible how much more um representative Xena feels um in terms of queerness to me than other shows today. Right. Yeah.
00:10:05
Speaker
Yeah. um Just the way they were able to do that with subtext and not, you know, being able to do everything that they you know should have been able to do. but Yeah, not confirmed explicitly in the text, basically, but it it is it is canon. Like, people will say, oh it wasn't canon. Yes, it is. It's just not explicitly stated as a gay relationship. Yeah.
00:10:31
Speaker
And it doesn't need to be. It's a love story. So and you you can interpret that whichever way you want, platonically, romantically, it doesn't
Fan engagement and creative expression
00:10:39
Speaker
matter. It's a love story, first and foremost.
00:10:42
Speaker
Right. So, right yeah. yeah Absolutely. Yeah, that's great. Yeah, it's just crazy. i
00:10:55
Speaker
They did, they just, I don't know. yeah It's hard to explain it, isn't it? I know, it really is, because it's just, yeah. Nominal experience. Yeah, I got into yeah i got into zena um after watching Killing Eve and ah yeah.
00:11:14
Speaker
Yeah. It was, ah yeah. perhaps It was my ah ah my recovery. I'm sure that healed you very much. It did. it it really did. really did. Yeah. Killing Eve was my first, um my first experience being a part of a fandom.
00:11:36
Speaker
The gay fandom or just, just fandom in general? I think fandom in general, because before that I was um ah not really on the internet. I was too young.
00:11:47
Speaker
Right. um So my my fandom was like my best friends in school talking about the same thing. Not really up in a wider sense. um But that was, i guess Killing Eve for me was late high school going into college.
00:12:03
Speaker
um Wow. So I was like 18, 19. Yeah. eighteen nineteen this is so so or probably younger than that when it started but um when i was really involved in it and that was the first time i was you know online talking to people watching it live with other people and um yeah that that ah that show went downhill but you know what you win some you lose some yeah yeah
00:12:34
Speaker
But yeah, I found Xena after that. but um So that was definitely healing. Even though some people would say there's some similarities between um the Killing Eve finale and the Xena finale, but I don't agree with that. but She had way too much agency for it to be like the Killing Eve finale.
00:12:53
Speaker
Yes. yeah That's that one thing I remember about that. I'm not going to go into it, but like right she had agency, which is why it matters. Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Whereas he um Villanelle did not.
00:13:08
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I don't even... I'm going to be so honest. i think I've... The end of Killing Eve, like, I know what happened, obviously, but, like, it's so fuzzy to me now because I, like, almost immediately blocked everything due. It was just terrible writing.
00:13:23
Speaker
That's all I can say. It was just horrible writing. None of it made sense. I remember... yeah I remember being very shocked and very furious but anyway I don't blame you um yeah anyway um that was also my introduction to tumblr and i want to talk about tumblr for a second yeah yeah um love tumblr because
00:13:50
Speaker
very familiar with tumblr um um I felt like I was entering a very kind of um retro land when I joined because I was um it was never anything that um people my age were on um because people they see it as like kind of old old and dated but um well i i loved it immediately I'm a big fan of tumblr I'm not on there as much as I used to be but I do heavily enjoy it
00:14:22
Speaker
um But um I love anything that's a a place for nerds. So, um but um you're, you're, you know, I feel like if people have been on Xena Tumblr.
00:14:39
Speaker
they've probably seen one of your posts somewhere. Most likely. Probably. um And I'm not so interesting because I've, I've seen you multiple times be um kind of like a welcome committee for, for new people on there, which I think is great. That's amazing. Thank you.
00:14:59
Speaker
it' so Yeah. Yeah. i I, I love that. I always, I miss it. I, yeah, no, I love, um I love how welcoming um our fandom is.
00:15:10
Speaker
um Agreed, yeah. Yeah, yeah. um But I guess talk about how how long have you been on Tumblr? Have you always been so, like...
00:15:22
Speaker
Xena focused on your Tumblr? um I would say 2015, maybe. I would have to go into it and have a look when when I first started, but I'm pretty sure 2015, because I did not start over Xena. I started something, um it was to do with my favourite singer, was Demi Lovato.
00:15:42
Speaker
I started Tumblr because of because of that. But, ah yeah, it kind of just became this... um This platform for me to just to write because i love that you can have like more than 25 characters to write to write something compared to like Twitter or Facebook. on You know what I mean? It's like it's completely different. It's for writers. It's for people that like to journal. It's for people that like to um converse and ah have a discourse.
00:16:12
Speaker
online with with people or or just with themselves like like an online journal I see it where I can just write about things that kept that I care about TV shows, philosophy I love philosophy um just you know it for it's for writers I would say it's it's a bit like Medium if you've ever heard of Medium um it's like that yeah that's that's how I use it anyway
00:16:39
Speaker
I don't too much care about gaining followers or likes. I'm sorry to say this, but I really don't. it's that For me, it's just it's because i like hair I like to educate myself on certain things, and I can do that
Experiencing Xena conventions
00:16:52
Speaker
through my writing um because i I possess this, um well, it's known as a psychic skill, but it's it's literally anybody has this intuitive skill. It's called click cognizance. where you're able to know stuff without knowing how or why you know it.
00:17:08
Speaker
So why why it's called a psychic skill, because it lends itself to like clairvoyance, clairaudience. Well, they're called the clairs, but my psychic skill is claircognizance. So, yeah, I know a lot of things and I feel very certain about those things. just because you get your own sense of certainty from a skill like that. And it helps me a lot in my writing. There's something called automatic writing where you don't think about what you're writing, you just write it and it kind of just flows. don't know if you've ever been in that space with writing, but that's what happens to me when I write, which I think is why lot of my writing is coherent and, well, well-written. Yeah.
00:17:54
Speaker
At least that's what Peter told me. Yeah. yeah
00:17:59
Speaker
But that's why. Yeah, yeah. It's a psychic skill. That's cool. I've never heard of that before. That's cool. Clecognizance. Look it up. Google it.
00:18:09
Speaker
Google it, people. Well, actually, no, I have a Xena post on Tumblr that talks about the clairs, so you might want to a look at that. Just a little plug. Forget Google. Go go to the Tumblr.
00:18:21
Speaker
Always just just go to the Tumblr. Just go to the Tumblr. now on, you don't need to Google anything. Just go to Girl for Music. All the answers are there. Oh, yes. All the knowledge.
00:18:32
Speaker
this I know that I know nothing. else Yeah, yeah. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. i need to yeah I need to get back into writing myself. i All of my writing mostly has been... um associated with, like, my school stuff.
00:18:54
Speaker
and um Which is fine, whatever. It's fine. um Hey, whatever matters to you. Whatever you're passionate about, why not? You know? Yeah, it's interesting. I'd like i'd like to... um I was in a class. I was in a writing class in college um where they had us ah make an encyclopedia of ourselves where we had to... um pick multiple words per letter and then write like a little blurb about what that word like reminded us of or meant to us or what have you. That's interesting. It was really interesting. i really found it useful because i um I'm not a um
00:19:41
Speaker
a very narrative writer. um I come from ah ah studying history, so a lot of my writing has been very um ah primary sourcey and argumentative.
00:19:57
Speaker
m Debates and things, yeah. like That was a big change, um just writing. But I enjoyed it. I need to get back into it. yeah zeni I have a Xena fanfic languishing in my Google Docs.
00:20:11
Speaker
See, I wrote Xena fanfiction, I just don't think I'm very good at it. It was a long time ago, mind you. how How long and ago do you think? what what got you into that? just I don't know, i think I was just so into the ship that I just wanted to write about them.
00:20:28
Speaker
but I've never done that for anybody else, any other ship that I like. And I do like other ships, just nowhere near as much as I like Xena and Gabrielle. so Yeah, it's crazy. Yeah, Xena's definitely been a ah a well of creation for me, I guess. Because i've i've um it got to a point where I've been i've been hardcore...
00:20:51
Speaker
Xena hyper fixating for like I guess G four years straight now and um which is the longest I've been on something for me and I don't see that ending anytime soon but um you see that makes so much sense to me because I call Xena visual fan fiction Like I call it, this this is how I i phrase it, that it's visual fan fiction. It's literally there for creatives to just have a field day of 20 or 100. Yeah.
00:21:22
Speaker
it's but it's It's just a breeding ground for fan creation. It really is. It really is. Yeah, so especially i yeah no especially with like the reincarnation stuff. Oh, yeah. that oh yeah Hashtag Stephen L. Sears. Thank you. Yes, yes shout out.
00:21:40
Speaker
Come on the pod. You would, you know. You totally would. i know, I know. i'm I've you know i got to work my way up. I talk a lot about Stephen L. Sears. He's amazing.
00:21:52
Speaker
really My goal, my ultimate dream, I want to get Sharon Delaney on here. Oh, wow. That's my dream. That's a hard one.
00:22:02
Speaker
I know. don't know if she still works for Creation at Entertainment. I don't think she does. I know, but she's on Twitter and she has interacted with a few of us, so I know she's out there.
00:22:15
Speaker
She's the best part of about creation entertainment, to be fair. Or she was the best part. know, i know. gone downhill since then, because I went i went to one of the Xena cons. And honestly, I did enjoy it, I did, especially because I got to talk to Steve and I'll see us for a whole hour, which I have written about. um But...
00:22:37
Speaker
But... yeah um but It was a cash grab I gotta be honest It was It was a total cash grab and Didn't look like many of them wanted even be there To be honest I'm talking about the celebs Like Lucy Renee and them They wanted to be there for the fans You can see that But The experience of it In fact the one I went to When Ted Raimi came up on stage All he did was just complain about the hotel he was in And I was like Really?
00:23:05
Speaker
Yeah Oh yeah He was not happy He was not happy Yeah, and it fast it felt that way for everybody, to be quite honest, when i when I was there. I did enjoy it, don't get me wrong, I you enjoyed it with the Xenonites and i I enjoyed the whole experience and getting Fort Wops and autographs, but yeah, it was a cash grab. So I'll definitely never go to one of them again.
00:23:29
Speaker
This is a bad time to say that I'm going in October. oh you know what? i'm sitting um I'm saying that. You might enjoy it, okay? You might enjoy it. Just don't spend too much, okay?
00:23:42
Speaker
Don't give them too much money. don't worry. i Don't worry. i've I've got my picture with Lucy and Renee locked in. that's Nice. Together. my That's my main... Yes. A duo? Oh, you're so lucky. Yes, I know. i That was the first thing i had to I headed to and I was like, as long as I get this, i can I can live. I can be happy. Yeah, I got them separate. I should have got the duo, but I got them separate.
00:24:12
Speaker
Well, i was I was lucky enough to meet Renee last year. um Such sweetheart. At a convention, and it was fantastic. um And so I was like, I gotta go for the duo this time. I gotta...
00:24:28
Speaker
Okay, so here's the story with Mimi and Renee, because the line was so long, okay? And you have to get that you can get your wording in as quick as possible. And honest to God, I had something really specific to tell her, and all I could say was, kill, kill, kill, kill. And she must have thought I was a crazy person.
00:24:48
Speaker
Because what I was trying to articulate, what I was trying to explain was I like the arc of Gabrielle, you know, understanding ah violence and things like that and what it meant for her to have to kill. But all I could say was the word kill.
00:25:04
Speaker
I could not get the sentence out. And I don't know if she would remember that if she didn't meet me again. Yeah. Oh my goodness. Yeah.
00:25:15
Speaker
and Because Gabrielle's arc to me is that is the best arc in the whole show. Like she's my favourite character, hands down. She has been for ah for a long, long time. Plus my crush, but let's not go there.
00:25:31
Speaker
First TV crush But the arc, the evolution The reason why I'm so fascinated with the TV show Is just the way that arc was written It's incredible like The evolution of Gabrielle The way she understands things And she grows physically, emotionally, spiritually like She has the whole shebang evolution And it's incredible. And like I say, I was trying to articulate that in a very, very short time and it just did not come out.
00:26:03
Speaker
And I don't know whether it was just nerves because I was meeting her or just the fact that I put couldn't say it because I had only had a very little time, a little amount of time. And I was nervous about that, maybe. i don't know. But yeah, that that was my experience meeting Renee.
00:26:21
Speaker
Lucy, on the other hand, Lucy clocked me straight away because I always had questions. I was very, very... um I was very outgoing in the crowd, you know, when on when the we were on stage.
00:26:33
Speaker
So she she, like, noticed me, Lucy. um And then when I went to meet her in the photo op, she recognised me. She was like, it's you, the loud one.
00:26:45
Speaker
was like, I don't think she said that. She said something like that. But, um yeah. And that was a lot, that went a lot better. Yeah.
00:26:55
Speaker
But it was a lot faster. It was even faster than Renee, actually. You didn't you didn't you didn't accidentally threaten Lucy. No, just not at all. No. I just told her that she's incredible and like I i um appreciate the effort and and things like that. I can't remember what I said, to be quite honest.
00:27:17
Speaker
That's fair. That's so fair. But yeah, it was the first and only time I'll ever go to one of those things. But I hope you'll enjoy it. I really do. And I think you will. hope think you will too.
00:27:29
Speaker
I'm sorry to give you that. too that um No, no, no, no, no. No, no, no. You're good. You're all good. I kind of, I knew that already. But um I knew that already. But it's... um going to be in New Jersey and... That might make a difference.
00:27:46
Speaker
It's... Yeah, there's no way, like, where I live that I can make it to California, so I have to, like, take my opportunity while it's closer to... The one I went to was the near the LA airport and I forgot the hotel, I forgot what it was called, but...
00:28:03
Speaker
It was not the... They go to the Marriott mostly, don't they? That's the usual one. And I think this is why Ted Remy was complaining a lot because he didn't like the hotel at all.
00:28:15
Speaker
I can't remember what the hotel's called, but yeah. um It was next to LA Airport and that was the only one I could make because obviously I live in the UK. So anywhere close to the airport would have been ideal for me.
00:28:26
Speaker
So that's the one I chose to go to. um Yeah. I think it's the Marriott that they do go to. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think that's that's where they are now, I'm pretty sure.
00:28:39
Speaker
Yeah. um But, um yeah, in him yeah i was like, while they're in New Jersey, I don't know if they'll do it be in New Jersey again or what the situation will be. so we go Oh, they'll always be there. We got to strike where we can.
00:28:52
Speaker
Yeah. But, yeah, anyway, so, um yeah, I met Renee last year. And this was at, ah she was on a little world tour and, um which was great. um And I got to we sat, she did a Q&A by herself at the con, um which was great. There was like not a lot of people there.
00:29:20
Speaker
Like, maybe 20 of us damn and it was really awesome because pretty much anyone who had a question got to yeah ask it that's that's the good thing about it yeah and yeah and it was great and then um the after that straight after that, they kind of shuffled all of us off to the photos um as a unit.
00:29:49
Speaker
And I was like, okay. I know where that goes. um Yeah. And then, so I got my picture. um um She was wearing, she has this someone gave her a really sick hat that's got an X and a G on it. oh That's yeah really cute. So that's in our in our little picture. And then I got to get my autographs the next day.
00:30:13
Speaker
Um, and so we went up there. My mom went with me. Um, moral support, I reckon. Um, and then... love solidarity. Yes. Yes, yes, yes. She doesn't understand any of it, but she is there.
00:30:31
Speaker
Um, so she, um, we walk up and, um... yeah interesting side note, Kevin Sorbo was also at this convention, which
00:30:47
Speaker
I was like, run, Renee, run. Do not. oh I can't believe you're in the same room right now. no but um it was But anyway, they were they were, rest assured, they were they were on opposite sides of the room.
00:31:03
Speaker
um yes um someone Someone made sure that that occurred. um Anyway, but um we were in line and we get up to the table. Her mom was there. Which was cute.
00:31:15
Speaker
which was cute which was very nice. mum's a manager, so yeah, that's why. yeah, yeah, yeah. um And we came up, we said hi.
00:31:27
Speaker
um I asked her to write down um her path as my path for me, because that's one of my favorite things. Oh, one of my favorite lines. Yeah.
00:31:38
Speaker
And then we were talking, I talked about ah she mentioned that she remembered me and my that I asked a good question in the Q&A, which I was like, oh yeah, thank you. Thank you. Why? Thank you. um And then my mom, bless her.
00:31:55
Speaker
said, well, she's your biggest fan. And I was like, oh, oh, mother. Oh, oh, I felt myself wither away. Like a train out of you.
00:32:10
Speaker
i was like, oh, mom, why? Why, mom We're supposed to play it cool. What are you doing? I'm sure she was gracious about Yes. um Yes, she was very gracious. She was like, oh, that's that's so lovely. and was like, yeah, yeah. um And then I mentioned that I was in a group chat with ah some other Z-Nights and um she you know gave me a message to send back to them talking about how you know to keep supporting each other and all of that, which was really nice.
00:32:53
Speaker
um And then um the the best moment of my life, she was like, should we have a hug? And I was like... That's the one thing couldn't do. oh Why, yes, I think we should.
00:33:05
Speaker
That was the one thing that I couldn't do. Oh, no. no no Nobody could. There could be no contract because of COVID. ah oh Oh.
00:33:16
Speaker
Yeah. Stupid COVID. Take on everyone's phone note on everyone's fun away. Yeah. And hugs. I know. Yeah. I'm just very grateful that she initiated that because I would have never ever in my life. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. such as so So, but then as we were walking away, my mom, um in a ah an act of redemption, I suppose, um went, I got a picture of that hug, by the way. And I was like, you're forgiven.
00:33:53
Speaker
Magic. You're forgiven now. um So now I have a a very... my My most treasured photo of me hugging Renee. you'll have to show me that.
00:34:08
Speaker
I will. I will. Thank you. um Yes. um Yeah, it's... it's Majestic. um I was...
00:34:22
Speaker
insufferable for a very, very, very, very long time. And so you should be. You met your idol. oh well I'm assuming she's your idol. Is she? I don't know. oh ah yes, absolutely.
00:34:35
Speaker
but Absolutely. ugly I'm trying to find... See, Renee's not my idol. She's just my crush, but...
00:34:45
Speaker
listen she she can be both she's she's both yes yes true true true thank lucy's lucy's more of my idol eatten that's fair that's that's fair but i mean lucy's so incredible with all her uh
00:35:01
Speaker
ah you know the stuff with greenpeace and the environmental and the oh yeah um yeah all the things she's done yeah Incredible. I'm trying to send you this picture.
00:35:13
Speaker
ah you don't need send me it now. Send me it later. I know, but I'll forget. Let's keep it on to the conversation. We'll just send it over Tumblr then. We are, we are, we are, we are. Right here.
Creative contributions to the Xena fandom
00:35:25
Speaker
Yes, yes, yes. Oh my god, it's already been half an hour. Yes, anyway. Let's get on. We're cooking. We're cooking with gas. Good. Alright. thought I would just be a blabbering mess. Let's see.
00:35:39
Speaker
Like when I met Renee. no, no, no. doing well. were we're we're doing well um So social medias. What's about Discord? Discord.
00:35:54
Speaker
um so let's talk a little bit about um switching social medias ah was file discord um You said that you're on Discord quite a bit.
00:36:07
Speaker
Yes. um I know nothing about Discord. I know I'm i'm pretty sure I'm Discord.
00:36:15
Speaker
a Discord from that I'm pretty sure I got exposed to from you. Xenowatch, yes. Yes. Yes, see, I'm so familiar with everything that's going on.
00:36:29
Speaker
Don't worry, neither am I. I know nothing about Discord at all. what How do you... Tell us about Xenowatch. What's... So Xena Watch is basically any member, Discord members that get added to the group. It's um where you can watch Xena in real time together.
00:36:49
Speaker
um Somebody um hosts the episode and then ah there's a chat. There's a chat box, comments. And you can just interact there and watch it all together. Just like ah a live feed, live streaming.
00:37:04
Speaker
Yeah, well that's what I use it for I'm sure there's other things that you can use it for But it's it's fun it's for fandom um Fandom watch parties That's great it And I don't just watch Xena on there We watch other stuff as well You have variety Yes, yes You have range Although it does tend to be about the same thing same Thematically so sure Yeah But mostly Xena, since it's called Xena Watch.
00:37:32
Speaker
Right. Right. Yeah. That makes sense. I found that through somebody else, actually, who um is a fandom for Willow. You know the TV show Willow? m Any idea? I'm a little familiar, a little bit.
00:37:46
Speaker
Yeah, well, the yeah um erin Erin Kellyman, the one of the actors from it, um there's a the site for that on Discord. I say a site, a website. um And um I was joined to that, and then I started the Xenowatch group through that. So, yeah, that's how I started on Twitch.
00:38:06
Speaker
It's a fun little website. It's getting a bit restrictive now with the um the censorship stuff, but, I mean, that that's everywhere, I guess.
Navigating social media and fandom spaces
00:38:16
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, unfortunately.
00:38:19
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, Twitter's just... Well, I got out of Dodge as soon as I knew Elon was um getting that one. I just left, because I did not want to be part of that, if he was the... ah the Yeah.
00:38:36
Speaker
Yeah, I fear Twitter is, like, my main... um Xena fandom activity, so i'm I'm kind of, I'm in i'm in too deep. nice I'm in way too deep.
00:38:49
Speaker
um I can understand that. It's alright. It's just, it's so nice. We have such a, such a nice little group on there that it's like, ah, it's worth, I can i can survive this horrible app.
00:39:02
Speaker
That's cool. um yeah near bevi And you know it never worked anyway because they don't even call it by its new name. It's just Twitter. The day I call it X is like the day I've been swapped with another person. That's not me. That's not me.
00:39:23
Speaker
i I don't know who that is. you know Sorry, I cut you off there. What were you about to say? I don't know. Okay. Okay. I wish I did. I wish I knew. Okay.
00:39:35
Speaker
Me too. um I like talking to you.
00:39:42
Speaker
Me too. Good. This is so, see, this is what, this is what I've, I started this podcast for. it was very, actually, I'll go back to actually, yeah, I'll go back to something. I don't think I finished this thought earlier.
00:39:55
Speaker
Um, um I had been in Xena for four years now and I started feeling like I was a little bit of a freeloader. um yeah And I was like, oh I'm just sitting here ah consuming everyone else's content. I need to do something.
00:40:12
Speaker
Be useful. yes I know. I was like, I'm not'm really a ah leech. um So I was like, I gotta do something about this.
00:40:23
Speaker
oh And then... You were a joxer, eh? I was. I was. i was. And so I was like, I need to get involved. Much like joxer. I need to be involved. and um At least try. Or at least try.
00:40:38
Speaker
And that's how I got to my my fanfic attempt. So if I was like, I'm going to find something that I can do. um i Well, i actually started with drawing.
00:40:52
Speaker
And then I drew a few things. And then I looked at my drawings and I said, this is not the direction we need to be going in. Did you try to draw Argo?
00:41:07
Speaker
i Yes, I did. See, I knew that because that's the first thing I tried to draw when I tried to draw something for Xena. I tried to draw the horse and it did not go well. yet Yeah, Argo was the first thing I drew.
00:41:20
Speaker
um I think. That's so funny. Yeah, it's funny. Something about Argo, man. She she she calls to us. Aye.
00:41:32
Speaker
lavago So, um um yeah, RIP. and no um No. um um yeah, I drew Argo, and then I drew Xena and Gabrielle in a very, it was a very ah cartoonish fashion.
00:41:50
Speaker
um They were cute. They were okay. Yeah. but But it was not ah not meant to be. Not not my question. then I moved on to the fanfic.
00:42:02
Speaker
um And I got like through... um it's ah It's a rewriting... or Not a rewriting. I wasn't really changing anything. It was more like a... um
00:42:16
Speaker
Like I was writing an episode that already existed as like a practice run for like getting into... Xena and Gab's minds i which felt necessary um for me to do so I was writing like Ides of March like the like the prison scene and going into the crucifixion and stuff the marriage consummation and Yes, yes. That's what I call it, anyway. um And I... That's that's real.
00:42:49
Speaker
That's real. That's what R.J. Stewart said, so... If you saw the commentary. Yeah. I got through one scene, and then I thought, this is kind of hard.
00:43:03
Speaker
This is of hard. um And i'm still I'm still... I look at it every now and then. I open it, I look at it, I go, hey, there's potential here. And then i close it. and ah um such Me and Francis.
00:43:30
Speaker
So that's where that is. um Nice. And then i very spontaneously... last month was like, I'm going to start a podcast.
00:43:42
Speaker
And look how well it's going. And here's where I am still today. Inspiring. Yes, inspiring. I literally, I i had ah the whole idea for it in the shower and then I came out of the shower and it was like I was reborn. i was like, I know who I am now.
00:44:02
Speaker
What you've just explained there, that is claircognizance. so sorry Sorry to cut you off, but that what you what you said just then, that is what clear cognizance is. Where you're just having a knowing, like an inkling of something. And it comes in the most mundane of times. Like, you're driving a car, you're in the shower, you're asleep.
00:44:23
Speaker
You know, non-active times, it'll come to you like that. That is what that is. Yes. Well... That is the the genesis of this podcast. That's exactly what happened.
00:44:35
Speaker
And then I... The next day I was like, guess what, Mom? I started a podcast last night. and she was like, what? Excuse me? What's that? Hello?
00:44:46
Speaker
You? You did? i was like, yeah. Yeah. Which is very out of character for me because I'm... I'm... um Extremely introverted and... So am I, but...
00:45:00
Speaker
Yeah, I know. What's something you're passionate about? You know? I know. Xena, it changed. It changes you. It so does. It so does. Whole new person. Yes. Reborn.
00:45:13
Speaker
Reborn from the ashes. yes Yes. Literally, from the ashes of Killing Eve, I rose so of blood into into Xena.
Xena's themes and fandom legacy
00:45:24
Speaker
All right. um Me from Evil Dead. Yes, I watched Evil Dead after I watched Xena because I was like, I should work backwards a little bit. I see homer Horror and comedy are just just yeah great together. Especially if it's soundtrack. was never a big... Yeah, I was never a big horror fan.
00:45:46
Speaker
um Horror. Horror? Horror. It's like the American's worst nightmare is that word. um And then... um I was never a big horror fan. And then my best friend um and went to school for screenwriting and that's her her favorite ah movies of all time.
00:46:10
Speaker
So she started dragging me to every horror movie ever. oh And I i adjusted. i learned. I grew. i became someone who is tolerant of horror movies.
00:46:24
Speaker
and um And I was like, I'm going to watch Evil Dead, um which really not not that spooky. So Campbell. Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Bruce Campbell.
00:46:37
Speaker
He's the king of Campbell. Yes. Yes, absolutely. I like that. I see what you did there. Yeah, yeah. That's where the word comes from.
00:46:49
Speaker
His second name. He started it. Is that why Andy Warhol liked all those soup cans? Because they were a kid. Oh.
00:47:03
Speaker
Oh. Oh, gosh. Thank you. Thank you. You get the questions. Oh.
00:47:12
Speaker
we're just just like well I can just compensate and you it's like you know know anyway Army of Darkness Army of Darkness was my favorite the of the evil beds because it's a lot like Xena right yes yeah it all comes back a yeah absolutely alright well we're getting to the end of my list here I know um it's crazy time flies huh Aye. I'm having fun, and I'm definitely having fun.
00:47:43
Speaker
Excellent. That is my only goal. That's a good goal, though. Yes, I know. I was like... Don't let life pass you by. I know. I was like, I want people to have fun, and I want the Knights to um hear each other, I reckon.
00:47:59
Speaker
um So, okay. Let's get... um Okay, yeah, really, I had a, um, okay, this is, yeah.
00:48:11
Speaker
Uh, let's go to, because I feel like this last thing we're gonna, we're gonna really get into, um, so I want to save that, because. Okay. Yeah, um, so I just wanted to ask, how do you view the fandom? Like, when you think of who Z Knights are, what does that make you think of?
00:48:32
Speaker
Best fandom ever. Honestly. Yeah. ah I never have a problem with the Xenonites. I've been in other fandoms where it's never been too good for me because there's there's this whole thing called stunning. And I'm like, nah, it's not not like me at all. But if I ever have any like experiences like that, I just bought out. I just leave. You know, I've never had that issue with Xenonites ever since. And I think it's because it's an older fandom and they know how to conduct themselves. Also because of the greater good, because of Lucy and Renee, the ethos of the show, the ethos of the fandom.
00:49:08
Speaker
um Absolutely. i think I think we're just well cultivated, basically. Yeah. um Yeah, best fandom ever. and And honestly, the most given fandom ever as well.
00:49:20
Speaker
Like, the amount of money they've raised in, you know, different charities and philanthropy. Philanthropy? I can't say that. You know what i mean.
00:49:31
Speaker
and um Philanthropy. Yeah, that's it. Thank you. that Yeah, it's incredible. um They've brave raised a lot of money and I know that's why Lucy and Renee love us so much and still continue to, you know, be there for us, which is incredible. It's been 30 years and they're all still here with us.
00:49:54
Speaker
I always talk about that and I'm like, I can never wrap my head around it, you know? It's been 30 years. yeah We've had a 30th anniversary that was very successful.
00:50:07
Speaker
That never happens with most TV shows, most you know franchises. It's incredible. Yeah. But, so yeah yeah yeah, best fandom ever.
00:50:20
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, that's great. There's some Alzina that just sticks to you. That's it, yeah. Yeah. From child to adult. Well, in my case, anyway.
00:50:33
Speaker
Well, I felt like a child when I watched it for the first time, so. Oh, you should. That's fair. That's fair. Yeah, yeah. I was like 20. That's a kid. I think that's one of the lessons of the Xena. Don't forget your inner child, you know? Right. yes That's definitely part of it. Especially because of the way Xena is.
00:50:52
Speaker
Yes. Has Gabrielle been here in her life? Sort cute, sort romantic Alright, awesome yeah To finish up, I'm going to get you on your favourite topic i So um My last thing was just, what's your favourite part of the show? um Well, i think you know the answer already yeah I know how much you love Gabrielle um And Xena and Gabrielle.
00:51:22
Speaker
And Xena and Gabrielle, of course. of course That's a given. yeah ah so thanks That's a given. Apparently, for for some people, it's not, apparently. No, I know. Allegedly. but But it's so much better when you watch it through that lens, though.
00:51:37
Speaker
Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah, I'll go into it if that's the question. Yeah. Go for it. So, obviously, say i didn't understand it as a romance at first when I when i was young.
00:51:50
Speaker
But as I grew watch it when I was older and saw it as a romance, as a love story... um look Watching Xena through the lens of them being lovers or through the lens of them being best friends falling in love adds a whole new value and like to to the show overall. Everything is makes more sense. It feels more intense. It feels more um inspiring. it it just it There's just more to it when you watch it through that through that rather than the way...
00:52:25
Speaker
um Well, I say the straight narrative, if you see it through the gay narrative or the queer narrative, it just... I don't know. It just becomes this phenomenal experience that that's that is what it's meant to be, you know? Yeah.
00:52:48
Speaker
And I do, I always try to... I always try to really articulate that the power in that, like... For me, what the whole show is about as a theme is redemptive love. And what I mean by that, and i have i have said that Xena is like the Jesus Christ of the show. Like some people try to argue that it's Eli or Eve or, you know, but it's not, it's Xena. Because there are similarities, you know, um with...
00:53:18
Speaker
Jesus's life and Zena's life but in general it's the redemptive love theme that they that the show has with because of the Zena and Gabrielle's relationship but also because Zena's arc is about finding love it's about it's about um how can I to articulate this It's it's getting getting rid of the hard shell inside, the exterior, the external parts of her, and finding that inner beauty within herself because of the love that she has for Gabrielle and vice versa.
00:53:54
Speaker
um So her her arc is about... It's about knowing the power of love. And I think that's really beautiful. Because I do watch it from from her perspective, you know, the way she sees Gabrielle, the way she sees herself, the world.
00:54:13
Speaker
That's how I watch it. um So interesting. Yeah. So for me... Yeah. For me, it's Xena and Gabrielle. Gabrielle, as a character, her evolution, but the theme of redemptive love is the other side to it, I think, really hits for me. Yeah.
00:54:38
Speaker
Yeah.
00:54:42
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I hope I said that lot well, because, yeah. No, that's that's great. Yeah, that's great. It's very interesting that you said you watched that. What do you think? Like, what what is it for you?
00:54:57
Speaker
My favourite part or my... Yeah, yeah. The same question that you've asked me. Because I'd just like to know. think... um i think
00:55:11
Speaker
I think it's similar. i think it's similar. um I am... I don't know. I'm a big angst person. I tend to gravitate towards um things like the Rift. and No, I was going to say. You love the Rift.
00:55:29
Speaker
i I enjoy the Rift. I enjoy... um i enjoy conflict in my... um You know, they're soulmates, but there's got to be some yeah some spice in there.
00:55:46
Speaker
But good conflict resolution as well. Otherwise it won't work. Yes, yes, yes. Well, the bittersweet, I mean. Yeah, yeah. Well, that's basically it, isn't it? Yes, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then follow that up with one against an army. Oh, yeah.
00:56:02
Speaker
Yeah, that that was such a genius move. One-two punch right there. Mm-hmm. Yeah, absolutely. But I also love, um I've been really hooked recently on um season four and Xena's fear of the crucifixion vision and what being around her means for Gabrielle.
00:56:25
Speaker
Yeah. um It's just all of the times where she's trying to push Gabrielle away or leave her with other people or... you know, get her, get a layer of separation between them.
00:56:37
Speaker
Um, that ultimately, you know, doesn't work. But, um... Of course it wouldn't. Of course wouldn't. Yeah. Sorry, Xena. Uh, you're literally soulmates. Um, yeah.
00:56:52
Speaker
But, um, yeah, just the idea, I've been really fascinated by the idea of, um, Xena and Gabrielle being soulmates in Xena maybe not considering that to be a good thing all the time has been really they do take that very seriously weighing on my mind recently yeah but um yeah season 4 in general is my favorite season um that's surprising so I enjoy is it? yeah because you say you're like angst I thought you would have said season 3 because mine is season 3
00:57:32
Speaker
Yeah, I think i you would think that. i They're very close. There's a lot of people that say season six as well, but I think that's just because they like the main text of it, because it is main text in season six. Right, yeah.
00:57:43
Speaker
Season six has a lot of good, um big, like, big concept um episodes that are very, like, um they stand out very strongly. I think that's why, too, because you've got, you know...
00:58:00
Speaker
But the order of it could have been better, which is why I watched the Spaghetti Order rather than the original order. Shout out Spaghetti Order. Yeah, find that on Tumblr.
00:58:13
Speaker
or just Or you can probably Google that one. You can Google that one. well We do Xena watches with that one. Yeah. well The Spaghetti Order. Season 6 Spaghetti Order I love them I've never actually Yeah, that's really great So the Spaghetti Order It's different It ends on Gabrielle's arc Rather than Xena's arc So it gives more Nuance and development To Gabrielle's arc in season 6 Right More depth For her
00:58:47
Speaker
So I like it. I like watching the order of the the season that way most. Yeah. Plus, A Friend in Need is not the last one, the last episode. So that helps.
00:59:00
Speaker
i didn Listen, I feel like i'm I'm kind of, I don't know. I know a lot of people don't like Friend in Need. i I don't have any beef with it. I'm okay with Oh, I i like Brendan Neat. I do.
00:59:16
Speaker
I like the director's cut of A Friend in Need, should I say. Yes. Yes, yes. When it plays like movie. The director's cut is very important. It's the way to go, trust me. If you're going to watch it at any point, watch the director's cut. Yeah, and if you've seen Friend of Need and you have problems with it, go back and watch the director's cut. And then read my character study thesis.
00:59:41
Speaker
Just because it re-damps the whole season, well, the whole show, really. Yeah, yeah. it Yeah, once again, if you after you watch Xena...
00:59:52
Speaker
Just go go to Girl4Music Tumblr and you're you're good. You're golden. You got it. That's all you need. We're going to make a resource list for the Newsy Night. It's just going to be your Tumblr.
01:00:08
Speaker
The new wiki. The new Xena wiki. is all you need to know. i' like, I'm taking over from Woosh. Right here. Which is basically Xena's wiki, isn't it? Woosh.
01:00:21
Speaker
It is. It is. Gosh, what a gem of a website that is. I know, right? God, it's still going. It's so special. It's so unique. Amazing. my goodness Like I say, the Xena fandom has has brought out amazing creatives that were even a part of the show.
01:00:37
Speaker
Like, part of the cast and crew. Absolutely. Like Melissa Good, Myrwolf. Yes. Catherine Fugier. Which, if you don't know, wrote When Fates Glide. You should know that. One of my favourite, if not my favourite episode, Loki. You should had more episodes, man.
01:00:58
Speaker
I know. Yeah. So it's not it's not just the creators, the original creators. The fandom are the creators of it too. Yeah, absolutely. In a very literal way.
01:01:12
Speaker
Yeah, yeah i'm reading I'm reading Missy Good's fanfic currently. for Oh, you're watching Journey of Soulmates. Oh my god. I started with Dar and Carrie.
01:01:28
Speaker
Which was, yeah, was an interesting choice. But I wanted to, like, build up. i wanted to, like... Yeah, well, when you get to Journey of Soulmates...
01:01:38
Speaker
Get to that one, trust me. Yes. Yes, I know. I read, like, the first few. And then i I was like, I'm goingnna i'm gonna...
01:01:51
Speaker
ah keep keep something for me to look forward to away in the future. But I'm almost done. I'm almost on my darn carry in that I'm heading straight there. So, um yeah. um Okay.
01:02:06
Speaker
Well, we've been here an hour. um I believe I've gotten through my stuff. um Is there anything else that you want to talk about?
01:02:22
Speaker
um I don't think it's anything in particular, but I would like to say how grateful I am for the opportunity to talk about Xena with other Xena nights. um It's ah honestly a dream come true because I don't usually... When when I talk about Xena, like I say, I don't actually talk. I just write. So for me, and it's a whole different um area of of, you know...
01:02:47
Speaker
um being in interacting with xenonites and the fandom and uh the show and how passionate i am of it so i'm very very grateful for that thank you very much thank you for coming on here that was that was one of my my worries when started my podcast i was like what if no one wants to do it and then it's just me and my podcast is oh i jumped at the chance um but it's not but that's not the case um So thank you for being on here. And hey, you know what? You ever want to come on here again?
01:03:17
Speaker
Let me know. We'll do another. I'll definitely keep the app. We'll do another. We'll all make new questions. will will We'll do it again. So just just you just let me know.
01:03:28
Speaker
and yeah for um Yeah, that'd be awesome. and Send me those photos. I sent you the photo. I sent you the photo. Okay, okay. Yes, youma yes, it yes. You should have it. You should have it.
01:03:41
Speaker
It's my app prized, my prized possession. Um, um, um, all right. One, one last thing. I'm, I've, I've decided that this is going to be my last question for everyone. Cause, um, I don't know. I think it's cute.
01:03:57
Speaker
Okay. I think it's fun. Is there anything you want to say to your fellow Zenites out there listening?
01:04:07
Speaker
i'm Putting you on the spot. What? Xenonites? New Xenonites? Or just everybody? Anyone. Anyone. Our people. What would you like to say to the people? ah think you're all incredible and just keep going. Battle on.
01:04:22
Speaker
Excellent. Excellent. Battle on. Battle on. All right. Well, this has been our second guest episode. This is so exciting. There will hopefully be many more to come.
01:04:38
Speaker
Um, thank you everyone for listening to this episode. If you're still here, hopefully you are. And, um, uh, again, you can follow, um, the podcast on Twitter at, uh, TalksinaToMePod.
01:04:53
Speaker
Um, And you can also follow me if you want. My info is at Ellis the Mighty ah everywhere.
01:05:06
Speaker
By everywhere, I mean Twitter and Tumblr, not anywhere else. Don't follow me anywhere else. um and and And if you want to be on the podcast, ah oh, oh, also, hey, once this ends, you're going to go on to Tumblr and you're going to go find Girl for Music.
01:05:26
Speaker
and And you're going to have a grand old time over there. That's what you're going to do, listener. um And if any of you out there want to be on the pod, spread the word, tell your friends.
01:05:38
Speaker
We're open for business. The link to the form to sign up will be in the description of this episode. And it's also on the Twitter.
01:05:50
Speaker
Pinned. So... All right. Thank you so much for being on. It's been a great, I've had a great time. Thank you very much. i really appreciate it. Bye now. Awesome.