Sexism in Xena: was there any?
Posted by livi01@reddit | xena | View on Reddit | 8 comments
The tv-series were set back in ancient times when women didn't have that many rights compared to men. I'm wondering if there were any sexist moments you've noticed in the series.
The only thing that comes to my mind is when Zeus and Ares are talking about Hera in "God Fearing Child" and Ares says "She's a woman! Whatever you're thinking, you're probably right." But I'm not even sure if it's sexist. What do you think?
General_Eisenfaust@reddit
Ares letting out some misogynist rants in God Fearing Child is definitely sexist af! He's telling his father to control his wife and it's not even shocking because he's doing sexist/misogynist things throughout the show but always gets off the hook with it. He's using women to his advantage and making fun of lesbian parents. Gaslighting women or setting them up against each other. Telling cetain women they're not worthy to have his child etc etc.
Another huge sexist af episode was The Dirty Half Dozen. Darnell was a piece of s*it and this forced lovestory was horribly sexist.
Joxer was sexist sometimes. He would lie to women whenever he could to have sex with them. Even towards women he was paying for it. Also in his ignorance of Xena and Gabrielle's relationship and his homophobia you can see some pretty antique views on sex and gender.
The display of female bodies can be seen as sexist, especially the amount of pushed up cleavages even when they're bathing (not complaining, just observing 😅)
In the commentary for The Furies Liz Friedman says that the dancing scene in the beginning was probably RJ justifying his trips to the strip clubs paid by the production. She's joking but you can sense some realness in these words. So also in the writing rooms you had probably sexism being present now and then.
In the end, there are barely any shows free of sexism, especially not in that time. It had way more anti-sexist moments than sexist moments and a list of all the empowered moments for women would be a loooot longer.
Paid-Not-Payed-Bot@reddit
FTFY.
Although payed exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. The deck is yet to be payed.
Payed out when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. The rope is payed out! You can pull now.
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
Beep, boop, I'm a bot
General_Eisenfaust@reddit
Haha, thanks bot. I'll keep that in mind 👍
babaloooey@reddit
Maybe there was rope in the bras of all those women.
invisiblebyday@reddit
When the series ended its original run, I remember it being speculated that Xena's fate was punishment for being a woman having adventures and having agency. At that time, this was legit speculation.
livi01@reddit (OP)
when exactly did you start thinking that and why?
invisiblebyday@reddit
The reason why it was legit speculation at the time is that TV and movies are filled with women getting punished for being independent, like every second 1980's movie where the successful career woman is painted as being a b**** who gets her comeuppance in the end. There's old horror movies where the girls who had sex were the ones killed but the good girl virgins lived. Even in supposedly empowering movies like Thelma & Louise, things didn't work out so well for them in the end. I know lots of TV shows and movies show similar fates for men but those get balanced out by ones where the guy who breaks out of his shell gets rewarded.
There's been improvement over the years at least.
I personally wasn't one to speculate that Xena met her end because of sexism, but I respect those who thought this at the time.
ZealousidealGuard929@reddit
Even at the end of Lethal Weapon 3, where the promising young female detective gets injured, and ends up being a SAHM. Or how the psychologist ends up being a running joke, even though she’s right about Mel Gibson’s character.