When to stop watching?
Posted by Terrariachick@reddit | xena | View on Reddit | 54 comments
Everyone craps on the last few seasons. I've never seen Xena all the way through, so i still have a chance not to taint the franchise for myself. Ive seen a few clips from the episodes where its in the future and it was just ridiculous lol.
In your opinion, where does the show go off the rails, and where would you recommend to stop watching? What is the true series finale before it turns into fan fiction?
summer_james2@reddit
Don’t listen to anyone saying a certain season is shit…. Watch it for yourself … bc honestly season five had a lot of great scenes you will miss if you don’t watch it and a lot of great moments and season six is wonderful. Watch it for yourself and be the judge. You won’t regret it. Bc more Xena is always the right choice
SakuraTacos@reddit
“Bc more Xena is always the right choice”
Precisely! Willingly turning down the opportunity to watch any Lucy Lawless performance?
https://i.redd.it/bcbqv1nzu7ug1.gif
summer_james2@reddit
Exactly! Like the face journeys that Lucy takes you on in every scene is reason enough to watch HER ENTIRE FILMOGRAPHY millions of times
SakuraTacos@reddit
I’d been meaning to ask you, have you seen this indie movie directed by Michael Hurst that Lucy was in? There’s this scene I watched a hundred times cuz she’s so freaking good
https://youtu.be/dX_y_ZrP0pw
IseQween@reddit
I have to say, that was one of the few of Lucy's performances I didn't find believable. I was so surprised, I made myself watch again. Not sure if it's because I don't connect with characters like that, or maybe didn't like seeing her in that role. I recall reading she said she was used to being asked to do strong, darker, cultish women and wanted to try the opposite. Could be she did too well, and it just wasn't my cup of tea on any level.
summer_james2@reddit
Yup! I have seen almost everything she is in.
SakuraTacos@reddit
Isn’t that scene where she asked her husband if he was cheating so dang good? Such a different role than what I’m used to from her, she can really do it all!
summer_james2@reddit
Also a lot of people say certain episodes are horrible… sometime you need to watch certain scenes or episodes over to see if they may have a deeper meaning as well. Most people just hit the surface layer of the script and don’t realize there are heavier meanings behind things these characters do.
StyraxCarillon@reddit
I've rewatched the whole series a couple times recently, but I absolutely will not rewatch the very last episode.
Hour_Dog_4781@reddit
You need to watch the series in its entirety so get the full experience.
Competitive-Put1047@reddit
Honestly do yourself a favor and watch the entire show through. People have wildly differing opinions on what they liked and dislike about the show and the most negative ones are always the loudest. For me personally, season 4 is the best, most consistently good season. Season 5 did tumble but really rallied at the end and stuck the landing beautifully, and Season 6 is just spectacular
thewholebottle@reddit
The problem is the fifth season is terrible and the sixth season is amazing. So you can skip the fifth season but you miss a bunch of plot points, or you can power through and get an amazing reward.
You can start with the first episode, but most of season one is terrible and out-of-tone for the rest of the show, so you can skip to the last episode, Is There a Doctor in the House, if you're not feeling it.
boltyss@reddit
I have the opposite problem. I found the fifth season enjoyable (despite some bad episodes and questionable plot choices), while I found the sixth season awful and a huge wasted opportunity, with the exception of a very few episodes I did enjoy.
The first season is okay, its "immature" in the sense that the series has potential but hasn't yet found its own identity, I still find it enjoyable to watch, also because the episodes are self-contained.
thewholebottle@reddit
Interesting! Different strokes, I see. I loved almost every episode of Season 6 and I could gush about them for hours. With the exception of the Valkyrie trilogy. Talk about wasted opportunity.
Ok-Jackfruit-6873@reddit
ha that's the only part I like!! See OP there's no right answer, you should watch it all and decide for yourself what if anything you want to skip on rewatch
antealtares@reddit
I feel like u/thewholebottle is ragebaiting bc the ring trilogy is great!
antealtares@reddit
The fifth season is not terrible.
EasyEntrepreneur666@reddit
Funny because I'd take any season 1 episodes over season 6 episodes.
thewholebottle@reddit
They're all yours!
EasyEntrepreneur666@reddit
Yay
everyoneisflawed@reddit
I thought the sixth season was as terrible as the fifth. But it's honestly still worth watching and not a waste of time.
Selverd2@reddit
do you mean the entire s5 >!or just the post-time jump stuff!<?
thewholebottle@reddit
KatzAKat@reddit
Skip the last 2 episodes.
plasticlover95@reddit
J'étais venue pour écrire la même chose
reo_reborn@reddit
3*
Beautifala_Jones@reddit
This is the way.
MusicIsLife81@reddit
Honestly there is good and bad in the every season and I honestly almost stopped watching during the fourth season because I was losing interest but I was so very thankful that I didn't! But I will say that the final two episodes are rough, so just be warned if you do decide to take the journey all the way to the end. Tissues will be a must.
NoReach1699@reddit
Watch it all. Not everyone agrees that the series derails. Season 5 is a little rough, but s6 is fantastic. And i actually like the finale.
Joethesamurai@reddit
Watch every episode and then you can skip the bad ones next time around. 5 is FULL of good episodes! 6 for me is honestly 50/50. Half the episodes are as good as my classic Xena but with more money and half of them are duds. Even knowing what episodes I personally don't like when I watched the entire series with friends I skipped 3 episodes from 5 &6 and they watched all of them.
sjcs1@reddit
watch all of it
nellystar5@reddit
Just watch it and make your own opinion!
Tricky_Direction_897@reddit
Everything except the finale
Individual-Pay7430@reddit
People might crap on the last few seasons, but they do it with love. A sort of "I can talk shit about my sister, but you can't" sort of thing. Watch the entire series and form your own opinion based on what you like and dislike. Personally, I enjoyed the final two seasons but they weren't my absolutely favourite.
ViolinViolence@reddit
Watch the whole thing. I would have to really be unhappy with a show to not finish it.
Season 5 and 6 have some really good episodes IMHO. It all depends on what you find intriguing, entertaining and fulfilling.
I'm a completionist and would find it hard to quit now, just based on that alone, but some of my favorite episodes (as a kid watching the og run and as an adult) are in the last seasons.
Paper-Octopus@reddit
Just watch the whole thing. lol
1111joey1111@reddit
Yes. It's all worthwhile. Every series has the good and bad, and that's all usually just a matter of opinion.
IseQween@reddit
Agreed. The wide range of answers to your question should give you a hint that the main person who knows your usual tastes and interests is you. Even then, you may be surprised at what ends up appealing to you or turning you off. I loved discovering aspects I came to enjoy despite my initial preconceptions or response to something similar in another show.
HeyCarrieAnne40@reddit
Wuttttt!?!? The last 2 seasons were awesome!
Byanychance@reddit
The general consensus is that Season 1 - Season 4 is the shows prime
The last two are optional. There will be some episodes that are enjoyable so its not non stop dread but it wont be the same feeling as S1-4
flynnigan14@reddit
Just watch the whole thing and judge for yourself. A lot of season five was not my cup of tea but there are some great moments sprinkled in there. I love most of season six but there's a couple of episodes I could do without as well. Don't listen to others and make your own judgement.
PureMitten@reddit
It really depends on what draws you to Xena for what is gonna be an unpleasant watching experience. If you like Xena kicking ass endlessly, you might love the front half of season 5. If you love the exploration of what it means to be forgiven for past sins, you might love the back half of season 5 (or deeply loathe it for how it handles that theme). If you like Xena being really camp and silly you might love season 6.
Season 6 is where they hired a big name fan writer to the show. Season 5 is generally seen as having the weakest and most confusing writing. But both have their proponents and I can tell you that most of my favorite episodes are in season 6 because I love goofy camp.
everyoneisflawed@reddit
Just watch it. The last season is the worst, but it's still better than a lot of other shows out there.
Pop_Stensbold@reddit
You know I've gotten to the point honestly where if people aren't prepared to watch the whole series I'm tempted to say don't even bother watching any of it. Also in my opinion looking at some of the comments down below if you listen to some of the advice on what to skip you're gonna miss some damn good episodes.
EasyEntrepreneur666@reddit
I think it fell apart around season 4 which had hit and miss episode. However, I'd say, stop watching when you feel the episodes are persistently terrible.
darkelipse04@reddit
IMO, no series is perfect through its entire run, Xena is no different. With that being said, it’s absolutely worth watching through its entirety. I hated the ending, but I’ve watched it more than once to try and process it better.
barkingfortheocean@reddit
honestly even the "bad" episodes have good moments within them, and part of the joy of xena is actually the batshit crazy stuff they do (INCLUDING the 'modern day' episodes). I'm not a big fan of the twilight of the gods arc, but I still find some episodes or moments enjoyable and worth the time. My ONLY rec outside of official release order is to find the spaghetti order for the last few eps. but I do recommend watching every episode.
Ill_Consequence1755@reddit
Watch it all the way through.
Just have comfort food and Kleenex for the last couple.
Fair-Victory-3531@reddit
Just stop when you're not enjoying it anymore, as with any show.
reo_reborn@reddit
Not always. Some shows have a bad season and if you give up there you'd miss something amazing.
For e.g, i know it's a comedy but Always sunny in Philadelphia. Season 1 is the drizzling shits. Even the cast say they're SHOCKED they got a second season. I literally came this close to finishing it after season 2 but i decided to carry on. Now it's one of my faves.
Technical_Activity78@reddit
Just watch it. Jesus.
Selverd2@reddit
if by “future” you mean stuff that takes place in the present day, those were just one-off comedic episodes that didn’t affect the regular show.
i would try to to stick with the whole series, but if you have to stop I would either stop after s4 or stop after the "Antony & Cleopatra" ep in s5.
TawnLR@reddit
Maybe by "future" they mean the time jump in s5?
thewholebottle@reddit
Nah they'd said they'd seen clips so I assume it's them in modern dress.