Closer to God

Originally published September 17, 1999

The season five finale of Hercules (Revelations) and the season four finale of Xena (The Ides of March) added another layer to the cosmology of their shared universe. Above the pantheon of Greek, Indian, Sumerian, and other deities we have encountered is a dualistic struggle between good and evil.

There was a bit of an uproar on the internet when The Ides of March aired. Many fans expressed annoyance that the staff were bringing in what appeared to be Satan. If there is a Satan, they argued, then there must be a God (and they meant this in the biblical sense). To introduce these characters was to change the fundamental nature of the show -- or so they claimed. Indeed some even believed that Tapert & Company had "killed the show" by introducing this element into Xena.

I can see where these people are coming from, but I personally have two problems with this line of thinking. First, in neither show is the "incarnation" (for lack of a better term) of Good or Evil given a name beyond "the Light" or "the Darkness." The presence of Michael and the use of the Four Horsemen (both biblical references) in Revelations seems to indicate a Christian bent to this new cosmic force, but nowhere is it explicitly stated.

Second, even if the biblical characters of God and Satan are used, I don't believe it is an effort on Rob Tapert's part to force a Christian ethic on the viewer (a fear that has been expressed on the internet). Rather, I feel they are attempting to create "ultimate powers" of Good and Evil without having to develop a completely original mythology.

This is what they were attempting with the Dahak/Hope stories during season three of Xena. The arc ultimately failed in part because the Dahak myth was unfamiliar; there was no connection with the cultural subconscious of the viewer.

I fear that if the biblical aspects of the new "incarnations" are pushed too far, they will fail for the opposite reason. They are too familiar. As a result of all the baggage that has become associated with Christianity over the past two thousand years, it may be too difficult for viewers to see past the icons to what they represent.

Part of the protest over The Way (the conclusion of Xena's India arc) was that Krishna was treated as a fictional character. But the use of the deity was not meant as a sign of disrespect to Hindu beliefs, or to suggest that Krishna wasn't "real." Rather, Krishna represented a principle Xena needed to embrace to overcome an obstacle she faced. The use of biblical characters in Hercules and Xena is intended the same way.

Ultimately, both "the Light" and "the Darkness" are symbols of Good and Evil. They are not beings that can be defeated, but cosmic forces in conflict; creation and destruction, order and chaos. Other fantasy uses incarnations of these forces, often creating them from scratch. Are Hercules and Xena any less valid because they borrow their symbols from historical sources?

I don't think so.