Independence

Originally published June 30, 2000

Since the first TV movie Hercules and the Amazon Women, aired in 1994, one of the constant messages in both shows was how humanity didn't need the gods, how we create our own destiny. This theme continued even in the late seasons of Xena, when the Twilight story arc reared its world-shattering head.

This storyline turned some of the show's themes on their ear. Eli was the prophet, bringing a new message to the world. Xena was the destined champion, chosen to bring the mechanism of the earth's doom and salvation into the world. Despite all their efforts, the Olympians fell victim to the Fates' predictions -- indeed, their efforts to avoid the Twilight caused the very doom they tried to avoid.

It is a change to a more classic mythological theme, which is part of the reason I developed the series on Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey.

I had a problem with the story arc when it first appeared, because I felt it was (to a certain degree) a betrayal of the message the producers had made an integral part of their tale; Xena and Gabrielle, who until recently had never been subject to the gods, were suddenly serving the higher power introduced on Xena in The Ides of March and on Hercules in Revelations. After much thought, however, I think this recent story arc may, in fact, be an affirmation of the theme of human independence.

Rendered into its simplest terms, the Hero's Journey is about coming of age; discovering the secret of life and taking the place of the previous generation to continue the cycle of existence. With the fall of the Olympians, mankind is no longer subject to the selfish whims of some lofty divine being. The children are now able to take the place of the parent, shaping their own destiny.

This theme is mirrored in another great TV series with rich mythic undertones, Babylon 5. That series is a bit more blatant about their heroic cycle, probably because the overall story had been written prior to the show's premiere and wasn't changed drastically as the series went on. Xena, on the other hand, was written on a season-to-season basis, and so the underlying threads can be harder to find.

But they are there. The theme of humanity's independence, and the ability to shape our own destiny was, I believe, reaffirmed with the resolution of the Twilight story arc. It's a modern take on the old classic, something both Hercules and Xena excel at.