Antony & Cleopatra

Written by Carl Ellsworth
Directed by Michael Hurst

This episode is, in this reviewer's not so humble opinion, one of the best episodes of the series, and certainly one of the best of the uneven fifth season. First time contributor Carl Ellsworth provides a script that kept me engrossed and off balance throughout almost the entire episode. Aside from one moment of annoyance, I have little to complain about.

As we have come to expect from this series, history serves as the initial seed for the plot, but the story takes some remarkable diversions from what you would learn in the history books. Other reviewers are better suited to delving into the actual history around this episode, but I will point out the one or two most surprising things I found.

First of all, Cleopatra's death before the sea battle. According to the legend, Cleopatra committed suicide with an asp after the faction she backed lost. In the Xenaverse, not only did she die before the battle, she was assassinated (by Brutus it turns out).

The other notable detail was Octavius's general irrelevance to the struggle for Rome. If I recall my history correctly (or legend -- I often get the two confused) Octavius was just as much a player in the power struggle to fill the vacuum left by Julius Caesar as Antony or Brutus was. Of course, following history too closely would leave little for our dynamic duo to do, so I'm not complaining too much -- simply commenting on the differences I noticed.

One thing that did seem to be accurate was Cleopatra's devotion to Egypt. According to everything I've come across, she forged the alliances she did to keep her kingdom -- it was probably more for personal power than some lofty ethical ideal, but a "free Egypt" (as in she would be free to rule it as she saw fit) was very important to her. According to the legends, she would rather die than see Egypt be a slave to Rome -- that's why she killed herself when her side lost.

Anyhow, Cleo is relegated to the background of this story -- a ghost of sorts whose presence keeps Xena from going too far astray.

Other comments have been made about the famous carpet sequence, and here's mine. [Sound of jaw hitting the floor]

I remember back when Paradise Found premiered, how much of the commentary focused on how Tapert "loved" Renee with the camera during the episode. Michael Hurst does much the same thing for Lucy in this episode. I don't know how much body-doubling went on, if any, but if half the shots were of Lucy herself, she bounced back from the pregnancy very nicely. I'm sure photos from this episode will be very popular with the fans.

Indeed, this episode is filled with beautiful camera work. The drops of blood falling in the milk bath (again reminiscent of Paradise Found now that I think of it), the food sequence between Xena and Antony, the desert love scene between them, the shot of the ship in the rain after the battle. Hurst does a beautiful job here, and the less than perfect effects shots (when it was obvious they were using a green-screen with a computer generated Egyptian backdrop) can be forgiven.

But the camera work isn't the only thing of beauty here. The script is solid, and there are times I wasn't sure whether Xena had crossed the line or not. Indeed, I think she very nearly did out in the desert with Antony, until the two of them were attacked. It was then that she saw reflected in Antony's eyes a look she knew all too well -- the look of somebody who enjoys battle and killing. It was that revelation (I believe) and not any words from Gabrielle that pulled her back from the brink.

I believe Xena did love Antony. Indeed, I found the parallel between her battle and Gabrielle's fight with Brutus to be intriguing. Brutus and Gabrielle developed a relationship of sorts during season four. But when it came down to the needs of the world, friendship and love had to be put aside for the Greater Good (tm).

It was nice to see Gabrielle come to her own rescue in that battle against a competent foe, rather than have Xena jump in out of nowhere to save the day. I was pleased to see that development of her skills continue. To emphasize that development, the shot of her face (and the look in her eyes) after she killed Brutus was another of those wonderful camera moments. She looked a lot like Xena in that shot because of the hair and the fiery determination in her eyes. I have a hard time believing it was accidental.

Sadly, the resolution of the plan was telegraphed. Once she told both Brutus and Antony she would support them, I knew how the rest of the plot would ultimately turn out -- Octavius given the Egyptian fleet to strike from behind and eliminate both threats. I don't have any real problem with this ending, but with an episode that was loaded with as much uncertainty as this one was up until then, it was a slight letdown.

An even bigger letdown, however, was choice of music over the food scene. BOO! I'm a fan of Natalie Merchant (I'm pretty sure that's who it was) but this kind of pop video presentation was the one big gaffe in this episode. The camera work in the scene was wonderful, but the music ruined it. That sort of thing is something other shows do, and I'm really surprised LoDuca didn't compose an original piece of music to go with the scene.

Speaking of music, I'm sure I heard a brief echo of "Caesar's Theme" (from Destiny and elsewhere) at one point, and I wish I could remember which character it appeared with.

In the end an engrossing script, wonderful acting, and beautiful direction make up for one or two minor problems. It is certainly one of the best episodes of the season, and one of the top ones of the series overall (not the best, but certainly up there). It is a shame that season five was so uneven.

My final grade for this episode? I have to say that it rates an A-minus. Had better music been used in the food scene, it would have been a notch higher.

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