From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   1-14    A Fistful of Dinars   
      
   First air date --  Jan 29, 1996   
      
   The episode starts with a man, Lycus, running through the woods, being   
   chased by another man. Lycus is pretty beaten up, and then stabbed, but Xena   
   is there to chase off the second guy as Gabrielle watches Lycus die.  Xena   
   gets a pouch from #2 that contains a Sumerian medallion, and a piece of   
   cloth with one of four clues to the Sumerian treasure. Xena memorizes the   
   writing on the cloth then swallows it. Then Thersites (an assassin and   
   another "old friend" of Xena's from the old days, as was Lycus) kills #2.   
       Xena tells Thersites (who has two of the clues) that Petracles has #4.   
   {And how she knew that was never explained.} So Xena and Gabrielle go to see   
   Petracles, who ends up going with them. And they all walk despite that Xena   
   had "the horse" in the beginning. {And where was Gabrielle's staff? She   
   could have used it a time or two.}   
       Xena also knows that with the Sumerian treasure is the Titan Key which   
   unlocks the Hall of Ambrosia at the foot of Mt. Poulis. And she wants to   
   keep it away from Thersites and Petracles.   
       Xena wants Gabrielle to stay AWAY from Petracles because he is "an   
   ambitious, ruthless, dominating, conniving liar.  He’ll say anything he can   
   to get a woman to   
   fall for him, and, then, once he has her, he uses her.”   {Sounds like   
   Xena's been there and done that.}   
       As they are walking to meet Thersites, Gabrielle and Petracles are   
   talking, and it's obvious that Gabrielle is rather taken with this "bad boy"   
   despite the fact that (Gabrielle quoting from  Xena),  "you’re a   
   bloodthirsty warlord -- who doesn’t care about anything or anyone but   
   yourself.  You’d sooner sell out your soul for a profit than keep an honest   
   promise.”   
       Then Petracles tells her that he talked Xena into marrying him. { So –   
   was Marcus before or after Petracles?  One of them had to be the "rebound   
   guy", I just can't figure out which one.}   
   And then Xena asks Gabrielle not to talk to Petracles, and Gabrielle asks   
   Xena to trust her. {A bit of jealousy on Xena's part?}   
   Thersites isn't happy Petracles is along but they all settle into an uneasy   
   truce.   
   On the way to Mt Poulis they travel through Peis territory. And then are   
   attacked with a hail of arrows. They run to an old suspension bridge.   
   Petracles goes first, then Gabrielle and Thersites right behind her. The   
   ropes holding the bridge snap and Gabrielle and Thersites are left hanging   
   on for dear life. Thersites climbs past Gabrielle, and Xena has to leap the   
   chasm to land next to Gabrielle to help her up. And once they are safe,   
   Gabrielle slaps at Thersites, and calls him a stinking, smelly scumbag.   
       As they camp for the night, Xena tells Thersites that if Gabrielle dies,   
   he will die. He knows Xena isn't after the treasure.   
       Gabrielle follows Petracles into the woods to find out what happened   
   between him and Xena. He tells her that after he had Xena he didn't want   
   her. Then he kisses Gabrielle. And after the second one she comes to her   
   senses and runs back to the campfire where Xena is sharpening her sword.   
   Later, Xena puts her fingers to Petracles' neck and tells him not to mess   
   with her friend. He asks if she is jealous and Xena say if he hurts   
   Gabrielle she will rip his throat out.  {So – IS Xena jealous of Gabrielle?   
   Or is she just concerned that Petracles will end up hurting Gabrielle like   
   he did her?  (More on this later.) }   
   Gabrielle and Thersites go to the Temple of Demeter to steal Jewel of   
   Demeter – a big, red ruby. {Is there any other color?} Xena and Petracles   
   throw spears to distract the guards, and eventually they have the jewel.   
       So they end up somewhere that has three stone faces and they figure out   
   that the jewel goes into the right eye of the middle one. At sunrise the   
   reflection points to a cave entrance with rocks piled in front of it. They   
   move the rocks, enter the cave and find a ring that Petracles pulls and they   
   all fall down into the pit containing the treasure. Thersites finds the   
   Titan Key and realizes what it is. He grabs Gabrielle and runs (somewhere)   
   and ends up out of the cave and on a path to the foot of Mt Poulis.   
       Xena and Petracles go through the back door and through the Hall of   
   Silence where one sound and they may die. Petracles steps on a skull, it   
   makes a noise any have to run to avoid falling rocks.  They arrive in the   
   hall just as Thersides and Gabrielle get there. Gabrielle has a knife at her   
   throat. They fight. Thersides stabs Petracles, and then Thersides and Xena   
   fight. Thersides dies.   
       Petracles says he's sorry he hurt Xena and shows her their wedding   
   bracelet he's carried around since he dumped her. He dies and  now he's a   
   good guy in Xena's mind.   
   Xena throws the ambrosia into some kind of burning river, maybe it was lava.   
   .........................................   
   I liked this episode. And for the most part I liked Thersides. He was nasty   
   and self-serving but he was fun to watch, and like Xena said, he was up   
   front, there was nothing hidden about him. Petracles was okay, but even Xena   
   knew he couldn't be trusted.  Gabrielle was typical Gabrielle – falling once   
   again for the MoW (Man of the Week, not the Monster of the Week). But she   
   had a few clever lines. She tells the priest at the Temple of Demeter they   
   are there  "to pay homage to the Mother of the Earth, the goddess of the   
   farm, Demeter.  You see,  we are from your sister temple, in Nonamia   
   (No-Name-ia).”   
       Can't quite figure out Xena. She obviously still had feeling for   
   Petracles, but was she jealous that Petracles was paying attention to   
   Gabrielle, or the other way around?  Or that there was a mutual attraction   
   between Gabrielle and Petracles?   
   And who are the Peis? Other than pretty good drummers and crappy archers?   
       I thought there might have been some kind of discussion between Xena and   
   Gabrielle about the temptation to eat some of the ambrosia. I have to admit,   
   I would have thought long and hard before throwing the ambrosia away.   
      
       Anyway,  I rate this one an 8 out of 10.   
      
      
      
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