From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   1-17 The Royal Couple of Thieves   
      
   First air date –  Feb 19, 1996   
      
   The episode starts with a group of red-robed worshipers following one of   
   them carrying an ornate staff with a very large diamond. We see a black   
   robed person using a hand-sized version of a crossbow to shoot a rope across   
   to the building on the other side. He uses a grappling hook to ride across   
   the rope and snare the diamond.   
      
   ** As far as I can determine, crossbows like he was using (full sized)   
   weren't invented until about a thousand years later. **   
      
   Xena finds him, he runs away but she catches up with him, then Gabrielle   
   runs up wearing one of the red robes. After he sees that the half melted   
   'diamond' was actually made of rock sugar, he agrees to help Xena recover   
   'the most valuable object in the world.'   
      
   ** So, did Xena replace the real diamond with the rock sugar? If so, how and   
   when? If not, how did she know it was fake? Did the red-robe guys know about   
   it?  **   
      
   In a tavern Xena explains that a warlord named Malthus stole the object from   
   friends of hers and she has to get it back for them. She then tells him it   
   is a chest that contains 'the most powerful weapon the world has ever   
   known.'   
      
   **Although we don't hear Xena say his name until almost halfway through the   
   episode, he is Autolycus, the self-proclaimed Prince of Thieves.**   
      
   Autolycus reluctantly agrees to help. They go to the market place to find   
   suitable clothes. Autolycus picks out some kind of blue decorative   
   corset-looking thing for Xena to wear, but she declines.   
      
   And Gabrielle is left behind, again.   
      
   They board a ship to Mathus' island with Autolycus disguised as Sinteres,   
   the Philosopher Assassin, with Xena as his concubine, Cherish. After a   
   couple of confrontations, the other bad guys are convinced Autolycus is   
   Sinteres.   
      
   Autolycus brings out the corset and Xena is forced to wear it.   
      
   They arrive at the island and everyone is locked in their rooms. Then they   
   are led to a room where the chest is kept. Malthus tells them there are   
   traps that will set off loud bells if anyone tries to steal the chest. He   
   says a demonstration of the weapon will be the next day.  Autolycus   
   convinces Cherish to do a seductive dance while he gets an impression of   
   Mathus' key to the room in candle wax.  Cherish does a nice, sexy dance of   
   three veils.   
      
   Later Autolycus has made the key and he and Xena enter the room to steal the   
   chest, but it is gone  and a dead Malthus is in its place.   
      
   ** So, just what did Autolycus use to make the key?**   
      
   Arkel, Malthus' henchman, says no one is leaving until the chest is found.   
   Autolycus wants to leave anyway until Xena explains that 'her friends' found   
   her wounded and nursed her back to health. And one gave his life for her   
   when her enemy came looking for her. Then they find the chest in their bed.   
   They take it back to the room and put it back where it was in the first   
   place.   
      
   The next day Arkel says the auction is back on and the demonstration will   
   take place. But the real Sinteres has shown up, and Gabrielle has been   
   captured. Sinteres threatens to kill her with pressure points to both her   
   temples. Xena accuses Prognese of killing Malthus, so Sinteres kills him   
   with martial arts pressure points similar to Xena's nerve Pinch.   
      
   Xena uses Autolycus' grappling hook to save Gabrielle from a knife to her   
   throat and the three of them run away.   
      
   Xena has Gabrielle follow Arkel, Sinteres and the rest while Xena and   
   Autolycus go back to their room and change clothes. Gabrielle is captured   
   AGAIN by Sinteres.   
      
   Autolycus fights off soldiers while Xena goes to the cave where the   
   demonstration is being held.   
      
   **If Sinteres captured Gabrielle, how did Xena know where to go?**   
      
   Xena and Sinteres face off and have a Pinch duel. Xena wins and Sinteres is   
   killed.  Gabrielle finds a spear and uses it as a staff to fight along side   
   Xena and Autolycus.   
      
   Arkel opens the chest to see the weapon. A bright light floats up and   
   hovers, emitting vapors. Xena tells Gabrielle and Autolycus "Don't fear the   
   truth, face it. Don't run!"  But Arkel runs and is incinerated by a shaft of   
   fire. Then the light goes back into the chest.   
      
   The three of them look into the chest and Xena brings out a stone tablet.   
   Autolycus reads some of the writing, "Thou shalt not covet. Thou shalt not   
   steal." He laughs, then says, "Who can live by those laws?"   
      
   After the tablet is returned, Autolycus is paid 2000 dinars (but gives it   
   back to them surreptitiously). He tells Xena he's never had a partner in   
   crime before and never will again.   
      
   As they are walking off Gabrielle shows Xena the ring she stole from   
   Autolycus. Xena chides her about not stealing. Gabrielle says she will   
   return it, when she finds the owner.   
      
   Almost from the start we know that this is going to be mostly a humorous   
   episode just from the background music. Even the fight scenes didn't have   
   the usual music Xena fights with.  This is the first, but not the last, time   
   we see Autolycus.  I like Autolycus. And I doubt if there is anyone who   
   doesn't.   
      
   How Gabrielle is captured the first time is never explained, but according   
   to Whoosh, in the 'Shooting Script Differences' section, there was one line   
   by Sinteres that was left out:   
      
   Sinteres: "This little girl tried to stop me from coming here. She's brave,   
   but..."   
      Gabrielle: "I'm sorry, Xena! I had to do SOMETHING!"   
      
   It seems like the more humorous episodes are less concerned with   
   inconsistencies and continuity than the more serious ones. I've pointed out   
   enough of them for now.   
      
   The disclaimer is "No Ancient and Inflexible Rules governing moral behavior   
   were harmed during the production of this motion picture."   
      
   Obviously, the chest is the Ark of the Covenant holding the Ten Commandments   
   (or copies of them),  and Xena's friends are Israelites.  I wondered about   
   the first part of the disclaimer – "…ancient and INFLEXIBLE rules . . . ."   
   Some kind of message to everyone from writer Steven Sears and/or producer   
   John Cameron?   
      
   I liked this episode, and I liked Autolycus, and I really liked Xena's   
   dance, so I gave it a 7 out of 10.   
      
      
      
   David   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)