From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   2-11   
       Here She Comes . Miss Amphipolis   
      
   First air date Jan 20, 1997.   
      
   The episode starts with Xena and Gabrielle walking on a beach. They are to   
   meet Salmoneus. Xena is telling Gabrielle about a battle that occurred a   
   year ago, and how bloody it was.   
      
   Gabrielle trips over (into) a deep rut in the sand that Xena says was caused   
   by a loaded war wagon. Gabrielle starts digging clams down in the rut.   
      
   Suddenly many scantily clad young women are running toward them, chased by   
   two ruffians. Xena drives them off with clams she is throwing that Gabrielle   
   is handing to her.   
      
   Salmoneus appears and say they are contestants in a beauty pageant. Both   
   Gabrielle and Xena hate the thought of women being put on display. Gabrielle   
   says it's a feeble excuse to exploit and degrade women. Sal replies since   
   when do men need an excuse? He says the three warlords/kings(?) who signed   
   the peace treaty a year ago have entered girls in the pageant but if things   
   aren't fair, a war could start, and he needs someone on the inside. He hints   
   that Gabrielle might enter, but she says no, so Xena volunteers as Miss   
   Amphipolis.   
      
   At the palace, Xena is still in her leathers wearing a gray hooded robe.   
   Gabrielle is dressed in a blue coat with a huge collar. She is the   
   Marquessa.   
      
   Sal introduces Miss Amp to one of the contestants playing a harp. When she   
   hits one string it triggers a crossbow and Xena throws her Chakram to split   
   the arrow and save her life. Then while Xena talks to some of the   
   contestants in a steam room, Gabrielle/Marquessa goes to a meeting with the   
   three warlords/kings/sponsors who signed the treaty. After all the   
   contestants leave the steam room, Xena is locked in.   
      
   At the first event, where the women are introduced, Xena barely makes it in   
   time. Later Xena pulls the wig off one of the contestants and it is a man,   
   who is a cross dresser. Xena tells him she won't tell anyone about him.   
      
   Later, as Sal sings a song, the women are practicing a walking dance and   
   keep bumping into each other.   
      
   In the second event the contestants are introduced again with a short bio of   
   their interests. One of the sponsors yells out that Xena is there, but it's   
   only the cross dresser who took Xena's leathers.   
      
   In the semi finals, the five left are the three women of the sponsors, Miss   
   Amp, and the cross dresser.   
      
   The last event is the talent competition. Gabrielle wants Xena to sing but   
   she won't. Later she is outside swinging two swords rhythmically around. She   
   hears one of the contestants, with the harp, crying. She tells Xena why the   
   contestants are there - one to get more food for her village, another to get   
   away from her sponsor, and one did it to please her sponsor/boyfriend.   
      
   Gabrielle goes to another meeting and the three warlords are threatening war   
   if their girls get hurt.   
      
   During the talent portion, after the harp player, the next one is a snake   
   charmer, but a beam that was tampered with starts to fall on her, and Miss   
   Amp pushes her out of the way and ends up standing on the beam with the dead   
   cobra around her neck.   
      
   Someone knocks the three sponsors out, one at a time.   
      
   Later Xena is walking around the palace. The host of the pageant says he has   
   to kill Miss Amp because he needs them to go to war so he can sell goods   
   (and weapons) to them. Xena has them tied up under a table so they can hear   
   everything.   
      
   The judges have chosen a winner, but Xena is now back in her clothes and   
   says Miss Amp has withdrawn. Each time Sal starts to announce the next   
   runner up as winner, another of the women also quits until the cross dresser   
   wins by default.   
      
   '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''   
      
   I have to admit, I actually liked this one better than I remembered the   
   first time. I still don't think it was that great, but it did have some good   
   things in it.   
      
   Salmoneus is always fun, but he can get a bit tiring, and I don't think I   
   could take a weekly diet of him.   
      
   Gabrielle was good as the Marquessa. Her accent seemed to be German, but I   
   guess it also could be Russian or Baltic. Unless it's French, Spanish or   
   Italian, I'm not very good with accents.   
      
   Of course, the eye candy was nice. And seeing Xena soft and feminine for a   
   change (and as a blond) is always a treat.   
      
   When Gabrielle asked Xena what she was going to do in the talent   
   competition, I expected her to say she had many skills. Of course she said   
   it later to the matron who saw her altering her dress with a knife.   
      
   Loved the look on Gabrielle's face when the cross dresser put the lip lock   
   on Xena.   
      
   Only one thing to pick at:  Where were the sponsors of the other six women?   
   Although it was a fun episode, it still isn't high on my list, so I give it   
   a 6 out of 10.   
      
   David   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)