From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   4-02 Adventures in the Sin Trade Part 2   
      
       First air date Oct 5, 1998.   
      
       The story starts out with scenes from Sin Trade Pt I.   
      
       Xena and Otere are in a sweat hut made from tree limbs. Xena tells her   
   that to defeat Alti they need to find a new Holy Word.   
      
       Flashback to Xena looking down on the Amazon Queen Cyane, who is wearing   
   only a thong bottom in a sweat hut. Xena falls through the roof and before   
   she can kill Cyane, Cyane rips Xena's clothes from her and puts them on   
   herself. Xena grabs a robe and runs away. Cyane is running thorugh the tree   
   tops after her, and then jumps down on her. But before she can kill Xena,   
   Borias rides up and convinces her it wouldn't help the alliance he's trying   
   to form with the Amazons. He tells Cyane Xena will be punished and she takes   
   him at his word.  Xena decides she need to learn Cyane's fighting   
   techniques.   
      
       Back to the present and Xena appoints Yakut the new shamaness. And she   
   says they have to do a Spirit Dance to leave their bodies to defeat Alti.   
      
       Alti dances around a fire in her own hut and draws souls from it to go   
   to destroy the spirits of Xena and the Amazons.   
      
       Only Xena's spirit leaves her body. Alti's spirits enter the bodies of   
   the Amazons. Xena goes back into her own body and fights them. When they are   
   unconscious, the evil spirits leave them.   
      
       Later, on the way to Alti, Xena realizes Alti's power is where the   
   Amazons ascend to the Land of the Dead. They camp for the night. Xena has   
   them make a Charm Ring made of animal skulls and blood to keep the evil   
   spirits out.   
      
       Xena starts telling them about when Cyane wanted her to join the   
   Amazons.   
      
      Alti tells Xena if she will join her she will  be unstoppable, and   
   anything could be in her reach – Greece, Egypt, Rome . . . and Caesar.   
      
      Alti and Cyane had a spiritual duel and Alti was defeated. Cyane tells   
   Xena not to put her soul into Alti's hands because she will destroy her.   
      
       Xena falls asleep and a spider with Alti's spirit inside it gets on her   
   face. The spider's face changes to Gabrielle's face. Then it expands to   
   become Gabrielle, and then she changes into Alti. Alti wants to know who the   
   blond woman is. Xena tells her she's goodness and innocence and she   
   represents what Alti can't defeat. Alti shows Xena a scene where she cursed   
   Xena's unborn child so he would never know the love of either parent. Then   
   Alti turns back into the spider and bites Xena's face.   
      
       The next morning, Xena won't wake up so they put her on a litter and use   
   the Berserker's horse to drag it. Later Xena wakes up and tells them Alti   
   cursed her son because the light from his face would turn her from the   
   darkness.   
      
       They come to the place where Cyane was killed. They don't know how to   
   pay tribute to her and Xena shows them. When they want to give the tribute   
   to Xena she tells them that she was the one who killed Cyane.   
      
       Flashback to Xena telling the Amazon leaders she killed one they were   
   honoring and she'll out-Amazon them. They go to the trees and one by one   
   Xena kills them with spiked booby traps she has set. Then she kills Cyane by   
   impaling her on a tree limb.   
   She tells Cyane Alti offered her a better deal (Caesar).   
      
       Alti catches Cyane's blood to give her great power.   
      
       Xena tells Otere and the rest that without leaders, the rest of Amazons   
   were easy to kill.   
      
       Suddenly Xena puts the Pinch on all of them, and then herself. Their   
   spirits join with Xena so she can fight the spiritual Alti. As they fight,   
   Alti shows Xena futures scenes of her life where she is being beaten up.   
      
   Then she shows her a snowy scene where Xena and Gabrielle are lying on, and   
   tied to, crosses. Gabrielle's hair is very short. Xena tells Gabrielle she   
   is the best thing in her life and Gabrielle says she loves Xena. Spikes are   
   driven into their hands. And present-day Xena's palms start bleeding.   
      
       When Alti asks how it makes Xena feel that her friend is dying with her,   
   Xena says it makes her feel good because it means Gabrielle is alive now.   
   With renewed strength and determination, Spirit Xena kills Spirit Alti.   
      
       Back in her body, Xena tells Yakut the new Holy Word is Love.   
      
       In the Land of the Dead Cyane realizes Xena did as she promised and they   
   are now able to cross over to Eternity.   
      
       Xena leaves the Amazons in Otere's hands as their new leader and heads   
   back home, still with bloody holes in the palms of her hands.   
      
   ……………………………   
      
       Good episode. Not as many flashbacks, so it was easier to follow the   
   story.   
      
       Renee's name wasn't in the credits again even though she had a wee-small   
   talking part.   
      
       I thought Cyane was able to defeat Xena a bit too easy, but maybe Xena   
   wasn't expecting her to be so tough and resourceful.   
      
       Typical Evil Xena – wanting to know about the Amazons fighting   
   techniques, and then using them against them.   
      
       I guess Otere's group didn't know much about the Amazon culture since   
   they didn't know the Amazon tribute. I’m sure Xena, or even better,   
   Gabrielle, could teach them what they should know. Maybe for a future show.   
      
       Alti must not have realized that by showing Xena she had a future it   
   meant that she (Alti) didn't kill Xena.   
      
       I have a feeling that we'll be hearing from Alti again. Evil like that   
   doesn't die so easily (re: Callisto).   
      
       Not too sure about Gabrielle's short hair. Certainly a different look   
   for her. Not necessarily bad, but like most guys, I like long hair on women.   
      
       Looks like the magic word for Xena was 'Caesar' – she'll do anything,   
   and betray anyone, to get to him for her vengeance.   
      
       Where was Borias when Xena was killing the Amazons? And after?   
      
       Have to mention Cyane's (Victoria Pratt) choice of Amazon underwear.   
   Nice thong, and even nicer butt!   
      
       We still don't know where Gabrielle is. Or how she survived the fall   
   into the lava pit – we DID see two flashes where she and Hope hit the lava!   
   But hopefully, all will be explained in the next episode or two.   
      
       In the interview clip, Lucy said that if Gabrielle had been dead, Xena   
   would have stayed in the Land of the Dead to be with her. Rob didn't think   
   so.   
      
   Renee said she was shadowing the director (except when the cast and crew   
   went to the cold, snowy mountains) to learn what she could about directing.   
      
       Co-Executive Producer Eric Gruendemann said that even though Renee   
   wasn't in the Sin Trade eps, she still got paid since she was one of the TOP   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
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