From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   4-06 Tale Of Two Muses   
      
       First air date Nov 22, 1996.   
      
       The episode starts with Xena and Gabrielle walking though the desert.   
   Gabrielle is reading a poem about the heat, and is complaining about how   
   hard traveling is on her shoes.   
      
       Cut to a village. It is night, and a young woman starts dancing. She is   
   joined by a  young man. Others are watching or playing instruments (we hear   
   music). Suddenly a man, Istafan, grabs the girl by the shoulders and says   
   she broke the goddess' law and must be punished. The young woman is Tara   
   (from episode 3-14 "Forgiven")   
      
       It is daylight and Tara is tied to a post, her back is exposed and   
   Istafan says she must be given ten lashes with a whip. Xena and Gabrielle   
   walk up just then, and they fight off the town militia to keep the girl from   
   being whipped. When the fighting is over they see it's Tara.   
      
       Istafan tells X&G Tara committed an insidious crime. Just as Gabrielle   
   is berating Tara, Istafan says her crime is that she danced.   
      
       Xena tells Istafan that they are leaving. A man, Telamon, convinces   
   Istafan that banishment is punishment enough. Tara says goodbye to Telamon   
   and Andros, the young man she was dancing with when she got caught.   
      
       Outside of town Tara explains that dancing was banned when a fire   
   ravaged the town after a big dance. She intends to sneak back into town   
   because she is on a mission to change things so they can dance. Xena tells   
   her they will go back with  her.   
      
       In town Istafan is quoting the Muse Calliope that no one will dance.   
   Xena says she agrees with him, and that Tara is there to apologize and she   
   and Gabrielle will stay a few days to make sure Tara behaves herself.   
      
       That night Gabrielle and Xena bed down  in Telemon's store. Gabrielle   
   says that since she heard dancing isn't allowed, it's all she wants to do.   
      
       The next morning Gabrielle takes her boots to a shoe repair man and   
   tells him to make sure her boots will last. Since she is barefooted, he   
   gives her goofy looking loaner boots with a curled up toes.   
      
       The town is gathered for the arrival of Philipon the Reformer, who turns   
   out to be Autolycus, who Xena sent a carrier pigeon to. They have a plan.   
   When he finds out there is no monetary reward, he balks until he talks to   
   Istafan and realizes he is a horses' ass when he makes fun of the king of   
   thieves,  then he decides to go along with the plan.   
      
       Philipon starts preaching to the crowd about the evils of music, which   
   leads to dancing. Then he adds painting and flashy embroidery as sins also.   
   The crowd is caught up in the sermon, except for Telemon, who leaves.   
      
       The next day Telemon tells Xena that his son moved to Athens and Andros   
   is all he has left.   
      
       Philipon and Istafan come into Telemon's butcher shop. And when Philipon   
   sees a painting of a village with twin hills and a tower he proclaims the   
   painting as obscene and has to be destroyed. Andros defends his father's   
   painting.   
      
       It is dark again and Tara begins dancing to a song. Andros joins her.   
   When the dance is over he says he is leaving for Athens and wants Tara to go   
   with him.   
      
       Later Telemon tells Xena that Andros and Tara have gone. Xena finds them   
   and scolds them about running away instead of standing and fighting for what   
   they believe in.   
      
       Gabrielle has her boots back and the shoe repairman put iron on the   
   soles. She likes the tapping sound they make.   
      
       Philipon tells Istafan that military training by Xena is what the   
   children of the town need. Istafan mentions the election the next day for   
   magistrate of the town.   
      
       Xena and Gabrielle arrive, then Tara and the children march to the   
   platform. Xena shows them martial arts moves using the staff. They all join   
   in the exercises. Xena tells Istafan that she works better without an   
   audience. Istafan tells everyone to leave.   
      
       Then Xena and Gabrielle start showing the children dance steps.   
      
       Later that day Xena tells Istafan the training went well and the next   
   day she will show them hand-to-hand killing techniques. Telemon says he   
   doesn't want his son to learn to kill and he is running against Istafan as   
   town magistrate to make changes.   
      
       The next day Telemon and Istafan are to make election speeches. Someone   
   fires a arrow at Philipon and Xena saves him. Istafan says it's because of   
   dissention. Xena accuses Licinius, Istafan's right hand man.   
      
       Xena brings the children of the town out and they all begin dancing.   
   Istafan wants them arrested, but suddenly Philipon has 'seen the light' and   
   starts dancing with Xena. The rest of the town joins in.   
      
       The episode ends with a Xena and Gabrielle laughing and hugging each   
   other.   
      
   ……………….   
      
       A lite episode after the drama of last week's good day of fighting when   
   thousands of men were killed.   I liked most of this episode better than I   
   thought I would.   
      
       Like all non-dramatic eps it's hard to find anything to criticize since   
   any 'bloopers' were most likely done on purpose. So I will just mention a   
   few things I noticed ---   
      
       "A Tale of Two Muses" – Calliope and ????????  Who was the second Muse?   
      
   (BTW Calliope was the eldest of the nine Muses and the Muse of eloquence and   
   epic or heroic poetry. So what does she have to do with dancing?  Polyhymnia   
   was the Muse of dance and music.)   
      
       I liked Tara much more than I did the first time around. Of course, by   
   this time Roswell was airing so I knew who Shiri was.   
      
       Gabrielle had some really good moves, as did Tara.   
      
       I don't usually pay too much attention to the background music, but I   
   this time I was aware of all of it, and I especially liked the song Tara and   
   Andros were dancing to – 'Let the Spirit Move Me.'   
      
       Philipon's (Auto's) southern evangelist persona was a bit over the top,   
   but it was kind of clever.   
      
       Liked the group training led by Xena with the staff when the villagers   
   were watching.   
      
       Lots of different styles of dancing it seemed, but the 'Riverdance'   
   Gabrielle was doing is the most recognizable. I wonder if they were Renee's   
   feet we were watching?  Probably not, otherwise we would have seen the feet   
   connected to the rest of her.   
      
       I guess Gabrielle got the very first pair of tap shoes ever made.   
      
       The toilet flush and Xena zipping up her --- undies?  That could have   
   been left out.   
      
       The Interview clip was with Rob Tapert and Michael Hurst, who directed   
   the episode (I like Michael SO much better than Iolaus!). The entire episode   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
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