# How close did they come to admitting Xena and Gabriele were dykes? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 12, 2007, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962 "2007-09-12T19:55:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/21 "2007-09-13T04:12:08Z")
If I recall correctly, Gabrielle originally wanted to be a bard and traveled with Xena to get stories to tell. ---
**Author:** ![maggenpye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecc23a/32.png) [@maggenpye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maggenpye)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/22 "2007-09-13T06:03:42Z")
There was also a groundhog day episode where Xena relives the same day over and over. One morning out of the many, during his morning greeting, Joxer looks at one of the women and says “It that a hickey?” the women look at each other and grin. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/23 "2007-09-13T12:40:05Z")
Closer than Smallville has come to admitting Clark and Lex have a gay thing for each other. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/24 "2007-09-13T15:21:03Z")
But which came first (not like that)? Did the writers realize they were getting a lesbian following and then play up the relationship or was it from the beginning? I tend to think it was the former from what I remember when watching the show sporadically. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/25 "2007-09-13T15:38:01Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] But which came first (not like that)? Did the writers realize they were getting a lesbian following and then play up the relationship or was it from the beginning? I tend to think it was the former from what I remember when watching the show sporadically. [/QUOTE] I read somewhere (I don’t remember where now), that it was intentional from the beginning but that the studio made them tamp it down a lot in the first season. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/26 "2007-09-13T17:35:30Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] Closer than Smallville has come to admitting Clark and Lex have a gay thing for each other. [/QUOTE] They need to admit it? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/27 "2007-09-13T18:38:00Z")
[QUOTE=RickJay] Is Gabrielle WASN’T Xena’s lover, then why the hell was she on the show? She’s didn’t appear to serve any purpose other than being Xena’s galpal. [/QUOTE] You could say that of any sidekick, yet a sidekick appears to be an indispensable accessory to a hero. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/28 "2007-09-13T18:49:37Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] You could say that of any sidekick, yet a sidekick appears to be an indispensable accessory to a hero. [/QUOTE] Yeah, just because the hero has a sidekick doesn’t mean they’re gay! Look at Batman and Ro… Never mind. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/29 "2007-09-13T19:02:39Z")
I don’t have a cite for this, and it’s a while since I’ve seen it, but I thought it was stated clearly and explicitly in the final episode. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/30 "2007-09-13T19:03:29Z")
They did something similar in the Hercules show, didn’t they, with what’s-his-face? (But then again, he was playing against Sorbo…) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/31 "2007-09-13T19:11:51Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] One episode, X & G meet a good ol’ boy who has a big Xena crush while ignoring the good ol’ girl who’s just right for him (spoiler- X & G do a make-over on her & the guy flips for her). Anyway, he asks G if X’s looking to settle down with a man, G replies “No, she likes what I d—” and a fish smacks her in the face, then she corrects "She likes what she does.’ [/QUOTE] That’s hilarious! Does someone hit her with the fish, or does it just magically appear? Fish make everything funny, IMHO ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/32 "2007-09-13T19:25:34Z")
Let me guess, Mr. Excellent, you’re a big fan of Monty Python’s fish slapping dance? [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMKCLyhBBwI) ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/33 "2007-09-13T20:12:39Z")
[thread=412530]How hard can I hit some-one in the face with a trout without killing them?[/thread] ---
**Author:** ![saoirse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@saoirse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saoirse)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/34 "2007-09-13T20:30:29Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I read somewhere (I don’t remember where now), that it was intentional from the beginning but that the studio made them tamp it down a lot in the first season. [/QUOTE] I recall an interview with one of the writers. She said they deliberately played it coy, because it’s a lot funnier that way. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/35 "2007-09-13T20:55:13Z")
[QUOTE=dotchan] They did something similar in the Hercules show, didn’t they, with what’s-his-face? (But then again, he was playing against Sorbo…) [/QUOTE] Iolus. I didn’t watch Hercules as much as Xena, but I don’t recall any particularly strong subtext between them. They were roughly the same age, though, and generally as I understand Greek pederasty it involved an older man in a mentoring relationship with a younger one. Now _Young_ Hercules, with the yummy Ryan Gosling and Chris Conrad playing Hercules and Jason (of …and the Argonauts) as youths in hero school, could’ve been rife with subtext if it hadn’t been aimed at teenagers. ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/36 "2007-09-13T21:09:22Z")
[hijack - and I’m sorry for it] I just had an amazing revelation and this thread is the sole purpose of it, so I will do a quick hijack and be on my way. Ever since saw Autolycus’ user name it’s been bugging me. I didn’t know where I’d heard it, but I knew I had. Now, that his name (from **garygnu** ’s link) has come up in a Xena thread it came to me like a trout in the face. And I claimed to be a Bruce Campbell fan! That is all. [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/37 "2007-09-13T21:11:44Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Iolus. I didn’t watch Hercules as much as Xena, but I don’t recall any particularly strong subtext between them. They were roughly the same age, though, and generally as I understand Greek pederasty it involved an older man in a mentoring relationship with a younger one. [/QUOTE] And of course, historical accuracy was the keystone of the Hercules/Xena francise. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/38 "2007-09-13T21:13:13Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I read somewhere (I don’t remember where now), that it was intentional from the beginning but that the studio made them tamp it down a lot in the first season. [/QUOTE] Liz Friedman, one of the producers of _Xena_ and herself an out lesbian, said in an interview that in “Is There a Doctor in the House?”, considered the first subtext episode, she lobbied hard to get the subtext stuff in and got it in by saying basically “No-one will notice, no-one even notices lesbians exist”. Lesbians noticed, and _Xena_ got a big lesbian following, to Friedman’s claimed surprise. Now, I don’t think Friedman was surprised, and like I said I can see pretty clear subtext prior to that episode, but that’s her story anyway. > [@Arnold Winkelried](#): > > I don’t have a cite for this, and it’s a while since I’ve seen it, but I thought it was stated clearly and explicitly in the final episode. It’s not. The closest it gets in that episode is the more-loving-than-necessary kiss during the transfer of water from Gabrielle’s mouth to Xena’s. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/39 "2007-09-13T21:15:52Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Iolus. I didn’t watch Hercules as much as Xena, but I don’t recall any particularly strong subtext between them. They were roughly the same age, though, and generally as I understand Greek pederasty it involved an older man in a mentoring relationship with a younger one. [/QUOTE] I haven’t seen much _Hercules_ either, but I got some gay vibes from the first _Xena_ episode Hercules and Iolaus are in. For one thing, when Iolaus is looking for Hercules he describes him as “really handsome, with big arms”. Yeah, that’s how a totally straight guy describes his totally straight guy friend. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2007, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962/40 "2007-09-13T23:53:54Z")
[QUOTE=Alessan] And of course, historical accuracy was the keystone of the Hercules/Xena francise. [/QUOTE] Direct from the pages of Bullfinch it was. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-close-did-they-come-to-admitting-xena-and-gabriele-were-dykes/418962.md?page=3)