# XENA fans: would the show have been better if the X/G relationship had been explicitly sexual? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 21, 2010, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291 "2010-05-21T19:38:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2010, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/41 "2010-05-23T22:42:57Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Do you mean syndicated action shows? Because Jack Bauer would respectfully disagree that there’s no action left on TV. Martial arts action. I watched an episode of 24 or two where it was just like watching Saw. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/42 "2010-05-25T08:46:44Z")
I voted “YEs, the producers should not have bowed …”. I also think the explicit nature of e.g. Willow and Tara or Captain Jack Harkness and …well, anyone, adds another layer to my favourite SF shows. I’ve had enough of ambiguity in this sort of thing, it’s nice when everyone acts like an adult when it comes to sex (Capt. Jack being a great example) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/43 "2010-05-25T12:34:57Z")
It would have been a trivial change and wouldn’t have made any difference. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/44 "2010-05-25T15:23:42Z")
_No; the ambiguity was part of the fun._ Love interests are always more interesting when they’re not explicit. ( **Skald** , I must commend you for your precise usage of commas and semicolons.) ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/45 "2010-05-25T16:08:17Z")
\*Yes, but for a reason you did not name. \* I thought during the last season, they should have made them an official couple, but only hinted at the relationship’s details. Let’s face it, ambiguity and teasing is fun for a while, but eventually you need a payoff otherwise it just feels wasted. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2010, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291/46 "2010-05-25T23:49:58Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It would have been a trivial change and wouldn’t have made any difference. It would have made little if any difference within the context of the show, but it would have made a difference to some people in the audience. By the last few seasons it was as obvious as it could be without actually being explicitly stated that X&G weren’t “just friends”, and I can’t see any reason NOT to explicitly state it other than fear of controversy. This isn’t to say that such fears weren’t well-founded, but I’d feel a little better about the world if the show’s producers had decided they didn’t need to dance around it anymore. > [@YogSosoth](#): > > I thought during the last season, they should have made them an official couple, but only hinted at the relationship’s details. Let’s face it, ambiguity and teasing is fun for a while, but eventually you need a payoff otherwise it just feels wasted. Yeah, after _six years_ it got a little old. There was an episode in the final season where a character asks X&G point-blank if they’re lovers, and Xena initially says it’s none of his business but Gabrielle says they might as well clear things up. Xena is about to answer when…the episode ends. I’d have considered that a lot funnier had it taken place earlier in the series, but at this point there were only a few episodes left before the finale. If it had been up to me, Xena would have said “Yes, you got a problem with that?” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xena-fans-would-the-show-have-been-better-if-the-x-g-relationship-had-been-explicitly-sexual/540291.md?page=2)