Xena: Warrior Princess (TV Series) Sins of the Past (1995) User Reviews

The Return of the Princess.

[Son_of_Mansfield · 7/10 · 24 April 2007]

After a memorable three episode arch on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Lucy Lawless returns in her own series as the tragic Xena: Warrior Princess. The character's home and mother are introduced as well as motivation for her walk on the wild side that would be fleshed out in later seasons. Xena also meets life partner Gabrielle who acts as her conscience throughout the series. The show hits the ground running and this is a fine example of what would be coming, with Xena fighting those who preyed on the weak as well as the sins of her past. The only flaw is that it could have used a more in depth view at Xena's past. Even with Jay Laga'aia as Draco, former ally/infatuated suitor, the scenes between her mother and her are more interesting.

P.S. Gabrielle's betrothed, Perdicas, would later return in a different form.

The Battling Bard - And so the adventure starts...

[bennetts-16344 · 9/10 · 11 March 2019]

And so the ride of a lifetime begins here, the first in 134 episodes, a 100 hours of viewing...

The episode begins with the sound of someone playing a cat as a musical instrument whilst Xena travels by horseback across the beautiful Greek / NZ countryside. What follows is the social awkwardness of arriving at a village you've previously torched and having to make small talk with an 8 year old whose parents you've killed. Even though she makes up for it by giving him a loaf of bread, the warrior princess is wracked by guilt and decides enough is enough and buries her battle dress and weapons. Unfortunately this turns out to be bad timing as she then witnesses the townsfolk of Potidaea being rounded up by the henchmen of the evil warlord Draco. Armed only with an attitude and a degree in ass kicking, Xena gets to work in the only way she knows how. Upon rescuing the villagers she meets Gabrielle who takes an instant shine to Xena and wants to be just like her. Xenas not keen but Gabrielle persists and a friendship is forged.

Sins of the past is a template for all good Xena episodes to follow:

Bad guy of the week - check, Awesome, inventive and improbable fight scenes - check Pinch of death - check Emotional turmoil - check Life lessons learnt - check Triumphant against the odds - check Lighthearted ending - check

This was a great way to kick off the series. Jay Laga'aia is fantastic as Draco, it's only a shame he wasn't in more episodes than he was. The writing is sharp, the action spot on and the editing tight. It only gets better from here on in.

Subtext Watch: Gabrielle - " Did you see the guy they want me to marry?" Xena - " He seems like a gentle soul, that's rare in a man" Gabrielle - "It's not the gentle part I have a problem with"

Pinch Count:1

Quote: Draco - "How was the homecoming? Did they throw you a party?"

Memorable scene: The end fight scene, using the crowd as stepping stones.

From humble beginnings...

[Joxerlives · 7/10 · 20 April 2021]

The Good; we meet Gabby, Cyrene, Draco, Perdicas, Lila and Gabby's parents for the first time and a spectacular final fight. I also rather like the scene where Draco tells Xena that he too tried to give up warlording and go home but discovered his father would not take him back. You forget how conniving Gabby is to get her way, she's not quite the innocent you remember, she certainly has the gift of the 'gab'. We also have a reference to Oedipus who will feature in a later ep.

The Bad; not much, everything great about the series is right here. But Xena calls Argo "Boy"?

Best line; Lila "Be a warrior? Gabrielle, I can beat you up!"

Gabby; "You're very strong for your age".

Twisted history; Draco quotes Isiah, "No rest for the wicked". This contradicts what we later learn in regard to Judaism but maybe he coined the term.

Xena cliches; The pinch; 1 Village threatened by warlord; 1

Captain subtext; Gabby (of Xena); "She'd never let a man get close enough to do her".

Bodycount; only 2 deaths and both by Draco, killing 2 of his own men,

Notes; an okay opener with no real signs as to how this series will eventually soar. One thing that strikes me is how much the Renaissance pictures icon reminds me of noted character actor Richard Lynch.

This pilot episode shows us Xena is not a typical boring hero.

[reb-warrior · 10/10 · 9 November 2014]

Xena, Warrior Princess, goes home after years of following a dark path. She faces her hostile hometown and a mother that she's been estranged from for years, that blames her for so much. A humorous feisty Gabrielle(bard) turns out to be a bright spot to Xena, and her salvation. Their banter reveals a wonderful camaraderie between the two. She wants to travel with Xena as she informs her: "I won't stay home. I don't belong there, Xena. I'm not the little girl that my parents wanted me to be. You wouldn't understand." Hmmm...

Xena fights in a big battle at the end with the charismatic warlord Draco, but there's a sense that she is fighting for so much more: a way to make things right with her mother and the people of the town. I love the emotions and obstacles Xena faces. It's not easy to face her past, her mother, her hometown, but she does so humbly. This pilot episode shows us Xena is not a typical boring hero. She's unique. She has a dark past that she is struggling to redeem herself for. That's the great draw to her character and one of the main themes of the show, indicative that the series is going to be a very thought-provoking and satisfying experience.

While the first episode and indeed the first season aren't as polished as season two and beyond, all-in-all it does a great job setting up the series despite having a low budget.

Salute to Xena - A 25th Anniversary Review

[skullface2020 · 8/10 · 27 February 2020]

Sins of the Past Season 1, Episode 1

This series may offer excitement as well as a chance to reflect on one's place in a chaotic world. Where will Xena and Gabrielle go next? I should continue watching.

SYNOPSIS Xena rides in unsure of what to do with herself. Unsettled by her evil past, she tries to bury her weapons and run away, but she finds herself jumping into action to save a poor peasant village from Draco's evil army. Draco's men are incompetent, and later Draco himself unsuccessfully lobbies her to join him to make them an unstoppable duo.

With a new admirer by the name of Gabrielle, Xena moves on to warn her home village of Amphipolus about the imminent threat posed by Draco's band. Her mother and the villagers want nothing to do with her due to her evil past, and they plan to face Draco and ask for mercy without her. Xena is alone. No mother, no neighbors, dead brother. However, she does have Gabrielle as her shadow.

Draco has no plan to spare Amphipolus, but he does agree to duel Xena over it's fate. He chooses staffs as the weapon. Xena chooses lava rules (first person to touch the ground dies) as the conditions. Xena wins as anticipated, but to the surprise of the Amphipolusians she lets Draco walk away with his life.

NOTES

A giant cyclops Xena previously blinded ambushes Xena and Gabrielle as they each make their respective journeys to Amphipolis. Xena gets past him through use of her speed while dishing out some tough advice. Gabrielle finesses her way out of danger by convincing the cyclops into thinking that she is his friend and ally against Xena.

Enter: Xena, Gabrielle, Draco, Lila, Xena's mother, Gabrielle's betrothed

"Shut up! I hate chatty food."

[bensonmum2 · 6/10 · 4 January 2018]

I suppose that Episode 1 does exactly what a first episode should do - set-up the series for the episodes to come. I had forgotten all about Xena's introduction. We first see her coming over a misty hill on her horse, framed by two trees. Nice shot. We quickly learn that Xena has experienced a change of heart and wants to go home and right old wrongs. In wrestling terms, it's a face turn. Gabrielle's introduction isn't so memorable. She's been taken hostage by some baddies. When we first see her, she's uber-annoying. In fact, she's annoyingly needy throughout this episode. Like I said, it's not the best introduction.

As for the rest of Sins of the Past, if it weren't the first episode, it would hardly be memorable. Xena is pitted against what we are told is an old foe / would-be lover named Draco. He wants her to join him and his army. He threatens her home with destruction if she doesn't. The final fight scene is good, but not great. We are, however, introduced to the Xena style of fighting that carries forward throughout the series. It's a fighting style where physics hardly matter. Xena and Draco are both shown walking on the townspeople's heads. In the real world, this would undoubtedly cause injury to the people doing the walking or the people being walked on. Not here. Xena even uses a couple of people as springboards, doing a flip off their heads. You have to accept it or you'll have problems with a lot of what's to come.

Anyway, a decent start to a fantastic series. It's not as spectacular as most of the rest of the series, so I feel comfortable giving it a slightly above average 6/10.

A Thrilling Start (warrioress shriek)

[injury-65447 · 8/10 · 9 July 2020]

Highlights:

• series opener
• sexy costume
• fight scene using the heads of people in the crowd to avoid touching the floor! Amazing!
• the blind cyclops and his adorable stupidity
• the absolutely gorgeous and stunning scenery
• an anti-heroine With a dark past and a brooding nature

Lowlights:

• cliche "heartfelt" moments between Xena & her dead brother, her mother & Gabrielle
• some truly awful Kiwi accents popping in
• peasants who look like they're playing dress-ups
• a villager boy who acts with less liveliness than his murdered parents

Sins of the Past

[Prismark10 · 4/10 · 1 May 2018]

You have to seperate the Xena the series from the reminiscences of lusty teenagers who stumbled on to the series in the mid 1990s and adored Lucy Lawless.

Xena: Warrior Princess is a cheesefest, it is low budget but made up by its New Zealand scenery and being action packed. It helps that Lucy Lawless looks good in leather.

The character of Xena first appeared in a trilogy of episodes from Hercules where she was shown to be a murderous warlord who was happy to slaughter villagers. Here she is looking for redemption and atone for her past.

In the opening scenes we see Xena save a village from a warlord called Draco. However she does not receive a warm welcome from the villagers, a village she previously torched. Even her mother does not welcome her.

Gabrielle a young farm girl bored of her village life and not wanting to be married persistently follows Xena about wanting to be her sidekick. She believes that Xena can be a good person.

It is a journey they would travel together for some years.

There is a lot of action fight moves from Xena in this first episode, some silliness as she tries to get Cyclops to mend his ways and the villain Draco has a sense of fun about him.