Customer Reviews

Xena the Warrior Princess: The Complete Second Season (7 Discs)

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

What a season! Normally shows lose their peak after their first season turns out to be a success. But for Xena, her second season adventures turned out better than I expected.

Visually the image quality of the DVD is sharper than in the first season, though it is still shot on a 16mm film stock and is a bit grainy. The CGI effects (matte paintings and 3d animation) are much better than in the first season. One of the few 3D animations I liked were the ones involving Poseidon whom I found impressive and staggering on a large screen. Now of course those visuals pale compared to what we can do today, especially in Spartacus. But for the short amount of time and other constraints the Xena crew had for their work, the Flat Earth studio produced some great CGI. Hope that they get to improve them as the seasons go on.

The location sets meanwhile are more gorgeous and diverse than in the first season. For instance, we now have some Xena episodes on the sea, which means great battles on large vessels, and other great battles shot on gorgeous New Zealand beaches.

As for the soundtrack, Jodeph LoduCa composed some excellent music. One of my favourite was the one between Xena and Solan at the end of the first episode, whihc really moved me, and the Joxer the Mighty song which Ted Raimi wrote the lyrics.

In its storylines, the season presented many episodes that either veered on comedy, or on drama, or mixed those two genres together to deliver very touching stories. Among my favourite episodes were the episode 1 (Solan and Xena's first episode, along with a very moving discussion at the end), episode 2 (A life with Xena's brother), episode 4 (Excellent Halloween episode, great use of the camera effects, and Gabrielle's scene at the dance), episode 6 (Meg, Joxer, and Xena with a Capital Z), episode 7 (scary intro filled with tense camera effects), episode 8 (excellent Hudson Leick and Kevin Smith, in an episode done while Lucy Lawless was recovering from a horrible accident), episode 10 (Great episode occuring in the 1940 that revealed what happened to the descendants of the main characters in our time period), episode 12 (Robert Tapert direction and Xena's struggles), episode 15 (felt like a documentary about Xena's day, lots of hand-held camera, and great direction by Michael Hurst), episode 16 (Joxer the Mighty in action), episode 19, (Xena's relationship with Ulysses), episode 20 (a side of Xena is revealed to Gabrielle), episode 21 (Xena and gabrielle help Cecrops the lost Mariner) and episode 22 (Very funny love stories!!!).

There were so many episodes that I loved during this season that I think this dvd set will be one I will love to rewatch over and over again. Though I have to point out that watching the Hercules series can be useful if you wonder how Callisto got stuck in that temple in the fourteenth episode.

See you next season!

[Summary: Just over 4.5 stars; a big step up from Season One's DVD collection]

Note: Just in case you haven't already watched X:WP Season Two, this review contains NO SPOILERS.

Xena: Warrior Princess Season Two DVD collection summary:
- 6 DVDs, with 4 episodes each except for 2 in the last; 22 total episodes.
- 1 CD-ROM, with largely useless content.
- Video: MUCH less grainy than the 16mm film transfer of Season One.
- Audio: Dolby Digital throughout (a big step up from the Dolby Stereo of Season One).
- DVD Extras: Good-quality stills, plus audio and video commentary on three episodes. Season One included zip - nada - bupkus. MUCH better!
- CD-ROM: Same old junk as was included for Season One. Why?
- Price: Lower than Season One, for better quality. Yay!
- Episodes: 22. Season One had 24. The only comparative downside.

Season One rated just over 3.5 stars. Season Two is worth a bit over 4.5 stars -- a major step up.

Disc 1: Portrait of Gabrielle on label
- Orphan of War
- Remember Nothing
- The Giant Killer
- Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
Disc Extras:
- Still Gallery
- Weblink to Hercules/Xena site

Disc 2: Portrait of Joxer on label
- Return of Callisto
"Return of Callisto" extras: Audio and video commentary by Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor
- Warrior ... Princess ... Tramp
- Intimate Strangers
- Ten Little Warlords

Disc 3: Picture of Xena on label
- A Solstice Carol
- The Xena Scrolls
- Here She Comes ... Miss Amphipolis
- Destiny
"Destiny" extras: Audio and video commentary by Rob Tapert

Disc 4: Picture of Xena (as "Miss Amphipolis") on label
- The Quest
- A Necessary Evil
- A Day in the Life
"A Day in the Life" extras: Audio and video commentary by Lucy Lawless, Renee O'Connor, and Rob Tapert
- For Him the Bell Tolls

Disc 5: Picture of Xena and Draco on label
- The Execution
- Blind Faith
- Ulysses
- The Price
(No extras.)

Disc 6: Picture of Cupid on label
- Lost Mariner
- A Comedy of Eros
(No extras.)

Disc 7 (CD-ROM): Picture of Xena and Gabrielle on label
- Screensaver
- Cast & Director bios
- "Scrolls" - episode cast lists, guest stars ("mortals" and "gods"), search through the scrolls text
- Season Two trivia game

The audio commentaries are the usual option, easily available through the menu for each of the three episodes. The video commentaries are a subset (about 40% in each case) of the audio commentaries, with images of the commentators sitting in front of a wide-screen TV watching the episodes. The same set (except for number of chairs) is used in all three video commentaries.

X:WP Season Two contains performances by the following recurring characters from the Hercules/Xena world:
- Ted Raimi as Joxer, bumbling would-be warrior
- Hudson Leick as Callisto, nemesis extraordinaire
- Kevin Smith as Ares, God of War
- Robert Trebor as Salmoneus, mercurial merchant
- Bruce Campbell as Autolycus, King of Thieves
- Danielle Cormack as Ephiny, Amazon warrior
- Michael Hurst as Iolaus (Hercules' sidekick)
- Tim Thomerson as Meleager the Mighty
- Alexandra Tydings as Aphrodite, Goddess of Love
- Karl Urban as both Julius Caesar and Cupid (son of Aphrodite) (should actually be "Eros"; "Cupid" is his Roman name)
- Jay Laga'aia as Draco

More notable one-shot guest stars from Season Two included:
- Lisa Zane as Miss Skiros
- Mindy (Melinda) Clarke as Velasca
- Rachel Blakely as Penelope
- Tony Todd as Cecrops

More [] fun in the Hercules/Xena world. Get your copy, make some popcorn, and have a party!

I love Xena Warrior Princess and Hercules Legendary Journeys, and season 2 is Xena at her best. Destiny is one of the five best episodes of Xena ever; it reveals what made Xena into the Warrior Princess rather than just another petty warlord, and it has that great Gaelic song. I didn't pay much attention to Remember Nothing when it aired on television, but after watching it twice on dvd, I've realized how important it is to the series. However, the quality of the dvd did not match the quality of the show. It's very grainy; actually, it's the poorest quality of any dvd I've ever seen.

Yet again we have Universal re-releasing the Xena series on their own(it was Anchor Bay last time)here in season two,but again there are NO extras at all-contrary to some previous reviews who seem to be reviewing the Anchor Bay issues;go figure!
In this season the cast,its great directors and its producers Tapert and Raimi,really hit their stride and take the show to a new and better level where it would remain until the last.They brilliantly combined drama,comedy and even pathos to produce some funny yet hard hitting stories,and as such remains one of my favourite seasons of all.If you want to see a prefect example of all three in action,watch the last ep A Comedy of Eros.The drama heats up as Draco(Jay D'Gaia,perfect in that role)plans to capture the Hestian virgins and turn them into slaves.On the comedy side we have Cupid's son(Cupid played wonderfully by Karl Urban,who would also play the juicy role of Caesar)running amok shooting love arrows into the unsuspecting.In the end we have pathos enter the ring with the unrequited love of a crying Joxer.Great stuff.This season sports some of my favourite eps like the comedy/drama A Day in the Life.On the intense side came The Price where Xena and Gabrielle have to fend off the Horde.The intensity and mood is set right from the first few frames of the film and never lets up throughout.There would be few eps of this intensity until the India trilogy later in the series.
This season also sees the return of Callisto(played to perfection by Hudson Leick) and we are introduced to the Goddess of Love herself Aphrodite played by the beautiful Alexandra Tydings in her wonderful Valley girl affectation.Another of my faves is the ep The Lost Mariner which finds one of my favourite actors Tony Todd playing the damned Cecrops.Mr Todd in any role I have ever seen him play in comes to the plate with an intensity and seriousness that few other actors can muster.I don't know why his this totally underrated actor isn't more well known.Of course Kevin Smith as Ares is back;could there ever have been a better person in such a role? I do not think so.
All 22 eps are included in this season and as I said with NO extras.However the sound and picture have improved with season two.The sound is in Dolby 2(as with season one)but it seems much better in separation.The picture is now up to the quality it should be.As I noted in my first season review,that season seems to have been shot for the most part in 16mm because of so much grain in evidence.This season you find it clearer and crisper,as one would expect.And THAT,is a good thing.
All in all I give this season/series a two thumbs up.Everything seems to gel together and the show is off and running and doesn't stop until the end ep.It is one of the best(some would say THE best)seasons the series ever produced.No matter where your personal feelings lay,you will enjoy the proceedings here immensely.Top talent all around,not to mention the consistently high caliber of stunt work,gives us a ride that would never be repeated.Highly recommended.
Addendum:The releases of this series by Universal seem to be getting slower and slower.I hope they do not go the way of the Leave it to Beaver series.With that one,after just two seasons,they decided to let Shout Factory have the honours of finishing off the entire series.Time will tell.

A unique mix of action, drama, and humor, of fantasy, history and myth, made X:WP a unique show. All these qualities are on display in Xena's Season 2, probably the show's second best next to S3. Highlights include outstanding drama such as THE RETURN OF CALLISTO, DESTINY, A NECESSARY EVIL and THE PRICE, and sparkling comedy such as the unforgettable A DAY IN THE LIFE, TEN LITTLE WARLORDS and A COMEDY OF EROS (which combines madcap comedy with genuine poignant pathos at the end). Other terrific eps: REMEMBER NOTHING, INTIMATE STRANGER, THE QUEST, BLIND FAITH, LOST MARINER. Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor really come into their own in this season. The supporting cast shines too: Hudson Leick does a superb job not only as Callisto but as Xena in the body switch episodes, INTIMATE STRANGER and TEN LITTLE WARLORDS. The late lamented Kevin Smith shows two very different sides of Ares, God of War -- the cruel arrogant god and the suddenly human mortal. Ted Raimi as Joxer raises his character above mere comic relief, giving him true nobility and poignancy. There's also Karl Urban in dual roles as Caesar and Cupid, Alexandra Tydings as Aphrodite, and a notable guest appearance by Tony Todd in LOST MARINER.

I found the picture and sound quality to be excellent. There could have been more in the way of commentary and bonus footage (no outtakes here, for instance), but still this is a great buy for any Xena fan.

video glitches - sound glitches - very disappointing quality

the much too brief and inconsequential commentary was also a let down - I expected much more from LL, RT & ROC than the very few minutes of giggles

All I can say is if you like midevil stories and books like that then this is the series for you. Lucy is excellent.

XENAS GETTING BETTER AND BETTER THE FINEST ACTION SERIES EVER GETS ON ITS FEET VERY HERIOCEPISODES CALLISTOS SHOWN THE MOST IN THIS SEASON THAN ANY OTHER SHES BAD TOI THE BONE

This is a must have for the fans who can't see the show anymore. I loved seeing the audio/video on some of the episodes. I can't see the show on regular TV anymore and I'm too far away to go to the convention each year, so this helps with my Xena fix.

First off let me say I have had none of the technical problems that some of the other reviewers had and it would be a shame if someone who is a fan didn't buy this set because of it. (Yes, the picture quality could be better but it is still far and away better than the VHS version)
When I saw this was being released on my birthday I took it as a good sign... and boy, was it. I forgot how much I loved this season; so many great episodes. "A day in the Life", Callisto", "The Price", "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" and many more. The best part of this DVD set for me was the commentaries... like the one for "Callisto" done by LL and ROC. They both don't like to watch their own work when its finished, so when they see their interaction after Gabrielle's wedding it was just priceless to hear them "get" what the "subtext" fervor was all about. All the commentaries were enjoyable.
Lastly, the 1/2 hour commentary by RT, LL and ROC was neat not only for their respective insights but the MUSIC! I really love Joe LaDuca's stuff for this series and was extremely disapointed when the dance music from "Girls Just wanna Have Fun" didn't make it to the sound track (Or M'lila singing about her homeland on "Destiny")but, iti is in the commentary...
I recieved 3 sets for my b-day and concidered keeping them all! ...hope this was helpful...Peej