Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Season two, episode 4

In Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Xena is forced to take on the bloodthirsty minions of the wine god, Bacchus know as the Bacchae in order to get their power-hungry leader and foil his plan to take over the world.

Xena and Gabrielle come across Joxer being torn apart by three wolves in the Bacchae forest. After saving him, he tells them he’s on an important mission. Joxer takes the talking head of the god Orpheus out of a sack.

Orpheus, whose music once kept the evil god Bacchus and his army of deadly, feral maidens subdued, explains that Bacchus has cursed him by taking his body, leaving him his eyes and ears to observe the horror he brings to the world.

Bacchus has been capturing innocent girls who will be transformed into full-fledged Bacchae once they are forced to drink his blood. Xena agrees to help Orpheus to defeat Bacchus but first they must retrieve Orpheus’ lyre which, when combined with his singing, has the power to put the Bacchae to sleep.

Xena and Gabrielle infiltrate the evil gods lair and Joxer and Orpheus go in search of the lyre.

There’s a hot party going on with extreme amounts of lesbian vampire bonding. Gabrielle is drawn to the erotic dancing because you know: girls just wanna have fun. She gets bitten but it goes unnoticed until she starts sprouting teeth and funny eyes. To complete the transition to full Bacchae Gabrielle must drink the blood of Bacchus.

Xena tries to stop this with her chakram but Bacchus reminds her that the only way to defeat him is to be become a Bacchae. Gabrielle does the honours and bites her.  Whilst Xena is fighting Bacchus Joxer plays the lyre and all’s well that eventually ends well.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun was regarded as a subtext heavy episode because of the bite Gabrielle gave to Xena and the lesbian vampire dancing. Although I thought this was a good episode, I expected much more. I think I read too many spoilers for this episode that fuelled a major subtext debate. I’ve seen the bite and yes, there was subtext but I saw season three before I saw this. I guess after season three my expectations were a little too high.

Disclaimer: No Bloodsucking Bacchae were harmed during the production of this motion picture. However, a few Driads lost their heads.