#flawless princess

[swordchakramandstaff]

🥲

[trash-rules]

Yeule by Wanjie Li (2021)

[pinkmirth]

gorgeous. handsome. divine. ethereal. effortlessly sexy. whatever! words alone can’t begin to describe his perfection

[azgfggf]

For a while I’ve been trying to articulate why XWP means so much to me, and I think I’ve figured it out. It seems to come from a bizzaro world where everything is just. Equal. It feels like a real feminist show because the women are so respected.

I realized this when watching episode 6 (or seven maybe?) there was a scene where Xena was imprisoned, feet chained to the floor and hands to the ceiling. A group of men came in with the express purpose to harm, and in a moment of clarity I realized that I didn’t fear for Xena in the way I did for every other female in fantasy. Fantasy (as a male dominated genre) is full of sexual violence towards women, often used as story beats or just shock. It permeates women’s real lives and bleeds into what they read for escapist fantasy. For a long time I’ve felt as if nowhere is truly safe, because most fantasy media eventually has a scene or two where a woman is violated, or a costume that’s glorified lingerie, and I have to remind myself that this genre was never made with women in mind. But that scene ended with Xena beating the shit out of them, because they tried to beat her. Not assault or grab, just punches and kicks, like men would fight in fantasy. And she fucking won because she’s Xena and she’s awesome.

Again, in many episodes men want her. But they’re never violent towards her. In the show she is treated like a man would be treated in any fantasy setting. With respect. That’s true escapism for me, some world where that kind of violence either doesn’t exist or isnt prevalent. A world so easy to make, and yet so often thrown aside because of “historical accuracy”. In fiction. The specifically not historically accurate genre where you can pull anything out of your ass and people just kinda have to vibe with that.

I’ve also mentioned this before, but it’s so rare in fantasy for women to be…carefree I guess? Most of them are jaded from past violence, or future survivors, or meek healers, or old wise women. None of which are very allowed to be silly like their male counterparts. They’re always serious, always the voice of reason. Always so reigned in from what male characters are allowed to be. Xena has a dark past, but she’s still kind. The story is still light. Women are allowed to be happy without being victimized.

XWP is fantasy first and foremost, and it works wonders. There are POC everywhere, and nobody calls attention to it because, well, that’s just how it is in Xena-land. There’s no sexual violence toward any strong women, because, well, that’s just how it is in Xena-land. People fight on bamboo poles and race chariots in rivers and the steaks only go up to “Ooooo she has to marry the big bad” which never goes anywhere because we all know Xena is gonna stop them.

Xena Warrior Princess is always gonna be my favorite fantasy show, because it’s fantasy that’s finally geared towards women. A fantasy where women are safe, are capable, are treated in the same regard as men with no quippy girl-power one-liners because nobody needs to quip about the status quo. In a genre where women are so often demeaned and violated for minor story beats or shock value, seeing a work that actually feeds into a more female fantasy is what I’m obsessed with. It’s wonderful to see a magical world where women don’t have to live in fear. Or they do, like because cyclops’s n shit but everybody else does that too.

PS: this mostly applies to modern fantasy. Tolkien and Lewis were two authors I grew up on who I largely blame for my fantasy obsession today.

[snowonhoth]

Senator Princess Leia Organa Amidala Naberrie Kenobi Skywalker you are everyone’s favorite daughter

[niklos-draws]

This pose from Wonder is so cute I had to 😭

[xenitesunite]

If Xena had Twitter…

[hottie-showcase2]

[ Archives ]

[princesscatherineblog]

The Princess of Wales

[fruitless-vain]

Continuously baffled by the fact that Shams coat is very water repellant, it takes a lot to get water to actually soak his fur.

Yoshi has a silkier coat that gets drenched at a drop of rain. Very absorbent.

But yet somehow if they both go stomping in the same amount of mud the waterproof dog comes out like a swamp monster and Yoshis white paws remain pristine white

[swordchakramandstaff]

ROC is going to be at the WGA strike in Hollywood, CA!

[aheathen-conceivably]

Now that I have seen this it cannot be unseen. So alas, I must share this cursed and beautiful knowledge with you all as well.

[likehandlingroses]

AMC’s IWTV…could be TV show adaptation of all time but also!!

[kaleuh]

I had a really really good time at the mario movie, it was a super fun watch and chris pratt's voice acting was honestly fine. like, it wasn't MARIO, but it wasn't terrible at the very least. you know what the ACTUAL problem with the mario movie was? the embarrassing girlbossification of Peach and how the film industry still cannot understand the concept of what a strong female character actually means LOL

[xenitesunite]

Lucy Lawless black blazer slay

x

[markthexenaaddicted]

Lucy Lawless for New Zealand Woman's Weekly, May 1999.