For years I thought Married with Fishsticks was one of the worst episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess, but having rewatched and reflected on it, I see something else.

What once looked like pointless nonsense now feels like one of the strangest, most subversive episodes of the series. In fact, I’ve come to read it as Gabrielle’s queer feminist nightmare; a hallucination where she’s forced into Betty Friedan’s Feminine Mystique.

When Gabrielle wakes up in this fishy suburban dreamworld, she’s saddled with a “husband” she doesn’t know or want. She’s expected to smile, cook, fit in, and keep up appearances for the neighbors. The whole thing is played with a laugh-track energy, but it’s suffocating in a way that feels intentional. This is Friedan’s “problem with no name”, the malaise of being told that housewifery and marriage are the pinnacle of fulfilment, even when they feel empty. Only here, it’s played…

I write Fanfiction about Xena. If anyone is interested here the Link: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Machiya_Xena/works Xena Warrior Princess Season 7 - It's a Vamp-God Story

Pandora Avatar Story

And more...😀

Since I was a little Brazilian girl I’m in love with Xena. I watched during dinner and I can’t remember when I stopped watching, but it stayed on my mind as a good childhood memory.

More than that Xena was the only tv show with a strong female leading that I had access back then and I spent so much time not knowing where to watch it that the show itself became almost a legend to me, that feeling of “did I really watched it?”. I had completely forgotten how much I liked Gabrielle. This scene is just 🤌

Adding to it, Xena was also the first tv show that sparked my little gay side, so I have so much to thank this show 🤣🏳️‍🌈