6-08 The Ring

First airing was Nov. 20, 1999.

The story starts out with scenes from the previous episode, "The Rheingold."

Gabrielle, Brunhilda and Beowulf are walking through the woods looking for Xena. They find blood on
a tree. Beowulf keeps insisting Xena is dead. Gabrielle says she isn't. Gabrielle finds one of
Xena's forearm gauntlets and says again she isn't dead, she's escaped. Then she suggests they split
up to cover more ground.

While Gabrielle is looking around, Xena comes up behind her and puts her hand over her mouth, then
shows her the monster off in the distance. After it goes, Gabrielle turns around, grabs Xena, and
tells her to never leave her again. Brunhilda and Beowulf find them. Xena says she knows Gabrielle
won't go, but the other two should since it's her fight. Both Brunhilda and Beowulf say they won't
leave Gabrielle.

They find Grindl's cave and go inside with torches. Gabrielle wants to know who Grindl is. Xena
flashes back to making the ring. Grinhilda shoots an arrow through the ring and recovers it. She
puts the ring on to have the power of a god to kill Xena. They fight some, then the ring turns her
into a monster. Xena cuts off the finger with the ring and puts it on. Grindl flees. Xena traps it
in the cave and puts the two-headed raven lock on as Grindl gets the ring from her. Back in the
present Xena says that after 35 years, Grindl lost all love and now has the power of the ring and
escaped.

They hear Grindl coming and they set a trap. Xena leads Grindl almost to a place where the other
three are going to drop a large boulder on it, but it runs away. They chase it. It knocks them all
down and everyone tries to fight it. Xena sees a timber holding up the ceiling is cracked. She
tells them to run away. She throws her Chakram and breaks the beam, but she is tripped up before
she can escape and is trapped with Grindl. While Gabrielle tries to dig through the pile of rocks,
Xena is being beaten senseless.

Gabrielle gets through, picks up Xena's Chakram and runs toward the fighting noises. She jumps on
Grindl's back and beats it with the Chakram, with little effect. She is thrown off and Xena gets
the weapon. She jams it into its belly, then slowly rips upward, killing it. She takes the ring off
one finger then sees it has all of its fingers.

They run away. Xena tells them the real Grindl is still alive. A raven is watching them, then flies
to Odin. Xena tells Brunhilda to scout on ahead. After she's gone Xena tells Gabrielle she doesn't
like or trust her.

Odin appears in front of Brunhilda with four Valkyries. She was supposed to get the ring from Xena
but he accuses her of falling in love with Gabrielle. She makes excuses but he isn't buying. He
tells the Valkyries to get Gabrielle because Xena will trade the ring for her.

The Valkyries confront the three of them and one yells to get the blond. Xena and Beowulf fight as
Gabrielle watches. Brunhilda rides up on a horse, grabs Gabrielle and they gallop up into the sky.

Xena and Beowulf keep fighting until Odin appears and yells for everyone to stop. Xena
tells Beowulf to follow to see where they are going. Odin says he'll trade Gabrielle for the ring.
Xena refuses, saying Brunhilda was acting without his knowledge. Odin tells her she killed
Brunhilda's son. Xena tells him she's taking the ring back to the Rhine maidens. He wants it for
himself to keep god-slayers like Xena from killing him.

Brunhilda and Gabrielle land. Gabrielle wants to go back after Xena. Brunhilda is mad
that all Gabrielle thinks about is Xena. Gabrielle explains that she and Xena are soul mates.

Odin goes to Grindl and tells her Xena killed her son and he'll take her to her.

Xena and Beowulf are going through a bog looking for Gabrielle. He says he'll go through
the fires of hell for Gabrielle. Odin and the Valkyries appear again. He throws a fireball at her
and she dives away and comes up in front of Grindl who grabs her. Beowulf fights the Valkyries and
is stabbed and falls. Xena gets loose and throws her Chakram, and Odin throws his axe. The Chakram
breaks the head off. Then he keeps having to duck away from the Chakram as it ricochets back and
forth. Xena fights Grindl. Xena is finally backed against a rock or large tree stump and is
surrounded by Valkyries, Grindl and Odin. In desperation, Xena puts on the ring and everyone waits
as she gets godly powers. She deflects Odin's fire balls with her sword and Chakram. Odin and
Valkyries are hit. Then Xena back flips away and runs off.

Brunhilda finds Xena but she can't remember her name. Brunhilda talks her into giving her
the ring, then leaves to find Gabrielle. She tells her Xena has lost what she values most - her
memories of Gabrielle and all they went through. She says she can't protect Gabrielle from Odin and
the Valkyries in this form. She gives Gabrielle the ring then turns into a pillar of eternal flame.
She expands to encompass Gabrielle and a large flat rock. Gabrielle is now wearing a gold and white
dress with lots of cleavage. Gabrielle falls asleep on the rock.

Beowulf wakes up and finds Xena's sword and Chakram.

Xena is stumbling around the forest hearing voices. She falls to her knees shouting out
"Who am I?"

To Be Continued.

..........

Part Two of the Trilogy. And lots to like in this episode. Good lines, and pretty good fights.

-- But first the nit picks - Grinhilda didn't seem to have very much power after she put on the
ring.

Didn't notice it last week, but Odin's Norse accent sounded an awful like a Kiwi accent.

When Xena remarks that Beowulf knows his way around the bog, he says never had a reason to go
there (before Gabrielle). So how did he know his way around?

Odin actually seems kind of like a wimp (I thought the Vikings were supposed to be so tough. You'd
think their gods would be too. I'd have liked to see god-killer Xena and Thor have a go at it.)

When Xena put on the ring, why did Odin and company wait until she got her powers?

-- Things I liked / thought were cool -

The look Xena gave Brunhilda and Beowulf when they ran up to her and Gabrielle after she was found
and they both wanted to know if Gabrielle was all right.

Also, the look on Xena face (and Gabrielle's) when both Brunhilda and Beowulf said they weren't
going to leave Gabrielle.

As I said last episode, I liked that both Beowulf and Brunhilda were falling in love with Gabrielle
rather than with Xena..

For a change the bad guy didn't fall into Xena's trap (boulder in the cave).

Odin having to keep dodging and ducking away from the ricocheting Chakram.

Gabrielle's cleavage dress at the end of the episode.

-- Some of the really good lines -

*When Brunhilda asks if Xena is all Gabrielle thinks about, Gabrielle answers, "Xena is my family.
She's the most important ting in my life."

And later, "I am trying to tell you Xena and I are meant to be together. We didn't *make* it that
way. It just is."

*When Odin confronts Xena she tells him, "Step aside, or join the Olympians."

*When Gabrielle came running after Xena when Grindl escaped their trap. Xena told Gabrielle, "I
thought I told you not to come in here!" and Gabrielle retorts, "I never listen!"

.........

The interview clip was with David Metzger, who wrote the episode. He said all three eps were being
written at the same time. His part was this one only. Not much else of any interest.

I liked this episode, but for some reason, not as much as "The Rheingold." But it was still good
enough to rate an 8 out of 10,

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

6-08 The Ring ....... 8

6-07 The Rheingold .... 8.5

6-06 The Abyss ..... 8

6-05 Legacy ....... 9

6-04 Who's Gurkhan? .... 9.5

6-03 Heart of Darkness .... 9

6-02 Haunting/Amphipolis . 8

6-01 Coming Home ..... 8

Average .......... 8.5