Teleplay by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
Directed by Josh Becker
When Aphrodite obtains the stolen Mystic Diamond, she puts a spell on Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer to distract them from rescuing the prized jewel.
Tropes
- Battle Cry: Gabrielle brings terror to her marks with... yodeling. She does get the upper hand on them and takes the diamond.
- The Catfish: Xena spends much of the episode trying to catch Solaris, a huge fish she's been trying to capture since she was a child.
- Curse Cut Short: Xena puts a hand on Gabrielle's mouth before she says anything bawdy about her own posterior.
- Distracted by My Own Sexy: Gabrielle throughout the entire episode. She even nearly drowns because she tried to kiss her own reflection in the water, akin to the Greek story of Narcissus.
- Double Entendre: So many to choose from:
- When Aphrodite is talking to Maecanus:Maecanus: I’ll put it up there for you right now, most beautiful of goddesses. Tie your gem on my arrow so my shaft can bring you satisfaction.
Aphrodite: [Giggles] I do believe your sweaty, smelly leader is flirting with the goddess of love. You don't have the thrust. [breaks off said arrow] Besides, my guy in Parnassus has better equipment. And he knows the right time to shoot. - When Gabrielle is observing a parchment:Gabrielle: It’s beautiful, absolutely beautiful. Don’t you think it’s beautiful? The way it dips and curves?
- When Aphrodite is talking to Maecanus:
- Excuse Me While I Multitask: Subverted. Xena manages to hold back and even defeat Maecenus and his men while trying to reel in Solaris, but the spell compels her to focus on fishing. She's just that good at multitasking. Unfortunately, Solaris manages to escape.
- Fishing Episode: Thanks to Aphrodite, Xena is obsessed with fishing. Miraculously, she is able to do both that and take back the Mystic Diamond.
- Flashback Cut: The show cuts to Xena and Lyceus when they were kids to show her first encounter with Solaris. Incidentally, it's the only time the show depicts Xena as a child.
- It's All About Me: Gabrielle becomes obsessed with herself, courtesy of Aphrodite's spell.
- Love Epiphany: Xena and Gabrielle break free from the spell once they realize the reasons for their obsessions. Xena realizes that her love of fishing is due to her reminiscing those times with her dead brother Lyceus. Gabrielle's appreciate for herself stems from the hope that Xena would do the same to her and not treat her as a sidekick anymore. It's never shown what Joxer's epiphany as the show ends before that happens.
- Negative Continuity: Joxer does not free himself from his own trance, but is shown to be fine in his next appearance. Xena did mention helping him out after she'd gotten some rest, so it's likely he was just cured off screen.
- Stellification: In the end, Xena gets the North Star back into the sky by using it as bat for the fish Solaris, and then catapults them both into the sky when he gets caught on her line. At the end, a new fish-shaped constellation is visible in the night sky around the newly-rekindled star.
