In the fourth episode, I examine the Trojan War as it appears on two disparate television shows: “Phineas and Ferb” and “Xena: Warrior Princess.” How does a wooden T-Rex relate to the Trojan War? Does Helen actually gain autonomy? Listen and find out!
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I did not watch a lot of Xena, but I have watched a lot of Phineas & Ferb (with and without my son). It’s a great cartoon series for a great many reasons (including the variety and quality of music) , but that’s not important right now.
I would argue that expectations should be slightly higher for historical accuracy with Xena, since P & F — while well written and performed — is a kid’s show and a humorous one at that. It is modern and witty, but focused on generally teaching G-rated lessons and insights to a young crowd. With the (usual) split plot in the story (Phineas & Ferb carrying out their plan to find something interesting to do every day of their summer vacation + Perry the Platypus / Agent P foiling another semi-nefarious plan for Professor Doofenshmirtz), there’s really no time to get into the meat of the Illiad.
Xena plays fast & loose with history, it’s true (and had a budget to consider), but I at least expected a bit more adherence to the core plot of the Illiad.
I am still making my way through the Iliad, however, so my own insights may be limited. Hector is, of course, my prime concern in my re-read. After all, my wife and I named our son after him. But I do look forward to the other adaptations and reinterpretations that you’ll be explorting in future episodes.
I’ve never watched “Phineas and Ferb” (and don’t see myself doing so anytime soon), but I regularly followed “Xena: Warrior Princess” (as well as “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”) when it aired on TV. That being said, I did not remember the show tackling “The Iliad.” It doesn’t surprise me that the episode’s ties to Homer’s epic were fairly tenuous. From what I recall of X:WP, the source material served the plot, and not the other way around. Still, I generally enjoyed the show’s reimagining of the original myths, particularly when that reimagining empowered female characters.
I’ll have to see if I can find where X:WP is streaming, because I think my daughter would enjoy seeing a version of Helen with more agency. Though, I don’t know if that would offset her frustration at the show’s divergence from the original story.
Thanks for another amazing episode.