On June 18th, 2001, fans of Xena: The Warrior Princess tuned in to watch the final episode and find out how the creators of the show had decided to bring the epic stories to an end. The titular heroine had survived for six seasons of adventure, battling her way across the ancient world. The finale was a big topic of discussion and fans wondered whether she would survive the finale. Many had their suspicions that she might not make it, but most weren’t prepared for the brutality and finality with which Xena met her end.
The series wasn’t known for painful and emotional death scenes. Favorite characters had already died and Xena, played by actress Lucy Lawless, was no stranger to death, having already died a small handful of times over the course of the show. In the past, there was always a loophole or a magical way of reviving her. In the finale, that wouldn’t be the case. Viewers tuning in to watch "A Friend in Need Part II” had likely already watched the previous week’s episode, where Xena and Gabrielle traveled together to Japan. Once there, an important moment unfolded where Xena encouraged Gabrielle to take the lead on one of their exploits. Gabrielle’s success illuminated her growing wisdom and strength, foreshadowing the moment when she would take up the mantle of the warrior princess. As the second to last episode came to an end, three armies ominously gathered.
“A Friend in Need Part II” opened with Xena preparing for battle. She fought the three armies courageously but was viciously decapitated after being shot by arrows. It was a rough moment, but the death was part of Xena’s plan, as she knew Yodoshi, the villain she had to face, could not be killed by a mortal. Yodoshi kept 40,000 souls captive -- souls which were uniquely tied to Xena’s past actions. Xena went through many trials in the spirit world but was ultimately able to behead Yodoshi and free the souls.
At that point in the episode, the show still teased the idea of a potential resurrection plotline. A special ceremony performed by Gabrielle on the slopes of Mount Fuji promised to bring Xena back to life, as she’d been revived so many times before. But fans' hopes were dashed when Xena chose to remain dead in order to keep the collection of tormented souls from being lost forever. Gabrielle followed her friend’s wishes, declining to perform the ceremony and allowing the sun to set. The final shot of the series showed Gabrielle taking up the chakram and sailing for Egypt alone, prepared to continue Xena’s legacy.
The outcry from fans was swift. Many had hoped for a happier resolution to the show and watching the humiliations Xena suffered in the final episode made everything even worse. Finales can be controversial, but the decapitation, in particular, felt unnecessarily cruel to fans, as if the writers were severing any hope of future versions of the show. There’s also the fact that Xena was more than a character to many fans. Over the years, she had become a symbol -- a woman living in a male-dominated society who fought on her own terms and was frequently smarter and more clever than those in power. The fact that she was ultimately defeated made a lot of people sad.
But the storyline did give the character one thing she had always longed for: a chance at redemption and an opportunity to atone for her bloody past. Xena’s death was a sacrifice that undid some of the pain she’d caused. As producer Rob Tapert explained, “the finale was really based on where the series started and it seemed to complete her journey looking for redemption.” While there’s been no real re-emergence of the warrior princess since that final episode, it is a comfort to note that the show took place in a world where Xena and Gabrielle had already popped up throughout history, so there’s no reason to believe their story truly ended with Xena’s death.