by Katherine Adams

Created on: October 02, 2009

In the fantasy world of television, being a sidekick can be a pretty good gig. Who was Batman, without Robin? Captain Kirk, without Mr. Spock? Xena, Warrior, Princess, without Gabrielle? In the case of Xena, her courage couldn't have changed the world without her best friend, traveling companion and soul mate Gabrielle.

But there's a reason we use cliches like "three's a crowd." Just ask Joxer, played brilliantly by Ted Raimi during the six-year run of "Xena, Warrior Princess." Joxer and Ted suffered the vitriol from fans who were annoyed from the moment he appeared in his first episode, called "Callisto." Joxer was a wannabe warrior dressed in castoffs from someone's kitchen. He clattered whenever he walked, and chattered whenever silence might have prevented the numerous disasters he caused.

He stumbled into Xena (Lucy Lawless) and Gabrielle's (Renee O'Connor) world with the intent to hand them over to Callisto (Hudson Leick), the blond villain whose sole interest was to hurt, maim and/or destroy Xena. Callisto believed her mother and sister were killed by the once-evil Xena herself during a raid on Cirra, the blond's hometown. Enter Joxer. He eagerly volunteered to round up Xena and her little friend carrying the little stick, so he could join Callisto's band of thugs. After "little friend" Gabrielle knocked him senseless several times with her Amazon staff, he still didn't see the light.

At the end of the episode, when he and Gabrielle were tied together, dangling over a fire until Xena rescued them, he seemed to realize that Callisto's revenge didn't quite suit his abilities. So he decided Xena and Gabrielle (who he annoyingly nicknamed "Gabby") might complement what he believed were his warrior skills. And that's where the trouble for Joxer and Ted really began.

Joxer began to admire Xena, but he loved Gabrielle. And he was convinced she loved him. He was oblivious to the looks and comments and downright put-downs by the main characters. Every time a tender moment was about to occur involving Xena and Gabrielle, Joxer's pointy hat managed to deflate the scene. Xena, for the most part, tolerated Joxer, and when he was in the way, she'd send him off on a mission. Gabrielle's irritation with his puppy-love looks, and downright declarations of love were not enough to satisfy anti-Joxer fans. On "Xena, Warrior Princess" TV forum boards, fans wanted him stabbed and stomped by Callisto. Or melted by one of Ares' (played by the late Kevin Smith) blazing fireballs.

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>