Directed by TJ Scott
Written by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
Xena and Gabrielle join forces with Joxer and Orpheus to defeat the evil god Bacchus, who is transforming innocent girls into deadly monsters.
Tropes
- Ancient Grome : Baccus is the Roman name for Dionysus Who has been mentioned before
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Bacchus has been trying to convert Xena into a bacchae all episode. He finally gets her to be bitten when she finds out she can only kill him as a bacchae. What he didn't expect was for her to stay in control long enough to stab him.
- Decomposite Character : Bacchus is the Roman name for Dionysus the God of Wine. Sounds like a case of Ancient Grome right? Not entirely. Dionysus has been referenced on both Hercules and Xena before. An episode centering on celebrating Dionysus was even the focus of a season 1 Hercules episode. Hercules also indicates Dionysus is a pretty decent God despite being a lush. Assuming this isn’t a retcon it’s safe to bet Bacchus and Dionysus are two separate Gods.
- Embarrassing Hobby: Joxer is forced to admit that he's the only one capable of playing the lyre. Considering that he wants to be known as a powerful warrior, having a musical hobby is embarrassing to him.
- Failed a Spot Check: Joxer constantly fails to notice the various attempts by Bacchae Gabrielle to suck his blood, only failing because Joxer unintentionally turns towards her.
- Hijacked by Jesus: Bacchus just so happens to resemble common artistic depictions of Satan.
- Halloween Episode: Of course. When it first premiered, it functioned as a double-bill with "Mummy Dearest" from Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.
- Heroic Willpower. Xena manages to starve off Bacchus' Mind Control long enough to stab him. Gabrielle goes along with Xena to assist her.
- Hidden Depths: Joxer's mother made him take lyre lessons as a child.
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Les Yay: The amount of subtext in through the roof, especially on the dance floor when Gabrielle ends dancing with a couple of bacchae women. - Losing Your Head: Orpheus, courtesy of a curse by Bacchus after beheading him.
- Loud of War: The sound of a lyre harms bacchaes. Joxer happens to be a skilled enough lyre player to put it to good use.
- Off with His Head!: Orpheus spends almost all of the episode as a severed head.
- Our Vampires Are Different: The Bacchae. They can transform into animals, can turn other women, and generally prefer to tear men to pieces. Instead of mere stakes, Dryad bones are needed to kill them.
- Red Herring: Joxer initially suspects that Xena is turning into a bacchae, but it's actually Gabrielle.
- The End... Or Is It?: Bacchus is seemingly killed by Xena, but the final shot includes his laughter and eye watching the heroes.
- Vampire Refugee: Double Subverted. After a close encounter with some bacchae, Gabrielle and Joxer see Xena's neck baring a scar. They suspect that Xena is transforming into a bacchae. Later on, Joxer confronts Xena on the injury. She states that it was a scratch, not a bite. It turns out she was telling the truth... only for the two to turn their heads and see Gabrielle transform into a bacchae.
