Joxer

"Or maybe he could be a Monkey, and his tail could get longer" -Joxer on an alternate version of 'Pinnochio', in "If the Shoe Fits..."

Joxer the Mighty is a wannabe warrior, who accompanies Xena and Gabrielle on thier travels. He is a reccuring character on Xena: Warrior Princess. He is thier soulmate, appearing in all of thier future lives. When we first meet Joxer, he wanted to join Callisto's army as a warlord, but later began travelling with Xena and Gabrielle, doing good. As time progresses, we learn that he is in love with Gabrielle.

He is one of the few people that Xena and Gabrielle trust.

He has at least three children with Meg, the Xena look-a-like; Virgil and a much younger son and daughter that are seen in in 'Looking Death In The Eye'.

He is played by Ted Raimi.

Early Life
Joxer is the youngest of his triplet brothers, Jett and Jace. Joxer grew up on Olympic Street, clost to Aghmar the Meatman. His father came from a line of warlords, of which he tried to follow. Little is known about the rest of his family, only that his father is serving time on prison for an unknown crime and Jett was in there with him, for his assassination attempt on Cleopatra in 'The King Of Assassins'. Jett possibly escaped from prison, due to the bounty on his head in 'Takes One To Know One'.

Early Travels with Xena and Gabrielle
Joxer first appeared in 'Callisto', where he was turned down by Callisto for joining her army. He later went on to travel with Xena and Gabrielle, where he decided to fight for the Greater Good. He isn't trained in any fighting skill, weapon or hand-to-hand, despite carrying a sword. Considering this, he does have a heart of gold and often shows extreame bravery.

Deepening the Character
It is revealed in 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' that Joxer can play the Lyre. He does so, and it causes all of the Bacchae to be temporarily disabled.

The first time he meets his future wife, Meg, was in 'Warrior... Princess... Tramp'. Meg, a Xena look-a-like, shows signs of attraction to Joxer. Joxer, thinking it is Xena who likes him, becomes secretive towards Meg. The two become closer and both drop hints throughout the show that they are having an affair.

It isn't until 'A Comedy of Eros', that we first get an insight into Joxer's character. Cupid's son, Eros, wrecks havoc by shooting people with his father's arrows. When he shoots Gabrielle and she falls in love with Joxer, he basks in the attention he gets from her. When Cupid returns to put everyone right again, he tries to heal the love-sick Joxer, but after a few attempts Xena tells him to leave Joxer, as it's real, hinting that Xena had known about his secret crush all along. Later that day, Gabrielle jokes with Joxer by saying that she couldn't imagine the two of them in love. He looks rather depressed, when Xena places her hand on his shoulder and smiles, as if to indicate that everything will be fine.

Joxer's brother, Jett, puts in his first appearance in 'The King Of Assassins', where he tries to kill Cleopatra. Joxer seemed to be scared of his older brother. This was later revealed to be jusy sibling rivalry, when Jett kills Cleopatra's rogue guard, who hurts Joxer. Jett then says that no one harms his little brother but him.

When Joxer is almost beaten to death by a Casino owner's son, Xena and Gabrielle show a more loving and protective side to Joxer, by trying to stop bring own this Casino owner. An almost dead Joxer manages to get out of bed and, despite his condition, tries to face up to Titus, the Casino owner and his son, Leo. Xena manages to bring down Titus and Leo with the help of Rafe and Eldon, two con men.

Gaining Xena's Trust
Joxer maybe the 'comic relief' of the show, but Xena knows that she can trust him. She shows this, emmensly so, by entrusting with him the location of the Hind's Blood Dagger and asking him to retrieve it for her, So that she can kill Gabrielle's Demi-God daughter, Hope. He does so, proving him worthy of her trust.

Xena then tries to find Gabrielle, and Ares claims he knows where she is, but there is a catch. She must marry him. Xena confids in Joxer, due to Gabrielle's absence. This proves that she thinks of Joxer as the next in line to Gabrielle.

First Kill and Aftermath
Joxer had never killed, (despite what he says) until the episode, 'The Convert', where he kills a warlord, Criton, who has ransacked a church, and is trying to kidnap the virgins. Joxer is speechless and slumps into depression after this. Xena tells him to face up to what he's done by telling someone - his son, Armand. He does so, and Armand is livid at Joxer's actions. After Armand calms down, he tells Joxer that he is no longer angry with Joxer, as he knows that his father was evil and that someone had to stop him. Armand and Joxer stay good friends.

Joxer seems to grow up a little bit after this. He seems to be more aware and engages a bit more in the combat.

Soulmate
The first reference to Joxer being Xena and Gabrielle's soulmate is made in 'Deja Vu All Over Again', where, he is alongside Gabrielle and Xena in present day. His in the body of a woman, Annie Day (Played by Lucy Lawless).

In the next episode, 'Fallen Angel', he then tells Amarice that he had been having dreams that Xena and Gabrielle were in trouble. This is true (They had been crucified), showing that there is a psychological link between the three.

Admitting His Love for Gabrielle
After Eli and Callisto ressurect Xena and Gabrielle from the dead, he realises that he nearly lost her, and it was this that was the catalyst that made him tell Gabrielle that he loves her. He confides in Eli the 'Love Guru', in his own words, that he wants to tell her but doesn't know how to. Eli tells him that he should just say what he feels in his heart. Joxer chooses a rather stupid moment to tell her - in the heat of battle. Gabrielle is shocked by the news, but accepts it and moves on, as does Joxer.

Reconciling with His Brother
Joxer's other brother, Jace, makes his debut in 'Lyre, Lyre, Hearts On Fire'. He is portrayed as being a very flamboyant, camp, pop king. He wore a pink, frilly all-in-one and speaks with a fake Spanish accent. He is nothing like Joxer or Jett, despite being triplets. He is also possibly homosexual, judging by his stereotypical appearance. Joxer doesn't speak of his brother, as he is embarassed by him. After some thinking, Joxer decides to reconcile with his brother and put thier differences aside.

After Xena and Gabrielle's Death
After Xena and Gabrielle's death, he began searching for them non-stop. It is during this time that he had his first son, Virgil, with his long-time lover, Meg. He opened up a tavern in memory of Xena and Gabrielle, which had Xena and Gabrielle related themes to its food and building layout. He also gained possession of Argo, Xena's horse. He put her in foul, and named the offspring Argo II. He never let anyone ride her, and kept her in a field outside his tavern.

After Argo died, he gave up hope and stopped looking for Xena and Gabrielle. He had more children with Meg and settled down and focused on his business.Years later, the local auctioner came into Joxer's tavern, trying to flog a scroll, entitled 'Looking Death In The Eye'. It is said that it was the chronicle of Xena and Gabrielle's last adventure. He skimmed through it and realised that it was in Gabrielle's writing and bought it for 65 Dinars, with hope that it would give answers to Xena and Gabrielle's where abouts. He reads the story to two of his younger children. Much to his dismay, it doesn't reveal the location of Xena and Gabrielle.

Death
Probably about a year later, Xena and Gabrielle awaken from thier 25 year survival without a clue where they are. They stumble across a tavern that has a replica of Xena's Chakram and Gabrielle's Sais above the door. Of course, they enter and find an old Joxer and Meg arguing over a food order. Joxer turns around to find the past staring right back at him. He catches them up on what they've missed and he introduces them to Virgil. Joxer tells Xena and Gabrielle that Octavius (Now Augustus Caesar) swore that they were alive. Xena then asks if he said anything about Eve and then they decide to go to Rome to find her.

They discover that Eve is now called Livia and is known as 'The Bitch Of Rome'. Joxer, Xena and Gabrielle try to talk her into sense and tell her who she really is, but they fail. Xena chases her down on her own, but Gabrielle follows and tells Virgil to not to tell Joxer where shes gone. Virgil tells him after persuasion and he follows Gabrielle. Livia fails to see sense and Joxer pays the price with his life. He died trying to protect Gabrielle. Livia was trying to kill her, but killed Joxer instead.

After his death, Joxer's son Virgil travelled with Xena, Gabrielle and Eve, after forgiving her for killing his father. It should be noted that after his father died, Virgil used Joxer's sword in respect of his memory.

Running Gags
Part of being the comic relief of a programme, comes running gags, and Joxer had a few of them:
 * Fainting whenever kissed.
 * Gabrielle pinching his nose.
 * Unspontaneously saving the day.
 * Never taken seriously.
 * Oblivious to his deathly cooking.

Trivia

 * Ted Raimi also plays Jett and Jace, his on-screen brothers.
 * Although it is oftenly over-looked, he is Xena and Gabrielle's soulmate, appearing in all of thier future lives.

Xena: Warrior Princess

 * 1) Callisto
 * 2) Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
 * 3) Return of Callisto
 * 4) Warrior... Princess... Tramp
 * 5) Intimate Stranger
 * 6) Ten Little Warlords
 * 7) The Xena Scrolls
 * 8) For Him the Bell Tolls
 * 9) A Comedy of Eros
 * 10) Been There, Done That
 * 11) The King of Assassins
 * 12) Warrior... Priestess... Tramp
 * 13) The Quill Is Mightier...
 * 14) The Bitter Suite
 * 15) King Con
 * 16) Forget Me Not
 * 17) Fins, Femmes and Gems
 * 18) Sacrifice Part II
 * 19) A Family Affair
 * 20) In Sickness and in Hell
 * 21) The Key to the Kingdom
 * 22) If the Shoe Fits...
 * 23) The Play's the Thing
 * 24) The Convert
 * 25) Takes One to Know One
 * 26) Deja Vu All Over Again
 * 27) Fallen Angel
 * 28) Chakram
 * 29) Animal Attraction
 * 30) Purity
 * 31) Back in the Bottle
 * 32) Lyre, Lyre, Hearts on Fire
 * 33) Punch Lines
 * 34) Eternal Bonds
 * 35) Married with Fishsticks
 * 36) Kindred Spirits
 * 37) Looking Death in the Eye
 * 38) Livia
 * Eve
 * 1) Motherhood
 * 2) When Fates Collide
 * 3) Soul Possession

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys

 * 1) When a Man Loves a Woman
 * 2) Stranger in a Strange World