Joxer

Joxer is a fictional character played by Ted Raimi in the Xena: Warrior Princess television series. He is a comical wanna-be warrior, and styles himself "Joxer the Mighty".

Character development

The third son of a warlord and a musician, Joxer tries to prove himself as a mercenary warrior. When he tries to serve the evil warlord Callisto, she orders him to kidnap Xena's companion, Gabrielle. He fails, and both he and Gabrielle are captured by Callisto and later rescued by Xena.

He then decides that he wants to help people and 'do good', and travels around the villages enthusiastically offering his services. But Joxer's ideas of being a fierce, super-sexy warrior exist only in his fantasies. In reality he is foolish, klutzy and usually outclassed, but often very lucky and very funny. These qualities can be endearing, and his real quality is as a charmer: he can befriend almost anyone he chooses. He frequently gets himself into near-fatal situations, and in desperation, talks his way out of them; several times he tries to bring peace to warring families; on many occasions, he proves useful to Xena in winning people over.

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Joxer while under Aphrodite's spell

Joxer appears again in a comedic role, when Aphrodite casts a spell on him to turn him into a romantic, exceptionally talented swordsman with irresistible sex appeal. He is able, for one episode, to be the type of person that he always wants to be.

As time goes on, Joxer becomes a loyal and good friend to Xena and Gabrielle. It is probably his love for Gabrielle, which begins in the episode "A Comedy of Eros", that sustains Joxer in his delusions; but he keeps it secret. She is sometimes very insensitive to him, generating more sympathy from the viewer.

After the season 3 cliffhanger, when Gabrielle plunges to her death in the lava pit, it is Joxer who mourns her by dropping daisies, her favourite flower, into the pit every day.

After the season 4 cliffhanger, when Xena and Gabrielle are crucified by Julius Caesar, Joxer persuades Amarice and Eli to return their bodies to their home towns in Greece.

In season 5, when Xena and Gabrielle fake their deaths, Joxer searches in vain for their bodies for a long time. Twenty-five years later we see a much older and wearier Joxer married to the ex-harlot Meg. They run a tavern dedicated to the "Warrior Princess and the Battling Bard", where they bicker unhappily; against her wishes, we see him spending their life's savings on one of Gabrielle's scrolls. They have three children: two boys and a girl, who he dotes on. His eldest boy is Virgil, the warrior poet.

Discovering that Xena and Gabrielle are alive, his eyes light up and he is again filled with youthful enthusiasm. Joxer and Virgil travel with them in search of Eve, Xena's daughter. They discover that Eve is now known as "Livia, the Champion of Rome", an awesome warrior with many of Xena's skills and Ares's attention. During the fight with her, he charges at Livia to save Gabrielle, and Livia brutally kills him. Although Joxer is no match for Livia, his actions delay her long enough for Xena to arrive and save Gabrielle.

Joxer's family

Joxer has 2 brothers (both also played by Ted Raimi), and he avoids both of them -

• Jett, seen in the episode "King of Assassins", is an uncouth, ruthless assassin who would sell his own grandmother. Jett bullies Joxer in what he thinks of as brotherly affection, but this irritates and demeans Joxer.
• Jace, an extremely camp and extravagant singer of popular music, who wears brightly coloured clothes and affects a Spanish accent. Joxer can't bear to be associated with him because he says his brother is "different" and "ruining his life", although in the episode Lyre, Lyre, Hearts on Fire they reconcile.

Uber-Joxer

One of the secondary themes of the show is the reincarnation of the central characters, including Xena, Gabrielle, Joxer, and Alti. The principle of Uber determines that the fates of these characters are entwined, and wherever and whenever they are reincarnated, they will always find each other.

In Deja Vu All Over Again, a future-Joxer living in modern-day America has been reincarnated as a hardcore Xena/Joxer fan, Annie Day, in Xena's body, and is disappointed to discover that he is in fact Joxer.

External links

• A look at Joxer