Mark Nua Movies

Upon returning from India with her friend Xena (Lucy Lawless), Gabrielle (Renee O'Connor) is accosted by Zehra (Jennifer Ward-Leland), "Queen of the Cons." In league with another sharpster named Milo (Mark Hadlow), Zehra persuades Gabrielle to write a play about Xena's exploits, to be given a lavish and expensive world premiere. What Zehra doesn't reveal is that she intends to pull a "Max Bialystock," producing a sure-fire flop so that she won't have to pay back the play's many wealthy investors. In addition to its Mel Brooks trappings, this episode also features such esoterica as "Buffus the Bacchae Slayer" and "Dustinus Hoofmanus." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Attending a reunion of Jason's Argonauts in Corinth, Hercules (Kevin Sorbo) and Iolaus (Michael Hurst) discover, to their dismay, that the once mighty King Jason (Jeffrey Thomas), devastated by the bloody unpleasantness involving his bride Medea and their children, has become a dissolute drunkard. Worse still, the Blood-Eyes, a Hera-worshipping cult, have stolen the precious Golden Fleece. With Hercules' encouragement, Jason and the Argonauts set sail again to retrieve the Fleece and restore Jason's self-respect -- and along the way they encounter a familiar-looking band of skeleton warriors. (It is not for nothing that this episode is dedicated to movie special-effects wizard Ray Harryhausen.) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hercules (Kevin Sorbo) and Iolaus (Michael Hurst) are confronted with a baffling mystery when they try to find out who has been plucking the dead from the battlefield of Tantalus. In the process, Hercules finds himself in the middle of a war between his friend King Daulin (Erik Thomson) and Daulin's own sister Poena (Amber Jane Raub). Complicating matters is the fact that another of Hercules' friend, Jarton (Reb Brown), is now Poena's lieutenant. Behind all this intrigue and mayhem is the war god Ares -- of whom it can be said that, at the very least, he loves his dog. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi