Ares/Joxer
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[edit] Introduction
This is a slash ship in Xena fandom. Derided by critics because it was often viewed as entirely without canon or subtext, and often lacking in believable characterization, it is still most likely the most popular slash ship within the fandom.
[edit] The Subtext and Maintext
This is a ship which had little if any basis in the canon, either in the main text or the subtext. Fans of the pairing were primarily drawn to it based on the relationship as created by the early fan writers of the pairing. They also liked the extreme contrast of the two characters[1] and, as they were the two main male characters featured on the series, they became the defacto slash pairing. Ares/Joxer stories often accepted Xena/Gabrielle as an established relationship, and that Ares' inability to have Xena and Joxer's inability to have Gabrielle was one factor in driving them together. Joxer might also be drawn to the god of war in seeking a way to improve his skills as a warrior, and Ares would demand sex (sometimes quite brutal in some of the fiction) as a price.
[edit] Timeline
- On December 14, 1997, Althea posted "Blame it on the Mistletoe", the first installment in her War God series. This was the first Ares/Joxer story of note and considered the start of m/m slash fandom in the Xenaverse.[2]
This section needs more information.
[edit] Kerfluffles
- There was primarily some shipping wars and conflicts between Ares/Joxer and Joxer/Gabrielle shippers, as there was a tendency in some Ares/Joxer fiction to present Gabrielle in a very unfavorable manner, as a "bitch" who scorned Joxer for his love. Joxer/Gabrielle shippers did not agree with this characterization, nor that Joxer would turn to Ares when rejected by Gabrielle.
- Some members of Ted Raimi's fandom were extremely opposed to slash fiction about his characters, including Joxer, and kerfuffles over the subject broke out repeatedly on tedites, a general discussion group for his fans which was associated at the time with Ted's official fan club.[3] At one point, a member of the list took sections of an Ares/Joxer story by Rickey, plagiarized them to add in more violence and blood, and posted these passages on tedites. This person also claimed that this story had been emailed directly to her underage daughter by a slash-writing member of tedites. The postings were deleted from the mailing list archive and the matter eventualy dismissed as being an (successful) attempt to start a flame war, but was symptomatic of the tensions within the fandom at the time regarding slash fan-fiction. (sidewinder)
[edit] Influential Stories
- Althea's The War God series[4]
- Miriam Heddy's Ares/Joxer series, beginning with Lessons in Battle[5]
- Rose Ferguson's Love Potion Number Nine
- sidewinder's Moments of Transition series[6]
[edit] Shippers
[edit] Ship Size
This section needs more information.
