Do we like Gabrielle?
A character from Xena: Warrior Princess (1995–2001)
Our score: 8 out of 10. Yes, we'd back her. She's the show's moral compass, and she's kind and loyal. She sometimes lets anger and love cloud her judgment, but she's always trying to do right.
Gabrielle is a young woman from the village of Potidaea who wants more than farm life. She meets the reformed warlord Xena when Xena helps save her village. Gabrielle then insists on following her onto the road, even though Xena is reluctant at first. She begins as a naive, idealistic bard who writes scrolls about their adventures. The show follows the pair as they travel ancient Greece and beyond, fighting warlords, gods and monsters.
Her appeal is her heart. Gabrielle believes in talking before fighting, and she uses a bard's tools of persuasion, storytelling and music to get them out of trouble. A profile on Writeups.org notes that she started as a peaceful bard who could never kill, and that quality was essential to her character. She is also funny, stubborn and fiercely loyal, which makes her an easy friend to root for.
Over six seasons she changes from an innocent sidekick into a capable fighter. She takes up the Amazon staff, becomes an Amazon princess and later a queen, and has to decide what her ideals are worth when the world is brutal. She is sometimes wrong and sometimes angry, but she is always trying to do right. That mix is why she scores high: she is one of the most dependable good people on the show, and not a perfect one.
Her hardest tests come later in the series. Some of her darkest choices and biggest conflicts with Xena involve vengeance, and one storyline ties her to a villainous child. These moments bruise her record, but they are also what make her character feel real.