It's dawn in the stables. The rooster crows. Argo eats an apple. Joxer (Ted Raimi) walks into the stable carrying a helmet full of goose eggs and gets bonked on the head by a horseshoe. The stable boy peeks down below, hoping he hasn't hit anything. And Gabrielle (Renee O'Connor) is annoyed with Joxer. This same scenario is played out each morning. Same plot, same characters and the same dialogue. Xena (Lucy Lawless) needs to find a way out.
Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer head into the town square the first day, where they witness a confrontation between two feuding families: the House of Menos and the House of Lycost. When Joxer gets in the middle of the fight, he is stabbed and dies. Later that afternoon, Gabrielle mourns at his funeral.
It's dawn again the following day at the stables and when Xena wakes up, she hears a familiar voice -- it's Joxer. He's alive. Gabrielle and Joxer have no memory of the previous day, but Xena remembers it all. She begins each successive morning with a knowledge of events which have already transpired and runs all over town saving people from dying because she knows their fate. Argo even gets killed by an angry mob, but when Xena wakes up the next morning, Argo is still alive. Xena realizes that if the day is repeating itself, then the town has a lesson to learn. Perhaps she can save the feuding families from a bloodbath and break the cycle.
Ultimately, Xena learns that beautiful young Hermia (Rebekah Davies) has drunk the stolen poison, sure she will never be allowed to marry her beloved Neron (Joseph Murray). Akin to the Romeo and Juliet tragedy, the young lovers are certain that the hatred between their respective Houses will keep them apart forever. Neron tells Xena that Cupid has answered his pleas for help by causing the day Hermia drank the poison to be repeated over and over again until a hero can be found to fix everything. Neron thought Cupid meant Hercules or Sinbad, but it turns out Xena is the hero. As the events of the fateful day unfold once again, Xena is able to knock the poison from Hermia's grasp in a stunning long distance maneuver with her chakram.
Xena is also able to finally bring the town feud to an end. She learns from the midwife that Lady Menos actually saved the lives of Lady Lycost and her baby following childbirth. After hearing this story, Lord Menos (John McKee) and Lord Lycost (Norman Fairley) decide to make peace and they agree to the marriage of Hermia and Neron. Xena is pleased to wake up the next morning to a brand new day.
Guest Starring: Ted Raimi (Joxer), Joseph Murray (Neron), Deverick Williams (Tybelus), Rebekah Davies (Hermia), John McKee (Lord Menos), Norman Fairley (Lord Lycost), Marek Summich (Edos), Norman Forsey (Casca), Rodney Cooke (Man #1), Campbell Rousselle (Man #2), Neill Duncan (Perion), John Glass (Tius), Mary Woodward (Altara), John Smythe (Apothecary)
Starring: Lucy Lawless as Xena, Renee O'Connor as Gabrielle
Written by Hilary J. Bader
Directed by Andrew Merrifield