Now that the mighty fighter has firmed up her lead on the syndicated action circuit, "Xena" producers plan to keep her out front by introducing several surprises next season. And her legions of fans are helping to expand her empire with activities and goods ranging from Xena conventions to comic books.

Xena wears a bronze-plated bustier Madonna would envy and a nail-studded leather miniskirt, but she hasn't let all that heavy metal slow her down. In February, just midway through her second TV season, she passed her most fearsome syndicated TV rival -- "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" -- in the ratings game. In San Francisco, "Xena" fans tune into the show on Channel 20 at 9 p.m. Tuesdays; it repeats at 10 p.m. Saturdays.

But despite her skimpy outfits, this is no "Baywatch" babe. Xena is a statuesque superheroine who, with the help of her loyal sidekick Gabrielle (Renee O'Connor), traverses ancient worlds and eras, battling merciless gods and ruthless warlords, and defeating syndicated TV contenders such as "Baywatch."

Her arsenal includes Hong Kong-style butt-kicking blows, campy char acters and the ongoing theme of a mythic heroine's attempt to make peace with her dark past as an evil warlord. It doesn't hurt that the series is filmed in the lush woodlands of New Zealand, the homeland of its star, Lucy Lawless. Then there's Xena's fan-pleasing banshee battle cry: "Yi-yi-yi-yi-yi!"

And while Xena is short on clothing, she's long on attitude. As she's defending women from a roving band of rapists, she says to one, "You like shoving women around so much? Try me!"

Picture Jackie Chan meets "Wonder Woman," add a dash of "Thelma and Louise" and you've got "Xena."

Next season, the series will feature a musical episode in which Lawless and the cast sing. Viewers can also expect a new villain, said Robert Tapert, who with Sam Raimi produces the "Xena" and "Hercules" shows. "We also want to challenge the bond between Gabrielle and Xena," he added.

Until then, "Xena" fans can get their fix at Xena-fests, including one in Sacramento this Saturday featuring Hudson Leick, who plays the villain Callisto, and Robert Trevor, who plays Salmoneus. O'Connor and Michael Hurst, who plays Hercules' buddy Iolaus, are slated to appear at a San Francisco convention October 18.

`XENA' PARAPHERNALIA

Fans who attend such shows may even take a little piece of "Xena" home. At the Burbank convention last January, one bidder paid $8,500 for an official copy of Xena's discus-shaped weapon, called a chakram.

There are less expensive Xena action figures, Halloween costumes, more than 60 Web sites, a CD-ROM and a direct-to-video animated musical due out this fall. Topps Comics will give Xena her own comic book in August.

Xenaphiles have already found succor in three Xena-based novels by Ru Emerson: "The Empty Throne," "The Huntress and the Sphinx" and "The Thief of Hermes." The Oregon-based writer hadn't heard of Xena until her agent suggested she tune in. "The first show I saw opened with a hilarious scene in which Xena takes on 15 goons and flattens 'em all," said Emerson, 52. "I hadn't seen anything that good since Emma Peel in `The Avengers'!"

In TV land, homages to Xena have appeared on ABC sitcoms "Ellen" and "Roseanne" and NBC's "Something So Right."

But Xena reaches her largest audiences on her own show, where she appeals to viewers on multiple levels. "It's the `Rocky and Bullwinkle' of the '90s, because it offers a lot of sly adult humor but also appeals to kids," said Charles Novinskie, 36, a sales manager for Topps Comics. He cites the oft-repeated curse, "Oh, for Gaia's sake!"

TALES OF MORALITY

The married-with-children set may like "Xena" because the show, while violent, minimizes gore and serves up a morality tale each episode. "It's a representation of how women's roles have changed in society," said Paul Brooks, a soil scientist at the University of California at Berkeley, and father of two young children. "In other shows, women may be physically strong, but they're always helped out by a man when things get rough. Xena never is. Thirty years ago, a show like this wouldn't have been as accepted as it is today."

Women often view Xena as an icon of female empowerment. "I love seeing two strong women who have a sense of humor, and who don't take crap from anyone," said Miryam Ramos, 39, owner of The Comic Shop in San Leandro. Male fans like the fantasy of a woman in a dominant role, says Sam Liebowitz, 35, of Software Sculptors in New York, which sells an encyclopedic CD-ROM about the "Xena" and "Hercules" shows. Adds Liebowitz: "And we like her outfit."

MORE THAN FRIENDS?

Then there's the don't-ask, don't-tell angle. While Xena may have men in her life, fans such as Julie Hill view Xena and Gabrielle as more than friends. "If you're gay, you pick up on the fact that they're lovers," she said, noting that the pair have kissed onscreen.

Hill, 31, helped launch a "Xena" viewing night Tuesdays at the Chat House in San Francisco. "Now we're talking about a Xena float in the (June 29) Gay Freedom Day Parade," she said.

Executive producer Tapert strives to keep the Xena-Gabrielle relationship ambiguous. "I have a huge following of kids who look at them as absolute role models, so we try to present the broadest picture," he said.

But the show playfully pushed the envelope again in a recent episode in which Xena wound up kissing the default winner of the Miss Known World beauty contest. It turned out the winner -- Miss Artiphys -- was really a mister.

LAWLESS LIVES BY HER OWN RULES

Lucy Lawless was born to play a battling babe.

The actress who as Xena kung- fu fights her way through ancient lands, said her origins as the eldest girl in an Irish Catholic family that included four older brothers gave her plenty of on-the-job training for the role.

"At age 10 in a play about the prodigal son," said Lawless in a phone interview from her home in in Auckland, New Zealand, "I was the woman who rips him off. I played the tough broad even then."

Tougher still was accepting her status as an icon of female empowerment. "I was afraid they'd try to copy me," she said.

Instead, she found Xena inspired many women to try things they had feared. "One woman wrote to me about how she went out and damn well bought that Harley-Davidson she'd always wanted, and that blew me away," she said.

Lawless is about to take on another tough-gal role when she appears as Rizzo in the musical "Grease" on Broadway this September. She hesitated to talk about how she'll portray the headstrong Rizzo, then added, "You can't help but make choices with lines which are born out of your own personality and history."

WORLD TRAVELER

Given Lawless' past, she can draw from quite a range of experiences. The daughter of the former mayor of Mount Albert, she enrolled in 1986 at Auckland University to study languages and opera, but soon grew restless.

"I went traveling to Switzerland, Italy and Greece and my boyfriend, Garth Lawless, joined me," she said. The couple also traveled to the outback of Australia, where the then-Lucy Ryan worked for gold-mining companies, mapping and taking soil samples. She soon discovered she was pregnant and the couple married. They returned to Auckland where Daisy, now 8, was born.

COMEDY TROUPE WORK

Determined to act, Lawless landed a job with a comedy troupe on a New Zealand television show called "Funny Business." She was working as a co-host for a travel show when she got a call for a role on a "Hercules" show that eventually led to her own series.

Lawless is divorced and now seeing Robert Tapert, executive producer of "Hercules" and "Xena." Eventually, she hopes to have a larger family. "I want to be a very happy 80-year-old woman. And for me, that means having more of a family. And kids require time."

Lawless claims she's not particularly interested in developing a film career -- at least not while she's playing Xena. "Being a warrior princess is a full-time job," she said.

CONVENING FOR XENA

The Official Hercules/ Xena Convention is 1 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the Sacramento Community Center, 1401 J St., Sacramento. Call (916) 923-BASS for ticket information. The convention will take place in San Francisco on October 18 from 1 to 7 p.m. at the Masonic Auditorium, 1111 California St. After September 18, call (510) 762-BASS for tickets.

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