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Torn.

Actually, if it hadn't been for Season 6, would have been a definite big "Yay." I didn't think sex in the 'verse was supposed to have any negative connotation.

Sure, sometimes it was used for manipulation, even by the "good guys" -- e.g., Xena in Antony & Cleopatra and Amphipolis Under Siege (though to me, the manipulative element in both cases was mitigated by the fact that there was some genuine emotion involved on her part). But plenty of times, it occurred in a positive context. Even in the Xena trilogy on Hercules, while we first saw Xena as a manipulator using her sexual wiles both to control her own men and to pit Hercules and Iolaus against each other (and btw, that was a portrayal I didn't like but I can chalk it up to the character not yet being fully developed), one of the first things she did upon "turning good" was have a very passionate sexual encounter with Herc. There was also sex in the context of a loving relationship between Xena and Marcus in Mortal Beloved and Gabrielle and Perdicus in Return of Callisto. (Sure, Perdicus bit the big one very soon afterward and Marcus was already dead... but then, this is the Xenaverse and the death rate for all kinds of characters is high whether they engage in sex or not. ) Joxer's sexual relationship with Meg is portrayed quite positively despite the fact that Meg is a prostitute. (On a much more serious level, a major character on the "good" side of the ledger -- Lao Ma -- is also an ex-prostitute, or at least ex-courtesan which is basically a higher class of prostitute.) I would also include the Xena/Borias relationship among the positive -- sure, they were both "bad people" and at least in The Debt their relationship seemed to be all about lust and power rather than love, but I think it's pretty clear that overall it was a positive element in their lives. Their relationship was clearly transformative for Borias and I think it had something of that effect on Xena too (especially to the extent that it led to her becoming a mother).

There is no correlation between characters' sexuality (or non-sexuality) and "goodness"/"badness": Ares is intensely sexual but Callisto is both personally and ideologically anti-sex (despite her seductive mannerisms). Likewise, among the minor characters, "baddies" can be either sexual predators (Mezentius in The Path Not Taken) or puritans (Istafan in A Tale of Two Muses). It's also interesting that innocent Xena in Chakram is not sexless.

Speaking of Ares -- Jolly, I know you're previously mentioned that it bothers you that in his interaction with Xena, sexual seduction is made a proxy for "the appeal of the dark side." That's certainly true in some episodes (most notably, The Reckoning and The Bitter Suite), but I have to say I never interpreted it as a "sex = evil" message. I think it's more about the idea that the dark side does have a seductive appeal. However, the salient point to me is that in The Reckoning, the "evil" and "darkness" is not in the sexuality of the X/A dynamic but in Ares' cold-blooded murder of the innocent villagers and in Xena's lashing out at Gabrielle in a fit of blind rage; in The Bitter Suite, the "evil" and "darkness" is not in Xena and Ares' sensual tango but in Xena's "killing" of Gabrielle. That's in stark contrast to the orgy in Heart of Darkness in which sex itself equal sin. And of course eventually Ares is (arguably) redeemed by his very sexual love for Xena. Meanwhile, the evilest of evil influences on X:WP -- Alti -- is never depicted as sexual until all of sudden in When Fates Collide.

Which brings us to Season 6. Oy.

There are just so many ways in which I dislike the portrayal of sex on the show in S6, starting with HOD where the sex = evil idea is front and center. Then we have Who's Gurkhan in which, for the first time ever on the show, Xena becomes a victim of explicitly sexualized violence (compare and contrast the beating in WG and The Reckoning). Then we have the Ring trilogy flashbacks with a very different "seductress Xena" than in any of the previous flashback episodes -- utterly cold in her use of sex as a weapon, with no hint of emotion or true passion or remorse. Then we have more Xena as femme fatale in The God You Know and more evil sexual depravity (which would have been fine if this episode didn't come on the heels of HOD and WG). Then we have Xena: Warrior Slut in the Last of the Centaurs flashbacks. Then we have a virtually X-rated Alti in WFC. Then we have Soul Possession in which the Xena/Ares dynamic turns sleazy and Meg turns into a cold-hearted b*tch.

Thank heavens they didn't produce Last Chance, which would have added to this list the portrayal of Sappho as a b*tchy nympho.

Just a few thoughts I wanted to add...

(1) I totally didn't see Xena's line to Draco, "You picked the wrong woman to get rough with," as referring to an attempted rape! I've always thought it meant they had a fight.

(2) Re Xena being raped by Cortese's men: I don't really see any reason to think that she was. Remember, she doesn't turn into "Evil Xena" right away after leaving her village but only after being betrayed and crucified by Caesar (and yes, there is a sexual element to that betrayal). Her brother's death was trauma enough. To me, Xena's obvious comfort with her sexuality in the Destiny flashbacks (when she seduces Ceasar) really does not suggest someone who has been sexually victimized. (On the other hand, after the way things turned out with Caesar, I strongly doubt she'd try the seduction act again with Borias -- which is one reason the LOTC backstory makes no sense to me.)

(3) Re Livia's participation in female trafficking: actually, the issue of female slavery and its sexual component is definitely a part of the show's fabric from early on. In The Path Not Taken, Xena has to save the captive princess, Janna, from being forcibly taken to Mezentius' bed. In Ties That Bind, I think it's definitely hinted that Rhea became a sex slave to Kirilus' soldiers when she agreed to let them take her from her home village -- that's why she feels so "shamed" that she doesn't think she can go back. Even in a lighthearted episode like The Comedy of Eros, it's clearly implied that Draco is kidnapping the Hestian virgins as sexual merchandise (which is why it's important than his men not "spoil" them for the future sale -- they're valauble as virgins). It's interesting that this theme remained a kind of "subtext" until it exploded out into the open in Who's Gurkhan? (and I don't think in a good way, because, IMO, that episode perpetrated sexploitation in the guise of condemning it).

In the early seasons, there were a few times when TPTB could have made sexual violence (or the threat thereof) a much more prominent topic and deliberately chose not to. For instance, The Lost Mariner, Gabrielle is stuck on a ship with a bunch of men (most of them pirates) who haven't seen a woman in years -- which seems to suggest some pretty nasty possibilities. And in fact, in the original script she was supposed to be sexually stalked by a pirate who finally threatened her at knifepoint (and was fought off by Xena). In the final version, though, the possibility of sexual violence was defused by giving Gabs a comical elderly suitor with a puppy-love crush on her. The right decision, IMO.