With last week's "catch-up" night
creating a gap between new episodes, we were given an extra week to grieve the
loss of a certain beloved character at the end of "Separate
Paths." Even with the added time between episodes, it was still
impossible not to get emotional at the end of tonight's episode, which took a
moment to honor Crixus and remember the fallen brothers. Just hearing the names
Varro, Oenomaus, Mira and others makes me want to start from the beginning and
watch all of the seasons just to revisit the fallen brothers and sisters of
this war.
"Victory" awaits! It's not
entirely impossible to predict what might happen in next week's finale, but
this show has always been a bit more about the execution than it is the
outcome. Case in point, do we miss Lucy Lawless on this series? Absolutely. But
it's impossible to regret her fantastic final scene. So, my optimistic approach
to next week's finale is that, no matter who lives and who dies, I just want it
to be amazing. This show has yet to let me down in that regard.
Tonight's episode had Spartacus
catching himself a gaggle of Romans, one of whom just so happened to be
Tiberius. This happened only after Naevia returned with the head of her beloved
and news of the Romans' victory against Crixus' army, and how the "boy of
scant years" stabbed her beloved in the back.
The table's turned fast tonight, when
Tiberius and his guys were captured - falling prey to a trap set when Spartacus
and his men had the good fortune of taking down some of Pompey's men - and
Crassus sent Caesar off to Spartacus to offer a trade. He offered the captured
rebels (or 500 of them) for Tiberius' life. As much as I'm sure we all wanted
to see Tiberius come to a bloody death, would it be worth it if it meant
Agron's life? Poor Agron was literally crucified and left to suffer on a cross
while the details were sorted out. And to think, had it not been for last
week's catch-up night, this episode (and that crucifixion) would have taken
place Good Friday, the day Christians commemorate the crucifixion of Christ.
It's been so long since we've seen
some arena fighting in this series. Tonight, rather than the enslaved
gladiators being forced to fight each other, it was the captured Romans being
fought and killed for sport by fighters far more experienced and far more
motivated than they were. It was no contest. There was even a cliff. It was
just like old times.
I wanted Naevia to be the one to kill
Tiberius. Given what she's been through and the abuse she's suffered at Roman
hands, added to Tiberius' proven appreciation for sexual assault as a means of
asserting himself, it seemed fitting that Naevia be the warrior tasked with
killing him. Plus, he killed Crixus, so there's that too. The justice wouldn't
just be poetic, it'd also be plain-old-eye-for-an-eye vengeance.
As it turned out, Naevia didn't get
her eye, but Tiberius did get the stab in the back he had coming to him, and it
came from another one of his victims. Naevia did get to fight and defeat
Tiberius in the arena. Her battle with Tiberius was another demonstration of
just how far she's come, especially when we consider the live she lived when
they were all still in Capua. I don't think I ever would have pictured that
Naevia battling anyone in the ring. This Naevia is a warrior.
Naevia had Tiberius down, and it was
just a matter of landing his own sword against his neck. But she chose not to
when Spartacus informed her - at the very last second - of the trade Caesar
offered. Earlier Naevia had a conversation with Kore about the choices they've
made, essentially calling Kore out not killing Crassus when she had the chance.
Well, she had the chance to kill Tiberius in the arena, but when moment
presented itself to "balance scale," she ended up choosing not to
follow through. It was the right call, even if she hated to do it. And the
victory is still hers where it counts.
Tiberius was set to be returned to
his father, and Caesar assured them they'd honor the deal. Then Kore showed up
and stuck a dagger in Tiberius' back, clearly deciding now was the time to
"balance fucking scales." Tiberius had just long enough to realize
what happened and know he was dying, and then he died. He had it coming, not
only for raping Kore (and Caesar, who played his part in all of this), but also
for stabbing Crixus in the back. Just a little bit of Karma to go with the carnage.
Of course, with Tiberius' dead, the
arranged trade was on the verge of collapsing. But earlier, Tiberius revealed
to Kore that Crassus missed her dearly. So Kore offered herself up as something
else Crassus wanted to honor the trade. It probably wasn't the hugest sacrifice
on her part, when you think about it. She seemed pretty content to be Crassus'
slave/mistress. They were even on a first-name basis. It was being raped by
Tiberius that Kore didn't appreciate, and that's what led her to join the rebels.
Now that he's dead, she can return to Crassus and they can live happily ever
after, right? Crassus did welcome her back with open arms, seeming to buy
Caesar's fudged version of the truth. But he wants her to call him Dominus now,
which suggests he's cooled to her since she left him. So maybe she'll regret
this choice down the line, especially considering she had her freedom. Or maybe
she'll think it's worth it because she got to put a knife in her rapist's back.
Caesar did make good on the trade,
and many rebels were returned, Agron among them. Nasir - who believed him to be
dead - was there to help him the moment he arrived, barely able to walk on his
own. Castus looked sad, but given his feelings for Nasir, that's not
surprising.
For Crixus!
The episode ended with an emotional
tribute to the fallen gladiators and rebels as Crixus' head was burned. It was
a fitting moment to reflect on the men and women who died over the course of
this story, and it may be the only time the show has left to do that. There's
just one episode in this story. "Victory" airs
next Friday night and the distant thunder promises storm and blood!
No comments:
Post a Comment