THE STORY: The series begins in 52 BC, as Gaius Julius Caesar completes his conquest of Gaul after eight years of war, and prepares to return with his army to Rome. While Caesar’s self-interested niece Atia and long-lost paramour Servilia anxiously await the general’s return, ruling patricians despair that Caesar’s homecoming will disrupt the status quo, and threaten the extravagant prosperity they’ve enjoyed at the expense of the lower class. In the Senate, old-guard leaders plot to undermine Caesar’s influence by convincing his old friend, Pompey Magnus, that the general is a threat. Back at the front, two mismatched soldiers, Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo, see their fortunes rise following several serendipitous missions. As Caesars legions move closer to Rome, allegiances are put to the test for soldiers and civilians – and the escalating tensions climax with a full-scale conflict destined to change history.
THE REVIEW:
EPISODE 01: The Stolen Eagle – We come into Rome as Julius Caesar conquers the Gauls. Pompey Magnus sits at the head of the Senate and worries about Caesar’s growing popularity and thoughts of grander positions. Pompey is stuck in the position of being a friend to Caesar and his desire to rule Rome.
Caesar’s niece Atia plays every game she can to assure her status in Rome by sending her daughter to Pompey and sends her son to Caesar with a magnificent white horse. Caesar on the other hand has his golden eagle stolen and Mark Anthony sends Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo to find it. As much as the show is about Caesar and the political wars—the show’s stars are Vorenus and Pullo.
EPISODE 02: How Titus Pullo Brought Down The Republic – Mark Antony is sent to Rome to negotiate with the Senate while Vorenus and Pullo, who have saved Octavion, enter Rome to greet cheers. Vorenus comes home to his wife and children to their shock—as they long considered him dead.
Mark Antony’s negotiations don’t go the way that Caesar had hoped—even worse Caesar is called a traitor by Senator Cato. Pompey secretly plots to strip Caesar of his power. Caesar gets word of this and decides to march upon Rome
EPISODE 03: An Owl in A Thornbush – Caesar marches on Rome and Atia take cover with Brutus and Servilia as a mob comes to kill them. Pompey realizes he doesn’t have the number of troops necessary to protect the city and retreats from the city with many Senators—including Brutus. Pompey dispatches troops with the treasuries gold which is stolen and then found by Pullo—along with a beautiful slave girl. Vorenus on the other hand quits the army to be with his family fearing that Caesar is committing treason.
EPISODE 04: Stealing From Saturn – Pompey realizes he is without his gold and cannot afford to pay his troops and puts him into a bad position versus Caesar. Caesar on the other hand institutes Martial law and takes full control of Rome.
Vorenus has given up being a soldier and starts work as a merchant—but is soon surprised by a visit by Mark Antony who offers Vorenus a position as an Evocati—which is a high level in the military with a large salary. Vorenus declines to the dismay of Antony.
Servilia hopes to renew her love with Caesar and has a hard time dealing with seeing Caesar’s arrival with his wife. Pullo tells Vorenus that he has the gold and Vorenus makes him tell Ceasar which puts both in his good graces.
EPISODE 05: The Ram Has Touched The Wall – Caesar and his forces chase Pompey and the Senators further from Rome. Atia believes her son, Octavian, has had an affair with Caesar—who had only been taking into a room during one of Caeser’s epileptic attacks. Atia hires Pullo to teach her son how to be a man with a sword. Vorenus struggles financially and goes back to Mark Antony and asks for his position.
EPISODE 06: Egeria – Caesar continues to chase Pompey, but finds himself in a precarious situation when Pompey’s army has grown larger than his own. Antony fears trouble when an offer comes from Pompey. Atia has Pullo take Octavian to a whore to lose his virginity. Atia then takes the time to try and fix her relationship with Servilia for fear of Pompey coming back to Rome as the leader. Antony puts together the 13th legion and has them set sail for Greece. A storm draws heavily upon the ship.
EPISODE 07: Pharsalus – Caesar defeats Pompey’s army and Pompey retreats to Egypt without his Senators. Brutus and Cicero plead for mercy to Casesar. Vorenus and Pullo survive and are washed ashore. They build a raft with dead bodies and find themselves on land and at the feet of a defeated Pompey.
EPISODE 08: Caesarion – Caesar and his men make their way to Egypt and come face to face with the 12-year old King Ptolemy who has taken the throne and cast out his sister Cleopatra. Caesar finds out the fate of Pompey and becomes enraged and sends Vorenus and Pullo to find Cleopatra. Back in Rome, Cicero and Brutus discuss their fate without the return of Caesar
EPISODES 09: Utica – Vorenus and Pullo come back to Rome. Brutus struggles with falling to Caesar’s feet. Octavion is appointed a pontiff. Servilia seeks to discover what is ailing Caesar in hopes of destroying his standing as Rome’s tyrant by showing weakness. Vorenus is visited by Caesar who asks him to run for magistrate.
EPISODES 10: Triumph – Pullo begs Vorenus to free Eirene—whom he loves. Vorenus agrees and Pullo wants to celebrate until he realizes she is in love with another. Brutus finds out that his mother and others have been distributing pamphlets in his name calling for the end of Caesar’s tyranny.
EPISODES 11: The Spoils – Pullo takes on a new line of work as muscle for Erastes Fullmen and kills a man and is put in the dungeon. Vorenus wins and becomes a magistrate. Pullo is put on trial. Brutus finds graffiti with of him stabbing Caesar. Caesar asks Brutus to take a position out of the city but Brutus refuses. Pullo is put in the ring to fight for his life.
EPISODE 12: Kalends of February – The finale is harder to discuss because it gives away too much—you must watch and enjoy.
THE EXTRAS: There is an absolutely pleathora of information spread out over each episode: commentary by Bruno Heller and Jonathan Stamp on The Stolen Eagle, How Titus Pullo Brought Down the Republic, Pharsalus, and Kalends of February, commentary by Steve Shill on Caesarion, commentary by Jeremy Podeswa on Utica, commentary by Ray Stevenson on The Ram Has Touched the Wall, and commentary by Kevin McKidd on The Spoils.
“Friends, Romans, Countrymen” – Introduction to the characters of Rome.
“All Roads Lead to Rome” – interactive onscreen guide prepared by the series’ historical consultant, Jonathan Stamp
“Shot x Shot: Caesar’s Triumph” – detailing the production of the epic Episode 10 triumph scene
“Shot x Shot: Gladiator” – A closer look at the thrilling Episode 11 fight sequence
“The Rise of Rome” – Behind-the-scenes featurette on sets, wardrobe, and actors’ boot camp
“When in Rome” featurette on the culture of ancient Rome
Photo gallery with over 50 never-before-seen images.
Eight-page Roman Character Guide booklet featuring names, profiles, relationships, and other key historical information
FRANKLY: This is a great show. It’s exciting—however one issue is that twelve episodes spans five years. It would have been more interesting to see five seasons run a year a piece because too much happens and too much is missed. But the shows creators did a good job spanning all of those years.
+ Charlie Craine
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