Spartacus: War of the Damned - ep 1
First things, first. Ummm, I think I have a crush on Crassus. Heeeelp! But he is the first Roman we meet who actually has brains and balls and honor all at once. He is ruthless as hell, but he does have a code, plus he does not underestimate someone for being a slave. Oh, and his grabbing the sword blade with bare hands was ridiculously hot. I need help!
I have no deep thoughts about this scene, just fangirl joy.
Hello there, facial hair! I approve! Go on, Crixus, flaunt the empire with your locks! I loved that when Naevia tried to say she is her current badass self because of him, Crixus told him it is because of her - her will and her strength. Plus, swords as foreplay = hot. They seem to be a tad too obsessed in bathing in Roman blood, but I can’t say I blame them with their history. Is it praiseworthy? No, but completely understandable.
Here because Gannicus is ridiculously hot.
He is not the only hot one...
The thing that struck me the most in the first episode of War of the Damned was how inhuman Spartacus became - without Sura (or hope of her), without Varro, without Mira - he has nothing to tether him to life and warmth any more. It is proof of how strong his will and core are that he is not a conscienceless monster, but he is certainly stone-cold, utterly hard, and very remote. He is discovering that his rage has no appeasement - those who killed Sura are dead but he does not feel any better - he cannot stop because there is nothing left waiting for him once he does. Nothing makes it better. Sura is still dead, all those he loved are still dead. He still suffered and nothing erases it (in a way, I think this is true for everyone in the slave army but on a smaller scale and they do have those they are attached to, to compensate. Spartacus does not. The other leaders do have someone to tie them to the world - Agron has Nasir, Crixus has Naevia). There is also the totality of war, which doesn’t help him heal any - being bathed in blood and entrails every day is not the best place to try to recover peace and sanity. Especially a bloody civil war like the one they are fighting - the slaves give no quarter and would probably eviscerate every Roman they come across, and the Romans would gladly crucify them all without a second thought. That is about the worst place to try to heal.
I loved his conversation with Gannicus because Gannicus understands as having been there and tries to counsel but it doesn’t really work - as Spartacus says, he has nobody left who can speak words of absolution for him. (Gannicus - well, he deals with his damage via drinking and women and, I cannot believe I am about to say this, it is a healthier coping mechanism than what Spartacus cobbled together. But then he had years to cope and years of being free).
He has his just cause and his blood vengeance but he really has no life - he only exists. His life ended the day the Romans caught him and Sura in the first ep of Blood and Sand.
