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The year is 52 B.C....After eight years of war, Gaius Julius Caesar has completed his masterful conquest of Gaul, and is returning to Rome. He brings with him legions of battle-hardened, loyal men, unimaginable riches in slaves, gold and plunder, and a populist agenda for radical social change. The aristocracy is terrified, and threatens to prosecute him for war crimes if he enters Rome. The delicate balance of power lies in the Senate with Caesar's old friend, partner and mentor, Pompey Magnus.
Discuss the characters here.
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(837 of 837)
Mar 4, 2008 6:10 PM
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> Titus pullo makes Tony Soprano look like Richard
> Simmons.
AHAhahahahahahaha!
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Now...let's have some fun.
Raptus regaliter
Leg LXIX
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Feb 16, 2008 12:58 AM
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The change of actor in Octavius was because the first actor was very child-like and they needed to show that Octavius had grown as the years had passed by. The final actor is more mature for than Octavius in that period of time.
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Edited by Shivafaa at 02/15/2008 10:01 PM
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(835 of 837)
Nov 20, 2007 9:39 PM
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It's something to follow Marc Antony's character in the series; somehow it becomes clear almost immediately that for all his bravado he will never quite do as Rome's ruler. Perhaps the oddest thing is to see him so bored as ruler after Brutus and co flee that he loses interest in persuing them to the death "There's no juice in it anymore." and that it becomes Octavian, perhaps in part to underline Antony's lack of diligence in revenging Caesar, who picks up the gauntlet. On the other hand, there's a genuine touching sadness in Antony's final scenes-He really seems to have found something humanizing and meaningful in his relationship with Cleo and yet it destroys him. Octavian's petty act in wrenching the dead hands of his two foes apart comes to seem almost a kind of jealous, bitter acknowledgement that Antony did find his humanity at the end and escaped the crown of thorns and isolation that Augustus embraces.
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(834 of 837)
Oct 22, 2007 10:51 AM
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From the real historical perspective, Servilla was not involved in the plot to assassinate Caesaar. The show put her in the role of Portia, Brutus's wife, who was not in the series. Servila was away from Rome at the time of the assassination, and was upset about it, she still loved Caesar, and even plotted to have Portia killed (Making her swollow hot coals) once Brutus left.
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(833 of 837)
Oct 18, 2007 1:36 PM
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I agree that Pirkis was better than Woods (not knocking Woods, I thought he was good also), however the intention all along (I would think) was to depict Octavian as cold and heartless due to the household in which he was raised (Atia created a monster! LOL!).
He transformed from a sympathetic teenage boy to a cold and heartless man, therefore the re-casting of the role actually worked out beautifully, even though I prefer Pirkis as an actor....
Perhaps Pirkis would have been able to pull off the "cold and heartless" role, however I suspect Woods was better suited for it.
I found myself not liking the character of Octavian at the end, however in the character's defense, I really can't blame him. Atia and Antony should have never denied him his rightful inheritance from Caesar, if they were not so greedy Octavian may have never have come to blows with Antony in the first place.
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(832 of 837)
Sep 27, 2007 9:49 PM
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To be fair the historic Octavian doesn't seem quite the icy figure our boy turns out. He had to deal with a lot more setbacks-wars with Antony's wife Fulva and Pompey's son that nearly destroyed him and he never drove Antony from Rome. He apparently may even have tried to save Cicero from the proscriptions. Certainly Hirtius's and Pansa's deaths at Mutina were suspiciously convenient, he did sanction many a killing, and he did marry off sister and later daughter as he liked. But the situation he was in was a lot tighter for a lot longer than in our story with his forces taking many a defeat before his eventual triumph. All in all he seems to have been (within the limits any supreme leader must be) a steady friend and caring brother/father. Livia likewise may have been somewhat unfairly maligned simply for being a shrewd and capable helpmate to her emperor husband.
But our story is more fun...
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(831 of 837)
Sep 14, 2007 7:40 AM
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Forgot to add: Simon Woods was an excellent Octavian. However, I'm still "in love" with Ciaran Hinds. His Caesar was sexy and had Servilia any sense, she would have plotted to get him back rather than to murder him. But, it's only a series, and as the saying goes... "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." Too bad for Julius... he might have proved a great emperor.
bevhhr
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(830 of 837)
Sep 14, 2007 7:25 AM
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According to G.P. Baker, author of "Augustus: TheGolden Age of Rome" it appears that Octavian/Augustus was never an openly emotional person and by the time he became the first emperor of Rome, he'd undergone numerous agonies in his attempt to achieve his rights as his great uncle Julius had bequeathed him. His emotionless demeanor was sharpened by these experiences and he appeared cold-blooded;however, he was a talented politician and an able and honored ruler whose influence extended for nearly 400 years.
I personally was thrilled by the scene in the "Rome" series 2 where Octavian is admitted to the Senate as the youngest ever. There he addressed the senate and proposed a motion to revere Julius Caesar and make Brutus and Cassius assassins. In response to the resistance to the motion, Octavian's troops entered the senate and his words "Who will speak against the motion?" alerted everyone there that he was serious. I loved the scene! Great work. Great writing. Great vision.
bevhhr
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(829 of 837)
Why the change in Octavians?
Sep 12, 2007 1:41 PM
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Can anyone tell me why they changed the actor who played Octavian after episode 3 in season 2? I thought Max Pirkis was a marvelous Octavian. Simon Woods played him so stiffly there was no humanity left in him and it was difficult to care for him as a character. Why wasn't Max Pirkis used throughout the series?
thanks
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Re: Octavian's doll's eyes
Aug 29, 2007 10:27 PM
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I really loved that shot of Octavian seated in his chair at the triumph when his eyes were caught, perhaps even unintentionally, by the camera as black doll's eyes...As if the last bit of humanity has drained out of him. Such a contrast to Caesar's little, human grin to Octavian's own younger self at the earlier triumph in S1. Like everyone else I mourned the loss of Max but Mr. Woods gave a tremendous performance and I think perfectly captured that transition of Octavian to Augustus.
Augustus has been often compared to Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt in terms of the changes each brought to his country. On a personal level I think Roosevelt is closer...Both he and Octavian far more isolated men and much more conscious actors in their respective roles than Lincoln. I remember in Hermann Wouk's mostly mediocre "Winds of War" one good scene where his watered-down version of Vorenus, Pug Henry deftly lets Roosevelt know that he can see the similarity among all so-called "great" men and Roosevelt allows just a slight hint of his annoyance at being compared to Hitler to show, rather like Octavian's annoyance at his friends reading him so well after his interview with Cleo.
Whether that's the perception and not so much the reality, hard to say...Maybe we want to believe the great are less as well as more than human.
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(827 of 837)
Aug 26, 2007 6:37 PM
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Just finished season 2 with a sigh... Among this year's folks loved Memmio-His sleek smoothness and the actor's real and obvious enjoyment of the character was wonderful. Livia was a delight as well...I won't forget her biting the head off that songbird.
Hopefully HBO will consider a remake of "I, Claudius" as one of the directors suggests in his audio commentary...Or perhaps, "Byzantium".
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(826 of 837)
Aug 22, 2007 11:28 PM
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I am a late comer to the series but was absolutly captiveted. As we watched it, I followed along in Will Durant's volume on Caesar. Yes, a few liberties were taken with history...esp the character Atia... but what I liked best was that I had no prior experience with the cast. As much as I like Sean Connery, he is always Sean Connery, Titus Pullo, how ever, is Titus Pullo. And what a compelling character he is! We do not have television in the house because so much of it is trash, but Rome, on DVD, watched in the library with a glass of wine in hand, is the best.
Max Warner wrotE two historically accurate novels on the period, THE YOUNG CAESAR and IMPERIAL CAESAR
Thank you HBO
DocSledge
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(824 of 837)
Jul 17, 2007 1:38 PM
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Well, I think all character are essencial and great, but the ones I enjoyed watching the most are Vorenus, Pullo, Aark Antony, Attia, Julius Ceaser. The rest were amazing as well.
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