Quick Take: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, "Old Wounds"
"When he falls, you shall quickly follow." – The magistrate Calavius, to Batiatus
Review: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, "Old Wounds"
(S0111) Varro (Jai Courtney) lies dead on a slab of stone. "His heart was stilled… for a boy's amusement," Spartacus says of him, and he's right. Numerius (Lliam Powell) cast his thumb in the downward direction (thanks to Ilithyia's, played by Viva Blanca, crafty machinations), and now Varro is dead at Spartacus' hand: to some deficit, and to some advantage as things go.
Crixus (Manu Bennett) of is looking for his angle to regain his title as the Champion of Capua, and Batiatus (John Hannah) is busily plotting the death of the magistrate. Of course, in Batiatus' case, he would have happily accepted Varro's death in exchange for support of the magistrate for political office, but because it was not given the Varro business only compounds his fury.
Batiatus' rage takes him to the lengths of kidnapping the magistrate Calavius (John Bach) , who had blithely cast his political aspirations aside. Under pain of (painful) death, the magistrate keeps it real, telling Batiatus that his position is only buoyed by Spartacus' feats in the arena. "When he falls, you shall quickly follow," he tells him. Such a statement again reflects the thin line between glory and the depths in ancient Rome.
"Old wounds" taunt Spartacus (Andy Whitfield) meanwhile in both the physical and spiritual sense as Varro's death agonizes him, sending him into a fever that could keep him out of the gladiator games with rival city Pompeii. This gives Crixus the opportunity he's been looking for, as he agonizes over recapturing the title as the Champion of Capua. We're seeing a turn of fortune here as Crixus' injuries in the midst of gladiator match against Theokoles caused him to cede glory to Spartacus.
It should be noted here too that Bennett does a terrific job in the rough, gruff (and sometimes in the buff) role of Crixus. Especially striking is the way in which Crixus expresses something close to a "soft side" only with his forbidden love, slave Naevia (Lesley-Ann Bancroft). But now that Ashur (Nick Tarabay) knows and domina Lucretia (Lucy Lawless) is sure to demand his "services" again soon enough, the path of Crixus is far from certain.
Spartacus, who had found solace and then pride as a gladiator in the wake of his wife's death, now looks to find some purpose in seeing to the needs of Varro's family. So focused he is on Varro that he has hallucinatory visions in which his old friend speaks to him from the beyond. And he also finally breaks down in front of Mira (Katrina Law) and finds some comfort from her.
When Spartacus' wounds (old and new) bring him to a feverish and sickly state, Crixus has the chance he's long waited for, taking on Pericles, titan of Pompeii, in the arena. It's a great fight scene, as they often are in this show, ending with Crixus crushing the now not-so-titan's skull with his boot.
Meanwhile, away from the "honor" of gladiator life, Solonius (Craig Walsh Wrightson) and Ashur's (Nick Tarabay) scheme-y meetings take new form in the wake of Calavius' kidnapping. The intrigue factor ticks up extra notches as Batiatus pretends to search for Calavius with the latter's naïve son, Numerius (Lliam Powell) as Spartacus has a fever-induced revelation that his wife's murderer lies far closer to the House of Batiatus than he had realized.
Solonius' "set up" as Calavius' captor and murderer is a nifty coup for Batiatus, even if it's a bit made-for-TV plot twist of the week. The episode ends on a darkly ironic note with Spartacus telling the newly jubilant Batiatus that, "Yes dominus, I am myself again."
That is to say, the endgame between Spartacus and Batiatus grows near.
More thoughts on "Old Wounds":
Video: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, "Old Wounds"
Check out this interview with Lucy Lawless and some pretty cool behind-the-scenes footage:
Recap: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, "Old Wounds"
Spartacus hovers on the brink. Meanwhile, Batiatus plots revenge against his enemies
From Around the Web: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, "Old Wounds"
