Many people know of Rick Riordan for his best-selling books entitled “Percy Jackson and the Olympians;” a five book series chronicling the adventures of the teenaged son of Poseidon as he and his fellow descendants of the Greek Olympians did their best to protect the modern world from monsters and Titans. But many don’t know if his sequel series called “The Heroes of Olympus” which saw the conflict and eventual unification of both Greek and Roman demigods. 

The second book in the series, “The Son of Neptune,” saw the most focus on how the teen Roman demigods lived in the modern world. They trained and lived in a secret base called Camp Jupiter, located in the Bay Area. Camp Jupiter is organized in a way that (very) loosely reflects what we have learned of Ancient Rome’s government. Instead of two consuls there are two Praetors. Instead of a massive senate filled with hundreds of old men there are around ten teenage senators of all gender identities who are elected every year by their fellow campers. There are no consuls or tribunes, but instead there are two Praetors who are either elected or appointed by campers as a result of their prowess in battle. Campers are referred to legionnaires and they serve in the Twelfth Legion. According to Riordan, he draws from a bit of history here as the Twelfth Legion was really Legio XII Fulminata and was once led by Julius Caesar. 

I’ve read the “Son of Neptune” quite a few times when I was younger, but this reread in the context of Roman Revolutions was an interesting experience. As Rick Riordan writes for children, obviously he has to “dumb down” some aspects of the material he draws from in order to make his work kid friendly. One thing he doesn’t dumb down on though, is the idea that Roman’s are so unlike anyone else, especially anything that is Greek. Many Roman campers throughout the book say “beware of Greeks bearing gifts” and there is constant suspicion about one of the newest campers who is an amnesiac Percy Jackson from the Greek camp for demigods in Long Island. Percy can’t remember his Ancient Greek heritage, but the campers and Roman ghosts that walk about have a sense that he is of Greek origin, and as a result he isn’t to be trusted. He is constantly likened to the Trojan horse and is talked down upon in a way that reminds me of Cato the Elder’s act of giving a speech in Athens using a translator instead of speaking the language the Athenians could understand. In fact, the tension between Roman and Greek demigods was so great that the Olympians caused both sides to forget one another. And not to mention that most of the Roman Olympians exist in the same body as their Greek counterparts as a sort of second personality. When Percy meets Roman versions of Greek deities he’s met before, he recalls them being more warlike which is certainly in line with Rome’s propensity for engaging in warfare. But Percy also mentions that they are more alike than they are different which reminds me of how we have learned that Romans thought themselves to be very different from other Ancient cultures despite the fact that they were not.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a ridiculous musical comedy that follows Pseudolus, a slave, on his convoluted path to purchase his freedom. The film begins with Pseudolus scamming a man to win money, only to lose it after his masters discover it. He is narrowly saved from death by becoming a personal slave to a different woman. When hiding from her, as she is obsessive, Pseudolus meets Hero, the son of his masters, in a tree. Pseudolus barters with Hero, stating that he will help Hero get Philia in exchange for Pseudolus’ freedom. The story follows Pseudolus’ quest to matchmaking Hero and Philia. However, Philia was recently sold to wed Captain Gloriosus, who recently returned from battle. As Pseudolus attempts to stall the captain, Hero, and Philia run around Hero’s abode, looking for each other or hiding from others. Pseudolus decides to fake Philia’s death; however, this quickly goes astray when the captain holds a funeral service for Philia. Pseudolus’ friend dresses as Philia during the funeral, but Pseudolus’ scheme is ruined when the captain notices the friend’s movements. Thankfully, one of the men has been searching for his children through identical rings they all share. The man discovers that his son is the captain and his daughter is Philia. The film ends happily, with Hero and Philia falling in love, a family being reunited, and Pseudolus being freed. 

Overall I thought the film was entertaining, although very confusing, especially towards the end. The secondary characters tended to blend, so the ending, especially the near-death scene, was confusing. With all of the characters running around, it was difficult to keep track of the plot points. I enjoyed seeing Roman’s relationship with their slaves in the film, and although it was a bit dramatized, thought it was interesting how Pseudolus’s masters tended to be kind and trust him. As a musical comedy, it is understandable that the film ends happily, although this would not be realistic in Rome. The film’s extreme close-ups added to the film’s absurdity, and it was a film based on musical theater, as shown by the dramatic facial expressions. 

Ridley Scott’s Gladiator follows the story of fictional Roman war general, Maximus. Maximus is a highly respected general in the Roman army who holds a great friendship with Emperor Marcus Aurelius in the film. As the war looks to be ending, Maximus would like to return home to his family as he has not seen his wife and son in almost 3 years. The Emperor would look like Maximus to succeed him as the leader of Rome, but Maximus is hesitant on taking his offer. At the same time, Commodus, Marcus Aurelius’s son, has big aspirations to take the throne from his father, and upon hearing that Maximus will be named the next leader of Rome, Commodus kills his father and frames Maximus for the murder. After this, Maximus is sent off to be killed, but he kills the soldiers who attempt to kill him and he journeys home. He sees that his family has been murdered and his land burned and this is when his plan for vengeance starts. Maximus is picked up by a merchant who sells slaves, and Maximus is ultimately sold to a man named Proximo. Proximo purchases Maximus along with other slaves to fight in the gladiator pit in his province. Maximus becomes a formidable force and fan favorite there, so when Commodus who has taken the throne of Rome, decides there needs to be 150 days of games, Proximo takes Maximus and the other gladiators to fight in Rome. Right away Maximus becomes the fan favorite because of expertise and his defiance towards the king. Commodus is shocked to see Maximus is alive again and does everything in his power to try and get him killed in the gladiator fights, but Maximus always prevails. Later on, with the help of his former servant, Cicero, and Commodus’s sister, Lucilla, Maximus attempts to overthrow Commodus and put Gracchus in power to restore the Republic. He also wants to escape to meet up with his men so they can fight Commodus’s army. This plan is foiled and Maximus is imprisoned once again, but Commodus wants to kill him himself. They fight in front of the crowd, but Maximus is able to beat the man who ordered his family’s death and complete his plan for vengeance. Gracchus is put in power and Maximus reunites with his family in the afterlife.

This movie portrayed themes of vengeance, power, and resilience. I was happy to see that Maximus was able to complete his plan of trying to restore the Republic and killing Commodus. Maximus never gave up and knew what it was gonna take in order to complete his plan. Even when the odds were stacked against him he never backed down and always showed true resilience.

Summary

When I saw “I’m Spartacus!” scene in class, I knew that I would have to watch Spartacus for acta. The movie opens with Spartacus as a slave in a mining pit, and he has been sentenced to death for gnawing on the achilles of a Roman overseer in the mines. As he is being punished through starvation, a gladiator trainer named Batiatus visits the mines and purchases Spartacus. After Spartacus arrives at the training school, which also doubles as Batiatus’s estate, he meets the gladiator instructor Marcellus. Marcellus and sometimes Batiatus are cruel to the gladiators, especially Spartacus. They even shame him for refusing to rape an enslaved woman, Varinia, who they send to his room to have sex with him. Spartacus and Virinia gradually fal in love with one another, and as Spartacus is continuing with his training, Marcus Licinius Crassus arrives at Batiatus’s estate with a group of wealthy friends. These friends make Batiatus choose two pairs of the gladiators-in-training to fight to the death, which Batiatus protests is not commonly done and will reduce the trainees’ morale. Crassus and his friends insist, and Spartacus is chosen to fight against an Ethiopian man named Draba. Right as Draba is about to win the fight, he turns away from Spartacus and throws his trident at Crassus’s head, narrowly missing him. After Draba is killed for this, Marcellus taunts Spartacus for being upset that Crassus bought Varinia and is leaving, which causes Spartacus to lunge and attack Marcellus, which incites a revolt at the Batiatus estate.

This riot allows all the ex-gladiators to escape the estate, and through raiding other Roman estates and freeing slaves, amasses a large group of ex-slaves and a lot of money. After meeting with a Cilician pirate, Spartacus resolves to raise enough money and arms to fund the creation of ships to take him and his people out of Rome. He plans to do this by taking his people south to Brundisium, and on the way he will raise the money and arms. On this journey down to Brundisium, he reunites with Varinia and defeats six cohorts of the Roman Garrison, which concerns the Roman senate. Eventually, Spartacus makes it to Brundisium with enough money for the ships, a well armed army, and Varinia pregnant with his child. The audience and Julius Caesar then learn that the Cilicians were bribed by Gracchus to help Spartacus leave Italy. Caesar then tells this to Crassus, who then bribes the pirates to not help Spartacus. So, when Spartacus talks with the pirates at Brundisium, he learns that there are no ships, Pompey and Crassus are coming at him with their legions, and his only choice is to march to Rome. He does this, and meets with both Pompey and Crassus on the field, losing the battle. After the battle, Crassus asks the survivors which one of them is Spartacus, and if they reveal this, they all will be spared except Spartacus, and if they do not, they will all be crucified. To this, the survivors stand up and begin to declare that each of them are Spartacus, until it reaches the point where they are all standing and declaring that they are Spartacus. After this, Spartacus is forced to fight a battle with one of his former men, and Varinia and her son are taken by Crassus. Finally, Gracchus frees Varinia and her son to insult Crassus, and as Varinia is leaving Crassus’s estate, she sees Spartacus being crucified. She shows him their son, and with tears says that they are finally free.

Reflection

I am really happy I chose this movie to watch. The ending, and arguably the entire movie, was heartbreaking for Spartacus. Even though I knew how it would end because of history, I still found myself in denial hoping that there was some way that Spartacus won, almost like a Battle of the Bastards-esq rescue from some other army at the end, or some other pirates helping him, or anything that allowed him to survive. It was really cool seeing the history we learned in class play out, and I almost wish that they worked even more of it into the movie (maybe some Dignitas or Ius action). Furthermore, it was really cool to see the mos maiorum in action, and I loved understanding what an atrium was and knowing how some of the characters may have looked at certain issues. Crassus was an unbelievably despisable villian, and the movie did a great job using him to depict how awful it was in those times to be a slave. All in all, Spartacus was an entertaining, immersive movie with amazing characters and a really heart-wrenching story.

I watched the third season of the Netflix series Roman Empire, which is about the reign of Caligula, and is rightfully titled “The Mad Emperor.”  It is in the form of a documentary, but it is a  historical dramatization of the true events of Caligula’s life.  It begins with Caligula’s early life which was heavily influenced by his relationship with his father, Germanicus, who was a general.  Caligula spent a lot of time around the battlefield with him and began developing leadership skills and a war-like mentality.  A scene that really stood out to me was when he was hiding in a cabinet to avoid being taken away by the Roman guards who were after his family for spreading misinformation.  Germanicus had just died, and his family suspected that Tiberius had killed him so that he would no longer be the heir to the throne, so they were speaking out against Tiberius.  Although I am not sure if he actually hid in a cabinet, the scene was very intense, and really emphasized the trauma that Caligula experienced as a child, which is very important to his later development.

Later in his life, Caligula was taken to Capri to live under Tiberius’ personal care, along with Tiberius’ son, Tiberius Gemmellus.  There, Caligula was essentially his servant and had to hide his hard feelings against Tiberius.  Surprisingly, right before Tiberius died, he named both his son and Caligula to be Emperors, despite their history.  During his first six months, Caligula was a noble, well-respected leader, but after that, he descended into a state of insanity and tyranny.  While the part I watched was mainly about his early life, his progression makes sense, based on his highly traumatic childhood.

I really liked watching this TV series, as it gave very good visuals and insight into Caligula’s early life.  I had not thought about how his childhood would have influenced his later life and rule.  It was very interesting to see how they depicted his life and it gave me a better understanding of how all of the pieces of his life fit together.

As someone who has always loved action movies, seeing that I could watch Gladiator for an acta was extremely appealing, and I thoroughly enjoyed all two and a half hours of it. The movie starts off with the protagonist Maximus leading his army to victory and ending a long war, which earned him the approval of the emperor Marcus Aurelius. Marcus then named Maximus to be his successor, which angered Commodus, Marcus’ son who was expecting to be named his successor, and he kills Marcus in anger, declaring himself emperor instead and asking Maximus for his loyalty. Maximus refuses, which enrages Commodus and he orders Maximus to be executed along with his wife and son. Maximus barely escapes, but comes home to find his wife and son dead, and to top it all off he is soon captured by slave traders. He is sold to Proximo, who leads a gladiator school. Maximus initially refuses to fight, still distraught over the loss of his wife and son, but soon submits, rapidly gaining popularity. Then, Commodus hires Proximo’s gladiators to compete in the gladiatorial games in Rome, unknowingly hiring Maximus as well. Once Maximus and his gladiators win their first fight, Commodus enters the arena to meet them and is shocked to realize Maximus is the leader. However, because of his popularity, Commodus is unable to kill him. He tried everything in his power to rig the gladiator fights against Maximus, but Maximus still continues to succeed, steadily gaining popularity and Commodus steadily losing popularity. Maximus then encounters an old friend who tells him his army is still loyal to him and gives him their location. Lucilla, Commodus’ sister, makes a plan with Maximus and Gracchus to reunite the army and overthrow Commodus, as she if fearful of him and his intentions. Commodus discovers this plan before it is able to be carried out and storms Proximo’s camp, killing many and imprisoning the rest. Maximus again barely escapes but is soon captured by Commodus and challenged to a battle in the colosseum. Commodus injures Maximus right before the battle, but Maximus is still able to win and kills Commodus. Dying Maximus then orders the release of Proximo’s gladiators and reinstates Gracchus to the senate, ordering him to restore power to the senate and make Rome a republic again. Maximus then dies in the colosseum and is finally reunited with his wife and son.

This movie was thrilling and entertaining, leaving me constantly wondering what would happen next. It was emotionally captivating because of Maximus’ story and losses throughout the movie, making his victories that much more enjoyable. It was also cool to see some of the aspects we learned about in class, like the colosseum, the appearance of horses in battle and the arena, Maximus’ three names, discovering that Proximo had also been a gladiator and won his freedom, and the reinstatement on the senate in order to restore the republic. Overall, this movie was engaging and powerful with a satisfying ending, and gives us insight into the dramatic nature of Roman society filled with undercover plots to kill and overthrow.

Last week, before we saw a snippet from an episode in class, I watched the beginning of HBO’s Rome TV series. Specifically, I watched the first two episodes of the series. In Episode 1, the show highlights two characters: Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo. Vorenus is a centurion of the 13th legion of Rome, under the command of Caesar. Titus Pullo is a rowdy soldier under Vorenus’s command who loves to party. The show opens with a battle where Titus Pullo disobeys Lucius Vorneus on the battlefield, leading to Pullo’s punishment. Pullo is publicly whipped and then imprisoned, which aligns with the infamnia tactics of publicly shaming Roman citizens which we talked about in class. 

The audience is then introduced to Pompey and Caesar as we watch Julia, Caesar’s daughter and Pompey’s wife, die in childbirth. Once Julia died, loyalty no longer lied between Caesar and Pompey. We then see a scene on the Senate floor, where one man encourages Pompey to betray Caesar. Despite Pompey’s public rejection of this idea, behind closed doors, Pompey starts questioning his allegiance to Caesar and plays around with the idea of overthrowing him. Ironically enough, Pompey starts conspiring about Caesar while he was at a play with masked actors. This portrayal of masked performers ties to our discussion about the word persona and forms of entertainment in Rome. 

There was also a scene where Octavian, Caesar’s nephew, is captured by barbarians and held captive. Pullo and Vorenus, on their search for Caesar’s stolen eagle, slay the barbarians and rescue Octavian. In order to establish credibility, Octavian states that he is a Roman citizen born of noble birth. This reminds me of the saying “Civis Romanus Sum”, used when Romans prove their validity to others like Octavian did in this scene. 

In the episodes I watched so far, the plot is centered around the build-up of Caesar and Pompey’s tensions ultimately resulting in the Civil War. The show highlights Pompey’s jealousy of Caesar as the main cause for the feud. Pompey is jealous because the people of Rome love Caesar. This plotline, along with many other aspects of HBO’s Rome, are very historically accurate. It is very interesting to see our discussions about Roman history play out on the TV screen. I am eager to continue watching and see the Civil War and Pompey’s death play out as well.