If you heard roaring laughter this past Friday, don't be alarmed. It was just Spartacus fans laughing at the antics of Sparty and his crew. We imagine Twitter followers will be hash-tagging #LOL@Crixus.
'Mors Indecepta' could be considered one of the very few 'light' episodes through this season - or rather the entire series. Make no mistake: it was still a dark and fast paced episode but there was something about this past week that had fans giggling. It could be Agron's 'don't you dare' faces at Nasir whenever the latter even talks to another guy or perhaps it was Spartacus calling Crixus a child. Or perhaps it was Spartacus finally getting even with Crassus. If none of those catch your eye, you could always choose the fact that rebels are walking around in rags and getting it on during a snow storm that wipes out half their camp. Pick whichever one you want and run with it.
Perhaps the weirdest thing that happened in 'Mors Indecepta' was Kore. She turned to the dark side! Why? Because they had cookies of course. Actually, the rebels have nothing more than Oliver Twist-like food to feed themselves but they sure know how to party! And no one gets raped so that's a plus. To understand how Kore even got to the battlefield, let's go back. So Daddy Crassus puts his son back into the legion along with giving him the city of Sinuessa. Caesar doesn't like that and he throws out the fact that he was the one who captured the city so he should have a better standing within the army. He is quickly knocked down from his pedestal as Crassus reminds everyone within earshot that it was actually him who had captured the city because it was his idea for Caesar to go undercover. Caesar trembles before such mighty logic and nearly bursts a vein at trying to hide his anger. Should he and Crixus could go out for a drink or something? You know, loosen up. Anyway, Tiberius - reveling in the shadow-glow of his father's good graces - steps up to Caesar (well, almost. Dude is really short) and smiles. But Caesar essentially tells the tiny boy-man that he is as about as useful as an iTunes update. Kore overhears everything and almost endures a diatribe by Caesar but she calms him by speaking about a plan she has made up that could end Tiberius. Naturally, the Brad Pitt of the Roman Republic listens and takes her to the battlefield where Crassus is waiting. Kore plans to tell what Tiberius had done but of course she doesn't after hearing glorious words the father had about his son. She was also supposed to get the city of Sinuessa as a gift from her lover. We suppose a diamond ring just wasn't enough back in those days. She is to be promoted from her slave status (yay!) but she would have to stay behind with Tiberius (boo!). She decides that even though she loves Crassus, she can't live her life in fear of his son, who is about to be a tribune. After having some biblical type fun one last time, she sneaks off and joins the rebellion. Who does she meet first? Spartacus. This woman has turned out to get far more screentime than originally thought. Maybe it's a good thing there's not another season. She probably would have been switched out with another actress and honestly, haven't Spartacus fans been through enough?
On the rebel front, Gannicus finally hooks up with Sibyl to the surprise of absolutely no one. But the timid woman brought out a gentler side to the gladiator, giving us a swoon inducing moment. Saxa probably wouldn't agree with us though. The big scene was Spartacus and Crixus having their own version of a fight club. Again. This time it was because Crixus had had it with Spartacus' stealth and logic. Spartacus tries to soothe the many burns he gives the Gaul but like the child he supposedly isn't, Crixus throws a tantrum when a small Roman unit sets up just out of reach and Sparty refuses to advance. Sparty is right of course but he constantly forgets that Crassus is not like other generals. His enemy's cunning nature shows itself again as a few chosen rebels sneak into the camp and kill some of the soldiers but when they get to Crassus' tent, something stops them: Donar's corpse nailed to a cross with the words 'mors indecepta' carved into it. Crixus is perplexed at the meaning (insert giggle at his expression here). Spartacus says it means 'death is undeceivable'. He realizes this means he has fallen into yet another trap. They all escape but Naevia almost greets the afterlife when she is stabbed in the leg and knocked down. Spartacus rescues her and they run for shelter as more soldiers come. One of them makes the mistake of calling the rebels 'cowards' and Crixus goes so insane that it made Ozzy Osbourne look like a priest. And he wonders why no one looks to him for leadership…
Crixus also showed that he has learned a few dirty fighting tricks from his girlfriend. When Spartacus tries to talk to him, the man child burst the jar of ice he was randomly holding and slams it across Sparty's face, declaring the gladiator is not a god (wait a second! Then why was the prequel called Gods of the Arena?!). But if anyone thought the rebel king had lost his edge, they were proven wrong when Spartacus pulled out his Mortal Kombat moves on Crixus. It's up to Agron and Gannicus to separate them and the two men go their own way. You read that right: Agron of all people had to stop a fight.
The two men mend their differences yet again when Spartacus concedes that maybe Crixus wasn't wrong after all. He thinks that there's no way they can win at the front with the Roman army, especially after the storm killed over a thousand of their people; but the back wall is a different story. In the smartest moment all season, Sparty realizes that Crassus has an advantage only because the rebels haven't moved yet since Sparty believes the wall to be impregnable. But as they learned earlier, not everything is as it seems. The wall could hold nothing more than a few soldiers behind it. This perks Crixus up tremendously and they take down the wall by hiding in the trench that Romans had dug. The boys take the wall and discover that Spartacus was right (duh): there was only a small number of soldiers keeping guard. Gannicus totally channeled his inner Trinity (that's the Matrix for you young ones) , which was awesome to see we must say. When they gain control, the rebels burrow through it and use the dead as a bridge - a necessity given the circumstances. Meanwhile, Crassus has just found that Kore went over to the rebels even without the promise of cookies. Caesar looks astonished at her act but Crassus shows nothing. The Romans look at the bridge of the dead in disgust.
But surprise! They get pelted with spears and Sparty smiles wickedly at the Roman commander, letting the man know that two can play that game. Though it lacked the intensity of the past few episodes, the change of pace was welcomed as it allowed viewers to soak up the lighter moments - something that will most likely disappear as the countdown to the series finale continues.
So what did you think of the latest episode? Did you think it was a worthy addition to the series?
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