It is seven years since Mark Antony arrived in Egypt and he is providing problems for Rome. A drought has led to a grain shortage in Rome and Mark Antony is sitting on stockpiles in Alexandria. He is demanding payment that he knows Octavian won't pay hoping to force a war. Octavian knows a war is inevitable but must first find a way to end Mark Antony's popularity amongst the common people. To this end he sends Atia and Octavia to Egypt to ask Antony to send grain; it is a win-win ploy for Octavian; if the grain is sent the people will look on him as their saviour and if Mark Antony turns them away he can tell the people that Mark Antony has spurned his loving wife and been enchanted by a foreign queen. Things work out even better than planned for Octavian as not only does Mark Antony refuse to see Atia and Octavian but Posca returns to Rome with them carrying documents that are guaranteed to turn the people against Mark Antony. Elsewhere in Rome Pullo is now living with Gaia completely unaware of her part in his wife's death, he also has his old enemy, Memmio, in a cage. When the latter escapes it ultimately leads to Gaia telling Pullo what happened years before.
This is a really good penultimate episode. Just about everything is setting things up for the confrontation that is sure to come between Mark Antony and Octavian. It is clear early on that Mark Antony is over Atia and is in thrall to the beautiful Cleopatra but even so it is a little surprising how cruelly he treats Atia and Octavia when they arrive in Alexandria. Another cruel surprise was learning what had happened to Memmio; I'd assumed he had died in the previous episode but here we learn that he has been kept like a caged animal for the last seven years. The regular cast are all on great form and Lyndsey Marshal is really impressive as Cleopatra; she is a really memorably character despite only appearing in a handful of episodes. Overall this was a classic episode of 'Rome'; it contains all the sex, violence and intrigue one has come to expect from the series.
This is a really good penultimate episode. Just about everything is setting things up for the confrontation that is sure to come between Mark Antony and Octavian. It is clear early on that Mark Antony is over Atia and is in thrall to the beautiful Cleopatra but even so it is a little surprising how cruelly he treats Atia and Octavia when they arrive in Alexandria. Another cruel surprise was learning what had happened to Memmio; I'd assumed he had died in the previous episode but here we learn that he has been kept like a caged animal for the last seven years. The regular cast are all on great form and Lyndsey Marshal is really impressive as Cleopatra; she is a really memorably character despite only appearing in a handful of episodes. Overall this was a classic episode of 'Rome'; it contains all the sex, violence and intrigue one has come to expect from the series.
