SPARTACUS Air Date: February 3rd, 2012
“A Place In This World” Review by Andy Greene
The show that put Starz on the map for original programming has finally returned, albeit without its star lead Andy Whitfield, who succumbed to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in September of last year (R.I.P.). Much of the hubbub and discussion of Spartacus’ newest season will begin and end with his replacement Liam McIntyre. It’s impossible to ignore, especially so early in the new season, but for now, let’s get on with the episode.
“A Place In This World” was written by show creator Steven S. DeKnight and already shows improvement from the bland premiere, if only because it puts a spotlight on one of its best and elusive characters, Doctore (the excellent Peter Mensah), providing a glimpse into his past. Friday night’s action begins with a blood bath in the pits, a match between a massive white man and a skinny, lithe black man. This black man is Oenomaus, the man who would become Doctore and lanista for the house of Batiatus, the esteemed trainer for Crixus, Spartacus and Barca alike. The battle is as bloody and gruesome as any that we’ve seen on the show (especially its climax), and that’s a bold statement. For fans that watch the show solely for this kind of gore, it’s a welcome sight, even if it’s perhaps a disturbing commentary on our society.
Spartacus and Crixus (Manu Bennett) continue their grudging alliance in an effort to free Roman slaves and in particular, to find Naevia, Crixus’ lost love. Crixus’
transformation from hated villain to perhaps the character you root for most (that includes Spartacus), especially after the excellent prequel series Gods of the Arena, is a testament to the writers and of Manu Bennett’s underrated work as the conflicted Gaol. The two lead separate factions simmering with tension, and right now, their undisputed leadership of the clans are the only thing keeping the two clans from war. Something tells me that will change in the coming season. But for now, they roam from villa to villa searching for leads to Naevia’s whereabouts, freeing slaves in their bloody wake. After a Dominus’ body slave named Tiberius makes an attempt on the life of Spartacus, the two leaders come into ideological dispute over what’s to be done with the boy.
While Spartacus’ company is exalted by their freedom (witness the Gaol’s excessive ribaldry replete with flopping genitalia), one man isn’t: Oenomaus. In last week’s premiere, he refused to join Crixus and Spartacus on their vengeful path, and has returned to the only place deserving of a man who has lost his honor: the pits. As we learn in flashbacks, Titus Batiatus (Jeffrey Thomas) rescued Oenomaus from his eventual bloody fate in the pits and set to teach him honor and train him in the art of gladiator fighting. Obviously, the man would succeed, and it’s another example of how much better a dominus Titus was than his volatile son Batiatus (John Hannah). Speaking of which, this show misses the side-splitting verbiage of Hannah as the lovably villainous Batiatus almost as much as Andy Whitfield, after his beheading in the first season finale. He had the best lines and deserved an Emmy for his work, and without Ashur (Nick Tarabay) to this point, the show lacks much of its vigorous dialogue and gusto.
As Oenomaus looks for death in his return to the pits, Claudius Glaber (Craig Parker) exhausts every possibility to stop Spartacus....
18 THE GRAVEYARD EXAMINER
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