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Context Recap / SpartacusBloodAndSandS2E5Libertus

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1A plan is hatched and brothers are reunited upon the sands in this episode. While searching a temple with a view to spend the night, Spartacus encounters Lucius Caelius, a Roman disillusioned with Rome because of the civil war Sulla waged years before. Lucius gives shelter and information to the Rebels, mainly that the rumors that abound are that Spartacus and the Rebels are finished and all but slaughtered. He informs Spartacus that three of the rebels will be executed in the arena and that one of them is Crixus. Spartacus, unwilling to forsake Crixus and wanting to send a message to the Romans, hatches a daring plan of rescue, where they will move in and take the arena in Capua.
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3Meanwhile, Gannicus returns to Capua to give Oenomaus a honorable death in the arena, but unaware Oenomaus knows the truth of Gannicus' affair with Melitta. Elsewhere, Lucretia dissuades Ilithyia from aborting her child, though Ilithyia must be rid of the pregnancy if she will marry Varinius. However, Lucretia manages to convince Ilithyia to delay the abortion. Lucretia, through Ashur, reveals the abortion attempt to Glaber. Ilithyia admits upon confrontation that their love and marriage is over and reveals her plan to marry Varinius to Glaber.
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5When the primus fight starts, Oenomaus viciously attacks Gannicus and Mira is tasked to set the arena on fire on its foundations. When the arena finally collapses and most of the spectators flee, Spartacus and Agron attack the remaining gladiators and guards and escape with Gannicus, Crixus and Oenomaus, but not before Spartacus throws a spear directly at Glaber and nicks his cheek. Glaber, the last to leave the pulvinus, chances upon Senator Albinius (Ilithyia's father) trapped beneath a fallen beam, but he does not save his father-in-law, instead killing him. Glaber finds Ilithyia and lies by telling her her father was killed by Spartacus and that they will remain married.
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7!!Tropes
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9* BigDamnKiss: Between Agron and Nasir.
10* BrokenBird: Gannicus has become this in the five years since he left the House of Batiatus. He is barely the functional part of FunctionalAddict, and is still consumed by guilt over Melitta's death.
11* TheBusCameBack: Gannicus makes his triumphant return.
12* CharacterDeath: Mercato, Cossutius, Albinius, and Rhaskos all are killed in the climax.
13* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Once again, Ashur displays it by betraying Lucretia and informing Glaber of Ilythyia's plans to abort their child.
14* ClickHello: How Lucius greets the rebels when they enter his temple. With a drawn bow.
15* CoitusUninterruptus: The head of the brothel interrupts Gannicus while he's screwing a prostitute, demanding payment. Visibly annoyed, Gannicus pays the man without stopping.
16* CondemnedContestant: While the games are already designed as an execution, the prisoners are kept chained and given dull blades to ensure their deaths. Their raw talent means they still put up a hell of a fight, but Rhaskos eventually falls and Crixus and Oenomaus are about to defeated when the arena collapses.
17* CorpseLand: Spartacus and the rebels have to traverse a River of Corpses. It basically the sewer system for the MANY dead bodies the Arena produces, being mainly composed of bodily fluids and body parts. Full squick factor is in effect, but it turns out to be incredibly useful to enter and exit the Arena unnoticed if you are willing to stomach it.
18* CrazyIsCool: Lucius Caelius, the half-crazed shepherd living in a ruined Greek temple in the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius, who despises all Romans (despite being one) and a badass archer to boot. The rebels take an immediate liking to him.
19* CrazyEnoughToWork: Spartacus plan to liberate their brothers and destroy the Arena is only successful because it is monumentally insane. The rebels have very few fighting men left, the Arena is guarded and deep within enemy territory, and they have no idea what state the captured rebels will be in when they arrive.
20* CrazyPrepared: Glaber grabbed the SmartBall after failing to execute Spartacus the first time. This time around, he as all of the prisoners chained AND given dull blades. They still put up a hell of a fight.
21* CruelToBeKind: Played with. This is Gannicus' excuse for volunteering to execute the captured rebels. He reasons that, as they are going to be executed either way, then it would be better for them to die at the hands of someone who loves them. However, it seems he doesn't actually believe his words, and this is his roundabout way of dealing with his own guilt.
22-->'''Gannicus:''' If they must fall I will see them to honourable death given by one who yet holds them to heart.
23* DeathByIrony: Confirmed by WordOfGod. Cossutius is killed by spear, a metaphore for his continued delight at the torture and rape of slaves under him.
24* TheDogBitesBack: After spending the past several episodes being mocked by Albinius, Varinius, and Ilythyia, Glaber seizes the opportunity to murder Albinius leaving Ilythyia married to him with no way out.
25* DressingAsTheEnemy: Spartacus and Agron dress as two Roman guards to help infiltrate the Arena. The disguise gives Spartacus time to briefly meet Gannicus, and he realizes he is a former slave of Batiatus.
26* DueToTheDead: Unusually, Glaber actually shows grief for Marcus' death, and pays him respect.
27* EntitledBastard: Albinius spends most of the episode (and the previous episode) mocking Glaber, and yet still expects Glaber to help him. He doesn't.
28* EyeScream: Continuing from last episode, Crixus' left eye is still injured. No longer swollen open, it now looks like he has a detached retina.
29* ForcedToWatch: Spartacus and Agron are forced to wait for the Arena to catch fire while watching the games. Because of this delay, Rhaskos is killed.
30* FriendshipMoment: Two major examples.
31** Spartacus and Agron make amends for their past arguments, and both sincerely apologize to eachother.
32** Agron actively apologizes to Naevia for trying to leave her in the mines, and even protests when she says they SHOULD have left her there.
33* HandicappedBadass: Crixus, Rhaskos, and Oenomaus spend all of their final gladiator fight chained by the hands. This limits them enough to get Rhaskos killed.
34* HookersAndBlow: Gannicus has not changed much in five years. He makes immediately for the nearest whorehouse in Capua, complete with CoitusUninterruptus when he has to up his tab.
35-->'''Gannicus:''' I am for wine and the embrace of questionable women.
36* InMediasRes: The episode opens with the Romans and sniping at eachother in the Arena pulpit. Varinius then presides as Crixus, Oenomaus, and Rhaskos enter the Arena one final time for their execution. Their opponent? Gannicus. It then flashes back to the previous days events leading up to this event.
37* KarmicDeath: Cossutius gets a very karmic death when Spartacus painfully kills him with a spear meant for Glaber. Considering all his actions up to this point, it is very well deserved.
38* KillItWithFire: Mira and Donar set a few Roman soldiers on fire, and many Roman citizens are burned to death in the collapsing arena.
39* {{Placebo}}: Lucretia tries to have have Ashur replace Ilythyia's vial of Silphium replaced with one, hoping to show her that the gods mean for her child to be born regardless of efforts. Ashur double crosses her and tells Glaber of the vial.
40* PlugNPlayFriends: The rebels accept Lucius almost immediately, despite him being a Roman. It helps that he is quite willingly giving them aid at every turn, as is most certainly an EnemyMine when compared to the rest of Rome.
41* PunicWars: Varinus compares Spartacus to "Hannibal at the Gates" to the Arena crowd, telling them his threat is over. It is severely undercut when the Arena starts falling apart in flames.
42* RefugeInAudacity: Two examples:
43** How the destruction of the Arena succeeds. Nobody is suspecting that Spartacus and the rebels, who a day before were still on the run, would double back to attack Capua itself and rescue their brothers. Glaber and the rest are completely blindsided by this CrazyEnoughToWork tactic.
44** Senator Albinius tries this in his last moments, begging for Glaber to save his live after having promised to ruin the Praetor's career. Unsurprisingly, this does not work.
45* TheReveal: How is it that, despite all his raping of the female slaves in his house, and his desire for a male heir, Quintus never once impregnated any of them? Or for that matter why any of the female slaves never got impregnated for all the rape in the House? Simple. Lucretia forced each of the slaves to have a painful herbal abortion whenever this occurred.
46* RichesToRags: Lucius' backstory. He lost everything in Sulla's civil war. Specifically his family was slaughtered by Roman reprisals and all his wealth and land confiscated. Note, he was a loyal Roman citizen up to this point, but his family and wealthy taken regardless. He now completely despises the Romans.
47* ShownTheirWork: Lucretia reveals she has been using the a drought of the herb Silphium as a prophilactic/abortificant. Silphium was indeed used as such by the Romans, but went extinct due to overuse and poor farming methods.
48* WhamEpisode: Gannicus returns and hesitantly allies with the rebels, the captured rebels are rescued, Glaber murders Albinius, and Spartacus burns the Arena to the ground.

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