The finale to the Vengeance season.
Glaber's forces converge on Mt Vesuvius, leaving Spartacus and his forces with a lose-lose situation - confront the army with superior numbers and surely die in battle, or die slowly of starvation the longer they stay on the mountain. Also, a certain baby is on the way...
Tropes:
- Amicable Exes: Spartacus and Mira's last conversation has the latter saying she hopes the next woman he falls in love with makes him happy.
- Batman Gambit: Glaber has reason to believe that Ashur has been playing him, thanks to manipulation from his wife. He dispatches Ashur to Spartacus's forces with an offer he has very little chance of accepting, also knowing that the rebels are unlikely to let him live. Indeed, when his head is delivered afterwards, Glaber notes that Spartacus behaved as he expected.
- Berserker Tears: Naevia is crying with rage when she declares that she will kill Ashur.
- Black Dude Dies First: Inverted. Oenomaus is the last of the protagonists to die. But played straight in a series wide context since, out of the four historical characters who actually did serve alongside Spartacus, he is the first to die.
- Call-Back:
- Spartacus's speech after Glaber's defeat calls back to the latter's speech to the Thracian army in "The Red Serpent".
- As in "Kill Them All", a character launches into Berserker Tears when another is killed, slaughters a bunch of Romans, and holds the dying character in their arms, and said character calls him "brother". It was Agron and Duro in the former, and Gannicus and Oenomaus here.
- Characters Dropping Like Flies: This episode is second only to the finale in highest body count across the series - Mira, Ashur, Oenomaus, Ilithyia, Lucretia and Glaber all die among the main characters.
- Chekhov's Gun: Spartacus has to wrap Mira's body in vines because he can't bury her. He later realises the vines can be used as ropes to climb down the mountain and ambush the sentries.
- Death of a Child: Ilithyia's baby dies moments after being born when Lucretia jumps off the cliffs with him.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Oenomaus is killed in battle, but doesn't die until Gannicus is cradling him.
- Driven to Suicide: Lucretia jumps off the cliff outside the ludus, believing she's bringing Quintus a child they longed for.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Mira is killed shockingly when Salvius throws an axe meant for Spartacus. It happens in the first ten minutes, signalling that Anyone Can Die in this episode.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Nemetes opts to stand with the rebels and potentially die fighting rather than defect to Glaber.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: Quite literally. Lucretia had been forced to wear the red wig at Ashur's preference. Once she knows their engagement is dissolved, she throws the wig away.
- Foreshadowing:
- Nemetes dislikes the way Spartacus leads the rebels. Their conflict will be a big part of War of the Damned.
- Naevia completes her evolution into Dark Action Girl, and can sway Crixus to her wishes, which will have negative consequences the next season.
- Saxa shares several looks with Gannicus. By the next season, they have become lovers.
- Heel–Face Door-Slam: Ilithyia tries to secure a better future for Lucretia by framing Ashur for telling Seppia. Glaber however tells her to kill Lucretia since she has outlived her usefulness. Ilithyia is about to do so, and then her water breaks, putting her at the mercy of the madwoman.
- If You Kill Him, You Will Be Just Like Him!: Subverted. Naevia stops Crixus from killing Ashur on her behalf...because she wants to do it herself.
- Instant Birth: Just Add Labor!: Ilithyia's water breaks and she immediately goes into labor, not feeling any pains or any indication that the child is on the way. However, she is implied to be on the bed for at least long enough for Lucretia to send for the medicus, and the baby is given an impromptu C-section by a madwoman.
- Irony: Ilithyia is stopped from pushing Lucretia off the balcony when her water breaks. Lucretia then jumps off the cliff anyway but with the baby.
- Meaningful Echo: After decapitating Ashur, Naevia tells Crixus that he was right; it is no easy task to sever a man's head. That was one of the first things he said to her in Blood & Sand in an attempt to flirt.
- Out-Gambitted: Ilithyia plans to frame Ashur for telling Seppia about Glaber murdering Seppius, in the hopes of ending his engagement to Lucretia and thus keeping her on their side. Glaber turns on Ashur but then orders Ilithyia to kill Lucretia as well. She's about to, but goes into labour, and Lucretia then makes off with her baby off a cliff.
- Pre-Mortem One-Liner:
- Ashur tells Naevia that killing him won't erase her trauma or make her feel better. She responds...
Naevia: Yes. But it's a fucking start.Cuts his head off.- A similar set-up comes with Glaber telling Spartacus that their rebellion is still doomed, and that Rome will triumph eventually.
Spartacus: Perhaps. Yet it is not this day.Stabs him in the mouth. - Time Skip: According to Mira, several weeks have passed between this episode and the previous one. Indeed, if you look closely, a wall of the temple that Glaber's forces had destroyed has now been rebuilt.
- Together in Death:
- Lucretia jumps off that cliff specifically to join Quintus in the afterlife.
- Oenomaus's last words are that he's going to join Melitta.
- Traumatic C-Section: Ilithyia's baby comes too early, and Lucretia cuts it out of her. Naturally Ilithyia dies shortly after.
- Working with the Ex: Spartacus and Mira still fight together even though they are no longer lovers.
