Monday Musings: Overview of Spartacus—Character studies

I just finished watching the final Spartacus series. One thing that struck me was how many coldhearted characters were on each side, but I think the Romans scored more in this department, starting with the House of Batiatus and ending with Marcus Crassus.

If only Spartacus had been able to forgive for what happened to his wife then maybe he could have escaped and lived out his life. I have to wonder if this lack of forgiveness has something to do with serving gods that don’t preach forgiveness. But despite this, Spartacus, a slave and a murderer, ended up having the kindest heart in my opinion. He gave his life so that other slaves could escape to freedom.

I was surprised that the two remaining warriors from Spartacus’s army were the two gay lovers. But after thinking it over, I realized their love was the truest of them all. Spartacus couldn’t find love after losing his first wife; Gannicus couldn’t find peace after losing Melita who really belonged to his best friend; Crixus couldn’t be satisfied unless he was avenging what happened to his love and she(Naevia) couldn’t rest until all the Romans were dead.

The one that bothered me the most was the coldhearted Marcus Crassus and the way he treated his slave, a slave I thought he loved but then realized she was only a possession to him. But to crucify her—that beat all the rest. Even though she did join the rebellion for a time, it was for a good reason. And yeah, she killed his son, but his son brutally raped her. He couldn’t forgive her? No. He could only see in black and white.

With so much treachery going on, it’s hard to find a kind-hearted character in this bunch. Even the ones who started out as innocent ended up with ice around their hearts. And despite all of this, I couldn’t hate any of these characters because they were so complex in their cruelty. We should hate them but instead we are drawn to them and even feel sorry for them in a way. That’s great writing.

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Long Hair Hottie for April!

My pick for April is hunky Dustin Clare. This Australian actor is best known for his starring role as Gannicus in the Starz mini-series Spartacu: Gods of the Arena. Of Scottish and Irish blood, he is the image of a fiercely handsome Celt. Who knew gladiators could be so hot? I want one.

http://www.starz.com/originals/spartacus/cast/Gannicus/DustinClare/Pages/DustinClare.aspx

http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view;_ylt=A2KJkPespgxQJD0AAk2JzbkF;_ylu=X3oDMTBlMTQ4cGxyBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDaW1n?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3F_adv_prop%3Dimage%26va%3Dspartacus%2Bblood%2Band%2Bsand%252C%2Bdustin%2Bclare%26fr%3Dfp-yie9%26tab%3Dorganic%26ri%3D5&w=640&h=427&imgurl=www.hotpage.ro%2Fimagini%2F2011%2Fianuarie%2Fspartacus%2Fspartacus-gods-of-the-arena-2011-08.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Ftv-bloggen.bloggo.nu%2FDustin-Clare-till-Spartacus-sasong-2%2F&size=45.5+KB&name=Dustin+Clare+till+Spartacus%3A+Blood+and+Sand+s%C3%A4song+2+-+Tv+-+bloggen&p=spartacus+blood+and+sand%2C+dustin+clare&oid=44e80ac050cc7e12bf96039368d28d72&fr2=&fr=fp-yie9&tt=Dustin%2BClare%2Btill%2BSpartacus%253A%2BBlood%2Band%2BSand%2Bs%25C3%25A4song%2B2%2B-%2BTv%2B-%2Bbloggen&b=0&ni=48&no=5&ts=&tab=organic&sigr=121ui5npr&sigb=144jde677&sigi=12men2u9h&.crumb=3.Kx7Au1.rn



Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author
Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly
http://www.kelleyheckart.com
http://twitter.com/CelticChick
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

A Greek vampire, Celtic kings, vengeful goddesses, an ancient faery curse…
All three books of my Dark Goddess trilogy are available in Print and Ebook. Set in dark age Scotland, I mixed history with a Samhain/Beltaine myth that revolves around an Irish clan and the goddesses Brigit and Cailleach.

Long Hair Hottie for March!

My pick for March is a New Zealand hunk. It’s no wonder this actor is a hottie—his mother was an Australian bikini model. Manu Bennett once played Marc Antony on Xena: Warrior Princess. His latest series is Spartacus: Blood and Sand, in which he appeared in full frontal nudity.

http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view;_ylt=A2KJkIZNpwxQAHgAxgyJzbkF;_ylu=X3oDMTBlMTQ4cGxyBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDaW1n?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3Fp%3Dspartacus%2Bblood%2Band%2Bsand%252C%2Bmanu%2Bbennett%2Bwith%2Blong%2Bhair%26n%3D30%26ei%3Dutf-8%26y%3DSearch%26fr%3Dfp-yie9%26tab%3Dorganic%26ri%3D25&w=413&h=600&imgurl=karapuca.com.br%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fimage-import%2F_LqjTcwHZ1O0%2FTNPZIbKZuiI%2Fcrixus-spartacus-gods-of-the-arena-i2.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fkarapuca.com.br%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fimage-import%2F_LqjTcwHZ1O0%2FTNPZIbKZuiI%2Fcrixus-spartacus-gods-of-the-arena&size=92.3+KB&name=Crixus+Spartacus+Gods+Of+The+Arena&p=spartacus+blood+and+sand%2C+manu+bennett+with+long+hair&oid=0b45a2fcce67f3c3ab3c712cc3e45159&fr2=&fr=fp-yie9&tt=Crixus%2BSpartacus%2BGods%2BOf%2BThe%2BArena&b=0&ni=48&no=25&ts=&tab=organic&sigr=13ibeafrs&sigb=14qnt93vd&sigi=13ippcceo&.crumb=3.Kx7Au1.rn


Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author
Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly
http://www.kelleyheckart.com
http://twitter.com/CelticChick
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

A Greek vampire, Celtic kings, vengeful goddesses, an ancient faery curse…
All three books of my Dark Goddess trilogy are available in Print and Ebook. Set in dark age Scotland, I mixed history with a Samhain/Beltaine myth that revolves around an Irish clan and the goddesses Brigit and Cailleach.