HBO's Rome ep 9 (and an unrelated link on the bottom!)

-Cato et al defeated, elephant toppled and struggling to get up; Cato dejected, but agrees to go to Uttica
-Scipio: "Where there's life there's hope." Cato: "I'm afraid, if we've done anything, my friend, we've disproved that proverb." Cato tells him to make peace with Caesar then goes off and stabs himself with a knife. Scipio notices his bread still there and goes after him but is too late.
-Scene of Cato's body burning in a very QUIET funeral. Scipio sends everyone else away and has a young man slit his throat.
-Caesar and family watching some kind of Satyr play, which mocks the two death scenes we've just seen. Brutus looks very uncomfortable. Caesar doesn't look too thrilled but claps anyway.
-Vorenus and Pullo return. V sees his wife from behind, and his children run up to him. He says "No more soldiering for me." P watches V and Niobe go up, with that "I KNOW SOMETHING" (you'll recall, he does know something) expression, mixed with a bit of sadness, methinks.
-Apparently they now have four slaves.
-Pullo runs into the girl he rescued who, I guess, is technically his slave. She's learned Latin. He's brought her a bracelet.
-Octavius coming home. It's been two years! He asks the horse guy if he's still fucking Attia.
-Brutus tells Servilia they have to go to Caesar's dinner party. He tells her he's not proud of what he's done. He tells her he'll make her excuses to Attia, but she says she'll go. "Not to be there will be seen as weakness." Brutus: "He's just a man. The loss of his affection is not worth this endless raging sorrow." Servilia: "I feel neither rage or sorrow. My objection to Caesar is purely political."
-They arrive--Servilia smiles secretly as Octavia!
-Caesar asks Octavius what he would do to restore the Republic. He also appoints Octavius as a pontiff. Octavius objects--he wants to concentrate on poetry! Caesar: "Poetry can wait."
-Vorenus explaining the battle to his children. Pullo sees his slave-girl carrying water and takes it in for her. V makes the young boy cry by going "BOOM! Chaos!"
-V is bored. Niobe suggests taking up butchering. V reluctant, but Niobe says, "It'll give you something to do!"
-V and P go into butchering together.
-V tells some guys to stop beating up on another guy. P grabs a butcher knife just in case. The guys remind V that he's not a soldier anymore, but V tells them to get lost. The guys threaten V and P and walk away.
-Niobe is WORRIED. Apparently, the maffia has taken over. The guy he saved comes knocking and offers bread and thanks.
-Octavia and Servilia weaving together. Octavia: "I wish you didn't care for [Caesar] so much." Servilia: "I wish I didn't care for you so much." They kiss. Then start talking about Octavius and how pretty he is. They speculate about Octavius and Caesar as lovers. Octavia mentions the affliction, and Servilia tells her she must find out what it is. She is VERY straight-forward about her intention to destroy Caesar. This causes Octavia some grief, but Servilia asks, "Would you rather I lied to you?" Octavia: "I wish you would think of something other than the destruction of my uncle." Servilia: "I have never lied to you. He still has some terrible hold on me. I wish it were not so, but he will not let go. Will you ask your brother?" Octavia: "Would it make you happy?" Servilia: "Yes it would."
-Octavia has a cockatiel! Octavia says she's bored, and Octavius offers to read to her. He was reading pontiff-stuff, but he reads poetry to her. She says she's tired of it after a while. She tells him to tell her a secret--"something shocking, dangerous, that nobody knows." He claims he doesn't know anything like that. She brings up Caesar's affliction. He denies it and wonders why she wants to know. She says she doesn't care, but she wants to hear something, and she doubts he has any terrible secrets of his own worth telling. He says she's wrong. Her: "Oh please, like what?" Him: "I've tortured and killed a man." Him: "Liar!" He tells her about killing Niobe's lover. Her: "Bravo, I suppose." Him: "You asked for a terrible secret."
-Big bad guys calls for V. P gets a blade. Big bad guy explains the new "rules" to V, but V is being contemptuous. BBG tells V to find him in the Forum and kneel and kiss his feet, or he'll come and kill him. Also says V will see his wife and daughters raped. P advances with the blade, but V tells him to hold.
-Octavia tells Servilia that she couldn't get it from Octavius. Servilia tells her to try again--she has something he wants. Servilia: "He wants you." Octavia protests she has loyalty to her family--they love her. Servilia: "And I love you." Octavia: "You call this love?! I can't!" Octavia starts going home. Servilia: Don't go... Your mother killed Glabius!"
-Shot of a REALLY CUTE Congo African Grey in the Forum! Also a Blue and Gold Macaw!
-BBG and his men storming in.
-Niobe sends the children to the country with her sister, but she stays with V. V tells her to leave too, but she will not.
-Incense and daggers? Niobe and V kiss while waiting for BBG.
-But... Caesar shows up instead! He doesn't know how to pronounce "Salve"!!
-BBG comes up and is stopped by Caesar's men. He stalks off.
-Caesar wants V to stand for magistrate of Lower Aventine on his slate. V declines, saying their politics are diff. Caesar says he will not rest until Rome is as it was in the Golden Age, but he cannot succeed alone. Says he'll give up dictator power. Evidently, V capitulates. They appear together--people are VERY happy. P looks worried.
-Octavia comes in on Octavius writing. Putzes around a bit then sends the slave away. Tells Octavius not to get another. Tells him to lie down with her. He looks CONFUSED. She tells him he used to come to her when he was little all the time. He says only when he was scared, and he isn't scared now. She tells him to pretend. He says he has no skill at it. She says she's embarrassed--thought he wanted her. "You're a man now. You can take what you want." They kiss. And, of course, she seems to be the one doing the taking... After they finish, she starts to ask him, but he's figured it out. She starts crying, "What have I done?" Him: "What have you done?" Her: "Promise... promise you won't tell mother." Somebody's watching them!
-Scene of Niobe dressing up V in a toga. I'm not entirely knowledgeable about exact toga-wearing, but that piece of cloth certainly looks big enough to be a proper toga... Niobe: "Look at you!" Pullo: "You look like laundry!" Pullo approaches V and reaches out to touch it, and Niobe says, "No, don't! You'll dirty it!"
-Atia chasing after Octavia. Octavius trying to calm her down. Atia about to strike him, but he stops her and tells her she will not strike him. She does anyway and calls him a pervert. Octavia grabs the whip and says, "Be quiet!" Atia glares, "You wouldn't dare!" She drops it. Atia: "How could you do this to me? My own child!" Octavia calls her on killing Glabius, but Atia continues to deny it--quite convincingly! Atia accuses Servilia of being the liar.
-Pullo drunk. Calls his slave loudly in the middle of the night. Tells her to sit and drink w/ him. Tells her about his mother, who was a slave. Doesn't know about his father. He's angry at his father and VOCAL about it. Other people tell him to be quiet, but he tells them to suck his cock. He tells the girl he wants her to be happy. Tells her to come closer and take off her dress. She does, but doesn't look too thrilled.
-Scene of statues being made. Some guy asks horse-guy why he's wearing a hat. Horse-guy says it's Yom Kippur. A bunch of Attia's men surround Servilia's litter, kill her men, pull her out, cut off her hair, and strip her. People yellling to help her, but no one does. She's praying. Horse-guy looks distraught at what he's done. They leave.

And it. Ends. There. AUUUGH!

As you can see from my reaction, I'm completely enraptured by this episode. The incest was gross, but the plot is captivating.

Something else I found really exciting (and completely unrelated) is that they've apparently discovered a poem by Charles Carroll of Carrollton (a signer of the Declaration of Independence) written in Latin. Sadly, there is no text there. I just find this makes my little geek heart swell, because it is a further display of the vital role of Classics in American history. Thanks to David Meadows for the link!