Xena Reviews: Season 3, Episode 16

When in Rome … – Director: John Laing/Writer: Steven L. Sears

In Gaul, a local chief named Vercinix leads his people against the invading Roman legions. Vercinix sends his family away and ends up being captured by Caesar’s troops, which is quite the publicity coup for Caesar since Vercinix has been giving him so much trouble. Some time later in Syria, the Parthians are successfully resisting the Romans under Crassus when Xena shows up. She drags Crassus out of the camp and tells him she’s going to trade him to Caesar in exchange for Vercinix.

On the way to Rome, Xena tells Gabi about the Triumvirate (Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus) and how none of them likes or trusts each other, but they all need each other to rule Rome. Xena takes Crassus’s imperial ring to show Caesar as proof she really has him (Crassus having being reported dead in Syria). Crassus assumes Xena still wants to kill Caesar (and Gabi kinda wonders about that too), but Xena claims she’s gotten past that particular obsession. Xena and Gabi go to Rome to let Caesar know they have Crassus and will trade him for Vercinix. Xena takes Caesar to see Crassus (leaving Gabi as a hostage in Rome) and Caesar tells Crassus that Gabi is Xena’s weak link and that he should work on her. Caesar tells Xena he’s throwing a party to celebrate his victory over Vercinix and invites her to attend.

Xena tells Gabi Caesar has no intention of giving up a prize like Vercinix, so Gabi will have to sneak Crassus into the dungeon and switch him with Vercinix. Xena swears again that she has no plans to kill Caesar, but Gabi worries about what will happen to Crassus after the switch. If Caesar executes him in place of Vercinix, it’ll be Gabi’s fault since she made the switch. Xena tells her Crassus is a scumbag and relates how Crassus ordered the entire village of Gardenus to be crucified—men, women, and children. At the party, Caesar shows Vercinix off like a prize hog and Pompey hints to Xena that many people in Rome wouldn’t be sorry if she killed Caesar. On the ship, Crassus plays on Gabi’s guilt over what might happen to him and says the Gardenus massacre was done by overzealous troops while he was away (and that he crucified those responsible). Xena visits Vercinix in the dungeon and she takes a wax impression of the jailer’s key. On the ship, Crassus burns his ropes off and almost escapes, but Xena stops him. She gives Gabi the key she had made and tells her the timetable has been accelerated. Caesar plans to execute Vercinix tomorrow and it’s such a political opportunity that he’ll have to go ahead and kill Crassus in his place.

Gabi really doesn’t want to be responsible for sending Crassus to his death and wonders how Xena can be so casual about her feelings, but Xena says it’s about focus. Gabi can’t help wondering if Xena’s focus is on Caesar, but Xena insists she just wants Vercinix safe. Gabi takes Crassus to Rome (recapturing him when he tries to run) and he tries to guilt her again. She says she’ll give him his ring (which Xena must’ve given her off-camera, between scenes) so the guards can recognize him and he won’t be executed. She drugs him before taking him the rest of the way to the city. In the palace, Pompey gives Xena a dagger (since she’s not allowed to carry weapons there) and hints very hard that he’d like her to kill Caesar—and that he would release Vercinix if he was the only one of the Triumvirate left. Gabi pretends to be drunk (aided by Crassus, who’s half out-of-it from the drug she gave him), and they get thrown in the dungeon right across from Vercinix. (Renee’s drunk voice is hilarious.) Brutus tells Caesar he tracked Gabi and Crassus to the city but lost them and Caesar wonders what Xena’s real plan is. Xena shows up in Caesar’s chamber with Pompey’s dagger, but Caesar was expecting her and she’s captured.

Xena is thrown in the dungeon with Vercinix and Gabi tosses her the key. As they prepare for the spectacle in the arena, Caesar returns Pompey’s dagger, letting him know he’s aware Xena wasn’t acting alone when she tried to kill him. Xena is taken to the arena to fight a couple of gladiators as a warm-up for Vercinix’s execution. Gabi switches Vercinix with Crassus (who’s still unconscious) and Vercinix dresses in a guard’s outfit, leaving the guard in the other cell. Gabi is about to leave Crassus’s ring when Vercinix tells her Crassus personally ordered the Gardenus massacre. (Vercinix knows because his brother’s family was there and his niece survived long enough to tell him.) In the arena, Xena lets herself get knocked around a bit until she sees Gabi in the crowd and then she fights back, pounding her opponents (but sparing their lives, much to the crowd’s disappointment). Xena is tossed back in her cell and “Vercinix” is taken out to be executed. The real Vercinix (still dressed as a guard) lets Xena out and they go to look for Gabi, who’s still in the arena. When the hood is taken from Crassus’s head, Caesar and Pompey recognize him, but the crowd assumes he’s Vercinix and calls for his execution. Caesar can’t afford to lose face, so he has Crassus executed and Gabi forces herself to watch before leaving, since she considers herself responsible. On the ship back to Greece, Xena apologizes for ignoring Gabi’s feelings and forcing her to make such a hard choice. Xena feels guilty for making Gabi more like her, but Gabi tells Xena she’s responsible for her own choices and can live with them. Gabi tells Xena she loves her and tosses Crassus’s ring into the sea.

This is a really good episode (#32 on my all-time list) that’s a big turning point for Gabi. Even though she lost her blood innocence in The Deliverer, Gabi still tends to see things in black and white and isn’t comfortable being responsible for someone’s death. But when she finds out what a terrible person Crassus is, she chooses to let him die, knowing she still could’ve stopped it in the arena. By doing that, Gabi sheds some of her innocence and realizes that life isn’t just black and white, it’s made up of many shades of grey. Being able to make hard decisions like that moves Gabi closer to Xena’s worldview, something Xena feels guilty about. But by trying to shelter Gabi from reality and keep her from being hurt, Xena’s actually holding her back from growing. In the end, I think Xena grows too, once she realizes she has to let Gabi follow her own path (much as she had to do for Lyceus in Remember Nothing) and experience the bitter parts of life along with the sweet. And Gabi’s innocence did leave her open to being manipulated (like Crassus did), so maybe a little cynicism (or realism) will keep her from being taken advantage of in the future.

This whole episode is a bit of a fake-out; Caesar (and the audience) assumes Xena is still obsessed with killing him and she uses that to her advantage. Everything she does is part of the plan, including letting herself get captured in Caesar’s chambers with Pompey’s dagger in her hand. She was basically playing everyone, although I’m not sure if Gabi was in on the whole plan or not. (Judging by how worried she was about Xena going after Caesar, I’d say Xena was keeping her in the dark about some things.) So Xena was telling the truth about her focus, Caesar just mistakenly assumed she was focusing on him when she was really focused on freeing Vercinix. But once again (like in The Deliverer) Xena’s focus ends up hurting Gabi; she’s so obsessed with outmaneuvering Caesar and rescuing Vercinix, she doesn’t notice what a shitty position she’s putting Gabi in. Once she realizes that, Xena wonders if Gabi might be better off without her, but Gabi commits to Xena all the way, saying she’d be hurt if Xena tried to exclude her and taking responsibility for her own choices.

Gabi is willing to face anything because she loves Xena and wants to stick with her. Gabi throwing Crassus’s ring into the sea at the end represents letting go of part of her innocence, but that brings her closer to Xena, making them more equal partners instead of mentor/sidekick. I think that step is necessary for them to have a solid relationship; it’s like Gabi is shedding some of her baggage, which allows her to move forward romantically with Xena. In fact, I think the boat ride home might be where Xena and Gabi’s relationship first turns physical. They’ve been in love for a while now (and I know some people think they’ve been intimate for a long time too), but I think Gabi letting go of that naïve part of her (and Xena accepting that) means she’s ready to take that next step with Xena. Their mutual “I love you’s” at the end just reinforce that for me. (And it is a long boat ride back to Greece …)

Noticeable Things:

• There is some historical stuff in this episode: Crassus actually was killed by Parthians at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BCE. I guess in Xena’s world, he died a little later in Rome, but everyone probably believed he died at Carrhae. And Vercinix is based on Vercingetorix, a Gaulish chief who led a rebellion in 52 BCE.
• In the original script, there was a mention of how Boadicea defeated Caesar in Britannia after Xena left, but it was cut from the final episode.
• Some fans wonder if Gabi let Crassus see the reflection from his ring (which she was wearing in the arena) on purpose, to taunt him right before his execution. Steve Sears said no, that isn’t Gabi’s style, and I tend to agree.
• When Xena saves Crassus in Syria, he says the last time they saw each other, she swore to kill him. So they obviously know each other, but I can’t help wondering when that took place. It seem like Xena has history with some other Romans besides Caesar.

Favourite Quotes:

• “Because Caesar was taken.” Xena’s answer when Pompey asks why she’s called the Warrior Princess.
• “There’s a sentence in there just dying to get out.” Xena making fun of Caesar’s stammering on seeing her walk into his throne room.
• “I’m here because I want to be here. I love you, Xena.” Gabi letting Xena know she’s grown up enough to make her own decisions, including who she wants to be with. (And yes, Xena says it back.)