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Lucius Vorenus

"Fortune pisses on me."

One of the two protagonists. We first meet him as a centurion of the 13th Legion in Gaul who has not seen home nor his family for eight years and wishes nothing but going back to them. Vorenus is an impeccably honest and most honorable man that values tradition, law and loyalty to the Roman Republic above all... something that will bring him innumerable problems. Played by Kevin McKidd.

Tropes:

• Anti-Hero: Type IV-V
• Badass Boast / Blasphemous Boast: "I AM THE SON OF HADES, I FUCK CONCORD ON HER ARSE!"
• Badass Bookworm: Lucius Vorenus is a lesser, more subtle example (of the Bookworm side). He often cites examples from Roman history during his Honor Before Reason rants, sometimes talks about other cultures (eg. the Egyptian gods) as if he's read up about them and the reason he was sent on the mission to find Caesar's stolen eagle in the first place was because his superior officer thought he was clever. His Badass qualifications are impeccable.
• Bash Brothers: With Titus Pullo.
• Battle Cry: "Thirteenth!!!"
• Beard of Sorrow: After Niobe and Caesar's death, as well as the supposed death of his children.
• Berserk Button: People who are disloyal, as the Greek mercenary who suggested betraying Pompey found out.
• Celibate Hero
• Cosmic Plaything
• Creepy Souvenir: He carries a German warrior's pennis as a lucky charm. He also keeps Erastes Fulmen's head after decapitating him.
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: Many, but most notably in one situation where Lucius Vorenus decides that the most ethical thing to do is kill a little boy. It's heartbreaking to see how torn he is between "doing the right thing" and killing his wife's bastard, and listening to his instinct to not kill a child.
• Drill Sergeant Nasty: One in the pilot, mellows in later episodes.
• Fiery Redhead
• Good-Looking Privates
• The Gump
• Heroic BSOD: Once the Unstoppable Rage has worn off, Vorenus has one of these after believing his whole family is dead
• Heterosexual Life Partners: With Pullo.
• Honor Before Reason: Much of his sense of honor is Deliberate Values Dissonance, however.
• Miles Gloriosus
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Because of his sense of loyalty.
• Not So Above It All: Though rather than be above the silliness he started off above the corruption. Vorenus eventually goes from being a honorable soldier to the Godfather of Rome's criminal underworld.
• Odd Couple: With Pullo.
• Officer and a Gentleman: It's amazingly funny to compare that to the dirtbags he serves, who would screw Anything That Moves.
• Papa Wolf
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: With Niobe. After a rocky start, they grow to love each other... or at least he does.
• Perpetual Frowner: Vorenus seems to frown even when he smiles.
• Real Men Love the Gods
• Returning War Vet
• Undying Loyalty: To the point of being Lampshaded:

Octavian: That man turned loyalty into a vice.

• Unstoppable Rage: More than once. But the stand-out example is when he slaughters Erastes Fulmen's entire gang.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Vorenus has an unfortunate amount of these. Lampshaded by one of his interactions with Da Chief Marc Anthony. Vorenus himself had this reaction when Pullo killed one of his slaves just because them slave was in a relationship with the girl Pullo loves.
• Wide-Eyed Idealist: Sort of. He still believes in the Republic, while everybody else sees it as rotten to the core.

Titus Pullo

"Here I come, girls! I'm gonna drink all the wine, smoke all the smoke, and fuck every whore in the city!"

The other protagonist. Pullo is an impulsive, boisterous and wholly irreverent legionary in the 13th Legion serving under Vorenus, who he befriends nonetheless after going on a mission with him. The two then return to Vorenus' house in Rome as Heterosexual Life Partners. Played by Ray Stevenson.

Tropes:

• The Alcoholic
• Anti-Hero: Type IV-V
• Bash Brothers: With Vorenus.
• Battle Cry: "Thirteenth!!!"
• Berserk Button: Insulting the 13th Legion.
• Body Horror: Gets a skull fracture during a street brawl. The treatment of the time (centuries before the invention of anaesthetics) ain't pretty.
• Boisterous Bruiser
• Chivalrous Pervert: With Eirene.
• Cluster F-Bomb: "I'm Titus Fucking Pullo, Cunt!"
• Crazy Jealous Guy: Kills Eirene's poor lover, who was very kind, polite, and respectful to him.
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: Pullo is a rapist and multiple murderer but is presented as heroic because he is a loyal friend to Vorenus. Raping the enemy's women was completely normal behavior for Roman legionnaires.
• The Gambling Addict
• Gladiator Games: Pullo is sentenced to fight and die in the arena. After being provoked he kills five of the gladiators instead in a Crowning Moment of Awesome.
• Good-Looking Privates
• The Gump
• Happily Married: To Eirene. Even though he killed the man she loved in a fit of rage.
• Heterosexual Life Partners: With Vorenus.
• Heroic BSOD: Pullo has one towards the end of Season One when Vorenus rejects him.
• Hot-Blooded
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Octavian.
• Interplay of Sex and Violence: With Gaia as they come close to "It's Not Rape If You Enjoyed It".
• Love At First Sight: To Eirene.
• Male Frontal Nudity
• Major Injury Underreaction: You done with flogging me? I was just beginning to enjoy it...
• Odd Couple: With Vorenus.
• Professional Killer: Becomes one when Vorenus throws him out of his home.
• Screw the Money, I Have Rules: Cicero attempts to buy Pullo when he is sent to assassinate him, but Pullo declines the offer and does the job, even though he admires the man and doesn't hide it.
• Unstoppable Rage

Niobe of the Voreni

"I don't want people dying in my house!"

Vorenus' wife through an Arranged Marriage and mother of two daughters, both named Vorena. At the start of the series she has been in charge of the Voreni household for eight years while her husband was at war in Gaul. She also has a son from her brother in-law who she tries to pass as her eldest daughter's when Vorenus returns home. Played by Indira Varma.

Tropes:

• Aloof Big Sister: To Lyde.
• Apron Matron
• Arranged Marriage: How happy is debatable.
• Driven to Suicide: After Vorenus discovers her secret in the first season finale.
• The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry
• Good Adultery: She was told her husband was dead.
• Gorgeous Period Dress
• Housewife
• Irony: Guess who ended going against that quote?
• Stuffed Into the Fridge: Technically voluntary, although she would have probably been targeted by Erastes Fulmen if she had survived anyway. Her death sets Vorenus' plotline for Season 2.
• Your Cheating Heart

Eirene

"I'm plegant! Whatever you call it!"

A Germanic slave that Vorenus and Pullo rescue from a band of Pompeian soldiers early in Season 1. Pullo is instantly infatuated with her, and after a while he has her freed and marries her. Played by Chiara Mastalli.

Tropes:

• Betty: To Gaia's Veronica.
• Cute Mute / The Quiet One: At first.
• Damsel in Distress
• Fake Nationality: This is rampant through the cast, but it begs mention that the only native Roman actress in the main cast plays a non-Roman character.
• Kill the Cutie
• Longest Pregnancy Ever: Because of HBO's decision to cancel the show in the second season, the writing team had to compact the story lines planned for the second, third and fourth seasons into one in order to give the story some closure. This lead to Eirene remaining pregnant during historical events that happened in the span of two whole years.
• Made a Slave
• Only Known by Their Nickname: It's not until the very last episode she is in that her real name is revealed - Adela. In Real Life, the Romans used to give the slaves new names based on perceived qualities of them. Eirene in particular is Greek for "peace".
• The Rival: To Gaia.
• What the Hell Is That Accent?: Her Germanic origins are not revealed until the last episode she's in.
• Woman Scorned
• You No Take Candle

The Voreni Children

Vorena the Elder, Vorena the Younger and Lucius. All of them named after Lucius Vorenus.

Tropes:

• Bratty Teenage Daughter: Vorena the Elder.
• Despair Event Horizon: Niobe's death, followed almost immediately by Erastes Fulmen taking and selling them as slaves.
• Family Theme Naming
• Name's the Same: The Vorenas.
• Not Allowed to Grow Up: A rare, possibly unique 21st-Century example, because of HBO's screwing the second season. Otherwise the younger Voreni would have been recast at least once per season to account for the time passed.
• Made Slaves: By Erastes Fulmen.
  • Sex Slave: Vorena the Elder.
• The Quiet Ones: Only Vorena the Elder, played by British actress Coral Amiga had real lines. The younger children were played by Italian actors that didn't know English.

Lyde

Niobe's younger sister and barren wife to Greek fishmonger Evander. Played by Esther Hall.

Tropes:

• Annoying Younger Sibling: To Niobe.
• Despair Event Horizon: First is Evander's death, and then she and her nephews are made slaves.
• The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry
• Law of Inverse Fertility
• Made a Slave: By Erastes Fulmen.

Evander Pulchio

Lyde's husband, a Greek fish dealer. Pullo and Octavian kill him secretly to protect the Voreni honor. Played by Enzo Cilenti.

Tropes:

• Cold-Blooded Torture: Gets his thumbs cut-off before he dies.
• Law of Inverse Fertility
• Never Found the Body: Because they threw his body in the sewer.
• Prepare to Die: Told this by Octavian in the most non-chalantly way possible.
• Your Cheating Heart

Gaius Julius Caesar

"Our men must win or die. Pompey's men have... other options."

The famous Roman general and stateman turned dictator. Played by Ciarán Hinds.

Tropes:

• Antagonist in Mourning: "HE WAS A CONSUL OF ROME!". Caesar when presented with Pompey's head
• Asskicking Equals Authority
• Badass Cape
• Beam Me Up, Scotty: Averted. The Rome version of the character never says the famous Shakespearean line "Et Tu, Brute?" (like in Real Life, his wounds made him unable to talk in his dying moments). This is lampshaded in the next episode, when Brutus asks "You too, Mother?" when Servilia tells him to leave the city.
• Big Bad and Big Good: To the senate, he's the former. To a large part of the Roman Army and to the people of Rome he's the latter.
• Blood on the Debate Floor
• Chessmaster: Subverted as he lets his empathy get in the way.
• Culture Clash: The Egyptians present him with the head of Pompey thinking they are going to gain his favor. Caesar is enraged instead.
• Dark Secret: Caesar has epilepsy and is terrified that anyone might find about it. This is because according to Roman tradition epilepsy was a result of having been cursed by the Gods, and the people would refuse to being led by a man subject to it.
• Easily Forgiven: Caesar can be ruthless but manages to fit this trope fairly well. He spares Vorenus and Pullo on one occasion (possibly more, but I can't remember) and his response to Brutus and Cicero trying to surrender is to hug them, apologise to Brutus while kissing his cheek, beg them to tell him that Pompey, an even bigger enemy, is still alive, and then, drag them off to have food since it must have been awhile since they had a decent meal. More than one character points out that forgiving people is Caesar's shtick, doing double duty as a way to be seen as a Reasonable Authority Figure and to make people beholden to him.
• Et Tu, Brute?: Might not have said the words, but his eyes told it anyway.
• Father to His Men
• Genre Savvy: Zigzagged. He spared Vorenus and Pullo despite letting Pompey escape because they both managed to survive unlikely things. He also sent the two on an important mission to get Cleopatra. On the other hand, he ignored warnings of a bad omen which lead to his assassination. But, then again...
• Kavorka Man: Yes and no. He’s a notably older man and his age is showing but he’s not terribly unattractive (this male troper admits). Obviously Cleopatra and Servila found him attractive.
• Like a Son to Me: Octavian. Brutus as well.
• Miles Gloriosus
• The Plan: Engages in one of these.
• Rousing Speech: Julius Caesar's speech just before he marches on the walled capital Rome with only an armed gang. And wins.
• You Should Know This Already: He's going to die.

Gaius Octavian

"It's not the killing. It is the waving about of swords I find tedious. I dare say I can kill people readily enough, as long as they're not fighting back."

One of the main protagonists. A brilliant yet antisocial young man who through years of manipulation, becomes Rome's first emperor. Played by Max Pirkis in his teenage years and by Simon Woods as a young adult.

Tropes:

• Anti-Hero: Type V-> Villain Protagonist
• Badass Bookworm: Reads philosophy and bashes people with big sticks
• Bastard Boyfriend: He bluntly admits to Livia that he is going to hit her before they are married because that excites him sexually. He ends discovering that he is more excited if Livia hits him instead.
• Blonde Guys Are Evil
• Break the Cutie: It happens, but he becomes much stronger (and more ruthless) as a result.
• Brother-Sister Incest: With Octavia.
• Brutal Honesty
• The Chessmaster
• Deadpan Snarker
• Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Brutally subverted when he becomes an adult in the second season.
• Evilly Affable: Bordering on Complete Monster at times, but a joy to watch.
• From Nobody to Nightmare
• Happily Arranged Marriage: Octavian and Livia seem to fit this trope, in a very twisted version of it.
• Info Dump: A great deal of Roman politics are revealed through Octavian.
• Intergenerational Friendship: With Titus Pullo.
• Interplay of Sex and Violence: With his wife Livia.
• Legacy Character: Sees himself as this after Caesar names him adoptive son and lone heir in his will.
• Love At First Sight: To Livia.
• Manipulative Bastard
• Mistaken for Gay: He helps Posca take Caesar into a closet to attend him while Caesar is having a seizure so nobody else sees it. Later, Atia sees Octavian and Caesar getting out of the clsoet and thinks that her son and uncle are having an affair... and she is delighted with the idea since it could provide her with more power.
• Mommy Issues
• No Sympathy: None towards anyone.
• The Plan: Very good at this.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Blue to Mark Antony's Red.
• Secret Keeper: After he discovers that Caesar has epilepsy.
• Sibling Theme Naming: His sister is named Octavia. This was common Roman custom, as seen in the Voreni example listed before.
• The Stoic
• Timeshifted Actor
• Wise Beyond Their Years
• Villain Protagonist
• Xanatos Speed Chess: Octavian's best tactic. He even uses this to become the first emperor.
• Young Conqueror
• Young Future Famous People: At the start of the series.

Mark Antony

"I shall be a good politician. Even if it kills me. Or if it kills anyone else, for that matter."

Julius Caesar's right hand man and a talented soldier and politician in his own right, though he is hampered by his many flaws. In the aftermath of Caesar's death, he is one of the most powerful men in Rome, putting him in direct conflict with Octavian, Caesar's heir. Played by James Purefoy.

Tropes:

• Affably Evil
• Anti-Hero: Type V -> Villain Protagonist
• Anything That Moves: As he puts it, "I'm not getting out of bed until I've fucked someone". Especially given, as a condition of marriage, Atia demands that Antony get rid of all the house slaves — male or female — that he's bedded.
• Badass: His intellectual Curb Stomp Battle of the Council after the death of Caesar prove him this.
• Badass Boast: Mark Antony buggers boys like Octavian for his morning snack.
• Beard of Sorrow: Mark Antony grows a beard after Octavian crushes his rebellion. By a historical account, this actually happened.
• Berserk Button: Too many to count.
• Better to Die Than Be Killed
• Byronic Hero
• Coitus Uninterruptus
• Country Matters: Wholeheartedly embraces this trope.
• Da Chief: To Vorenus.
• Dead Guy on Display: Along with Cleopatra during the series finale.
• Democracy Is Bad: Antony plays the elections card when negotiating the aftermath of Caesar's assassination. The conspirators are horrified as they would have to validate their taken for granted powers. They reach a compromise and no democracy is needed.
• The Dragon / The Lancer: To Caesar.
• Dude, Where's My Respect?
• Evil Versus Evil: His conflict against Octavian.
• For the Evulz: Cuts off grain shipments from Egypt to Rome because he can.
• Guyliner: When he's in Egypt.
• Hot-Blooded
• Male Frontal Nudity
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Twice; one in the Roman Senate and another in Egypt. He doesn't stop until the offender is dead.
• The Purge: After he makes peace with Octavian, Mark Antony hands him a loooooong list of Roman citizens he wants slaughtered.
• Rated "M" for Manly
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Red to Octavian's Blue. Which is funny considering when they reluctantly choose to have an alliance (what is to be the Second Triumvirate), Octavian wears the standard red-and-gold Roman armor while Mark Antony wears custom blue-and-white armor.
• Rousing Speech: Brilliantly subverted for Antony's speech after Caesar's funeral (the one that became known as Shakespeare's famed, although entirely fictional, "Friends, Romans, countrymen" speech). We see the results of his speech, and even have several characters describe what happened, but none of the actual speech is shown or heard.
• Shoot the Messenger: Or beat his brains out with the scroll he was reading from.
• Unstoppable Rage
• Villain Protagonist
• Villain with Good Publicity: For a time.
• Wacky Fratboy Hijinks: In Egypt. This being Rome, they are taken Up to Eleven.
• You Should Know This Already: Antony and Cleopatra hook up, but it doesn't end well.

Atia of the Julii

"I know who you are. I can see you. You are swearing now that some day... some day you will destroy me... Remember, far better women than you have sworn to do the same. Go and look for them now."

Caesar's nephew and mother to Octavian and Octavia, plus long-time lover of Mark Antony. Atia is an extremely ambitious and Evil Matriarch supreme that stops almost at nothing to get what she wants. She's the real power force in the Julian household... at least, until Octavian grows enough to overrule her. Played by Polly Walker.

Tropes:

• Abusive Parent: Especially to Octavia.
• A Man Is Not a Virgin: Atia firmly believes this to be true. Which is why she arranges for Octavian to visit a brothel, so that he can become a real man.
• Badass Boast: Besides the quote, there is also "By the five Furies, if I was not a gentle woman, I would have you flayed, and hung from a bracket at the door!"
• Bigger Is Better in Bed: Firm believer in this.
• Blood Bath: In the first episode Atia takes a shower in the blood pouring down from a slaughtered bull during a ritual to ensure the safe travelling of her son to Gaul.
• Break the Haughty: By the end of the series her son is the most powerful man in the known world and will remain that to the day he dies, in partly because of her constant scheming and her upbringing of him. Yet the love of her life has abandoned her and then committed suicide, and Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Livia has surpassed her in influence over and respect from Octavian.
• Chessmaster: She likes to think she's this but since her plans fail at least half the time and she seems to act on whim a lot she's more of a Smug Snake.
• Clingy Jealous Girl
• Coitus Uninterruptus
• Control Freak
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: These don't manage (nor aim) to make Atia sympathetic to the viewer, but they do make her an unexpectedly funny character. Examples include nonchalantly discussing about how the family should commit mass suicide, being overjoyed when thinking that her son and uncle have an incestuous affair or threatening to have her son's books burned off if he doesn't go to a brothel and loses his virginity.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Gods, I don't like that Plebeian friend of my daughter. Let's have her entire family murdered, her house sacked and the poor girl gang raped.
• Evil Is Petty: Don't feed your slaves as much, they look gross.
• Evil Matriarch: Atia is the epitome of this trope.
• Evil Redhead
• Femme Fatale
• Fortune Save Us From The Queen: One has to conclude she'd be this, if Mark Antony had gone with her plan of marrying her and proclaiming himself king.
• Green-Eyed Monster
• Gorgeous Period Dress
• Historical Villain Upgrade: Atia is portrayed as seductive, manipulative and evil. There's absolutely no historical evidence for this; Tacitus actually describes her as a pious, devoted mother and an ideal Roman matron.
• Hot Mom: Later upgraded to Grandma, What Massive Hotness You Have!.
• Idle Rich
• Jerkass
• Lady Macbeth: Mostly to Mark Antony, but a rather inefective one.
• Manipulative Bitch: Hands down one of the best.
• My Beloved Smother
• Obviously Evil: As nice as Polly Walker can be to the eyes, she plain looks evil when dressed as a Roman patrician woman.
• Rich Bitch
• The Rival: To Servilia, Livia, Calpurnia (arguable Unknown Rival in this case) and even Cleopatra herself. In short, Atia doesn't like any other woman that dares to seem capable of gaining prominence in the Julian household.
• Smug Snake
• The Vamp
• You Just Told Me: By Atia to expose Octavia's relationship to Agrippa.

Octavia of the Julii

"Please, Castor, let mother [die after me]! I won't deny her one last pleasure. It would be undaughterly."

Octavian's older sister and Woobie supreme of the series. Being the only woman of marrying age in the family makes her the perfect unwitting pawn of Atia and later Octavian to gain political influence. Played by Kerry Condon.

Tropes:

• Arranged Marriage: Set up with Pompey and actually gone through with Antony
• Bi the Way
• Bratty Teenage Daughter: Atia hilariously sees her as this.

Octavia: Mother I would rather it were not you who killed me. If you have no objections. Atia: Why ever not? You can't still be angry with me!

• Break the Cutie
• Brother-Sister Incest
• Deadpan Snarker
• Functional Addict: Smokes drugs (possibly hashish or opium) during one low point.
• Happily Married: To Glabius. Atia of course has them divorced and ultimately Glabius killed.
• Heroic BSOD: More than once.
• Hot Mom: Gives birth to a daughter late in season 2, Antonia.
• Looking for Love In All the Wrong Places
• Nice Girl
• Sibling Theme Naming
• Token Good/Unambitious Julian

Livia

Octavian's wife. Played by Alice Henley.

Tropes:

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Neither she nor Octavian are very nice, but they seem like a very good match.
• Interplay of Sex and Violence: Oh yes.

Calpurnia

Caesar's wife. Played by Haydn Gwynne.

Tropes:

• Arranged Marriage: Perfectly normal for a Roman woman, particularly a noblewoman, but not great when your husband has a libido you could hold up a house with.
• Honor Before Reason: Will not leave Rome until Caeser's will has been read even as people could very well be looking to kill her.

Posca

"The Roman people are not crying out for clean elections. They are crying out for jobs. They are crying out for clean water, for food, for stability and peace."

An old, wise and educated Greek slave owned by Caesar, who he tutored when he was young. Nowadays he acts as his personal manservant, counsilor and confident. He is free to speak his mind, which includes a lot of snark. Played by Nicholas Woodeson.

Tropes:

• The Consigliere
• Cool Old Guy
• Happiness in Slavery: In fairness he is a very well cared for slave.
• Non-Action Guy
• Nice Guy
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Somewhat unexpectedly with Jocasta. Triples as Ugly Guy, Hot Wife and May-December Romance.
• Secret Keeper: To Caesar.
• Servile Snarker: So very much.
• Undying Loyalty: Just one word - "Domine!"

Jocasta

"I've been dishonoured!"

A young Plebeian woman, daughter of a rich merchant and close friend of Octavia. Played by Camilla Rutherford.

Tropes:

• Brainless Beauty
• Functional Addict
• Going Native: After moving to Egypt.
• Nouveau Riche: Why Atia hates her.
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: To Posca, once he's gained liberty.
• Poisonous Friend: She is considered as such by Atia.
• Sole Survivor: Atia has her entire family murdered and she sexually assaulted. All because she doesn't like her.
• Talkative Loon: Looks like this to Octavia and Atia after a time living in Egypt.
• Ugly Guy, Hot Wife

Castor

Head slave of the Julii Household. Played by Manfredi Aliquo.

Tropes:

• Happiness in Slavery
• Mook Lieutenant
• Suddenly Sexuality: He is suddenly revealed to be homosexual and like young boys. This is a plot point in the series.
• Undying Loyalty

Merula

An old female slave to the Julii, working mostly as a handmaiden to Atia. Played by Lydia Biondi.

Tropes:

• Happiness in Slavery
• Old Maid
• Undying Loyalty

Glabius

The first husband of Octavia. Played by Roberto Purvis.

Tropes:

• Happily Married: To Octavia, until Atia forces a divorce on them.
• Murder the Hypotenuse
• Make It Look Like an Accident: Or a random killing in a chaotic civil war.

Marcus Junius Brutus

"Only tyrants need worry about tyrant killers."

A quiet and awkward young Patrician torn between doing what he believes it's right and what others expect of him - particularly his mother Servilia and his Parental Substitute, Julius Caesar. Played by Tobias Menzies.

Tropes:

• The Alcoholic: Hits the jar in the second season.
• Anti-Villain: If he can be even considered a villain at all.
• Beard of Sorrow: After he kills Caesar.
• Compelling Voice: When he wanted to be, he was one hell of an orator. Must have learned from Cicero.
• Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass
• Culture Clash: While trying to recruit men for a campaign against Octavian he uses the fact that he was the man that gave the last stab that killed Caesar as a Badass Boast in order to impress some Anatolian princes and make them agree to provide his army. They are disgusted instead, finding that killing an already injured man that can't defend himself is cowardly and shameful.
• Deadpan Snarker
• Dude, Where's My Respect?
• Face Death with Dignity: Also a Dying Moment of Awesome and an Ironic Echo to how Caesar died.
• Family Business: Reluctantly enters politics, which has been the playfield of the Junii for the last 500 years.
• Gods, What have I done?: After killing Caesar.
• Heterosexual Life Partners: With Cassius.
• Ignored Epiphany: Sort of. In late season one he feels betrayed by Caesar and gives in to his mother, going along with the plot to kill the dictator. He goes through with it, but then Antony comes in and they share a look where Brutus' guilt is written all over his face. He then cries out in agony over what he's done. However he seems to get over it rather fast, and stays allied to Cassius to the very end.
• Male Frontal Nudity
• Momma's Boy
• Right Behind Me: Happens to him in "Pharsalus" while insulting Pompey. He doesn't mind.
• Tragic Hero
• What Could Have Been: The original plan of Season 2 was for it to be "the Brutus season", fleashing a lot the character and even ending with his death as the last shot.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy
• Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters

Servilia of the Junii

"Gods of the Junii, with this offering I ask you to summon Tyche, Megaera and Nemesis, so that they witness this curse. By the spirits of my ancestors, I curse Gaius Julius Caesar. Let his penis wither. Let his bones crack. Let him see his legions drown in their own blood. Gods of the inferno, I offer to you his limbs, his head, his mouth, his breath, his speech, his hands, his liver, his heart, his stomach. Gods of the inferno, let me see him suffer deeply, and I will rejoice and sacrifice to you."

Brutus' mother and long time mistress to Julius Caesar. Servilia is a bitter and evil woman, but her dangerousness always falls one level short of her main rival's, Atia of the Julii. Played by Lindsay Duncan.

Tropes:

• A Plague on Both Your Houses: Throws it to Atia during her last rant.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Plays the poor victim very well but often is just as vicious and manipulative as her enemies.
• Bi the Way
• Composite Character: Takes traits from Porcia Catonis, Brutus' wife who is omitted in the show.
• Cold-Blooded Torture
• Curse: Throws a bunch at Caesar and Atia.
• Driven to Suicide
• Dying Moment of Awesome: As Antony puts, now THAT's an exit.
• Evil Matriarch
• Evil Old Folks
• Evil Redhead
• Evil Versus Evil: Her conflict with Atia.
• Grande Dame
• Manipulative Bitch
• The Mistress: To Caesar.
• My Beloved Smother: To Brutus.
• Historical Villain Upgrade: Much like Atia. At least the historical character was really involved in Caesar's murder, if only incidentally.
• Idle Rich
• The Rival: To Atia.
• Smug Snake
• Taking You with Me: Her final curse against Atia involves killing herself.
• Thanatos Gambit: Certainly though she was pulling one, as she killed herself as a sacrifice to curse Atia. And Atia's fortunes do take a nosedive after that...
• The Vamp
• Villainous BSOD: Brutus' death.
• Wicked Witch / Widow Witch: She certainly knows creepy rituals, but has no magic powers at all. Or does she?
• Woman Scorned: SO very much. Just read that quote.

Cato the Younger

"Ah, so in fact this is not a humiliating defeat at all, but a rare species of victory!"

A stubborn, staunch traditionalist senator and defender of the Republic, and as a result declared enemy of Caesar. Also half-brother to Servilia and uncle to Brutus. Played by Karl Johnson.

Tropes:

• Age Lift: The Real Life Cato was actually younger than Caesar.
• Commander Contrarian
• Cool Old Guy
• Deadpan Snarker
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: We must save the Republic by making sure those dirty plebs don't get their hands on the government!
• Democracy Is Bad
• Driven to Suicide
• Grumpy Old Man
• Heroic BSOD: After losing the Battle of Thapsus.
• Limited Wardrobe: Stands out among the Senate by wearing always a simple black toga. The only time he averts this is when putting on armour.

Gaius Cassius Longinus

"Thus ever tyrants!"

Another fellow senator and close friend of Brutus. He masterminds Caesar's assassination. Played by Guy Henry.

Tropes:

• Fatal Family Photo: Or "Fatal Promise of a Birthday Cake for Next Year".
• Heterosexual Life Partners: With Brutus. In real life, part of their alliance was cemented on the fact that Cassius was married to Brutus' sister, but this is not mentioned in the show.
• Poisonous Friend: Turns Brutus against Caesar.
• Rich Bitch: Believes the Senate should be restricted to wealthy Romans.

Eleni

A slave property of Servilia. Played by Suzanne Bertish.

Tropes:

• Driven to Suicide
• Happiness in Slavery
• Undying Loyalty: To the point of committing suicide after her mistress does.

Gnaeus Pompey Magnus

"It seemed impossible to lose. That is always a bad sign."

Once a mighty conqueror and hero of the Republic, Pompey is a jaded Consul of Rome living mostly of past glories by the time the show starts. When Caesar tries to seize power he sides with the Senate against him. Played by Kenneth Cranham.

Tropes:

• Adipose Consul
• Arranged Marriage: His marriage to Julia, daughter of Caesar, is specifically pointed as the only thing that makes the two get along. Her Death by Childbirth sets the show in motion. Later, an attempt to solve their conflict by making him marry Octavia falls through.
• Consul Incognito: After losing the Battle of Pharsalus, he escapes disguised as a Greek trader.
• Decapitation Presentation: Gets his head on a plate offered to Caesar by the Egyptians, who wish to congratiate with him. He is supremely pissed.
• Dirty Old Man: The marriage was cancelled, but he made use of his "rights" with Octavia anyway.
• Et Tu, Brute?: He gets offed by a once soldier of his, now working as a mercenary for the Egyptians.
• Failure Is the Only Option: His entire campaign against Caesar consists of retiring and defeat.
• Glory Days
• Green-Eyed Monster: He is jealous of Caesar for "stealing the love of the people" from him.
• Grumpy Old Man
• Heroic BSOD: After losing the Battle of Pharsalus.
• Overshadowed by Awesome: Is actually a great general in his own right but can't hold a candle to Caeser. This bothers him a lot.
• Retired Badass: More or less. He hasn't retired everything but he's no longer leading armies at the start. That changes.
• The Magnificent: The last part of his name means "the Great."
• You Should Know This Already: Nah, he doesn't manage to defeat Caesar.

Quintus Valerius Pompey

"Kill him too, what does it matter?"

Pompey's son and a military leader in the Senate faction. Played by Rick Warden.

Tropes:

• The Alcoholic: Becomes one after his father's defeat.
• Ax Crazy
• Composite Character: He is loosely based on Pompey's two historical sons, Gnaeus Pompey the Younger and Sextus Pompey.
• The Dragon: To his father.
• Hot-Blooded
• In-Series Nickname: "Neptune's Scourge".
• Jaded Washout
• The Resenter
• Torture Technician
• Villainous BSOD

Erastes Fulmen

"I took your children in payment for your many slights to me. I fucked them. Then I killed them. And then I threw them in the river."

A ruthless businessman who controls Rome's most powerful criminal gang, the Aventine, under a pretense of legality. Played by Lorcan Cranitch.

Tropes:

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing
• The Bully
• Corrupt Corporate Executive
• Decapitation Presentation: An enraged Vorenus chops off his head and keeps it as a trophy.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Vorenus refuses to work for him and later stops his thugs from killing an indebted man in front of his shop (mind you, not from killing him at all). Erastes sells Vorenus' family in slavery.
• The Don
• Evil Is Petty
• Legitimate Businessmen's Social Club
• The Napoleon
• Non-Action Guy
• Thanatos Gambit: Knowing that he is going to die anyway, Erastes falsely tells Vorenus that he has raped and killed his family, and then desecrated their bodies dumping them in the Tiber, just to spite him.

Gaia

"I told you I'm not a whore."

A former brothel supervisor tasked with keeping the customers on line, who is hired by Vorenus after he takes over Erastes Fulmen's gang. While technically a slave, Gaia is a tough and vindicative woman that stops at nothing to get what she wants. Played by Zuleikha Robinson.

Tropes:

• Action Girl
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: Tries it with Vorenus, and after not getting a response, with Pullo.
• Deathbed Confession: After being wounded in battle, she confesses to Pullo that it was her who murdered Eirene. Pullo suffocates her and throws her body in the river.
• Groin Attack
• "It's Not Rape If You Enjoyed It": What happens when Pullo tries to 'punish' her.
• Murder the Hypotenuse: She kills the heavily pregnant Eirene by putting an abortive solution in her tea and replaces her in Pullo's bed.
• Quit Your Whining: To Pullo, on her deathbed.
• The Rival: To Eirene.
• Servile Snarker
• Veronica: To Eirene's Betty.

Mascius

"The truth? The truth is I have known you as a brother. The truth is that I saved your life at Gergovia. Took an arrow for it. The arrow's still in there, the truth is I'd do it again brother. The truth is that I've been nothing but a good soldier to you and a good fucking friend. Do what you have to do Pullo. I'll see you in Hades."

A former legionary of the Thirteenth. After returning from Gaul, Vorenus gets him and his other comrades lands in Germania but Mascius loses his concession playing dice. He then returns to Rome and joins the Aventine gang after hearing that Vorenus has taken over it. Played by Michael Nardone.

Tropes:

• And Zoidberg: "Oh I get it, third fucking man and all that!"
• Bash Brothers: Read the quote.
• The Gambling Addict
• Old Friend: To Pullo and Vorenus.
• Undying Loyalty

Memmio

Captain of the Caelians gang and uneasy ally to Vorenus. Played by Daniel Cerqueira.

Tropes:

• The Don
• Humiliation Conga: Pullo bites off his tongue and keeps him in a cage as a message for others.
• Kick the Son of a Bitch
• Non-Action Guy
• Smug Snake
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Erastes Fulmen.

Marcus Tullius Cicero

"When confronted by a hungry wolf, it is unwise to goad the beast, as Cato would have us do. But it is equally unwise to imagine the snarling animal a friend and offer your hand, as Pompey does."

The renowned Roman politician, intellectual and master orator, leader of the moderate faction in the Senate. Cicero distrusts Caesar's and later Mark Antony's actions but lacks the spine to take direct action against them. Played by David Bamber.

Tropes:

• Arch Enemy: To Mark Antony.
• Compelling Voice: The orator of the ancient world, and arguably one of the greatest public speakers who has ever lived.
• Deadpan Snarker: Up to Eleven in the series.
• Face Death with Dignity: Very much so and without a doubt. Arguably the most dignified death in the series.
• Foreshadowing: Mark Antony threatens to have his hands cut and nailed to the Senate's doors. Guess what happens years later.
• Nice Guy
• Non-Action Guy
• Only Sane Man: It certainly seemed that way.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: One of the great masters of this trope. The one that he gave Mark Antony was an epic Take That and quite possibly one of his biggest Crowning Moment of Awesome.
• Shoo the Dog: To his slaves, the day of his own murder, so they won't be hurt.
• Worthy Opponent: With Caesar. They tended to be on different sides of a debate - especially during the civil war - but they shared a respect for each other. Cicero was genuinely surprised by the assassination of Caesar.

Metellus Scipio

A prominent general in the senate faction and member of the famous Scipio family. Played by Paul Jesson.

Tropes:

• Demoted to Extra
• Driven to Suicide
• Those Two Guys: In a way, with Cato.

Marcus Agrippa

"I would go with you to Hades... to Britain even, if I thought we had the right."

A young, humble Roman general of rural origins and old friend to Octavian. He loves Octavia, but his loyalty to her brother will never let him pursue her. Played by Allen Leech.

Tropes:

• Country Mouse
• Genre Savvy
• Good-Looking Privates
• Love At First Sight
• The McCoy
• Nice Guy
• Nouveau Riche
• Number Two: To Octavian.
• Undying Loyalty

Gaius Maecenas

Another friend of Octavian and third in the Power Trio of young men that give birth to the Roman Empire. In contrast to Agrippa, Maecenas is a politician from a wealthy urban family who has a talent for rethoric and his own personal goals beyond those of Octavian. Played by Alex Wyndham.

Tropes:

• Anything That Moves
• Non-Action Guy
• Sleazy Politician
• The Smart Guy

Lepidus

A Roman General sent by the Senate to defeat Antony, only to have his entire army defect to him on the spot. He then switches sides too and ends up as Antony's second in command. He later becomes the least powerful of the Triumvirate formed with Antony and Octavian, but gets Africa for his troubles... for a while. Played by Ronan Vibert.

Tropes:

• Butt Monkey: To Antony and Octavian.
• Defeat Means Friendship
• General Failure: His entire army defects to Antony.
• Number Two: To Antony after defection.
• Reassigned to Antarctica: Gets sent off to govern the province of Africa.

The Newsreader

"This month's public bread is provided by the Capitoline Brotherhood of Millers. The Brotherhood uses only the finest flour: true Roman bread for true Romans."

A public servant that cries news and advertisements at the Forum in front of the Roman Senate. Played by Ian McNeice.

Tropes:

• Book Ends: He appears in both the pilot and the last episode making the same announcement, offering a reward for a missing slave, "runaway or stolen". It's used to show that despite the vast historical changes happened in the span of the series, the life of the average citizen remains the same.
• The Constant
• Kent Brockman News
• Large Ham
• No Name Given
• Product Placement: Another nice historical touch.
• My Country, Right or Wrong: His job consists on screaming whatever propaganda the government of the time hands to him, and it changes as wildly and quickly as the composition of that government does. He never questions it.

Timon

A horse trader who also serves as a mercenary for Atia, be it as a hitman or a bodyguard, whom he also expresses a strong lust for. Has a brother named Levi. Played by Lee Boardman.

Tropes:

• Accidental Murder: Accidently kills Levi during a knife struggle with him, in an effort to stop him from assassinating Herod.
• Bodyguard Betrayal: Betrays Atia when she tells him to murder Servilia.
• Bodyguard Crush: On Atia.
• Heel Faith Turn: Played with. He abandons his role as Atia's hitman in favor of reconnecting with his religion, but he tends up becoming a fanatic. Eventually played straight when he decided to not assassin king Herod.
• Hitman with a Heart
• Raised Jewish
• Screw the Money, I Have Rules: Glabius attempts to buy Timon when Atia sends him to kill the other. Timon refuses.