# HBO's Rome 2007: is this Jesus? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 8, 2007, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104 "2007-01-08T02:06:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/21 "2007-01-08T19:53:37Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] Are you serious? You do realize that Jesus was Jewish and the Last Supper was a Passover meal, right? [/QUOTE] She’s right, though. The title needn’t have anything to do with Christianity. And I wasn’t implying that it would, only that it “might”. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/22 "2007-01-08T19:53:44Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] Are you serious? You do realize that Jesus was Jewish and the Last Supper was a Passover meal, right? [/QUOTE] I phrased that badly. My apologies. I meant that the title, “Passover” likely refer to some events which occur during the Jewish holiday and has nothing to do with Jesus (as it seems the poster implied.) ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/23 "2007-01-08T19:56:27Z")
There’s no such thing as Jesus. Ok. Now that that’s settled, can somebody tell me when the new season of Rome is going to begin, so I can set my DVR for it? ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/24 "2007-01-08T20:11:28Z")
Next Sunday, January 14. Or is it January 15? I don’t have a calendar handy. I watched the repeats yesterday – I’d forgotten how good this show is, and how funny Vorenus and Titus Pullo are, especially when Pullo is giving Vorenus love-making tips. But I still don’t understand the Pompey-Caesar machinations. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/25 "2007-01-08T20:25:25Z")
[QUOTE=Lissa] I phrased that badly. My apologies. I meant that the title, “Passover” likely refer to some events which occur during the Jewish holiday and has nothing to do with Jesus (as it seems the poster implied.) [/QUOTE] And in any event, the years that this takes place make it a moot point. I am really looking forward to this. I loved the first season. I remember reading way back when that this will be the last season and that there never were plans for a third. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/26 "2007-01-08T20:26:27Z")
[QUOTE=Debaser] There’s no such thing as Jesus. Ok. Now that that’s settled, can somebody tell me when the new season of Rome is going to begin, so I can set my DVR for it? [/QUOTE] This coming Sunday. HBO is showing repeats of the last 2 episodes from season 1 first, then they show the 1st episode of Season 2. If you didn’t see those last two eps, be sure to watch them-- they may have been the best two episodes of that season. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/27 "2007-01-08T20:27:41Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] But I still don’t understand the Pompey-Caesar machinations. [/QUOTE] What don’t you understand? ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/28 "2007-01-08T20:34:32Z")
[QUOTE=SkipMagic] Since **Liberal** wasn’t challenging the use of “common,” [/quote] I disagree. It was a flippant comment against secularizing the terminology. I’ll end my overreaction and hijack at your request. But I’m really left wondering why the ignorance gets to stay, while I’m packed off to the pit. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/29 "2007-01-08T20:40:13Z")
[QUOTE=whole bean] are you serious? it was in a promo released by the network? how can speculation based on that be a spoiler (absent some sort of pyschic power on the part of the OP)? I am trying really hard not to sound sarcastic, as I really do want to know if consensus is that the OP tread title contained a spoiler or simply a question about the promo? [/QUOTE] I apologize then. I did not see the promo. Is it the title of the episode? ---
**Author:** ![whole\_bean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@whole\_bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whole_bean)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/30 "2007-01-08T20:52:33Z")
[QUOTE=Gangster Octopus] I apologize then. I did not see the promo. Is it the title of the episode? [/QUOTE] The link in the OP appears to be to a screen capture from a promo run by HBO. the screen capture shows a long haired bearded man emerging from water. The OP ponders the possibilty of an appearance by Jesus in the next series of _Rome_. Certainly it’s news to noone that many believe a dude named Jesus lived in the Roman Empire. Is it spoiling to ask whether, based on a piece in the promo (along with an ep titled “Passover”), JHC might be making an appearance? Timelines would seemed to prevent it, but that aside, is the question a spoiler? I am sincere. I have a hard time drawing the line between what is and is not a spoiler. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/31 "2007-01-08T21:00:01Z")
I suspect the image we’re seeing in the preview might be a “proselyte baptism” (or “proselyte mikveh”) a symbol of a gentile’s [conversion to Judaism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ger_tzedek). Or it might just be a Jewish man engaging in [ritual purification](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikveh). That the next episode is entitled “Passover” would seem to suggest the possibility. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/32 "2007-01-08T21:00:10Z")
[QUOTE=hajario] And in any event, the years that this takes place make it a moot point. I am really looking forward to this. I loved the first season. I remember reading way back when that this will be the last season and that there never were plans for a third. [/QUOTE] I heard the same thing, and that the big problem was that ratings weren’t very good, and the show cost a fortune (I think the first season was $100 million). So I’m eagerly awaiting the second season. I’m only somewhat familiar with Roman history, but I love the historical aspects. Like how we literally saw Caesar crossing the Rubicon. And Octavian is clearly very perceptive, even as a young boy, which makes sense, given what he does as an adult. Lucius Vorenus is a great character, and in some respects reminds me of Seth Bullock from Deadwood. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/33 "2007-01-08T21:39:03Z")
[QUOTE=John Mace] What don’t you understand? [/QUOTE] Why did Pompey set up a vote to denounce Caesar as a traitor and depend on Marc Antony to veto it? And if he’s going to do that, why didn’t he let Antony in on his plan? Antony was flummoxed there at the end. “Huh? I’m supposed to veto this? Why’d you bring it up in the first place, you great lummox!” I also don’t get Octavius’s explanation about the stolen eagle, that Caesar didn’t care about the eagle and attempting to retrieve would be seen by Pompey as weakness. What was that about? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/34 "2007-01-08T21:53:42Z")
Pompey wanted to set up the vote against Caesar simply to demonstrate that Pompey (and not Caesar) had the full support of the Senate. On the other hand, Pompey didn’t want an actual military confrontation with Caesar, so he was counting on Marc Antony to veto the measure. Antony’s inability to veto the measure led to the confrontation that Pompey feared. In other words, the measure was intended as a bluff, to demonstrate Pompey’s authority and intimidate Caesar. By failing to veto, Antony called the bluff (albeit inadvertently). ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/35 "2007-01-08T21:58:44Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] Why did Pompey set up a vote to denounce Caesar as a traitor and depend on Marc Antony to veto it? And if he’s going to do that, why didn’t he let Antony in on his plan? Antony was flummoxed there at the end. “Huh? I’m supposed to veto this? Why’d you bring it up in the first place, you great lummox!” [/QUOTE] Well that’s politics Auntie. Pompey needed the symbolic gesture of denouncing Caesar without actually forcing a war with him. Probably almost as important is recording that vote for history. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/36 "2007-01-08T22:06:51Z")
Thank you. I was also puzzled by the vote itself. It looked like only about a third of the senate voted with Pompey. The guys sitting on one side approved it, but it looked like the guys on the other side were grumbling. Did I interpret that scene wrong? ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/37 "2007-01-08T22:23:06Z")
I’m going to miss this Caesar. I thought he was played by a solid actor, and had a real chemistry with the other characters. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/38 "2007-01-08T22:48:40Z")
Ciaran Hinds. A member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. I saw him play Achilles in _Troilus and Cressida_ many years ago. He spent much time skulking in his tent. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/39 "2007-01-08T22:50:10Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] I’m going to miss this Caesar. [/QUOTE] Agreed. Rome won’t be the same without him. ---
**Author:** ![Kizarvexius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Kizarvexius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kizarvexius)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2007, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104/40 "2007-01-08T23:03:17Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] I’m going to miss this Caesar. I thought he was played by a solid actor, and had a real chemistry with the other characters. [/QUOTE] Aw shit. You mean he dies? 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-rome-2007-is-this-jesus/387104.md?page=3)