Spartacus Episode 1: The Red Serpent

In Thrace, a Roman force led by **Gaius Claudius Glaber** meets with the local villagers and asks them to ally with Rome against the enemy raiders threatening their homeland. A Thracian warrior speaks up for his people and presses Glaber to commit to protecting Thracian villages rather than using them as expendable allies.

Back home, the warrior returns to his wife, **Sura**, and the two share a brief moment of hope before war takes him away. Sura is troubled by the coming conflict, but he promises that once the fighting is over they will have a peaceful life together.

The next day, the Thracians realize the Roman plan is not what they expected. When they discover that the enemy is moving toward their homes, the warrior urges Glaber to change course and defend the villages, but Glaber refuses and pushes ahead with his own campaign for glory.

The Thracian rebels against Roman orders, which triggers open conflict between him and the Romans. He and the other Thracians turn on the Roman officers, and the rebellion causes chaos among the allied forces.

He races back to his village and reaches it in time to find it under attack. He reunites with Sura as the raid begins, and the two are forced to flee together as the village is overwhelmed by the invading attackers.

The next day, Glaber and Roman soldiers catch up with them. Glaber punishes the warrior for his defiance by condemning him to death in the gladiatorial arena and forcing Sura into slavery.

He is taken to Capua, where he is thrown into the arena for a public execution. The crowd watches as he is made to fight for his life against multiple gladiators, and he surprises everyone by defeating all four of them.

Because of his performance, the arena owner **Quintus Lentulus Batiatus** sees value in keeping him alive. At the end of the games, Batiatus arranges for the Thracian to be spared and taken into his ludus for training as a gladiator, and he is given the name **Spartacus**.