The new historical epic action show Those About to Die takes us back 2000 years to an ancient Rome which is struggling to get back to its feet after the desolation of emperor Nero. We follow people involved with races and gladiatorial combat which is used to drive, and is driven by, the politics of the realm.
All episodes of this show are available to watch via Peacock in the US and on Prime Video in most other places including the UK, and there's a lot to keep track of, with many different locations, characters and events happening in each episode.
To help you keep on top of everything that happens in each episode, our Those About to Die recaps will help you keep track of all of the important beats.
So let's begin now: here's our Those About to Die episode 1 recap, and of course spoilers ensue.
Meeting our main characters
We begin with the shake-down of a bettor who owes money to Tenax (Iwan Rheon), who owns the betting emporium at the Circus Maximus in Rome. Tenax orders the man killed due to his debt, and then with some narration he introduces us to the race track and the four factions which own shares in it.
Next we meet the emperor, Flavius Vespasian (Anthony Hopkins) who goes with his sons Titus (Tom Hughes) and Domitian (Jojo Macari) to show the new combat arena, the Flavian Ampitheater, to the Circus Maximus' shareholders. The emperor startles them by saying that unlike the chariot racing venue, they won't sell shares of the Ampitheater, and later some of these important figures of high society discuss Vespasian's illness and imminent demise. They worry that Domitian will take over after, as unlike Titus he'd harm the ruling class.
Over in Nubia, a drunk soldier attacks two young girls and they kill him in self defense, before being dragged off by other soldiers as slaves. Their mother Cala (Sara Martins) sees them leave and pursues them. We also meet Cala's son Kwame (Moe Hashim) who's on a hunt, and they capture a white lion despite it being against his religion.
At Rome's port, the Ostia Harbour, three Spanish horse-breeders led by Elia
(Gonçalo Almeida) lead their horses off a boat, and overhear that grain shipments have been delayed.
Riots in the streets of Rome
Starving citizens in Rome's streets start to riot at this lack of food, as they're starving, and they march on the Palatine where Vespasian lives. Out his window, Tenax sees the ringleaders of the riot get paid for inciting it.
Domitian and Vespasian discuss how to get the hordes away and the former refers to a military tactic the latter used when becoming emperor. This strategy is to distract the crowds by organizing a big race. We also see that Titus is elsewhere, in bed with the queen of Judea which he recently conquered.
Tenax goes to a brothel to find his best racer, Scorpus (Dimitri Leonidas). He finds him drunk and in bed with Antonia, the wife of one of the important Circus Maximus shareholders.
Elia and his friends try to sell their horses to Scorpus' horse owner, and then the man himself, and they find a receptive ear from one of the other workers at the stables. We learn that the trio want to sell their eight horses and use the money to fund a breeding stables in Spain.
In the Well of Augurs below the Circus Maximus, a man goes to a witchy-looking woman to ask her when Scorpus will take the lead. The witch tells him that it'll be in the penultimate lap, so the man goes to Tenax's betting shop and puts 500 shares of the blue faction into this happening. Tenax sends a message to Scorpus, telling him to save his lead for the final lap. At the same time, Domitian sends his aide to put a lot of money on the white faction winning.
Antonia and her husband sit down at the race, and it seems to be an open secret that she's sleeping with Scorpus. We learn that Scorpus is the current Roman champ, winning most of his races.
The big race
During the race's opening ceremony, we're introduced to all eight racers (two per faction). Then the race begins, with the eight charioteers going in laps around the Circus Maximus. During an accident two racers, including Scorpus' blue faction compatriot, are killed.
Scorpus falls to last place but then pulls ahead to first right at the last minute — apparently this is his standard move — and wins the race.
The man who bet all of the blue faction shares seems distraught, and his wife runs away from him. Tenax takes the shares, pays off the witch for giving the man false information, and then visits Scorpus who is paying his respects to his fallen racer. Tenax tells Scorpus that he wants them to start their own faction with the money and winnings, but Scorpus thinks it unlikely since they're lower-class and there have only been four factions for centuries.
At the Imperial Palace, Vespasian chastises Titus for not securing the grain supply and thus making the riot happen. The emperor implies that he might make Domitian the next ruler, not Titus, and tells the latter to send away the Judean queen he's been sleeping with. At the same time, we see this queen visit the workers' camps and check on how her people are being treated, unbeknownst to Titus.
Titus visits the queen and she tells him that he should send her away, but he seems skeptical.
At the port of Leptis Magna in Africa, Kwame is selling the white lion when he sees his sisters captive. He tries to free them but is caught himself. Cala finds them too and sees that slaves are being sent either to be gladiators or workers in a tin mine, and she tells her three children to aim for the former since they can buy their freedom that way. Kwame beats up the other gladiator candidates to prove himself, and him and his sisters are sent to be combatants.
Back in Rome, Scorpus examines the wheel of his dead friend's chariot and sees that it was tampered with.
