The 10 best sci-fi/fantasy TV episodes to watch while sheltered in place

Spartacus 113: “Kill Them All”

Before there was Geralt in The Witcher or Jon Snow on Game of Thrones, there was Spartacus…on Spartacus. The first season of the Starz show about the gladiator who led the revolt against the Romans features highly stylized violence, blood and gore, and sex…lots of it.

Originally played by actor Andy Whitfield — who had to pull out of the role due to illness — “Kill Them All” finds Spartacus slowly working his way through the ranks of the slave-gladiators of the powerful House of Batiatus to face the best gladiator there, Crixus (Manu Bennett). Crixus wants nothing more than to be champion of the arena and earn his freedom, and the only thing standing in his way is Spartacus.

Spartacus has a plan to free every Roman slave he can, and it starts by striking a blow against the Roman nobility in the championship match. After failing to convince Crixus to join him in his rebellion, Spartacus realizes he’s going to have to kill him.

There’s a ton of sneaky political maneuvering within the ranks of both the gladiators and the Roman nobility, which fills the few slow moments in the season 1 finale. But hey, you watch Spartacus for the slow-motion sword fights and buckets of blood, so let’s get to the real reason you should watch this episode.

After learning he was given poison to weaken him in his fight with Spartacus, Crixus finally agrees to join the slave revolt. At the appointed time, Spartacus uses what looks like a killing blow to gain the balcony where the influential Batiatus sits with the other Roman nobility, and Crixus turns to the other gladiators and yells to “KILL THEM ALL!”

There’s a ton of killing and many characters die, but the important death comes when Spartacus actually kills Batiatus, thus officially kicking off the slave revolt.

After “Kill Them All,” Starz released a prequel season while Andy Whitfield battled cancer, but eventually realized it would have to recast the title role, which it did with Liam McIntyre for the third and final season. But none of that would have happened if the season 1 finale hadn’t been so damn good.