I am – Hercules!!

Octavian and Antony, with all the hugging! Can this new alliance last?

March 25 brings the final episode of “Rome” ever, and HBO was good enough to forward details of that episode and the three preceding. (I note that Mere Smith, who spent a lot of time over at “Angel,” authors the penultimate installment.) All is cloaked in invisotext for those who wish not the spoilage.

For Immediate Release
Feb. 15, 2007

ROME - MARCH EPISODES

Episode #19: "Death Mask"
Debut date: SUNDAY, MARCH 4 (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: March 5 (9:00 p.m.), 7 (11:00 p.m.), 8 (1:45 a.m.), 9 (10:00 p.m.), 10 (1:00 a.m.), 11 (8:00 p.m.) and 23 (8:00 p.m.)

HBO2 playdates: March 4 (1:00 a.m.), 6 (10:00 p.m.) and 13 (9:00 p.m.)
Servilia's (Lindsay Duncan) incessant cries for justice drive Atia (Polly Walker) to distraction, and result in an unfortunate public denouement. Meanwhile, Octavian (Simon Woods), Mark Antony (James Purefoy) and Lepidus (Ronan Vibert) agree to divvy up Rome's territories, sharing a common treasury. The coalition is immediately tested when Mark Antony fails to report a substantial bribe. At the Collegium, Eirene (Chiara Mastalli) insists that Pullo (Ray Stevenson) punish Gaia (Zuleikha Robinson) for insubordination, but the slave turns the flogging to her advantage. Levi (Nigel Lindsay) urges a reluctant Timon (Lee Boardman) to help him kill Herod (Rene Zagger), who has arrived from Judea with a secret agenda. While the newly freed Posca (Nick Woodeson) takes a bride, Octavian turns a more public wedding into a political statement of unity.

Written by Scott Black; directed by John Maybury.

Episode #20: "A Necessary Fiction"
Debut date: SUNDAY, MARCH 11 (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: March 12 (9:00 p.m.), 14 (11:00 p.m.), 15 (2:50 a.m.) 16 (10:00 p.m.), 17 (10:00 p.m.) 18 (8:00 p.m.) and 23 (9:00 p.m.)

HBO2 playdates: March 11 (1:00 a.m.), 13 (10:00 p.m.) and 20 (9:00 p.m.)
Octavian proclaims a new era of virtue in Rome, issuing a stern mandate that proves impossible for his family and subordinates to obey. A shipment of gold is mysteriously hijacked while en route to the Roman treasury, casting suspicion everywhere and sending Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) on a mission to learn who betrayed whom. In the wake of personal tragedy, Pullo focuses his grief and fury on Memmio (Daniel Cerqueira), Omnipor (Rocky Marshali) and their henchmen. After courting an "appropriate" bride named Livia (Alice Henley), Octavian turns his attentions to more important matters, issuing an ultimatum that he knows Mark Antony can't refuse.

Written by Todd Ellis Kessler; directed by Carl Franklin.

Episode #21: "Deus Impeditio Esuritori Nullus (No God Can Stop a Hungry Man)"
Debut date: SUNDAY, MARCH 18 (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: March 19 (9:00 p.m.), 21 (11:00 p.m.), 22 (2:00 a.m.), 23 (10:00 p.m.), 24 (midnight) and 25 (8:00 p.m.)

HBO2 playdates: March 18 (1:00 a.m.), 20 (10:00 p.m.) and 27 (9:00 p.m.)
Rome is facing a dire shortage of grain, forcing Octavian to barter with Mark Antony to get new shipments from Egypt. But instead of agreeing to Octavian's price - money and territory - Mark Antony flatly turns him down, pointing towards an inevitable conflict between the two former allies and, perhaps, Vorenus and Pullo. As a last resort, Octavian sends Atia and Octavia to Alexandria, knowing their reception will most likely be a chilly one. At the Collegium, where Pullo is rationing out grain to increasingly restless Romans, Gaia saves her master from a caged animal's wrath, but can't save herself. After fleeing a deteriorating situation in Egypt, Posca gives Octavian the ammunition he needs to turn the people against Mark Antony, setting in motion the wheels of war.

Written by Mere Smith; directed by Steve Shill.

Episode #22: "De Patre Vostro (About Your Father)" (season finale)
Debut date: SUNDAY, MARCH 25 (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: March 26 (8:45 p.m.), 28 (11:00 p.m.), 29 (2:05 a.m.), 30 (9:45 p.m.) and 31 (9:45 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: March 25 (1:00 a.m.) and 27 (10:00 p.m.)
In the aftermath of the battle of Actium, Mark Antony returns to Alexandria, settling into a world of numbing debauchery with Cleopatra (Lyndsey Marshal). Meanwhile, Octavian turns to Pullo to try to convince Vorenus to give up Cleopatra's palace in lieu of a fiery siege. Vorenus refuses, but Cleopatra seems all-too-willing to dupe Mark Antony in order save her life, if not her honor. With Octavian's army at the palace steps, Vorenus flees with Caesarian, Cleopatra's imperious son and Caesar's supposed heir. As Vorenus exits the city with the boy, Pullo is ordered by Octavian to track them down. Their journeys lead Vorenus and Pullo back to Rome for an emotional reunion at the Collegium - just as Octavian's triumph is being held amidst bittersweet pomp and circumstance.

Written by Bruno Heller; directed by John Maybury.

9 p.m. Sunday. HBO.