"Those About to Die" is a new series on Amazon Prime that is set in ancient Rome and so far has proved popular in Türkiye. Its title originates in the salutation gladiators made before commencing their fights, and it is shown in the series, the full version being “we, who are about to die, salute you.” The year in which the series commences is 79 C.
E., which is a fateful year in the Roman Empire, for it is the one in which Titus succeeds Vespasian, being the first father-to-son imperial succession in the Roman Empire, and Mount Vesuvius erupts burying the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. The series covers these great events – the succession to Vespasian being one of its key storylines.
However, much like the 2005-2006 series "Rome," with which it has other striking similarities, the main focus of this drama is on two people on a social level below that of the dizzying heights of the imperial family, even if they do wind up being caught in its machinations. These two lead roles are the supposedly cynical and ambitious Roman bookmaker Tenax, played by Iwan Rheon, who literally grew up in the underbelly of Rome, beneath the Circus Maximus where the city’s games are held, and Cala, a devoted Nubian mother, played by Sara Martins, who has traveled to Rome to attempt to free her adult children who have been enslaved by the Romans. Those children themselves also have important roles to play in the series in addition to a large cast of other characters making up greater o.