I Claudius Villain #1: Livia

First of all, a shout out to Mike Gronstal, Majority Leader in the state of Iowa senate, who decided we were NOT going to debate taking away collective bargaining rights for state employees. I guess Mike really does follow his ethics and morals this season. We may not be out of the woods, but we're certainly in the clearing for this session.

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As promised, I Claudius villains. First up, Livia. Livia won Sian Philips a BAFTA, and small wonder. She portrays Livia from relative youth to old age, and the role is done with such reserve and sublety.

In the background behind Sian, by the way, is Brian Blessed, who does a great job as Augustus.

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What makes Livia a good villain? Several things.

1. Livia lusts for power, but deludes herself. She rationalizes her various poisonings and arrangements for death as for the good of her sons, the good of Augustus, and the good of Rome. But what she really wants is to control things. For example, as long as she can manipulate and control Augustus, he's in safe hands. Once that becomes a problem, well...

2. Livia has some moments of sympathy. She seems to genuinely care for Augustus during some moments, and tries to guide Tiberius to make good decisions about ruling Rome when he becomes emperor.

3. Livia lives by a code. This makes her lawful evil. She can be counted on to behave in certain ways. If she feels like she's getting her share of power, she can be quite generous. She doesn't have the time of day if her agenda isn't advanced, but she is careful about appearances, and does not poison willy-nilly.

4. She has virtues. She manages Augustus' family like the true Roman wife she is, just as long as it doesn't interfere with her power agenda.

5. Livia thinks Caligula is more of a monster than she is. She's right, of course, in some ways. Caligula is crazy, but Livia is calculating. Vanilla or chocolate. Sugar or plain.

Livia's finest moments? Let me bury them under a cut for those of you who may want to watch the series.

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Mirrored from Writer Tamago.