 Paul English of The Daily Record wrote that " Rome is visually dazzling , full of <unk> and <unk> seductive , " adding that " McKidd 's growling turn as <unk> 's [ sic ] <unk> Lucius Vorenus will undoubtedly propel him into the US major league . " Writing for the Los Angeles Daily News , David <unk> failed to find the series very remarkable , writing that " <unk> some lurid sex and gruesome violence , [ it is ] as conventional as anything the network has ever done . Sword @-@ and @-@ sandals epics have become familiar Hollywood staples ... and those expecting something that takes up where the <unk> <unk> BBC / PBS series I , Claudius left off may be in for something of a disappointment . " Television Without Pity graded the episode with a B. 
