TV Guide recently interviewed Katrina Law on her role as Mira in Starz' Spartacus.
I get if you're not a fan, but the show is grounded in the historical
realities of sensual fulfillment and brutal backstabbing (Get it? Brutus? Literally and figuratively backstabbing Caesar?)
with rich characters, characters who also happen to be strong females.
I love the warrior women vibe the slave women always gave off, but it
could never really come to fruition until now (though Ilythia always is
ruthless in a different fashion).
Mira
had always fought, but only when she felt overwhelmed or in absolute
defense. She never had training, but she was more than willing to kill
for the cause. In the interview, Law talks of the slave women, including the upcoming Saxa, and their roles within the uprising.
A few episodes ago, we saw Mira jump on the back of a Roman soldier and
repeatedly and viciously stab him, which is being coined as the Flying
Squirrel. This supports the idea that women are just as capable of
doing what men can do, but come about it in a different way. David E.
Jones, a teacher of martial arts and author of Women Warriors: A History,
reflects on the different fighting styles of women and men because many
of their bodies are different. Mira's quick and light, and aware of her surroundings.
Law
explains how the bow and knives are a natural fit for her. "I'm also
really good with a knife in my hand, but I was a little
uncomfortable with the sword just because it's so heavy and I felt like I
didn't have the strength. I also felt like it was a useless weapon,
especially for a woman going against a man because as soon as I would
hit a man with my sword, it would either bounce off and hit me in the
face, or he would just throw it away and kill me. So I kind of felt like
as a woman I had more of a chance of getting in there with a knife
because I could be quicker, faster. I could get a score. And then, with
the bow and arrow, just by distance and accuracy I could take out my
opponent." Make sense?
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