- We're now in the bowels of the Colosseum, and Maximus enters. There are tons of other gladiators around.
- Maximus goes through his ritual of grabbing a hunk of dirt, and rubbing it in his hands.
- He, and a bunch of other guys start donning helmets and grabbing gear. They're instructed what to do, and are sent into the arena.
- Commodus enters his box, the crowd cheers, and all the gladiators, except for Maximus, salute the emperor.
- Cassius introduces the event, a reenactment of the second fall of Carthage.
- Maximus asks the guys if any of them have ever been in the army. Some mumbled yeses are heard.
- Maximus takes control, and suggests they stick together so they can survive.
- Meanwhile, the legions of Scipio Africanus enter the arena.
- Note: they're not really the legions of Scipio, just other gladiators.
- The "legions" ride around in small chariots and shoot arrows as Proximo's men, although Maximus gets them in formation so they can try to fend off the attack.
- They are able to avoid getting hurt by several passes of a chariot, and then eventually knock one of them over.
- The tide starts to turn. One of the guys in the chariots is taken out by a spear thrown by a gladiator.
- Hagen is hit with an arrow, and Maximus pushes him out of the way before a chariot can run him down (it ends up chopping another charioteer in half).
- Chaos starts to ensure.
- Another chariot tries to escape, and crashes in the tunnel. Another one crashes after that.
- Maximus directs some guys to handle the crashed chariot, while he grabs a horse and chases down some others.
- He kills a guy with a spear before Juba tosses him a sword. He squares off against the remaining chariot, and kills one guy while his troops finish off two other guys.
- Proximo's ecstatic, and so is the crowd.
- Maximus ditches his sword, and grabs a spear.
- Meanwhile, Commodus tells Cassius that his history's a little hazy, but recalls that the barbarians are supposed to lose the Battle of Carthage.
- Cassius's a little nervous as things weren't supposed to go this way.
- He inquires about Maximus, and Cassius tells him he's called the Spaniard.
- Commodus decides he'll go meet him. Maximus drops the spear he was holding, and it seems he was going to use it on Commodus.
- The Praetorians enter the arena and order the gladiators to drop their weapons.
- Commodus enters amidst a mixture of jeers and cheers.
- Maximus kneels, and grabs the tip of an arrow. Commodus tells him to rise.
- Lucius shows up in the meantime, and Commodus asks Maximums to take his mask off and tell everybody his real name.
- His reply is curt: "My name is gladiator." He turns around and walks away, which irritates Commodus, who demands to know his name again.
- Maximus, whose back is still to Commodus, complies. He takes off his helmet, and turns around.
- He tells Commodus who he is, tossing in plenty of insults (he calls Marcus Aurelius the true emperor, for example).
- Commodus's shocked, especially since Maximus also vows to have his vengeance.
- The Praetorians move towards Maximus, but his gladiator pals step in front of him to block their passage.
- The crowd chants, "Live, Live, Live" over and over again, and Commodus knows that he has to comply with their wishes in order to remain popular.
- He allows Maximus to live, much to the crowd's delight.
- Commodus leaves, the crowd continues cheering, and Maximus salutes them as the main theme starts playing.
- Seems like Maximus has won the crowd…or is well on his way to winning it.
- The gladiators take a primitive elevator into the bowels of the Colosseum. Tons of other gladiators are shouting his name: "Maximus, Maximus, Maximus."