Veni, vidi, vici _{by Alessia Belsito-Riera}

How often do you think about the Roman Empire?

This was the question on many people’s lips back in 2023 when a TikTok trend began to take hold. As folks across the world began asking the men in their life how often they thought about the ancient civilisation, they were surprised by their reply: a lot.

Since then, the word has taken on another meaning as a slang expression that describes a subject you think about way too much. Here in Wellington, it’s the name of a hit comedy panel show back at The Fringe Bar on the 18^th of July by popular demand.

“The idea stems from my love of trivia and finding out about people’s favourite things – whether it be hobbies or hyper fixations, I love discussing and delving deeper into finding this out,” host Keegan Thomas says. “The aim of the game is to have a fun chaotic evening”.

In the new iteration of Thomas’ live panel show, two teams of Wellington-favourite comedy duos will be pitted against each other armed with their own personal Roman Empire. July’s gladiators are improvisation duo Mo & Ralph and award-winning sketch comedy duo Ginge & Minge [pictured].

“These teams know each other, have put their blood, sweat, and tears into shows together, and now will have to not only prove they know their own obsessive subject, but also their other half”, Thomas says, adding that there is a chance for audience members to put their Roman Empires up for discussion as well. “Your weird niche subject you think of way too much is valid. Regardless of what it might be, there is no shame here”.