10 Best HBO Characters Ever

10. Titus Pullo - Rome

"THIRTEEN!"

The ferocious war cry representing his beloved 13th Legion has become synonymous with Ray Stevenson's most memorable career credit, in a role that he was quite literally born to play.

Stevenson plays the lovably coarse and loud-mouthed legionary Titus Pullo in Rome, a brash, towering beast of a man, prone to shockingly visceral acts of violence. Had viewers ever conceived the notion of a man biting someone's tongue out and spitting the bloody remains into his victim's agonized face before Pullo came along? Probably not.

Pullo’s unflinching brutality is perfectly complemented by his oft-comical nature. He's good at chopping off body parts, but the legionary is also not the sharpest blade in the armoury, leading to some darkly hilarious results over the course of Rome's run.

Stevenson's performance is not intended to invoke some philosophical debate about the legionary's nuances - the Northern Irish actor aims to entertain, and that he does. Audiences shouldn't care so much about a one-dimensional character, but the entertainment factor of Stevenson's performance means that they find themselves pleasantly surprised at the fact that they do.