In the Fast and Furious series, Rome is the scapegoat of the team. He is always getting laughed at when he’s too scared to do the ridiculous stunts that are expected of him, and he’s ignored when he questions anything that requires questioning.
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While he does come off as the idiot of the group, now and then he has some brilliant ideas, some of the best ideas in the entire franchise. Between the infamous birthday routine in Furious 7, plotting to rescue Ramsey, and asking some deeply philosophical questions, Roman has proved on several occasions that he’s smarter than the rest of the family.
Cheating The FBI
![The car scramble that leads to the boast chase in 2 Fast 2 Furious](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/C2FDF627-48C0-41D4-931B-3F7A9CA7A073.jpeg)
Rome’s comedic potential in 2 Fast 2 Furious is a highlight but even dating back to his first appearance in the series, he still had some good ideas. After he had been forced by Brian to go on the undercover job with him for the FBI and had been treated terribly ever since the job began, Rome came up with the plan to take some of Carter Verone’s laundered money.
It might have seemed like petty theft, but as the FBI was sending him on a mission where jail time was almost unavoidable, as the local police were on their tail, he was opportunistic in the best way possible. And in the end, it all worked out for him, as Agent Markham knew he had taken some of the cash, but he let it go unnoticed.
Questioning The Car Sky Dive
In real life, every single character would have plummeted to their death, getting crushed by the very cars they were sky diving in, and Rome pointed out exactly that in Furious 7. He spoke with the gang about the potential (or certain) perils that could come with a stunt like skydiving in a car, but the crew decided not to listen.
In the end, even when he was on the plane and decided against reversing out, Rome had no other choice, as Tej made him do it against his will. It was one of the many examples that Tej bullied Rome, and it’s made even worse because Rome was well within his rights not to jump.
Doesn’t Want To Risk His Life For A Revenge Scheme
Fast Five is a tentpole entry in the series for bringing back all of the characters from the previous movies, and one of the faces fans were most excited to see was Rome’s. However, after Dom explained the revenge scheme to the new team, Rome wasn’t on board, citing that the plan was personal, not business.
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Rome was right in every way, as the “business, not personal” approach has been a phrase uttered by criminals for decades. Feelings and emotions could very well put the mission in jeopardy. However, the character was convinced when Dom told Rome what was in it for him, as they’d be driving away from Rio to the tune of $100 million.
Questioning Why He’s Still Alive
There’s a lot to take in with F9, whether it’s Han’s return or going into space, but one thing fans loved about F9 was just how self-aware it was. Rome was essentially the voice of the audience in the newly released movie, as he questioned why any of the crew could possibly still be alive after everything they’ve been through.
The epiphany comes after he sees his outfit riddled with bullet holes but he miraculously hasn’t been shot, and he even goes on to ponder whether or not they could be superheroes. Once again, despite making more sense than anyone, he is laughed at and bullied out of the room by Tej and Ramsey.
The Birthday Routine
Furious 7 is one of the most fun movies in the Fast & Furious saga, and it’s largely thanks to Rome. In a sequence full of cars crashing through skyscrapers and hand-to-hand combat fights, Rome still steals the show with his birthday routine. After first being put down by Ramsey after she tells him to “Do whatever it is you do,” he is tasked with causing a distraction.
Rome stands on a stage and pretends it’s someone’s birthday, talking his mouth off like he usually does into a microphone. Tej puts him down once again, acting as if it’s a dumb routine, but there’s a method to Rome’s madness, and it works better than any plan than anybody else could have come up with.
The Plan To Save Ramsey Was Made By Rome
Earlier on in Furious 7, when the gang has been hired by Mr. Nobody to free Ramsey from captivity, it’s Rome who takes the reigns on coming up with the plan. Dom’s crew have had some bad plans in the past, but Rome’s plan to attack the convoy was what the whole gang went with.
It was the first in the series that anybody seriously listened to Rome and acknowledged what he said and even acted on it. Rome may have taken the lead because he was feeling inferior, as one of Mr. Nobody’s men was leading the plan, but Rome still made more sense and came out rather heroic too.
Being Suspicious Of Monica
In 2 Fast 2 Furious, Rome was suspicious of undercover agent Monica Fuentes from the very beginning, and he was right to be. Though Monica turned out to have their backs in the end, and she even warned them that Carter was planning on killing them after they had delivered the money, she still got them into as much trouble.
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Rome and Brian were held at gunpoint because Monica visited Brian on the boat, and Brian’s obsession with her caused a lot more problems and tension than there needed to be. Rome warned Brian not to get involved with her from the beginning, as Brian’s obsession with a woman had gotten in the way in the past in The Fast and The Furious too.
Coming Up With The Space Idea
How they managed to get back down to Earth raises so many more questions than it should, but the way they got up there all started with a plan from Roman. It’s this very idea that made Rome the true hero of F9, not Dom.
Though the idea may have been completely rhetorical when Rome plotted to take a rocket car into orbit, it was the idea that Dom went with, and it was the idea that saved thousands of people too. The physics of a car in space makes no sense, but Rome’s involvement in the plan made it so much more fun than it should have been, and the sense of it all didn’t matter one iota.
Trying To Bring Everyone Down To Earth
It’s clear that Tej and Rome are really BFFs, as they began their Fast & Furious journey together in 2 Fast 2 Furious and they’re almost inseparable. However, there’s no denying that Tej bullies Rome to no end, and that reached its peak in Fast & Furious 6 when Tej called Rome Scooby-Doo.
All Rome was trying to do was explain how out of hand the mission was getting with cars flying through the sky, and he was trying to talk some sense into Tej, Gisele, and Han, but they all just ended up laughing at him again. Though ironically, Rome would fly into space three movies later, he was the one figuratively trying to bring everyone back down to Earth.
Convincing Tej To Do What’s Best For The Greater Good
Tej and Rome’s comedic dynamic continued in F9, but when they were isolated together in a small rocket car gliding through space, things got serious for a moment. When the duo knew that they were out of time to pull off their plan, the only other option was to go on a suicide mission by smashing through a satellite.
It was Rome who convinced Tej to do it for the greater good after giving a courageous speech about everything they’ve been through together. But, of course, it wasn’t a suicide mission at all, as the pair landed back on Earth without a single scratch in sight.
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