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Buy, Rent or Skip Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1)?

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Author Topic: Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1 - 2010)  (Read 188 times)

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Chiprocks1

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Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1 - 2010)
« on: June 07, 2013, 08:39:14 am »
Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1)




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I really didn't know what to expect from Spartacus and what sort of budget the show would get since it was an original series from the house of Starz. I  do know of the cable channel, but I don't know much in the way of what they have produced in the past. I do have some issues with what ends up on screen and will address that a bit later. As for the series itself, if you are a fan of Gladiator and 300, you will find yourself at home with Spartacus.

The series itself ends on a very strong note, but it's tempered because it took me a few episodes to really get into it, well...get over a couple of things that I absolutely did not like and that of course were some pretty shoddy special effects. In this day and age, there is no excuse for some of the FX shots that ended up on screen. Whenever they show any disembowel scenes or decapitations or the simple act of skewering, you can seen how awful the FX shots are, so much so that they draw attention to it because of poor tracking with wounds constantly shifting on the body.

The other thing that took me a long time to get over and was still an issue with me up to the Season Finale was the cartoon look of the blood squirts. It's ridiculously over the top and it doesn't look good at all. My only guess as to why they (series creator) made the blood squirts so comical was to "lessen" the shock and sight of so much blood throughout all of Season 1. And there is plenty of blood to be found. The other thing that I didn't care for was the  d o n g . One was one too many. I'm surprised that Hostess didn't get Executive Producing credit on the series. The show at least exceeded that with a lot of T&A, which is in abundance and adds to the mature nature of the show. Very nice.

So, you would think that the negatives in Season 1 would cripple it right? In most cases, yes. But the story and the characters and more specifically the actors portraying their characters, more than make up for the shows faults. One person in particular stands out higher than the rest and that of course is Andy Whitfield as Spartacus. It's kinda of strange for me to watch a series for the first time, knowing full well of a stars passing beforehand. I thought he did a fantastic job and left a legacy to be remembered for years to come. Other actors of note on the show can turn their eyes to John Hannah, who played the annoying f*ck Dominus and Lucy Lawless, who was great as Lucretia. But the biggest trip for me was seeing Manu Bennett, who plays Crixus. My introduction to the actor came by way of Arrow. So, now I'm going to view him differently once Arrow returns for Season 2. Peter Mensah as Doctore was also another standout character and performer and brought a lot of depth to his role.

If you like blood and guts and a nice helping of T&A, I highly recommend this as a Rent. The series really does get better as the season movies along. By the time you come to the Season Finale, you absolutely don't want to see it come to end and will be begging for more, which was a surprise, even for me. Thanks goes to Mac for steering me toward this series. I can't wait to see what the following seasons bring forth.
« Last Edit: June 07, 2013, 08:47:00 am by Chiprocks1 »
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Michael Scott To Meredith: "You've slept with so many men, your starting to look like one. BOOM! Roasted! Go here.

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Chiprocks1

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Re: Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1 - 2010)
« Reply #1 on: June 07, 2013, 08:45:51 am »
Spartacus: Blood and Sand DVD Screencaps

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Michael Scott To Meredith: "You've slept with so many men, your starting to look like one. BOOM! Roasted! Go here.

Mac

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Re: Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1 - 2010)
« Reply #2 on: June 07, 2013, 09:45:12 am »
I had no problem at all with the cartoonish blood. For those reasons you mentioned is why it's incorporated. There is soooooo much blood, they need to lessen the shock of gore. It was done successfully in 300 and Sin City to great visual effect.

I'm surprised you didn't mention anything about the dialog. The speech pattern. I was hesitant going in hearing these strange sentences spouted out. But it did not take long at all to get used to it. (I never did get use to all the cursing in Deadwood though).

Whitfield was a perfect Spartacus. All the characters are unique and add so many dimensions to the story telling. It's a fine line of drama and soap opera.
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Chiprocks1

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Re: Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Season 1 - 2010)
« Reply #3 on: June 07, 2013, 10:16:24 am »
I'm surprised you didn't mention anything about the dialog.

I'm use to this type of speaking. As a fan of the genre, it's already embedded into my brain and actually sounds normal to me.
Chip's Rockin' Art
Michael Scott To Meredith: "You've slept with so many men, your starting to look like one. BOOM! Roasted! Go here.

 

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