| Slimebeast said: Based on that trailer it looks like Spartacus is to 300 what Band of Brothers was to Saving Private Ryan. Looks great. |
Yeah. The show is about as gritty and wrong as it could be.
If 50% of what they portray was historically correct (and the opening statement says that the copious amounts of violence and sex are for historical accuracy), then Rome was beyond the most deplorable place in history. The show depicts slavery in its worst elements - random beatings, murder, rape, and the deception that was given to some in the idea they could obtain freedom.
It also has a lot of complexity to how Romans handled politics. That is, that they were always trying to blackmail and betray friend and foe for coin or status. You owe someone debts? Find a way to get them murdered. Someone knows a deep dark secret about you? Manufacture something far worse, and blackmail them with it. it really shows the depravity of the Roman culture. To that end, it justifies a lot of what it portrays..It serves as a nice sequel to 300 in the dissertation of ancient culture - showing that there is rarely an act that goes on today that didn't exist back then.
Other than 2 people in the show - Spartacus and Doctore, everyone has a really evil side. Even Sparty is pretty nasty with how he wants to deal with things. You wind up hoping for all the villans to die at some point in the show, only to see them get richer and more mad with power. Even some of the good guys (like Varro) have their evil sides like 'Oh, I'm a familyman, but I'm going to buy prostitutes because my wife got raped so this will make us even'.
So yeah, its a crazy show. Very good, though. I really liked the first episode, which some disliked, so it only got better for me. And having read about the historical Sparticus makes me think that when Andy recovers from Lymphoma, that the series will go in new and great directions.
Back from the dead, I'm afraid.
