I recently rewatched spartacus. All four seasons (S1- Gods of the Arena - S2 - S3).
To start things off, I'd like to say this series will always have a special place in my heart. Haters gonna hate about the sex (although I do agree it's a bit too much at times) but if you can look past that, Spartacus is one of the best TV series of the past years.
Of course, not everything is perfect. I knew plenty of people who had issues with the quality of the CGI and the blood, especially the first few episodes. I noticed it too, but it's only a minor flaw of an otherwise great series.
Character development, for one, is great. You have good characters to root for, you have neutral characters to root for and hell, you even have villains you will root for. Just look at Batiatus and Ashur, two guys you loved to hate. And when you watch Gods of the Arena, you even feel some sympathy for Batiatus. Ashur on the other hand just seems like a nobody at first, but ends up being one of the greatest backstabbers in the entire series.
Ashur reminds me about another thing I like about this series as well: the plots. Spartacus gets a lot of shit for its "porn scenes", but the showrunners know how to make an interesting plot and story. It's gritty, it's bloody and there's a whole lot of backstabbing and betrayals... I love it. And don't even get me started about the season finales. DeKnight knows how to write a finale... the War of the Damned finale should be proof enough.
The show has some great "bromances too", albeit some of them have a rather sad ending. Varro + Spartacus was great while it lasted and it was great to see when Crixus finally joined up with Spartacus to attack Batiatus. And let's not forget Gannicus, Doctore and Agron. They may have their differences every now and then, but when shit goes wrong... everyone fights together as one.
ps: this does not count for Naevia v2. Such an awful character.
I'd like to give my respect to Liam too. I can't imagine how hard it was to take over Andy's role. I think people will probably agree Spartacus would have been even better if Andy was still alive, but that's not because Liam is a bad actor. In fact, I think he did a very good job, especially in S3. I just think Andy will always be the true spartacus for many since his performance in the first season was just... amazing. I'll always wonder how Spartacus would have been if Andy was still with us.
The final season was the perfect ending for this series though. Every actor at their best (although I still don't like what Naevia v2 did with Crixus). If you rewatch the final two episodes, you will know what I mean. They amaze me every time and I'm always in awe. Crassus, Caesar and even Tiberius were all great characters. Just thinking about the ending makes me want to watch the episode again. Spartacus might not be as "big" as Breaking Bad or Game of Thrones but it's certainly something special.
Unfortunately, a lot of people I know refuse to give Spartacus a chance. They just laugh it off as a porno show with bad cgi. Sure, it likes to show a lot of skin and the cgi isn't always top notch. So yeah, it makes me feel bad... not for the show, but for them. They will never experience the greatness of this show. To them... I have just one thing to say.
To start things off, I'd like to say this series will always have a special place in my heart. Haters gonna hate about the sex (although I do agree it's a bit too much at times) but if you can look past that, Spartacus is one of the best TV series of the past years.
Of course, not everything is perfect. I knew plenty of people who had issues with the quality of the CGI and the blood, especially the first few episodes. I noticed it too, but it's only a minor flaw of an otherwise great series.
Character development, for one, is great. You have good characters to root for, you have neutral characters to root for and hell, you even have villains you will root for. Just look at Batiatus and Ashur, two guys you loved to hate. And when you watch Gods of the Arena, you even feel some sympathy for Batiatus. Ashur on the other hand just seems like a nobody at first, but ends up being one of the greatest backstabbers in the entire series.
Ashur reminds me about another thing I like about this series as well: the plots. Spartacus gets a lot of shit for its "porn scenes", but the showrunners know how to make an interesting plot and story. It's gritty, it's bloody and there's a whole lot of backstabbing and betrayals... I love it. And don't even get me started about the season finales. DeKnight knows how to write a finale... the War of the Damned finale should be proof enough.
The show has some great "bromances too", albeit some of them have a rather sad ending. Varro + Spartacus was great while it lasted and it was great to see when Crixus finally joined up with Spartacus to attack Batiatus. And let's not forget Gannicus, Doctore and Agron. They may have their differences every now and then, but when shit goes wrong... everyone fights together as one.
ps: this does not count for Naevia v2. Such an awful character.
I'd like to give my respect to Liam too. I can't imagine how hard it was to take over Andy's role. I think people will probably agree Spartacus would have been even better if Andy was still alive, but that's not because Liam is a bad actor. In fact, I think he did a very good job, especially in S3. I just think Andy will always be the true spartacus for many since his performance in the first season was just... amazing. I'll always wonder how Spartacus would have been if Andy was still with us.
The final season was the perfect ending for this series though. Every actor at their best (although I still don't like what Naevia v2 did with Crixus). If you rewatch the final two episodes, you will know what I mean. They amaze me every time and I'm always in awe. Crassus, Caesar and even Tiberius were all great characters. Just thinking about the ending makes me want to watch the episode again. Spartacus might not be as "big" as Breaking Bad or Game of Thrones but it's certainly something special.
Unfortunately, a lot of people I know refuse to give Spartacus a chance. They just laugh it off as a porno show with bad cgi. Sure, it likes to show a lot of skin and the cgi isn't always top notch. So yeah, it makes me feel bad... not for the show, but for them. They will never experience the greatness of this show. To them... I have just one thing to say.