Spartacus is the new True Blood

Sunday nights have been kind of dull since True Blood ended season 2 last summer- my wife is asleep by 9! Whenever True Blood was on, it was race to get the kids to bed - get everything ready for Monday morning- hop into bed and see what kind of trouble Sookie Stackhouse would get herself into.

My wife, who is not a big TV watcher never misssed one second of any episode. Not a sci-fi fan by any definition, True Blood held just the right amount of suggestive sexual innuendo and drama that seemed to captivate us and most of our friends. 

When True Blood ended season 2 - and seemed to be following the Sopranos path of ever extending breaks, Sunday nights looked bleak.

For the past few months it seems there have been endless commercials and promotional materials for Starz new show "Spartacus". I thought it looked like a straight "300" ripoff with a gladiator storyline. Wasn't too enthused. I made no attempts, nor did I DVR the first episode.

In fact, I think I had the first episode on in the background late one night while I was working. It seemed really slow. Luck for me, I stumbled across it again - and episode 3- and I was hooked.

Spartacus follows the story of an enslaved Thratian Gladiator and his attempt to find and save his wife. Really though, the grand story line has about as much to do with the success of the show as Miley Cyrus' talent has to do with her gold records.

Spartacus begins each show informing the audience that, in attempt to recreate the environment of Ancient Rome, there are scenes of a sexual nature,and excessive violence. Really Starz? This is an attempt to remain true to history?

Viewers would do well to take note, however, this is clearly not America's Funniest Home Videos. Not 3 minutes can go by without either 1. Nudity- both female and male 2. A sex scene- often times an orgy or 3. Someone getting their throat slit or sliced off.

Lucy Lawless is the only name you'll know from the cast- although you'll recognize a few more faces. I must say that I was not a Xena Warrior Princess fan, and never thought a whole lot of Lucy Lawless. I would be remiss if I did not give her some kudos for her role in Spartacus- I can't imagine Starz pays that much, and she is showing a ton of stuff she certainly never bared on Xena. Her dialogue seems to be taken straight out of an "adult" movie as well if you know what I mean. Hub pages would have a fit if I gave you some examples. Here she is below - I never had heard of a "merkin" before this interview- I linked it so you don't have to scratch your head at it if your as clueless as  I was.

If you've got Starz- give Spartacus a try. Its really like nothing else on TV right now or ever before. You can catch up with On-Demand.