Starz’s new original series, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, pulled the pay cable network’s best numbers ever for its Friday premiere, garnering 553,000 viewers (and another 460,000 on sister net Encore), according to The Hollywood Reporter. By comparison, Starz’s first foray into original series, Crash, debuted to only 185,000 last season.
Latest News
- 'American Idol' Top 24: 14 names revealed
- Gail Simmons' 'Top Chef' blog: Top Two!
- 'John Carter': Fan-made trailer wins fans
- 'Glee': About THAT ending... (Spoiler Alert)
- Jamie Lee Curtis arrives on 'NCIS'
- Adele tops chart for amazing 21st week
- 'Days of Our Lives' photo: First gay kiss
- 'Idol' alum Haley Reinhart debuts single
Most Commented
- Chris Harrison blogs 'The Bachelor' episode 8 655
- Miranda Lambert tells Chris Brown to 'take notes' during 'Gunpowder and Lead' performance 611
- Father Knows Best? 591
- Amanda Knox signs a massive book deal with HarperCollins 594
- Rihanna and Chris Brown release simultaneous remixes, guest on each others' new tracks 452
Top 5 Most Read
- ‘American Idol’: 14 of Top 24 singers announced
- Most Overrated Best Picture Winners
- Jamie Lee Curtis makes her ‘NCIS’ debut: Where do you want to see her pop up next?
- ‘Glee’ winter cliffhanger: Where does it stack up against other [SPOILERS!]?
- Album Sales: Adele tops the chart for a 21st week; Bruno Mars, The Civil Wars get big Grammy bumps
I can’t wait to watch the full season when it comes out on DVD.
LOOOOOOL. Nice one
I watched it on netflix. The show is very predictable and there’s not really anything new or exciting about it, but it kept my attention.
it was awful, terrible story, terrible script (i don’t think the word c**ksucker was part of roman vernacular), terrible cgi, and the slow motion stop downs with over the top cgi blood spewing in EVERY action scene? please, show is a joke and those numbers will not stay high past the 3rd episode.
completely agree. boring as hell.
I came in expecting something like HBO’s Rome. What a disappointment.
This is supposed to be more 300 than Rome. It’s mindless entertainment and if you dig that kind of action, good show. I don’t require every show to be Masterpiece Theatre so I thought it was pretty good, Def. watch another episode or two.
It’s not more 300, it’s exactly 300! There’s not a single original idea in this show. It could be the laziest script writing ever. They even stole entire lines of dialogue from Gladiator.
Agreed!
How do you know? Maybe k*#sucker was said in Roman days? Or something like that. We did not make it up? Don’t knock what you don’t know…
The first two episodes are a bit lacking, but the rest just get better and better.
I watched the first episode, and can say I won’t be watching any more. The CGI was awful, and the entire thing seemed like a Harlequin novel put to picture. UGH!
I don’t plan to watch this again. The writing was awful, and I never want to see blood splatter in slow motion EVER AGAIN.
Watch the ratings plummet the next time.
I watched the special preview, which is the first episode, on Comcast On-Demand. IT WAS AWFUL! Bad script, horrid acting, tepid sex scenes, too much slow motion blood flying…The PITS. Won’t watch it again and won’t get STARZ because of this nonsense nor will I watch it on dvd. The WORST show on cable probably. And that script! Who was the fifteen year old who wrote this thing??? Terrible.
Really, you won’t get Starz because of a show they carry? Overreact much?
Not really. A lot of people get channels like Starz or HBO because of the series that they air, like Spartacus. Pay-channels like Starz are expensive. If Ruta does not like the shows that they air, what’s the point of paying for the channel? I subscribe to HBO because I like several of the series that they air, so it’s worth it for me. If I didn’t like any of the shows, I would cancel my subscription. It would be a waste of money to pay for it if I didn’t like what they aired.
Spartacus is a fantastic show in my opinion…The story & the fighting really has me hooked. I love it..The best cable series since Soprano’s. But it has to have a better ending!
Why does everyone think they are a critic. More people blog on sites like this because they think they are great at putting words together. Oh so sad the CGI didn’t impress you or the dialogue wasn’t on the same level as all of you. It’s a show on premium cable meant to entertain a certain audience. People always pick shit apart, it is so annoying so unless your name is siskel or roeper shut up. It’s T.V not history class. It keeps me entertained I’d rather watch this than the masterpiece you a**holes are dreaming up.
WATCHED THE FIRST 20 MIN. AND LAUGHED. I THOUGHT I WAS WATCHING A BAD SCY-FI CHANNEL MOVIE THE WAY THE CGI LOOKED. DON’T THINK IT WILL MAKE IT TOO MUCH LONGER.
Agreed, the whole thing just looked rediculously cheap.
Its already been greenlit for a second season, so I think your a bit off…
i think you’re both off…ridiculous doesn’t have an e in it and your should be you’re. sigh…
Am I the only one who liked it? I mean, did you guys watch Xena or Hercules? They made a point of pointing out in the advertisements that it was from the creators of those shows for a reason… Its campy fun! It’s not supposed to be an Emmy-winning drama… It’s fun!
I loved it! It’s meant to be campy fun. People take things too seriously.
I thought it was rip-off of 300, but I didn’t hate it. I will probably watch episode 2 online, but it seems like a show people will get bored with quickly. I don’t like all the nudity. It seemed unnecesary most of the time.
Agree. Excellent campy fun. Like 300 on nitrous oxide.
wow, you guys are hating bigtime..i thought Spartacus was awesome, totally badass…it had the great fight scenes from 300, plot similar to Gladiator and some full frontal nudity…what more can i guy ask for, I will definitely be watching this show every week from now on
I subscribed to Starz to check this out, because I really liked HBOs Rome, even though this sort of period piece isn’t my thing. Well, I was kind of bored to tears for the first half hour and then it got a little better, though I agree the writing was pretty bad and the effects rather silly. I’ll stick it out another episode or two and then see what happens.
I watched the first episode. I won’t be watching anymore. God awful.
As long as Wife Swap, Jay Leno, Ghost Whisperer, Heroes, Scrubs, Two and a Half Men, Super Nanny, Medium and Mercy are still on the air I have nothing critical to say about Spartacus. Period.
Preach it.
I guess you’ve never seen Medium. It’s one of the most tightly written and acted shows on TV. SB&S could have learned a lesson in creating suspense and drama from the Medium team.
Compared to scrubs? Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood looks good!
If it wasn’t sex, it was violence. If it wasn’t violence, it was sex. If it wasn’t sexual violence, it was violent sex. I mean, c’mon! There was no story, so it was just sex. I should’ve just watched porn…LOL
I agree with Pierre…it was like watching bad porn. I also understand the “campy fun” comment, but the writing was horrific and predictable (5 min of blood, 5 min of sex, repeat, repeat, repeat). Definitely not staying on my DVR lineup.
It was over-the-top, but I really enjoyed. And it’s nice to have Lucy Lawless back on tv. Loved her in Xena.