Spartacus: Blood & Sand, Season 1 (2010)

When the Roman legate Glaber comes to Thrace seeking assistance against the raiding Getae tribes, the Thracians are initially reluctant to join up. But when one of their number wins a promise from the Legate that the objective of the war will be to permanently destroy the Getae as a threat, he and many others agree to serve.

Alas, Roman promises are not to be trusted.  When it becomes clear that the Legate intends not to destroy the Getae but to use his Thracian auxiliaries in a completely different war, the Thracians rebel and head for home.  The leader who first asked for the Legate's promise arrives just in time to save his wife's life from the Getae, but he has not reckoned with the spite of Legate Glaber, who has been humiliated by the Thracian rebellion.  The Romans capture him and his wife.  They consign her to slavery, and send him to the arena to die by gladiator.

Our still-unnamed protagonist is not a man to die easily, though, and he survives his intended execution, killing all four gladiators sent against him.  This wins the approval of the crowd, and also the interest of Batiatus, the owner of a gladiatorial training academy.  Batiatus purchases the Thracian with intent of turning him into a grand new attraction for the arena,. dubbing him with a name he is sure will become legendary: "Spartacus".

Batiatus does not know how right he is.

So, first things first: Spartacus: Blood and Sand is a hugely sexual, profane show with frequent cursing, sex, nudity (both male and female - and yes, I do mean full frontal in both cases) and gouts of CGI blood and gore.  There's a scene in an early episode where a topless woman arches her back, breasts up-thrust, and then suddenly blood sprays out of her head to coat the screen.  That's pretty much a one-shot summary of this show.

Crass or not, though, it is a compelling program.  Even the early episodes, which are decidedly creaky in their acting, writing and green screen effects, have a kind of car crash intrigue to them.  And around the fourth or fifth episode the gears really mesh and it starts to become a 'just one more episode' experience.  The scheming, skulduggery, and eloquent (though deeply scatological) verbal sparring are great fun.  Provided you are okay with lots of profanity, nudity and violence in your entertainment, I think you will be entertained.