Spartacus

If 300 were made into a television series it would be Spartacus. The Starz original program follows the conquest of Spartacus, a slave turned gladiator turned rebel, as he strives to free the people from the tight grip of the Roman Empire. War of the Damned is the third and final season of the series and pits Spartacus against the armies of Marcus Licinius Crassus, which are assisted by none other than Julius Caesar himself. As with the past two seasons, the series revolves around battle, blood, and babes.

The season opens with some of the most brutal and bloody imagery seen yet on the battlefield. Heads are decapitated, limbed are severed, and ever orifice imaginable runs bright red as soldier’s precious life oozes from their veins. Even as barbaric as it is, the battle scenes are very cinematic and quite beautiful, in a haunting sort of way. It is not for the squeamish, however.

When not in the heat of battle, the show typically focuses on one of two things, planning or sex. Even the gratuitous sex scenes play out like their war counterparts with plenty of slow motion shots and quick cuts. Frankly the only difference is that they’re naked and not trying to kill each other.

The Blu-ray itself looks great. The visuals are vibrant (especially the blood), and you really get the grimy and dirty feeling of being in Roman times. Special features include number behind-the-scenes making of featurettes and commentaries/extended episodes that are exclusive to the Blu-ray version.

If you’re a fan of Spartacus, the War of the Damned Blu-ray is a fitting conclusion to series. The quality is great and it has just enough bonus features to warrant its price tag. No need to shed any unnecessary blood over this one.