Tusen og ett liv

Day 28 - Given a choice, would you rather be a gladiator or a body slave? Neither! Guess it would have to be body slave, though - since my chances of surviving very long as a gladiator would be slim. .

Day 27 - What do you think the life of a gladiator was like? Uhh - what an extremely silly question!! For further answers - look to historypages like SPQRonline ore something. It is enough known about this that I don't have sit and speculate..

Day 26 - Which season is your favorite? The seasons are all good, but in very different ways. Gods of the Arena was a very good explanation of many of the things going on in the later seasons. Venegance was just great, but I must say I thought the first five episodes were much stronger than the last five. My favourite is Blood and Sand. It really stands on its own in many ways. The character development and each character's journey is really well thought out. The attention to detail was overwhelming. Each story and detail quickly made me see that this show was so much more than the sex and violence that follows along with it as well. 

Warning: Here be spoilers for the entire book! Now - who the hell picks these titles anyway? They are just horrible. I already commented on "The North Remembers". "The Night Lands" and "Garden of Bones" are both very much out of context and "What is Dead May Never Die" has lost all meaning when the ironborn don't baptize people by drowning and resuscitating them. Then there is the issue of this episode spending almost all time inventing story-lines that weaken the plot. Fart-jokes? Really? I expected a bit more - even if they were from Lannisport. I guess we open with the battle of Oxcross, and Robb meets Talyssa from Volantis. Do we really have to watch this? Robbs marriage to Jeyne Westerling happens off-screen in the books - and for good reason. These books are dark and full of terror - not sweet kisses and whispers of love. This love-story just doesn't feel like anything Martin would write. It only ends up grabbing focus from pl

 Day 25 - Compare Andy and Liam I really don't like that people compare them. This wasn't an actor being replaced because of creative differences . The show was affected by a tragedy, and no one wanted this. I don't want to compare Liam to Andy. I it just really diminishes and disrespects both actors. Andy's illness and subsequent death was incredibly tragic. Liam has stepped into an impossible situation. He has constantly been compared and sometimes been disrespected - not because of his actual work, but because many fans of the show feel that liking Liam would betray the memory of Andy . But the fact is Andy wanted the show to continue. He wanted his colleagues to have the jobs they were counting on. I can only imagine how painful it must be for those who actually knew him in real life. Liam is brilliant. He brings his very best effort to this role. I have no complaints about him playing the role.

Day 24 - Team Romans or team Rebels? There is no question here really! The rebels have done awful things and that is of course not to be ignored. But the Romans institutionalize maltreatment of other human beings. Dionna, Sura, all of the gladiators killing each other for sport or in training, the phenomena of the pits, the way every other sexual encounter the Romans engage in is rape, the way they don't understand that non-Romans are also people - not animals, the crucifixions, killing and backstabbing each other, government subsidized torture, and killing each others' children. Team Rebels all the way!!

Day 23-Which cast memeber would you want to meet? Hm.. They all seem like nice people. I'm not the kind of person who craves to meet styars of a show. Any one would do, I think..

Ooh - finally an episode I really liked! A generally brilliant Tyrion, some interesting "new" characters introduced - and most of all they even made Pyke, Theon and his choices be bearable. That was quite impressive. Now many of my complaints of the last two episodes have been that I felt things were done incredibly different from the book. I do however realize that an adaptation cannot be an exact copy of what I have read - and there are many practical reasons for that. This episode does not echo the books to any larger degree than the previous episodes. I just think that the changes they have made work much better here. So lets start with the good, then: Bran having his wolf-dream and then talking to Maester Luwin was really nice. They managed to mention the Valyrian steel link, the giants and dragons. A very nice scene. Moving on to the Stormlands I just loved both Brienne and Margaery. They are both just the way I imagined them and brilliantly cast! Now I know Mar

Day 22- What is your favourite episode? Oh - I've been waiting to answer this question. It is a bit hard, though, because all the episodes make up a whole even though many of them stand quite well on their own as well. From Blood & Sand it really was "Party Favours". It really broke my heart, and that was what was so fantastic about it. I don't consider myself a sentimental person, and film / TV-series seldom make me teary-eyed. Seeing the build-up of this episode culminate in Varro's death still makes me fell really bad, though. The scene with Spartacus being broken up about it and thrashing his cell is also incredibly impactful. From Gods of the Arena it was simply "The Bitter End". I loved the end to that prequel. Having theorized that Gannicus would surely die at the end, it was such an amazing surprise that he was set free.  A good way for Gannicus to start afresh as well - since Melitta is gone and he doesn't seem able to face Oenom

Day 21 - Which character (if any) might work in a crossover? Extremely unlikely, this. Think maybe the only other series I could think of where they would fit in is Doctor Who. It would be fun to see the Doctor in Roman times. Maybe centurion Rory could make an appearance?

Day 20 - Do you find Spartacus to be a courageous character? Spartacus the character is the very definition of courageous to me. He fights for what he believes him even though the odds are stacked against him, and his risk of loss is incredibly high! He is not necessarily fearless, but he acts regardless of that fear.

Day 19 - Who would you pair up of two characters who have NOT been together in canon? Not really a big fan of pairing up characters. Don't really see the point, sorry. Shipping is just not my thing!

Day18-Was there any part on the show that made you laugh? There are plenty of parts that have comical elements. Even though the show is very much a tragedy, they have managed to keep a light tone in parts where that is appropriate.  Quintus Batiatus's preposterous language is something that made me laugh many times. I do miss him a great deal in Venegance. He really helped keep the tone light at times. I also liked the banter between Spartacus and Varro. Varro had a good and sometimes quite fun way of reminding Spartacus of the reality of their situation. Venegance is the part of the series that has the least comical moments. But I enjoyed an evil laugh in episode 5 when Spartacus hit Cossutius with that spear he threw! Then there is always Agron and Gannicus that have some pretty funny one-liners :-)

Day 17 - Best twist In terms of surprise there was the death of Varro. No questions asked, really. Didn't see that coming. Then again it was really sad, so I can hardly call it best twist.. The twist I probably liked the most was Gannicus gaining his freedom. I was quite sure he would die at the end of the prequel or if not die then get sold off. I was therefore quite pleased with the turn of events and how Gods of the Arena ended.

Day 16 - Do you like the fighting-scenes? This might be a simple one-word answer: YES :-) The thing about the fighting-scenes is that they are a necessary part of the show. They depict the brutality, but are at the same time incredibly well-choreographed. Okay - so they do overdo it a bit with the slo-mo sometimes and the blood-spray as well. In my view that is just the over-the-top-factor they need for me to not have to turn away etc.

Day 15- What's your favorite quote on the show ever? Here's another occasion to cheat I think  - so one qoute from each series, then ;-) Blood and Sand: Varro: "There is no choice.." Spartacus: "There's always a choice!" Gods of the Arena: Gannicus: "There is only one way to become champion; never fucking lose!" Venegance: Oenomaeus: "A man is never too weak or too wounded to fight, as long as the cause is greater than his own life"

Day 14- What was the most romantic character part on the show? There's really no contest here. Crixus is by far the most romantic character. In Blood and Sand he goes to lengths establishing a relationship with Naevia, and then in Venegance he does everything within his power to save her. That's romance for you!

Day 13- What character would you bring back if you could? Now I'm no fan of bringing characters back from the dead. Also I think they have all died in a very suitable way. There are however characters that I miss very much. As I spoke of in the last post, I would have been interested to see how things would play out if Varro hadn't been killed. Seeing as he was a Roman it might have been interesting to see how he would define himself after an escape. There might have been a potential there to make him an enemy of the rebellion. I do miss Quintus Batiatus a lot though. If I could have him be not dead somehow I imagine he would be a welcome addition to the show. He brought with him lots of humour and also the underdog's perspective in Roman society. He was just the sort of character it would always be nice to see more of.

An amazing analysis of the ethics of Game of Thrones. Wish I wrote it.. Game of Thrones as Theory

Day 12 - Which character death made you cry? There is no dispute about this one. I never cry when watching TV. The exceptions to this are very few. Varro's death however brought tears to my eyes, and still does. Actually I do think it was one of the saddest deaths I have seen on TV for a very long time. It was sudden and brought about by the scheming of people who did not even care - and at the hands of Spartacus nonetheless. Maybe I should have started hating Illythia before, but this was when I discovered how much I loathed her. What made it even worse was how broken up Spartacus was about it. His reaction was almost equally sad and also brought tears to my eyes when we see it in the next episode. Also it might have been interesting to see how the story might have turned out had Varro not died. He was a Roman after all. Would he have joined the rebellion at all? Or if his 2 years had been up before the rebellion and he had been freed - would he be an enemy now? Oh well -

Day11-Who is the most handsome or beautiful person on the show?  This show has a ridiculously handsome/beautiful cast. Saying who is the most good-looking is like picking between the contestants of a beauty-contest. Choosing one is near impossible, but I might just narrow it down a bit. When it comes to guys I guess Dustin and Dan are best-looking. Of the women Viva and Lesley-Ann are extraordinarily beautiful.

Day 10 - What do you not like about the show? It sounds ridiculous when you watch a show like Spartacus to say you think there is to much violence. Even so I'm going to say just that. I'm not squeamish myself, but I do actually look away from time to time. There is also a fair share of gratuitous sex that I might have done without. Now I don't really mind that much. As you can see - I'm a fan of the show. It just makes it harder to get people to watch. I also fear many people don't really see the great plotting and detail that goes into an episode of Spartacus because they are busy watching the tits or slow-mo or blood or whatever..

I'm no more positive about season 2 after watching The Night Lands. In fact it now worries me immensely how they seem to deviate from original characterization  and make the involved characters into different people from who they are to me. That doesn't mean the episode was all bad, though . Let's start with t he good: There's Gendry. He has a bit more personality here, than what we're used to but I think that's a good thing. Arya at least has one person to care for her! Since it's difficult to get her inner monologue on film, it might be a good idea to have someone for her to talk to a bit more. Ghost looks amazing! Looking forward to seeing more of him. Hope he is in many scenes in the future. I also must say I like the Night's Watch-storyline so far. The inclusion of Jon actually observing an other taking one of Craster's son makes the threat more real to the viewers. That was a very good move, and also a nice way to end the episode. Unfo

Day 9- What character needs to get killed off the show? Can't really call this a show that lets it's characters linger for too long! After having finished watching all episodes there aren't many characters left to kill. In fact I'd go as far as to suggest not to kill off any characters for a couple of episodes!

Day 8- Who is the character that freaks you out the most? Wow - these questions are all quite hard. Another one I had to think about before answering. Many of the characters are sometimes a bit freaky or scary. Lucretia's madness in Venegance is quite unnerving to watch, and so is the calculated malice of Illythia in Blood and Sand. The gladiators themselves do freaky things every now and the, and the slyness of Ashur can be painful to see as well - especially in Gods of the Arena. Even so I must say the one that freaks me out the most had to be Quintus Batiatus himself. Not that his deeds are in any way worse than that of the other characters. It is more that I actually find myself rooting for this guy from time to time. There is something about him that makes me forgive all his evil scheming and plotting from time to time. I find it really freaky how I am able to like this man who has committed the most heinous crimes without hesitation.

Can't say there was much I liked about this episode. I am generally worried about the season as a whole. Especially since it seems they plan to enhance the romance-parts. When I here that is all about drawing in the female audience, well that just makes me angry!! This is not a series to watch if you want romance, and it's female audience probably knows that already. I fully realize they will have to make things simpler for a tv-audience, but that does not mean they have to dumb it down. At the moment, that is just something that worries me, though. I should probably give Weiss and Benioff a chance to make it right. So let's just see what this season brings. Let me start with the good : I liked the Night's Watch-scenes. I like Jon's defiance and badly hidden disgust and I did like the Old Bear reminding him of his place. I have heard people saying Craster's a bit too well-groomed. But why not? He had many wives to look after him and his home as well, and h

I've decided to try something new. Being hopeful, but quizen sceptical of the new sesong, it light be a gold idea to try and pick it apart. It will not be a recap, but a comment in the events I the show as compared to the books. I will section my review into the good and the bad, book comparisons and predictions. First review will be up later this evening I hope..

Day 7 - If you could change anything about this show - what would it be? To quote another favourite of mine; What's to change? You don't mess with this level of perfection! I could say I wish characters would stop getting killed, but that's unrealistic for this story, and also, it's kind of what makes this show awesome, because the stakes are always so high. There is something that I would like and that is if the show had more episodes per season..I know the scripts are tight and that there's not much time for moments that don't move the plot forward, but I would have liked to see some of those. I'd like to see more interaction between the characters and relationship-building moments. I think especially Venegance would have benefited from that, While I'm at it, I would like to see a little less of Spartacus making speeches and a little more of him interacting with the others. More Gannicus or Oenomaeus or Agron would be very nice as well.. Woo

Just a little bit late to keep up my schedule today, but even so - there are questions to be answered.. Day 6 - Which unpopular character do you love? Don't know if I really love any obviously unpopular characters. Mira is somewhat unpopular in some circles, and I guess I do love her in the last season. Then again, I think her popularity rose just as I started to like her. I like Solonius, and I know many people out there dislike him. Even so he is no more despicable that any of the other Romans. So - none really! Are there really any unpopular characters in this show? Don't think so. There is a clear purpose to all characters, and even though they do awful things sometimes you can understand that due to their circumstances. It's just that well-written!

Day 5 - Who is a character you hate? Hm.. I don't really hate any character. I love to dislike some of the villains, and I would definitely not appreciate meeting some of these characters in real life. Even most of the rebels commit terrible actions from time to time. But they are all amazing characters. Oh - there is one, though: Cossutius. When Spartacus threw the spear and hit him it actually made me very happy. He was horrible.    

I am going to cheat a bit here - because there's a list.. All of the scenes are chosen for sheer impact: SEASON 1: Spartacus leaps off Crixus's shield / Spartacus is forced to kill Varro / Spartacus with Ilithyia... PREQUEL: Gannicus' reaction when he wins the last fight and is freed / Lucretia's farewell to Gaia. SEASON 2: Arena falling / Lucretia throws herself and the baby off the cliff

Day 3- Favorite pairing Can I say the Spartacus/Varro bromance? Ah well - guess this is a question about romantic couples.. Another difficult one! Espescially since I like almost every pairing on the show.. (Gannicus/Melitta and Spartacus/Mira being the very few exceptions..) There is just something I like about the show's whole attitude towards romance and the love-life of it's characters. Not what you'd expect in a show that portrays such a cynical, cut-throat epoque in history. I really hope they continue this line of creating and upholding believable  both loving and non-loving couples. So far I have really liked couples like Oenomaeus/Melitta, Spartacus/Sura, Crixus/Naevia, Agron/Nasir etc. There is however one couple that really stands out, and that has to be Battiatus/Lucretia. Through all their evil ways and horrible schemes they manage to continue loving one another. I find that quite impressive. It is also incredibly fascinating to see how they both bri

Oh my! Seems time has gotten away from me a bit, and now I'll just have to do four days in one sitting. Some interesting questions in there, though.. Here goes: Day 2- Favorite female character There are so many good female characters in this series! Steven de Knight really strives to portray a variety of different women and their fates. And the way he does it seems very real. Women in roman society were very much overlooked or even abused. Even staying true to this sentiment De Knight has managed to create a variety of women that handle this differently. I just love watching Lucretia worming her way up in society an through life in general. She will be sorely missed in the next season - I think. I almost might call her my favourite, but then again her lack of good intentions disqualifies her. Another woman that has shown she can fend for herself is Mira. I admittedly started out disliking her in Blood and Sand. I found and do find her continued attachment to Spartacus a

Day 1- Favourite male character This question is really tough! As this is very much a character-driven story, there are bound to be plenty of great characters in it. My views on this have also changed a bit with each season. Oenomaeus must be the character that I've loved and rooted for through all three seasons. I love his sense of morality and responsibility. He really is a leader - something that shines through in every situation they put him in. In Gods of the Arena he is in some way tricked into assuming the mantel of Doctore. I liked seeing him struggle with the role and questioning himself time and again. By  Blood and Sand he has become much more seasoned, and I like the way he balances responsibility for the gladiators with loyalty to Batiatus. He is extremely firm, but also fair. Him figuring out there was something amiss with Barca being freed and that turning him from the house of Batiatus is an example of his sense of honour. When we meet him again in Venegance

Yep - I know the Doctor Who one got to an abrupt ending. Been really ill and all that... I will continue 30 days of Doctor Who. But while I was ill, watching Spartacus was one of the things that gave me comfort. Now the show is high up on my list of favourite shows. That's why I'll start yet another 30 Days-meme. Day 1- Favorite male character? Day 2- Favorite female character Day 3- Favorite pairing? Day 4- Favorite scene? Day 5-Who is the character that you hate the most? Day 6- Which unpopular character do you love? Day 7-IF you could would you change anything about the show what would it be? Day 8- Who is the chatarcter that freaks you out the most? Day 9- What chatacter needs to get killed off the show? Day 10- What do you not like about the show? Day11-Who is the most handsome or beautiful person on the show? Day 12- What male character death made you cry? Day 13- What character would you bring back if you could? Day 14- What was the most romantic character part on