Spartacus was a much more embellished version of what HBO delivered with Rome some 8 years earlier with some gimmicks like the use of CGI and turning the knob up all the way on the violence and nudity then breaking that knob off in someone's ass in nearly every episode. Season one is more stuffed with so many crazy, jaw-dropping action sequences than just about anything that came before it. I think much of the value here is also due to Andy Whitfield. It was clear from the slight quality drop of the second season that he made a difference here with season one. He really should be among the credits listed here, I think it's sad that he's not.