spartacus-showtime

Starz has renewed “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” for a second season, even though the show doesn’t debut until next month. The action drama, which looks to borrow heavily from both Gladiator and 300, promises viewers plenty of blood, LucyLawless’s boobs, and a shared prosthetic penis — which sounds like reason enough to me for renewal.

The network is debuting the bloody spectacle, which uses the graphic novel style of films like “300,” on Jan. 22. The second season will be titled, “Spartacus: Vengeance.”

This isn’t the first time a network has renewed a show before its series debut. Showtime made headlines by ordering a second season of its Hank Azaria drama “Huff” before its debut (and the series only lasted two seasons). Though such a move does indeed show confidence, it can also reduce costs by preventing a break in production. [The Live Feed]

If you’re one of the lucky people who has a job and extra cash and time to burn, I’d recommend shelling out for Starz. For a long while it was the unloved bastard sister of HBO and Showtime (and even Cinemax), but it’s really come on strong recently. It generally has a better selection of movies on demand than either Showtime or Cinemax, and “Party Down” — the sitcom about struggling artists working at an L.A. catering company — is one of the best comedies on television. And while I can’t say whether or not “Spartacus” (trailer below) will be any good, I do know that gratuitous violence and nudity are the building blocks for an excellent television show. And my parents’ marriage.