Highly recommended! Check it out now on-demand, or see it in theaters! So great!

Thanks, Lane!

Starz cast Australian actor Liam McIntyre (HBO’s Pacific) as Spartacus for the second season of the series, Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Andy Whitfield originated the role during the series’ first season and was forced to bow out of further production due to his ongoing health issues. According to the network, Whitfield gave his consent to the recasting. Production on new episodes of Spartacus: Blood and Sand begin this spring with Spartacus instigating fellow slaves to rebel against Rome. The six-episode prequel series, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena premieres January 21 at 10p on Starz.

It will be tough for anyone to follow Andy Whitfield, and the show won’t be the same without him. Here’s hoping McIntyre pulls it off.

I don’t have high hopes for Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, but I am still looking forward to some schlocky fun this weekend. Maybe it will surprise me. Blood & Sand certainly did. Here’s a trailer:

CANABALT

Principal photography has commenced on the new romantic adventure series Camelot slated to tentatively premiere on Starz next spring in the US and on the CBC in Canada. Production on this fresh re-telling of the King Arthur legend is taking place at Ardmore Studios in Ireland and filming is expected to continue until December. The cast includes Jamie Campbell Bower as King Arthur; Joseph Fiennes as Merlin; Eva Green as Morgan; Claire Forlani as Queen Igraine; Tamsin Egerton as Guinevere; and Peter Mooney as Arthur’s brother, Kay. Camelot is an Irish-Canadian co-production with Morgan O’Sullivan of Ireland’s Octagon and John Weber of Canada’s Take 5 Productions serving as executive producers. Other executive producers include Graham King and Tim Headington of GK Films and Craig Cegielski of GK-TV; James Flynn of Octagon; Douglas Rae of UK’s Ecosse Films in addition to Fred Fuchs, Michael Hirst and Anne Thomopoulos. Chris Chibnall is the showrunner and writer. Starz holds all US rights to the production including home entertainment and digital distribution while GK-TV will handle international distribution with Take 5 Productions involved with distribution in Canada.

While Starz has a long way to go before it catches HBO, I like where they’re headed…

Starz’ prequel series, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena captures the story of Gannicus, the first gladiator to become Champion of Capua. Australian actor Dustin Clare landed the role as Gannicus; Jaime Murray and Marisa Ramirez were also tapped for top roles in the new series as Gaia and Melitta respectively. As the prequel to the series, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Lucy Lawless (Lucretia), John Hannah (Batiatus), Peter Mensah (Oenomaus) and Manu Bennett (Crixus) all reprise their roles from the original series. Andy Whitfield as Spartacus will make a brief appearance and will be part of the show in season two which begins production later this year. Production on Spartacus: Gods of the Arena begins next month and is slated to premiere on Starz in early 2011.

Can’t wait!  If you haven’t seen the awesome Spartacus: Blood & Sand yet, check it out on Netflix Instant right away.  It’s so much more rich and compelling than the guilty pleasure you might expect…

Yeah!

I wasn’t familiar with Hal Sparks until I watched his special “Hal Sparks: Charmageddon,” and now I’m a fan.  I was initially wary of him, as he seems almost insincere, but I’m glad I hung around.  He’s surprisingly insightful, and he cracked me up.

I’ve been a Jake Johannsen fan since his first HBO special, “Jake Johannsen: This’ll Take About An Hour.”  I’ve since seen him live and try to stay current on what he’s up to.  I was really excited to watch his new Showtime special “Jake Johannsen: I Love You,” and he doesn’t disappoint.  Check it out.  (Note: “Jake Johannsen: This’ll Take About An Hour” has been posted in its entirety to YouTube.  Hopefully Jake approves.  It’s one of my favorite stand-up specials, and it’s well worth watching.)

I had the pleasure of watching Jordan Brady’s documentary I Am Comic the other night on Showtime, and it blew me away.  It should be required viewing for comedians, teachers, wannabes and serious fans.  I have never seen a more comprehensive take on stand-up comedy, and Brady does an incredible job digging into the joys and realities of the industry.  I emailed Brady to ask about purchasing a DVD, and he said he is planning to release it in the fall.  He recommended I join their Facebook page for the latest updates.

I’m also really psyched about “The Green Room with Paul Provenza,” Showtime’s new discussion show about stand-up comedy.  Provenza leads a panel of four other comics through talks about the state of comedy and whatever else comes up, hilariously illustrated by lightning wit and stories of their experiences.  It’s a bit reminiscent of past favorite “Dinner For Five” with Jon Favreau, but “The Green Room” plays looser and much funnier.  Stand-up isn’t easy, and this show makes it very clear why the pros are the pros.

Finally, curiosity brought me back to NBC’s “Last Comic Standing.”  My hopes weren’t high, but I wanted to see Craig Robinson.  Turns out he’s only a very minor presence as the host, but there’s so much more going on.  The always hilarious Andy Kindler anchors the judge’s panel, and Greg Giraldo and Natasha Leggero give him nice support.  I know they’re supposed to be equal presences, but Kindler owns it; he kills me.  The show has come a long way since Dat Phan, and it’s open season for this year’s contestants.  I’m sure it’s disappointing to the amateur hopefuls to see so many pros in the contest, but it does make for good TV.  As of now I’m pulling for Chip Pope:

Have a great summer!