I stopped by the Starz booth at Comic-Con to check out the 3D preview they're showing for the Spartacus: Gods of the Arena blu-ray bonus feature. I also had a look at the sleek-looking jacket for the two-disc set, which is set to be released September 13th.
Included on the soon-to-be-released Spartacus: Gods of the Arena blu-ray is a look at the final battle scene from the season finale, done in 3D. I've actually never seen 3D on a television before as I don't know anyone with a 3D TV (yet), so I was curious to see if the visuals could rival what we've seen on the big screen lately. They did.
If you're familiar with the season finale of Gods of the Arena, picture the moment when the ground is set on fire and the flames begin to spread in a circle around the gladiators, and the fighting that ensues soon after. The 3D adds depth to the scene, enhancing the moment without distracting from what's happening and delivering the imagery in a crisp, colorful, detailed picture. It's surprisingly well done, especially considering the 3D effect was added in post-production.
I loved what I saw and I wanted to see more than just a couple of minutes. In fact, it'd be amazing to see the whole episode (season... series...) in 3D. But, as cool as this feature is, it's hard to appreciate it if you don't have (or know someone with) a 3D television. With that said, it's possible the 3D feature is something that'll be included on your next TV, in which case, it doesn't hurt to start building a collection of 3D-compatible Blu-rays.
Considering Gods of the Arena is only six episodes, it makes sense that the packaging would be minimal. All the same, as I'm not a fan of bulky DVD box sets no matter how many discs they include, so I appreciated the slimness of the case for this set. You can see a photo of the cover art in the gallery here.
