It's been about nine years since the series Oz left the programming schedule of the cable TV channel HBO. The network's first "adult" series, Oz It showed the daily lives of inmates at the Oswald maximum security prison, focusing on the criminals who populated the Emerald City sector.
The series, which was also broadcast on SBT, lasted six seasons and became famous for its mix of practically explicit sex and violence combined with a well-crafted production with a first-class cast.
"Practically", here, it concerns sex, because the violence was shown without cuts and without censorship. Fights and attacks, murders and drug use were a common part of the menu – and without fear of blood. At least, there were three deaths per episode …
In the sexual area, however, all that was needed was to show the penetrations to receive the "explicit" label. After all, intense scenes of nudity, wild sex, and rape were equally common, and Oz I had no problem showing men having sex with each other, in ways that weren't always affectionate.
The production was also responsible for a up in the career of Christopher Meloni, who starred in several of these scenes and would later become better known as detective Elliot Stabler in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, which addresses, get this, the fight against sexual crimes.
However, truth be told, after the end of Oz, fans of these adult and controversial series with gay sex were left somewhat orphaned, at least if we fail to consider Queer as Folk, since it did not contain the element of marginality.
Sex and sand
It was like this until 2010, when the channel Starz debuted Spartacus. Historical, it deals with a real character, the notorious Thracian who gives the series its title and challenged the Roman Empire in a revolution of gladiators and slaves.
After the first season, in 2010, which received the subtitle of blood and sand (blood and sand), Or Long live Sin on the FX channel, the series had an unspeakable low with the death of actor Andy Whitfield, who played Spartacus, suffering from lymphatic cancer, in September 2011 – but hired Liam McIntyre (photo) to replace the protagonist, he managed to get back on his feet and completed his second season this year, which was nicknamed The revenge (Vengeance).
There was also a The prequel, from 2011: The Gods of the Arena (Gods of the Arena), also called Long live the Origin on FX, which shows the events before the coming of Spartacus. The third and final season, War of the Damned, in free translation (War of the Damned), is confirmed for 2013.
Spartacus brought back some of the elements that fans of Oz they appreciated it so much. After all, gladiators are slave warriors in a corrupt Rome, which confers the element of marginality, even when inserted among dominant classes and in the annals of power. In fact, the powerful are the ones who really are the "rotten band" in history.
The fights are bloody and there is no shortage of nudity and sex, including the presence of gay relationships, all the more interesting because they are experienced by incredibly strong, masculine guys with perfect bodies in a series with a good cast, magnificent dialogue and excellent production. For lesbians, the presence of the ex-Xena Lucy Lawless, in the role of the Roman Lucretia – there are also some kisses between girls.
All of this, of course, is to introduce you to some of the hottest actors on cable TV. In Brazil, Spartacus: Vengeance was shown and replayed by Globosat HD. The channel has already confirmed that it will show the third season. Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, in turn, began airing on FX last Sunday (15), at 23pm. There's time to take a look at these gladiators and Romans beyond e. Check it out!
