The Death Star strategy

In less my memory deceives me, you’re not allowed to use Star Wars’ figurines in Battleship.

Trust me, I’ve tried.

“Star Destroyers aren’t a part of this game, idiot,” my brother used to taunt me when, in a last ditch effort, I’d deploy the Empire’s forces. I lost a lot of good TIE Fighters in the battle that ensued off the grid.

Well, it looks like Peter Berg and the Hoeber brothers (Erich and Jon) are siding with me, for better or worse.

You know these guys, right? Sure you do! Berg was the director who brought you gold like "The Kingdom," "The Rundown" and "The Hancock" (it just fits better if you say it that way). Remember seeing those movies and wondering if the director was shitfaced the whole time he was shooting? Well if his IMDB picture says anything, you might be onto something.

The Hoebers penned two... count em, TWO films in the last decade: "Whiteout" (more plot elements than snow) and "Red" (Cocoon with guns).

This trio has teamed up to bring you "Battleship!" Why? Because they can!

Liam Neeson is taking a break from being a God ("Clash/Wrath of the Titans" movies), a survivor ("The Grey") and a deadly family man ("Unknown", "Taken" and, by all accounts, his actual life) to head a cast including a "True Blood face", Brooklyn Decker (“who?” good question.) and Taylor Kitsch, the man who RUINED Gambit.

Oh, and Rihanna. She stills does music stuff right? Sure.

This isn’t the first movie loosely based off a game from the olden days (Mousehunt = Mouse Trap; "Real Steel" = Rock em Sock em Robots = FAIL) and it won’t be the last. Monopoly is working it’s way through the system as we speak.

Funny story: When I first saw the trailer for "The Darkest Hour", I thought it was Monopoly for a moment. Watch it and tell me it wouldn’t be intense.

But here’s Ridley Scott’s thoughts on a "Monopoly" movie:

“I created a comedic, lovable loser who lives in Manhattan and works at a real estate company and he’s not very good at his job but he’s great at playing Monopoly. And the world record for playing is 70 straight days – over 1,600 hours – and he wanted to try to convince his friends to help him break that world record. They think he is crazy. They kid him about this girl and they’re playing the game and there’s this big fight. And he’s holding a Chance card and after they’ve left he says, ‘Damn, I wanted to use that Chance card,’ and he throws it down. He falls asleep and then he wakes up in the morning and he’s holding the Chance card, and he thinks, ‘That’s odd.’”

He’s all groggy and he goes down to buy some coffee and he reaches into his pocket and all he has is Monopoly money. All this Monopoly money pours out. He’s confused and embarrassed and the girl reaches across the counter and says, ‘That’s OK.’ And she gives him change in Monopoly money. He walks outside and he’s in this very vibrant place, Monopoly City, and he’s just come out of a Chance Shop. As it goes on, he takes on the evil Parker Brothers in the game of Monopoly.”

Sound like a Requiem for a Dream Sequel to me. can we get Jared Leto for an amputated lead role?

So, let’s brainstorm, Inscapednauts. How about Candy Land?

Let’s take Kitsch and give him a brain aneurism. You’re welcome, nerds everywhere. As he hangs between life and death, he’s transported to a world of pure imagination (suck it, Gene Wilder!) where he meets that peppermint looking clown, played by Johnny Depp. The fat king dude? Ray Liotta. That’ll scare some kids. The sludgey dude? Obviously Seth Rogen. And the fairy on the box? Helen Mirren. Why? Fuck it, that’s why.

How about Life?

A socially inept kid creates a way to live a proxy life.. shit, that’s "Social Network." Sorry, David Fincher.

Remember a few years back when all movie-lovers wanted was original ideas? No more shitty sequels? No more remakes? I remember telling Editor extraordinaire Tim that there couldn’t be anything worse.

And it turns out, much like my Darth Vader offensive, I was dead wrong.

- Dan Segraves

Academy Award nominations, the 'Rotten' truth

I'm an avid reader of various movie sites. I don't think a day goes by where I don't stop by Rotten Tomatoes or Box Office Mojo.

That just means I get a lot of somewhat useless information stuck in my head.

Like when the Academy Award nominations were announced, I realized something horrible.

When I saw that "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" was nominated for Best Picture, a red flag went up in my brain.

"Um, doesn't that film have a 'Rotten' rating on Rotten Tomatoes?"

Why, yes, Tim it does. A 47 percent (as of this post) to be exact.

That got my brain going into overdrive. Has a 'Rotten' reviewed movie, one with more negative reviews than positive, ever been nominated before?

And like a horrible, catchy dance song I couldn't get the thought out of my head.

So I did some digging. Right off the bat, it has to be known that since the site has only been around since 1999, my research could only take me so far.

I decided that I would go back 25 years. Look up each film nominated for Best Picture since 1987 and see how many 'Rotten' films there were.

You know the result? None.

Every film nominated in the past 25 years (save this year) have had a majority of positive reviews.

The funnier thing? The lowest rated film (besides this year) was 2008's "The Reader" with a barely positive score of 62 percent. Why is this so funny? Both films were directed by the same man: Stephen Daldry. Someone call Mulder because this is the start of a conspiracy.

Here are some other facts I found in my digging:

Highest rated Best Picture winner: "Schindler's List" and "The Hurt Locker" both with 97 percent.

Highest rated Best Picture nominee: "My Left Foot" and "The Crying Game" both with 100 percent.

Lowest rated Best Picture winner: "Forrest Gump" with 71 percent.

Best averaged year (highest rated films): 1993 with a 95 percent ("Schindler's List" won Best Picture.)

Lowest averaged year (lowest rated films): 2000 with 82 percent ("Gladiator" won Best Picture.)

In comedy, everyone’s a critic

Editor's note: Tim here. I wanted to personally welcome back Dan Segraves to the world of Inscaped. Back in the day, Dan and I did a show called "Viewpoints On..." As part of the growth of Inscaped as a brand we'll be adding more contributors and editors along with new projects. More on that later. And here's Dan:

TJ Miller is an eccentric stand up comic and, as he puts it, “the most famous talking bear movie actor in history.” He was tragically a part of the 3-D "Yogi Bear" movie recently. Comedy lore tells that he rented a live bear for his audition for the movie, that he has since confirmed.

Dane Cook is the darling of college frat boys and their brain dead girlfriends everywhere. He has made a career out of being seedy and pretentious. He’s also made a name for himself by having a league of “bros” behind him so that when makes offenses (such as stealing material or bombing), they will help him get sympathy.

Miller was a part of a comedy show at the Los Angeles Laugh Factory Jan. 18. Unknown to anyone, however, Cook dropped in to do some work.

The issue of the night began when Cook took the stage. From several recounts, Cook berated the crowd to a ridiculous extent. "On the You Made It Weird" podcast, Miller mentioned that Cook made fun of a balding man, said women will do anything for him because he is Dane Cook, talked about “fucking whores” to get out anger towards his girlfriend and told a women to stop texting because “Dane Cook’s on stage."

For non-comedy fans, this is quite common, especially when you’re at a club that someone considers a “home base” as Cook considers the Laugh Factory. comedians are always that they could get “bumped,” and learn to accept it early on. Miller knows this. Miller did, however, take offense to Cook ruining a crowd that paid to be entertained, not insulted.

Word is that Miller did a good job of cleaning up Cook’s mess. Remember Seth Rogen’s character in "Funny People" after Adam Sandler’s character had a dark, downing set? Imagine that.

This wouldn’t be the first time a comedian insulted a crowd, either. Don Rickles and Andrew Dice Clay made careers off of material like Cook performed. Today, Jeff Ross is known as “The Roastmaster” and Daniel Tosh insults the public on a large level on "Tosh.0" on Comedy Central.

Miller’s argument was more of a professional one than being bumped or Cook doing insult comedy. The crowd paid to see TJ and other “alternative” comedians do your usual comedy. They didn’t pay or ask to see Cook degrade them. If Cook wanted to drop in, he could’ve had the courtesy to the up-and-coming comedians to NOT make the audience feel like shit.

Cook’s reaction to this is that Miller is a “mutant and a dummy,” as he told Joe Rogan on The Joe Rogan Podcast. Cook thinks that Miller is a “comedy cop” who “let TMZ in on me constructing.”

What’s worse is that Cook’s reaction to Miller completely missed the real points. Cook decided that Miller was mad for being bumped (again, something that everyone understands happens). Instead, Cook said that Miller should’ve have relaxed and “learned something,” a staple of pompous asshole narcissism.

To add to Cook’s miscomprehension and egotistical reaction, comedian Ari Scheffler eloquently called Miller’s complaint a gay slur (won't repeat it here). Classy.

Rogan, Scheffler and Cook agreed on the podcast that Miller was really upset about being bumped, ignoring his actual argument for common courtesy. It would also be the reason that guys like Cook and Rogan had leveled out as has-beens and sport commentators (Dennis Miller, anyone?) and Louis CK and Miller are today and tomorrow’s comedy heavy hitters.

Just like his frat boy fans and his failed comedy friends, Cook is primed to learn that when you get out of your self-adulating haze, reality can be a real bitch.

Hear both comedians sides in the archives of “You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes” and “The Joe Rogan Podcast.”

A Q&A with 'Spartacus' boss Steven S. DeKnight

With the premiere of "Spartacus: Vengeance" Jan. 27 at 10 p.m. on Starz, creator/executive producer/writer and all around fun guy Steven S. DeKnight had a conference call with reporters to talk about all things "Spartacus."

So…no character is safe at any time…how do you go about deciding which of the characters should go and when, and is there any character that you wish you still had for this upcoming season?

Yes, there's always a question. On this show characters literally get the ax. I think ultimately for me it comes from how is the story best served by a character death. I don't ever want somebody to just die. It needs to have ramifications either emotionally or towards the plot. So that's always the number one driving force of who do I kill.

And do I miss people? I don't regret killing anyone, but of course John Hannah, number one. His presence was just so fantastic on the show and he was such a joy to work with and write for. He's definitely - he had to go, but that was a painful one.

Liam...captures the essence of what Andy started (as Spartacus) but makes it his own.

What drew us to Liam is that we didn't want to try to duplicate (Andy). I mean, that will never happen. He was such a singular, amazing talent. But we wanted to find somebody that had the same base qualities of compassion. I told all the actors when they auditioned that even though Spartacus may fly into a rage now and then, he never comes from a place of anger, it's always from a place of a wounded heart. And we really felt like Liam captured that essence.

Beyond the vengeance, which of course is the primary thing, what kind of a journey are Spartacus and the other characters on this season?

Well with Spartacus this was always planned to be the season where he goes from a man really searching for his personal redemption in the death of his wife and his feelings of responsibility for that, that's why he wants to exact the vengeance, and transitioning him into a true leader. And it's a very, very bumpy ride for him to go from someone that we see in Season 1 who he's a good man, but he is much more concerned about himself and his wife. Everybody else is secondary. This is where he starts to move into caring more about the group and putting their needs above his own eventually.

I love to take people on journeys. Crixus definitely goes on a journey. Even characters like Agron, which was one of the two brothers in Season 1 that we didn't get to know that well, has a major story. Everybody grows up in this season.

Have you had any criticisms of the show and have or would you adjust anything based on negative feedback?

Yes, of course. I think the show just welcomes criticism. Especially when we first started out, if everybody remembers back that far, this show was universally hated. We got off to a rocky start. Rob Tapert, my incredible producing partner, and I always say that first episode was by far our weakest one where we were trying to figure out the show and it took a while to get going.

So we took a lot of criticism for too much sex, too much violence, everybody hated the language, not the cursing but the actual language of the show. It just took a while for everybody to warm up to it. Early on I got a lot of criticism about how people speak, which I steadfastly refused to change.

One of the other things that I'm still to this day getting comments about is, and I put this in air quotes, “all the gay shit” in my show. People asking me to tone it down, which I always say no. I mean, as far as I'm concerned it's barely in there to start with. And it was part and parcel of this world and it's part and parcel of our world now. So I just - yes, I ignore that. If people want to stop watching the show because two guys kiss, well, I shrug my shoulders. You know, that that will always be in there.

Every now and then somebody will say something about oh it's too violent, oh there's too much sex, but that's the show it is. So basically I guess my answer is sure we get criticism, but, you know, thankfully STARZ is very supportive and we get to tell the story we want to tell.

Prior to coming back for another season professional athletes have to attend training camp to get in shape. Is there something similar that the actors must go through to appear on “Spartacus?”

Yes. We have a boot camp every year that it's for new people coming in and our returning cast to bone up on their fighting skills and to help them get back into tip-top shape. I think we're one of the few shows that actually - the men have it rougher than the women because the men are often practically naked all the time with just a little bit of strategic covering. So they have to watch what they eat and train like crazy for the entire shoot of the show, which is incredibly difficult. But I think the evidence is up on the screen that they literally work their asses off.

Is there a character that you wish you could squeeze in more, but you just haven't been able to yet?

Yes…we have so much story we try to put into each episode that some characters we don't get to pay enough to. We felt that way Season 1 with Oenomaus. We felt like there was so much going on with Spartacus and his journey and Batiatus that he got a little bit of short shrift. So we wanted to do more with him in “Gods of the Arena” and we wanted to do more with him in this season, which is really nice to do.

We have so many characters, it's a bit of a juggling act because we don't want to short change anyone. But yes, I'd say Oenomaus was the one that we felt was underutilized at first and we tried to bring him more to the forefront.

Writers always say that as they develop a series they pick up things from the actors and incorporate them into the way they deal with the characters and stuff. Are there any changes or different approaches now that you've switched from Andy to Liam?

Actually no. We had a discussion before we started writing this season of should we tailor the show for Liam. My feeling and Rob and STARZ, we all agreed, was that no, what we should do is write Spartacus as Spartacus and Liam will bring what he brings to it and it will be a different take, but what he says - what Spartacus says and what he does will still be consistent with the Spartacus that we know.

You've got awesome stunt coordinators…how much do you write into the script, say the action and the sex, and how much do you leave it to the director and the stunt coordinators?

Al Poppleton (stunt supervisor) is just phenomenal. The thing that he does for us, it would not be Spartacus without him. On the page, it depends on what we're describing. Generally if it's a big battle, we'll give the high points and let them work it out. If it's a more intimate one-on-one battle, we'll be more detailed because we'll want the specific moment. I always try to build a fight with specific emotional moments in it. And then Al and his team will fill in the detail, expand on it, they'll suggest things. So it's kind of 50/50.

With the sex scenes, again, if there's a specific emotion we're looking for, we'll get into a little more detail. Otherwise, we tend to just describe what kind of lovemaking is going on. The words that keep popping up are tender, gentle, vigorous. Vigorous pops up quite a bit as you can imagine. So that's usually a little less detailed. And again, we're more concerned on the writing side with conveying the emotional beats of what's going on in that situation and we leave the actual technical what's touching what, who's kissing where to the director and the actors.

“Spartacus: Vengeance,” how does that compare to some of the earlier work that you've done on, “Angel,” “Dollhouse,” “Smallville,” etc.? Is it easier or is it more difficult? It's a different type of show than those, but what are some of the differences between your previous work and the work you're doing now with “Spartacus?”

First and foremost, I always credit Joss Whedon for really starting my career. I was working on “Undressed” when he hired me on to “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and then I went to “Angel” where he gave me a chance to direct and then I linked up with him again on “Dollhouse.” Words can't describe how much I've learned from the man.

The biggest difference with this show for me is that all my other work was on broadcast networks and this is premium cable. So Al Gough, my old boss from “Smallville” who watches this show, I bumped into him and he chuckled and he said when he watched “Spartacus,” he calls it DeKnight unleashed.

And that's exactly how I felt when I got this opportunity that I didn't have to deal with standards and practices anymore. I didn't have to water things down, I could go to places, not just sexually, not just with the violence, but good characters could do bad things, which is often very difficult to get the network to sign off on. And bad characters could do good things. I got to work in a very gray world, which I think is where the most interesting drama is.

And it's also been the hardest thing I've ever done. Because I had the bright idea of creating a very different kind of language and the way people speak, which is not natural and it doesn't come naturally to write it. So it takes a lot longer to write and it's a bit more of a pain in the ass, but the result I think was very successful in conveying the sense of a different time in history.

Do you consult with historians to help keep the show authentic?

Yes. I have two fantastic historical consultants, Aaron Irvin and Jeffrey Stevens. We brought them on from the start. And they're absolutely instrumental. I bring them into the room every now and then; they get all the outlines, all the scripts. They give us copious notes.

We always say on “Spartacus” that we want to be respectful to history, but our first goal is to be entertaining to the audience. So sometimes we do have to bend historical facts and shift things around. But we always try to be very respectful and they are just two fantastic guys that have really contributed a lot to the show.

One of the things I really like about the show is as masculine as it is, the female characters also get equal time to tell their stories…tell us what Ilithyia, Lucretia, Mira, what their stories will bring in this upcoming season?

Without giving anything away, Ilithyia and Lucretia, which is two of my favorite characters to write especially when they're with each other, they continue their frenemy dance in a very convoluted, unexpected way. What happens between those two is not what you would think is actually going to happen, especially based on where we left them at the end of Season 1. They are in fine form totally. They really continue that storyline in an amazing kind of way.

Mira is as we left her in Season 1, she really responded to Spartacus and was falling in love with Spartacus and Spartacus had compassion towards her, but I wouldn't call it love. Where we move with them, they have moved into a quasi-relationship, but it's a relationship that's very bumpy and rocky and may or may not work out in the end.

Just based on the first few episodes of the series or rather the season, it seems like Ashur is setting up his next few moves. Talk a little bit about his motivations as far as vengeance is concerned. Has he put getting payback against certain people ahead of pushing himself further up the ranks or what his priorities are as a character?

What I love about Ashur and the way Nick Tarabay really brings him to life is that Ashur is a guy who ultimately doesn't really think he's the bad guy. He's just a guy trying to navigate the choppy waters of life. He comes from a place, and we explored this in Season 1 and in “Gods of the Arena,” of deep insecurity where he feels like he is disrespected and not treated as well as he should be. Those deep seated feelings of insecurity are what really drives him to get to the top.

In this season he's out for vengeance against the rebels because he was just - he was being promoted to being in the Ludus with Batiatus, being Batiatus' right-hand man, he had finally been elevated and then Spartacus literally topples him off his perch and ruins everything for him. So he's got an ax to grind there. And he also tries to ingratiate himself back in with the Romans.

You also set it up in “Gods of the Arena” that Ashur would have a bone to pick kind of literally with Crixus. Is that something that we can expect to be addressed?

Oh yes, he hates Crixus. Absolutely hates Crixus. That's something we played and set up in Season 1 and referenced - one of the things that I love about long form television is that we reference that Crixus crippled Ashur in a fight and then we saw that at the end of “Gods of the Arena.” So he has always had it out for Crixus to get his revenge.

Where did you decide how they speak? Is it based on any kind of Latin or did you just kind of come up with the way that they talk to each other?

For me, I studied as a playwright so I was deeply steeped in Shakespeare, which is really my main influence in the dialogue. Not to say that it's Shakespearean. I think this is - I call this Shakespeare extra, extra light. I always say the language is a cross between Shakespeare and Robert E. Howard who wrote all the Conan stories. So it's kind of a mash up between those two.

It's absolutely not historically accurate. When people bring that up to me about, well, they didn't speak this way in Latin, I always point out, well, in Shakespearean times they didn't speak in iambic pentameter, but that's an affectation to give it a style, which is exactly what we wanted to do on this show. And again…about five scripts in after we had done this I realized holy shit, I got to keep writing this way for the rest of the series, which is extremely challenging.

Can you talk about the production treatments and visual effects that go into each episode because it's such a beautifully filmed and unique series?

Yes, it's a massive amount of work. This show because of the time period we're using, every single thing on the show we have to make. Everything down to the chairs, the furniture, the jewelry, everything is handmade. So it's an extremely time consuming process.

A lot of people have asked me, well, how much of it is green screen, our green screen is basically the background, the backdrops. All of the sets you see, they're real. We built the Ludus, we built the training square, all we use - the only use of CGI is in the backgrounds with the sky and the landscape beyond our sets. So it takes an amazing amount of work and our team in New Zealand just does an incredible, incredible job. And we shoot everything digitally and then we run it through a post process to get the colors right and to give it that really rich, rich look.

Where is Lucretia's story leading her now that she doesn't have a husband anymore and now that she doesn't have the Ludus or any kind of work to support herself?

She's in a bad state. As seen in the trailer, she's not doing too well when we first find her. Which is not surprising; she's very lucky to be alive. A lot of people have asked, well, last we saw her she got stabbed in the stomach and sure she was twitching at the very end of Season 1, but how is it possible she survived. We do explain how she survived. It's a few episodes in and then we tell you what happened.

For her, she is a shattered woman. And this season is about her putting the pieces of her life back together and trying to move forward. And along with moving forward, much like everyone else this season, she does have some scores to settle. She's going to have to be incredibly crafty and smart about her maneuvering because now she has absolutely no position whatsoever. She's living off the kindness of strangers at this point.

The second season had already been written when you decided to make “Gods of Arena.” So did you have to rewrite the second season because of the prequel? And if so, how far did it interfere in this new season?

We actually were already working on Season 2. We had written the first couple of episodes and we had a layout for the entire season when unfortunately we found out that (Andy) was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, so we stopped working on that and hatched the plan to do “Gods of the Arena” to give him a chance to recover. We were finishing up “Gods of the Arena” when unfortunately we found out that his cancer had returned and he had to permanently step down from the role.

So at that point, after having done “Gods of the Arena,” yes, we went back and we retooled the first several episodes and made adjustments. And also because we had had time off from the season, when we came back we saw some things we wanted to change story-wise. For example, episode 2 used to be episode 3. There was a different episode 2 that once we looked at it, we decided, yes, it's not really moving the story along and we had an entire script for it, so we threw that script out, took some of the elements, married it with episode 3 and then moved on from there. But that was really the biggest change that episode 2 was a completely different story.

Why “Spartacus?” What made you go into this kind of series?

The concept was sold to STARZ before I had heard about it. Rob Tapert, Josh Donen, and Sam Raimi sold the idea to STARZ of doing “Spartacus” in a “300” style. Because we are all big fans of Zack Snyder's work on “300” and how he technically pushed the art of filmmaking and they really wanted to see if they could do that on a television show.

So the concept was sold to STARZ and then STARZ was looking for a writer to come in and spearhead the project. I was working on “Dollhouse” at the time when I got the call from my agent that Sam Raimi and STARZ wanted to do a gladiator series and that's all I knew. I didn't know it was “Spartacus” when I went in.

I'm a big fan of period piece movies, especially the sword and sandals epics, but I'm the first to admit history was not my strong point and the only thing I knew about Roman history was Stanley Kubrick's “Spartacus.” So I had a lot of reading and catching up to do when I signed on.

The problem about history is that everyone knows how the story is going to end or everyone thinks they know. Are you already 100 percent certain that you'll follow the historical facts or if there is any chance of changing things and not following the historical facts?

I will follow the historical facts. Entertainment is our job on “Spartacus,” so we will have to take characters, take two or three characters, form them into one character, shuffle some events around to make the story work, not only for production reasons, but just for clarity. But yes, we will basically follow historical facts. In reference to how Spartacus dies, most people think he was nailed to the cross like we see in Stanley Kubrick's movie. That's not actually what happened.

One of the great things about the story of Spartacus is that there's only fragments left in history that gives bits and pieces. Most of those talk about who won this battle, who won that battle, so there's not a lot of…emotional detail in it. So we are going to basically follow history, but the audience will still be, I think, surprised by how we wrap up the story.

Whenever anybody says to me, you know, well, everybody knows how the story ends, why should they watch, I always reply everybody knew that the Titanic sunk and yet the movie made a billion dollars. People obviously want to be along for the ride, even if they know the eventual outcome. The trick is to keep it exciting all the way up to the end and then make that ending powerful and emotional and I think people will show up.

You've mentioned Robert E. Howard as an influence and inspiration for…the show. What do you like about writing genre fiction and do you feel some people take the show less seriously because it's genre?

Oh, absolutely people take it less seriously. There have been some great, great genre shows on the air that got no love from the Academy. “Battlestar Galactica” comes to mind, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” comes to mind.

We're kind of the redheaded stepchild. I think one of the most amazing accomplishments of J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof and “Lost” was winning that Emmy for a genre show. I mean, it's an incredible accomplishment.

What I love about it is that it really opens up the possibilities of what you can do. It's a little more restrictive on “Spartacus” since despite all of its trappings, it's not a fantasy show. We can't bring in magic, there are no monsters, everything has to have a real world logic to it. A bigger pulpy logic, but definitely a real world logic to it. It was much easier on “Buffy” when we needed to solve a problem and somebody had a mystical doodad that could help us out. That's always a lot easier.

What I also love about genre is just the way you can really heighten emotions and use the situations as metaphors and just make it as powerful and emotional as possible.

What do you feel like the evolution of the series has been up to this point? You talked a bit about the rocky start at the beginning of the series and finding a vision for it. What do you feel like that is now?

When we first started off this was Rob Tapert and Josh Donen and Sam Raimi and I, this was our first foray into premium cable. And suddenly the shackles were off and I can't speak for my partners, but I think I stripped down naked and ran a little crazy through the streets in the first couple of episodes before I found the right tone.

If you look at that first episode there were moments that you see the glimmer of what the show will become, but we were trying to really find ourselves in the story, the language, the visual, the directing, the acting, everything was trying to find an equilibrium, which took us a few episodes to get to.

Once we found that, we started to really find the right element of the show that each episode needed. And we knew we needed a certain amount of action. We knew that emotions really needed to drive the story. It had to be emotionally based, no matter what was going on, no matter what - whether it's an orgy that's happening, if there's an orgy going on, it can't be about the orgy. It's got to be about who wants what from whom and what's the maneuvering and what's the emotional stake.

And it’s the same thing with a fight. When Crixus and Spartacus fight Theokoles in the arena in the middle of Season 2, it couldn't just be about a fight. What it was really about were these two men trying to find a common ground and come together.

So that's really how it developed is just episodes now concentrating on what are the emotional stakes. It's very easy in a show like this to get lost in all the shiny objects that are around you all the time. And I do consider the sex and the violence are the shiny objects. Just finding a balance between that kind of pulpy entertainment and some true human emotion.

Your world is beautifully realized as sets both digital and physical, the costumes, everything works great together. After two seasons does the research and actualization of the world become easier or is challenging your designers an active concern as you develop scripts and locations for the show? Which of those visual accomplishments are you most proud of?

It becomes easier, it never becomes easy. Much like the writing, once we locked down how to do it, it doesn’t become as frustratingly impossible. It's still difficult, but, at least we have a handle on it. And it's the same thing for the physical aspects of our show. We have just such great people. Iain Aitken (production designer) and Barbara Darragh (costume designer), who does our costuming, which is just gorgeous. They put so much effort into it.

When you're on the set for “Spartacus,” you know, yes, there's a green screen background and you're not outside, but when you're on a set, I'm thinking particularly about Batiatus' Ludus, you just can't imagine the detail that is actually into this set. It's like stepping back in time. It looks so real when you're actually on it.

It's the same thing with the costuming. The costuming is just absolutely gorgeous. And yes, you know, not 100 percent is historically accurate. We made that decision early on that we needed the costuming to have an elegance and a beauty to it, a bit of an enhancement of a more simple Roman style.

And the visual effects too. If you look at - from the first episode in Season 1 to the last episode in Season 1, you can really see how we started off we wanted to be very much a graphic novel and we all felt we went a little bit too far in that first episode, it was a little too over the top, so we started to dial back and refine the visual effects.

It's hard to say what I'm most proud of in these areas. Every time I watch an episode, I just marvel at the sets and the costumes and the lighting, the cinematography, the visual effects. It's just - it's amazing that so many different disciplines have come together to make this such a visually stunning show.

Do you think you're now too spoiled to go back to broadcast TV at any point?

Quite possibly. I will never say never, but this often comes up in the writers' room where I say oh boy, I don't know if I could - one of the most daunting things about broadcast networks is I don't know if I could do 22 episodes a year now.

One of the great things about only doing 10 to 13 episodes in a season is that you really get to handcraft each episode. When you do 22, there's usually about five episodes that you just don't have time to fix and you just got to throw your arms up and say, well, that one didn't work, we got to move on to the next one. Which thankfully in premium cable, you just have more time. You know, I think I could definitely put up with the constraints of not being able to curse or show nudity or be overly violent, that I think I could do, but for me it's 22 episodes a year that would be difficult.

Big fan of Lucy Lawless since “Xena” days…how has her insanity presented any new avenues or challenges in writing?

The tricky part is you can't have a character be bat shit crazy for the entire season like that. That's a shtick that gets old fast. So it was transitioning her into lucidity where she starts off obviously very, very, very damaged and broken and watching how she puts the pieces back together and tries to reclaim her life is really the juicy part of the storyline. And Lucy of course does it so brilliantly. I've been a big fan of hers, too, since the “Xena” days and am still thrilled and impossibly shocked that she's one of the stars of our show.

When the season begins, we see that Crixus is on the search of Naevia. Is this something that's going to take place throughout the whole series or will it be resolved early on?

There will be a resolution. Not exactly early on, but it will resolve itself. That's all I can say.

You signed a two-year overall deal with STARZ, I was curious if that was only pertaining to “Spartacus” or if you were putting together some new projects?

Yes, no, it doesn’t just pertain to “Spartacus.” I'm actually at the moment writing a new project for STARZ that it's super extra crazy top secret that I can't even give you a title. But there is something new in the works. Now it's in the very, very early stages. It has not been green lit. I've been sent to a pilot script, but there's many, many, many hoops to jump through and stages to pass before it'll get green lit and announced as a show. But all I can say is it's big and very, very exciting.

Hopefully that won't affect anything that's going on with “Spartacus” in the future?

I don't think it would. No.

Oscar nominations: First impressions

So the nominations are out for the 84th Academy Awards, and while most of the names were expected, congrats to George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Viola Davis and Meryl Streep; there were a few surprises.

Best Picture: "The Artist," "The Descendants," "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," "The Help," "Hugo," "Moneyball," "Midnight in Paris," "The Tree of Life" and "War Horse."

This year the Academy narrowed the field to nine films, with two of them coming as big surprises. Reviews for "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" have been mixed and its been all but ignored during award season, so this nod really came out of left field. "The Tree of Life" has been critically acclaimed, but people love it or hate it and it hasn't received much award attention so far, making its nomination seem like more of a gift to Terrence Malick.

Best Actor: Demian Bechir, Jean DuJardin, Gary Oldman, Clooney and Pitt.

Though the absence of DiCaprio is a little surprising, he had been losing steam just as Oldman was gaining traction. The real surprise here is Bechir for "A Better Life." He took the spot that would have went to Michael Fassbender or Ryan Gosling.

Best Actress: Glenn Close, Rooney Mara, Viola Davis, Michelle Williams and Streep.

Other than Mara taking what many thought would be Tilda Swinton's spot, this category went according to expectations.

Best Supporting Actor: Kenneth Branagh, Jonah Hill, Christopher Plummer, Max Von Sydow and Nick Nolte.

Jonah Hill, really?

Best Supporting Actress: Berenice Bejo, Jessica Chastain, Melissa McCarthy, Janet McTeer and Octavia Spencer.

Bejo could be the spoiler for Spencer, if "The Artist" enjoys a wave of wins Oscar night. Also the Academy has a history of surprising wins for foreign actresses.

Best Animated Feature: "A Cat in Paris," "Chico & Rita," "Kung Fu Panda 2," "Puss in Boots," "Rango."

While it's a little sad to see no Disney or Pixar films nominated, this wasn't their year. It's jaw-dropping to see the absence of "The Adventures of Tintin" which won the Golden Globe and has the Steven Spielberg/Peter Jackson pedigree. Seriously, what are those first two?

Best Visual Effects: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2," "Hugo," "Real Steel," "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" and "Transformers: Dark of the Moon."

This is the last chance to honor the full achievements of the "Harry Potter" franchise so the Academy may take that into consideration. "Transformers" really? Did they not see those JFK scenes.

Best Original Song: "Man or Muppet" from "The Muppets," "Real in Rio" from "Rio."

Obviously we're excited for "The Muppets" to be nominated, though "Pictures in My Head" is a better song. Also, even with stricter rules there had to be more than two eligible songs. At least there's no reason for the two nominated songs to not be performed on the show.

Stay with Inscaped as we continue to cover all things Oscar leading up to the show on Feb. 26 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on ABC.

Etta James' top five classics

Legendary blues singer Etta James may be most well known for the wedding staple "At Last," but her list of hits included many other classics that must be celebrated as James is remembered.

1. "I'd Rather Go Blind" - In two and a half minutes James' heart-wrenching vocals tell the story of everyone who has ever had a broken heart.



2. "At Last" - A timeless expression of true love that will be James' lasting legacy.



3. "I Just Want to Make Love to You." - A sexy, passionate plea that skips flowery statements of love and gets right to the point. Etta's sexiness was very ahead of its time.



4. "All I Could Do Was Cry" - Once again James captures every emotion of a break up in one song cementing her status as the queen of the broken-hearted ballad.



5. "Let's Burn Down the Cornfield" - This might be the sexiest song ever recorded. Women weren't supposed to sing the suggestive lyrics that James croons in this version of the longing plea where she tells her man where to wait and what she wants him to do to her.

For fans of Adele, Mary J. Blige, Jennifer Hudson and Amy Winehouse wondering who Etta James was and why she's so important to music history, these songs are the starting point for their Etta James playlists.

The lasting legacy of Etta James

The music world has suffered a tremendous loss with the passing of Etta James. The R&B/blues singer died on Jan. 20 at the age of 73 after a long battle with leukemia and Alzheimer's.

Though her signature song will always be "At Last," James' career encompasses so much more than the classic love song.

She began her career at 14 years old, touring with girl group the Peaches, however she really gained notoriety when she joined Chess records and released the hits "If I Can't Have You" and "All I Could Do was Cry."


Her run with Chess in the early '60s gave James many of her biggest hits and most successful songs including "I Just Want to Make Love to You," "Something's Got A Hold On Me," "A Sunday Kind of Love" and of course "At Last."

Unfortunately, her success also led James to a drug and alcohol addiction that would she battle her entire life. Her struggles with heroin led to a long string of legal problems that saw her spend several stints in rehab. She finally got clean at the age of 50 after she spent time at the Betty Ford Center.

Despite her issues with addiction, her talent could never be denied as she made several comebacks and continued to influence artists like Beyonce, who played her in the 2008 film "Cadillac Records."

James, never one to mince words, made no secret of the fact that she didn't care for Beyonce's performance in the film, which took poetic license with the story of the label's founding, and of the fact that Beyonce was chosen to sing "At Last" at President Obama's inauguration.

While her career was filled with controversy, one only needs to look as far as the current pop charts for the full scope of James legacy. Her timeless style can be found in the resurgence of soul and success of artists like Amy Winehouse and Adele whose music is reminiscent of James' early work.

Her final album "The Dreamer" was released in November 2011. It features a raw stripped down version of the singer's classic blues voice. Her cover of "Misty Blue" has a heartbreaking finality to it that seems all too relevant now.

No doubt many stations will be playing "At Last" in tribute to the legend but all the passion, heartache and love of her music can really be found in "Misty Blue."

Tale of two movies (turned into TV shows)

I should have know I was in trouble when we did our TV fantasy draft.

Thinking clearly wasn't really a top priority, if you look at my list. The only shows I was really excited for were "The River" and "Awake" (which, who knows when that's starting.)

All the other shows are "I guess I'll watch that." And look what happens...

Two new television series based off successful movies.

First up is the new animated Fox series "Napoleon Dynamite." I think what made the movie popular was there was nothing like it at the time. It was weird, but not too weird and a lovable level of clever.

The TV show tries to catch lightning in a bottle by using everyone from the movie. While that does create a nice consistency, other issues prevented me from enjoying it.

Maybe the problem is that the movie was one thing, a one and done type thing, but more of it just doesn't work. Heck, I love root beer floats, but too much of it and I get sick of it.

Like a lot of new comedies this season, I just didn't find it funny. There was one moment in the pilot that made me smile: parts of the episode take place at a kid's pizza place and there is a robot band performing just like at Chuckie Cheese's when I was a kid. They got details right that made me smirk and think good thoughts.

But then the main plot of the show, an acne skin cream that turns you into a rage monster, brought me back to reality. While cute at points, it's beyond stupid at others.

The ratings were pretty good, so maybe I'm wrong.

On the other side is the new NBC drama "The Firm."

Based on the John Grisham novel, which then was turned into a 1993 Tom Cruise movie.

Yes, a book turned into a movie turned into a television show. Way to keep it original NBC.

The show stars Josh Lucas as Mitch McDeere, who is coming out of 10 years of Witness Protection after the events of the film.

You see, Tom Cruise might have taken down the firm and made a deal with the mob, but the US government finds a way to take down the mob using the information he provided. Hence, Witness Protection.

But, McDeere is the most unlucky man on the planet because not only is the mob after him again, but he AGAIN joined an evil firm.

Instead of an evil Gene Hackman to deal with, this McDeere has an evil, yet sexy, Tricia Helfer ("Battlestar Galactica") to worry about.

And here's my major problem with the show: flashbacks.

Listen, er look, "Lost" was one thing, but I'm not getting into a bunch of shows that do the whole flashback thing EVERY episode.

Part of each episode follows the present day where McDeere is running for his life. Then a majority of the episode is the past where he does a case of the week. Oddly enough the first two episodes were young men murdering people.

Other than the flashback issue there isn't much else wrong with the show. The acting is great. Lucas does a great job, in fact he does such a good job you're not even thinking about Tom Cruise. The first episode got a tad boring halfway in, but saved itself with a good ending.

I really don't know if I can, or want to, invest the time to watch this each week. Especially when "Alcatraz" (review coming soon) does the flashback thing better.

Pass and, maybe, pass.

Top five reasons to get into 'Downton Abbey'

With the start of season two "Downton Abbey" mania is sweeping the country. While it may seem like its too late to get seriously invested in the exquisite British period drama, it's not. Season one is available on Netflix and season two is only two episodes in.

With that in mind, these are the top five reason why "Downton Abbey" should become required viewing.

1. Dowager Countess Violet Grantham - Dame Maggie Smith has played many notable roles and is perhaps best recognized as Hogwarts Professor McGonagall. However, as Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham she steals every scene she's in, with her best lines often quoted the next day. These laugh out loud moments are one of the main reasons for the show's increasing popularity as fans tune in just to see what she will say and do next.

2. The ensemble cast - With a cast as large and distinguished as "Downton Abbey's" it would be easy for characters to become lost in the shuffle. However, the series somehow manages to give everyone an equal time to shine. The result is that the heartache of cook Mrs. Patmore is given just as much time as the adventures of Lady Edith. The ensemble storytelling keeps all the plots fresh and makes the series insanely addictive.

3. Mary and Matthew - Lady Mary and Crawley heir Matthew are perhaps the most star-crossed lovers since Romeo and Juliet. Their story began with dislike but quickly developed into love. However, Mary's one indiscretion kept her from committing to Matthew and now he has moved on with new fiancee Lavinia. The real kicker is that Lavinia is a perfectly sweet and supportive girl who is easy to like, making it the most polite love triangle ever.

The off the charts chemistry between Michelle Dockery and Dan Stevens jumps off the screen whether they are sharing an emotional goodbye or a whispered dinner conversation. When they are together they must be watched.

4. The servants - If "Downton Abbey" only followed the upstairs lords and ladies it would still be good, but the fact that all the downstairs drama is just as interesting makes it great. The doomed romance of Anna and Mr. Bates, the endless scheming of Thomas and O'Brien, the young rebel Branson's yearn for more and Mr. Carson's determination to rise above war and its repercussions are what make Downton Abbey feel real.

5. Historical context - The series began with the sinking of the Titanic, season one dropped hints about the coming war and season two unfolds against the backdrop of WWI. The Grantham's and their servants are often tasked with mastering new technology like telephones, driving and the ever changing fashions of the times. This attention to detail adds to the show's authenticity and credibility, while helping viewers feel a stronger connection to the stories the series tells.

"Downton Abbey" is currently airing on PBS as apart of "Masterpiece Classic." Check local listings.

'Justified' back with an edge

It's one of the hardest things in the world for a TV show to follow up a critically acclaimed successful season.

Season two of the FX action drama "Justified" was a masterclass in storytelling and acting, leading to increases in viewers and award recognition.

However, last night all that was left behind as "Justified" began season three, right where season two left off with Raylan shot after bringing down the Bennett clan.

Following a trip to the hospital to assure fans that Raylan was indeed ok, the action jumped ahead three weeks with him still recovering and on light desk duty. He's not quite the sharp shooter viewers have come to rely on and he pays less attention to details, which gets him in trouble later in the episode, but as evidenced in his showdown with Boyd, he's still Raylan.

"Justified" is at its best when Timothy Olyphant's Raylan and Walton Goggins Boys are going at it, which happened before the opening credits in last night's "The Gunfighter." There is this on again-off again love/hate relationship between the two that has a familial dynamic that is always compelling to watch.

They're like relatives who fight to the death all the time, but the minute somebody else gets involved they've got each other's backs.

In the absence of the dearly departed (and sorely missed) Mags Bennett, season three's big bad is Detroit gangster Robert Quarles played by the excellent Neal McDonough. Quarles is a sharp dresser whose deadly nature is obscured by his appearance.

However, his business with the dixie mafia immediately lets everyone know he's just as ruthless as Mags, plus with no connection to Harlan he is a complete wildcard.

McDonough is often the tortured hero, so it was a nice change to see him go all out as the villain.

"Dexter's" Desmond Harrington also showed up as fugitive killer yet very stylish Fletcher "Ice Pick" Nix. He enjoys torturing his victims by engaging them in a gun draw that he will inevitably win thanks to his trusty ice pick.

This technique of course backfired when he tried it on Raylan and led to him being shot. However, executive producer Graham Yost has already said that Nix is not dead and he hopes to bring Harrington back later in the season.

Meanwhile Boyd's crew of Arlo, Devil and Ava are trying to figure out what to do with the Bennett's stolen marijuana. Once Boyd tells Ava to burn it, Devil doesn't want to take orders from a woman, which leads to the best moment of the night. Ava tells Devil her fried chicken is to die for then changes his mind via frying pan.

The Ava/Boyd relationship is perhaps the most interesting and underrated one on the whole series. They seem to have evolved to part Johnny and June, part Bonnie and Clyde. All of which makes their scenes second only to Boyd and Raylan.

The only major flaw from last night was that it needed more Boyd, which will hopefully happen in the coming weeks as viewers get a glimpse of the real reason why he had himself thrown in the same prison as Dickie Bennett.

There was a definite edge to last night's premiere, with the show going into a completely different direction from season two, yet still keeping the core qualities that makes "Justified" one of the most anticipated series of spring.