Even though the Starz series Spartacus seemed to rebound after the death of star Andy Whitfield, for us at least it was never really the same. Now word comes from Starz and the show’s creative team that the upcoming third season of Spartacus, which will be titled War of the Damned, will be the last.

“It was an extremely difficult and emotional decision for my partners and I,” series creator/executive producer Steven S. DeKnight said. “Yet, in the end, the story was best served by rolling all of the remaining action and drama of Spartacus’ journey into one stunningly epic season that will be extremely satisfying for everyone who’s been along for the ride.”

“Spartacus is a landmark series for the network which has enthralled millions of viewers and fans around the world,” Starz CEO Chris Albrecht said. “We are in agreement with our partners in the decision to conclude the story after War of the Damned, as we believe it is the best way to maintain the integrity of the series and secure its legacy.”

If you’ve been a fan of Starz’ massive Spartacus series from the beginning, one thing you may be is confused as to the order of events that took place during the various incarnations of the series. Or, you just may want to see everything in the order it was intended and follow along as the characters and situations develop.

Whatever your wishes, Starz seems to have them covered with its just announced plan to run every episode of Spartacus, in chronological order, as one epic viewing event.

Here’s more from the official Starz press release:

For the first time, Starz will air all 29 episodes of Spartacus in chronological order, beginning with “Gods of the Arena,” then “Blood and Sand,” and concluding with “Vengeance,” Friday nights from 9pm – 11pm ET/PT, beginning June 8th.

Next week sees the return of Spartacus, the Starz original series chronicling the life of the titular slave who rebelled against his Roman oppressors. The show’s official second season, called Spartacus: Vengeance, has been long in coming, and brings with it many questions in the wake of the tragic death of the first seasons’ star, Andy Whitfield.

The Flickcast recently partook in a discussion with series creator/exec. producer Steven S. DeKnight where, among other things, he talked about the transition from his original star to new Spartacus Liam McIntyre (check out our interview with the actor here), where the show is going from here and working with Joss Whedon.

On Liam capturing the essence of Andy Whitfield’s Spartacus –

…that’s really 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. And 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.

On no character being safe on the show – 

…on this show characters literally get the ax. I think really ultimately for me it’s always – it comes from the story is 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 – on who do I kill.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand was one of the most interesting and fun to watch shows to appear on TV in a long time. It’s combo ob blood, gore, sex, action and swordplay made it a big hit for Starz and a star of Andy Whitfield.

Sadly, Andy Whitfield was not able to continue with the series and passed away due to his illness. However, as they say in Hollywood: “The show must go on.” And it is with new Spactacus Liam McIntyre who, at first glance, slightly resembles Whitfield and also looks to be a worthy successor to him.

The upcoming second (we don’t count the prequel) season, titled Spartacus: Vengeance, takes place right after the events of the first season of Spartacus and tells the continuing story of the slave revolt and its ramifications throughout Rome. To get you ready for the new season, we’ve got a preview of the first minutes of the premiere episode with an introduction by Spartacus himself. Looks good. We’ll be watching.

Check out the video after the break. Spartacus: Vengeance premieres on Starz on Friday, January 27.

Some of the biggest controversy in TV over the past few years also happens to be tied to one of the best shows we’ve seen on American TV in a while. That controversy surrounds the STARZ original series Spartacus. The first season, titled Blood and Sand, was one of the cable networks highest rated series of all time, so it was natural that it would get a second season.

Due to the main star, Andy Whitfield, getting diagnosed with cancer, the show went on hiatus, and then continued on with a prequel season without Whitfield. Sadly, the star passed away earlier this year, leaving the showrunner, Steven S. DeKnight, without a star, and a network looking to continue the franchise.

Reluctantly, they recast their Spartacus, and the team planned out Spartacus: Vengeance, which will continue in the Spartacus universe. It looks like the network is now ready for the show’s January premiere. From Deadline:

During the panel at Comic-Con in San Diego Starz presented info on the second season of it’s flagship drama Spartacus. Among the info released at the panel were the fact that previous Spartacus star Andy Whitfield is “doing very well.”

The panel also introduced Whitfield’s replacement, actor Liam McIntyre who called succeeding Whitfield “a really nice challenge… a great privilege and a great honor… a great responsibility.” Big sandals to fill indeed.

Regarding the plan for the new season, according to the panel and Exec. Producer Steven S. DeKnight: “There’s an episode where we kill a lot of people. This season is just epic. It’s grand scale… It’s just a gigantic, gigantic season.” Also, a power struggle is about to emerge between Spartacus, Crixus and Gannicus, which should prove interesting to say the least.

Check out the video after the jump. Spartacus: Vengeance premieres on Starz later this year.