It's gladiators in a ludus.

The splashes of blood did kinda annoy me at first tho. It looked cheap and unnecessary, but I got over it. I think it's difficult to do this kinda show without much of a budget; isn't that what ultimately killed "Rome"?

I won't lie and say some of it didn't appeal to the 15yo boy in me, but ultimately, I became invested in the characters and the story was engaging. And while it's not the most historically accurate, it did make me read up on their stories.