...and I'm curious if there is any reason to play the original Mount and Blade? From everything I've read Warband is basically the original game but improved in every meaningful way. So, basically I'm curious if there is any difference in the original that isn't in warband.

Far as I know Warband is better in every way, also adding more stuff like factions and what not.
Maybe check a wiki? I never noticed anything in MB that was worth playing over Warband.

Well, Warband ate my entire day yesterday. Before I knew it it was 3 AM. So, yes I'm loving it so far. It took me a few characters to get the hang of things though. Once you paint yourself into a corner the game isn't shy about beating the crap out of you.

I've been pretty shocked by the lack of information out there on this game. I eventually found a wiki that covers major gameplay elements but is still missing quite a bit. Everything I've found though says Warband is essentially an improved version of the original game.