tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17949633837940936492024-02-20T09:31:57.783-08:00Nevermind Mr ArmitageOutside the Boxpihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-66328747074078522942015-03-10T18:17:00.002-07:002015-03-14T13:15:47.908-07:00Breaking Up Is Hard To DoOy vey.<br />
<br />
Hey fella, once the man of my dreams. Well, some of your characters. Hey, in this modern world you owe me nothing. You can slink away and be justified. After all, you are just an actor. I am just a fan. <br />
<br />
Before you were you, you made <i>Sparkhouse. </i>You were a standout as John Standring, so very sympathetic. Awww....<br />
<br />
Way back, in <i>Inspector George Gently</i>, you were the poetic rebel with your white scarf flying and I believed.<br />
<br />
I loved you most as the forthright, proud, brave, supremely intelligent, eminently decent and kind John Thornton in <i>North and South, </i>the man I would most like to marry.<i><br /></i><br />
<br />
I thank you for folding the churlish, cardboardish Guy Gisborne in <i>Robin Hood</i> into an origami bird of flight. And you were so sexy with it. Sigh and swoon. I actually rooted for you and wept when you died.<br />
<br />
In the <i>Vicar of Dibley</i>, you were unbelievably sweet and tender,for a rich guy, and that's when the laughing Harry Kennedy and you became a dream boyfriend.<br />
<br />
In <i>MI-5/Spooks</i> you were the starved noble spy, tortured in the past, tortured by the past, tortured by the present. Until you became a howling mockery tortured by the writers. Not your fault. A denouement worthy of soap operas written by unintelligent people. <br />
<br />
I like the way you moved in <i>Strike Back.</i> I liked the fight scenes. That is all.<br />
<br />
And then you became a dwarf. You were good in <i>The Hobbit</i>. Meanwhile, I am getting takeout and hanging with my girlfriends. The hype about you left me cold.<br />
<br />
I learned you had a stylist, I learned you had a press agent, I learned you wanted to go to Hollywood to be a star.<i> I know about your teeth.</i> I saw some of your glamour press photos. I didn't bother with your interviews- same old, same old. I hung out with my girlfriends some more. <br />
<br />
Is this Richard, my talented boyfriend, I asked myself? The one who is taking roles that bore the hell out of me? While others are staying largely in England and churning out myriad, chunky characters that do interest me? I used to think you were a scintillating butterfly- with chunk.<br />
<br />
Praise for Chop in <i>Urban and the Shed Crew-</i> an indie I might not watch but maybe I might. Praise for John Proctor in <i>The Crucible</i> even though I hate theatre. The role gives you theatrical street cred but, meh, I'm thinking there's a CV your PR types are checking off. <br />
<br />
To the present: Now, <i>now,</i> you are travelling down that ill-fated path for Brits, the dark demon/antagonist- Francis Dolarhyde, the ultimate psycho of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhunter_%28film%29" target="_blank"><i>Manhunter/Red Dragon</i></a> fame. Because I want a descent into madness from you, over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Because nihilism is your British bag. I can't think of anything more depressing and anything less in which I am interested. A celebration of nothingness and death is not my bag.<br />
<br />
I am done.<br />
<br />
Aw, you were so cute, so sexy, so full of hellacious promise. So remarkably able to challenge the soul. And then the American demon got to you. And I lost interest. You and I have nothing left in common at this point, so, I hate to say this, but I am breaking up with you.<br />
<br />
As your ex, I wish the best for you. As your ex I hope that you get a clue and diversify. Not terribly romantic, I know. All I can think is, what a waste.<br />
<br />
Call me, sweetie, when you get a clue or a role worthy of you. I'll be watching. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-51055618763370554832014-04-08T19:37:00.000-07:002014-04-08T21:04:58.775-07:00Beautiful RealHere is The Armitage as <i>Chop</i>, a guy I don't care about, from an earnest movie (<a href="http://urbanandtheshedcrew.co.uk/" target="_blank">Urban and the Shed Crew</a>) that looks like it would depress me, and yet this photo thrills me:<br />
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<br />
I love your hat</div>
I love the green<br />
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I love it bilious</div>
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I love it mean</div>
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I love it harsh</div>
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Oh whip me now</div>
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Show me the spark</div>
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Show me the how.</div>
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Are you rolling a cig</div>
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Are you rolling a joint</div>
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Does your scruffy scruff itch</div>
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Is there any point?</div>
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<br /></div>
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So happy to see you </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Looking down and out</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Happy to see you</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Playing a lout</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
So happy to see you</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Sartorially challenged</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
So happy to see you</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Real and damaged.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Happy to see you</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Wearing real stuff.</div>
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Staying away from the tights</div>
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Staying away from the fluff.</div>
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Give up the cape</div>
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Give up the stylist</div>
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Take some meds </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
For that Hollywood virus. </div>
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<br /></div>
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You haven't looked this good</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Since before The Hobbit,</div>
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Damn, you have the knack,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Stay the sonnet.</div>
<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-77819308579473575362014-03-15T13:38:00.000-07:002014-03-15T14:06:58.923-07:00Aaaaaaaat Laaaaaaast....<i>My love has come along....</i><br />
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<i>My lonely days are over/ And life is like a song...</i><br />
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<i>Oh yeah yeah, at <b>last</b>/ The skies above are blue....</i><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b> ~~~~~</b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
This is what's going through my head at wonderful news* that The Armitage actually is acting again. Real acting, not PR acting! What a joyous occasion. I think I floated two feet off my sofa when I read <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/" target="_blank">this</a>:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Richard has been cast in <i data-mce-bogus="1">Urban and the Shed Crew</i>,
a Blenheim Films production, which has just started filming in Leeds in
the UK. The filming will take place over the next 6 weeks (10 March to
18 April) and the director is <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4692370/" target="_blank">Candida Brady</a>. This film is adapted from the best-selling novel <i>Urban Grimshaw and the Shed Crew,</i> written by Bernard Hare. Richard will play 'Chop', an ex-social worker who befriends the eponymous character 'Urban'. </blockquote>
<br />
<i>Thankyougods- Hallelujah- Excitement excitement ecstasy- Finally my prince has come- Life is good, life is fiiiiine...AT. LAST. And...phew...</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Go to site- It's real! It's real!- Read description- Oh gawd - It's gonna be a downer....Which role does he have? Chop? What's that? Does a Chop need prosthetics- Read some more- Is it a BIG role...Is it? Is it a GIANT role?... I want a GIANT role- Is it a little film? I don't know this company- Is it a big company, a known company or is it going to be 'into the storm' again?... Is it an indie company- Is it going to be shown anywhere but the UK? Would I want to see it? Really? Really? Gad, it's based on a stark and sombre non-fiction bookI'mNotReadingIt!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Hit a couple of sites to see responses- cannibalisation continues- dissection of every nuance, every titbit, every tweet, twirp, twitch, burp, and instagram- I go peruse said feeds, Oy Vey- How exciting to see clothes on rack, shoes on floor, oh look, there's Chop's costumes...a few buildings and cars- there's a glossary, we need a glossary?-some tweets on homelessness (a worthy cause) or something, my eyes glaze over...gad this is grim and earnest....It's going to be a loooong few months....</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>How soon before the PR begins? Oh damn, it's already begun ....How long before he talks about it....will he say anything interesting...actually I never check Oldman's take on characters/PR either... of course Oldman's not as pretty as The Armitage but I've seen too much of Richard 'Rico' Suave lately anyway...oh, just hit me with your acting stick, that's all I ask! Je t'adore, ich liebe dich!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>And most of all and worst of all, when is he going to make something that interests meeeee? whine whine whine.... oh, I'll probably read reviews before I decide whether it's worth seeing on anything larger than a flatscreen....you've stayed too long at the CGI fair, boyo, and now it's time to shore up that body of work so I can wallow in choice....</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>In fact, I'm thinking I need to be cryogenically frozen, return in 20 years or so, and then binge on Armitage DVDs rather than gnaw on a current and future mess of texts, pix, tweets and modelising magnum opuses...more RELENTLESS PR!- now that would be a body worth going into a coma for ....I would also expect a monumental quantity or quality to kiss me awake.</i><br />
<br />
Instead, I sit here appalled because I seem to be devouring my own brain - cannibalising my very brain in twisty, bendy ways- wretched Wretched
man, the sensational feats, the contortions, the tumbling and somersaults I do for him even in my brain! <br />
<br />
Then I come here and *everyone is telling us the good news- and you know what? I still don't have anything to say. Tick tock....<br />
<br />
<br />
*<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Many thanks to the commenters who shared the news!</i></span>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com120tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-65478842733228625912013-12-12T20:23:00.001-08:002013-12-12T20:34:25.402-08:00Whither Thou Armitage?Well, from the looks of it, not anywhere.<br />
<br />
Is the man enslaved to Peter Jackson's juggernaut? I don't think so. He may be enslaved to his stylist and all I can say is, throw off those shackles of the most prosaic and dull! Let me dress you, because I'd do a way better job.<br />
<br />
What has he done lately? I won't answer that because the answer is too stark even for me to bear.<br />
<br />
According to this report:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Richard Armitage finds himself in a professional quandary. He is so good at playing Dwarf King Thorin Oakenshield in the Hobbit movies, it's been bad for his career.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><a href="http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Hobbit+actor+would+Richard+Armitage/9277347/story.html" target="_blank"> Montreal Gazette</a></i></span></blockquote>
<br />
Seriously? Does anyone believe that? A <i>canard</i>, in my opinion. What happened to your agent? Why are you not stuffed with roles, whether good or bad, rich or poor? Why are we hearing nothing and more nothing? What is wrong here? You are an eminently and excessively talented actor and yet, in year two, all you're doing is shlepping the latest installment of the fantastical Hobbit franchise. Does your agent have so little faith in you? Why is the world not knocking at your door? What am I missing here? <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com61tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-47086617648334642112013-08-06T15:34:00.000-07:002013-08-10T10:11:17.739-07:00Who's Got Bats In Their Belfry?There is so little to write about The Armitage's career trajectory at this point. Nothing is happening. He made <i>Black Sky</i> but there is no release date. He just finally, finally, <i>finally</i> wrapped the interminable<i> </i>work on the <i>Hobbit </i>trilogy.<br />
<br />
Now this:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>1. The rumour mill keeps spinning with two more articles quoting sources
in Los Angeles about casting for the role of Batman, with Richard's
name as a likely contender. The British tabloid newspaper, <a href="http://www.dailystar.co.uk/showbiz/330385/Richard-Armitage-rumoured-to-replace-Christian-Bale-as-Batman" target="_blank">The Daily Star Sunday</a>, quotes a casting source in Los Angeles and <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/man-steel-2s-batman-actors-598856" target="_blank">The Hollywood Reporter</a> lists Richard along with other names that are cropping up regularly.</i></blockquote>
<i><a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/news.html#aug04" target="_blank">http://richardarmitagenet.com/news.html#aug04 </a></i><br />
<br />
As
the flame flutters and dims, sputters and gasps, we can depend on the
kiss of hype to spark it alive. Can we hope for some juicy role <i>à la John Thornton</i>, the standard by which all roles should be measured? Or <i>Guy of Gisborne</i>, <i>Lucas North</i>, <i>John Standring</i> etc., etc. all of which he has made his own, or even the grand and magnificent<i> Thorin</i> that he fully inhabited? No, we get the interminable <i>Batman,</i> about a guy who wears armoured tights, bat ears and a cape. So elevating.<br />
<br />
What will The Armitage do?<br />
<br />
What is the possibility of a flying "nocturnal, mouselike animal"
imitation? Further, would he inhabit the Bat, be the
Bat, aim for Bat Transcendence? Are we quivering and weak-kneed at the
thought yet?<br />
<br />
There is really nothing much to say other than this:<br />
<br />
Richard Armitage deserves better than being endless fodder for the
rapacious maws of fanboys. That would be such a waste of singular
talent. Sigh.<br />
<br />
I would like to see him in a mature role. For a mature man. Not all this puerile comic slop.<br />
<br />
Somebody check for the role, "complete man", in the index of greenlit scripts and <i>give it to him. </i><br />
<br />
Ye gods.<br />
<br />
Giant Sigh.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
THE MAN </div>
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THE BAT</div>
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THE ZEITGEIST</div>
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pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-84854661569745048282013-03-13T21:57:00.001-07:002013-03-14T00:29:25.614-07:00Thorin: Move Over, Sparkles!For those of you living on another planet, Robert Pattinson was nicknamed "Sparkles" online because of his sparkly vampire turn in <i>Twilight</i>. To wit:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdC05_uPL8GZTdvxFftxOev1a64mlZPGHaBrxE4IjrCfQ_RPWvm6zcRsHaiwftTR6U0MTNSzx064xIqWjTM0fsDsULTOlYFrxI4mL0rSdo9AGjqKQRSQ3xtb3PKhXBjNHRu6boqx5rn1fz/s1600/Real-Men-Sparkle-twilight-series-5043620-267-296.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdC05_uPL8GZTdvxFftxOev1a64mlZPGHaBrxE4IjrCfQ_RPWvm6zcRsHaiwftTR6U0MTNSzx064xIqWjTM0fsDsULTOlYFrxI4mL0rSdo9AGjqKQRSQ3xtb3PKhXBjNHRu6boqx5rn1fz/s200/Real-Men-Sparkle-twilight-series-5043620-267-296.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sparkly Vampire</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Well, move on over, Mr P, because The Armitage has snatched the crown. Not that he wanted to, but <i>The Hobbit</i>* made sure he did. <br />
<br />
Can't say much for the original rendering of Thorin:<br />
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He looks like something out of some video game. Or graphic novel. Are you enchanted? I sure as hell was not! He is one ugly, nasty, evil-looking dude. Meh, meh, and triple meh! He is the stuff of male role-playing adolescent dreams about power (and looks a whole lot like a Klingon).<br />
<br />
People, you lied!!!!!!<br />
<br />
Here is the real Thorin as rendered in the film:<br />
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And compared to all sparkly: <br />
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It's all a matter of light. Thorin was lit like a divinity. Vampires? Not so much. They are rather bestial and <i>drink human blood. </i>Thorin? He wants to go home and is willing to sacrifice his life to reclaim it.<i> </i>No contest, eh?<br />
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Thorin has to have the dewiest complexion ever! I know it's a weird thing to say, but the fact is, I was mesmerised by The Armitage's skin which was highlighted to great effect. You'll have to take my word for it till the DVD comes out. It glowed.<br />
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I have so hated The Armitage's beard. Hate, hate, hate. And then I noticed Thorin's soul patch. Normally, beards are rather common. But in the film the soul patch stands front and centre and it rules! Thorin is <i>all </i>about the soul patch!<br />
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There is nothing but the <i>soul</i> patch. And the eyes. Oh! The eyes!<br />
<br />
The Armitage was a ghost in this film. Only his eyes were visible; they did all the talking (with soul patch emphasis, of course!). First shot of him. I lost my breath. Could he look more gorgeous. From the outset, Peter Jackson rendered the character divine. And the image was all that-- divine.<br />
<br />
I am sure everyone has waxed eloquent about The Armitage's performance. About his beauty and everything in between. I can only speak of what moved me, what blew me away.<br />
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I will have to wait for the DVD to capture the moments, and even now, I am wondering if I will buy the DVD but I probably will because of The Armitage's performance. Apart from Thorin's introduction, that image so breathtaking and setting the tone, I remember when his story was being told. I remember Thorin reduced to labour, at the forge, and the look on his face. Multi-layered, a mixture of pride, determination, dismay and anguish. Stark. If it had not been RA, I wonder if I would have missed that look.<br />
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I noticed the way Thorin holds himself, tilts his head. His passionate physical presence. His rage, his nobility, his determination, his sadness, grief and anguish, his impulsiveness, his recklessness, his loyalty, his inwardness. Always colouring the face. Sometimes in the body. Always with that divine glow.<br />
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And then there was home, <i>Erebor</i>, the <i>Lonely Mountain</i>. Thorin stands before the sight of it:<br />
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And emotions ripple, billow and break under his skin. They crest and curl, they flow and flutter. Several, all there, one after another, in a nanosecond. That moment is worth everything. This is the actor Richard Armitage that I know and adore. Writ large. For me, it's worth all. More than beauty, more than divinity, more than nobility, <i>this</i> leaves me breathless. I am rapt in the glow.<br />
<br />
Shine on, Sparkles.<br />
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*<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Yes, I actually just saw <i>The Hobbit, </i>two months after the opening. </span><br />
<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-44527413364052346672012-12-20T19:38:00.000-08:002012-12-20T20:17:22.731-08:00Handled III: The Ghost of Richard ArmitageHave you ever felt someone slipping away? Becoming elusive? Becoming immersed in another world that confuses you and you don't know what you've missed? Becoming a mere wisp of their former selves?<br />
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People like <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2012/12/16/richard-armitage-the-hobbit/1746019/">Phillipa Boyens</a>, a <i>Hobbit</i> bigwig, rave about the Armitage:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
But even more important for her was that Armitage, like Thorin,
exuded decency, strength and goodness, but with a slight dark obsession
underneath.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"There's a self-awareness of it, too, which is really
interesting because that's also the character," Boyens says. "He's got
real depth, genuinely, as an actor. He's just going to keep getting
better and better.</blockquote>
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I take this statement largely as truth. It has been reiterated more than once and therefore validated. So, let us go from there.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.ca/2012/12/handled-ii-desexing-of-richard-armitage.html"><i><b>Jane</b></i>, in the comments below</a>, responding to the possibility that the Armitage is basing himself in New York, reasonably posits the idea, which I have never considered, that maybe we don't know the 'Leicester bloke'. Maybe he does not aspire to what we expect from him or aspire for him- that he does not aspire to thespian greatness, but rather to conquer Hollywood. This has been an eye opener for me, because it's the only argument that resolves for me the cognitive dissonance that I've been experiencing between his seeming humility and his (to me) strange ambition. Perhaps he aims so much lower than some of us do for him, simply and linearly hoping for work, making it shine and making a splash also. And there does seem to be a disparity between his stated ardour for future theatre work and nothing happening, for years and years and years. <br />
<br />
In this case, and as I see it, the Hollywood stylist's clothing permutations project varied international roles for him as in, "Here I am, dressed like an American, see me as an American, I can play one." Or, "Here I am as a Brit, I can play a Brit, I can even play buttoned down and/or suave". Or, "Look at my (lordy oh lordy) tight skinny jeans, my unlaced high top boots, I am cool and trendy, too". To me it all suggests a concerted signal to Hollywood and the audience at large about his image potential as an actor. But even here, he is playing a role. And to me without the authenticity, he remains desexed not only visually, but because it seems so manufactured. As another commenter mentioned, he also tends toward action man roles now. His buff, I think, is a large American buff, straight from Gold's gym, no longer the lean buff of Guy of Gisborne.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, anony-mouses below also argue that his talk about being physically close to theatre in New York is about more than just having a desire to attend it, that his craving for the thespian's life is real but he has to keep his eye on the opportunities out there so he can finally get there, when he has money and time to pursue the gems that purportedly exist in Hollywoodland and maybe New York, particularly the stage. <br />
<br />
I think that either of these interpretations is possible. Given the Armitage's growing elusiveness in terms of presenting himself in an upfront manner (thank you PR and agent stonewalls), it becomes progressively harder to get a grasp on the real RA, in my opinion. Some things, at this point, don't add up for me. His history has been one of scrabbling for jobs and I'm guessing that still continues. Another anonymous has pointed this out. And I wonder if perhaps it is fear that drives him. I wouldn't be surprised. And certainly, I'm guessing, that "dark obsession". Perhaps his substance as a human being, with all this image mongering, slowly fades away as the dark obsession finds foothold. "My precious".<br />
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Another anonymous proposed an alternate reality: that the only real thing now is the acting and that the rest is far less believable and interesting. pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-26013730072787866002012-12-08T18:17:00.000-08:002012-12-08T21:32:04.891-08:00Handled II: The Desexing of Richard ArmitageIt began with the teeth and has ended up here:<br />
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This is at the New York premiere of <i>The Hobbit</i>. I'm thinking leprechaun, how about you? The man has been stubbulised in a big way; the Americans got to him. Never underestimate the power of the<a href="http://www.gq.com/style/profiles/201204/ilaria-urbinati-celebrity-stylist-armie-hammer-leading-mannequins-gq-april-2012"> stylist.</a><br />
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What is the image he is trying to project because I surely don't know. And I am certain his stylist does not know him either. This is Hollywood, people, where a square peg is not pushed into a round hole as much as hypnotised into believing a square peg can be round.<br />
<br />
From the article cited above two things are clear: 1. Studios buy stylists for their actors; 2. It doesn't always work.<br />
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The GQ article basically asserts that without a stylist, no one will take you very seriously in Hollywood if you are up and coming, that styling makes a major difference to success or failure. I don't think so but it's great snake oil, don't ya think?<br />
<br />
It began with the teeth, Hollywood teeth. We should have reckoned the ambition from the teeth. So perfect, these restructured teeth, so white, so luminescent, wishing for something more. Yet, one hopes for something else, that it's not about the teeth. In the end, it is.<br />
<br />
This is not a bad thing. Who knows the roots of someone's else aspiration? Your dream may not be my dream, but your dream is still a dream. So, has it been recognised and acknowledged? Has it come true? Only you know because I don't.<br />
<br />
The Armitage is an intelligent and thoughtful actor. If you read him here, from <a href="http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2012/12/05/66668-richard-armitage-talks-to-theonering-net/">The One Ring</a>:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px none; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',arial,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 13px; outline: 0px none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="border: 0px none; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">GD: Characteristics of your Thorin remind me of Shakespearean monarchs; did you look to Shakespeare or other theatre and literature for inspiration?</b></div>
RA: You know, I looked mainly through Tolkien – I looked at all of his work, looked to mainly the dwarves, coz he writes about dwarves in general … In terms of preparation, it kind of happened by accident coz I was doing vocal work, coz I wanted him to sound a certain way. I wanted to pitch my voice lower, I wanted him to be able to speak quietly but resonantly … and I ended up using Henry V, Richard III and Macbeth as soliloquies that I could use to get some vocal production going. But I found in all three of those characters [aspects of Thorin] … the whole idea of the rallying cry of a leader on the battlefield is very much Henry V; the self hating deformity of Richard III was sort of relevant; and also the Macbeth figure when it comes to the gold lust – this man who believes he is doing the right thing and gets corrupted by something which ultimately destroys him … I just felt that those three figures were all going to be pretty useful for me to have in my head.</blockquote>
<br />
So, what happened to the gravitas?<br />
<br />
The man has been promoted to mannequin, perhaps able for fashion magazines because that is all about the black hole where personality is at best subdued. Here he is all tarted up.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQrcG2PHzLhYI89z2O_cvl6bwXueXBjVhXSvUnQim_CWQ0xi8hMCiglfsCxAWuAcsUwd0r8h7ge5sLw5OP4iiiP8zIb2ewM5xWQpOsqC3Kmv7lEP6TaddQiYbp4XNBvGstEm6XYteZC9U/s1600/RAcardi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQrcG2PHzLhYI89z2O_cvl6bwXueXBjVhXSvUnQim_CWQ0xi8hMCiglfsCxAWuAcsUwd0r8h7ge5sLw5OP4iiiP8zIb2ewM5xWQpOsqC3Kmv7lEP6TaddQiYbp4XNBvGstEm6XYteZC9U/s320/RAcardi.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's your pipe and slippers, honey</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let me check the meaning of "bland".</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay...just like Thorin.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out my hot shoes.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm kinda...erm...American.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRU6KbmzbfDXHL1ANAFwXbJxunPeFHGrTVmLKjJOGUjcBvFkUr8JMy3Ghk2HZQcAUUF5UNNHKEd6EpCxWblQUb3ObSZCwg5vpfHgqcydlRf5et6uxGHxqdN92zMFoejgxywVthen9cAIt/s1600/RAGlamourcityboy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRU6KbmzbfDXHL1ANAFwXbJxunPeFHGrTVmLKjJOGUjcBvFkUr8JMy3Ghk2HZQcAUUF5UNNHKEd6EpCxWblQUb3ObSZCwg5vpfHgqcydlRf5et6uxGHxqdN92zMFoejgxywVthen9cAIt/s320/RAGlamourcityboy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You know how to whistle...just put your lips together and...blow. My furry lapels will respond.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is me being fastidiously British.</td></tr>
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And then there was you: Let me check the meaning of "babe".</div>
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He's not a mannequin. He doesn't possess the panache to carry off the GQ stuff. He looks like an alien in the actor ensemble pix because he doesn't come across as accessible. He is a working actor (or so I thought), which to me is the sexiest thing you could ever be if you are loaded with talent, and yet, he comes across as a guy wanting to hit the fashion magazines. All talent is suppressed in favour of the image. Is this progress?</div>
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I don't think the ideal is to be hot. I do think it helps to be attractive. To take what is really you and unleash it upon the world in a compelling manner. Earlier photos suggest the latter. This recent round of images suggests otherwise. They kill all that is compelling. Whither thou beefcake?</div>
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I think that he presents now, thanks to his image mongers, as someone staid and dull, certainly not as someone who is fashion forward, as if that matters.</div>
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A far cry from his (handled?) <a href="http://www.richardarmitageonline.com/messages.html">messag</a>e. </div>
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Beyond the image, the litmus test of his handling comes down to this:</div>
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<a href="http://mulubinba.typepad.com/an_ra_viewers_perspective/2012/11/waiting-for-a-sight-of-richard-armitage-the-hobbit-world-premiere.html">Mulubinba's</a> coverage provides something other than hype as does <a href="http://rafrenzy.com/2012/12/06/so-you-couldnt-make-it-to-the-hobbit-premiere/">RAFrenzy</a>.</div>
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So......whither now beefcake writ very large?</div>
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<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com75tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-89581069232527245052012-11-20T21:43:00.001-08:002012-11-20T23:01:11.489-08:00The Hobb(meh)tFor months, I have had nothing to write about. I've mourned over the dearth of Armitage related news and kvetched. I was not interested in rehashing the already fine hash cooked up by so many others, sometimes, practically out of the barest of leavings. Over the interminable days and weeks, the hash became ash, and, after a time, it all began to taste like gruel to me, like <i>gruel</i>, I tell ya!<br />
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And I was bored. Bored of the <i>Hobbit</i> hype, waaaay back when and thereafter. Oh Armitage, how could you??? How could you engage in this absurd and fantastical undertaking with a furry footed midget and your own stubbulised arms and legs? You have been many things throughout your career, but a stub you have not. I wept at the thought.<br />
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Okay, I'll give you this- you look hot. These are still your eyes, and it would take some malevolent fairy to give you dark bronzing eyes like in <i>Twilight</i>......no, wait, that's still hot. Well, I guess you would need to do a new version of <i>The Elephant Man</i> in order to hide the sexy. <br />
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But you're still a dwarf albeit a large blocky one with great hair, burning eyes and fabulous teeth. I really want to see you run, because I wonder, will you be forced to mince along on those little stubs of yours? How does that work? Hmmm. How about when you wield your lovely, lilting sword with your stubby arms- will you look graceful? These are the important questions!<br />
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<i><span style="color: #674ea7; font-size: xx-small;">I'm too sexy for my stub</span></i></h2>
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<i style="color: #cc0000;">They call me Mr Stub! </i></div>
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I tried to read <i>The Hobbit</i> in my teens and was bored. I never saw the films on the big screen and don't own the first installment on DVD. I rarely watch the others. And yet, I was being forced, yes, <i>forced</i> to go see <i>The Hobbit</i>, because the Armitage was in it and, indeed, "love is stronger than death". This was a great sacrifice on my part I want you to know. The things I had to do. Sigh. I was almost resentful!<br />
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The other day I saw <i>Skyfall</i> on a 70 foot screen. And there, in a preview, was a snippet from <i>The Hobbit</i>, with a giant, stubby Thorin warbling away. Then, as a montage continued, gad, I realised that the visuals were gaspingly opulent and sumptuous, and for a brief, shining moment, I felt thrilled. I would see this because it looked gorgeous, I'm a sucker for splendour, and that would help me deal with the material while I honed in on the dwarf!<br />
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Meanwhile, I am stuck with a tsunami of <i>Hobbit</i> PR inundating all the Armitage blogs. I dipped my toe in this evening and almost drowned. I envy that enthusiasm. I also smell their fear because it is my fear. What if he gets really big? Will I be stuck going to films I have no interest in, or will my ardour for the Armitage die because I naturally choke on the stranglehold of hype and bad cinema?<br />
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To me the PR is ridiculous as all things over the top fanboy-ey and fangirly are ridiculous to me. This is a juggernaut that overwhelms little non-dwarfish people like me. Everything and everyone is swept up in its wake. The Armitage's world will be chewed up and spit out and I don't have much of a hope of ever hearing anything substantial, such is the gargantuan totality of the PR drive. It's like <i>Transformers</i>...bang, belt and sock. <i>Crush.</i> Like the <i>Hulk</i>- <i>SMASH</i>.<br />
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Gah! <br />
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What I will be interested in when I do peek into that world is to see how the Armitage handles himself, how the world receives him, and whether his talent will be buried, become dross, or set alight. Bottom line is that I don't need the fireworks, unless those fireworks are the continued incandescence of his characterisations. Frankly, I wish he were doing small films, and stuff on the BBC so that it would be all about the work. I would rather the scruff of jeans and shirt than the super gloss and stiff spray of the red carpet. I'd rather a star here on earth than in the firmament. I like things small, just not dwarfish. There are enough monsters out there.<br />
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See you in line!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: #351c75;">Come back, little Richard!</i></td></tr>
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<br />pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-17100859156198121872012-03-13T01:41:00.007-07:002012-03-13T02:30:57.611-07:00HandledIf you go to the Armitage's <a href="ttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0035514/">IMDB page</a> you will notice that he not only has an agent, but a publicist, or PR team. I find this interesting. Because for an actor who seems modest and shy, he has decided to hire a publicity rep whose only drive in life is to handle his image.<br />
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Did we know that the Armitage cared about image? It's a first for me. But clearly one can only assume that he does want to finesse the way in which he is presented.<br />
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Lately, we have had this massive, longstanding drought of Armitage images and communication. Since he is working on <i>The Hobbit</i>, all publicity seems largely constrained by the Peter Jackson machine. The Hobbit is taking two years for completion, an eternity for fanland. Especially when there is a dearth of information. But, it seems, that the Armitage is content with this.<br />
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This is how I imagine the Armitage at this time: totally revelling in a milieu that is top drawer, top of the line; immersed in an acting bonanza, a cornucopia of the imaginative and creative; hanging with acting buds, soaking up the excitement; sitting on a goldmine, both creatively and in relation to the future, callooh, callay (he chortled in his joy); Far, far, far away from the maddening crowds, and maddening expectations. Far, far away from the crazy public. What a relief! Able to live a largely interior life and a life of exploring.<br />
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So what has his PR team achieved? The "Armitage Army" provides a powerful hook, and certainly a foundation, the mighty engine that thrust him into the limelight. And yet, at the same time, it seems that fans, "Army" or not, are a bit of an albatross for his aspirations. So, it's all right to mention the "Army" in passing as the seminal and critical factor in his coming to public consciousness, but at the same time, one wants to diminish the influence of all those crazy women in the present.<br />
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In other words, the "Army" is still useful as a publicity oddity/marvel, but needs to be put in its place, that is, the fans (not this "Army" crap), currently, need to be put in their place. Hence, the publicity moratorium, the withdrawal of all personal communication, (albeit, considering the true crazies, it's partly understandable). Meanwhile, mention of the "Army" maintains practical publicity purposes.<br />
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Ultimately, what is the greater goal here? To be a Hollywood star? To get the really good parts? To have the power/the power of choice? It still amazes me that anyone would think that Hollywood is the wished for consummation. Is it the money? And if, indeed, any of the latter is true, what does that tell us about the Armitage?<br />
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Towards some mysterious end, there is a whole load of handling going on, I'm thinking. <br />
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This week is FanstRAvaganza3 week! It's all about bloggers blogging about RA. Join in the conversation! March 12-18<br />
<br />
<b>Core Bloggers:</b><br />
<a href="http://mulubinba.typepad.com/an_ra_viewers_perspective/">An RA Viewer’s Perspective From…”The Other Side Of The Planet”</a> (Mulubinba)<br />
<a href="http://fanvideos.wordpress.com/">BccMee’s Richard Armitage Vids and Graphics</a> (bccmee)<br />
<a href="http://cdoart.blogspot.com/">CDoart</a> (CDoart)<br />
<a href="http://judiang.wordpress.com/">Confessions of a Watcher</a> (Judiang)<br />
<a href="http://distractedinreality.wordpress.com/">DistRActed musings of one ReAlity</a> (Fanny/iz4blue)<br />
<a href="http://joniascut.blogspot.com/">Jonia’s Cut</a> (Jonia)<br />
<a href="http://rafrenzy.com/">RA Frenzy</a><br />
<a href="http://meandrichard.wordpress.com/">Me + Richard Armitage</a> (Servetus)<br />
<a href="http://armitagefanblog.blogspot.com/">Richard Armitage Fan Blog</a> (Nat)<br />
<a href="http://www.thesqueee.co.uk/">The Squeee</a> (Traxy)<br />
<br />
<b>Tagteam Bloggers (I have no idea what this means):</b><br />
<a href="http://aisforarmitage.com/">A is for Armitage</a> <br />
<a href="http://cerridewnspeaks.blogspot.com/">And I was going to have (y que iba yo a contar)</a><br />
<a href="http://cerridewnspeaks.blogspot.com/">cerridwenspeaks</a><br />
<a href="http://crispinseclipse.blogspot.com/">Crispin’s eclipse</a><br />
<a href="http://doihaveablog.wordpress.com/">Do I Have A Blog?</a><br />
<a href="http://therufffarm.wordpress.com/">Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Country Life</a><br />
<a href="http://flyhigh-by-learnonline.blogspot.com/">Fly High!</a><br />
<a href="http://funkybluedandelion.blogspot.com/">JazzBaby</a><br />
<a href="http://iwanttobeapinup.wordpress.com/">I Want to be a Pinup</a><br />
<a href="http://kadamanja.wordpress.com/">Just Another RA Fan</a><br />
<a href="http://manedwolfdotwordpressdotcom.wordpress.com/">La Loba</a><br />
<a href="http://memythoughtsandwhoknows.wordpress.com/">Me, My Thoughts, and Richard Armitage</a><br />
<a href="http://melaniesmusings.net/">Melanie’s Musings</a><br />
<a href="http://mrjthornton.blogspot.com/">Mr. John Thornton</a><br />
<a href="http://annie-lucas.livejournal.com/">Musings and Other Enigmas</a><br />
<a href="http://phyllysfaves.blogspot.com/">Phylly’s Faves</a><br />
<a href="http://searchingformymrdarcy.blogspot.com/">Searching for MY Mr. Darcy</a><br />
<a href="http://gratianads90.wordpress.com/">Something About Love (A)</a><br />
<a href="http://thearmitageeffect.wordpress.com/">The Armitage Effect</a><br />
<a href="http://whiterosewritings.blogspot.com/">White Rose: Sincere and Simple Thoughts</a><br />
(list borrowed from RA Frenzy's blog )pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-31942898583249063672011-11-28T19:52:00.000-08:002011-12-05T18:00:13.427-08:00Tote That Barge, Lift That BaleThe heart heaves heavy things.<br />
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Even though all things Armitage seem frivolous in the face of heart heavy things, there is enough energy from us for The Armitage to make us ponder about the significance of the little engine that could. The question is, who is the engine?<br />
<br />
Seriously, the man is in publicity purdah. His PR team brushes away his fans with a touch of the thumb, hoping for greater things, I am sure, than some centralist concentration of the putatively loony. Maybe those are his wishes, maybe not, still the result is the same. Nada.<br />
<br />
Man, what a desert, where we keep the going going by filling in the blanks, the huge massive wasteland of blanks. Let's be happy about the beard and let's be happy about the haircut. Let's look back at the golden days. Still, the now is empty.<br />
<br />
Man, it's tough to be a Richard Armitage fan. Yet, so challenging and creative.pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-42516357647420914172011-03-20T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-21T21:23:23.363-07:00FanstRAvaganza Day 7: Laws of AttractionIf a picture is worth a thousand words....<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">Meet the real Mr A.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;"><br />
</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZFwfjK63GioogEMuXU8gPCU6wg-o5VYqC7Cgcx9w4F7nWRyoYW6vc3-WwldS_24wlh1O-11VEzhbd1MW74CId3BYgyLxgdBd5HJm7E_m8zaoeD6D0Q7dl5Ug3iJzhpjaLQl__1vzbvZkG/s1600/fan31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZFwfjK63GioogEMuXU8gPCU6wg-o5VYqC7Cgcx9w4F7nWRyoYW6vc3-WwldS_24wlh1O-11VEzhbd1MW74CId3BYgyLxgdBd5HJm7E_m8zaoeD6D0Q7dl5Ug3iJzhpjaLQl__1vzbvZkG/s640/fan31.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">*</div><br />
As an artist, the Armitage captures human moments in time, like Monet captures the light. But unlike Monet, his physical being is his instrument. The Armitage is like a tuning fork and in his work he largely quivers with a pure and constant note of perfect pitch.<br />
<br />
In the day to day, Mr A vibrates to the heavenly spheres and inhabits a sea of perfect notes he hopes to meet. His core is pure song. And when a melody arises, whether from violin or human being, he quickens. It speaks to a <a href="http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/TypeFourOverview.asp">knowledge</a> of him and charges him to respond. He answers.<br />
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<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">*</div><br />
Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: #3d85c6;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: #a64d79;">.</span><br />
<br />
Special thanks to Nat of <a href="http://armitagefanblog.blogspot.com/">The Richard Armitage Fan Blog</a> for fanning the flame (organising). To <a href="http://cdoart.blogspot.com/">CDoart</a> for keeping a running index on FanstRAv posts. A huge shout out to all my remarkably creative, tenacious and hard working fellow A bloggers, you are a revelation. Thank you to the fans, readers, delightful and thoughtful commenters.<br />
<br />
Thanks for the street party, the streamers, the fire flowers, bottle rockets and sparklers. And most of all, thanks for the dance. Now, back to my solitary perch in the gods (with <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_792447226">Statler and Waldorf).</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statler_and_Waldorf"><br />
</a><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
<a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/"></a> </span></i>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-89245240191906737122011-03-19T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-19T00:00:07.793-07:00FanstRAvaganza, Day 6: I'm A Believer<u>Turn-ons 4 and 5.</u><br />
<br />
It's a tossup regarding turn-ons at this point. It's hard to choose!<br />
<br />
Who would ever think that the slightly weird, retro and anomalous Ricky Deering could give Harry Kennedy, putative starched shirt, a run for his money?<br />
<br />
First of all, Harry is the marrying type of guy. He's shy, sweet, has the most radiant smile, laughs all the time, and even though he wears pullovers/jumpers he doesn't seem awfully buttoned down to me. This is a free spirit in accountant's clothing. And oh my! He reads! Tons! Books on top of books! What self respecting woman would not view him as the thinking woman's crumpet? Apart from the long luscious length of him? He is accepting, kind and takes on everything with a gentle, canny grace which places him in the pantheon of potential domestic gods. With Harry, dreams come true.<br />
<br />
Ricky Deeming, on the other hand, works with his hands, fracturing scrap metal and rides a majorly mean hog. He's got the flowing scarf and the black leather and the long, slicked back wavy hair; he's a man out of his time. He's a leader of the most genteel biker gang in history, who takes young men under his wing and gives them hope and dreams. <br />
<br />
Hmmm, metal v numbers; the open road v books; leather v wool.<br />
<br />
Here's the speech smackdown: Ricky really is a poetic soul in the misfit body of a large, steel bound hunk. Harry is a poetic soul in the unlikely body of a lanky, wool bound number cruncher. <br />
<br />
I was not believing in the Ricky character until he's holed up with George Gently and John Bacchus in the interrogation room; rumours are flying that Ricky is gay, that Ricky killed whomever; Ricky does not fit. The implication is that Ricky leads young men down an evil path. He gets this wonderful speech after Gently asks him what is being defended by 'The Durham Defenders', Ricky's bike gang:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>We are, I suppose. From the bullshit.<br />
Dead end jobs. Hand-me-down values. Second hand opinions. mortgages.<br />
No offense but it's the sort of life that Johnny here leads.<br />
Forty years of chasing guys like us up and down the streets so the world will be a safer place for other mediocre people to live their banal lives in.<br />
You. And your little woman on the front of Whitley Bay and the whole world rolling on forever and the whole structure never skipping a beat. And nothing ever changing. Except the weather....<br />
What did <i>your </i>world ever offer a little kid like Laurie Elton? Real dad dead before he were born, mother abandoned him? Your straight world pushes him and pushes him into ever tighter corners. Failed at your schools, couldn't hold down your bullshit jobs, life of crime beckoning, predictable. Well maybe not, just maybe not....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhETKauDr8NV52PR7xn5F7Gi3RruW4pncvitugStInswRjx9NLXjerNvpKSvW3SnwI6F0DLMFxG_T-OYS5qituvL9W918aikxNr1TO9Ia91J-515wpP1Rr0jE2lbulKefcTPXH5zP7g3PI/s1600/fan38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhETKauDr8NV52PR7xn5F7Gi3RruW4pncvitugStInswRjx9NLXjerNvpKSvW3SnwI6F0DLMFxG_T-OYS5qituvL9W918aikxNr1TO9Ia91J-515wpP1Rr0jE2lbulKefcTPXH5zP7g3PI/s200/fan38.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>He got himself a bike.<br />
A family.<br />
A set of shared values.<br />
And you know what, George?<br />
He took a look at your world and he wasn't interested in it. And neither am I.<br />
Your world's coming to an end, George-- it's inevitable...<br />
You won't know England in 20 years. </blockquote>It only works because the Armitage inhabits the cadence of the speech and makes me believe, especially in a character that is so ambiguous, elusive, and peripheral at best. I believe in the unlikely visionary. I believe in Ricky's belief. You can catch the speeches at the 5.00 mark <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ3x8965RHI&feature=related">here</a>.<br />
<br />
I am just wild about Harry, and I think that most sane women would be. Scratch that fuzzy, bespectacled exterior, and you get the following:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFymnIIxhcRGiL9Ehhz6EEwPXAPSMOHQ8rX1cXe9AYrpqAgFseqYn5VTP576lP6zPmjS2v1npAroLhA3ul5QWlQoEqYrXKGb9uQ4r-aj29bHllMJGIhK7KUSa6fDGGNppl5TRVoy00ZMV/s1600/fan33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFymnIIxhcRGiL9Ehhz6EEwPXAPSMOHQ8rX1cXe9AYrpqAgFseqYn5VTP576lP6zPmjS2v1npAroLhA3ul5QWlQoEqYrXKGb9uQ4r-aj29bHllMJGIhK7KUSa6fDGGNppl5TRVoy00ZMV/s200/fan33.jpg" width="147" /></a></div><i>I loved you the second I laid eyes on you.</i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZ2v8sGHKDJvW7wZvQ9UO_sqBsOCGf8PWgZ_ODiDETbKlJjT1csmZZaIQOt_VyfirRXHjB2MHoT6ygNXKSnPZMd8i7Mu4ZC97rYrFHYHOcnAu5yt09vrLvs_8YT9zJby-ekSsHWlCU4Mt/s1600/fan34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZ2v8sGHKDJvW7wZvQ9UO_sqBsOCGf8PWgZ_ODiDETbKlJjT1csmZZaIQOt_VyfirRXHjB2MHoT6ygNXKSnPZMd8i7Mu4ZC97rYrFHYHOcnAu5yt09vrLvs_8YT9zJby-ekSsHWlCU4Mt/s200/fan34.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<i>I absolutely know that we are meant to be together.</i><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmJYZGmFj9-MjkgQbr8usjWKeBapxh_gEoG4QsMyP-viMYBcdlQMN1qMibutbpJNQG5En3wVGwqcWB9SRfngPa62WX-zqrlL_nCJk06qbWJVxoqRo_LGltGW-oCcOIrqOX6TcY0gZq9nLI/s1600/fan35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmJYZGmFj9-MjkgQbr8usjWKeBapxh_gEoG4QsMyP-viMYBcdlQMN1qMibutbpJNQG5En3wVGwqcWB9SRfngPa62WX-zqrlL_nCJk06qbWJVxoqRo_LGltGW-oCcOIrqOX6TcY0gZq9nLI/s200/fan35.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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<i>Forever.</i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNdy8bk3qW3n3IPLC09SKKQlsbbUVx8yoT659sZBa9EST0e5zLCFW2jakpzlv8w5FTt8xH92mUsrG-NRl8Fm7mzHBe9Rgo4IICp4MSQzJdT_YlOORPCXVrG3ugDTgtt9sxVfcd8jq-chAE/s1600/fan36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNdy8bk3qW3n3IPLC09SKKQlsbbUVx8yoT659sZBa9EST0e5zLCFW2jakpzlv8w5FTt8xH92mUsrG-NRl8Fm7mzHBe9Rgo4IICp4MSQzJdT_YlOORPCXVrG3ugDTgtt9sxVfcd8jq-chAE/s200/fan36.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><i>And we will always be happy. </i><br />
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What a pure-hearted and compelling speech! Oh, the earnestness, the all radiating and enveloping love and joy. He makes you believe that even in the midst of a fairy tale that this is real and true and that he loves this woman totally and completely.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6W603cEkAA6RTh6Xbh3lRJZM-_2p_qqMv9AwgwUjeOxoLKFdCYa733PHjKUZU5yEHbLLW13UoWM1iKlt9pEPzCDn1SLisphaiDBlqgdARdAWFK_WUahGSiXX8GGzeaLj2Fj5hvUaCWYjT/s1600/fan37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6W603cEkAA6RTh6Xbh3lRJZM-_2p_qqMv9AwgwUjeOxoLKFdCYa733PHjKUZU5yEHbLLW13UoWM1iKlt9pEPzCDn1SLisphaiDBlqgdARdAWFK_WUahGSiXX8GGzeaLj2Fj5hvUaCWYjT/s320/fan37.jpg" width="257" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Yep. I'm a believer!<br />
<br />
<br />
Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: magenta;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: magenta;">.</span><br />
Tomorrow:<i> The Laws of Attraction</i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gorgeous side banner by bccmee.</span></i><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></i></div>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-8198014725130145002011-03-18T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-18T00:00:09.407-07:00FanstRAvaganza, Day 5: Kiss Me, Kill Me<u>Turn-On 3</u><br />
<br />
Guy and Marian. He kills her. It sucks boulders. Feel the grief. Who hates Guy for doing this? I don't, but I should because he was a total pill about it. The Armitage weaves his crazy magic and makes it better. For the Armitage as well, I'm sure.<br />
<br />
So, Guy loves Marian in his inimitable and dangerously dorky way (fatal attraction, perhaps?) and then, as she's trying to defend the King, she gets all spacey and in sudden rapture exclaims her triumphant and undying love for the weedy Robin. After leading Guy on for years. She stabs Guy in the heart with her words, and betrays Guy on such a massive scale in one fell swoop, when he has never betrayed her, that I can imagine he got a tad confused.<br />
<table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="width: 510px;"><tbody>
<tr></tr>
</tbody></table><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote>I would rather die then marry you. I'm going to marry Robin Hood, I love Robin Hood.</blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>Guy doesn't take it well. Actually Guy lunges straight forward, it seems, and immediately drives his sword into her. Or she falls on it. Some think it was a final, erotically charged Freudian sexual thrust (find me that person and bring me their head!), the culmination (er, climax) of their raggedy, complicated relationship. Yeah, well, isn't that the easy peasy analysis? Not terribly novel or genius, in my opinion. Although I think the Armitage's interpretation and execution was. I stress, it was. Pure. Genius.<br />
<br />
<blockquote><i>Richard Armitage has stated that Guy's intention was to embrace Marian, but that his sword got in the way. This has thematic parallels to their relationship development through the series.</i> <span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><a href="http://robinhood.wikia.com/wiki/We_Are_Robin_Hood%21%20">http://robinhood.wikia.com/wiki/We_Are_Robin_Hood! </a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></i><i><br />
</i></span></blockquote><br />
And, to my surprise, that is exactly what I saw on the screen.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLhwECnDV0GnRzVtC7MzrtzDTMFRVrJpq0FQqVzQ3mXMU6slzCqYJH4NjGM1_T6qrX4qdWivIRR0j8kF-A0c5FfuFtHHu5T2UVTJJBqu9puYq-SjLCDulkr2IRJvr_m8b3or1CQ7D5xY6s/s1600/fan34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLhwECnDV0GnRzVtC7MzrtzDTMFRVrJpq0FQqVzQ3mXMU6slzCqYJH4NjGM1_T6qrX4qdWivIRR0j8kF-A0c5FfuFtHHu5T2UVTJJBqu9puYq-SjLCDulkr2IRJvr_m8b3or1CQ7D5xY6s/s320/fan34.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Who lunges forward with deathly intent, to kill, with arms akimbo? Shouldn't he have been an unequivocal impaler? I remain shocked and amazed and fanning my face. Just the thought of such an original resolution to a dreadful, shallow, nasty, capricious shockarama from the brain dull Powers That Be called the 'creative team'...oh my! Genius, I tell you!*<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>*The Armitage tries to relate that acting choice on the DVD commentary. He gets as far as saying, "I didn't sleep for a week", but gets drowned out by the jolly crowd, something that happened consistently across the commentaries.</i></span><br />
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<br />
Follow the confetti to the<span style="color: #45818e;"> </span><a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: #45818e;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: #45818e;">.</span><br />
Tomorrow: <i>I'm A Believer</i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gorgeous side banner by bccmee.</span></i><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></i>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-55448619343278600642011-03-17T00:00:00.000-07:002011-04-17T18:01:27.939-07:00FanstRAvaganza Day 4: Hairy Bonbons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I do have a hair fetish (purely spiritual, of course). I am going to cheat here and publish the limericks that I sent to the lovely and talented Nat of <a href="http://armitagefanblog.blogspot.com/">RAFanblog</a> on the occasion of the Armitage's birthday last year. Why? Well you try writing 7 days worth of stuff, when you usually only write when your knickers are in a twist and/or you're feeling inspired. I am lazy. <br />
<br />
So my excuse is that the celebration of the Armitage by limerick redux can never grow old. Oh, and maybe there's someone actually out there who has never read these before. Heh.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCdIDLL4h2-2RdGfgpWhMhEUTMUTGyNF1PxuPAoOKjBP07L46qFdJQ9drXtfxhtDTO4cWSO9K1c9X8yHAOK9hFsiH27TfXwEosCcI8iz6a6_MIBBnGPknE-oMFpWEjZMp3RMtjHJFXEJG/s1600/fan34.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCdIDLL4h2-2RdGfgpWhMhEUTMUTGyNF1PxuPAoOKjBP07L46qFdJQ9drXtfxhtDTO4cWSO9K1c9X8yHAOK9hFsiH27TfXwEosCcI8iz6a6_MIBBnGPknE-oMFpWEjZMp3RMtjHJFXEJG/s1600/fan34.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCdIDLL4h2-2RdGfgpWhMhEUTMUTGyNF1PxuPAoOKjBP07L46qFdJQ9drXtfxhtDTO4cWSO9K1c9X8yHAOK9hFsiH27TfXwEosCcI8iz6a6_MIBBnGPknE-oMFpWEjZMp3RMtjHJFXEJG/s320/fan34.png" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">There once was a Guy so abhorred,<br />
who wielded a bodacious big sword.<br />
Marian he tickled<br />
but she was so fickle,<br />
a bodkin was her only reward.</span></span> <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWYAthOFTeU2hdszd4jlnoFXj4Tgy8hdai8ZaEv24e-ZTmRijNpsfcO0HMS5B8vymQJRLAWBU_DHDobTQuvJK8W4JU98SqkoQ-MEcvhL6KnVH-F3jJGE9ihXSIbHdtskA0me48Kl2rKb_/s1600/fan36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWYAthOFTeU2hdszd4jlnoFXj4Tgy8hdai8ZaEv24e-ZTmRijNpsfcO0HMS5B8vymQJRLAWBU_DHDobTQuvJK8W4JU98SqkoQ-MEcvhL6KnVH-F3jJGE9ihXSIbHdtskA0me48Kl2rKb_/s320/fan36.jpg" width="258" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">An Armitage from Leicester named Richard,</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Crafts characters quite cracking and myriad.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">When he restyles his hair</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">You know someone else is there,</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Whilst his stubble resembles the Iliad.</span></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">An Added Treat <span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>(Limerick added April 17)</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoP34oTcOpZlTiesVQBW5246-5wGEzjUpW9aviOnVdcvOA87lgAHHWElG-nmBD3b_EC72ctsoQQut3wgN_bx0iflaV30w6n3_80FyiiNFC7ckPbKfgj8muBkH4vOiRSc0p4cnYrkIQgk3E/s1600/RAkilt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoP34oTcOpZlTiesVQBW5246-5wGEzjUpW9aviOnVdcvOA87lgAHHWElG-nmBD3b_EC72ctsoQQut3wgN_bx0iflaV30w6n3_80FyiiNFC7ckPbKfgj8muBkH4vOiRSc0p4cnYrkIQgk3E/s320/RAkilt.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Forsaking the leather and dirt,</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Guy changed into a kilty white skirt.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Enough!" he declared.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"I was sweating in there.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Now I feel so much freer to flirt".</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><br />
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Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: #38761d;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: #38761d;">.</span><br />
Tomorrow: <i>Kiss Me, Kill Me</i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gorgeous side banner by bccmee.</span></i><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></i>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-50727329419880016532011-03-16T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-16T17:13:08.536-07:00FanstRAvaganza Day 3: On the Road to RaptureEveryone has their own personal turn-on point. And my second one, yes, still in <i>North & South</i>, placed me on the road to rapture. It is so swoon worthy this story, in a thinking woman's sort of way. The character of John Thornton is so well balanced, with room to improve and flourish as a human being. He's a grownup, without a chip on his shoulder, very rational, pragmatic, yet open to other thoughts and ideas. He didn't see the Margaret train coming though. Where he would have to <i>feel</i> (like mush) and rethink.<br />
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Oh, lordy! I am transported by the following scene and watch it more frequently than the yelling scenes. All the subtlety of excruciating discomfort is there.<br />
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Margaret has kicked him to the curb, trashing his heartfelt proposal (hear that, Mr Proud?) in really cruel ways. I mean, really cruel, considering the tenderness of Mr Thornton's affection at this point. If ever a man cradled his heart in his hands and offered it up so bloody and raw, this is the guy to go to for lessons.<br />
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Due to Mr Bell the Mischievous, they are manoeuvered into meeting up on the street, <i>in the company of others, </i>immediately following poor Thornton's rejection. Take a look at his initial stance,<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8l1vHE5jq4gdIZTlcssDIjZPfudQ-23g8047T9DtoL2_qMBIaAiGCk_l8P6WVdm8rzSkSKtwquXEFy4mLqCxvwePf_dhgDbjHfo_cYG6ifDi8zXUAEb5u-ZcYV8W0mi0563DzY7Aa-o1W/s1600/fan28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8l1vHE5jq4gdIZTlcssDIjZPfudQ-23g8047T9DtoL2_qMBIaAiGCk_l8P6WVdm8rzSkSKtwquXEFy4mLqCxvwePf_dhgDbjHfo_cYG6ifDi8zXUAEb5u-ZcYV8W0mi0563DzY7Aa-o1W/s200/fan28.jpg" width="169" /></a></div>and then the brace of emotions that percolate beneath his skin-- annoyance, resentment, pride, vulnerability, woundedness, anger, all suffused with a bitter flavour, his lips can taste it, his eyes weigh heavy with pain. And ultimately, there is that singular discomfort when Thornton is brute forced to face Margaret so soon after she not only ripped out his guts but made garters out of them!<br />
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He can only bear to glance at her from the corner of his eye. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr2uz1mBvMMV-X2aOtf9pOoOu_EZrC4SY_663-7hwAIjYaAGAjITI7JNLcMe299Up7Wh3dZhLNQYHarNOP1Q9fBJEHDCRBRXltHWNUj2anQvMSx40ZoxG8h0xUiQsx2V-aWhdHPcWMZpKC/s1600/fan23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr2uz1mBvMMV-X2aOtf9pOoOu_EZrC4SY_663-7hwAIjYaAGAjITI7JNLcMe299Up7Wh3dZhLNQYHarNOP1Q9fBJEHDCRBRXltHWNUj2anQvMSx40ZoxG8h0xUiQsx2V-aWhdHPcWMZpKC/s200/fan23.jpg" width="180" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvBsbxs4k6A_yn2pIIx6vy0c7SXdtMee_R4ToHHWPZ89FlEPDAsL2-QVa2E1nYDNqPoLE-LXOvS-PCpVde8hfncGLuEecjDkD5PuelcHDF_Tx5L_3L9szqJkA7YKFYKXPQfkgLUZlBY37/s1600/fan24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvBsbxs4k6A_yn2pIIx6vy0c7SXdtMee_R4ToHHWPZ89FlEPDAsL2-QVa2E1nYDNqPoLE-LXOvS-PCpVde8hfncGLuEecjDkD5PuelcHDF_Tx5L_3L9szqJkA7YKFYKXPQfkgLUZlBY37/s200/fan24.jpg" width="183" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWPPql6KF7XI_iFrzHKnV4EY3-jEQpyYzJnNwmG6SFYtSZUsdpF4aNg4m9_lN1S6wcGM0fKD96ZOSI7jmwV2FaXUXgF2gZ5KXKyX7EoP-ODEnR1ZCgVWLMcNuLwyTHUKGUCXtiQnE1Xxq/s1600/fan26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWPPql6KF7XI_iFrzHKnV4EY3-jEQpyYzJnNwmG6SFYtSZUsdpF4aNg4m9_lN1S6wcGM0fKD96ZOSI7jmwV2FaXUXgF2gZ5KXKyX7EoP-ODEnR1ZCgVWLMcNuLwyTHUKGUCXtiQnE1Xxq/s200/fan26.jpg" width="175" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWO_pb7_dzDOkO5rTRDxu6nzWPPR7z3hSL7-rFGtRB0ayCykTI61pPA4UTuoempglSrQANSvU4pDA9ACjh0DvcMQc1DzSGe2JM6u-VrklvKYOBwq9NrwoHiIQAHpD-iruAQChDf5-sRaDi/s1600/fan25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWO_pb7_dzDOkO5rTRDxu6nzWPPR7z3hSL7-rFGtRB0ayCykTI61pPA4UTuoempglSrQANSvU4pDA9ACjh0DvcMQc1DzSGe2JM6u-VrklvKYOBwq9NrwoHiIQAHpD-iruAQChDf5-sRaDi/s200/fan25.jpg" width="173" /></a></div>It is a small, quiet scene, but for me, carries more power than the popular scenes because his agitation is so grave and palpable.<br />
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This also reminds me of the moments between Guy and Marian, when they meet to be wed in a few minutes, and Guy, ever hopeful Guy, a true Romantic, reacts to Marian's response to his query as to the whereabouts of her father. There is the drama of thunder, yes, but also disappointment, dawning realisation, murder, canniness, determination. And hurt. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5sBPDxAZh7wvfCK9BGpmjtcwDkrU2ESm9MDzALXtKqkZ_OmG9i9ORmR7tL5aGIDutlhBFbWMgz8Wdu5UEyhuJv7prDITrseVeoAwtJkfCuNHojnkXXCBK80t4Aun73EbaOY05p2CDO8iY/s1600/fan30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5sBPDxAZh7wvfCK9BGpmjtcwDkrU2ESm9MDzALXtKqkZ_OmG9i9ORmR7tL5aGIDutlhBFbWMgz8Wdu5UEyhuJv7prDITrseVeoAwtJkfCuNHojnkXXCBK80t4Aun73EbaOY05p2CDO8iY/s200/fan30.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I rest my case.<br />
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Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: #ffd966;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: #ffd966;">.</span><br />
Tomorrow: <i>Hairy Bonbons</i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gorgeous side banner by bccmee.</span></i><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></i>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-72115740717905062452011-03-15T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-15T00:12:24.884-07:00FanstRAvaganza, Day 2 : Do the Strand<u>Ode To The Hair</u><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">I like your hair down to there </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqLBmRcqesLR95krY5Jf4zkMpcy0s1rqMv7E2qBkUE4lFZ6xGR2IHRUY8R6hDxO0vMk03opg9vUFdM5Xb5crP2ALjna-BRSSUNxZdnuDJJPnEAGJABRFpWwTdqqEw-Ges41_paz8ODfQO4/s1600/fan13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqLBmRcqesLR95krY5Jf4zkMpcy0s1rqMv7E2qBkUE4lFZ6xGR2IHRUY8R6hDxO0vMk03opg9vUFdM5Xb5crP2ALjna-BRSSUNxZdnuDJJPnEAGJABRFpWwTdqqEw-Ges41_paz8ODfQO4/s200/fan13.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Even if it's dated or square.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij-BgMaDtFBjn9rY50KUSN3ijhB4EZJRkrcdn8FT_yrFvMo2_YLlpLyPkIUga4lovyLJEx4rfLQmdD4CV5URf08yi3O3T7pUHxe_bE8hqB3WNpVX3rNpSLHSaWxzkBa0jGQSSpM_r6mmCC/s1600/fan14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij-BgMaDtFBjn9rY50KUSN3ijhB4EZJRkrcdn8FT_yrFvMo2_YLlpLyPkIUga4lovyLJEx4rfLQmdD4CV5URf08yi3O3T7pUHxe_bE8hqB3WNpVX3rNpSLHSaWxzkBa0jGQSSpM_r6mmCC/s200/fan14.jpg" width="158" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Pray, don't touch it I beg, </div><div style="text-align: center;">Let me do that instead.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgirXVzQ9qoyEzV9gDQBAwezmlwAC1Q0yVUBCkxwn3QwarAOGTTbGs1i6k7NtkE1iWdzly4sgW5DfdRTvNGmvWFqlJp66gBcrzwCKquT74w8bxJSxEhlya-2k-skJG5TdSvPTxQmUOwSwM8/s1600/fan15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgirXVzQ9qoyEzV9gDQBAwezmlwAC1Q0yVUBCkxwn3QwarAOGTTbGs1i6k7NtkE1iWdzly4sgW5DfdRTvNGmvWFqlJp66gBcrzwCKquT74w8bxJSxEhlya-2k-skJG5TdSvPTxQmUOwSwM8/s1600/fan15.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
The Thornton, </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOpwBan23CqouYw80lYsqpi1QSKKsa2J2jKXTTTv9Xkf1QZj-2IEIuBTzLvThlsSbP-VY6B2tS8k1LZZOq-kbuL-FWISi7QzjDU7Qoo3FKLV9duvmZs7CmV13SsKB-RlGKil7_cHjP32wZ/s1600/fan16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOpwBan23CqouYw80lYsqpi1QSKKsa2J2jKXTTTv9Xkf1QZj-2IEIuBTzLvThlsSbP-VY6B2tS8k1LZZOq-kbuL-FWISi7QzjDU7Qoo3FKLV9duvmZs7CmV13SsKB-RlGKil7_cHjP32wZ/s200/fan16.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
The North,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bzQ1zKfG3Ivx1E05eVKvGmezfhM3IW9LaXlGZ-DEMJAz6rMTeBXNybBc2k0EejazK-Lc7a9xCY0H87O1axtGklA5txx5p9MV6dSAbKplrmDsWEKLzSQ8PYrNqMRbeHKIL71SxI0FVrKZ/s1600/fan17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bzQ1zKfG3Ivx1E05eVKvGmezfhM3IW9LaXlGZ-DEMJAz6rMTeBXNybBc2k0EejazK-Lc7a9xCY0H87O1axtGklA5txx5p9MV6dSAbKplrmDsWEKLzSQ8PYrNqMRbeHKIL71SxI0FVrKZ/s200/fan17.jpg" width="194" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
The shaggy, </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwK-0mjsR5UPo6VIIBxaqchxDqhygpfKILlmYHsNjfYWJjP0d9RJWV_PabpnnywHcigHn1LloFHKVRLbKfmKOBRnCnhGL1kGUI8IeA3Y4Nrj3Wanln4FJZtDrFSh6gS3khO7OQE4SUfPcx/s1600/fan19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwK-0mjsR5UPo6VIIBxaqchxDqhygpfKILlmYHsNjfYWJjP0d9RJWV_PabpnnywHcigHn1LloFHKVRLbKfmKOBRnCnhGL1kGUI8IeA3Y4Nrj3Wanln4FJZtDrFSh6gS3khO7OQE4SUfPcx/s200/fan19.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
The coiffed.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXU2mbqxfSfqgmiI_MBuKdb7jVOkBZBPN4Mqu-gvqWPuUn2rPGU3z_jo5jHMZwIn4D4aN9x9xZDm9QkO3wT7je-fAJ9OR-8-g4Bsrr26YaArXvNvIs4ZukS5F16BWynPank2-1_ofBYHTz/s1600/fan32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXU2mbqxfSfqgmiI_MBuKdb7jVOkBZBPN4Mqu-gvqWPuUn2rPGU3z_jo5jHMZwIn4D4aN9x9xZDm9QkO3wT7je-fAJ9OR-8-g4Bsrr26YaArXvNvIs4ZukS5F16BWynPank2-1_ofBYHTz/s200/fan32.jpg" width="173" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Not equally pretty</div><div style="text-align: center;">Yet worthy of ditty.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh03949oQuaovXM5hxZBEE9YVUiPPV0mY22naliim0ZnTkAE0vUcxakRn5smwVuvxzwLEYpRxafLwGeRNfc89n8k2bsWF5tgx8PMaq7jx1YXDlQ0bE5gxTDGddSaK96j35IEkRrFK_s-SvI/s1600/fan18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh03949oQuaovXM5hxZBEE9YVUiPPV0mY22naliim0ZnTkAE0vUcxakRn5smwVuvxzwLEYpRxafLwGeRNfc89n8k2bsWF5tgx8PMaq7jx1YXDlQ0bE5gxTDGddSaK96j35IEkRrFK_s-SvI/s320/fan18.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Those luscious dark locks,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJJ8kz_RRB9GnicBUcmIfK5UBmFllfcARt_906xySYdcqGB4rKYDPDpohvFaxTRhtirvbwlKfCQsTLeJ1wGLcOsazRKnyll7pex8bqNh8aPPPU8KIDGJodlrX1BvqTnHJQANHOFvXTKV0z/s1600/fan20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJJ8kz_RRB9GnicBUcmIfK5UBmFllfcARt_906xySYdcqGB4rKYDPDpohvFaxTRhtirvbwlKfCQsTLeJ1wGLcOsazRKnyll7pex8bqNh8aPPPU8KIDGJodlrX1BvqTnHJQANHOFvXTKV0z/s200/fan20.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Clear knock off my socks.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
Coloured or frizzed</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsWU_bW0DNccrvRjtddTVE0-cUK1rcL2I6W9bMqQYFXoFFIMnFw4Tz_DxGOThZbPe8-en_UhUmUTP6SnwVMJvCYUfRjFRhGewZLfyWeQ44X0o7n_fgUYRBQW5jAmc4JTj00FT_Fg8cy60/s1600/fan21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsWU_bW0DNccrvRjtddTVE0-cUK1rcL2I6W9bMqQYFXoFFIMnFw4Tz_DxGOThZbPe8-en_UhUmUTP6SnwVMJvCYUfRjFRhGewZLfyWeQ44X0o7n_fgUYRBQW5jAmc4JTj00FT_Fg8cy60/s200/fan21.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I feel very blessed.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">But I beg you, dear sir! </div><div style="text-align: center;">Your hair, er, down there,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbdXmAVHFFsHQQQLyOZFpUzVPvKmLLDFgxgdWdp6OgTDylYdZESxYL9kvyK-P-jE_unaUGhdaIRmALLR9B5lU8NdUjDEhq5R2qF5yxPnQetDqY0O-0elKQmj0XM8yV9LhEiXmxcB0hs_T1/s1600/fan22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbdXmAVHFFsHQQQLyOZFpUzVPvKmLLDFgxgdWdp6OgTDylYdZESxYL9kvyK-P-jE_unaUGhdaIRmALLR9B5lU8NdUjDEhq5R2qF5yxPnQetDqY0O-0elKQmj0XM8yV9LhEiXmxcB0hs_T1/s200/fan22.jpg" width="143" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Perhaps you'll rethink?</div><div style="text-align: center;">It drives me to drink! </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This is not a dwarvish beard. </div><div style="text-align: center;">This looks like my ex's beard.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGyVBLYx3hs9Y1UDMEhlZcWSzU90Hxbj3cSUrD3f-WDnjDaTrz8HtjTPZSPTLDu_7LQX_mR89CVBURmfAPqwrqzw7vOiQ_mF6k6bcoNtnu6f9Xe57I_YfKMq7Ke_NrpXhVJ4BfmMVHAfw5/s1600/updownbeard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGyVBLYx3hs9Y1UDMEhlZcWSzU90Hxbj3cSUrD3f-WDnjDaTrz8HtjTPZSPTLDu_7LQX_mR89CVBURmfAPqwrqzw7vOiQ_mF6k6bcoNtnu6f9Xe57I_YfKMq7Ke_NrpXhVJ4BfmMVHAfw5/s320/updownbeard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXMxi8JrMZZ4sL-zkvORCX0uCaWP3tGFPoIvs5SQxPYEeiwR6y5SxhhMwfKSQL2ddGZ66yw5Iv2quLPlwQDDhZ5QYGbEu07QTqVdZR8YlX0q14n2m2wll95hCjXKP3aKEkIDYzCFVWk3i/s1600/dwarfbeard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXMxi8JrMZZ4sL-zkvORCX0uCaWP3tGFPoIvs5SQxPYEeiwR6y5SxhhMwfKSQL2ddGZ66yw5Iv2quLPlwQDDhZ5QYGbEu07QTqVdZR8YlX0q14n2m2wll95hCjXKP3aKEkIDYzCFVWk3i/s200/dwarfbeard.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcEeVi7YlmMbqVoo4_dj8zEZrb589NUE5VE2O50XoXm0VkMXDmp3yu9dE2OXw7H2m5RKDZbpiP0T41MriRH6k85zNdWfXB0jkoJX5D1jOd__nsV2YUTAnmZ9x03L4DlMC67WuJW2xBp-Eb/s200/cavillti.jpg" width="133" /></div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(By the way, I imagine </i><i>Thorin's </i><i>hair and beard as a combination of these images. The result would be elaborate beards and hair, tribal ornamentation, less prosthetics, and more natural (and inevitable) dignified and grand hotness.)</i></span> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: orange;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: orange;">.</span><br />
Tomorrow: <i>On the Road to Rapture</i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Gorgeous side banner by bccmee. </span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Dwarf photo courtesy <a href="http://theonering.net/">TheOneRing.Net</a></span><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></i></div>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-11195371709334643322011-03-14T00:00:00.000-07:002011-03-14T00:09:44.712-07:00FanstRAvaganza, Day 1: You Spin Me Right Round<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjuSgqle0ZgwalLv1zxXQ96XEooaUw04GROnJ5ZFaR9eFIv_sQSkSTx3DIaLbPI4N6C5BlQHY-Z3YvlbmzqILlbw5_zIQugAikhVytnjbOKuFlvsSOt0xWTQA4InNnRLRWblIQPL2vYorZ/s1600/fanbannerb%252Bw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjuSgqle0ZgwalLv1zxXQ96XEooaUw04GROnJ5ZFaR9eFIv_sQSkSTx3DIaLbPI4N6C5BlQHY-Z3YvlbmzqILlbw5_zIQugAikhVytnjbOKuFlvsSOt0xWTQA4InNnRLRWblIQPL2vYorZ/s1600/fanbannerb%252Bw.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">We are gathered here today to celebrate all things Armitage. Welcome!</div><br />
First encounters matter, because they make a mark that is indelible. My first encounter with the Armitage was in North & South. That's old hat, you say? Not in this case when you're bopping along the Armitage train, enjoying the view, but your heart and mind are not gripped. <br />
<br />
I borrowed copies of <i>The Vicar of Dibley </i>from the library to be entertained, especially because I adore French and Saunders. I watched from beginning to end. Oy, the end! There he was, a long, cool drink of sweet and charming handsome. Tall and dark, too. With an outstanding profile!<br />
<br />
I fell in love with Harry Kennedy's smile. And I thought, hmmmm, I must see him in something else, because this guy is not just a pretty (unusual and unique) face. Looks like he can act!<br />
<br />
North & South showed up from the library, simply the luck of the draw. The cover photo was all right. Dark and attractive, oh okay.<br />
<br />
Then there he stood, majestic, cut from noble, heroic cloth (with a hint of disdain perhaps) at the top of the stairs, even the feathers of 'snow' fussed gracefully around the character. So perfect. Cool. He was master of all he surveyed.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXH3s-kCeIUprw7WJb1-mkf171gSRHNy7GKfwhscqCIi52BW9oQB1Sok_872VnABtm0UJSllBEZjn6GFD0w35VhiyhpHsg0lB33w_L1RlRyQJq5YelWFBtpx6PC1cjTnbkCqBigLVlx5J/s1600/fan1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXH3s-kCeIUprw7WJb1-mkf171gSRHNy7GKfwhscqCIi52BW9oQB1Sok_872VnABtm0UJSllBEZjn6GFD0w35VhiyhpHsg0lB33w_L1RlRyQJq5YelWFBtpx6PC1cjTnbkCqBigLVlx5J/s640/fan1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
Then Margaret Hale came along and all hell broke loose. Coincidence? I think not. But that's another story...<br />
<br />
It turns out that John Thornton wasn't just standing there looking grand. It turned out that what I mistook for Mr Darcy was something very different. He perched there like a hawk.<br />
<br />
Suddenly, out of nowhere, this grave immobile icon of Austen dreams, with tremendous energy thrust forward at the screen, mouth ugly, marred by anger, as he bellowed, "Stevens!" Not only did he yell it, but he yelled "I saw ya!" and all that followed, in a less than plummy accent. No upper crust royal exclamation here. Oh my, how crass...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin0AAGd7vSXaa0RkL7daLGKgL0sOmU7pibZYSU-yT5oU2RG-VJXqtCV8M8ygcghjm_FszD8hyphenhyphenAftO7Ie6GgeDXYda66RD1HfIqclJWQTlQANYP4w9SGfVpN-HzYE1NpaXPHAuW5kf__31b/s320/fan2.jpg" width="259" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHq0n6Vy1kB2RxuGQpokbLhFuoC-WEUa-Y19ds_MPueThojWYc8G3ah18sPb1MYoZeRmHaHkI42e_lh2lV-3HmhDYnyTPqWeBxtsjMQt3DD3ZUbqofZYidh45qjm-FpjZXXXWQ5Wj_NW0o/s1600/fan3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHq0n6Vy1kB2RxuGQpokbLhFuoC-WEUa-Y19ds_MPueThojWYc8G3ah18sPb1MYoZeRmHaHkI42e_lh2lV-3HmhDYnyTPqWeBxtsjMQt3DD3ZUbqofZYidh45qjm-FpjZXXXWQ5Wj_NW0o/s320/fan3.jpg" width="297" /></a><img border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwFiQKPDuXAJhi7c5DPvmqbysuK4EK9hCfyF3ALLDtE7FzXVNfXMFLbqNQc5Mv9C0ZfeIa8I-c4Sb8d5E7M3Xa8FXR05ORLM0ctXzOpJU33Ns8GsFAn0doGkfrvQEzwGwbwQkwV5-rZznE/s320/fan4.jpg" width="320" /></div><br />
Whoa! Shiver me timbers! And that was a complete turn-on to me, that yell. Taken aback, I suddenly sat up and took notice. You know, it's one of those moments of awakening. He went from 0 to 60 in a second, flat. Imagine what it takes, when there you are, surveying your domain, and looking really good, but inside, you're ever vigilant. And suddenly there's this nuclear burst of energy and all your presumptions as a viewer are challenged.<br />
<br />
Oh that yell! That's what hooked me. It should have scared me as it did Margaret. It did break the romantic inclination yet placed a greater spell on me. It brought me down from heaven to reality. When he punched out Stevens, I was aghast. Talk about shattering the romance! In Margaret's shoes I would have loathed him beyond words as well and would feel nothing but antipathy. But as a viewer, I was mesmerised.<br />
<br />
The turn-on for me in the Armitage's acting is that he can screech unabashedly. It's unreservedly primal. The turn-on comes especially from the softening of that violent riff because of the inherent musicality of his instrument. It <i>is</i> primal, nevertheless. I was forced to pay attention, and I have done so ever since.<br />
<br />
I look forward to the yells, which thrill me almost like nothing else. So operatic! His yell in <i>Robin Hood, Series 3</i> is a classic....<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02Ja-Yw-oU8OGstLC65bzETKkVa6V63asEh1P0ZF0myf_W4fXhG1JurgoznrF_VZVnv9grcwWvaIxFmluelKNPLf1dihto43_SxG26tmEli_tmPiLOa_7ypQMdlLtwzm-xQ5si6baqNmk/s1600/fan5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02Ja-Yw-oU8OGstLC65bzETKkVa6V63asEh1P0ZF0myf_W4fXhG1JurgoznrF_VZVnv9grcwWvaIxFmluelKNPLf1dihto43_SxG26tmEli_tmPiLOa_7ypQMdlLtwzm-xQ5si6baqNmk/s320/fan5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVl0VatcJfuUlkEwK-V0jydNErC6eYwKPRtKFeMEstmUIGm4ako_p1XK1Dd1_I2yS7z039kgdQ7l7EE16VUyobHLsOQd7V2EmBr9R2wYM_tBBEF27-NVEt6Hxn6z-FKZHTYwmJvQ_YkSW/s1600/fan6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVl0VatcJfuUlkEwK-V0jydNErC6eYwKPRtKFeMEstmUIGm4ako_p1XK1Dd1_I2yS7z039kgdQ7l7EE16VUyobHLsOQd7V2EmBr9R2wYM_tBBEF27-NVEt6Hxn6z-FKZHTYwmJvQ_YkSW/s320/fan6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6LHVRhGrMmie4GQ20JbaTQekFOqpEoAlG6se6MRhyDB-v9vR2sO8wIQdpS4419MDCf0imD340TZl5BCkNaif27KldEKj2pWrOeULjatp_6e4cujTaQja0Yzbw02Z89WoW9G_DD5QQEyFl/s1600/fan8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6LHVRhGrMmie4GQ20JbaTQekFOqpEoAlG6se6MRhyDB-v9vR2sO8wIQdpS4419MDCf0imD340TZl5BCkNaif27KldEKj2pWrOeULjatp_6e4cujTaQja0Yzbw02Z89WoW9G_DD5QQEyFl/s320/fan8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzb4H4eVX4ns6dCELTQfHSn8QdJrSmYVwXRzSz3IovJT49wOpnyTWbRiBbcyQjTevUdQANCk6r1G3MmmG2IIVtTh0_29yxZzFerFIEsaJFUvDF79KKfXPKBpULJaisjqlilx1TR2uC2pna/s1600/fan7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzb4H4eVX4ns6dCELTQfHSn8QdJrSmYVwXRzSz3IovJT49wOpnyTWbRiBbcyQjTevUdQANCk6r1G3MmmG2IIVtTh0_29yxZzFerFIEsaJFUvDF79KKfXPKBpULJaisjqlilx1TR2uC2pna/s320/fan7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fQRlq9AquKH73sP1fGFO7QkQgLGWNprUENTEwbX1okoAU85KtHsrwSbTpwOXbfTpPeIRW7qXtWUiDyOqLm8VNo3g6d-H3llveSYYxulZtB2YcI0N2aLawxWBlcBqGxk2_WEDD7Av3Yau/s1600/fan9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fQRlq9AquKH73sP1fGFO7QkQgLGWNprUENTEwbX1okoAU85KtHsrwSbTpwOXbfTpPeIRW7qXtWUiDyOqLm8VNo3g6d-H3llveSYYxulZtB2YcI0N2aLawxWBlcBqGxk2_WEDD7Av3Yau/s320/fan9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjbD1qbfH8EqBdxMlFiHmh8di7JtHEmiD5m2mdaJl89Y44mWaqmSqjYyC6812wSP_ok4mh15Beaq02e04EJfniPx3jKywrqLHQhM-vcMG21V6m_CnwG2XbieJTCKdhyphenhyphen7OzytX0LgKlqZ2/s1600/fan10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjbD1qbfH8EqBdxMlFiHmh8di7JtHEmiD5m2mdaJl89Y44mWaqmSqjYyC6812wSP_ok4mh15Beaq02e04EJfniPx3jKywrqLHQhM-vcMG21V6m_CnwG2XbieJTCKdhyphenhyphen7OzytX0LgKlqZ2/s400/fan10.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>I am not a human being! I am an animal! </i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Wild thing...I think I loooove you. What a howl of release and triumph! What a stark contrast to the pretty (well groomed) and confident, perhaps slightly smug, man we meet later, master of all he surveys. Oh, what could have been!<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><i></i></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizs466nmykFppo4rd3ppTHojDxBreNujE5q50jIg80LzwdQ4Jw1IALoZ04JI_uFlPzN3g3juTDP0RGVH7CFUtdn7nTO-WFugD4Qz8_x_JTi38vJCL_tSx64kOec_p0AAkH6zvOnbcwJcKv/s1600/fan12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizs466nmykFppo4rd3ppTHojDxBreNujE5q50jIg80LzwdQ4Jw1IALoZ04JI_uFlPzN3g3juTDP0RGVH7CFUtdn7nTO-WFugD4Qz8_x_JTi38vJCL_tSx64kOec_p0AAkH6zvOnbcwJcKv/s320/fan12.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Even his nonsensical character's pathetic, warped anguish over the death of his Cypher in <i>Spooks 9</i> elicits a response.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtH-RBDDB3dWxDr9GWTdeqaEZWRjbWzQYvBJq2p4pOYZQB_duySnFG70FQ7ADk7yf31Dpi6naxJL_QhouNfdgIEkzfeAT_xgs2vTx6zBSaSqzRbRKsC1HWtd5EtY5ztnr_VGufTYvUUm9d/s1600/fan11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtH-RBDDB3dWxDr9GWTdeqaEZWRjbWzQYvBJq2p4pOYZQB_duySnFG70FQ7ADk7yf31Dpi6naxJL_QhouNfdgIEkzfeAT_xgs2vTx6zBSaSqzRbRKsC1HWtd5EtY5ztnr_VGufTYvUUm9d/s200/fan11.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
Overall the yell does not scare me perhaps as much as it should. But that raw, naked energy does send <i>frissons </i>down my spine<i>; </i>it is electrifying. Actually, I deeply envy the Armitage that outlet.<br />
<br />
I am now permanently awake.<br />
<br />
I am wondering when you sat up and took notice, the moment where you went, hell, yeah! When you awoke and haven't been able to just drift by ever since.<br />
<br />
Follow the confetti to the <a href="http://nevermindmrarmitage.blogspot.com/p/fanstravaganza-sites.html" style="color: red;">rest of the FanstRAvaganza sites</a><span style="color: red;">.</span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: #444444;">Tomorrow:<i> Do the Strand</i></span></span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Screencaps courtesy of the ever fabulous <a href="http://richardarmitagenet.com/">RichardArmitageNet.com</a></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Terrific banner by Teena </span></i>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-801191355430413332011-02-14T18:13:00.000-08:002011-02-14T19:06:56.336-08:00Parsing the Pandering: PR As Performance ArtYo! So how's it going for you Mr Armitage? Are you any further away from having to please your fans? Well, maybe now not your fans, per se, but <u>fans</u> nevertheless? A rather rich irony, indeed.<br />
<br />
Exhibit A: "<i>The Hobbit</i>" press conference, designed to please. I confess I haven't watched the entire conference, only the bits with the Armitage. And those bits, I understand, slayed some of the doubting and passionate Tolkien admirers. To wit:<br />
<blockquote><i><a href="http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2011/02/10/42176-thirteen-singing-dwarves-and-a-very-funny-hobbit/">Richard Armitage (Thorin) spoke</a> surprisingly little, but when he did he had a notably deep voice, exactly right for Thorin, and real gravitas. He walked into the conference with a kind of testosterone charged lope. I don’t think he’ll have any trouble holding the audience’s attention.</i></blockquote>Some savage breasts have been soothed a little. Respective upholders breathed a sigh of relief. Who ever knew that simply getting a film realised takes so much outreach and needs so much approbation <i>in its process </i>these days? I surely didn't.<br />
<br />
I felt quite alienated by the Armitage's performance at the conference, because it hit every perfect note and point. It was a revelation in its canniness and intelligence. It was not so much a manipulation as an attempt to allay the fears of the <i>Lord of the Rings/Tolkien</i> fans out there.<br />
<br />
If the Armitage strode in with a "testosterone charged lope", it certainly wasn't RA's but it does feed into the film stereotype. Dare I say then, it was acTing?<br />
<br />
And what about his answers at that press conclave (provided by the wonderful and exceptionally generous <u><b><i>bccmee</i></b></u> in her <a href="http://fanvideos.wordpress.com/hobbit/">video and transcription of the Armitage's replies</a>)? I think a lot of it is self-explanatory.<br />
<blockquote><blockquote><b>Reporter:</b> Can you tell us about yourself?</blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><b>Richard Armitage</b>: Me as a person? Would you like to be a little more specific? <i>I’ve got 40 years to talk about. <b>(</b></i><b>Yeah, I'm older and more mature than I look</b><i><b>.)</b></i><br />
<br />
<b>Reporter:</b> Why do you want to play this role? </blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><b>Richard Armitage:</b> I just think it’s just a really amazing opportunity to take a character <i>from a book that I was brought to as a child. I mean my first experience onstage was in a production of The Hobbit</i>. (Sentimentality, nostalgia, he grew up with the book in a visceral way, just like the fans; he is a <u>fan</u> and he "gets" it, just like the rest of us).<br />
<br />
....<b>Richard Armitage: </b>....So it’s kind of been in my childhood very prominently so to come to it as an adult, <i>a middle-aged man,</i> and have another look at it is a brilliant opportunity. (I can act 'old'. Really!)</blockquote></blockquote>Various reports from fans of all stripes mention his regal quietness, his dignity, his "gravitas", his presence. He was an unassuming <i>presence</i> far different from the chattering masses. And most importantly, fans were blown away by The Voice- a deep, gravelly voice. As if this mellifluous meister speaks like this all the time. No, he doesn't.<br />
<br />
He also wore a youngish and trendy cool G Star black shirt whose short sleeves just happened to cut across his rather mountainous biceps, and his beard emphasised the chubby cheeked broadness and stockiness of the dwarvian race, I imagine. Even the haircut was rather butch, its colour and the beard's warm and sympathetic.<br />
<br />
And he seems to have passed that audition. <br />
<br />
I rest my case. <br />
<br />
Still, in a round about way he did save the day for the organic, for the actor's craft, beyond artifice and I love him for it:<br />
<br />
<blockquote><b>Reporter:</b> Richard, you mentioned about papier mache Gollum. Are you looking forward to acting against green screens?</blockquote><blockquote><b>Richard Armitage: </b>.... But also I think with this film in particular there’s enough creative genius in terms of the art department and the technological department but at the same time <i>I think we’re going to get out there in nature and really experience this possibly more so than a purely technical film which is really exciting. </i>It’s a good marriage of both I think. (I'm not crazy about the green screen but I can live with it.)</blockquote><br />
The Armitage 'loped' <i>en <span class="kw">scèn</span></i><i>e</i>, found his mark, and basically projected what Tolkien fans needed to see and hear. Kudos to him. I'm not really thrilled about it because I had hoped to still see and hear his old endearing and stimulating self but I am not sure when that, if ever, is going to happen. Well, it's a whole new ball game and I am not surprised he is up to the challenge. It's still a scrabble for him, though, isn't it?<br />
<br />
In stark contrast, Martin Freeman, simply by virtue of his Hobbit-like look, in my opinion, can unleash a million "f" words into the mix, all the while being himself, and walk away with a stamp of tacit approval which was there even before he took the stage. <br />
<br />
Irony of ironies: the Armitage's desire was to not get trapped into pleasing his fans, because there lies futility. He is not wrong. Yet, he steps upon the stage, pandering to the Tolkien crowd, aiming to please.<br />
<br />
Or perhaps, more importantly, to win the Tolkien crowd over with his pleasing. Perhaps that is the difference, between his approach to his very own fans, and other fans out there. Where is the challenge now, perhaps, in love that is not hard won?<br />
<blockquote></blockquote><blockquote></blockquote>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-37737797625929657812011-02-10T21:05:00.000-08:002011-02-11T14:48:43.829-08:00Freaky: Marinating in Real LifeWhere have you gone, Mr Armitage?<br />
<br />
I haven't listened to most of the <a href="http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/4641995/Live-coverage-The-Hobbit-press-conferencen">The Hobbit conference </a>today but I did catch the clips of the Armitage elsewhere.<br />
<br />
Here he is, 'marinating' The Dwarf:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrw-_-n2fZ0oef4fr4r6_d-JzMiyYIBNvaDeDtQK7TIF8O-MISsslnLxw5HZCwwYt_8aT097428LqKh77bOy01py1mFqIPCnelX8KX-LFtCMquCZVGLCHRyBX_yfQze0FP5v85TMpFiWuC/s1600/Richard+at+the+Hood+Academy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ4rg18iUeAZjVxY7WZ-CujrrJ1OFBb6oeiVU6tW2I2Q5ut3oujeshoKam6QWWcbtgAYffcy8ZiVE-IvO-l0K2iFEfiSHAjIekwXOVh40uGl-3Y8iTa-_6jJ8KYP5hCyj1NYe2fxpjsSzK/s200/20110211hobbitpressconf.jpg" width="200" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Was he 'marinating' Guy of Gisborne here?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrw-_-n2fZ0oef4fr4r6_d-JzMiyYIBNvaDeDtQK7TIF8O-MISsslnLxw5HZCwwYt_8aT097428LqKh77bOy01py1mFqIPCnelX8KX-LFtCMquCZVGLCHRyBX_yfQze0FP5v85TMpFiWuC/s1600/Richard+at+the+Hood+Academy.jpg" /></div><br />
Because I'm currently thinking pretty...not ugly...just pretty not appealing, I guess, in the best dwarf tradition. I think the bush, no matter how well-sculpted, overwhelms his face and its delicacy, gives him an overall common roundness at odds with his unique angularity, and hides a feature that is part and parcel of his expressiveness, his mobile mouth. So, yeah, he's already found his inner Dwarf. For 2 years? Oy vey!<br />
<br />
Also, when he spoke it was in a constantly deep voice. Are we hearing "Thorin"?<br />
<br />
Christian Bale also immerses himself in a character to the extent that he uses the character's accent in interviews on top of his physical changes, although actually he seems to choose to remain consistently shaggy and unkempt between gigs. Christian Bale also felt that any fool who got into the way of his method on camera deserved a 4 minute abusively raging tongue lashing.<br />
<br />
I can understand the (unattractive) beard which was beaten a mile by Aidan Turner's (in all its more authentic and primal, in my opinion, hirsuteness), and even the close cropped hair. But I do not understand the unnaturally deepened voice. Because for me, to give your all to acting without drawing a boundary is suspect. You don't need to do it. So, why do you?<br />
<br />
Having said all that, I didn't mind the Armitage's reserve in the face of the extroverts; I so relate. His acting will say all that needs to be said, in my opinion. Meanwhile, I am not copacetic with his insistence on marinating in real life or even in an unreal press conference. Where does one draw the line?pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-41551409566295584912010-12-25T20:04:00.000-08:002010-12-25T20:04:24.156-08:00Tales From The Crypt-icThe Armitage's annual Christmas message (very sweet): <a href="http://www.richardarmitageonline.com/">http://www.richardarmitageonline.com/</a><br />
<br />
If you want to bury all originality and personality in communication, get yourself a publicist and a manager, and watch them strip away all forthrightness or attempts at authentic connection and weave for you some common cloth. <br />
<br />
Recipe for the crypt-ic:<br />
<br />
Shave the edges off to a place of the politic. Shroud tightly all thought and feeling. Bury it in the safe and sanitised. Pennies for your eyes and mouth.<br />
<br />
The importance of not being earnest? Why? Earnestness is a pure and golden quality. Straightshooting.<br />
<br />
The terror of being perceived as 'dull' is also rightly justified. But not for earnestness. And not just there yet.<br />
<br />
Nevermind Mr Armitage, that was not really about you. At. All.<br />
<br />
The subversive, chafing, nimbly suffuses the threads with the "ic" factor. Thanks. Somewhere in there, you're still alive and kicking fustian ass. Just keep saying "no" to the straitjacket. Feel the fear. Can I hear that rebel yell? Hell, yeah!pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-5915607047854022002010-12-03T12:31:00.000-08:002010-12-03T12:31:14.372-08:00Anatomy of Obsession<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWWPnMmwasjiN7E_Wk-yuQfphvXg3NB0pv3WWjgVFhGCecnIwUbq6r6e3eVJVzUqBWz7gRgXQjCPg8GZveWA09UHRI4_H_gTUFTshIB-rBfh9AHr6UJYyZ1MsuFZcS-vpTRQuqhNx1LOxJ/s1600/bodies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWWPnMmwasjiN7E_Wk-yuQfphvXg3NB0pv3WWjgVFhGCecnIwUbq6r6e3eVJVzUqBWz7gRgXQjCPg8GZveWA09UHRI4_H_gTUFTshIB-rBfh9AHr6UJYyZ1MsuFZcS-vpTRQuqhNx1LOxJ/s200/bodies.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Recently, I went to an <a href="http://www.bodiestheexhibition.com/">exhibition</a> at the LA County Fair. On display were polymerised bodies in various states of undress, that is, stripped of skin or muscle or bone or arteries, etc., or a combination thereof. As fascinating and educational as it was, when I happened upon a woman in a glass case precisely sliced up into steaks, I felt uneasy. It wasn't Snow White. <br />
<br />
In Jewish ritual if you come in contact with death, whether a corpse or a grave, you are required to purify yourself by washing your hands with water (aka, 'water of life'). It also reminds you of the ongoing gravity of that encounter. The sliced and diced corpse was a real human being, not a piece of butcher meat. And it felt wrong, like some line had been crossed. No matter how antiseptic and shiny and plastic the cadavers looked, they had still been animated by a soul. <br />
<br />
The crossing of lines seems to animate certain sections of the RA community as well. <i>RAFrenzy</i> started the ball rolling on the ongoing self-reflection of being an Armitage admirer by <a href="http://rafrenzy.com/2010/11/27/i-keep-forgetting/">pondering, not for the first time</a>, whether she should call herself a "Reluctant Fan"- she keeps fighting her feelings. One of her commenters suggests she call herself "Fan with a Conscience". <i>Mulubinba</i>, in a <a href="http://mulubinba.typepad.com/an_ra_viewers_perspective/2010/11/attempting-to-get-some-perspective-as-a-fan.html">neat response</a> to the thorny question of whether fans should wait outside a stage door, proffers some sound etiquette guidelines. Meanwhile, <i>Servetus</i>, in one of her <a href="http://meandrichard.wordpress.com/2010/12/01/me-annabel-capper-or-the-limits-of-armitage-fangrrling-almost-a-year-in/">latest posts on being a "fan"</a> represents quite accurately, I think, what goes through the minds of quite a few admirers of the Armitage, the ones who self-reflect. It's almost as if they're in so deep they are not sure where the boundary is. <br />
<br />
In the Armitage community, it seems that there are the makings of a little cottage industry for self-examination! I think that this is the first time, in my experience of fandoms, that I find people so conflicted about being part of the Armitage juggernaut, swept off their feet and swept away.<i> Servetus</i> even goes so far as to wonder if a sort of <i>I-thou</i> relationship might be possible with the Armitage, even at a distance. That's pretty deep. (Well, perhaps, I suppose it's possible, as long as the "thou" is accepted as being eminently less knowable than G-d or at best a reflection of G-d.)<br />
<br />
And people worry about Himself. People wonder if we're too pushy, too crazy, too demanding, too vocal, just <i>too much</i> for the delicate likes of him, oy vey! Our passion will overwhelm him, suffocate him. Which brings up the topic of protectiveness. For example, if people paid big bucks to see the <i>24 Hour Plays</i> at the <i>Old Vic</i>, with drinks afterwards, well, then it's a professional meet and greet. Nothing wrong with fans approaching him. My heavens, he even got on the bus with the rabble! Nothing wrong with taking photos either, whether inside, or at the stage door. And he'd better get used to lights flashing in his eyes and a mob because he ain't seen nothing yet. Yet, people fret about such behaviour.<br />
<br />
It's interesting that the loonies (case in point, see <a href="https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1794963383794093649&postID=1029979055622986535&isPopup=true">comments by anonymous 6.44 am</a>) are overly possessive, rigid and dictatorial and downright creepy, but at the other end of the spectrum there are others who feel tremendously protective of him and basically seem as if they're <i>walking on eggshells</i> in their response to him. Like them, I want to disassociate myself from the foaming crazies, and not be counted as one of them in the public mix. Alas, we are <i>all</i> publicly counted as one of them because they are the most vocal and most intrusive. As always, the former ruin it for the rest of us. But why do we need to walk on eggshells in response? <br />
<br />
I suppose I'm lucky because I hold no conflicted feelings and thoughts about the Armitage. The more I read blogs and comments, the more I realise that it's his work that I feel protective of, or more precisely, his talent. I am greedy in that I want him to give me more characters that transport me. The fact that his gifts are all wrapped up in a seemingly sensitive, mensch-like and handsome package just complicates things. But, I accept the whole of him and that includes the handsome, if not yet the mensch. <br />
<br />
I don't read much about him, and rarely listen to his interviews, but even in reading other blogs, I realise that the more I know about him the more I don't know him. I can make guesses, but that is all. Regarding his character, he seems too good to be true. If I have conflict, that's probably it. I think that's compounded by never getting a real grasp on his personality, because he is elusive. I am not cynical by nature, just cautious by experience, and "too good to be true" raises massive red flags to me.<br />
<br />
On a personal note, just the fact that he's crazy about skiing, is a workaholic and, in effect, seems to be an adrenalin junkie suggests to me that superficially he and I would not get along! I also find him tremendously attractive but not sexy. He really comes across as a regular bloke. I think his brain is sexy, but showing himself to be a fairly modest man in real life, he doesn't ooze sex out of his pores; for that, we have Guy of Gisborne and I am satisfied (sort of).<br />
<br />
I do remember feeling a bit embarrassed in my teens while standing in the store riffling through <i>Mills and Boon</i> romances. Well, this was just not me! It was not an acceptable part of myself. This did not fit with an image of myself and to what I aspired. It was déclassé. Ironically those books triggered my interest in other countries, in travel and in opera of all things. I've had obsessive crushes since I've been 12 years old, and inevitably they inspired poetry, stories, research on various topics, drawings, an unpeeling of the layers of myself and greater knowledge and acceptance of feelings and thoughts. Everyone and everything and all experience is a potential muse.<br />
<br />
Those experiences also allow me to state without shame that my first feeling at seeing the Armitage's old female friend by his side at the Old Vic party again was unalloyed jealousy. It came and it went. Oh, here it comes again, this time it's envy. I know why it happens. So, nevermind the Armitage. But it does happen. I'm not going to say, either, that I'm happy for him or happy to see him with someone, or happy to see him with no one. I don't know what makes him happy. I just know how I respond. <br />
<br />
Perhaps we dissect ourselves or others for fun, but sometimes it does take the fun out of things. I admire and envy those who have the <a href="http://armitagefanblog.blogspot.com/">gift of light-heartedness</a>. Generally speaking, that the Armitage has been objectified, I have no doubt. The extent to which it happens, and the detail in which it is indulged make me cringe. I think that people's fantasies should stay in their journals, be shared with their friends or psychiatrists, and not spill out on public pages. Way too much information. The objectification is a natural byproduct of fandom, but I really object to his complete taking apart. Reminds me of the awful display above. This is where I draw the line. There is something unseemly about it.<br />
<br />
I don't have any answers for why people have such difficulty coming to terms with their admiration or its intensity. All I can offer is a "perhaps": perhaps it doesn't fit with one's image; perhaps one does not want to be seen as part of the great unwashed, or more closely, part of the rabid fringe; perhaps there's a part of ourselves that we find unacceptable, or feelings we find unacceptable; perhaps we have one shred of hope that someday we might meet him and that colours our possessiveness/protectiveness; perhaps we don't know how to have fun. Feeling that we obsess and spend our days and nights thinking and discussing an actor does seem rather nuts. As nuts, I suppose, as an obsession with baseball, football, opera, ballet, and all their respective talent as well.<br />
<br />
Yet there is obsession, and obsession. Ninety-nine per cent of the fandom is not going to stalk anyone. An obsession is harmful if it engenders ongoing unpleasant thoughts and feelings, and interferes with your functioning or relationships. It's a simple standard for what is not normal. <br />
<br />
Then there is the other obsession, the one I celebrate, which engenders beautiful words, beautiful pictures, beautiful acts, beautiful relationships, and beautiful play. Which elevates all that is wonderfully human in us. When we are angsting, it's a good thing to remember.<br />
<br />
<blockquote style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size: 100%;">excerpt from "<a href="http://talentdevelop.com/articles/IPOPO.html">In Praise of Positive Obsessions</a>" by Eric Maisel </span><span style="font-size: 100%;"></span><br />
<blockquote><span style="font-size: 100%;"></span><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span>The common wisdom of therapy has it that obsessions are always bad things. As a feature of its namesake disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or as a feature of some other disorder, an obsession is a sign of trouble and a problem to be eliminated.</span></span></b></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>But the main reason therapists find themselves obliged to consider obsessions invariably negative has to do with language: an obsession is invariably negative because clinicians have defined it as negative.</span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><blockquote><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>Clinicians define "obsession" in the following way: an obsession is an intrusive thought, it is recurrent, it is unwanted, and it is inappropriate. Defined this way, it is obviously always unwelcome.</span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><blockquote><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>But suppose a person is caught up thinking day and night about her current painting or about the direction she wants to take her art? Thoughts about painting "intrude" as she balances her checkbook or prepares her shopping list. She can hardly wait to get to her studio and her rhythms are more like Picasso's on painting jags than like the rhythms of a "normal" person.</span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>This artist is obsessed in an everyday sense of the word - and more than happy to be so! ... </span></span></b><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span></span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><blockquote><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>For a contemporary intelligent, sensitive person, it may well make more sense to opt for a life of positive obsessions that flow from personal choices about the meanings of life than to attempt to live a more modest and less satisfying normal-looking life that produces dissatisfaction and boredom.</span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><blockquote><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>After all, no one can say how normal ought to be defined. In what sense is it normal to work at a job that constricts you and bores you rather than risking everything on a life that challenges you, even as it frustrates you?</span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><blockquote><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>Much of what we call normal behavior is simply based on fear. Indeed, the average person might even prefer a negative obsession, despite its horrors, to a positive obsession rooted in excitement, passion, and active meaning-making, so wild and unafraid would he feel if he were obsessed that way.</span></span></b></blockquote></blockquote><br />
My wild guess is that the Armitage often gets swept away by magnificent obsessions. Heh, what's good for the gander is good for this goose. Foolish passion, indeed!<br />
<br />
Happy Hanukkah to my fellow Jews!<br />
<blockquote style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> </blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span></span><br />
<span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span><br />
</blockquote>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-10299790556229865352010-11-21T23:05:00.000-08:002010-11-22T14:37:23.860-08:00To Be Or Not To Be: The Betrayal of Lucas North and Richard Armitage<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaUcsKByUyBxYJHgAg0dBuaJXNU18W-Any4YNq3virIe6OvfhPBlA7Fdh24Q94VCFvHO4ZnQoyPANlwlX622kVYo7g2LQ2o7PmvYJ5-zb1T0EEhBvpws7s_sIYoIChcwwAvoH99J-zF8Nl/s1600/lucasprison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaUcsKByUyBxYJHgAg0dBuaJXNU18W-Any4YNq3virIe6OvfhPBlA7Fdh24Q94VCFvHO4ZnQoyPANlwlX622kVYo7g2LQ2o7PmvYJ5-zb1T0EEhBvpws7s_sIYoIChcwwAvoH99J-zF8Nl/s400/lucasprison.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Several descriptive catch-phrases ran through my mind, <i>Lucas North... Nowhere Man, Mr In Between, The Man Who Never Was. </i>All are fitting, I think, because there are no concise means to capture this enigma in a vortex of illogic that was Lucas' ill-fated storyline and character in <i>Spooks Series 9</i>.<br />
<br />
Many have commented on the complete abrogation of this character by the middle of Series 9 for the sake of introducing a psychopath who can't be a psychopath, imaginatively named Bateman. Who is John Bateman? Lucas' alter ego? A split personality? No, he is a remorseless murderer who dreamed 15 years of a noble and self-sacrificial life as an MI 5 Agent, who, then, willy nilly, went back to killing without conscience for the sake of true love and an innocence he never possessed. It's really a shame that in the spirit of the original psycho, Patrick Bateman, we didn't at least have a gratuitous beefcake shot of the Armitage running naked through the hall with a chainsaw. It wouldn't have seemed out of place. <br />
<br />
The debacle that was <i>Spooks 9</i> has mercifully come to an end.<br />
<br />
One thing that the Armitage did accomplish was to bring Lucas of Series 7 and 8 into stark relief against the vast sky of Lucas' suffering in Series 9. In series 7 and 8, he was a cool customer, his coolness enhanced by the blue tinged photography and smooth surfaces and bright blue eyes. Lucas was amiable, doing his job, had a few quirks like going off the grid, or taking up with Awful Women; he had a few flashbacks and outwitted his torturer. His identity was bound up in being MI 5.<br />
<br />
Still, to me he was just another cipher spook in expectation of a few good years, and a ripsnorter of an ending where, like all good spooks, he would go to heaven in a blaze of glory. What we the audience didn't expect was that his true ending occurred in the complete obliteration of his character, beginning with the first episode of Series 9. More than character assassination, it was as if the creative team replaced Lucas' soul with a small nuclear device called not-Lucas and not only blew Lucas to bits, but vapourised his every atom. After that, not-Lucas, for all his sound and fury, was just an inkblot waiting to be erased. <br />
<br />
Nevertheless, it was in Series 9 that I felt that the Armitage could finally remove himself from the constricted emotion of Lucas in 7 and 8 and strictures of behaviour, to reveal another side, a lacerated soul. Unfortunately, we were to believe that the lacerated soul belonged to not-Lucas, a two dimensional character with no redeeming features, without a mote of "light". By default, I finally paid attention to the character before me.<br />
<br />
Because regardless of who this not-Lucas cipher was meant to be, (to me a cheap knockoff and homage to perhaps the ultimate film psychopath, Patrick Bateman) it was Lucas who was living <i>in extremis</i>, with post traumatic stress full blown. Indeed, this suffering was Lucas' not John's. I finally met his inner life, the life he had always had and stuffed down. And then I fell in love with him. Not because of his suffering but because unlike most of his colleagues, he had become a fully rounded character, human rather than tool.<br />
<br />
In watching this man fall apart, I finally realised the qualities Lucas always, quietly, without fuss, embodied. He possessed tremendous loyalty, a caring for humanity and for individuals, the need to connect and desire for love, fragility, strength of character, self-sacrifice, a sense of humour, courage, a desire for home. He withstood 8 years of torture in a Russian prison and gave nothing away. He was indeed, noble. It is only that kind of man who would suffer the torments of his own mind, his remembrances, not a Bateman cipher.<br />
<br />
Nothing that happened to not-Lucas could ever be tragic. Nothing was. That he escape or died? A mere bagatelle. After all his banging on, not-Lucas slipped quietly away, unmourned. There was nothing tragic about any part of his life. It is even pointless to elaborate on his character because the words that say everything about him is that he was a <u>remorseless murderer</u>. In simplest terms, in tragedy a noble character possesses a fatal flaw or weakness. For example, Othello's jealousy overwhelmed all that was great in him and led to his murder of Desdemona. But not-Lucas? What characteristics did he possess that should lead us to grieve for him? He was just a bit of dark matter.<br />
<br />
One might further ask, what about Lucas? Was he tragic? In the story we were handed, it is psychologically impossible to be both Lucas and John. Technically, I don’t think not-Lucas was a true psychopath because whatever he was, to my knowledge, has not ever been recorded in the annals of psychology. It would have been psychologically unobtainable for him to stop being a psychopath even if he maintained an admirable facade. He would have possessed a secret, depraved life; it is a perversion of all we know about the human psyche for him to sustain 15 years of purity of character.<br />
<br />
What the Armitage showed us, I propose, was Lucas in an alternate universe where the Lucas story continued and John never happened, or at best was the cipher. Even given that alternate universe, Lucas can never be a truly tragic figure unless you are willing to believe that he was possessed. Instead, he is an unfinished figure, stuck in a time warp. He weeps and wails and gnashes his teeth and suffers his memories in a vacuum while Bateman has taken over his story. With the advent of John, the only thing truly tragic about Lucas is that his story was never played out. It was replaced. And Lucas ceased to exist. But all of John's <i>suffering</i> belonged to Lucas and will always belong to Lucas of Series 7 and 8.<br />
<br />
Lucas is not even dignified with any sort of ending, never mind a noble one. He doesn't go out with a bang or a whimper. Meanwhile, the character of Bateman, absurdly, can only pretend to have Lucas' qualities, and pretend to have his emotions and behaviour, like some overgrown sock puppet. When he jumps to his death, one feels nothing, because nothing is there but a blob. Lucas is elsewhere, perhaps in-between, waiting for his story to continue. <br />
<br />
I think that the switch from Lucas as we know him to a psychological and logical grotesque was a betrayal of the character, a betrayal of the audience, and a betrayal of the actor(s). I suspect that some of the suffering that the Armitage showed us was real. I imagine that somewhere inside he felt the hurt.<br />
<br />
Here you have an actor with intelligence, a devotion to his craft, prodigious gifts, able to spin dross into gold (lest we forget Guy of Gisborne), who elevates any material and dreck he is given. Clearly the creative team didn't get that message. Lucas ended up a paper hero, a mere plot device for cheap thrills.<br />
<br />
I recall the Armitage talked about wanting to do a comedy next because he could no longer find any light in the Lucas character. He’s an actor who prides himself on finding dark or light as needed to add dimension. In essence, it’s like saying, Lucas became 2 dimensional. What could be a worse violation of artistic integrity and creativity than that?<br />
<br />
His gifts were used to manipulate the audience emotionally, to make us care for non-Lucas, the black-hearted murderer. It was a betrayal of the actor and his abilities and accomplishment. To have carefully toiled in that garden for 2 seasons, in the light and in the night, nurturing the character, only in turn to witness such scorched earth, thanks to a bunch of fireworks that fly high, make a big bang and fizzle? I bet it hurt.<br />
<br />
This brings me to the last question: was the Armitage a good fit with Spooks? Given the disrespect shown, I have to wonder. Whatever his input, this was a character that could not be salvaged. At least with Guy and Marian, I bought his stabbing of Marian, and I witnessed how genius his acting choice, the motion, so that truly, it looked as if he were reaching for Marian. It is an ingenious and breathtaking moment like that which allows to me to connect with the divine. To act always in adversity, I imagine, is not a good thing.<br />
<br />
All in all, I didn't think the Armitage and <i>Spooks</i> were a good fit, because until Series 9, he truly played a cipher, in great <i>Spooks</i> tradition, I guess. Perhaps the creative team knew that only he could convince an audience of his evil doppelganger. Or at the very least, evoke sympathy. I would say the latter worked for many. But at what cost? At the cost of insulting the intelligence of the actor and some of the audience. At the cost of generating a lot of <a href="http://wiki.fandomwank.com/index.php/Fanwank">fanwank</a> and <a href="http://c19.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=spooks&thread=52069&page=6#1369673">fan</a> <a href="http://wiki.fandomwank.com/index.php/Wank">wankery</a>, a consequence that would make me as a writer, think twice about my laurels. All, as crazy Lucas North said, "chewed up and spat out". It takes a load and a world of cynicism to do that.<br />
<br />
Thanks to his upcoming role in The Hobbit, the commodification of the Armitage brand, (<a href="http://www.bestweekever.tv/2010-11-19/the-smart-girls-guide-to-the-sexiest-men-alive/">VH1 beefcake, anyone?</a>) continues apace. I dislike it. Yet at the same time, he just got off the <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/stars-take-on-24-hours-play-gala-challenge-2140168.html">Old Vic stage</a>. My head is spinning. Guarding the treasure becomes harder. All of us long for another <i>North & South</i>, where integrity was the simple and complete order of the day, and for the Armitage, it was a perfect fit. You know it when you experience it. Perhaps it will never happen again, but I live in hope. Perhaps now, having endured slings, arrows and artistic betrayals, the treasure gets to shine again and reach greater heights taking risks and acting out of the box instead of treading water. Perhaps this time, the creative team will consider the gem they have and treat him and his talent accordingly. I can dream. I bet he does too.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, Lucas continues to be.<br />
<br />
As for future <i>Spooks</i>? Along with the evil not-Lucas, you are officially obliterated.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhveQRdGDr2o9jbf-5Rr4u0XRTLVHYNPDvpB9gCH0NSFfkgtBdk6HhA4H2n4erm25h8wIEpdO8uhucvGGztdMZIFJSHW2Dee4ahUCWGRg6c_TC0hmgZ2_7I12US0zYmP7Mp36VGvj85dzpi/s1600/lucas+smiling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhveQRdGDr2o9jbf-5Rr4u0XRTLVHYNPDvpB9gCH0NSFfkgtBdk6HhA4H2n4erm25h8wIEpdO8uhucvGGztdMZIFJSHW2Dee4ahUCWGRg6c_TC0hmgZ2_7I12US0zYmP7Mp36VGvj85dzpi/s200/lucas+smiling.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-18174172893841441852010-10-25T10:37:00.000-07:002010-10-25T10:43:47.115-07:00The Fear FactorThis post was inspired by comments from all over the net and especially at<a href="http://armitagefanblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/fame-game.html"> Nat's marvellous site.</a><br />
<br />
Some admirers of the Armitage have expressed a certain ambivalence and anxiety about what the future holds for him once Hollywood is in the mix. Many of us see him as someone we can relate to. No doubt he is a private person and not remotely enamoured of himself, unlike many of his fans who love him to bits. That just adds to his mystique.<br />
<br />
I think some of us (and that includes myself) see the Armitage as a beacon of light and decency in a progressively artificial, utilitarian and soulless world. His gifts are divine, to be treasured, not simply exploited or utilised. He seems a decent human being. He is friendly with and grateful for his admirers. It, therefore, would be a shame for his light to dim in some manner, a manner we fear but can't articulate. He, in a way, is us. <br />
<br />
Unfortunately, we don't know how his mind works when it comes to motives and personal goals, so that creates some anxiety. I think he will manage better than we.<br />
<br />
My fear is that any genuine responses from him will fade over time and be taken over by a certain glibness. Whether protective or not, I would find that dismaying. Further, will his self-admitted people pleasing get him into trouble, dampen his interface with the world?<br />
<br />
Will Hollywood's gain be our loss? Will he end up like <i>Stephen Moyer</i> in a gratuitous soft porn flick like <i>True Blood</i>, or like <i>Colin Firth</i>, basking in Academy Award potential with his latest, <i>The King's Speech? </i><br />
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It's always wonderful to have something to believe in. To believe that virtue triumphs over the not so virtuous. To believe that someone's talent will be discovered and given its due, with great respect. To believe that there are human beings on this earth who can withstand success and not be corrupted by it, and who can resist having their talents despoiled. That integrity trumps everything.<br />
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Hollywood can highlight some things, but can diminish even the greatest of gifts. Hollywood demands conformity. I think a lot depends on how canny he is, and how grounded. To me, his is an unknown quantity in that department when push comes to shove.<br />
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He is us. He has been the underdog for so long and we have rooted for him and larger recognition. Well, it's here. Amazingly. And we are ecstatic, a little pixillated, bemused, and a touch worried.<br />
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We will get to see him on our screens for the rest of our lives- that is a surety now. That's what we as the audience are guaranteed to get. It's a double-edged sword, though. Perhaps one day he will no longer be us.pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1794963383794093649.post-51779444924981379372010-10-23T03:44:00.000-07:002010-10-23T15:19:29.657-07:00He's Made It! Big Break or Big Ache?<i>He put in his thumb</i><br />
<i>And pulled out a plum</i><br />
<i>And said, "What a good boy am I!"</i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> ~ <i>Little Jack Horner rhyme </i></span><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This "good boy" just won the movie sweepstakes.<i></i> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In all the worlds in all the universes, no one could have imagined or predicted that The Armitage would be aiming for or land a role of seismic proportions and reverberations such as the role of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorin_Oakenshield"><i>Thorin Oakenshield</i></a> in the much anticipated, Peter Jackson directed film, <i>The Hobbit. </i> Confusion of a sort reigned when it was announced earlier that he was playing a minor villain in a major comic book movie. His own words regarding a role in the future were revealing yet cryptic. Somewhere there is a role involving deep, dark water. Somewhere there is a related and anticipated press release. We remain none the wiser.</div><br />
The entire internet universe is atwitter. When I say "universe", I mean every technologically sophisticated country in the real world. That's a lot of exposure. <br />
<br />
<span class="indent">I'm enjoying the comments of Tolkien book/film fanatics. I especially love the following comment by <a href="http://www.iwatchstuff.com/2010/10/martin_freeman_officially_bilb.php"><i>frank</i></a>, echoed by some others: <i>Martin Freeman is beyond perfect, of course. I dunno about Richard Armitage, though. Lookin' at the guy in other roles doesn't scream "grizzled, confrontational dwarf" to me, but then I'm not Peter Jackson.</i></span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">No, <i>frank</i>, you are not Peter Jackson. But I can't explain to you either about how your doubts might be alleviated without sounding about 14 years old and telling you that the Armitage will own the role and probably own the picture. I won't say that because though I might believe it, I cannot predict that this will happen. But then a lot of people didn't believe in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretariat_%28horse%29">Secreteriat</a>, so maybe I will tell you outright that I believe that Richard Armitage will own the film. Yeah.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">Neither being a fan of Tolkien or a fan of the films (though I did enjoy them), I have difficulty imagining the long-legged, 6 foot 2 inch Richard Armitage as a dwarf. But then I suppose I imagine dwarves in a way that Tolkien did not. I also imagine dwarves all looking like <i>Gimli </i>from the <i>Lord of the Rings</i> trilogy. The cast announcement suggests, however, that the company of dwarves is rather replete with the pretty so I am scratching my head about the point of it all.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">I also mourn the aesthetic loss of gazing upon a pleasing countenance and limbs. In other words, I don't get to go breathless while indulging in his beauty, as if this were a bad thing (well, according to Himself it is). To me, in no particular order, this is <b><u style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ache#1</u>. </b>Beauty is such a wonderful thing to celebrate and I will miss that. I bless beauty every day. As an aside, Himself should get a clue and understand what a gift he possesses in that department and just be damned grateful and get over himself.</span><br />
<span class="indent"> <b><br />
</b></span><br />
<span class="indent">In a recent interview The Armitage proclaimed he was ready to be the "Elephant Man". We know he has long chafed at the heartthrob label. Okay, I will empathise. It is hard being handsome when you want to be taken seriously. Often, it is not his admirers who do this as much as the media, so I sometimes wonder whom he is really fighting, his "army" of female admirers or lazy reporters and journalists. Often, he has bared his upper bod and then cried foul when it came to that same admiration- I've said it before and I'll keep saying it because it is confusing. Personally, I think admirers of his acting get short shrift. He thinks <i>he's</i> being stereotyped????</span><br />
<span class="indent"><br />
</span><br />
This is the <a href="http://www.movies.spoilertv.com/2010/01/hobbit-casting-call.html">official casting call </a>description of this plum role: <i><span class="indent">Powerfully built and a legendary fighter, Thorin has led a tough and dangerous life and it shows on his face. He is sharp eyed and sharp tongued, proud in his bearing and un-trusting of those he does not know. But Thorin is also capable of intense loyalty, immense courage and surprising gentleness and humour.</span></i><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">A piece of cake for The Armitage. But that's such a given and not really newsworthy. Yet, it makes my heart leap. I bought all three series of the <i>Robin Hood</i> DVDs practically sight unseen in order to see what he made of <i>Guy of Gisborne</i> and was not disappointed. It was a tour de force and no matter how cheesy it all seemed, he saw the opportunity to show a vast range of emotion and behaviour, rather operatic at times. Such a breathtaking role and yet, for me, apart from the aesthetic, a true character study and evolution, hidden behind and in spite of a mask of leather and guyliner. I love the actor's willful and creative defiance of the role. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">So, it is <i>very </i>newsworthy that this is the role of endless breakout possibility for him. This is <i><u>the</u></i> character role for him. This is the role of real challenge. He gets to hide and to project. This is the time of celebration for him. This. Is. It. For <i>him</i>.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">And the question is, will we buy it? How exciting is that? <i>Thorin Oakenshield</i> is his wished for <i>Elephant Man</i>. And he knows it. A dream come true. And will Hollywood buy it, all the bigshots and bigwigs, all those who make or break? He is now in the "in" crowd. Such <i>cachet</i>.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">Not to mention the other major and big connections. If Cate Blanchett (his dream casting) appears in the film, well that is so much closer to heaven, isn't it? The networking is mindboggling. This is huge, so huge. This is big, so big. This is the alpha and omega, the make or break. Seriously, it sounds nuts, but Hollywood is still the Holy Grail for aspiring and ambitious actors. I guess, The Armitage is one such actor...majorly ambitious. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">I also want to extend a shout out, applause, to his agent who came through for him. There was a plan and a trajectory. Much better than not knowing. Still, I feel cheated. Because The Armitage mentioned a play for the summer of 2011. I do believe by the time of that interview he knew that he had secured the part in <i>The Hobbit. </i>So, what gives?</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">And so....</span><br />
<span class="indent"> </span><br />
<span class="indent"><b><u style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ache #2</u>. </b> Good-bye. </span><br />
<span class="indent"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="indent">I am a relative newbie to the Armitage sphere. I am impressed by the long and longsuffering loyalty of some of his admirers. So very long. The current euphoria for his sake is palpable. I feel it too. He has been a cherished treasure. Professionally and personally. A small lambent treasure, covert, undiscovered. And now he is discovered and has become big. One can't stem the flow of events. </span><br />
<span class="indent"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="indent">Good-bye to the secret treasure. It will never be the same again.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">We will be inundated with something else. And it will be BIG.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">So I salute all you diehard Richard Armitage admirers, all your sweet moments and all your adoring missives. I salute all your love and devotion, the wishing and the hoping. I salute all those who worried about his career (and I did, too). Your faith has borne fruit.</span><br />
<span class="indent"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="indent">I feel ambivalent. I feel loss. It will never be the same again. I loved the small crowd. I don't know how long I will hang around, now. Hollywood and the man have met. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="indent">Nevertheless....</span><br />
<span class="indent"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="indent"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/delicateblossomvideo#p/u/10/4aZV6YjipO0">It's Amazing (FanVid)</a></span>pihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07101335588855131315noreply@blogger.com9