Clearing my head
Various things. I owe a lot of emails. And I’ve been grading, and am not finished … five class days till Spring Break.
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Most important: FanstRAvaganza is right around the corner!
Late breaking development: bccmee, she of the gorgeous videos, is going to join the event with her much anticipated guest post here — that is, after she agreed to do the guest post, she started her own blog, and after some talking back and forth, I encouraged her to consider and she eventually agreed that her guest post material would be perfect for that event. So it’s going to be appearing in about a week, in her own space. I’ve seen it and YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE IT! So stay tuned. It’s only about ten days away now.
The other FanstRA bloggers are:
An RA Viewer’s Perspective (Mulubinba)
The Spooks Fan Blog (Skully)
The Squeee! (Traxy)
Avalon’s Blog (Avalon)
Phylly’s Faves (Phylly)
RA Frenzy (Frenz)
The Richard Armitage Fan Blog – (Nat)
From the Quill Tip (Sarah)
CDoart: Richard Armitage & History & Spooks (CDoart)
Mesmered’s Blog (Prue) [blog has been deleted, 3/27/15]
White Rose Writings (Musa)
Confessions of a Watcher (Judiang)
Thanks in advance to Nat and Traxy for organizing all this fun!
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Brain full last night after an exhausting week, I went over the house of a friend for red wine, pizza, spinach salad, and Middlemarch (BBC, 1994). We watched the first three hours and loved them — can’t wait to finish it up with her. I’d read the book sometime in the mid-1990s while living in Germany and completely forgotten it. Thanks for the loan of the DVD to My Friend and Colleague the Former Cambridge Professor.
Scenes from Middlemarch involving Rufus Sewell
Came in to the office today and he asked me how it was. Wonderful! Then he asked me if my loyalties to Mr. Armitage were waning in favor of Rufus Sewell. Well, Rufus Sewell is cute; indeed, Dear Friend introduced me to him via Cold Comfort Farm a few months ago. But to me he doesn’t offer the viewer anywhere near the depth and layering in his characterizations and performances that we get from Richard Armitage. If you asked me why I think that, I’d probably answer that I think Mr. Sewell relies (and lets the viewer see that he is relying) on his beauty and his entrancing eyes. We never see Mr. Armitage doing that; it’s like he has no awareness at all of how he looks when he’s acting. So no, not switching allegiances. The performer who most got my attention in this was Juliet Aubrey. Even Dear Friend’s partner agreed, and I quote: “the only way Middlemarch could have been better would be if Richard Armitage were in it.” He may have had his tongue in cheek when he was saying that, though. He’s always so kind to me.
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But no, Armitagemania is not letting up. It’s changing form in some ways, but it’s just as intense as ever.
The still ridiculously amazing Richard Armitage, in a cap from the “Downfall of Lucas North” feature on the Spooks 9 DVD set. I don’t have mine yet, O Royal Mail, but I couldn’t resist looking at the caps at Richard Armitage Net.
Another cap from the same gallery that I loved. Source: Richard Armitage Net
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Career stress is now front and center on the Servetus table. I continue to believe that I’ve basically made the right decisions, so far, but there is that nagging little detail of impending unemployment. Lately I’ve been thinking of these two jokes:
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During a great flood, a man stood in front of his house. Just as he was losing faith, a boat arrived and offered help. He replied, “I’m waiting for G-d to save me.” Gradually the flood waters rose, so he climbed to the roof. Just as he was losing faith, a second boat arrived to offer help. He thought for a second and replied, “I’m waiting for G-d to save me.”
So he waited as the flood waters rose to his waist. In deepest despair, he started to pray. As he prayed, a helicopter arrived to save him. Without batting an eye, he shooed it away, yelling, “I’m waiting for G-d to save me.”
After he drowned, the man went to heaven. Standing before G-d he asked, “G-d, why didn’t you save me?” G-d shook his head and asked, “Didn’t you get the two boats and the helicopter I sent?”
***
(For some reason this joke is a lot funnier in Yiddish, especially the punch line: (“Moishe, gib mir a Chance, keuf dir a los”). I’ve linked to words that may not be familiar to non-Jews:
Moishe was down because he was overdue on his bills and threatened with eviction. So he went to shul and prayed, “Ha-Shem, I know I don’t do this a lot, but I need your help. I need some money. Please let me win the lottery. I trust in you.” Moishe left, hopeful that he’d soon see results.
A week went by and he didn’t win, so he went back to shul and prayed, “Okay, ha-Shem, I know you’re busy and I haven’t been very frum, but I really need the money. They’ve turned off my electricity and I need food. Please let me win the lottery. I’ll be good. I’ll daven, I’ll follow the mitzvot.”
Another week went by, and he didn’t win. He went back to shul and prayed, “Ha-Shem, I’m disappointed. I didn’t win the lottery and I really need the money. I’ve been evicted, my mother needs surgery, and I no longer have a job. I promise that if you let me win, I’ll go to minyan every day, I’ll keep kosher, and I’ll give half my winnings to the poor, if you want I’ll even make aliyah, just please let me win the lottery.”
As he left shul, the clouds opened up and a booming voice could be heard, which said, “Moishe, ya’ gotta help me out here. Buy a lottery ticket.”
***
I spend a lot of time praying for discernment: G-d, tell me what to do, tell me what your will is for me. A couple of weeks ago something happened that could either be interpreted as an invitation to fall into temptation or the first boat going by. This afternoon, something happened that (if I believe that the first event was the first boat going by) could look an awful lot like the second boat. Or, to mix metaphors: Monday at 1:45 comes my chance to buy a ticket.
Me + Richard Armitage 
Well, now I am intrigued, Servetus, over this new development . . . may all go well for you, my friend. Coincidentally, I was about to start watching Middlemarch on my laptop tonight but it wouldn’t play. Bummer. Sometimes the overseas vids work and sometimes they don’t.
I cried over the Mayor of Casterbridge last week (that Jodhi May really has a way of getting to me, I am telling you. Have you seen Bye, Bye Blackbird yet? Very lovely photography and quite surreal—another good performance from her).
Rufus Sewell is quite gorgeous but I agree, I think he knows it and relies on those good looks quite a lot.
I get the impression Richard doesn’t give a toss over how he looks. I was snaffling some of the new N&S screencaps from RANet earlier and noting how he will make some of the most unattractive faces at times–thinking of the thrashing scene in the mill–and I admire him for that. He’s completely caught up in the role.
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You can find almost all of Middlemarch (except, oddly, the very first ten minutes) on youtube, though with your watching situation that may not be very helpful information.
I just put Casterbridge in my netflix queue — which is frighteningly long —
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Yeah, with my so NOT high-speed DSL, watching much of anything on YT is a chore–everything has to buffer. I remember I watched Spooks 7 on YT by staying later at the office and watching it there where I had a decent connection . . . oh, the good old days of Spooks.
You’ll enjoy Casterbridge, I think. Juliet Aubrey is also in that. And Ciaran Hinds is really good in the title role. Of course, it would have been even better if RA had been in it, LOL! 😀
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I also watched Spooks 7 at the office – I recall that a kind soul put all of it on YouTube! I even watched 7.8 during offive hours, when I had no work to do…*blush*. Hard to believe Spooks is over now for me 😦
I must watch Middlemarch – it is one of my favourite classics!
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Oh, yes, bless that person’s heart for loading it all on YT! I truly awaited every ep with bated breath and sat on the edge of my chair,trying to keep from chewing on my nails. I know what you mean, Nietzsche. It’s like an era in my life is over. 😦
I will actually make use of my region-free player this time around instead of trying to watch on my laptop while hanging out with the hubs and view another one of my BBC period dramas today . . . later, after I actually get some decent sleep. Two hours doesn’t cut it!
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Dear Prof Serv, I will join you in prayers for discernment. One can never have too many prayer partners, I always say. For some reason, I could hear Joey Bisshop telling the Jewish version of this old joke. (Was he even Jewish? Must look that up.) Love it!!
I am so looking forward to FanstRAvaganza and all that it entails! Kinda feels like my first prom…or pep rally in high school. Thanks ahead of time to all your bloggers who are participating!!!
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My prayers can use all the support you can give them, NovemberBride. Many thanks.
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I was wondering where Bccmee’s guest post was 😉
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yeah, I’m sorry about that. I’m still learning about this medium, and one thing that differentiates it very strongly from the print venues I usually publish in is that plans change very quickly. I had invited bccmee to do the post at a time when she didn’t have a blog and never thought she would. So the moral of the story is: don’t predict what’s ever going to happen here 🙂
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oh, and welcome both to this blog, and to the blogosphere 🙂
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Thanks! And I understand.
BTW, who made that poster for Fanstravaganza? I’t’s excellent.
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A well known blogger who wishes neither to be mentioned nor credited nor linked, unfortunately 😦
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As servetus said, things happened very quickly! I would have never written these particular posts were it not for her invitation to be a guestblogger. Suddenly, because of the temporary removal of one of my videos from YouTube, I had to quickly find a new home for it. A blog is born! So servetus kindly suggested that I use my posts on my own blog and she invited me to also join the celebrations at FanstRAvaganza. I’m very grateful for the opportunity. Thanks for all the support in the community!
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I was wondering about the guest posts too, Bccmee, and glad to know it was for such a good reason! Good luck with your blog and keep up the great work with the vids–you’ve got a real talent there.
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I keep my fingers crossed for you on Monday.
G#d has his own way of doing and setting things right. I always learn and experience it the hard way, because I never believe it the first time.
A former colleague told me a joke lately: ‘Do you know how to make G#d laugh? Tell him what you have planned for your future.’
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and thumbs pressed? 🙂
Thanks for the encouragement. If my life is any indication your friend is absolutely right.
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Yes, I will press my thumb (the left one, as it is closer to the heart). Good luck!
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High hopes for Monday! Doors do open. Perhaps elements of the future include, among other things, calculated risks and adaptation.
I do love Jewish humour, and cheeky Irish humour, and mordant Scottish humour (some Hamish MacBeth comes to mind).
Re: Bccmee, brilliant videos! One posted last week – the short-short on the bad side of Gisborne, spoke so eloquently so briefly.
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Thanks, fitzg!
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That was a brilliant little vid on Gizzy, wasn’t it, Fitzg? So many really talented people out there in the fandom–I think it speaks very highly of RA that he draws such a gifted, creative and fun group of fans!!
Also I LOVE Hamish MacBeth. And all sorts of humor.
And I do hope Servetus’ MOnday goes very well. I am thinking about you now, my dear. Fingers crossed!!
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Just a wee bit of information fitzg. You more than likely know that the village known as “Lochdubh” in Hamish MacBeth is actually called Plockton, but what you won’t know is that my family and I lived there for five years. It wasn’t filmed there until long after we had left but it was lovely to see the village again and streets and houses that were well known to us. The little shop used as the village store is owned in RL by a friend of ours! We got great fun out of watching them racing along Harbour Street when supposedly leaving the village but they were actually going in the wrong direction as that way leads to a dead end eventually!! Hope that doesn’t spoil anything for you. It is truly a beautiful village – some say THE most beautiful in Scotland and because of the influence of the Gulf Stream, temperatures are pretty mild – hence all the palm trees that grow there!
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That had to be a cool experience to see the village where you once lived on the telly. That was such a charming show. I really enjoyed it! The scenery was also such a bonus.
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I’ll be pulling for you on Monday. Love the lottery joke.
As to Rufus Sewell, I completely forgot he was in Middlemarch. Have you recently seen him in Zen in which he plays detective Aurelio Zen? I’m going to have disagree about him relying his looks, at least now. I didn’t get that in Zen and he’s nearing an age where that starts seeming a bit sad.
I’m even going to court heresy by saying RA is fully aware of his looks in roles/scenes that call for it. For example in RH, the head tilts, hair flicks, poses, smirking and penetrating stares would have been vintage pretty boy baddie panto had he not been so good an actor. So while he doesn’t primarily rely on his looks to drive the scene home, he definitely uses them if it works to his advantage.
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I haven’t seen Sewell in more recent stuff, so maybe he is growing as an actor–Middlemarch was made several years ago, after all.
Yes, after a certain point, relying on looks alone becomes pathetic. Especially when actors attempt to freeze in time their appearance, only they don’t look young so much as they look done.
When I say Richard doesn’t give a toss about his looks, I mean in the sense he doesn’t feel as if he’s GOT to look pretty or handsome or cute at all times, whereas certain actors appear to always take that into account. They want to be seen in their best light. As if they aren’t fully confident enough in their acting abilities to allow themselves to look less than the glossy movie star.
When the part demands it, he is willing to use facial expressions or gestures that are not what most people would term “attractive.”
I ran across some tonight of him as Mr. Thornton where he almost looked like a vampire in a couple, and not in a romantic Twilight one, either LOL And Guy made some seriously unattractive faces at times.
He always uses the weapons in his acting arsenal, so to speak, to take on the challenge of each new role, and among those weapons are his expressive facial features, his commanding physical presence and yes, his hair. The man can hair act with the best of them!!
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@angieklong: Not only his facial expressions and his facial features, let us not forget his facial hair! 😉
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Oh, yes, bccmee, he works the facial hair, too. Without a doubt! The Beard that Launched a Thousand Blogs, Fan Poetry, Art Manips and Much More.
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I agree that no matter what he says (and perhaps he wouldn’t care if he weren’t an actor) he knows about his looks and knows they are part of his capital. He may say that he wants to be a character actor not judged by his looks, but he does his best to preserve and enhance his looks. If he wouldn’t do that he could pass as ordinary looking, middle aged, slightly overweight, perhaps slightly greying – but he hasn’t done that so far.
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If he weren’t an actor, I don’t think he’d be working out to the degree he does and I am pretty sure his hair would still be its natural color, perhaps with a touch of grey by now. He likely wouldn’t have bothered to get his teeth fixed, either. But he IS an actor, a very ambitious and dedicated one, who wants as many good acting opportunities to come his way as possible.
And that means staying fit and working to preserve that unique beauty of his and looking as youthful as possible when it’s needed, so no grey hairs allowed.
However, I don’t foresee him ever going the route of Botox/plastic surgery because I think the idea of taking any of the mobility and expressiveness of his face away would be totally unacceptable for him. He have his expression lines and crinkles and he’s wisely left them alone.
I have noticed that fellow former Spook Matthew MacFayden seems to be moving in looks from leading man material into more of a character actor phase.
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Every time I see high res pics or something like I’m relieved that the lines around his eyes are still intact, so apparently no botox yet. There is a line between caring about one’s appearance and cheating and botox is for me where cheating starts.
I agree about MM, he’s younger than RA but has already moved to middle aged character parts and gets cast older than he is. A receding hairline helps in his case.
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Me, too, Jane–seeing those lines around his eyes and his furrowed brow gives me a feeling of relief and appreciation, somehow. There are enough plastic-faced people in the entertainment field already.
I use a variety of lotions and potions myself now that I have hit the big 5-0, but I can’t see injecting a toxin into my face or going under the knife in an effort to stall Father Time. I would rather use preventative care and grow older gracefully, if possible.
MM was in Any Human Heart and I was really struck by how stodgy and middle-aged he looked in comparison with Richard. His hairline and the fact his skin is not aging well, it seems, combine to make him look older than he is.
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But it doesn’t hurt MM, and getting older hasn’t hurt Colin Firth either – in fact it gets them more serious roles. Or some other actors that have always been more ordinary looking than RA that got parts that I wish RA had gotten instead of his hunky leading man roles. We will see were RA stands after the Hobbit. I feel an awful lot depends on the make up design for Thorin.
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Yes, it will be interesting to see what Thorin looks like.
Honestly, though, I see no reason for Richard not to remain a busy actor with some good roles to choose from, considering his versitality, his wonderful instrument of a voice (he could earn a decent living from his voice talents alone) and his dedication to his craft–whether he’s looks “ordinary” or not. To me personally, he will never look ordinary, because of the extraordinary person inside the skin.
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I agree with you, angieklong, I think the alterations he has made to his appearance show that he does think about his looks, but I don’t think he is vain – he is driven by the ambition to act. Just so long as he doesn’t do anything to his nose! It’s so much part of the character of his face that I couldn’t bear to see it changed. The Beard has me lost in awe, however.
I also hate the waxy look that comes from too much Botox. I watch Desperate Housewives and it’s occasionally hilarious seeing the cast members trying to convey an emotion.
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Oh, yes, leave that nose alone!! It’s beautiful in its majestic, masculine aquilineness . . . a treasure. 😀
Loving the beard, too. Goes so well with his testosterone-fueled lope. 😉
Richard strikes me as the kind of guy who will indeed do what he needs to in order to remain suitable to play a greater variety of roles–I think he would kick himself if a really good role that needed to be played by someone who could pass for their early 30s came along and he felt he hadn’t taken proper care of his appearance enough to be able to pull it off. I don’t think he is vain, either.
Oh, yes, that wierd, shiny, just stepped out of Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum look from too much Botox or too tight a lift. It’s very off-putting to me. I don’t watch DH but every time I see some of the actresses on it claiming they don’t do anything to enhance their looks, I giggle uncontrollably.
As if it weren’t patently obvious!!
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I agree that is every is every indication that Mr. Armitage has long been a committed, dedicated and progressive actor. The utterly exhaustive schedule of work from TV to audiobooks and other vocal work attests to that. Not to forget slipping in interviews when called.
Indications, too, that he doesn’t lack intelligence. He seems perfectly aware of the effect of his distinctive looks and maintains them through fitness and skin and hair care to remain competivive. He’s equally aware of the necessity of an audience for an actor. He has many gifts and wisely makes use of them.
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He’s a very canny, savvy individual, without a doubt. Good for him for having the foresight and discipline for making the most of what he’s been given. He’s an admirable guy in a lot of ways.
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I’ve seen Middlemarch… sorry it didn’t appeal to me. None of the actors/actresses (characters) are worth dissecting especially Rufus cousin, the bald headed guy whose role is so revolting towards his younger wife.
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We liked it a lot because of the way the script takes apart the question of what makes a good marriage. But I agree, the individual performances apart from Juliet Aubrey are not especially breathtaking.
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Middlemarch was a landmark production at the time it was made because it marked a significant increase in production values for BBC dramas. I watched it in first broadcast and thoroughly enjoyed it. I always wanted to see more of Rufus Sewell but he only seemed to turn up playing villains for the most part. I don’t think his full potential has ever been realised.
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Without having seen most of his work, I can imagine how that would be true just based on Middlemarch. His beauty is IMO so conventional and so obvious that one imagines he’s been typecast.
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I hope to watch it later this week. I ended up watching The Way We Live Now tonight. Loved Paloma Baeza, Elisaveta in Spooks in this. It made me wish the people at Spooks had used her as the woman from Lucas’s past that comes back into his life and puts him in a difficult situation, torn between helping her out of some sort of serious jam and doing his duty to MI-5 . . . it would have all made so much more sense. *sigh*
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Thanks for the link to my Spooks gallery, glad you like it. Hope you won’t have too long to wait for your DVD.
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like it? LOVE it.
amazon.co.uk said predicted delivery beginning March 11. that’s just fine, really — it’s the Friday of our Spring Break. Servetus anticipates a whole day snugged up watching the episodes all in a row. Perhaps with a box of Shiraz 🙂
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You are a braver and more dispassionate person than I, Servetus. Still can’t bear the thought of putting myself through watching one ep, never mind the entire series in one go.
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@servetus, Praying for all good things for you…faith, courage and wisdom…all resulting in happiness and contentment.
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Thanks. I’m grateful for your prayers. (Or, as we say in Texas, I covet them …)
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If you’re looking for classic serials, I recommend the BBC’s Bleak House. Sadly no RA, but an excellent cast with Gillian Anderson from the X Files as Lady Dedlock. It’s told in short episodes, as Charles Dickens wrote it for magazine publication. The suspense leads you from episode to episode.
I loved Juliet Aubry in Middlemarch as well, and still look out for her in other parts.
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Lostinagoodbook,
I love that version of Bleak House, I wasn’t able to see all of it when it aired on Masterpiece, so I later ordered the DVDs. Excellent performances all around, with Gillian a haunting, brittle beauty as Lady Dedlcok. Denis Lawson, Winchester in RH, is also in it.
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I also like that Aubrey seems to have principles — objecting to unnecessary nudity, e.g.
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I really disliked Aubrey’s character in Primeval, and I totally loved her in The Mayor of Casterbridge. Tremendously different roles. Look forward to seeing her in Middlemarch.
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I’m happy to have discussion on Richard Armitage’s self concept, I just want to point out my original statement was:
“I’d probably answer that I think Mr. Sewell relies (and lets the viewer see that he is relying) on his beauty and his entrancing eyes. We never see Mr. Armitage doing that; it’s like he has no awareness at all of how he looks when he’s acting.”
I was not saying that Armitage does not care how he looks either personally or for the purpose of particular roles (that would be silly, given how much time we know he spends working out and how much money it looks like he’s spent on his teeth), or that how he looks does not form part of his acting, but rather that he acts without conscious self-reference to his appearance, which IMO is not true of Sewell in Middlemarch. Guy of Gisborne is conscious of his appearance, but it’s Guy who’s conscious, not Armitage. This seems to me fundamentally different to Sewell’s portrayal of Will Ladislaw in Middlemarch. Not knowing Sewell’s entire oeuvre, of course, he may have changed this MO more recently, but the clips I’ve seen of him in Pillars do not change my impression substantially 🙂
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Exactly–Guy is quite vain; I write him so in Sloth Fiction, but I don’t see RA as being so in RL. I think we’ve established his physicality is invariably going to play a part in his performances because he seems to bring in everything at the table and makes use of it to craft a character. John Mulligan makes great use of those beautiful blue eyes and that engaging grin to charm his victims. Guy works his mane of hair in S3 to show everything from guilt and shame to pride and arrogance.
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Sorry to come late to the party – have been in transit all day. Servetus, I hope good things come of your Monday opportunity. They say fortune favors the bold, do they not?
Oh, Rufus Sewell! I distinctly recall fanning myself over his Will Ladislaw back in my college days. Nowadays he tends to play the creepily handsome bad guy – still working his looks, you might say, but for different ends.
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That first cap you have from the Spooks 9 extras – he looks amazingly beautiful – wow! Thud!
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As much as I hated most things about Spooks 9–I have no complaints about how Richard looked. He was more beautiful than ever IMHO. *thud*
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Exactly. What irony. Nevertheless I am not going to watch it again, and I do hope that TPTB don’t drag Lucas’s memory through the mud, although I am not very optimistic.
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Me, organising? I’ve not really helped with that, I just set up the shared file. 🙂
Welcome aboard, bccmee! Will be fun to see what you’ll be posting about! Only a week to go now! 😀
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That google doc has been wonderful, Traxy! It really has helped with organization. 🙂
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What? No link to clip? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spW2kvNzJvM
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@Violet….thanks for the link. Several thoughts on this subject…did they make this after the fact, most notably after the fan outrage of Lucas’ demise…sort of a justification? I’m not trying to open up an old can of worms, understand. Lots of things became clearer as I watched this vid. And maybe I’m just mellowing out….
RA talking about his character/s, Lucas/John, was really interesting, with this quote really hitting home, “So it’s all about recreating himself but at the same time, not losing the truth inside.” The part about blending Lucas and John into one character really was point on…a “chimera”. Not being a Spooks fan until season 9 then going back to view season 7 & 8, I think I lost Lucas’ trail..or never had it? But it seems to me that the writers were preparing the whole Lucas thing from the get go instead of my original take; that they deconstructed Lucas as a whim/excuse re: the scene with SC in season 8 where she’s pulled a gun on him and he realizes that she’s going to kill herself and says, “Take me with you.” Whoa! No, I didn’t like seeing Lucas/John spiraling out of control, but then is it EVER entertaining to watch such in real life?
One thing that really jumped out at me were the scenes of John Bateman as a young man. How the heck did RA pull that off? It was amazing. The man actually looked like a teeny bopper in those scenes. Thus RA’s physicality, once more. Outstanding!
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I saw some pics taken by fans who watched filming of the embassy scene and in that RA did not look twenty-five, he looked his age, if not older and understandably tired after a long hot day. So I think he is “acting young”.
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NOvemberbride,
Darling, I would love to give the writers more credit, but having been privy to more of the commuentaries made (and some were made before the eps aired and some after) I don’t think they had things quite as well thought out in advance as they would like for viewers to believe. And we have to remember Richard is NEVER going to publicly blast these people. Not his style.
His description of Lucas’s demise as an “elegant, non-violent death?” Erm–no. Plunging to your death from a high-rise to presumably bounce off a parked car and set off an alarm, believing you are “nothing” is neither elegant or non-violent.
I have no problem believing Lucas could have had some dark secrets or could have been pulled into something he shouldn’t for compelling reasons–but Moody Maya was so not compelling, sorry. Their shoddy editing practice on this series left far too many holes they assumed we would all fill in. Well, Laila Rouass simply isn’t good enough an actress to help us fill in the gaps, and RA can’t do it all.
I guess what I am saying is, I don’t buy the bill of goods they are trying to sell us with these extras.
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This is an interview with the writers who obviously knew that they would anger a few fans: http://www.cultbox.co.uk/interviews/exclusives/665-sam-vincent-a-jonathan-brackley-spooks-interview
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The phrase “elegant, non-violent death” refers to a non graphic death. So no dying scene, which I feared I would to be forced to watch. And as the writers say in the cultbox interview, each character in the Spooks series is unique and therefore has it´s own unique death scene (on or off screen). To get a chance to be dying off screen, To be granted an implicit death like Conny´s and Ros´, when most characters are killed on screen, appears to be a reward in itself.
This inspiring discussion on the story arch of Lucas North is fuel for a entire new post and hope to get to see one soon.
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OK, granted we didn’t see him die in a hail of bullets or an explosion, etc. But hearing the SOUNDS left plenty to my imagination and none of it was elegant or non-violent. I cannot bear the thought of watching it again. Also, this was a whimpering, whinging, boy-man who considered himself “nothing” and so took his own life.
A very small reward if you want to see it that way, I suppose.
There was more honor in the way Connie died. And of course Ros went out a hero.
This series had its moments; but in my view it was largely a ratings stunt more concerned with shock and excitement than psychological plausibility.
I know one practicing psychologist who considers the entire Lucas/John storyline to be complete poppycock. I kept hoping they were going to pull it out from week to week, make sense of it all; but that never happened. It just got worse and more soap opera-like every week.
I have to wonder if this hatchet job had been done on Harry or Ruth instead of Lucas, just how people who have reacted?
(oh, I know, I know, they would never have been brave and daring enough to do that because there is no Spooks without Harry . . . but boy, it would have been shocking and exciting!)
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How about this scenario – have Harry fall off the roof accidentally and the REAL Lucas take over as MI-5 boss!! WE would have been delighted to put HIS name forward for a knighthood!! He is after all OUR knight in shining armour!! “Sir” Lucas has a nice ring to it!! Brings another “Sir” to mind. It’s okay, I know this is silly and it wouldn’t be a story line they would have gone for but we can dream can’t we??:)
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Listen, Teuchter,
I think almost anything we could come up with would be just as, if not more plausible than what they stuck us with . . . and I like YOUR version better, anyway. 😀
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@angieklong
I completely agree with you. The explanations given in the extras of the DVD do not make any more sense to me than Spooks 9 itself or what I knew beforehand. I was really disappointed, that no explanation was given for all the holes in the story. I thought, perhaps RA could fill the gaps, but no, just what we knew already and at least I could absolutely not believe.
It is nice to see more of Lucas, Ruth and Harry besides Spooks, but otherwise, the extras did disappoint me so far, as I really had hoped for some answers. I have not seen the commentary versions of two episodes yet. Perhaps there, but RA is not part of the commentators, so his detailed background creation will not be in it.
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Sorry, Servetus. Please read the previous comment only after you saw the DVD’s and the extras. I remebered too late that you have not seen the DVD’s yet.
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WHAT?! It’s Lucas’s swan song and RA wasn’t the main commentator??? That seems odd.
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No, it’s largely the directors and writers and production people doing the commentaries (the reason I know all this is my reliable Cornish friend has the DVDs and has taken exhaustive notes and passed them along to me . . .) and they seem to be doing their best to put a positive spin on things. One of the commentaries was done before the series was shown and one afterwards, I believe.
Perhaps Richard was not available for the commentaries? Who knows.
I will point out RA directly contradicts in his interview something said by the director on one of the commentaries regarding the Lucas/John storyline.
I won’t go into any details–just say that these extras seem to bring up more questions than answers, leaving me, for one, very unsatisfied.
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@Violet Many thanks for the link. It is wonderful to see RA in this interview
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Good luck with jobhunting, Servetus! These jokes stroke a cord with me.
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Servetus Do I have already said that I love your sense of humor? 🙂
I keep my fingers crossed!
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I will order S9 DVD, attempt to watch strictly focusing on the acting. Attempt, anyway. Have been re-watching S7/8. I cannot grasp how, in terms of characterisation, we can get from even S8 to S9. Have tried, but rationalsiation (hectic filming schedule/pressure on writers to keep everyone happy ad nauseum) isn’t working. The only thing that works is the acting of Mr. Armitage, which was never over the top in absurd OTT scenes.
Teuchter, meant to say, your description of “Loch Duhb” was not at all disillusioning! Big fan of BallyK, too. Did not make it to Avoca on last trip to Ireland; time ran out on us, and we kept getting lost, as highway signs tend to peter out there, and you miss the turn…
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[…] beautiful cast, who embody their characters so perfectly. I loved every minute — and while Dear Friend noted that Rufus Sewell does not possess the same acting subtlety and complexity of a Ri… (and she is most surely right), he was perfect for the role, like all the rest of the […]
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“Middlemarch” (1994) et la folie « Feminéma said this on March 12, 2011 at 3:47 pm |
[…] you risk unemployment for at least a year. I didn’t apply because I simply couldn’t. Last March something odd happened, and my feelings about the whole thing changed, partially because of the ongoing prayers for […]
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Catching up to myself « Me + Richard Armitage said this on August 9, 2011 at 1:03 am |
[…] she is annoyed by Umlaut erasure. She keeps her eye on Armitage’s Spotlight page. She thinks botoxing is cheating. She’s good at puns. She’s left-handed. She likes to wear Birkenstocks. Oh, and in case […]
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Fan showcase: Jane (part 1) « Me + Richard Armitage said this on January 16, 2012 at 10:14 pm |