The Next Post

Didn’t I say this was the upcoming post? Yes, I’m feeling a bit cheesy, which is good for this blog. It’s when I don’t feel cheesy that I can’t really get into it.

So where was I? Oh yeah, I wanted to talk about Lucas North. No, it doesn’t matter that you’ve put that unpleasantness behind you, I haven’t. For about a year now I’ve been crafting posts to deal with my “issues” with Spooks. The problem is that more than half of them are rants, but bear with me as I decide which ones to inflict on you and give Lucas his due. I owe that to Richard Armitage and his wonderful ability to develop a character.

In the meantime, a little teaser from the Spooks 7 set:

For those who have been following this blog for quite a while, this isn’t a new one, but I had to post it again for someone, somewhere who is an Armitage lover and might have missed it the first time ’round. This picture about takes my head off. Seriously, I think I would swoon if I saw someone that good looking standing in front of me. If you don’t feel the effect, click on it to zoom in, and click again to really zoom in. Go ahead; you’ll be glad you did. :D

Okay, onto a new teaser for the rest of you:

How interesting to observe him at work and that closely. If I’m being honest, and I like to think I’m very honest, I would love that. It would be much more rewarding than having him sign an autograph for me that I would merely place in a box somewhere and probably never look at again. But these pictures? These are fascinating. And do I have to make the disclaimer that I would not post anything that was in a private setting? Apparently I feel compelled hence the question. :D Obviously, these aren’t private, and I appreciate Richard Armitage allowing himself to be photographed at work. He could have precluded that, but he didn’t. I know it might even have been irritating since he is a hyper-sensitive person. As a graduate of the Institute for Advanced Armitage Studies, I believe I’m qualified to make that assessment of him, and it’s immaterial if this is a manifestation of CW. It feels good. :D

Off to figure out how to get closure on Lucas.

Behind the scenes photos of Spooks 7 courtesy of Kuchinggirl. More of her lovely work coming up.

P.S. My boy got All-American. Sorry, I couldn’t help but sneak that in since I’m so proud of him!!

November 23, 2011
Categories: PHWOAR!, Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 23 Comments

Tangent — Does It Matter? Really?


I readily admit I might be a bit jaded. When I see something like this, it’s hard not to think it’s a bunch of people who are in need of meaning in their lives, seek out a “noble” cause toward that end but are drawn mostly in a visceral fashion and often ignorant of how the situation came to be. And in their ignorance, they are vulnerable to being manipulated by forces beyond their kin. Yes, this can describe all of us at one time or another. LOL!

Okay, I’m going on the record that Washington shafted us with the bank bailout and was done by both parties. Those guys aren’t up there for you and me. Maybe half dozen are really up there as advocates for the people. The rest are up there for their own asses, and I doubt these protests are going to do much to change that. The protests will serve little more than to move another group into power.

When I see a real grassroots movement of Americans that is not politically motivated, I might sing another tune. I would so love to sing another tune.

Until then it’s a shame the bad guys on Wall Street usually look like this:

instead of this:

At least with the latter, you would enjoy the view while you were getting screwed.

Brownie points if you can name the top two guys without looking them up. :D

Screencap courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com

October 12, 2011
Categories: Spooks, Tangents . Tags: , , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 21 Comments

Felled By The Sexy Back

The best laid schemes… Oh how they can blow up in our faces. Thankfully, since I’m not a man, I must be a mouse. Not sure yet, but for a few minutes a couple of nights ago, I could have put my fist through a wall. This morning I’m still a little unsure of myself but less so as the clock ticks. And the clock ticking is what started all of this here. You thought it was Richard Armitage? Hang around, and I’ll disabuse you of that notion although there might be some confusion when posts like this appear.

I still can’t look at that picture without blinking my eyes and shaking my head to clear it. Ironically, that really might be his sexiest picture.

And since I usually muddle up the paragraph breaks in my posts not to mention all of my other grammatical sins, I might as well do it up right and just place them wherever I want and hope you understand my convoluted mind. Honestly, I never have known the best way to place paragraph breaks; topic sentences mystify me. So glad that hasn’t stopped me. Now for the awkward transition.

Sometime last weekend an item from RAFrenzy inadvertently posted on my personal Facebook wall, and if you need to heat some coffee or tea, you can place it next to my head where the steam is coming out. Previously I just disliked Facebook, now I despise it. This has jeopardized my anonymity to a degree it has never happened during the life of the blog. Yeah, I know some of you know who I am because I’ve let you know, and for all of you other RA fans who may have guessed, I’m not concerned about you. It’s the family I don’t want reading. SO and the kids are not so much the problem. I mean the extended family. They would not get it, so I don’t want them reading and possibly giving input. If I did, they would already know about it. Wait! Some of them now do. Damn Facebook.

So how did this happen? Oh, I’m going to tell you so I can give this rant full vent and also give you a heads up. It happened on my phone where I haven’t mastered the ability to control scripts so I only have running the ones I want. For the uninitiated, scripts drive the web page you’re on, and sometimes scripts include all sorts of nasty things that you don’t really want running. For me Facebook is nasty, and especially so when the Facebook mobile app will not let me log out, and I have to clear my data every time I want to make sure it’s not logged in, and even then it’s not a sure thing. Can you see that steam now?! Let me make this really plain. If you’re logged into Facebook, and you are on a site that has a link to Facebook, you can inadvertently post a “Like” to your wall. Given that links to Facebook have wormed their way onto virtually every site on the web, there is a vulnerability you might be posting things to your FB wall that you never intended [waves hand vigorously in the air while saying ‘choice’ words]. Same thing with Twitter, which I still like, but I may ended up despising for the same reason.

And I wouldn’t have been on my phone if I hadn’t been determined to work on my blog post about Richard’s back. Okay, enough of that rant, but just know that despite my irritation, I’m not letting this keep me from blogging. On to the good stuff.

I did promise some more pictures, which I really was about to post a couple of nights ago before I got rattled.

His size and vantage point scream masculinity, but that’s not enough to make these pictures so compelling. His attentive nature is still evident. Man, I really have a bad case of CWS. Who woulda thunk a set of pictures of his back would bring on such a bout?

This one really does make me think I can reach out and hug him:

This one almost looks like a kid trying to get the lay of the land:

It is amazing to me how he can still convey a purity without using his facial expressions. Yep, I have a raging case of CWS.

More candid shots coming, but no more backs.

October 5, 2011
Categories: PHWOAR!, SO, Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 24 Comments

I’m Really Trying

May I beg forgiveness for not posting regularly and for teasing you all so terribly with the Spooks behind the scenes pictures? Yeah, okay, maybe I’ve really messed you all around. But do you really want to hear my excuses about why I haven’t been posting? Yep, I thought not, and really, I have no desire to rehash it. I think I’ve made plenty of excuses on this blog already. LOL!

Give me until Monday, and I will definitely post some of the photos, but in the meantime, just know that I’ve had all sorts of shit happening (yeah, I had to get one excuse in :D). The good news is that I’m still smiling, and SO is still smiling as well.

For those who have followed the trials and tribulations of the Frenz household, just know that we’re alive and things are improving. October 6th will be an especially important date for us, and I cannot wait for it to get here. For those of you who have no clue what I’m referring to, my apologies. I hate cryptic, but I must be cryptic in the interest of the family. This was just the quickest way to communicate with those who are keeping up.

I can’t stand it! I have to give you one photo:

Deep breath…..(sigh)….I think I may live.

No matter how many times I view this photo, it still gets me. Maybe because I don’t expect the back of someone’s head to be sexy. Oooh, how wrong I’ve been. Or is this just me who thinks he even looks hot from behind? And he still has all of his clothes on! The broad shoulders do help.

I wasn’t going to post anything until Monday, but I saw this tumblr and here I am. Love these kinds of comments especially since it makes me feel less insane. Richard Armitage aside, that’s a great tumblr.

Candid Photo courtesy of: I’ll tell you later. :)

September 30, 2011
Categories: Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 31 Comments

Will It Be the Fourth Dimension?

The roller coaster resumes on Sunday night, and I think I’m ready to be jerked around again. :D

Harry’s grave look has me duly sucked in, and no, I’m not being facetious. I saw this promo and felt myself getting excited to watch Spooks, and then I read the interviews with the writers, and I really got excited. I like Lara Pulver despite having been dragged through the debacle known as Robin Hood Series 3 Episode 5, but phew! didn’t she and Richard Armitage look great?

As usual, click to enlarge.

Even if you’re offended by my blatant objectification of RA (as opposed to my thinly veiled objectification), you have to admit that’s a hot picture. They certainly challenged the idea of a “family show.” Oh, I would love to see those two in something sexy and smart. Wouldn’t it be great if we got a little taste of that in Spooks Series 10? I’m not holding my breath.

In the meantime, we might (oh, please with sugar on top) get a little more of Lucas North, and we’re going to get a lot of Erin Watts (aka Lara Pulver), the new section chief. The other cast additions look interesting too, and more to mine with the writers, but I’m saving it. The burning question for now: will Harry detonate a bomb? If I were mean, I’d answer that. LOL!

And speaking of writing, I stumbled onto a web page about roller coaster terminology (yes, the internet has everything!), which gave me an idea. It’s a dangerous thing for me to get ideas, but I have to have fun somehow. So during the run of this last series of Spooks, I’m soliciting examples in Spooks (any series) of one or more of the terms from this rich, ahem, nomenclature. Please make your submissions via the comments on this blog piece. The commenter with the most examples at the end of Series 10, wins a prize. More on that later when I think of exactly what will be an appropriate prize. Oh, I’ll make it something good. :D

I’ll go first with an easy one. An example of Immelmann Roll
(half-loop that inverts coaster cars for a half twist and sends them in the reverse direction. Named after a World War 1 German ace who popularized the flying maneuver)– Lucas North story arc in Series 9.

Screencap courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com

edit: this was a bust, but thankfully one of the few on this blog.

September 13, 2011
Categories: Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 28 Comments

Status Unknown — Spoilers

Spoilers for Spooks Series 9

Obviously, I haven’t been posting regularly. That’s about to change. Spooks is coming, and I must be present for the denouement of Lucas North, or was I already? Then there is the relationship of Harry and Ruth. My speculation and everyone else’s is Harry and Ruth will finally consummate their relationship. Will it be satisfying? This is Spooks, people; it won’t be satisfying because they have a movie to make. So yeah, even with the finale, we probably won’t get a resolution of these characters.

image

But my burning question: does Lucas North make it out of this series alive? Will he be in the movie? I have to ask, and bygod, the producers of the show expect me to ask. LOL! Do I sound hacked? I’m really not that upset. Actually, I’m not even upset. I just want to know what happen(s)(ed)to Lucas North, dammit!

Yes, I’m purposely refraining from using the name John Bateman. That’s not this character’s name. No way. And I don’t say that because he’s a bad guy. In case anyone reading this blog hasn’t noticed, I’m partial to a bad guy who did much more heinous things than blowing up some people and killing one person bare handed. My bad guy actually looked many of his victims in the eyes while he killed them in one of the most physically demanding ways.

But back to Lucas. Is he or is he not dead? I say he’s not dead. I said this at the end of last series, and I’m still convinced that he’s going to be with us after this series has ended. Richard Armitage, who I take at his word for hating spoilers, has nevertheless mentioned Spooks, the Movie, a few times, and the thought of it won’t go away. Hey, there’s a good chance 24 will be a movie, so why not Spooks? And it’s entirely possible that dear Richard could be part of it which means Lucas can’t die. Unless of course they have a flashback, which now that I think of it is also entirely possible. If I’ve learned nothing else after five years of watching Spooks, they can do anything and logic be damned. How else to explain the absurd set up for Lucas North as a bad guy? And no, I’m not going to go on a rant again — at least not today.

For now I’m hoping the writers do something that either a) makes me breathe a sigh of relief b) makes me not want to throttle them c) jump for joy d) all of the above. A sigh of relief would be his being alive. Not wanting to throttle the writers would be his staying alive to possibly come back in the movie. Jumping for joy would mean his staying alive for the movie AND being able to redeem himself or develop into a fascinating criminal mastermind. Either would be fine with me. Just so it’s writing worthy of Richard Armitage’s ability. Yes, I’m a demanding sort. :D

So here I am, and here I will be waiting patiently for the announcement of when exactly Spooks is going to air. Oh, they have me right where they want me.

More posts about Spooks coming up this week as I’m feeling the need to revisit where this Lucas obsession started.

Behind the scenes photo courtesy of KuchingGirl with much more coming.

Note: this post (all of it) was done from my phone. Woohoo!

September 5, 2011
Categories: Rumors, Spoilers, Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 21 Comments

From Cats to Dwarfs — New Interview

A new interview with Richard Armitage is in Project Magazine (issue #8), but you can only get it on iPad. He talks about playing a Nazi. Makes me want to check out the biography he mentions and a whole lot more. :D Thankfully, for those us who haven’t bought an iPad yet, RichardArmitageNet.Com has just uploaded, and you can find it here.

A few of my favorite photos from the interview:

Last image courtesy of Iz4blue.

July 15, 2011
Categories: Captain America, Interviews, Movies, PHWOAR!, Spooks, The Hobbit . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 24 Comments

RA in Specs — a Theory

You can thank bccmee for this public service post. ;-)

Several of us dig Richard Armitage in glasses, and the obvious reason might be that glasses usually make someone appear more intelligent. Oh, I’m sure that’s part of it — as if he needed that help! LOL! But if I let my mind relax and think of what it is that viscerally affects me when I see him in glasses, I boil it down to two things: 1) it’s like his eyes are magnified to better see who’s checking him out, and 2) he’s sort of hidden from the general public as someone hot, so he’s still ours in a sense. Ours=you and me, the early fans.

Okay, I’ve revealed quite enough about my thinking on this, and I hope SO never reads this blog. LOL! Good thing I’m anonymous or I might be ashamed of exhibiting a little CWS. Do I need an emoticon here so you realize I’m teasing? Too bad I don’t have a clown handy.

You can also thank Servetus for this post. Her analysis is rubbing off on me. Unfortunately, her prose is not. :D

Screencaps courtesy of bccmee, RichardArmitageNet.Com and my stash.

note: I intentionally left out pictures of him in sunglasses. Of course anyone would find those pictures hot. It takes someone special to love the glasses. ;-)

July 13, 2011
Categories: Captain America, Movies, PHWOAR!, Spooks . Tags: , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 28 Comments

Armitage Protection Mode, A Real Bargain

Mail_19Sep10-ElsaQuarsell

June 20, 2011

This post was actually written several months ago, but hey, it’s apropos just about anytime I’m afraid.

Dear Richard,

I guess I’m not a good fan since my obsession doesn’t extend to protecting your honor. LOL! Sorry that laugh slipped out, but the thought of doing that is so absurd I couldn’t help myself. I have every confidence you can protect your own honor, and seem to be handling it just fine without my help.

Now I will admit to being hacked about the ending of the latest series of Spooks, and wanting to go on the defensive about your part in it. But man, it’s frustrating to see that kind of storyline when you deserve better, and really, I would have been hacked no matter who played Lucas. You just raised my expectations much higher than usual, so the disappointment was heightened and the need to vent about it greater. But really, that’s about a consumer being dissatisfied.

There are fans, however, who are very good at protecting your interests. I’ve encountered several of them during this fan odyssey, and they are so good at it, that I’m not sure you should have to pay anyone to do this for you. :D These people will do it for free! And they’re gooood! Yes, I already said that but am compelled to reiterate. Oh man, are they good! My occasional reddened hands and ringing ears are testament to that. So if you ever get tired of handling this yourself or paying a pr person or a bodyguard, I know where you can get some cheap labor.

Then again, maybe I’m also afflicted with Armitage Protection Mode since I’m here trying to save you some money. ;-)

Sincerely,
One of your fans who doesn’t even want to think you need protecting. I’m just here to watch.

P.S. And you really have screwed yourself on ever using a beard as a disguise.

note: yes, it is a fake fan letter. If you had any doubt, then perhaps this note is necessary. Of course I would have put it here anyway for the action fans. :D

Hopefully we can all stay out of Armitage Protection Mode (aka APM), since it’s a drag.

Promo still courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com

June 20, 2011
Categories: Fandom, Spooks . Tags: , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 27 Comments

Irresistible Instant Play or Netflix, I Love You

Something is changing with respect to the popularity of Richard Armitage in America (North America to be specific), and yet ‘The Hobbit’ is still almost two years away! I’ve been encountering more and more people who know RA’s name and have seen him in more than one role. Wow. What a change from three years ago! Or even one year ago. But I don’t think it’s due to his being cast in ‘The Hobbit’. At this point ‘The Hobbit’ is only on the radar of those in the movie industry, the LOTR fans, maybe a couple of other fan clubs and us. Everyone else won’t give a rat’s ass about it until we’re a few months or perhaps a few weeks or days from the premiere.

This recent awareness of Richard Armitage mostly comes down to Netflix. They are the only entity who provides us with a steady diet of RA. When I first started watching RA three plus years ago, there was almost nothing available in this country. The only thing I found was ‘North and South’ on Netflix and some documentary about that other guy. Now there are numerous things to watch, and many of them are ‘Instant Play’, and that’s the key.

Numerous friends scattered around the country who regularly watch ‘Instant Play’ have been discovering this “new” actor and just can’t tell me enough about him. Never mind that a couple of those people are the same ones I’ve told about ‘North and South’, ‘Spooks’, ‘Robin Hood’, etc. LOL! Hey, I don’t care how they discovered him; I’m just glad they did. Even my best friend, who at one point would roll her eyes when RA’s name came up, finally watched ‘North and South’ via ‘Instant Play’. Yea, Tammi!!! Of course she loves it and him. I knew she would! And she could have loved him sooner if she had just watched the DVDs I loaned her almost three years ago.

But I guess there really is something seductive about Netflix saying, “Tammi, rate what you’ve seen to reveal suggestions just for you” while your ass is firmly planted on the couch, and you can merely push a couple of buttons as opposed to getting up and taking the discs out of the case and putting them in the DVD player. LOL! Oh, Netflix has the power! What was I thinking to encourage the viewing of some DVDs loaned from my special collection? I mean here I am Tammi’s best friend, and we love each others’ tastes, but those precious discs just sat on the shelf! In comes Netflix with its heady offering of ‘North and South’ on ‘Instant Play’, and what I could not do for almost three years, they managed in a moment.

Tammi’s conversion occurred last summer, but this phenomenon of Netflix and RA didn’t become evident until last fall. I was going to highlight this sooner but thought it would be boring to you. Yesterday changed that. I was surfing around and found this blogger. It would be interesting to know how long she’s been a fan, and obviously, Netflix is part of her RA love. Maybe sometime she will share how exactly she became a fan, since I’m not quite sure if Netflix did it or just inflamed her some more. However it happened, I never get tired of those stories! Always makes me feel more sane, and dammit, I am sane! :D

In the meantime, as much as I appreciate Netflix being the bearers of so much loveliness, I have a request of them:

To Whom It May Concern at the big host in the sky,

Thank you so much for introducing so many people to Richard Armitage! I can’t tell you how grateful I am. It’s helped my best friend join this wonderful madness with me.

But do you think we could enjoy his loveliness when we do a query on his name? If you would be so kind to give him an avatar, I’m not sure how I would show my appreciation. Maybe send out a few thousand of those trial memberships to my friends.

And if I may suggest, this might be a good picture if you’re not sure which one would be appropriate:

Of course I have no clue about the legalities of using it, but it is the one featured on his IMDb page, so I think it’s okay. But I’ll leave those details to you.

Thank you for any consideration.

Sincerely,
One of Richard’s fans and great Netflix lover :D

P.S. How can we get Strike Back on the list?

Oh, and I would give credit to BBC America and PBS for the rise of RA’s star, but BBCA is sporadic in their love of RA, and PBS hasn’t shown much at all with him? Actually, I remember nothing although I have heard rumors that some regional stations have shown ‘North and South.’ Amazing that the network known for embracing period dramas has been almost a non-player of that mini-series, and it’s been necessary to mount a campaign to bring ‘North and South’ to PBS. Yeah, can you believe that? And I’m not even going to mention A&E beyond this sentence.

Note: FanstRAvaganza will return tomorrow; still waiting on something for now.

edit: Okay, okay, yes, YouTube has been instrumental, but it’s hit or miss there and the programs are usually not complete. For that you need Netflix.

April 5, 2011
Categories: North and South, Robin Hood, Strike Back, The Hobbit, Vicar of Dibley . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 17 Comments

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