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REJOINDERS 2005-10 (Oct)
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Stella writes...
not a question, just a compliment!
great job......... the storyline of Gargoyles.
I wish eternal damnation upon the bastards who have canceld the show.
Greg responds...
Uh... thanks.
Pheobe writes...
Dear Greg,
What is next for you?
Greg responds...
I'm currently unemployed. Have a few maybes on the horizon, but nothing definite.
However, in January 2006, the second season of WITCH should begin airing. That's what I've been working on most of the last year. I'm very proud of our work on that show. I wasn't involved with the first season at all, but you might want to start checking that out now, so that you're up to speed for what I really think is a kick-ass second season.
I had a great writing staff and a great cast and voice director working under me. Not to mention a terrific boss, Justine Cheynette at SIP Animation. Love her. And I don't often say that about my bosses.
Vitor writes...
Greg,
the show is great. Really great. It remembers me "Dungeons and Dragons", another really great show (first and second year, because third was horrible). Michael Reaves made both. But gargoyles is just...incredible, the personality of the people and gargoyles are more real ( changes all the time!), its the real world. I think another show like gargoyles will take a long time to be made...
Thank you , Greg. I really wish when you ready this ( I think this will take 3 years, more or less) the show will be back , with another amazing episodes.I really wish.
Greg responds...
Thanks.
Hippocratic Oath writes...
Will the Gargoyles DVD (2004! Woo!) be available in Region 2?
Greg responds...
I don't know what that means.
Janelle Turner writes...
are there any more gargoyles in the future? Will there be another series, or a live action film like the Ninja Turtles did?
Greg responds...
Gargoyles Comic Books with new original stories will begin to see print in 2006.
No current plans for an animated series or live action movie.
Leaf writes...
How old is Martin Hacker?
Greg responds...
In 1996, he was 44.
craig moore writes...
g'day,
u have mentioned that Gargoyles Season1 will be out in 2004. Will this be as individual DVD's, or will a box set be released? and will it be all at once, or a series of DVD's brought out over time?
Thanks for your time.
Greg responds...
The first season (13 episodes) of Gargoyles was released on December 7th, 2004 and is still available. It's a two disk set.
The first half of the second season (26 episodes) of Gargoyles will be released on December 6th, 2005. It's a three disk set.
Whether the rest of the series will be released, will unsurprisingly be determined by the sales of these first two sets.
And although you didn't ask, I'm going to take this opportunity to clarify what I view as the fandom's role in making these sets a success.
Obviously, I'd like to think everyone'll want a copy.
But I've never wanted or expected individual fans to spend money they don't have or that they need for life's essentials. (Food, shelter, education, etc.)
If you can afford to buy only one copy, then that's all you should buy.
If you can't afford one copy, then don't buy one copy. Maybe over time, you could save up. Maybe not. But I'm not asking you to spend money you don't have.
If you happen to have more disposable income and can afford multiple copies -- well, frankly, I still don't know why you'd buy more than one for yourself.
But perhaps you have friends you could turn on to the series. Instead of buying them that fruitcake for the holidays, you might send them a DVD. Etc.
But spending money isn't really what I'm asking the fans to do here. As I've said before... if ALL the truly hardcore fans went out and bought ten DVDs a piece... and if that's all that we sold... we'd fail. FLAT OUT.
We need sales to pass beyond the hard core fan. And that's what I see the hard core fans doing for the property: SPREADING THE WORD.
TALK IT UP!
WRITE REVIEWS ON AMAZON!
LOG ONTO THE FAN BULLETIN BOARDS OF OTHER FANDOMS AND TELL THEM ABOUT THE SERIES IN GENERAL AND THE DVDS SPECIFICALLY.
GO INTO STORES AND ASK THEM TO STOCK THE DVDS. (You don't have to buy one.)
I don't view the hardcore fans as a wallet to tap. I view them as missionairies. That's what I need you guys for. Not for stuff that costs you money. But for reaching out and preaching the good word. Not to the already converted. Not just to each other. But to people who may not know us.
Remember, not a single penny from the DVDs goes into my pocket. This isn't about money to me. This is about the long term health of the property. Money talks to Disney, and that's about numbers... about increasing the overall size of the fandom. Some of those new fans won't be able to afford DVDs either. But some will. And if we grow enough, we've got nothing to worry about.
Anyway, that's it.
Arwen Black writes...
a)Do you know how all of the star trek- people got involved in the show, there's so many of them.
b) i just started watching Star treck; the next genoration a few months back, and when i first started watchin the show i had an ishue... every time riker talked, i pictured xanatos. dont think i'm weird or anyhting (tho i kinda am, but whatever) but i was wondering if you wathced ST:TNG, has this ever hapened to you??
Greg responds...
a) I've answered this MANY times before. Check out the Voice Talent section of the ASK GREG archives.
b) Well, I did watch TNG... and started watching it before we hired Jonathan to play Xanatos. But there was that one episode of DS9 with the Riker clone, where I really felt like Frakes was doing Xanatos doing Riker. (There was also an episode of WINGS like that.)
Audra writes...
Hey Greg. Earlier tonight, when I was in the car with my mom and sister, and my sister was saying how one of her friends moved to Alaska. She said how weird that would be, because in Alaska, half the year it would be dark, and the other half, there would light. If gargoyles lived in Alaska, would they sleep for 6 months, then be awake for the other 6 months? That seems kind of weird to me. Like for the 6 months they would be awake, wouldn't they be tired? I mean because of being awake for so long with no sleep. Would they sleep every once in a while like humans do? I know this is kind of a silly question, but that kind of interests me! What do you think Greg?
Greg responds...
Gargoyle sleep patterns are a biological response -- to the presumed fact, if you believe Sevarius, that in stone form they absorb solar energy -- so it may be that Gargoyles simply can't exist that far north or south. Or perhaps they'd simply adapt. I doubt they'd exist on a six month schedule, but I'm not going to make a definitive decision now.
Emperor Auladarr I writes...
Mr. Weisman,
I was perusing the Hudson archives and read your ramble on "Long Way 'Til Morning," where you invited response to the episode. Of all the episodes of Gargoyles (the REAL episodes, not those GC episodes that made no sense), this is one I remember most vividly as one of my absolute favorites. Rarely do we get to see the elderly character in a series be the hero, or have the spotlight on him for almost every second of the show. It was refreshing to see Hudson as the hero and not some doddering old coot who needs to be saved by his fellows.
The things I remember most about the episode are the good lines the characters had. Some of my favorites from Demona are: "Ciao." (Ms. Sirtis's callous tone there just made it work), and "Your courage is admirable, but ultimately futile." Mr. Asner had the best one's, though: "Just dreaming old dreams, I guess." "I can face her. I just can't beat her." And, of course, his speech to Demona at the end about growing old and waiting.
The flashback scenes are great, too. The planting of the Archmage and that whole plotline was brilliant, as was the Prince's faux pas on "the gargoyles will get you," and the whole snowball effect that had on Katharine.
But, again, above all else, Hudson stands out in this episode. He's not sitting at the clocktower watching TV with Bronx--he's in his element, both in the past and in the present, as a warrior. "He favors speed over stealth, which could mean he has traps waiting for us." Brilliant. His heading underground where neither he or Demona could use their wings--clever.
The whole episode just struck me as excellent because it showed Hudson as a competent, wise, and experienced warrior. I don't know...maybe because my grandfather seems like he knows how to do anything under the sun I took more to Hudson craftiness.
Well...those are just my thoughts. Kudos on one of MANY great episodes.
Greg responds...
Thanks. Working with Hudson was always fun, and working with Ed Asner continues to be a joy. (He just did a voice for me on multiple episodes of WITCH.)
Of course, it was the Archmage's appearance in "Long Way To Morning" that inspired the plotlines to follow. At the time, we didn't know we were laying pipe for the future. Frankly, it was the amazing performance of David Warner that made us feel like we HAD to bring the character back.
Zel writes...
have you thought of pitching a non-gargoyles Animated-Action-Fantasy-Drama to Disney (or Fox, or Cartoon Network, or whoever)? I'd watch it. It's bound to be loaded with Gargoyles inside jokes
Greg responds...
I'm always pitching. Pitching is easy. Selling is hard.
Zel writes...
Has any one "in charge" at Disney commented about your activity on this site? I would think that Disney would generally frown upon disscusion of the sexual behavior of Disney liscenced characters. On the other hand the livelyness of this site this nong after the show is more or less gone should get their more positive attention.
Greg responds...
I don't know that anyone at Disney is taking the time to actually READ the site all that much to grok the totality of the content. But they are aware of the site and appreciate that the fandom is alive and well and ... hopefully... in possession of money to spend on the property. (That, as always, is their priority.)
Zel writes...
If a gargoyle's finger breaks off at night, and you hold it in place untill morning, what will happen? Will the finger remain stone? Will the gargoyle have an injured but attached finger, or will the finger be fully healed?
Greg responds...
Holding it in place, couldn't possibly help... you could never hold it steady enough. Magic of course, might help. Or some combination of magic and surgery. But mostly, I think it's gone. The finger would remain stone.
Zel writes...
Can you give us fans a short little bibliography of all the mythology used in Gargoyles? Any other good reccomended reads? I dig your storytelling style, and I'm hoping that you write a novel sometime soon
Greg responds...
I'd check the "Influences" section of the ASK GREG archives.
I've recommended a number of books there. But there's too large a list for me to compile a "short little bibliography".
I'd love to write a novel someday. So we're both hoping...
Lunycrys writes...
Hi Greg!!! Sorry if this has been asked before but I had to know: since aquatic gargoyles exist i.e. the Loch Ness Clan does that mean there cannot be other aquatic clans out there? And since they are aquatic clans, does that mean they are amphibious(spelling?) or what?
Many thanks and it is such an honor to be hearing from you. :)
Lunycrys
Greg responds...
I have not admittedly given too much thought to the exact bio-nature of the Loch Ness Clan.
Drew Lung writes...
Hey, it's me again.
You said that you tried to get all the myths into 'Gargoyles, but you neglected J.R.R. Tolkien's works. Why? This is probably the dumbest question you've ever been asked on this site, but I must know.
Greg responds...
Let's start by admitting up front that this isn't even close to the dumbest question I've ever been asked on this site.
But... I said I'd try to get everything in the PUBLIC DOMAIN in eventually. Tolkien's work is not in the public domain. On occasion, we may make a sly reference, be influenced by or pay homage to non-public domain work. But I try to avoid flat-out rip-offs of stuff that isn't free for me to take.
Emperor Auladarr I writes...
Mr. Weisman,
I was looking through the FAQ's and I was reading about Goliath and Elisa's relationship and your plans for them. In regards to the Halloween Double-Date scenario, you said that "Delilah is eager, and for obvious reasons, physically attractive to Goliath." My questions are as follow:
1). Why is Delilah eager? Does she have an attraction to Goliath?
2). If so, how did it develop? I was under the impression that after Talon took her and the other clones into the Labyrinth Delilah and Goliath didn't have much interaction....
Thank you for your time--and, again, Gargoyles is an EXCELLENT series that I eager hope will one day continue in one form or another.
Greg responds...
1. Since she was programmed to fall for Thailog, I think she'd find Goliath attractive. I also think she's been a bit at sea since Coney Island.
2. I'm not going into this now, as I hope to put it in the comic book eventually.
Diandra Bellerose writes...
please, please, please tell me why you just cann't give me the anwser to, "can you compare Anansi and Raven the tricksters?", without makeing me do some thing for you cause I cann't put up with it.
Greg responds...
Wow. You just like totally read my mind. It's like you knew I was going to answer with a smart-ass response two years before I even read your question.
I'm tempted to ask you to jump up and down on one foot while reciting the "Ryme of the Ancient Marineer".
And I'm tempted to be affronted about your "I cann't put up with it" attitude.
But what the heck...
I'm not sure exactly what you hope to see here, assuming your still here two years later...
But I see Raven as being nastier, more power-hungry. I see Anansi as more of a hedonist. Lazy and gluttonous.
How's that?
Diandra bellerose writes...
can you compare anansi the and Raven the tricksters?
if not tell me why.
Greg responds...
I can compare them. So I guess, I don't have to tell you why, right?
Question writes...
Was it just a coincidence or was it intentional that Avery Brooks was casted for the voice of Nokkar, a soldier in a intergalactic war, when on Star Trek he was Captain Sisko, who spent a majority of the series fighting a war with the Dominion with the Klingons, Romulans and Cardassians thrown into the pot?
Greg responds...
Coincidence is the wrong word, but we weren't trying to be ironic and/or cutesie. We were trying to get a voice with the chops to go toe-to-toe with the chops of our own Keith David. The fact that Mr. Brooks was a Trek actor, when we already had so many Trek actors on the show just made him come to mind quicker.
Drew Lung writes...
Hello, I'm a long time fan of the show, 'Gargoyles', and have a few questions.
What inspired 'Gargoyles' in the first place?
How did you get such a unusual idea for a tv series noticed by producers?
Were any of the characters replacements for original concepts you may have had early on?
Do you remember any ideas that didn't soar? (no pun)
And what other tv shows have you taken part in?
Sorry to ask so many questions, but I'm curious.
Greg responds...
1. Actual Gargoyles. Also Hill Street Blues. Gummi Bears. Etc. Check out the Archives here at ASK GREG.
2. You've got it backwards. I was an executive at the time. I hire the producers. This time I hired myself. As for how I sold the idea, that took some effort, three pitches, two years and a lot of help from my development team, my colleagues and my bosses, Bruce Cranston, Gary Krisel and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Michael Eisner finally approved us to series.
3. I'm not sure what you mean. As many fans know, the show was originally pitched as a comedy, and every major character except Goliath and Angela (and maybe Bronx), had an antecedent in the comedy development. Demona was Dakota. Xanatos was Xavier. Brooklyn was Amp. Broadway was Coco. Lexington was Lassie. Owen was Mr. Owen. Hudson was Ralph, etc. In later pitches, we did add addtional characters that went through a few changes before they actually hit the screen. Catscan became Talon. C.Y.O.T.E. (or some such acronym) became Coyote, etc. The New Olympians were added in from their own development. And so on...
4. Yes.
5. Lots. Some much more than others, but an incomplete off-the-top-of-my-head list would include: Gummi Bears, Winnie the Pooh, DuckTales the Movie, DuckTales, Talespin, Rescue Rangers, Marsupilami, Bonkers, Goof Troop, Raw Toonage, Aladdin, Little Mermaid, Return of Jafar, A Goofy Movie, Bionicle Mask of Light, Atlantis: Milo's Return, Men in Black, The Batman, Hercules, Buzz Lightyear, Max Steel, Gargoyles, Alien Racers, W.I.T.C.H., Invasion America, A.T.O.M., Mighty Ducks, Kim Possible, Quack Pack, Goliath Chronicles, Roughnecks: Starship Troopers, 3X3 Eyes, Ikkei Tossen, Jem and the Holograms, etc.
Jacob writes...
Will Talon/Derek ever turn bacdk to human? If so what will his response be to Elisa about choosing to work for Xanatos in the first place?
Greg responds...
I'm not sure why his response would be any different before or after he might or might not turn back?
Valaine Fea writes...
by the way.. "the eye in the pyramid" is called "Annunaki" ("all seeing eye"). Don´t know which language;).
Greg responds...
Hmmm... interesting... (Where'd you learn this?)
The MythMaker writes...
A long time ago, you asked if anyone knew the origin of the "eye in the pyramid" symbol for the Illuminati/Masons/etc. Since I saw no update on it, I thought I would give you the short version (the long version would take several pages).
The pyramid represents knowledge, taken directly from ancient Egyptian mythology (before the whole "Pharoah's Tomb" fiction was created) but the pyramid in the symbol is truncated, representing lost/suppressed knowledge. The eye is the "All-Seeing Eye" (God) and placed in a triangle above the truncated pyramid to point out that no amount of official supression will destroy the knowledge forever, it's still out there to be rediscovered.
The second layer of interpretation is part of where the Illuminati as "bad guys" comes from: they were "enemies" of the authorities throughout history (some rare exceptions) because they had managed to retain the missing/forgotten knowledge, and the authorities (who were seen to not be wise/good enough to be given access to the knowledge/power) were jealous and either wanted the knowledge for themselves or wanted these "outlaw" groups killed, or preferably both. The official church declared them to be Satan-worshippers; these groups considered themselves to be the true believers of God and the church to be full of Satan-worshippers (or at least selfish opportunists). So, the symbol shows that they believed in God (in spite of what the authorities claimed) but also shows their own recognition that they would always be in danger from outsiders who would try to supress the "truth".
Your "grey-area" approach to Duval and the Illuminati is a great way of showing that, in spite of what we are often taught, black and white are ALSO in the eye of the beholder...
Greg responds...
Thanks for the info. This stuff fascinates me.
The Question writes...
Hey Greg seeing how you guys had Captain Janeway and Captain Sisko do the voices of Titania and Nokkar respectively did you guys ever plan to cast the actors for Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, Scotty, Quark, Dax, Odo, Dukat, Bashir or Kira. If you did then for what characters in Gargoyles?
PS I think your show stands out as one of the finest hours of television animated or otherwise.
Greg responds...
Nana Visitor (Major Kira) did voice the part of Fox briefly, but my fellow producer Frank Paur had the roll recast with Laura San Giacomo.
Otherwise, I would have been glad to use all the actors you named, but we had no specific plans for any of them.
Todd Jensen writes...
One thought that I had over the recent questions about the similarity between the Ku Klux Klan and the Quarrymen: while the two groups are certainly thematically similar, I noticed that the Quarrymen's hoods looked different enough from the KKK's as to give them a distinct look. The traditional Ku Klux Klan hood, if I recall correctly, is white and conical, pointing straight up; on the other hand, the Quarryman hoods were blue-colored (I think; it's been a long time since I last saw a "Goliath Chronicles" episode - over six years, to be precise) and shaped (to me, at least) more like executioners' hoods.
Greg responds...
The executioner look was intentional. The KKK was a model for the Quarrymen, but I was never trying to xerox them. I would imagine that many of the people who join the Quarrymen, would never consider joining the Klan. So even from Castaway's pov, it wouldn't pay to be too close visually to the KKK.
mike writes...
Do Female gargoyles go through the same female things that humans do like pms?
Greg responds...
Some things.
Msten7723 writes...
Last night I came up with good Questions about demon and her biology THAT I don't think was ask yet or atl3east i hope it wasn't.
! What effects has puck's spell that turns demona human had on her biologoy? For example can she still have kids becasue althought a gargoyle can lay eggs a human can not. Can she mate with a human when she is in human form and if she can will that baby be a hybrid of human/gargoyle genetics like delilia? Sicne she no longer turns to stone does she still absorb solar radiate that gives a gargoyle there energy or does she know have to sleep like every other human? When she is human does she still have the biology og a gargoyle on the inside or is her transformation a totall change? The list can go on and on so I'm going to end it here
mike
A. Can she still have kids because althought a gargoyle lays eggs a human cannot?
Greg responds...
All this stuff has been asked before. Please check the ASK GREG ARCHIVES.
Sabina writes...
Good Day,
I heard that the first Gargoyles season is coming out on DVD in 2004, now my question is, whether there will be a European release since importing DVD's is a bit risky and rather expensive and I'm very fond of the German synchro
Sincerely,
Sabina
Greg responds...
I don't know the answer. Sorry.
Anonymous writes...
Heis,I'm from Mexico city, here we also like Gargoyles, I've a question that everybody likes the question, bun nobody knows the answer, and I have search, but I can find, sorry if the answer had been answered, but, if you or your partners start again the cartoon, its going to be start by the beginning, remaked, its going to begin after the 2nd season, or it going to count the Goliath chronolitics(I don't remember the real name but I know that it is TGC)sorry if I spell all wrong, I'm good talking english, but no writing in english ^_^'
Greg responds...
There are no current plans to restart the cartoon show as a cartoon show, and any decision would have to wait until there ARE current plans.
There ARE current plans to restart the series as a comic book, and my plan is to pick up where HUNTER'S MOON left off... ignoring the GOLIATH CHRONICLES.
Paul Lalli writes...
I swear I haven't seen this answered anywhere, but I can't imagine I'm the first one to be confused by it.
How long did it take Xanatos to move all of Castle Wyvern from Scotland to Manhattan? Did it take longer than one day? If so, was the spell configured to end as soon as the last stone was replaced onto the newly transported castle? Or was the castle continuously rebuilt after Awakening?
If it did not take longer than one day, how was it possible for Xanatos to install all of the 'modern' components in the castle (elevators and vid screens and communications network etc)?
I guess this just boils down to me being confused as to the timeline of Castle Wyvern's transportation.
Thanks!
Greg responds...
I don't have the exact date, but the scene you saw, where Xanatos orders Owen to purchase Castle Wyvern, took place sometime in the year 1993.
The Gargoyles wake up on October 4th, 1994.
Thus the purchase, deconstruction, transportation and reconstruction of the castle took a minimum of nine months, and maybe as much as 21 months... even with Xanatos' wealth and connections.
Xanatos, following Demona's advice, was careful not to put the gargoyles in place until everything was ready.
Alan writes...
I'm not too sure how much of a hand you had in scripting, but is there one line from the entire series that stands out in your mind as THE WORST? If you could rephrase/reword/delete one line, what would it be?
(I know mine: Eye of the Beholder - "Hey dude! Be cool!" -Guy in the Werewolf costume. <shudder>)
Greg responds...
I don't mind that line at all. It serves its purpose.
There are a few lines that make me cringe a bit when I hear them again. Some of which, I'm sure I was responsible for. But there isn't one that specifically drives me nuts that comes to mind now.
Oberon writes...
In "Eye of the Storm," Odin says something to Goliath along the lines of "I did not draw your craft to this land to suffer defeat."
1. Was Odin responsible for Avalon sending the group to Norway?
2. Do the Children have power over where Avalon sends people?
Greg responds...
1. Yes.
2. Not generally, no.
katrina writes...
what are gargoyles?
Greg responds...
If you're looking for a dictionary definition, then ... well... look it up.
If you're asking about the series, GARGOYLES was an action-adventure-comedy-romance-drama animated series that ran from 1994-1996.
If you're asking about the species, check the ASK GREG archives. I apologize, but your question is too large and vague for me to possibly cover it here. Especially since the odds, two years later, of you still needing or wanting the answer are pretty slim.
bazan writes...
Is there going to be any more episodes? I have seen pretty much seen all of them from the beginning. Is there going to be a cartoon movie or a computer animated movie? I know in about 1997, there was a cartoon movie, is it going to be released? and when?
Greg responds...
There was no '97 cartoon movie. You may be referring to various versions of the 5-part pilot, including the 5-part pilot, the version for the World Premeire which became the Video release and the syndicated re-edit (my least favorite of the three).
There are currently no plans for new episodes on television, but the old episodes are coming out on DVD, and new adventures will be released in comic book form in 2006.
SERENITY
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS
Let's end the suspense right away...
I LOVED THIS MOVIE! I THOUGHT IT WAS GREAT.
But it made me sad, and not just for the obvious reasons that two great characters died... although their deaths are certainly major contributors to the overall cause of my sadness.
But I'm sad because in order to make this film an event -- a motion picture -- in its own right and not just a glorified episode of the series... Joss had to blow a big chunk of the Firefly wad. Yes, the tale was great, but wouldn't it have been even greater spread out across anywhere from 7 to 29 more episodes of the series?
Joss, who's next project is the WONDER WOMAN feature, seems to have graduated to movies. And my overall response is... keeping in mind I'm a huge worshipful fan... what a WASTE!!! This is a guy BORN for series television. For taking characters and building them through nuance and familiarity and suprise. For taking universes and creating them, populating them with myth and incident and humanity. For taking stories and weaving them into intricate, surprising and satisfying tapestries.
In movies -- at least in good ones -- you can get a taste of this. But just a taste. In series television, all this stuff is JOB ONE.
So where's my next FIREFLY/SERENITY fix to come from?
And please don't try to tell me there weren't more stories to tell with Book or Wash. And how will those stories come to light now?
It was a great movie. But... I am left with overwhelming sadness over what an even GREATER series it was and would have been.
Quibbles:
The rescue of River doesn't seem to match up with the version we had been told before. I thought others freed River and deposited her with Simon. I didn't think he was a one-man rescue squad.
I found Simon's deactivation word to be a bit hard to buy. If he knew that word, why wouldn't he have used it in "Objects in Space" when she was waving that gun around? It's not like he knew he'd have to save it for a real massacre.
Some of the extra production values in the film got on my nerves a bit. I'd have rather had MORE old west and less extra goop. But that's just me being a curmdudgeon, I suppose.
If you're the Operative, and you know Serenity's "havens" do you really scorch the Earth... leaving them with no place to go that you're aware of? Or do you use that manpower to stake out these locations... and THEN attack? At this point, he had to know that taking this action would only piss Mal off more.
And what was the point of the Operative killing off River's "doctor" at the beginning. Sure, the dude slipped up. But he posed no threat. And one has to assume that his mind -- pride aside -- presented a valuable resource. So what exactly are we punishing him for? Frankly, the real reason to kill him is to (a) establish the Operative and his own sin of pride and (b) to set up Mal's non-death at the end.
The movie was called Serenity, but she felt like way less of a character in this then in nearly ANY episode of the series. (Although I never liked the title FIREFLY for the series. Too obscure.)
I had hoped to see a bit more of the wonderful population of the series. At the VERY least the guys with the blue gloves. But I guess they all had to make way for what was there.
When Book died, I was totally bummed. I kept thinking, why didn't he go with them to Inara. Then he could have returned to Haven to find the massacre and survived it. I felt like there was so much more to get from his character. I hated to see him go.
When Wash died, I was stunned. I hadn't necessarily expected either of these characters to die. I had done a fairly good job at NOT spoiling things for myself. But the death of Book seemed to qualify as the sacrificial lamb. Like the death of the Magus in "Avalon". So I was really caught off guard by Wash's death.
Now don't get me wrong. They were both good deaths for the characters. Heroic and with strength. Not cheap in any way. And structurally right and sound.
But ... well... see above...
So how exactly did those blast doors open? The Reavers were not supposed to be able to open them from their side. I'm perfectly willing to buy the idea that River is smart enough to over-ride whatever Kaylee had done and open them herself. But when they open, she's standing there in her super-hero bleeding-axe pose - not even standing next to the control panel. So who opened those doors?
Was there always a co-pilot's seat? I don't remember ever seeing that before the moment we see River sitting there.
So do we think that Zoe is pregnant?
Also saw Wallace & Grommit this weekend. Did anyone else notice the bit of song from Wathership Down?
Hamilton Camp, R.I.P.
I read today that Hamilton Camp passed away.
I first met Mr. Camp, when I story edited the last five episodes of DuckTales. Hamilton was the voice of GizmoDuck.
We worked together again on Starship Troopers, where he played the "Old Ranger".
More recently, I'd seen him live on stage in a number of productions with Glendale's "A NOISE WITHIN" Theater company. He played Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, and he was hilarious.
And it doesn't seem that long ago, that I ran into him in Larchmont Village and introduced him to my two kids. We didn't know each other well, but he was always gracious, professional... and FUNNY as hell.
Godspeed, Hamilton.
ALB writes...
Hi Greg - How can I go about possibly getting a signed poster off of you? I don't even know if this would be possible... or if there's one floating around somewhere... but it would be the best gift ever for someone who is a HUGE fan. :)
Greg responds...
So you want me to provide a poster, sign it and then send it off to you?
And JUST you... not everyone in the fandom, right?
Because we both agree that doing this for everyone in the fandom would be too much for me. So it's fair if I only do it for you...
Hmmm, let me think about this...
Uh. No. :)
David Olsen writes...
I'm pleased to see that you would take time, out of what must assuredly be a busy schedule of yours, to answer fans questions via the internet. I don't know of any other creators of television shows who do that.
I've checked the archives (though not absolutely thoroughly; so much information is rather intimidating to sort through) and I believe I might have a question no one has asked yet. In regards to the mechanics of the Phoenix gate, a ball of flame usually engulfs the user and those with him. However, in "Past Tense" Goliath creates the flame away from him to send the Phoenix Gate through without going through time and space himself. So, can the user of the Phoenix Gate always cause time/space vortices (for lack of a better term) external to himself? Or must the Phoenix Gate always go through the flaming sphere if travelers are to be transported elsewhere?
I realize you won't get to this question for about 2 more years. Maybe a DVD will be out by then.
Greg responds...
DVD's out. Another one's coming.
The Gate generally creates the flame around it, but by this time, Goliath had used it enough to generate an element of control, which allowed him to put the flame off a few yards. But the Gate always goes through the vortex. Perhaps the gate is what shuts it.
I hope that answers your questions.
Hardwing writes...
1)Well based on the fact that Goliath rested on the highest tower of the castle and Demona, Hudson and a gargoyle I couldn't identify below him, I assume it was tradition that the gargoyles took their sleeping places after their status in the clan, correct?
2)Had the other gargoyle resting beside Demona(not Hudson) any special status in the clan? Or for Goliath?
Greg responds...
1. Generally. We tried not to be too anal about it though.
2. I'd have to look again.