A Station Eight Fan Web Site
Comment Room Archive
Comments for the week ending June 20, 2005
Index : Show Images
dph
ar, usa
Sunday, June 19, 2005 08:59:26 PM
IP: 65.132.36.230
I found a huge community site of garg art on Deviantart, so here's the link:
http://gargoylesclub.deviantart.com/journal/1933537/
or click my name
Gantros
Sunday, June 19, 2005 11:32:07 AM
IP: 67.189.1.250
Kris>the hospital hair stroking bit-"How does one Gargoyle
show romantic affection to another if one doesn't have hair?"
I think they stroke each other's brow ridges or parts of the head and face that are sensitive.
In "Temptations" when Demona was tricking Brooklyn to steal
the Grimorum, she had stroked the side of Brooklyn's beak in a suductive way even though he had hair.
I've brought a blue 1987 GMC suburban today (It's a birthday gift to myself since today *is* my 27th b-day).
It runs great.
And it sounds a lot like Elisa's ford farline.
Which is kinda cool.
I just might make it to the gathering this year after all even though I might have to sleep the 3 days in the truck...
kjay - [tigonesskay@netzero.com]
fort bliss, tx, usa
Saturday, June 18, 2005 07:57:42 PM
IP: 69.112.127.17
FYI: The newest cartoon on the Disney channel, "The Buzz on Maggie" stars Thom Adcox as the younger brother. According to IMDb, it's his first animated VO in a while. Cree Summer also plays Maggie's friend and Jeff Bennett does some incidentals in there (as always).
Lumpmoose - [lumpmoose@yahoo.com]
Minneapolis, MN, USA
Saturday, June 18, 2005 02:32:49 PM
IP: 68.117.60.220
Lynati - BTW, Flanker was a volunteer, not on staff. No one on the 2004 staff was eligible for the art show awards. Just to clear up your apparent confusion.
Jennifer "CrzyDemona" Anderson
Saturday, June 18, 2005 12:20:33 PM
IP: 216.195.244.80
Lynati - are you saying that the con staff is eligible for contests at the con again this year??
Jennifer "CrzyDemona" Anderson
Saturday, June 18, 2005 12:16:55 PM
IP: 216.195.244.80
"Hide menu" is nice, but I'm more excited about the "hide spam" function of the new comment room. ;)
Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping... into the future...
22 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
41 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Saturday, June 18, 2005 07:58:46 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
Nice job with the comment room Gore. The hide menu function works beautifully.
Vertigo1 - [md2389@gmail.com]
TN, USA
Saturday, June 18, 2005 01:17:38 AM
IP: 193.251.169.174
GORE> I love the new design and I love "hide the left" feature.
Now If I could only get my own sites as good as this...
That is all I will say.
Battle Beast
CanadaFriday, June 17, 2005 09:18:43 PM
IP: 198.53.28.99
Patrick: Are you saying that the members of the 2004 con staff who won awards in the 2004 art show shouldn't even have been included in that contest? And Flanker is in the 2004 Anthology, wasn't he the head of your security in 2004? I'm just curious as to "which time around" you are judging the decisions of this year's con staff against, if not the standards of the last con (2004) you were staff on. Personally, I thought those people had well-earned their awards, staff or not.
Lynati
Friday, June 17, 2005 08:10:09 PM
IP: 70.245.206.190
I've added a button in the top-left corner of the page (in the new layout used in the CR) that hides the entire left-side column when you click on it, and makes it reappear when you click on it again.
IRC-G: Can u try it out with your sidekick and see if that gets things working for you?
Vash & any others with 800x600 or lower res: let me know if everything looks cool to you. If all is good, I'm thinking I'd like to go live with what I have tonight so I don't have to keep deleting spam every day.
If all is well I bring TGS over to the new system during the weekend and we should be good to go.
Gorebash
Friday, June 17, 2005 05:12:56 PM
IP: 192.207.57.44
Patrick > The staff stories and artwork were extras contributed so that fans would receive as much book as they could for their bucks. They weren't judged as part of the competition.
kathy
Friday, June 17, 2005 01:20:31 PM
IP: 66.82.9.18
Gorebash > The new setup looks great, and I for one can't wait to see it go live.
Kris > There's always kissing.
Congratulations to everyone whose contest entries made it into the Eye of Odin Anthology. Until I saw the list of contributors last night, I didn't realize that the con staff wasn't disqualifying themselves from participating this time around. It makes me wonder if the same is going to be true of the competitions taking place at the convention, as well.
23 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
42 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Friday, June 17, 2005 06:49:34 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
Todd's mention of the hospital hair-stroking bit in his review for "Deadly Force" got me wondering--how does one Gargoyle show romantic affection to another if one doesn't have hair? Where does that leave Broadway and (eventually) Lexington with their significant others?
Kris - [plekopleko@hotmail.com]
Ontario, Canada
Friday, June 17, 2005 03:06:37 AM
IP: 69.17.169.178
Just got my comic con press pack in the mail today.
Looks like disney is not advertizing gargoyles on the jetix time slot at all anymore. This means they are either going to be putting alot more time into the comics greg weismen is working on. Or they are just filling the slot old cartoon shows "the tick" is one and it does'nt list the others. Hopefully they are just pulling the show because it is now on dvd and focusing more on the Comics.
I'll find out more at comic con.
Gorbash>I thought that moving castle cartoon came out last weekend in california? Must see it. By the way love the new comment room.
shara - [Jeanie54_2000@yahoo.com]
Thursday, June 16, 2005 09:00:03 PM
IP: 209.179.250.176
And for that matter, my comment on that line of Hudson's was in the other comment room.
Saw "Enter Macbeth" on DVD today. A favorite of mine, since it introduces Macbeth into the series. A few comments on it.
One of my favorite parts is at the very beginning, where we get a look at the gargoyles having a "night off" in the castle (if you can call it a "night off" when they haven't started patrolling the city yet), only a short while before they have to leave it for a very long time. Broadway cooking, Hudson watching a Donald Duck cartoon on television (judging from the way that Donald was dressed in it, I wonder if the cartoon in question was early footage from "Quack Pack"), Bronx chewing on a bone, Brooklyn and Lexington playing cards, and Goliath reading in the library. (That's one thing that I like about Goliath, the fact that he's a reader. I think that it even has the advantage of letting the audience see that you can be a big strong guy, a mighty warrior, and still enjoy books, that there's nothing unmanly about literacy.) In light of some of the later dialogue, I wonder if the specific book that he was reading in that shot was Shakespeare's plays?
This time around, I noticed that Xanatos's prison cell was lavishly furnished for a prison cell - as in, paintings on the walls. Even when he's behind bars, Xanatos lives in style.
(I still get a smile out of Xanatos describing his prison stay to Owen as a "learning experience" - as Blaise once said, what he most likely learned was not to get caught next time.)
I commented on favorite "Owen moments" in "Deadly Force", and we get more of these in "Enter Macbeth", first with Owen watching Macbeth's battle with the gargoyles on the monitor (with increasing disapproval as they start damaging some of the castle in the process), and then with his putting up a very good fight against Hudson, Broadway, and Elisa when they come for the Grimorum.
Macbeth intrigued me from the start, thanks to his name; I was wondering if there was some Shakespeare link, though I hadn't expected the full nature of it that we got in "City of Stone". I liked his castle-style house, and thought it a pity that the place was burned down. And we get the revelation that he's somehow linked to Demona - and even named her.
(Despite Goliath's claim that he doesn't laugh maniacally in "Double Jeopardy", he does that here after learning why Macbeth was after the clan - and does so very well, too.)
I had an odd little thought when the gargoyles took the Grimorum with them. We know that one of the inspirations for "Gargoyles" was "Gummi Bears", and in "Gummi Bears", a major element in the series was their ancient spell book (which also contained a great deal of general information about Gummi culture and achievements). In a sense, the Grimorum is almost the Gargoyles counterpart to the Great Book of Gummi - except that, unlike the Great Book, it gets permanently written out of the series in the middle of the second season. (That, and the gargoyles don't make use of the Grimorum; they hold onto it merely to keep unscrupulous people like Xanatos and Demona from using it.)
Other notes: Elisa's on crutches from "Deadly Force" (a good touch). Broadway, after shooting Elisa in the previous episode, is immediately protective of her when he awakens and sees Macbeth close by. (And he immediately destroys Owen's gun.) Plus a great scene of Goliath silently brooding on the battlements before flying away from the castle near the end.
Todd Jensen
St. Louis, MO
Thursday, June 16, 2005 07:19:02 PM
IP: 4.244.12.82
If you haven't already, check out the new CR system (click my name). I plan on going live with it soon, perhaps this weekend. I'm going to put together a quick style switcher that should (hopefully) let people hide the left-side bar, which seems to be the main thing for some people.
Howl's Moving Castle opens in the US tomorrow. Miyazaki! GO!
Gorebash
Thursday, June 16, 2005 04:09:38 PM
IP: 192.207.57.108
Matt Fewes, I think you may have that in reverse. What Hudson said in Hunter's moon pt I is contrast to what he said in Thrill of the Hunt.
That is another great thing about Hunter's Moon. It has bits and peices that reflect from the first season. I'm pretty sure Todd will include that in his ramble when he watches those episodes again.
Spacebabie - [spacebabie@homtail.com]
Thursday, June 16, 2005 02:32:36 PM
IP: 69.161.157.101
Bought two copies of the Anthology. With my story in there, I know some people who'd like copies.
Everyone else, there are some great stories in there, so go buy the Eye of Odin Anthology.
Greg Bishansky
Thursday, June 16, 2005 02:15:44 PM
IP: 69.118.108.212
It's so shiny we had to give it its own tab. The Eye of Odin Anthology is now available to pre-order. Get yours now to pick up at the Gathering for only $15.00 or add $5.00 shipping and handling and have it delivered USPS after the convention. Click the Eye of Odin Tab to get a peek or surf to The Gathering Shop to see all of this year's goodies. ::click::
kathy
Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:40:43 AM
IP: 66.82.9.76
Todd, Hudson's speech:"Movies, TV, Video Games, It's hard to know what is real and what is not" is a contrast to his Hunter's Moon speech to Angela: "Crooks always return to the scene of the crime, I learnt that by watching television" Angela: "I thought you said we should believe everything we watch on TV"
Matt Fews
Thursday, June 16, 2005 10:36:35 AM
IP: 206.47.191.83
VERTIGO1 - I only saw one episode of "MacGyver" (well, a two-parter, actually), but I remember the actor that you mention in it. It was a story about MacGyver going back in time to Arthurian Britain a la Mark Twain's "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" (he even had a number of run-ins with Merlin, though treating him much gentler than Twain's Hank Morgan did) - which, of course, was why I washed it - and Elcar played two roles in it, MacGyver's present-day friend, and King Arthur (who had been blinded in a fight with Morgan le Fay's followers). That obituary certainly brought back memories.
Todd Jensen
St. Louis, MO
Thursday, June 16, 2005 07:23:54 AM
IP: 4.244.12.254
24 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
43 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Thursday, June 16, 2005 06:49:18 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
I'm leaving with my folks tomorrow morning for southern California (Visiting my grandmother in Goleta, which is right outside of Santa Barbara. We won't get there until sometime on Sunday). So any of you peeps that spot a red one ton dodge pickup pulling a Montana fifth-wheel trailer going west on I-40, don't be afraid to honk and wave hello. :)
Net access will be pretty sporadic, for obvious reasons.
Shara, if you're reading this, check your yahoo account. :)
Vertigo1 - [md2389@gmail.com]
TN, USA
Thursday, June 16, 2005 03:50:05 AM
IP: 193.251.169.174
RIP Dana Elcar (aka Peter Thorton on MacGyver)
------------------------------------------------
VENTURA, Calif. - Dana Elcar, the round-faced, balding actor whose real-life struggle with blindness was written into his role on the TV adventure series "MacGyver," has died. He was 77.
He died Monday of complications from pneumonia at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura, his family said.
"MacGyver" ran on ABC from 1985 to 1992. Elcar played the best friend and boss of the crime-fighting title character, played by Richard Dean Anderson.
"At a time when I had very little business being called an actor, he made things so easy for me," Anderson said. "It was a learning experience that was very warm and loving for all seven years."
Elcar, who suffered from glaucoma, told producers he was going blind after four seasons with "MacGyver," so they adapted his character to match his medical condition. By the end of the show's run, he had become almost completely blind.
"The fact that you are losing your eyesight does not mean you have forgotten how to act," Elcar, in a speech to the National Federation of the Blind in 1991, recalled producers telling him.
----------------------------------------------------------
Click on my name for the source.
Vertigo1
TN, USA
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 09:20:35 PM
IP: 193.251.169.174
Just a quick FYI: Keith David has a few lines in the new movie 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith'. He never fully appears on screen, but it was still pretty cool. Again, just thought I'd let everyone know.
Jetfire
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 08:08:38 PM
IP: 70.25.113.198
Boy, definitely quiet here today.
Watched "Deadly Force" on DVD today. A few thoughts on it.
While Owen's role in this episode has been overshadowed by that of Broadway, Elisa, Goliath, and Dracon, he really shines in his quiet way in this one. He puts up the best struggle against Dracon's goons at the start, even seizing a gas mask from one of them and running after Dracon's getaway truck. He's resourceful as ever (particularly in his scheme to get the stolen guns back by becoming Tony's customer). I'd say that Xanatos definitely knew what he was doing in choosing a lifetime of service from Owen over a wish from Puck.
We get a lot of introductions in this episode: Tony Dracon, Glasses, Maria Chavez, Elisa's family (only Beth is offstage, and even she gets mentioned), Cagney, and even the clock tower. (Plus Matt in an unspeaking role. The first time that you saw this episode - don't answer this if you saw some of the later episodes first - did any of you suspect that we'd be seeing Chavez's driver again?)
The trio call "Showdown" a "new western", but it's in black and white. I wonder: was it "new" in the sense that everything in the 1990's is new to someone who's been asleep since 994? Or was it a genuinely recent movie that was deliberately shot in black and white for artistic reasons? (I find myself reminded of how the televisions and movies in "Batman:TAS" were portrayed as still black-and-white, but the New York of "Gargoyles" is much more definitely the world of the 1990's as opposed to the more surrealistic blend of time periods that you find in Gotham City.)
Of course, the biggie here includes the big shock of seeing Elisa shot (I wish that I could remember now whether I actually thought that she might die, the first time that I saw it), paired with getting a strong glimpse into Goliath's developing feelings for her, especially when he attends her in her hospital room (even touching her hair, which Greg's mentioned being a gargoyle act of affection, the equivalent of kissing). I still find myself particularly intrigued with what it must have been like for Goliath, to learn about Elisa's being shot and in serious danger just seconds before he turned to stone. Now there's a real case of torture for you. I doubt I'd want to know what his dreams must have been like during *that* day of stone sleep.
Todd Jensen
St. Louis, MO
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 07:19:37 PM
IP: 4.244.12.116
oh, I am so sorry, I never meant to type 'sham' - meant to type that its a 'shame' there are no gatherings in Wales - for my benefit - I know its nobody's fault. I meant no offense so i apologise for my mistake - note to self - remember to proof read in future lol!!!
Thanks for the welcomes everyone - great site!
dudette
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 07:31:04 AM
IP: 62.252.32.16
This is something that I forgot to mention last week when I was discussing "Awakening Part Three", but there's a line that amuses me in it (not so much from itself as from its context). When Owen is first showing Elisa around the inside of the castle, Elisa comments "This place must have one heck of a heating bill."
What stands out to me about that is that there's a "Bugs Bunny" cartoon where Bugs is wandering about an old Scottish castle and makes the same remark. What makes it even more entertaining is that the cartoon in question had a strong element of Shakespeare parody in it; it begins with a writer who appears to be Shakespeare beginning to write "Macbeth" while Witch Hazel attempts to cook Bugs as part of the famous witches' brew from the play, then moves on into additional Shakespeare parody (such as "Romeo and Juliet"), while the playwright is jotting down everything that goes on and frowning. At the end, it turns out that he isn't Shakespeare but a different playwright who just looks like him, and a boyfriend's of Witch Hazel's to boot - and Witch Hazel is disappointed with the fact that he didn't come with her to meet her family as she'd asked him to. It turns out that there was an address mix-up; the playwright thought that her family lived at the apartment 2B, Witch Hazel replies, "I never said '2B'", and Bugs - well, I think that you can see where this is going.
Todd Jensen
St. Louis, MO
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 07:25:48 AM
IP: 4.244.12.69
25 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
44 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 06:56:37 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
Wow.
Go see Batman!
Greg Bishansky
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 03:08:21 AM
IP: 69.118.108.212
Wow.
Go see Batman!
Greg Bishansky
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 03:08:14 AM
IP: 69.118.108.212
A 2nd golden age? I don't like counting my chickens before they hatch. If the new comic deal goes through and it's target goals for the 1st year are met, then maybe. I would prefer to think we're getting a Gargoyles Renaissance as opposed to another golden age at this point.
dph
ar, usa
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 12:39:45 AM
IP: 65.132.36.108
"Well, that's really more your problem than the networks."
I realize that. Its just annoying when you tell someone when the show is on (especially someone that remembers the show when it originally aired), only to have it suddenly disappear. That, and watching the show at 10:30 every night was sort of a "nightly ritual", in a vain attempt to add to the ratings. Guess I'll watch Futurama on CN instead. :)
"As I said, be thankful we're getting these DVDs, new comics. And Toon Disney is still playing it when they replaced a lot of their other cartoons with stuff."
As I've said in the past, I am thankful that we're getting new DVDs and comics. It may not seem like it, but I really am.
"But come on, most networks rarely announce schedual changes like that. There may be a commercial. But quit whining that we aren't getting "special treatment." "
I never complained that we weren't getting any kind of special treatment.
"For lack of a better term, the fandom seems to be entering a second golden age. And I couldn't be happier."
I guess that is something we can atleast both agree on.
"I'm Greg, I'm sort of like the bad uncle of the fandom, never accept candy from me ;)"
However, cookies are a different story entirely. ;) I recommend the oatmeal raisin ones. :)
Vertigo1 - [md2389@gmail.com]
TN, USA
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 11:30:19 PM
IP: 193.251.169.174
Guandalug: You know, since it's for a good cause, then I'm willing to write a synopsis for "To Serve Mankind," too. I know, I know... I'll try not to go crazy in the process! Must... be strong... for the fandom...
Dudette: Just wanted to say hi! And... welcome to the fandom! Hope you're having fun. :P
D. Taina
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 09:04:48 PM
IP: 172.160.128.253
Hi Duddette.
<<Just to say its a sham that there are no gathrings in Britain - we have some grat places - especially in Wales.>>
Not a sham, it all depends on where there's a staff willing to put in the time and effort to host one. Generally it's easier to that if someone on staff lives in the city. So, no one is trying to sham Britain, the Gathering a convention run by fans, for fans.
Welcome to the CR btw. I'm Greg, I'm sort of like the bad uncle of the fandom, never accept candy from me ;)
Greg Bishansky
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 08:20:16 PM
IP: 69.118.108.212
D. Taina> As you can see on the page I link, nobody yet claimed the episode, so it's yours now :) Thanx.
And I decided to do 'The Cage' myself - can't just sit here and demand new reviews without doing at least one myself. I'd even do 3rd season, if I would have it - unfortunately, I only got it in dubbed, and that's adding insult to injury, so to say....
(3 unclaimed Season 2 episodes, 8 unclaimed Season 3 - and those among you who told me about writing an episode review more than a month ago should mayhaps start doing it now :)
Guandalug la'Fay - [guandalug@gargoyles-fans.org]
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 07:07:47 PM
IP: 80.145.33.150
hi everyone, hope you are all ok! I am dissapointed that Gargoyles aren't on TV anymore - better than most of the programmes that are aired!!!
Just to say its a sham that there are no gathrings in Britain - we have some grat places - especially in Wales. There's Cardiff Castle, a medieval castel in the middle of Cardiff city, and there's Carephilly castle. My favourite is 'Castle Coch' - which mans red castle in Welsh. This is situated in the heart of a mountain and is very atmospheric and beautiful. There are countless other historical sites and also pleasant hotels in britain that would be perfect, however, am not sure how expensive these would be to hire! Just a few suggestions luv the dudette x x x
dudette
wales!!Tuesday, June 14, 2005 06:53:55 PM
IP: 62.252.32.16
Guandalug la'Fay: Has anyone volunteered to write a synopsis for Genesis Undone? Because if not, then I'm willing to do it.
D. Taina
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 04:23:32 PM
IP: 172.160.128.253
Well, that's really more your problem than the networks.
As I said, be thankful we're getting these DVDs, new comics. And Toon Disney is still playing it when they replaced a lot of their other cartoons with stuff.
But come on, most networks rarely announce schedual changes like that. There may be a commercial. But quit whining that we aren't getting "special treatment." For lack of a better term, the fandom seems to be entering a second golden age. And I couldn't be happier.
Greg Bishansky
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 03:09:31 PM
IP: 69.118.108.212
Greg: You may not be concerned about the scheduling change, but its kinda hard to remind people about how good the show is, when its not on at the time I told them...
Even just a little ticker at the bottom of the window a week or so in advance would've been sufficient.
Vertigo1
TN, USA
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 02:50:47 PM
IP: 193.251.169.174
*doesn't know his own website, obviously*
Those two images are on the lower LEFT, of course, in the left-side, otherwise empty area (at least up to now it's empty - working on filling it right now)
Guandalug la'Fay - [guandalug@gargoyles-fans.org]
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 02:23:02 PM
IP: 80.145.49.239
DPH> Ill met by Moonlight (Note the absence of an apostroph) is yours. Yes, it's really written that way (see Grag's ramble on said episode). And don't worry - I don't have a set deadline for all those episodes, I just want to get them completed anytime soon (preferably before we start adding new stuff like new comic reviews :)
As for those two 'valid' things.... those are the alternative texts of two images in the lower right corner and shouldn't be visible, unless you look at the page without loading images.... Mozilla 1.7, you say? I need to test-drive that one to see if I need to change stuff on the page. Thank you for telling me.
Okay, only 4 unclaimed episodes in season 2 and still 9 unclaimed episodes in Season 3. Now, who's next?
Guandalug la'Fay - [guandalug@gargoyles-fans.org]
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 02:17:01 PM
IP: 80.145.49.239
Guandalug la'Fay - It'll be a few days before I do the next one, "The Green". I'd like to claim "I'll Meet By Moonlight". After my experiences with The New Olympians handling Proteus in different forms, whoever handles Possession is going to have to be carefull. Also, in my version of Mozilla 1.7, I keep seeing the words "Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS!" on those review pages.
dph
ar, usa
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 01:27:28 PM
IP: 65.132.36.176
Count me as another person who isn't that concerned about "Gargoyles" having a much smaller role on ToonDisney's schedule, simply because I don't get ToonDisney (it isn't available in my area, for one thing). What is important is that we have Season One on DVD, and Season Two on DVD will be coming soon.
Todd Jensen
St. Louis, MO
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 07:19:47 AM
IP: 4.244.12.82
On the TPB collection discussion from the end of last week's CR...
Greg: I'm a bit ambivalent about Bendis's style. His dialogue is superb, and he seems really good at finding clear and interesting set-pieces, but often I feel his stories peter out a little, and I'm not sure he's really playing to the strength of the medium. It's to his infinite credit that his style works as well as it does so often -- he's still evidently one of the best writers around, and good for him because he's playing to his very mighty strengths -- but I don't think he's necessarily the best example for comics as a rule. Bruce Jones did a similar thing on 'Hulk' and it quickly became frustrating.
I think this trade-centred writing is often associated too closely with the new naturalism writers like Bendis are bringing to comics, which seems to have been imported heavily from cinema. I've seen the 6-part format described as akin to a 3-act film, and most of the terminolgy seems to be imported from films -- 'widescreen' and so on. This is all great at making comics accessible and interesting, and certainly importing a lot of filmic storytelling techniques shook up people's expectations of how comics can develop characters and feel contemporary etc. That's all to the good. But I don't think it's a prerequisite for stories that work well in trade format, and I don't think it's necessarily playing to the strengths of the medium. The reason comic movies are becoming such big business is because comics mix the vast scope of imagination you see in a novel with the immediacy of television or film: you can get visuals that are as or more stunning in a £1.50 comic than in a $15m movie, and you can get them on every page. Now, tehcnology is such that Hollywood can tap into that spectacular quality, but it's still a long way from perfecting it.
I don't think, by and large, the greatest comic work is going to be remembered for its naturalism. A 3-page conversation scripted by a superb wordsmith is no less wonderful in a comic book than it would be on a stage, on the screen, or in a novel, but I think the look and feel of Frank Miller's best work conveys emotion much more viscerally. You can afford to condense with comics, and tell a very lean kind of story, because the art can carry the weight of symbolism. The fact that a writer produces fewer words isn't a reflection on his talent: as one of my favourite comic writers once pointed out to me, the writer also writes the pictures.
Since 'Gargoyles' comes from television animation, I think it feels closer to that kind of pithy comic book style. Think of the big, keynote images such as Goliath cradling the rubble that he believes is Demona. Because it's aimed at kids, the scenes were predominantly short and tightly-cropped: it was very lean, very focused. And I love that. I always feel like Greg's style feels a little bit more Stan Lee than Aaron Sorkin: he kills in one-liners, not one-pagers. :) (I love Sorkin too, btw, but for different reasons).
Having said all that, 'Gargoyles' has always told big, epic stories so I have no doubt that something with the epic scope of 'City of Stone' or 'Avalon' would easily fit a big multi-parter. But I don't think the story needs to be a super-epic to be worth telling. The best stuff I've read from Marvel recently IMO has been Mark Waid's 'Fantastic Four'. The plots were usually great, the art was frequently breathtaking, it was brimming with great characterisation and witty lines, all wrapped in a tight, flowing plot. And despite all this, it worked absolutely fine in trades (I very seldom by single issues these days) -- the stories came in 1-parters, 2-parters, 6-parters, 5-parters... the 'Doctor Doom' stuff was effectively a big 14-issue arc. The plot was dictating how long the stories needed to be, not the format. If the story needs 6 parts, that's wonderful. If it only needs 1 part, that's great too. I'm more concerned that each episode makes the most of the skills of the writer and artist to tell the story in a truly memorable, exciting fashion.
(And no, I have absolutely no idea how this reply wound up being so big. O_O)
Ed
Cambridge, England
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 07:17:04 AM
IP: 131.111.236.130
The only thing consistent about time slots on Toon Disney is their inconsistency. I'd rather have Season 2 on DVD than worry about what ungodly hour of the evening it's showing on pay cable. I really wasn't watching it where it was anyway because the time slot was in conflict with new episodes of "American Chopper."
26 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
45 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 06:46:08 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
dph> Got your summary and posted it. No, it's not too long.
Now, we only have 10 Episodes of Season 2 unfinished (5 of which are still unclaimed) and 11 episodes of Season 3 (where 9 are open for takers)
Guandalug la'Fay - [guandalug@gargoyles-fans.org]
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 06:19:28 AM
IP: 134.147.82.247
Maybe they should just send representatives to all our houses and have them tell us schedual changes. Despite everyone's complaining, after almost a decade of nothing, we're getting DVDs and a new comic. We should be happy now, not whining.
Greg Bishansky
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 01:57:26 AM
IP: 69.118.108.212
Leo: So nice of them to advertise the change...
Vertigo1
TN, USA
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 01:19:41 AM
IP: 193.251.169.174
Vertigo1:<<"Looks like Toon Disney is done with Gargoyles entirely. Its no longer on the DirecTV guide.">>
Actually, it's been moved to weekends only at 10:00 PM. (according to the "Zap2it" TV listings) However, for some reason they seem to be showing the eps out of order. Saturday's episode is "Upgrade" and Sunday's episode is "Grief" Maybe it's a "Chillin with the Villains" Pack themed weekend? :-/
Leo
Monday, June 13, 2005 11:46:17 PM
IP: 68.231.241.236
Gore> How long will that archieve be up? I wnat to look up some old comments I made on "The Price."
Thanks for posting it, anyway!
Battle Beast
CanadaMonday, June 13, 2005 11:34:45 PM
IP: 198.53.28.99
Probably on a brief hiatus. But you never know, but honestly, a lot of shows are put on DVD and then not re-ran, simply so DVD sales are higher and a lot of companies figure that with a show getting a DVD release, they can use that room for something else. Yeah, there are some acceptions to this, but don't look at it like that.
ANd Toon Disney means zilch anyway, I don't get Toon Disney, so it may as well be off the air. BTW, Gargoyles is getting DVD releases, thus far X-Men has no DVD releases (not counting those poorly done random episode DVDs). So, nothing to complain about.
Greg Bishansky
Monday, June 13, 2005 10:55:27 PM
IP: 69.118.108.212
Looks like Toon Disney is done with Gargoyles entirely. Its no longer on the DirecTV guide. The old X-Men animated series has taken its place. For such high DVD sales, they sure as hell don't support the show a whole lot.
Vertigo1 - [md2389@gmail.com]
TN, USA
Monday, June 13, 2005 10:04:39 PM
IP: 193.251.169.174
Guandalug la'Fay - I just emailed you my summary of NO. I hope it isn't too long.
dph
ar, usa
Monday, June 13, 2005 08:11:23 PM
IP: 65.132.36.16
I know this isn't Garg related but it is indeed Greg related ^_^
Due for release on July 5th: Roughnecks-Starship Troopers Chronicles-Complete Campaigns. A 4 DVD set. What might be interesting about it is that a few sites I've found including the one linked to my name list as a bonus - 4 additional episodes. Maybe Greg W. can find out what they're up to here, if they're actually releasing anything that hasn't been released before. I know he talked about episodes that weren't competed or were not aired. At any rate, it will still be nice to have a way to get all the eps in one place.
Anyway, thought that you'd all like to know.
Wingless
Monday, June 13, 2005 07:07:22 PM
IP: 70.28.12.78
Gorebash>Stutter on your first word? :P
Good work on the archive. My only suggestion would be for it to be searchable by keyword and user (for those to lazy to dig thru all of the archives to find episode rambles from certain users), or at least have a summary of the discussion(s).
Lord GargFan
Monday, June 13, 2005 05:31:27 PM
IP: 67.185.229.228
Ufcking spam. Should have been blocked too because that one comes from a specific IP range. :\
Anyways. Todd & Kythera, I make no warranties that this page is going to work throughout the day or that this is the final resting place for the eventual, official archive page.
But for now, here you go:
http://s8.org/gargoyles/comment/archive.php
Gorebash
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:38:27 PM
IP: 192.207.57.120
Todd-- I know, I'm sorry I couldn't get back online any sooner. Oh well. If Gore gets the archive up we can pick at that discussion some more if you'd like, or just let it slide. Either way. It's a minor point, anyway. ^_^
Kythera of Anevern - [kythera(at)gmail.com]
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:29:48 PM
IP: 24.130.87.94
The spam has evolved!!!
Chameleongirl
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:07:30 PM
IP: 202.87.162.31
11th, I think.
That is all I will say.
Battle Beast
CanadaMonday, June 13, 2005 09:41:10 AM
IP: 198.53.28.99
I claim spot 8!
Or is it 9?
*shrugs* I am here!
Renee
Monday, June 13, 2005 09:26:01 AM
IP: 68.47.110.33
Todd: nothing is lost. I've got CRs going back to July 2002 stored on s8. I'll see if I can write up the archive code today and get you access to the goods.
Gorebash - [gorebash@s8.org]
Monday, June 13, 2005 09:25:26 AM
IP: 192.207.57.13
KYTHERA - And unfortunately, now I can't check the original discussion that we had to refresh my memory, since that would have been erased last night when the comment room was refreshed.
Todd
St. Louis, MO
Monday, June 13, 2005 06:55:06 AM
IP: 4.245.20.10
Lucky number 7!
27 days left until pre-registration for The Gathering 2005 ends.
46 days left until The Gathering 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
Patrick
Monday, June 13, 2005 06:51:16 AM
IP: 68.170.199.45
Six!
Todd-- Just wanted to let you know that your reply re: Hakon/illiteracy was duly noted and aknowledged. ^_^ My life got turned a bit upside-down and I didn't have the liesure to respond to you. Sorry about that. :B
Kythera of Anevern - [kythera(at)gmail.com]
Monday, June 13, 2005 03:31:20 AM
IP: 24.130.87.94
5th!
Vertigo1 - [md2389@gmail.com]
TN, USA
Monday, June 13, 2005 02:15:27 AM
IP: 193.251.169.170
4TH!!!
matt
O'Fallon, Mo
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:14:19 AM
IP: 68.93.186.107
3rd!!
dph
ar, usa
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:13:54 AM
IP: 65.132.36.43
Second!
Leo
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:03:41 AM
IP: 68.231.241.236
First. Finally.
Kris - [plekopleko@hotmail.com]
Ontario, Canada
Monday, June 13, 2005 12:03:05 AM
IP: 69.17.169.178