Greg responds...

(Numbers have been added to your comments/questions to make my life easier.) 1. Who?
2. I've been asked to attend, and if we can work out the details, I'll be there.
3. Lots of interesting stories that you just wouldn't be able to get enough of.
4. No one offered to make an animated feature. But the guys at Touchstone were interested in making a live-action movie. Who am I to say no?
Actually, no one. I have no control over what Disney does with the property.
5. You've raised two different points. Animation was done at a number of different studios. Our best work was done by Walt Disney Japan's in-house teams. Second best work was done by other Japanese units. Third best by KoKo in Korea. That was all great stuff. The rest ranged from O.K. down to poor. Your second point was about storylines, but I think it's interesting that you credit better animated episodes with having more interesting storylines. You're not alone, I've noticed in general that fans of the show seem to like the stories of better animated episodes and dislike the stories of poorly animated episodes. My guess is that at least to some extent, the animation is creating a bias negative or positive. The reason I feel that way is because, with the exception of the multi-parters, I never knew which studio an episode was going to go to when creating our stories. I never knew whether it was going to get great animation like "The Mirror",
"Future Tense" or "M.I.A." or whether it was going to get lousy or mediocre animation like "Monsters" or "Vendettas". We wrote the best 66 episodes we could. I find it hard to believe that the best stories just coincidentally happened to go to the best studios. Some stories certainly turned out better than others, but evidence suggests that animation quality had a larger subliminal effect on which stories people liked than anyone realizes.
6. First off, I don't have a lot (read any) control over this situation. I hope the live action movie is great. They are planning to use some CGI, although I don't think even they know how much yet. But mostly, I'm not worried about the look. Hollywood movies invariably look great. I'm hoping for a good story that is faithful to the spirit of the GARGOYLES property, if not the details.

Greg responds...

Good question, Greg. NO, YOU CAN'T. It's probably right most of the time, but as far as I know no one involved with the show approved the close captioning, and I know of at least a couple of examples where it was dead wrong. Particularly on the spelling of names. That suggests to me that whoever wrote the captions didn't even have access to the scripts. I'm guessing he or she simply listened to the episodes and wrote down what they heard (or thought they heard). That means the "guesswork" known as close captioning has no more authority than what your own ears reveal. If you have any specific questions about dialogue or name spelling, don't check the captioning. Ask Greg.

Greg responds...

I think I've answered this but it's faster to type it in again then it is to check: EYRIE BUILDING. (I think Michael Reaves came up with that name.)

Greg responds...

1. Hee hee hee.
2. Always.

Greg responds...

Sorry, but I didn't save that info. It must be on file somewhere, so why don't you try writing a polite, typed and carefully proofread letter to Nielson. (And no, I don't know their address, but a good reporter should be able to find it. :))

Greg responds...

Mutual self-interest.

Greg responds...

1. Hey, Xanatos. I'd rather call you Greg, but I'll respect your wishes.
I added numbers to your questions to make this easier to read. No other editing. Hope you don't mind.
2. The Illuminati had their reasons.
3. No.
4. "Beth Maza" and I are trying to work out the details for me to be there.
We don't have it nailed down yet, so I don't want to make any promises. But we're trying, and it looks likely. Hopefully, I'll see you there.

Greg responds...

1. Most (though not all) of the Shakespeare was me. Beginning with Macbeth. We were looking for an immortal Scottish hunter. Macbeth had the name recognition. It felt like the kind of thing Stan Lee would have done in the early sixties at Marvel. Plus I love Shakespeare. The other things flowed from that rather smoothly. The Weird Sisters were obvious. Puck, Oberon and Titania likewise. Marty Isenberg & Bob Skir, the writers on "Legion" created an Othello/ Desdemona/Iago/Cassio set up (with Goliath in the Cassio role). I'm still not 100% sure if Marty and Bob did that on purpose, because per our rules, none of the other characters were named in their original outline for the story. In order to relieve some of the stress on our all-too-human brains, I suggested the Shakespearean names for internal use in order to keep all the characters straight. With more episodes, we would have included more Shakespearean characters. But I think that covers it for now.
2. NO. NO. NO. First off, Nelvana did none of the animation on the first two seasons. (Frankly, they didn't do any animation production for the third season either. They just handled pre-production.) The original background in front of the clock tower was a mistake. A MISTAKE. It was supposed to be a flashback to the moment when Demona first broke the gate and gave her piece to Goliath at the castle. A wistful memory. The mistake with the clock tower background came in too late to fix in time for the first airing. Maybe too late for the second too, I can't remember. But eventually, we got the correct background back from overseas and cut it in. Our intent never changed. Pragmatic realities dictated the two versions you saw. Sorry if that's disappointing.
3. Both.
4. There is a tradition of triple goddesses connected to the phases of the moon. It seemed to me that the Weird Sisters fit that tradition.
5. Demona and Macbeth. And the Archmage.
6. Elisa/Goliath from the start, and we never wavered. Demona's journey to some kind of redemption is another subplot, (if possible an even slower one then Goliath and Elisa's journey to finding each other). Sometimes, these subplots are going to intersect. But again, our intent remained constant.
7. I can't answer any questions about any Goliath Chronicle episodes except for "The Journey". Didn't work on them.
8. Again, I had little to do with Goliath Chronicles. But I doubt there was any executive pressure. Your questions suggest a clear bias toward wanting Goliath and Demona to reunite. All I can say is it wouldn't happen if the show was under my watch. As far as I was concerned we put any real chance of that to rest with "Vows". Someday, Goliath and Demona might have eventually reached some kind of detante. But Goliath's destiny is with Elisa. IMHO.

Greg responds...

1. Griff and Leo were involved in the 40s, but by the 90s Una and Leo were mates.
2. Yes. Yama means "the Mountain". Gary Sperling told me what all the names mean, but I don't remember the others. Sorry.
3. Sure.
4. Not that I know of.
5. Not really.
6. Probably.
7. You're welcome.

Greg responds...

First and foremost, you write. Then write some more. Then do a little writing. Read a lot. Write some more. Read some more. Read a lot. Write a lot. Study story structure. Study great literature. Study myth and legends. Joseph Campbell. Listen to how people talk. How they really talk. Learn your craft. Get a kick-ass education. Write. Read. Write.
Get copies of animation (or other television) scripts. Learn the format.
Write spec scripts for shows that you like. Try to use those specs to get an agent. Then your agent can use those specs to get you work. Write more specs. If you can't get an agent, send the specs to production companies that you admire. Don't send a Batman spec to Warner Bros or a Gargoyles to Disney. Legally, they can't risk reading those. But you can send Batman to Disney and Gargoyles to Warners. (I know it sounds weird. There's a real good reason for this, but it's a whole other question, so for now just trust me.) Actually, you shouldn't be writing a Gargoyles spec at all, since that show isn't producing new episodes now. You don't want your spec to come off as yesterday's news. Keep reading. Keep writing. Try writing a pilot script and a short bible for an original series. Try using those to get an agent or work (any work, you need credits on your resume.) Oh, yeah.
PROOFREAD. PROOFREAD. PROOFREAD. Read your own work aloud, you catch more mistakes that way. Read. Write. Write some more. Get used to a lot of rejection. A LOT OF REJECTION.
That's the best advice I can give you except this: writing for television is an extremely difficult career to break into, let alone succeed at; so if you don't really have a PASSION for it, then do something else. You'll need that passion to see you through a lot of dark times. If you can be happy doing anything else, then do that other thing. Otherwise, good luck.

Greg responds...

1. Sevarius.
2. Yes.
3. Michael Reaves came up with the name "Sevarius". I don't know if it had a meaning to him. Initially, I wasn't sure if I liked the sound of the name. It sounded cliched to me at first, though I was at a loss to explain why. Later, it seemed perfect for the character. I was wrong on that one, so I'm glad I deferred to Michael.
4. Uh.... Sorry. I can't think of anything that hasn't been asked. But I'm sure you guys'll come up with something.

Greg responds...

1. I've answered this. The short answer is yes. For a longer answer look at the archives for this page.
2. They were (usually) a tremendous amount of fun. The most fun part of the job, frankly. You get to be there as actors bring your characters to life with their voices. I sat second chair to our fantastic voice director Jamie Thomason, so I got to pretend I was helping. Plus most of our actors were a complete joy to work with. Particularly our regulars: Keith, Jeff, Bill, Thom, Ed, Brigitte, Salli, Frank, Marina and Jonathan. Laura San Giacomo, Peter Scolari, Sheena Easton, Jim Cummings, Morgan Shepard, Kath Soucie and John Rhys-Davies were also great fun people to work with and talk to. (Actually, I'm nervous about leaving people out. Most everyone was great.) Anyway, yeah, it was a lot of fun. It WAS also work. Some sessions lasted for hours and could be grueling. But mostly it was a hoot.

Greg responds...

The future is hazy. I'll consult Puck later (not that he can be trusted).
As to the past, I've worked on a number of animation projects, most of them as a development executive. These include (in no particular order) Gummi Bears, Duck Tales, Winnie the Pooh, TaleSpin, Rescue Rangers, Duck Tales the Movie, A Goofy Movie, Mighty Ducks, Bonkers, Goof Troop, Darkwing Duck, Aladdin (series), Little Mermaid (series), JEM, Timon & Pumbaa, Schnookums & Meat,
Raw Toonage, Marsupilami, Quack Pack, etc. Some of these I had a lot to do with, others I had almost nothing to do with.
I also worked for DC Comics for some time. The main thing I did was CAPTAIN ATOM. But I worked as a writer or assistant editor on DC Challenge, Tales of the Teen Titans, Justice League of America, Justice League, Justice League International, All Star Squadron, Infinity Inc, Young All Stars, Titans Spotlight, Silverblade, Watchmen, Secret Origins, Millenium, Who's Who, etc.

Greg responds...

1. Katana.
2. Xanatos and Goliath will never be totally in synch, but Xanatos no longer desires to be at odds with the gargoyles. That doesn't mean that occasionally they won't wind up at odds.
3. Meet? Sure.

Greg responds...

Macduff was Duncan's lieutenant in 1040. He was knocked out by Demona, allowing Macbeth to go one-on-one with Duncan.

Greg responds...

It's on Central Park South. At least it is in my Manhatten.

Greg responds...

The question you should ask yourself is whether ANY of Disney's animated series from that era of the Disney Afternoon received MORE promotion.
Personally, I don't think so. Other producers complained that they didn't get as much of a push as Gargoyles did.
Now you could argue that Disney didn't promote any of their shows enough.
But keep in mind that promotion costs a LOT of money. It just wasn't money they felt like spending at the time.

Greg responds...

A one time deal. Elisa's humanity and Goliath's gargoylity make up one of the series prime dynamics. Any permanent alteration of that would have been a betrayal.

Greg responds...

1. Uh, draw a lot? Seriously, I'm not an artist or animator, so I'm not the guy to ask. But I guess you could try to get into to an art school which has an animation department and a history of industry recruitment.
2. Yes. In my mind, at least.

Greg responds...

About 90 years worth of stuff.

Greg responds...

Thanks.

Greg responds...

1. I did.
2. In my mind, he never abandoned his old tricks. But some of his goals and priorities have changed a bit.
3. I don't think the show ever even implied that. The Coyote was "joined" to Peter Maza when he danced the part of Coyote in a kachina ceremony.
4. Sorry. Not in the mood today.
5. Depends who you ask.
6. Yes.
7. They can be killed. Or destroyed. They might age very slowly. Hard to tell, since they can alter their forms to suit their vanity.
8. Which legends specifically?

Greg responds...

She caught him off guard. Then he turned to stone, so there wasn't much time to react.

Greg responds...

Loin cloths were there from the beginning. No one wanted to see Goliath twisting in the wind, so to speak.
I think Gary Krisel came up with the idea of "cloaking" the wings when they were at rest. I resisted that notion at first, but I soon became a convert.

Greg responds...

Sigh, I've answered this before too. Gargoyles has one good shot at coming back. If and when the live-action movie is completed, interest in the property might be revived and Disney might consider bringing the show back.
If that happens, then I want to have a few surprises left.

Greg responds...

Yes.
(Seems like a good time to remind you guys to check the FAQ for ASK GREG before re-asking old questions. It's fine to reask something I've dodged.
Or to get more specific in your question. But try not to ask the same question over.)

Greg responds...

More of the same, plus more of the different.

Greg responds...

Islands or the New World? What's the connection between those two?
Guatemala isn't an island. I guess the answer is no, because I don't get the question.

Greg responds...

1. I knew that one of those eggs from the first episode was a child of Goliath's and Demona's. I didn't give too much thought initially to who that child was. Later, it became clear that she would be a female. A female who was in many ways Demona's opposite (hence the name Angela) but in other ways very much like her mother. The positive side of Demona, so to speak.
2. I'm not sure.

Greg responds...

You seem to know Diane pretty well. What's her excuse? :)
Are you sure that Cuchullain and his "hound" weren't actually combined and confused in the legend? Are you sure our version wasn't the true truth? :) :)
To be honest, I'm not that familiar with the Cuchullain legends, so I didn't double check Diane, Peter and Michael's version. Also I asked for some changes from their early drafts. They told me they had problems with some of the changes, so we compromised. (Or at any rate, we found something that I liked which they didn't object to.) Maybe they compromised too much, I don't know. But I do take full responsibility for what got on the screen.
Ultimately, I was the guy in charge of story, so the buck stops with me. I just wasn't aware we were making serious errors. I'm still not. Where did we go wrong, besides adding a gargoyle beast to the legend (a logical extension in our series)?

Greg responds...

I believe I said that we had no censors. And I didn't say "marriage ceremony", I think I said "commitment ceremony". I don't know exactly what I would have done, if I had been given enough episodes to get to this issue.
I have no reason to believe that it would have been even vaguely controversial. But rest assured, when I felt the time was right, Goliath and Elisa would have had some sort of clear moment of commitment. I don't think it would have been a traditional marriage ceremony (not because of censorship, but because that doesn't feel right to me vis-a-vis the two characters), but you'd have gotten the message. Trust me.

Greg responds...

1. I've answered this one too. The short answer is Goliath, but they're all my children, and I love them all.
2. I've answered this too, but see below.
3. Faulty assumptions. Who doesn't get the short end of the stick sometimes? Lex? Goliath? Broadway? Demona tricked Brooklyn. Goliath lost his clan and castle. The Pack tried to kill Lex. Broadway shot Elisa accidentally. Bad stuff happens. Particularly to cartoon characters.
Was Brooklyn "forced" into leadership? I suppose you could look at it that way, but don't forget he WANTED it. It's a lot of responibility, but even now, I don't think he'd give up being Goliath's Second-In-Command gladly.
And Brooklyn never lost Maggie or Angela. He never had them. Hell, he never KNEW them. He was in love with their looks, their seeming availability. He had crushes. Broadway, on the other hand, understood Angela inside and out -- her fears, her desires, her moods. He's a more sensitive guy. He sees inside people. Brooklyn doesn't. Or at least he didn't. When Brooklyn does truly fall in love for the first time, he'll know the difference immediately. It will be real, not superficial. It will be lasting.
Gargoyles mate for life. Brooklyn won't be an exception. He just hasn't met the right girl yet.
So when you ask me why I'm "doing" this to him, I don't know how to respond.
Either you go inside the show and realize that this is his life. He has to go through the bad stuff in order to learn enough to appreciate the good. Or you remain outside the show and realize that this is storytelling. We put characters through paces. We challenge them. We watch them overcome odds.
If everyone's lives were always perfect, it would make for boring television.
4. I have no idea. Sorry.

Greg responds...

Not in the sense you mean.

Greg responds...

I wrote and story edited one episode, the first one, "THE JOURNEY".
Otherwise, I was not involved. I was paid as a creative consultant, but I asked Disney to remove my consultant credit from the end credits of the last twelve episodes, because I felt I hadn't earned it. Eric Lewald, Jay Fukuto and Kim Christianson consulted me a bit on those episodes, but not much.
They followed some of my negative recommendations, that is they chose not do some things that I recommended against, but they rarely did any of the things I suggested that they should do. So I felt I had made no positive contribution
to the show that would appear on screen. Thus I felt I didn't deserve screen credit. So if you're looking for my credit on Goliath Chronicles, look fast at the end of "The Journey" and then forget about it.
As to the "story"... well, I think I've answered this, but maybe not here.
Basically, it's a decision I regret, but at the time it made sense. Disney offered me the opportunity to story edit the thirteen Goliath Chronicles episodes they were doing. I agreed to do one, while we worked out the details. But we never could work out those pesky details. It was not about money. We never got that far in the conversation, and they met my fee for "The Journey", so I don't think that would have been a problem. The problems were creative control and resources. Disney didn't offer me the opportunity to produce Goliath Chronicles. They were, in essence, asking me to take a demotion. Also, at the time, they were going to pre-produce the show at DIC and refused to guarantee me any creative approvals over DIC's work. They also presented me with an impossible schedule. (The first script was due before they made the offer to me. I'm not kidding.) I felt like they were asking me to preside over the demise of the show. So I passed.
Then after I passed, things changed. They switched from DIC to Nelvana.
They gave new Producer Scott Thomas all the approvals that they wouldn't guarantee to me. They gave new Story Editor Eric Lewald a schedule that was much more realistic. I felt, well, screwed.
But even so, I shouldn't have passed. I missed out on the opportunity to tell twelve more of my stories. To let the series go out on a note of my choosing as opposed to someone else's. Eric's a very good guy, but GARGOYLES was my baby, and I should not have abandoned it. Live and learn.
O.K. Now I'm really not gonna answer this question again.

Greg responds...

Yes.

Greg responds...

No. It was a reference to the legend of King Arthur and the Holy Grail. We did have a Python reference from "Holy Grail" in "Future Tense" when Xanatos says to Goliath's head, "What are you going to do, bite my kneecaps off?" A famous line from a funny movie.

Greg responds...

What list? What was the source? What was the date on it? You haven't given me enough information. But I can say that as far as I know, Disney isn't planning anymore Gargoyle related filmed entertainment except for the live- action movie in development at Touchstone Pictures.

Greg responds...

1. I've answered this one too, but it's a short question so

Phoebe - Blonde hair;

Seline - Black hair;

Luna - Silver hair.

There was no brunette.
3. Female Gargoyles only lay one egg every twenty years max.

Greg responds...

Yeah, I pretty much loved Shakespeare from my earliest exposures. I still have a crush on Olivia Hussey.
Macbeth was the first Shakespearean character we included, and he just seemed too perfect NOT to include. We needed an immortal and dangerous Scotish King with maximum name recognition. Who else was there? His inclusion led to all the rest. But frankly, it was inevitable given my interests. Besides, as I mentioned above, to me these stories really exist out there, waiting to be plucked down. IT HAD TO BE MACBETH, etc. Cuz that's the way it happened.

Greg responds...

1. I knew early on that I wanted to do a World Tour Story set in Arizona that focused on Elisa and Peter's Native American Heritage. I knew that story would involve the Coyote Trickster. But the specific connection wasn't decided on until Brynne, Lydia and myself started working on the that specific premise/outline/script. Why? On a very real level, we had no choice. It was the "truth", obvious once we delved into it. Plus, it made a good story and would lead us to more and more interesting things.
2. Beth's mother is a professor who specializes in African Studies, specifically African myth and legends. Beth is following in her mother's footsteps, but with the twist that she is specializing in Native American Studies, her father's heritage. She chose Flagstaff, at least in part, because that's the college nearest to where her father grew up.
3. Yes, Elisa went to Columbia on a partial scholarship. That's where her mom teaches. She majored in Psych. By the way, Derek went to Columbia also. He majored in African-American Studies.

Greg responds...

1) What happened when?
2) Control. Mostly. Plus they know some things.
3) Ever? Sure.
Hey, Luke, I don't mean to single you out, but it's time to point out again, that vague questions demand vague answers. Also, if you ask me a question so large that my only choices are to answer coyly or to write a novel- length response, you're going to get coy almost every time. Sorry.

Greg responds...

1. Something that made her smile. :)
2. Gargoyles, fae, humans, plants, animals. It's the same deal. The gargoyle race was "created" by the same thing that created the human race and most everything else. What was that, you ask? God? Evolution?
Both? I'll leave that to everyone's personal belief system.
But don't give Oberon the credit. For purposes of this discussion, he's just one of the created. Hardly the creator.

Greg responds...

1. I've answered the Weird Sister thing. Check the ASK GREG FAQ archives.
2. The Archmage is dead. Of course, so was Hakon.
3. In 994, Demona and Goliath were both 56 years old chronologically (twenty- eight biologically, i.e. in human terms.) In 1020, Demona was 82 (or 41) and aging prematurely because of the extremely difficult life she was leading. In 1040, Demona was 102 (51) until she recieved Macbeth's youth in magical trade. He was 35 (35) so she became 102 (35). He became 35 (51).
They've been stuck at those (biological) ages ever since.
4. It's hard to say. Gargoyles have always led lives of such intense conflict that it is extremely rare for a gargoyle to die of old age.
In fact, it's rare for them to get very old at all. Hudson, thankfully, is a marvelous exception. On the other hand, their daily healing is a big plus, so I'm figuring they'd wind up on the high end of what a human can accomplish. I tend to believe that a gargoyle maxes out at 180 to 200 years old (or 90 to 100 biologically) assuming they escape a violent end or a magical reprieve. Same for a Gargoyle Beast.

Greg responds...

Keep in mind, that most of the fae can take on any form that strikes their fancy. Appearances can be deceiving.
But yes, there is a relationship. With a few exceptions, the current New Olympians are descendants of a group of very mortal "gods and monsters" who chose to retire from humanity and set up shop on New Olympus. These original Olympians were the mortal children of human-fae liasons. (There's more to it than that, but that's the short answer.) Fox and Alexander are basically New Olympians. Sort of. Not really. But you get the idea.
Among the exceptions that I mentioned are the New Olympian Gargoyles, who have full New Olympian citizenship, but are descended from gargoyles, not from humans or fae. Another obvious exception is the robot Talos, who was built centuries ago and has been rebuilt and upgraded more times than anyone has bothered to count.
[Now what's fascinating to me is that I actually answered that question and didn't get cute or evasive. All of the above is info that I hadn't planned on revealing, but, hey, catch me at the right moment and I might even tell you that Brooklyn's kids are named NASHVILLE and TACHI. Doh!]

Greg responds...

Well, the immediate inspiration for the Sisters was obviously Shakespeare's Weird Sisters from MACBETH. But a surprising number of cultures have myths of a triple goddess, generally associated with fate and/or the phases of the moon. As I recall, Seline (or Selene) was the name of the Greek goddess of the moon. Luna was a roman name occasionally used for the same goddess.
Phoebe means "bright" (in its feminine form). It was a epithet occasionally used almost as an adjective to describe Artemis (or Diana), the goddess of the hunt, who was also often associated with the moon, just as her twin brother Phoebus Apollo was often associated or confused with Phoebus Helios the god of the Sun. In fact, I had a wealth of names to chose from.
So I finally just picked three that seemed to work well together.
I had many plans for the clones and the Sisters. Too much to relate in this Q&A format.

Greg responds...

Uh, if I understand your question...
We made 65 episodes of GARGOYLES. Thirteen in the first season. Fifty-two in the second.
Thirteen episodes of GARGOYLES: THE GOLIATH CHRONICLES were made. I only worked on the first one.
That totals to 78 episodes, 66 of which I was involved in.

Greg responds...

From Brooklyn's point-of-view he was gone for forty years. Sometimes he'd bounce into a time period for a few seconds, sometimes he'd be there for years. That being the case, I had a lot of villains planned. Some you know already and some new ones as well. If you're asking whether there would have been one villain who appeared in literally every episode, the answer is no.
But I did have plans for a couple of different antagonists who he'd have faced in more than one era.

Greg responds...

You're mistaken. Brooklyn asks Lex who Macbeth is. Lex remembers Goliath talking about a play called "Macbeth" by "some new writer named Shakespeare." To them, Shakespeare was new because he was born centuries AFTER the 990s.

Greg responds...

A third sigh. Time travel. A working paradox. The Archmage never did die.
Goliath, Hudson and Demona thought he had died, because they saw him fall down into the pit. But before he actually died his "future" self appeared and rescued him. Later, his future self made sure that the rescued self knew how and when to go back in time to rescue the original self, thus completing the perfect circle. The working paradox.

Greg responds...

I hate to say this, particularly since I've said it before, but the ratings on GARGOYLES were never spectacular. NEVER. They were better than GOLIATH CHRONICLES (relatively), and good enough to chalk the show up as a hit. But it was a single. Not a home run. Not even a double. We regularly got trounced by Power Rangers.
Again, the best shot for new episodes for the show is the live-action feature film currently in development at Touchstone. If that movie gets made it might reawaken interest in the show, particularly if fandom has kept the flame alive.