A Station Eight Fan Web Site

Gargoyles

The Phoenix Gate

Ask Greg Archives

RESPONSES 2001-7 (July)

Archive Index


: « First : « 25 : Displaying #41 - #65 of 327 records. : 25 » : 250 » : Last » :


Posts Per Page: 1 : 10 : 25 : 50 : 100 : All :


Bookmark Link

Jacob writes...

Let's say someone would put a spell on Fox so that she can only say the FULL truth and leave nothung out, what would she answer if she's asked what Titania had whispered to her in the night Oberon wanted to Alex away to Avalon?

Greg responds...

"None of your business."

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lord Sloth writes...

Hi Greg, is it July 4th now? You seem to be making quite the effort to catch up to us. Just know that I have a big list of questons that I havn't even asked yet. Anyway, to the question.

When Goliath and co. returned to N.Y., what did they do with the skiff? Did it sink like Arther's? And when they got back, was it from the lake near Belveder Castle, or in from the Atlantic or what?
Tank u.

Greg responds...

It sank. And I like to think they took the same approach as Goliath took in "Future Tense", but without the devastation.

And it's currently July 20th.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Aspen Taylor writes...

This may seem silly, but I was watching the episode Deadly Force on the Avalon web page and something stuck me. The doctor said that the bullet hit high in the chest, but the paramedics applied pressure to her stomach. Later when the dotor was discussing Elisa's condition to her parents, he described in incredibly detailed list of the bullet's path through her chest, from her heart to lungs and collarbone. I'm not a doctor by any means, but in order to make that kind of list as well as try and find the bullet-even if it ultamatly ended up in the base of her spine- would he not have had to crack her chest open for that kind of exploratory surgery? *Shutters at the the though of rib spreaders* Anyway I was just curious. Thanks!

Greg responds...

I'm not a doctor either. We tried to be both devastating and accurate. But I think yours would have to be a question for Michael Reaves who wrote the episode.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lord Sloth writes...

I take it thet Bronx's sudden appearance in "the Mirror" was an accedent, but did\could you come up with some sort of explanation for how he got there. A non Smart Ass answer would be nice, but I'll try to understand if you can't resist.

Greg responds...

I never said it was an accident. They went and got him.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

Okay, we've asked you this question before, and you've never really given a strait answer. Nothing says you will now, but here goes:

1) What happens to the stone sleep cycle of gargs in space?

I know the sleep is a biological process that's triggered by the sun. So, would they keep their normal cycle of 12 hours, or would the cycle change.

If you dont want to answer that question:

2) Have you yet figured out what happens to gargoyles in space, and you just dont want to tell us, or are you waiting for divine inspiration? :)

Greg responds...

1. Don't know. Haven't tried it.

2. I'm not sure about divine. But there's a reason why Zafiro and Demona are the one's who join Nokkar, Guardian and LXM on 'the away mission' in space.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Gabriel writes...

Hi Greg,
I was going through the old archives and found that you had a hard time reading MERCHANT OF VENICE because of the anti-semitism you find in it. Well, I just thought you might like to check this out: one of my soon-to-be professors wrote a book called SHYLOCK AND THE JEWISH QUESTION, where he argues that MERCHANT... is not, in fact, an anti-semetical work at all. I didn't read that book, but I just thought to shed some new light or somehting like that. Oh, and if you do want to check this book out, the author's name is Martin Yaffe.

Greg responds...

Thanks, I've heard of that book. Haven't gotten around to reading it yet.

In the long run, however, I personally don't think MERCHANT OF VENICE succeeds as an anti-semitic work. In fact, quite the reverse it winds up on the whole playing as, uh, pro-semitic?

But there are clear anti-semitic assumptions built into the work. Built into how Shakespeare was raised. Things that he doesn't know how to escape, may not even want to escape... but largely overcomes -- in spite of his intentions, to my mind. Because his power in drawing characters is so tremendous that he doesn't know how to create the stock Jewish villain without giving that character real life.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Jacob writes...

Sorry, two mistakes in my first letter. Here's the correct(?) one:

Let's say someone would put a spell on Fox so that she can only say the FULL truth and leave nothing out, what would she answer if she's asked what Titania had whispered to her in the night Oberon wanted to take Alex away to Avalon?

Greg responds...

"ARRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Vashkoda writes...

*lol* After reading your latest batch of answers, you've reminded me why I had you write that message on the back of my Thailog card.

I'd asked you who was a changeling other than Morgana, and you answered, "Nimue". I thought only the elf child that took the baby's place was called a changeling, but I guess you're using the name both ways (which makes sense). So let me rephrase my questions and ask, "Have any changelings other than Morgana and Nimue appeared in the series? Will any appear in the spinoffs you've planned?"

It was nice seeing you again, Greg!

Greg responds...

Ever?

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lord Sloth writes...

What part did Roddy McDowell play in Gargoyles?

Greg responds...

Proteus.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Anonymous writes...

Which came first the Master Matrix or New Camelot? Who created the Master Matrix?

Greg responds...

No one created the Master Matrix exactly. It more evolved. So there's no chicken & egg thing here. It's too complex to break down into a one-sentence answer.

Things just evolve.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Gipdac writes...

I had a question/comment. This is the history of Excalibur I got from one of the most brilliant people on the face of the Earth, my English teacher, Dr. Randy Lee Eickhoff, about a year ago:
Excalibur was forged by Hephaestus in Greece around 1000 BC. Then it was taken by a band of nomads (they have a name, and I honestly can't remember it), who traveled through Europe, and ended up in England. From then on the sword was handed down from great warrior to king, etc. Then Fergus Mac Roth, a King of Ulster, gained control of the sword Excalibur, at this time it was called Caliburn. Fergus was a key player in the story of Medb (Maeve), the warrior-queen of Connacht, and Cuchullain. Later Fergus and Medb had a love affair and one day while they were making love on a raft in the middle of a lake Medb's husband found them, he picked up Fergus' sword, Excalibur, and throw it at him. The sword stabbed him through the heart, and his body, still on the raft, floated down stream. And that is how the Lady of the Lake obtained the sword.
I was just wonder if that is close to the history of Excalibur in the Gargoyles Universe.
*Just a couple of quick notes:
Most people believe that Mab and Medb could have been the same person, and anyone who enjoys Irish myths should read "The Raid" by Randy Lee Eickhoff

Greg responds...

I'd have to do my own research, and -- with all do respect to you and Dr. Eickhoff -- not just take your words for it. Some of it is new to me, some isn't.

But, hey, Todd? Does this stuff sound familiar to you?

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Gipdac writes...

Okay, you'll need your timeline out, so please have it handy or don't answer these questions until you have it. Thank you.
In the Gargoyles Universe, what years were the following people born:
(all the original one's from the Arthur legends)
1) Merlin?
2) Morgana le Fay?
3) Nimue?
4) Gwenyvere?
5) Lancelot?
6) Blanchefleur?
7) Gawain?
8) Percival?
9) Galahad?

Greg responds...

Haven't pinned a single one of these down at this time. Given that I have pinned down Arthur's dates, it wouldn't be too hard to extrapolate the rest -- if by too hard you meant weeks (if not months) of research and development.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

Greg "Xanatos" Bishansky writes...

I already know that this isn't true, but a friend and I have a bet, and I'd like to settle this.

Morgana is not one of the Weird Sisters, is she?

Greg responds...

No.

Response recorded on July 20, 2001

Bookmark Link

matt writes...

suddenly all these people started coming out of the closet in the Comment Room, and i thought of a question:

you've said there are gay gargoyles, and there are certaintly gay humans, so if S & P had not been around or had approved it do you think you would have ever made on episode based on homosexuality?

are any known characters gay in "Gargoyles"?

Greg responds...

I'm not going to answer the last question at this time.

I try not to do episodes ON things. I know, I know, you'll point to THE GREEN or LIGHTHOUSE or DEADLY FORCE, but these are stories first and foremost. OUTFOXED was in many ways more about "Integrity" than Deadly Force was about gun safety.

Having logged that whole caveat, I think we would have eventually introduced the existence of homosexuality in the context of a need to tolerate differences and diversity in humans and gargoyles alike (at a minimum -- as I've mentioned before, I find tolerance by itself insufficient).

Is that clear as mud or does that make sense?

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lord Sloth writes...

I can tell from what you put on my post(and other posts), that Entity's expasion on the vocabulary thing will make you pretty happy. I wanted to say a lot of that to, but I'm not as good with words. It's hard to believe though, that Power Rangers did better better then Gargs, when it's vocab pretty much limited to "Lets get em you guys" and the like. Here are some other good words from Gargoyles: Mechiabelliant<sp???>, enchilon, odyssey, avatar(did I mention that one already?), popirus, humility and some good latin words as well. A few times it seemed a little unrealistic (his reverse phicoligy was pretty blaitent), but otherwise, it has great sentance structure & dialouge(which is more than I can say for myself). That's all I've gota say, except sorry about my bad spelling.

Greg responds...

Yeah, I think you REALLY need to work on that. (I guess Gargoyles didn't help much with spelling.) But thanks. And here's a bit of help...

I'm guessing on some of these corrections:

expansion
Machiavellian
[enchilon -- I have no clue on this one. Enchilada?]
odyssey
avatar
papyrus
humility
reverse psychology
blatent
sentence
dialogue
got to

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Entity writes...

Hi again,

This is on Xanatos. Someone asked about the logic of Xanatos going through all of the trouble of bringing the gargs to life, only to have them steal some disks, then to just wastefully try to eradicate them with the Steel Clan. I have been conflicted with this contradiction in Xanatos' character as well, and I think it is a result of so much having to be inferred from the episodes. As viewers we are accustomed to being handed everything on a silver platter. Mainstream America is lazy like that. But in a 22-minute cartoon, you didn't have that kind of time. You couldn't explain everything. So characterization, especially, needed to be shown not told.

In Xanatos' case, he really is more of the trickster than the megalomaniac. In the show we got more of an impression of control and dominance. This is the air that X likes to put off. Cool and collected. With a master plan for everything. This was mostly a FRONT. The REAL Xanatos is, as you've accentuated through your episode reviews, a trickster. He lives by the moment. He's a thrill seeker. He makes up his plans as he goes along. That's why his plan in "Metamorphosis" seemed so flimsy, as so many Ask Gregers have brought up. That's why he seemed to change priorities so much in the first season. He re-evaluated. And if you think about it, this more dynamic approach to his character makes his 'reformation' all the more plausible. X, whether we've realized it or not, was in a constant state of change throughout the entire series.

Greg responds...

Sure.

Although, I don't think I agree with the flimsy making-it-all-up as you go along FRONT interpretation.

He is a Trickster, but a well-prepared one. (No magic to rely on.) He does adapt, but he also plans. And he enjoys the game, so results don't always matter as much to him.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Entity writes...

Hi Greg,

Wow, you can definitely tell the difference between your pre-LA and post-LA responses. ;)

I just had to join Sloth in complimenting you and the other writers who worked on Gargoyles on the unbridled freedom of vocabulary you embraced. In too many cartoon shows, the dialogue is dumbed down to the point where you get angry that someone's actually getting paid for writing it. Adults tend to not realize that kids appreciate good entertainment. They aren't just mesmorized by pretty flashies. And dialogue is a pivotal part of good entertainment. Now that I think about it, I believe Gargoyles has had an even bigger impact on me than I've previously imagined. Words like "cliche" and "naivete" are ones I got directly from Gargoyles. Sure I've seen them elsewhere, but I GOT them from Gargoyles. I'm about to start my first year at college and I am majoring in Creative/Professional Writing (haven't decided between the two yet). Gargoyles is probably the influence that drove me most toward the decision to take my life in that direction. I realize that Gargoyles really was an educational program, and I'm not speaking of the few token episodes that dealt with gun control or literacy or deforestation. Watching Gargoyles made me smart. It is like the anti-cartoon, because it did precisely the opposite of what most typical children's entertainment does, at least when you or Michael Reeves isn't on deck: vegetabilize.

Greg responds...

What is the difference between my "pre-LA and post-LA responses"? Since I'm ALWAYS in L.A., I'm not sure what you mean.

But otherwise, thanks. As a writer and teacher you couldn't have paid me (or Michael, if I might briefly speak for him) a higher compliment.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Blaise writes...

Hi again!

This question actually deals with the credits listing of the series (yeah, I know it seems I have too much time on my hands, but that's beside the point).
Two things about GARGOYLES' credits stood out. The first you already talked about--the writers recieving credit at the beginning of episodes during the first season. The second however I also found to be quite interesting--GARGOYLES actually gave a true cast list. Usually in these Disney shows, when the credits say, "With the Voice Talents of..." they just lump the actors' names together without telling who they played. GARGOYLES was the first Disney animated series I know of (BUZZ LIGHTYEAR did it later) that actually listed both the actors and the characters they played. This enabled me to (when I started taping the episodes and could hit pause) more fully discover just how diverse and talented this cast was. I could recognize names and see if a person played multiple roles, and I was quite pleased.

So...
1) Is there any story behind this, like there was for giving the writers' credit up front?
2) Whatever the case, I'm glad I could know who played who.

Thanks!

Greg responds...

I don't know if this would qualify as a story, but I liked how Batman the animated series listed who played who. It seemed to show more respect for the actors (and as I was a fan of Batman) more respect for the fans who might be VCRing the thing and want to know.

So we followed their lead. And I'm glad we did. I tried to talk SONY into doing that for Starship and/or Max Steel, but they weren't interested.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lady Leto writes...

First of all, I just wanted to say that I love Gargoyles and would like to thank you for sharing your idea with us.

I was watching the episode; 'Vendetta' and I couldn't believe Vinnie. I am very curious to find know, how did you think of this character?

Thanks for your time.

Greg responds...

A combination of factors went into the creation of Vinnie.

In no particular order:

1) We asked Jeff Bennett to play the role of a dumb Gen-U-Tech security guard. He put on this great Vinnie Barbarino voice (from Welcome Back, Kotter). It was hilarious.

2) I had this idea to do an episode about the nameless schlub that the gargoyles had effected without ever knowing it.

3) Brynne Chandler had this idea about Goliath getting a pie in the face.

4) I had a separate idea about Wolf and Hakon teaming up to get vengeance on Goliath.

It all just came together. Strangely. The episode was supposed to be a comedic change of pace from the rest of the series. I don't think the animation supported the comedy very well. But it was the first episode I ever voice directed, so I'm fond of it.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Jimmy writes...

If gargoyles evolved before humans and the fay, what did they to protect?

Greg responds...

Each other, as usual, and whatever else was around. Also that long ago, I'm not guaranteeing that GARGOYLES PROTECT was the big slogan.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Steven L. writes...

Gargoyles mate for life. Does that mean that once two gargoyles show interest in each other, and become intimate, that they've mated, and are officially forevermore monogamous?
If so, what happens if, over the years, the two gargoyles come to drift apart, or realize they have nothing in common? Do they stay together simply because of tradition? I take it there's no gargoyle equivalent of divorce. (Or at least there wasn't until Goliath and Demona kinda set precident).
And in that vein; should a gargoyle have an affair, then what happens if that affair is discovered? Does the unfaithful gargoyle and the one he/she had the affair with get banished from the clan?
Hope this hasn't been asked before.

Greg responds...

Gargoyles mate in both sexual and ritualistic fashion. After that they GENERALLY (and that's the key word) remain monogamous.

They imprint upon each other biologically, and there are strong ties of custom to discourage a split. Affairs, I believe, are quite rare.

But as you noted, sometimes things don't work according to plan. Iago has clearly imprinted on Desdemona, though she is imprinted on Othello and he has imprinted on her.

Goliath and Demona imprinted upon each other, but maybe as a result of a thousand years, that imprinting didn't last. Goliath has clearly imprinted anew on Elisa. (BTW, I'm not sure I'm using the word imprinting correctly. I know it's generally used for babies to imprint on their mothers. But it's the closest thing I can think of.)

So there are issues of both biology and custom that discourage anything like divorce or cheating. But that doesn't mean it NEVER happens.

Response recorded on July 18, 2001

Bookmark Link

Shan writes...

I'm not intending to be smartass with this one, just genuinely curious. About the clock tower: do you think the cops in the station below ever noticed that all of a sudden they had gargoyle statues up there and wondered where they came from? (there were scenes that clearly depict our heroes turning to stone outside) Or do you think the cops too busy doing their jobs to notice/care? Thank you, especially because I realize how trivial it is. But the thought keeps recurring...

Greg responds...

Occasionally, someone would look up and see the statues and try to remember if they were there before. AFter a while everyone just got used to them.

Response recorded on July 17, 2001

Bookmark Link

JEB writes...

Is there a direct connection between the Director and the terrorist from "City of Stone"? (Yes or no is fine.)

Thanks!

Greg responds...

Define "direct".

Response recorded on July 17, 2001

Bookmark Link

Lord Sloth writes...

Would you say the Wierd Sister's Loyalty lies mostly in:
a)Oberon
b)Titanya
c)Archmage
d)Themselves
you have 30 seconds(probably more like 2 months) to decide.

Greg responds...

Their tri-part mission.

Response recorded on July 17, 2001

Bookmark Link

Alex Wittenberg writes...

In "Hunter's Moon," Xanatos and Owen seem rather unsurprised that the Gargoyles were based at the clocktower above Maza's stationhouse. Is this because Xanatos realized how obvious that should have been when he heard the news, or because at some point before this he figured it out and chose not to pursue it?

Greg responds...

Does it matter?

Response recorded on July 17, 2001


: « First : « 25 : Displaying #41 - #65 of 327 records. : 25 » : 250 » : Last » :