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RESPONSES 2001-9 (Sept)

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Acheron writes...

hey there

Has it ever been proposed to you to purchase the rights to Gargoyles from Buena Vista TV? Perhaps start a fund the fans could contribute to in order to raise the money. After all, they sure don't seem to be doing anything with them.

Call it a suggestion I guess, but since it's not story related it's okay, right? ^_^; Just a thought.

Greg responds...

It's been suggested many times. Often right here at ASK GREG. Check out the "Bringing Gargoyles Back" archive.

It's not realistic. First off, Disney doesn't sell off it's animated properties -- EVER!!!

Second, if they did it would cost a fortune.

Third, they ARE developing (slowly) a live action movie. Whether or not that ever sees the light of day, you can see that Disney hasn't completely lost interest in the property.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Jimmy writes...

Sorry about all the questions, I just discovered the world of Garg fandom and am curious to learn about one of the best cartoons of my youth. But last one this month, I promise:
If Disney goes under, what would happen to the Intellectual property rights over "Gargoyles." And are there any other people (cartoonists, producers, Disney execs) that are as enthusiastic about bringing back the Gargs as you?

Greg responds...

There are a lot of pros who would love to bring it back. If Disney 'goes under' (a fairly ridiculous notion) than the property becomes one of their assets. Maybe after the bankruptcy court is done I can get it for a song, eh?

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Jimmy writes...

What do you think the chances are of reviving the gargoyles series?
If you don't manage to revive it did you ever think of pitching to another company using the same characters shamelessly copied but changed to avoid lawsuits?
If you ultimately fail to make it a reality, would you ever consider releasing a series of original novels set in the universe?

Greg responds...

Long term, not bad. Short term, dismal.

No. For starters it wouldn't work, and I'm actually not that dishonest. Sorry.

I'd love to do original novels. Know any interested publishers?

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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John writes...

Hi Greg,
In an awnser, you've written some days ago, yoe've mentioned something, that got my interrest:
>>If anyone's confused about contradictions between TGC and the new stuff, they can check out the internet site that we will have to clarify all this stuff.<<
Well, in my memory, you've never mentioned this site, and I've also found no post or ramble about it. Can you please tell something about it?
OK, that's all. have a nice day.
CU, John

Greg responds...

Did you read the entire post or just the part you quoted?

I was talking about IF the series went back on the air, then we'd have a website to clarify all this stuff.

Or you can just ask questions here.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Thomas E. Reed writes...

Hi there. With the understanding that Disney's animation division (heck, every Disney division) is in turmoil right now, what direction do you see them going in the future? For the last few years, Disney's TV projects have abandoned the direction of "Gargoyles" (serious action-adventure) and gone for "Kids In School" shows such as "Pepper Ann," "Doug" and "Recess." Most of these have been from cartoonists/artists/creators not specifically tied to Disney, like Sue Rose, German/Ansolebehere and the like.

While "Atlantis" may have seemed disappointing to Disney, it looks like the "Kids In School" shows aren't doing well either. ("Family Dog" practically died on the vine...maybe Nathan Lane should have sold 25,000 percent of the show to some old ladies.) If there is anything successful in TV animation, it's split between Cartoon Network's original shows and some of the dubbed anime kid adventures.

So, based on what you've heard (without prejudicing yourself or Disney or violating nondisclosure agreements) what do you percieve Disney's direction in animation to be? What kind of shows do they think will be the "next big thing" in animation? Bearing in mind that there have been big shakeups there, of course.

Greg responds...

I assume by "Family Dog" you really are referring to "Teacher's Pet."

Otherwise, I swear to god, I have no idea. Disney seems determined to stay the course with shows like Filmore and Lloyd in Space.

They've got something interesting coming up for the Disney Channel: Kim Possible. (I haven't seen it, but it was done by some talented friends of mine.)

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Vega writes...

Hey again.

I assume you're a fan of animation in general, considering your career choice. What are some of your favorite animated shows?

Do you find that the North American preconception of animation as being "for kiddies" as a hinderence to making quality shows like Gargoyles?

As a side note, I really have to heap some praise on everyone who worked on Gargoyles. There are some subtleties in the series that would do a top quality anime justice. The subway rescue in Hunter's Moon, as well as Goliath at Elisa's window. To be more specific, Goliath greets Elisa on the train, Goliath overhears Elisa talking to Jason Canmore. Silent, but eloquent beyond words. That kind of subtlety of expression is very rare in North American animation.

Greg responds...

I like animation, of course.

I know I've answered the 'what are your favorites' question before... so I'm not going to attempt a comprehensive list again. But it's hard to top the original Johnny Quest. And I liked the Herculoids a lot. And Batman the Animated Series. Gummi Bears, etc. For a more complete list check the archives.

And yes, of course, it doesn't help that the country almost exclusively views animation as a kids medium. On the other hand, I don't mind writing for kids. I think kids are a lot smarter than most people give them credit for.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Jim R. writes...

Two questions on "Temptation." By the way, I'm sorry about asking too many different questions in the same post as you stated to me sometime ago. Thanks for reenforcing my organization.

1. Why doesn't either Lex or Broadway ask Brooklyn about the bike after he returns from his conversation with Demona? Even the next night, Lex and Broadway awaken to get "breakfast" but still don't ask him?

2. Was it a lucky guess that Brooklyn pulled the right spell from the Grimorum? Because under the circumstances, it seemed as if he didn't have much time. Or does he know partial Latin?

Greg responds...

1. Guess it slipped their minds. (What did you expect me to say?)

2. The page was marked by a bookmark ribbon.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Ok, in "Seeing Isn't Beveiling" Goliath was the mystery gargoyle that everyone thought was him and he said "and Dr. Sevarius is in jail.." When did that happen?

Greg responds...

Huh?

I think this is a Goliath Chronicles question. And I don't answer those. But honestly, I'm not sure.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

i keep meaning to post this, and am either too busy or too forgetful.

I watched "Revelations" the other night. In it Mace/Mase (sp?) falls down the elevator shaft, and grabs the wires with his bare hands. I can understand why a garg would be able to do this, but many layers of skin should have been shed. then he jumped from the cables to the window, which still had broken glass in it. so he should then have been eviscerated. and in the same scene, goliath stopps his fall with his claws, feet and hands. he falls several meters, and yet his hands never overlap his foot claw marks.

a lot of creative animating in that episode...

Greg responds...

ANd your point is?

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Justin writes...

Greg,

In the episode Shadows of the Past when the captain and hakon brought the stone remnants of Goliath's fallen clansmen back to "life".
1> It seems to me that the clan consisted mainly of males in that scene. In fact, if memory serves me, the only female was Demona. So by the time of the massacre had the females gone off when the clan divided?
2> I saw a lot of the same physical types, such as fatter gargoyles with humanesque faces, and slender gargs with beaks. Why?

P.S. I did notice one garg that stood out from the rest. He was tall, thickly built, and had a long sharp nose. Well I bring this up because I applaud the little bit of diversity in the scene

Greg responds...

1. No. Mostly, it's about having time to design a whole clan. I.e. we didn't. Within the show, one might argue that the Captain and Hakon thought that the appearance of Demona would be heightened in its effect, if they didn't present any other females.

2. See answer 1.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Lord Sloth writes...

Awakening Questions:

1. Why, in the first apperance of Goliath, his eyes glow green briefly

2. When Goliath found his clan was murdered, he said they should save the humans, but he obviosly wanted revenge the most. Would he still have wanted to save the humans if Demona's plan had worked? b. Would the other Gargoyles?

3. Was turning the Gargoyles to stone the best revenge the Grimorum had to offer? Magus seemed to have been studying it for that sort of thing, and he wanted something a kin to using a sword, so why not lightning or fire or magic spears?

4. Why is it nether Goliath or Demona performed a wind cerimony for their clan? I guess their greif and guilt level must have been quite high, but Goliath seems responsible enough. Or he could of asked Kathern to do something similar.

5. When Elisa spots Hudson and thinks he had moved, did Hudson know that and froze so she would dismiss it? His back was turned so how did he know? And Owen didn't seem to concerned(not that he ever is).

6. I take it Bruno was under orders not to shoot Goliath, so what was he planning to do when his men had him pinned? b. Was he under orders not to shoot Elisa? They seemed to be trying to kill her, but they had terrible aim.

7. Why could Bruno's guys shoot the gas canister once, when it started leaking out, but had to shoot again before they would blow up the shack?

8. Did you know about Renard being head of Cyberbiotics back then? If you did, did you want to show him at one of the bases? That would of been cool.

9. What evidence was there that Xanatos had Stolen from Cyberbiotics? It was pretty fool proof using the Gargoyels to do his dirty work for him, and I doubt the Gargoyles testified in court. Did they?

Thanks very much for taking the time for us Greg. U da man!

Greg responds...

1. Do they? Trick of the light perhaps?

2. I think so. I think she miscalculated all the way across the board.

3. He wanted something permanent that effected all the gargs at once.

4. I think you answered your own question. A wind ceremony for the entire clan is an overwhelming thing. Think about it. As for asking Katharine, he had already made a much more important request.

5. Owen is clearly covering. Hudson is standing still on purpose.

6. He was under orders to let Goliath escape but make it look real. He was free to kill Elisa if necessary.

7. I don't understand the question.

8. I didn't know specifically, no.

9. He had possession of the disks.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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John writes...

Hi Greg,
OK, OK, I know, that you've been asked this question before, but we've never get a real awnser out of you for this one. But I'll try it again: Why does Katana and Brooklyn name their son Nashville? Well, we know, that the name was Brooklyns idea ( why should Katana name her son by a city, she (probably) never visited or even never knew? ) but why to hell Nashville???
Oh, by the way, are Nashville and Tachi twins? I allways thought of them as.
Anyway, hope you'll awnser these two. Damn, this time I'm really a pain. LoL

CU, John

Greg responds...

No they are not twins.

There's a very specific TimeDancer reason. But I'm just not in the mood right now cuz you swore at me.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Audra writes...

Hi Greg!!!
Gargoyles is such a great TV show. It's my favorite TV show. And it shows cartoons are not just for little kids. Anyways, I remember reading about your plans about Brooklyn's mate. I was just wondering, did you, or any or any other creators plan on what she was going to look like? Does she kind of have a "beak" like Brooklyn? It's ok if you don't want to answer, but I just wanted to know. But I am glad that Brooklyn would get a mate. I felt very sorry for him after Maggie rejected him when he was trying to help her and Anglea chose Broadway. I was just wondering if you guys planned what Katana was going to look like. Thanks for reading this. ^_^

Sincerely,
Audra

Greg responds...

Not yet, no. I have a few vague ideas, but that's it.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Demoness writes...

Can the Third Race bleed in their mortal forms, or forms that are not their "normal" form?

Why i ask this is because in "Heritage" when the Gargs are attacking Grandmother in her Thunderbird and Sea Monster form I could have sworn that the claw marks they inflicted on her were red with blood.

I just want to make sure that this theory is correct.

Greg responds...

Yes. When they transform into mortals they take on all aspects of that mortality -- save for the ability to change back.

Keep in mind however, that sometimes they don't transform, they just create a 'glamour' or illusion to fool people.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Are there any fay as powerful as Oberon and Mab? Care to list a few?

Greg responds...

No or No.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Who exactly were Coyote's parents?

Greg responds...

Reggie and Midge.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Who exactly were Raven's parents?

Greg responds...

Jughead and Moose.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

What are the names of the centaur, winged horse and giants that we saw in the Gathering?

Greg responds...

Don't know.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Lord Sloth writes...

Who was in charge of death before Anubis? He's of the younger generation of fae, isn't he, so he wasn't around from the begining.

Greg responds...

What gave you the idea that he's 'of the younger generation'? And I never said he was 'in charge of death'.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Artemis writes...

Hi Greg! First time poster here. I want to thank you on writing such a great show!! I only started to watch it a little over a year ago. I've only seen about 70% of the episodes, because of it's late airtime and the fact that I have older siblings who what dibs on the tv. What I really want to ask you is how did you come up with this whole series? It's really incredible how it all ties in, considering its complicated plot. My teachers have always told me that I have a gift for story telling, but most of its all been fan fiction. I love to write, but the only reason I do fan fiction is because I can't seem to make up my own characters. So how did you come up with all these complex characters? Did you have to sit down for hours to think of characters, or did they just suddenly come to you one day? Anything you're willing to tell me will be greatly appreciated. I don't care if writers don't really make it on their first story, I know that (I'm only 17, after all). I just want to write share with some people something that I can truly call my own. Thank you! (Next time around, I actually will ask questions regarding the show)
=^..^= <---Meow!

Greg responds...

Well, let's start by acknowledging that I wasn't working in a vaccuum. From day one I had a staff of people working with and for me on the show.

Special credit needs to go to Michael Reaves, Brynne Chandler, Gary Sperling, Cary Bates and Lydia Marano who were all huge participants in the process.

Lots of time was spent talking, batting ideas around. But honestly some things just came so easy and naturally that I still believe that the Gargoyles Universe is out there broadcasting history to me.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Jimmy writes...

Were you planning on having any climactic battle in teh garg universe to cull some extra characters, because if not, all the stuff going into your "master plan" would seem to make the garg universe a little cluttered don't you think?

Greg responds...

It's a big universe. There's plenty of space to spread out. We were only getting started and NO, I ABSOLUTELY HAD NO INTENTION TO "CULL".

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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matt writes...

a couple weeks ago someone asked what gargoyles protected before the other races showed up and you said each other. but since we have the Mayan clan protecting a forest, the Loch Ness clan protecting prehistoric monsters, the London Clan protecting a shop in SOHO, and i'm sure there were other examples, what gargoyles protect has always been extremely varied and never limited to sentient beings.

1. it seems from clan to clan there is a wide range of what to protect. why is that?

2. every species, like the gargoyles, protect their own kind and eggs, etc., but why did gargoyles begin to extend that protection to more than themselves?

Greg responds...

1. Reread your own preamble. Good. Now. Why do you think?

2. Because they care.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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John writes...

Hi Greg,
now, I have something REALLY nice for you:

http://www.imdb.com/Title?0108783#comment

Oh, yes. I've allmost forgotten my question: the Gargoyles in 995 took a new children as a children of the whole clan. Will it be the same in 2198, or will the Gargoyles here raise their kids like we do??

CU, John

Greg responds...

Nice link. Very kind words. Thanks.

Largely, gargs in 2198 return (assuming any ever left) to communal rearing of their children.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Justin writes...

Hi Greg,

1a) I would like to know whose responsibility is it to train the younger warriors in a clan? 1b)Is it the leader? 1c)The second? 1d)Or some other garg entirely?

2) If the answer is the second then did Hudson's mate train while she was alive? Did Goliath take the job once he was chosen? Did Demona take it after him?

Greg responds...

Ultimately, the leader is responsible. But the whole clan is also responsible. It's possible that some clans at some times might appoint an individual to head up training. But again, that doesn't remove responsibility from either the leader or the clan as a whole.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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matt writes...

1. would two gay or lesbian gargoyles still be considered rookery parents to certain generations of hatchlings?

2. if a gargoyle had no mate, would he/she still be able to be a rookery parent to certain generations if he/she wanted too?

3. if a gargoyle is the biological parent to a hatchling in a rookery, can he/she choose not to be a rookery parent and be accepted by the clan for that choice?

Greg responds...

1. Traditionally, and I'm not saying I approve, the only gargoyles who were considered rookery parents were the ones who actually contributed to the breeding. But there are also uncles and aunts, grandparents, cousins etc. who helped with child-rearing.

2. Again, traditionally, they were still not counted as 'parents' but as members of the clan, they would share responsibility for raising the children. How much of that responsibility was assumed by any individual, depended on that individual's desire and abilities.

3. Uh.... This again would be beyond unusual and not well accepted or understood by the clan. Also it would take a sort of conscious statement on the part of the individual. He or she would have to be making a big point of not wanting to participate. Because given that there's a whole clan there raising each new generation, it would be easy enough to just not do all THAT much with the kids, if you weren't inclined.

Good questions, by the way.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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JEB writes...

Hey, random question. Any idea what Coyote version number finally hits on the idea of changing his name to Coyote-X? Just curious.

Thanks!

Greg responds...

I left it open on purpose.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Lord Sloth writes...

Top of the milk to ya greg.
Greg Bishansky just posted a bunch of info about the New Olimpian spin off, that I had never heard before, and said that you had reveled all of it at Gatherings. So have you, or will you ever post profiles about each of the spin offs on the internet in as much detail as you have with Gargoyles 2198?
tanks.

Greg responds...

Maybe.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Lord Sloth writes...

I now have a list of questions to for you about love. ahhh

1. Does Hyena love Jackel?
2. Does Jackel love Hyena?
3. How serius are Hyena's feelings to Cyotie? Is she madley im love with him, or just mildly attracted? Either way, it's kinda gross
4. How does Cyotie feel toward Hyena? He seemed up for they idea of "making sparks fly".
5. Does Fox love Anistasia(before and after the Gathering)?
6. Does Halcyen still carry a torch for Anistasia? And does he now know that she is Titania?
7. Does Titania love fox?
8. Does Puck love Alex?
9. Does Oberon love anyone besides Titania?
10. Does Dracon dream about Elisa and him being together?
11. Was Brooklyn attracted to Demona before "Temptation". He seems to go after the most females.
12. Does Iago feel in love with Desdemona, or is it a strong sexual attraction, or is it just to hurt Othello?
13. Was there a time when Desdemona had feelings toward Iago?
14. Does Vinnie have a special someone (besides himself), or does everyone think he is too wierd?
15. Has Thailog ever felt love, even in the slightest way?
16. Was Malcolm and Elaina's wedding more out of love, or convenience?
17. Do Banquo and Florence have a thing for each other?
18. Does Cagney have a special kitty friend, or just Elisa?
19. Has the Magus been yerning for Kathern all of his life, and never told her how he felt? If yes., thats pretty sad.
20. And, somewhere deep deep down, both Goliath and Demona both yern to again be one, now and forever. Right? I better be. And this would have been shown in latter episodes besides dark ages right?

I'm sure you can see from my questions that I am QUITE the softy. And I love how Gargoyles uses this topic so often. Great job!!!

Greg responds...

Twenty Questions! YAY! :P

1. Sure, to the extent she knows how.

2. Ditto.

3. Something between madly in love and mildly attracted.

4. He's indifferent in the incarnations you've seen.

5. Yes.

6. Yes and Yes.

7. Of course.

8. Sure.

9. Yes. His children and his Children and the island of his birth and all the funny little mortals. He's a benificent one, that Oberon.

10. Probably.

11. I think Brooklyn respected Goliath too much to think that way, to allow himself to think that way.

12. The first two. The third is just a side benefit.

13. No.

14. He is currently available? You interested?

15. He's not admitting to it, unless he's lying.

16. Politics. And a hope of love.

17. They're exes.

18. That avenue has not yet been explored.

19. Not all his life. After all, he's ten years older than she is. But yes, it is sad.

20. I think somewhere deep, deep down Goliath wants to be with Elisa. And somewhere deep deep down, Demona wants to be with someone who is right for her.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Todd Jensen writes...

Since you and Entity recently (as of July 20th) had a brief exchange about Xanatos's characterization, I thought that I'd give a thought of my own about him.

One thing that has occurred to me is that there was an intriguing paradox about Xanatos in his "feud" with the gargoyles. One advantage that Xanatos had over the conventional "cartoon super-villain" was that he was a level-headed, practical man who wasn't interested in revenge or pointless vendettas. And this, on one level, made him potentially a more challenging adversary for the gargoyles. Because as a result, he wasn't likely to get so distracted in carrying out his personal score with the clan that he'd make foolish mistakes which they could take advantage of and thereby win, the way that more conventional "master-villains" in animated series do (and which, elsewhere in "Gargoyles", the Archmage himself fell prey to, when he kept on making strategic and tactical errors in "Avalon" - such as not waiting until dawn to attack or in magically tormenting Goliath when he could just as easily have simply zapped him into a pile of dust). It removed the leading source of "mistakes that antagonists make" which can save the day for the protagonists.

But, ironically enough, this very trait of Xanatos's also may have helped the gargoyles in a way. For, since Xanatos wasn't a revenge-crazed man, he wouldn't be likely to be constantly pursuing the gargoyles obssessively in "conventional cartoon super-villain" style, and indeed, he didn't. He went after them because he had specific plans about what to do with them (using them as his agents for such operations as stealing the disks from Cyberbiotics). But that motive didn't take too long to be discarded, as it became increasingly aware to Xanatos that he couldn't make use of the gargoyles in that way ever again; in fact, I recently noticed, upon examining his actions closer, that in Season Two, despite his continued clashes with the clan, he had stopped attempting to actually capture and dominate them (the one exception being his capture of Hudson in "The Price", and then there was a different reason for that - the need to use Hudson as a guinea pig for the Cauldron of Life). So he no longer had a serious reason for capturing them, and consequently, didn't see the need to make those efforts. The only possible reason left for going after the gargoyles was that of revenge, and that obviously didn't interest him. So he had no reason to pursue them (and indeed, seems to have even been aware, as the ending of "City of Stone" makes clear, that leaving them more or less at liberty could be much more advantageous to him anyway). He could afford to leave them alone.

So I find it an amusing paradox that the very factor which could have made Xanatos a serious threat to the gargoyles actually helped to make him less of a threat than he might have been. He wasn't obssessively pursuing them on the basis of a pointless grudge. He went after them only when he saw a genuine need to, and there was increasingly less reason for him to capture or destroy the whole clan as the series went on (and good reason, on the other hand, to let them be).

Greg responds...

Sound analysis. I've said it before, I think as villains go, David and Demona are too fairly original characters. I'm proud of all my babies, so to speak, but I'm particularly proud of these two and how different they are from each other and yet how they both constantly presented us not merely with 'evil plot of the week' material but with challenging character work. They wrote themselves.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Lord Sloth writes...

I am very sorry that Team Atlantis will not continue. It would have been great to have a continuation of gargoyles, if even in a small way. And on top of that, the Canadian Family channle just told me that they are going to stop aring Gargoyles. It a bad day today, I havn't gotten all the episodes on tape yet. Me and some others are sending E-mails, but I don't know what it will do. Anyway, I had a question here somewhere...

1. If Team Atlantis had come out, would the animation and character designs have been the same with the movie? I'm asking cause, Atlantis had some unrealistic porportions compared to the realistic ones in Gargoyles. So if they did a cross over, how would Demona and Fiona have been portraied?

2. Is it possible that Disney might go for team Atlantis again? Or when they scrap something, do they just want to take out the garbage and forget about it?

Greg responds...

1. Greg Guler did the character designs for both Team Atlantis and Gargoyles. His design of Demona was styled to fit Team Atlantis, but looked so much like Demona, most of you wouldn't have even noticed the difference.

2. It seems highly unlikely. We are making a direct to video, and I suppose if that does REALLY, REALLY well....

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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matt writes...

before he caught Angela, had Sevarius found any proof to support his theory of a garg clan living in Loch Ness?
if yes, what did he find?

Greg responds...

No. Her presence generated that theory, as I recall.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Shan writes...

This has both an apology and a question. Apparently you answered my recently posted question previously, to Aaron, some time ago. The problem is that I did not see Thailog's archive (somehow my eye missed it that time) and only one for the Clones. The answer I wanted was in Thailog's archive but not in the Clones archive. Therefore, I thought I was asking a new question.

But I've also figured out what bothers me about Goliath's "he is my son" response. If, as you said in your response to Aaron, Goliath feels responsible and wants to bring Thailog into the fold -- where he told Angela she should see the clan as her parents -- should Goliath have said instead "he is the clan's son" or "he is our son" (though THAT would have been odd, since he's talking to Elisa!).

Is that taking it personal attributable to Goliath's personality then? Would most Gargs have said "Thailog is the clan's son" or "He is of my blood. He is one of the clan"???

Greg responds...

You're taking this stuff out of context, as you yourself indicates. The fact that he didn't semantically state it EXACTLY as you might wish he had, is unimportant. You get the idea.

Really, I think you're splitting hairs.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Shan writes...

I just got done watching "Double Jeapordy," and in it Goliath emphasizes to Elisa that he must stay on the rig and talk to/rescue Thailog because "he is (of?) my blood. He is my son."

However, later on he meets his daughter Angela, but doesn't realize the connection at first. After Sevarius clues her in about her biological parents (Goliath and Demona) and Angela starts pressing the point with Goliath, Goliath responds with something to the effect that children belong to the whole clan. It is not until Elisa's mother and Goliath have the heart to heart about children sometimes needing special attention that Goliath and Angela begin to bond more directly, if I'm not mistaken.

But with Thailog, Goliath wants to reach out and make a bond almost from the outset.

Is it the circumstances of Thailog's creation that make Goliath take more responsibility for Thailog from the get-go versus Angela, or is it (though certaintly not her fault) that the fact Angela is also Demona's child somehow alienates Goliath more at first? Is it something else entirely? I found the difference in attitudes striking.

Greg responds...

In fact, Goliath's initial reaction to Thailog is not to form a bond. It's to call him an abomination. (You blithely skipped over that, Shan.) Part of what follows is a bit of guilt mixed in with him taking responsibility for Thailog as a parent.

As to Angela, you've again missed his initial reaction to her on Avalon. It is clearly one of paternal pride, just as he is proud of Gabriel and all of his children.

Later, he NEVER denies her as his child. He simply is uncomfortable with her focus on him as her biological father. This also mixes in guilt -- survivors guilt this time. And a healthy fear that if she responds this way to him being her biological father, then how will she respond when and if she learns that Demona is her biological mother. If she had simply been calling him father from the get go, he'd have had no problem. But she didn't until she got word from Sevarius about biology. That's what troubled him. She wasn't thinking like a gargoyle. When "Goliath responds with something to the effect that children belong to the whole clan" that's not just a means of putting her off, it's not just something to say. That's how he was raised. That means something to him.

In any case, the Thailog and Angela situations are so widely different, it's really comparing apples and oranges. But I certainly don't see any inconsistencies in Goliath's behaviour.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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KW Keller writes...

Well, I'm not Todd, but in response to the history of Excalibur, Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Caliburn" is thought by some to be derived from the Welsh "Caledfwlch" (Breton "Kaledvoulc'h"), or from the Irish "Caladbolg" or "Caladcholg." Caledfwlch appears in several Welsh Arthurian stories, especially "Culhwch ac Olwen." Caladbolg, "hard dinter," was the lightning sword of Fergus Mac Roth. Caladcholg was a similar sword owned by Fergus Mac Leti. Various people have argued at one time or another that the modern idea of Excalibur was taken from one of these sources.

Greg responds...

Interesting.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Who are Morgana's parents?
How can she beat Merlin? I mean Merlin is the son of Oberon who is one of the most powerful fay. Does that mean she also has a unique parentage like Merlin?

Greg responds...

Who said she 'beat' him and what does that even mean?

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

What class of fay is Lady of the Lake? Power class?

Greg responds...

This ain't an R-P game, my friend.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Anonymous writes...

Does the Lady of the Lake have any biological children? Have you mentioned the name of any of her children on Askgreg?

Greg responds...

YOu are now officially making me sleepy.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Entity writes...

Hi Greg,

Don't let the death of Team Atlantis get you down, true brilliance is never recognized in its own time.

Anyway, I was wondering about your personal opinion on something: pop Arthurian Legend. First there was the "Merlin" miniseries, now there's another one on TNT called "The Mists of Avalon." Both take the traditional story of King Arthur and try to present its elements of magic to contemporary TV audiences in the guise of religion. Instead of accepting magic as a part of the legend, which I guess TV execs think is too "silly" or maybe even "controversial," they turn the Arthur legend into a morality tale about the old verse the new, Paganism verse Christianity, imagination verse logic, etc... take your pick.

What's your take? Do you think this is a constructive and innovative approach to telling the story, or a distracting and childish one?

Greg responds...

Well, I haven't seen Mists and have only seen pieces of Merlin. So I can't judge either series.

I think you tip your hand on your opinion, however.

In and of itself, the approach has some potential. It's about execution. And the ideas aren't mutually exclusive. Look at EXCALIBUR (the movie). It has elements of both approaches, and I think it's wonderful. (Just saw it again recently. It really holds up.)

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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Todd Jensen writes...

One question which I'll confess I've occasionally found myself asking about Arthur's quest for Merlin. Why does Arthur feel that he really needs Merlin by his side again? After all, in the traditional legends, he spent the majority of his reign without Merlin being there (Merlin's departure in the "Arthurian canon" took place almost directly after Arthur married Guinevere and set up the knights of the Round Table), and fared well enough on his own (not to mention that I don't think that Merlin could have seriously prevented the fall of Camelot even if he had been there, seeing that it was brought about through the one thing that his magic could not overcome, the human heart, as Macbeth pointed out in "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time"). Furthermore, at least some versions of the legend (including T. H. White and Roger Lancelyn Green) indicate that part of the reason why Merlin left Arthur's court (ultimately to wind up in the Crystal Cave) was because Arthur needed to stand on his own rather than constantly leaning on the wizard for help.

So why does Arthur feel that he still needs Merlin's help? (Admittedly, he does seem in a rather vulnerable situation at present, given that he's now in a world that's unfamiliar to him and very different from 6th century Britain - and he hasn't had the advantage that Macbeth had of being able to watch it change gradually and adjust accordingly - it's all been thrown upon him at once, just the way that it was on Goliath and his clan).

Greg responds...

Well, start with this. Merlin's a friend.

Do you really need any other reason?

Some of the other stuff you mentioned is good too.

Response recorded on September 06, 2001

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LIGHTBULB CONTEST

Poor Fang. Never even got to say the punchline...

Here's the set-up:

"Hey, Goliath, how many gargoyles does it take to screw in a lightbulb..."

Time for our next ASK GREG contest. It's simple and subjective. Finish the joke. The punchline that gives me the biggest laugh wins a prize of no real value, but hopefully of some mild interest.

A few rules:

1. Since we're giving out a prize, no anonymous entries will be accepted. I'll ask Todd to delete them before I even see them.

2. All posts must be clearly marked with "LIGHTBULB CONTEST" in capital letters at the head of the post.

3. Don't ask additional questions with your entry. In fact I'd recommend that you don't include anything that might distract me from laughing at your joke.

4. Spelling COUNTS!!!

5. You may enter as many times as you wish. But each entry MUST be posted seperately. Try to be selective and funny. BEWARE!!! If I sense that you're just taking multiple random stabs at it in order to try and win by the shotgun method, it may prejudice me against you.

6. I'm acknowledging up front that this is a completely subjective contest. You (many or even all of you) may not agree with my final choice. But the decisions of the judges (i.e. yours truly) are final.

7. We will accept entries posted before the end of September, 2001. I'll decide on the winner AFTER I've read all the September posts. (So figure on November, HOPEFULLY.)

One last bit of random incentive, if we ever do make BAD GUYS, I will give Fang the opportunity to complete his joke, using (with permission) the winning entry.


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Greg "Xanatos" Bishansky writes...

DrFaust> Oh come ON! You don't think Greg is going to say anything about that episode until it actually airs, do you?

Greg responds...

Well, now it won't be airing unfortunately, it won't even get made. But all will be revealed in Virginia Beach next summer. And we'll have some interesting items for sale at the auction.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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DrFaust writes...

So what happened in Paris, 1920 that was so significant to the Atlantis and Gargoyles universes?

Greg responds...

Come to G2002 and find out.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Greg "Xanatos" Bishansky writes...

I might as well jump on the bandwagon here.

1. What did Titania whisper to Fox at the end of "The Gathering"?

I know you're not going to answer this, but in four years of posting here, I have never asked this, and figured I might as well at least once. Personally, I like not knowing the answer, and filling it in for myself.

Greg responds...

Then you're wish is granted. I still won't tell.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Greg "Xanatos" Bishansky writes...

Now that he has made peace with the Manhattan Clan, would Xanatos have continued to make use of the Steel Clan, or his Steel Clan exo-armor?

Greg responds...

Given appropriate circumstances, I don't see why not.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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zakhur writes...

I'm confused about something. If in th Avalon Clan, there are three gargoyle beasts one is Boudicca, and there 2 more, one female and one male, if the male and female beasts are probably mates, shouldn't they have had a child together, seeing as gargoyle beast can mate one generation before gargoyles?

Greg responds...

Who said they didn't?

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Aris Katsaris writes...

A couple weeks ago, you posted a ramble in an interesting exchange of ideas with Punchinello, about the subject of "sentience" and how it's used in science fiction and fantasy, about whether it's a wall or not, etc, etc...

I thought to chime in, contributing with the concepts that Orson Scott Card introduces in "Speaker for the Dead" (an excellent book btw - I encourage everyone to read it). There he uses different words to differentiate between different kinds of 'alienness'... Let me quote:

"The Nordic language recognizes four orders of foreigness. The first is the otherlander, or 'utlanning', the stranger that we recognize as being a human of our world, but of another city or country. The second is the 'framling' [...]. This is the stranger that we recognize as human, but of another world. The third is the 'raman', the stranger that we recognize as human, but of another species. The fourth is the true alien, the 'varelse', which includes all the animals, for with them no conversation is possible. They live, but we cannot guess what purposes or causes make them act. They might be intelligent, they might be self-aware, but we cannot know it."

Obviously here the most important concepts are that of the 'raman' and of the 'varelse'. These can be useful, over and beyond the concept of 'sentience', because they refer to how much of an understanding can exist between different species - unlike 'non-sentient' for a species to be 'varelse' doesn't necessarily make it "inferior"... Only non-understandable.

On the other hand I find these concepts also intriguing because they *do* carry a moral judgment within them, even if it's a more subtle one. To recognize an alien as "raman" is to recognize him as basically human, to recognize that his fundamental motivations are the same as yours. It's the beginning of understanding and tolerance...

Now in the gargoyles universe, it's clear that both gargoyles and fae (and Nokkar's people also) are all "ramen": Other species which despite all their difference with our own, we can recognize as fundamentally 'human'. I'd also go on to say that this is what people like Jon Castaway refuse to see. By declaring that all gargoyles are monsters he doesn't necessarily refuse them their 'sentience' - he does refuse though to see that they are 'ramen'... and as such he can say things such as 'they are all evil', 'they must be destroyed', etc, etc...

And with that let me conclude with another quote from the book:
"Since we are not yet fully comfortable with the idea that people from the next village are as human as ourselves, it is presumptuous in the extreme to suppose we could ever look at sociable, tool-making creatures who arose from other evolutionary paths and see not beasts but brothers, not rivals but fellow pilgrim journeying to the shrine of intelligence.
Yet that is what I see or yearn to see. The difference between raman and varelse is not in the creature judged, but in the creature judging. When we declare an alien species to be raman, it does not mean that they have passed a threshold of moral maturity. It means that *we* have."

Sorry for the length of this ramble... :-)

Greg responds...

Don't apologize. This subject is fascinating to me. Thank you.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Andy Morrison writes...

How many stories is the Eyrie Building? (I hope I have the spelling right.)

Was there an episode that mentioned how many stories or is it a figment of my imagination?

If there was an episode, which one is it please?

Thanks for your help.

Greg responds...

You do have the spelling right.

I don't recall us ever establishing the exact amount of stories in the buidling.

Of course we told 66 stories, but they weren't all set there.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Ambrosia writes...

Hi, Greg!
*Greatly* enjoyed the radio play. Thank you so much!
So...
Did the cut scene of Hunter's Moon III between Elisa and Jason in the decimated clock tower actually happen in the gargoyles universe, just off camera?

Greg responds...

Uh... I'd like to think so, yes.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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zakhur writes...

We know by City of Stone part 4, that MacBeth's son Luach is dead, probably even killed by Canmore himself. My question is even though there were circumstances that made them enemies, they were still very good friends when they were young, didn't that make Canmore at least think about not killing his cousin?

Greg responds...

They were very good friends when they were young? That's news to me. Did you see how they looked at each other after the Weird Sisters issued their prophesy?

And while they were still young, Luach's dad killed Canmore's. That probably didn't endear the cousins either.

I think you are reading too much into the fact that on one hike, they were having a good time until things got serious.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001

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Demoness writes...

1. Are there any other Oberon's Laws besides the "non-interfernce", "forking over talismens willingly", "Avalon Clan can stay" and "Goliath's Clan's immunity"?

2. If yes to above, what are a couple of those other laws?

3. Were there any placed before Oberon became King?

4. What are a couple of those?

Greg responds...

1. I'm sure there are.

2. No cheese on Saturdays. No littering.

3. No. Mab likes cheese.

4. There was something about smoke alarms in the lavatories at the Palace, but now I'm blanking.

Response recorded on September 05, 2001


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