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Twitter vs. ASK GREG - To the Death!!!

Twitter vs. ASK GREG - To the Death!!!

So for the first time in nearly a month, I lurked on a few sites and someone was bitchin' (that's right, I said it) about the fact that I was tweeting a lot but hadn't spent much time here at ASK GREG.

Mostly, the responses that person received from other fans were dead obvious, but they bear repeating:

1. Twitter is a lot more convenient. I can tweet with my phone during downtime. (I tend to do it while I'm doing my isometric neck exercises.) I can also do Ask Greg with my phone during downtime (as I did yesterday when I was stuck at an airport), but (a) it's much more difficult because the screen is so small and (b) I have no access to the materials that some questions require. So Ask Greg answers done on the phone tend toward the short and unsatisfying.

2. Stop acting so entitled. Greg Weisman has NO obligation, explicit or implicit, to answer any questions on ASK GREG ever. Let me repeat that: Greg Weisman has NO obligation, explicit or implicit, to answer any questions on ASK GREG ever. I do it because I enjoy doing it (most of the time). But if for any reason I take a break for however long, that's life. I will not be made to feel guilty about it.

Those are the two main points, but there are a couple others:

3. I've been traveling A LOT. Since the end of May, I've taken four trips up north to Lucasfilm, one trip to Denver Comic Con, one trip to Oregon for their Shakespeare Festival and a family trip to EUROPE. I still have both San Diego Comic Con and New Orleans MechaCon (http://www.mechacon.com/) coming up in the next couple months, plus at least one more trip to San Francisco for Lucasfilm. When I travel, internet is a dicey prospect at best, and that's on top of the fact that the reasons for the trip tend to preclude me having the free time to post on ASK GREG.

4. I've been SWAMPED with work. That's a good thing. (In fact, these are all good things.) I have tight deadlines on Star Wars Rebels, a looming deadline on the second book in the Rain of the Ghosts series, plus a few other random freelance things that I'll mention (perhaps) when they're finished. Lots of work means less free time to post at Ask Greg.

As for Twitter, I'll admit I might be a little addicted, but the bald-faced truth of the matter is simply that I was basically coerced into joining Twitter by my book publisher, my agent/manager and my family. I am making an extremely conscious attempt to raise my profile there (and gain followers) for the sake of RAIN OF THE GHOSTS. I make no bones about that. I'm not trying to hide the fact AT ALL. I want/need the book to do well, and Ask Greg just was NOT reaching enough people. Hence Twitter.

Having said that, I have no interest in using or allowing Twitter to replace ASK GREG. Folks have asked me questions on Twitter, which I've either ignored or used as an excuse to nudge the askers over here. It's a tad difficult, since the ASK GREG Question Asking Function here is currently down until I catch up, but whatchagonnado? ASK GREG still matters to me, and Twitter hasn't changed that at all.

So really, the title of this ramble is a sham. The two resources are not in conflict at all. I'm hoping Twitter brings MORE people to Ask Greg and maybe, vice versa. (And maybe that's the real reason for this post. Heh heh heh.)


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Kyle M. writes...

Hi there! Greg I have a little request more than a question for you...and since you could easily answer me that you could but won't do it, I would like you to see it as a challenge;
Could you describe how would it be the last scene of the last episode of Hello, Megan? Please??? And thank you :)

Greg responds...

No, I'm sorry. But I don't know it off the top of my head. So I'd have to figure it out, and I don't figure out that kind of stuff lightly. So it would take time. And I don't have that time. And, as I've said here before, I'm not looking for Ask Greg posters to come up with CHALLENGES for me. It's incredibly presumptuous, for starters, and it puts me in the awkward position of having to write up something like THIS, which makes me look like a jerk for not rising to your challenge. Thanks.

Response recorded on May 13, 2013

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Alan writes...

I know you dont like hypotheticals, and if I asked who would win if Lobo, Despero, & Mongul were put into a three-way cage match I would get a response about a fight between Hulk & the Thing. Now, I never read Marvel, but that response seems spot on & thought through...it makes me wonder why you dont answer the actual questions with that kind of simple but logical reasoning, that doesnt give a definative conclusion, but still offers a clear comparison of each's strengths/weaknesses in relation to one another.
I understand that any fight is situational, and if Despro was wearing a patch on his third eye, or Lobo was caught unarmed (as if), or Mongul had the flu, any one of those thigs would offer vastly different outcomes...but none of those things were part of the question, so there is really no reason to consider them in the answer. For example, your Hulk/Thing response itself would be rendered illogical by any number of "what ifs"...like, "what if the Thing was being mind controlled" would negate him keeping any kind of wits about him...but that was obviously not part of the imagionary question, so the point is moot.

And I know your not going to tell a story on this forum...but the Hulk/Thing example answers such a question (if it were ever actually asked) without telling a story.

So my question is...did you come up with the auto response of the Hulk/Thing, or did you get it from somewhere else?

Greg responds...

You write that you know I don't like hypotheticals, and yet then you try to make an argument for why that shouldn't matter to me.

I'VE SAID IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN. These "Who would win?" questions flat-out do not interest me. And if it doesn't interest me, why would I bother answering? Simply because someone asked? Entitled, much?

As for where the Hulk/Thing thing came from, it's simply the classic version of the question going back fifty years or so. It's evolved here at Ask Greg as a stock response, like "SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT." or "ASKED AND ANSWERED".

Response recorded on May 01, 2013

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Anonymous writes...

If each member of the Team on Young Justice were to be replaced with a character from Marvel Comics (regardless of which universe they are from) who would act as their potential equivalents (in terms of similar skills/abilities), who would they be and why (in one sentence per character)?

Greg responds...

Why are you asking me this?

If this is an exercise that interests you, go for it. But I have no inside information on something so arbitrary.

Guys, please, I appreciate that you want to have fun with these kinds of things, but that's not what ASK GREG is for. Creating make-work for me - because, I can only assume, you think I'll enjoy it - is not going to get a positive response here. And all it really does is clog the queue.

Response recorded on April 16, 2013

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SHAZAM! writes...

1. Where did you come up with the idea for a Green Beetle? DId he exist previously?
2. Is the reach responsible for the fall of the martian civilization?
3. Who is the black beetle? Wasn't he Jaime's friend Paco in the comics, is there a reason he isn't?
4. Is the Green Beetle a red, white, or green martian?
5. Why is lex trying to help the reach conquer earth? In the comics he honestly beleives he's trying saving the planet, not doom it...

Greg responds...

1. ASKED AND ANSWERED.

2. Assumes facts not in evidence.

3. I think it's pretty clear from the show who Black Beetle is. Why in the world would you think it's Paco?

4. Green.

5. Okay, I'm aware that you wrote up these questions before the end of the series, so I have a question for you: WHY DID YOU WRITE UP THESE QUESTIONS BEFORE THE END OF THE SERIES? What was your hope here, exactly? That I'd get to it before all was revealed and answer "SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT" Or that I'd get to it (more or less) now and simply refer you back to the episodes themselves.

Look, SHAZAM!, I don't mean to single you out, but this is symptomatic of an on-going problem here at ASK GREG. All you've really succeeded in doing is CLOG UP THE QUEUE.

Please, everyone, THINK before posting.

Response recorded on April 11, 2013

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ASK GREG LIVE - Correcting the web

So, I still maintain that ASK GREG LIVE was a great success, but I've seen a few posts on the interwebs that... undercut that success a bit.

With the best intentions, I'm sure, people have attempted to relate what I said, and although they got a lot right, they also got a bunch of stuff wrong. They either misheard me or mistyped or related the information second-hand or whatever, but I'm going to try to set some of the misconceptions straight.

Myth #1: "Greg categorically stated that Wally West is dead and will never come back."

I did not. Surprisingly, I was not even asked this question and thus never responded to it at all. Now, let me be clear. I also have not stated categorically that Wally West is not dead will definitely come back. And I'm not going to do either. Let me illustrate why with an example:

You've seen memorial holograms for Jason Todd/Robin and Tula/Aquagirl. There are four potential scenarios for those two characters coming back:

Scenario A) Both are going to come back.

Scenario B) Jason is going to come back, but Tula is staying dead.

Scenario C) Tula is going to come back, but Jason is staying dead.

Scenario D) Both are staying dead.

Break it down like this, and it becomes clear why I won't answer any questions about either character in this regard. Assume, just as a hypothetical example, our plan was Scenario C. Then someone asks me about Jason. They say, the show is over; if he's really dead, why not tell us. This sounds logical (in the moment), so I state that Jason is staying dead. No harm, no foul. I've only confirmed something that the show itself already stated. No big deal. That is, until someone else asked me about Tula. I don't want to answer this one, of course, because I want her resurrection to be a surprise. But I also don't want to lie. So I go for my standard "SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT." But then someone realizes that I was willing to be clear about Jason, but not about Tula. Ipso facto, Tula must be coming back. And I've just spoiled my own show. Which, as I'm sure you know, I am quite LOATHE to do. Clear?

Myth #2: "Greg stated that they killed off Wally instead of Barry because Barry's death would be too telegraphed."

That's almost exactly the OPPOSITE of what I said. Rather, in response to comments I've seen that Wally's death was out of the blue, I said I found those comments to be ironic, because Brandon and I spent the whole season afraid we were telegraphing WALLY's death too much. We cut lines of dialogue from and about Wally because we thought it would send too obvious a signal that Wally was going to buy it at the end. (And this is NOT meant as a statement with regards to Myth #1 above. As far as Season Two is concerned, Wally is considered dead. What that may bode for the future, is something that I won't respond to for the reasons outlined above.)

We did - at the very beginning of the season's development - briefly consider taking out Barry instead of Wally. But we decided that Barry was too much of a minor character, and that his death would have no resonance for our audience, would exact no cost. I suppose, as some have argued, we could have spent the entire season bulking up Barry's part to make sure his end had resonance, but we didn't have either the screen time or, frankly, the desire to do that. Wally mattered to our audience. Even with relatively little screen time in Season Two, he MATTERED. And I think the proof that we made the correct choice is obvious in how it's torn fans apart over his demise. It hurts. It hurt us too. I still well up watching that scene - and I've seen it dozens of times by now. It is sad. It's supposed to be sad when a hero that we love dies. Given that, I don't have any regrets.

Myth #3: "Greg stated that Ocean-Master will have a huge roll in Young Justice: Legacy."

No, I didn't say anything of the sort. You guys have seen the villains who are participating in Legacy. You already KNOW he's not in there.

Myth #4: "Greg stated that Troia will have a huge roll in Legacy."

No, I did not. You already know the heroes participating in Legacy - except for the these-are-just-for-fun-and-don't-count-toward-the-canon-story characters. You already KNOW she's not participating in the story.

Myth #5: "Greg stated that Mary Batson is Lieutenant Marvel."

No, I did not. First off, I've never once mentioned anyone named Mary Batson. I have mentioned Mary Bromfield. But she is NOT Lieutenant Marvel. I did give a small spoiler about the Marvel Family at ASK GREG LIVE, but I'm going to leave it as a prize for those who attended in person.

Myth #6: "Greg stated that the plan from day one was to use Donna in Season One and Cassie in Season Two."

This is more of a half-truth. EARLY, early on, Donna was one of our leading candidates for Season One. This was before we had even narrowed things down very much. And BEFORE any true decisions were made, we were informed by our DC Liasons that both Wonder Girls were off-limits for legal reasons that were never explained to us. (So don't ask me.) So neither Wonder Girl was seriously considered. Then Geoff Johns came aboard and made both Wonder Girls available. Unfortunately, by that time, it was flat out too late to include Donna. So we decided we'd put Cassie in Season Two. And have Donna be one of the characters who joined and left the Team during the timeskip, and cameo her in Season Two. Unfortunately, for reasons reported fairly accurately from ASK GREG LIVE, we were unable to cameo either Troia or Mary at Rocket's bridal shower because there just wasn't time for Phil Bourassa to design FOUR new characters, i.e. the two girls in both their civilian and super-hero costumes. Had they appeared in "Satisfaction", then they would have also had cameos in "Endgame", since their designs would already have been completed. But since they didn't appear in the earlier episode, we weren't able to get them at all. This is a sadness to me. But there are realities of production that we're all subject to.

Myth #7: "Greg stated that rumors about DC wanting Wally killed off were 'complete horses#!t.'"

I NEVER used the term "Horses#!t" and never would. I clearly said "complete bulls#!t."


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WONDERCON & ASK GREG LIVE

I'm declaring ASK GREG LIVE at WonderCon a success!!

We had about twenty or so people show up (including Masterdramon and Blaise). It was informal, fun (for me, at least) and, hopefully, informative. As expected, we mostly talked about YOUNG JUSTICE, but there were also questions about GARGOYLES and THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN and how to break into the business, etc. So it was a nice Ask Greg-ish mix.

Someone said they were waiting for me to say "SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT." And I really did mean to say it, but I'm not sure that I ever really did. I don't think I spoiled very much, but I definitely revealed a couple things that I'm fairly confident I would not have revealed here on the website. I guess seeing the in-person faces of the fans melts me - at least a little.

I wasn't sure how many people would show up, so I had no idea how long it would run, but I had figured on about an hour. But we stood there - no sitting allowed in the Anaheim Convention Center Lobby - for over an hour and a half, and the time just raced by. (Special thanks to Matthew for holding up the ASK GREG LIVE sign for nearly the entire event.) At the end, we took a few photos, and I did an impromptu signing for anyone who had something they wanted signed. (Hadn't planned on that either, so I didn't have a pen. So thanks also to those who loaned me their sharpies!)

If you were there, I invite you to post about it here at ASK GREG tomorrow (i.e. Sunday, March 31st, 2013) or at the Station 8 Comment Room anytime next week. (I'll be stopping by to see what folks thought.) It's something I'd like to think about doing again. Perhaps at Denver Comic-Con or maybe even at San Diego Comic-Con (though that venue would present some MAJOR challenges). So even if you weren't able to attend, let me know if you'd like to see it happen again.


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Back to answering questions...

As I'm about to start answering questions here on ASK GREG - post "Endgame" - I want to first reiterate what I've already posted here:

http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=1026

I will NOT suddenly be SPOILING stuff left and right.

The YJ questions that have the best chance of being answered are ones about process and decision making regarding the television episodes and comic book issues that have already aired or been released. Asking for additional content is not at all likely to be rewarded. NOT. AT. ALL.

And again, if you want to know why, read this:

http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=1026


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WONDERCON ANAHEIM - ASK GREG LIVE

WONDERCON ANAHEIM - Who'd like to meet up?

My daughter Erin and I will be attending WonderCon on Friday, March 29th:

http://www.comic-con.org/wca

I'm not on a panel or anything official. I'm just going to look around, hang out, etc. But ASK GREG moderator Masterdramon is also going, and we thought it might be fun to organize a semi-impromptu ASK GREG LIVE event. I assume most folks would want to talk about Young Justice, which is great. But we can also discuss Gargoyles or the weather or whatever. Chris Jones and I did something similar a few weeks ago at a Doctor Who convention, and we had fun. I think about twenty or so fans showed, which was a nice number. We might wind up with a few more or less. Or, heck, maybe it'll just be me, Erin and Masterdramon, which is okay too. EIther way, we want to try to keep the thing unofficial, informal, casual, etc.

The main question I have is exactly when and where should we meet up? Has to be Friday the 29th, and because (a) I'm driving down there from Los Angeles and (b) it's the first day of the con, it probably shouldn't be too early. Likewise, I'm not staying overnight, and I have the drive home, so not too late either. So an afternoon meet-up, I'm guessing. Or maybe lunch? An early dinner? Linner?

And where do we meet? How do we find each other? (I'm not familiar enough with the Anaheim Convention Center to know exactly where a good spot might be.)

I'm definitely open to suggestions. I'm posting this here at ASK GREG, but also in the Station 8 Comment Room, which I'll be checking periodically between now and the con. If you have any thoughts on where we could meet, please post them there:

http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/comment/index.php

It'll also help us gauge interest in how many people might actually be, well... interested in this sort of thing. So even if you have no suggestions but you plan on joining us, post anyway, so that we can begin to approximate a head count. It may influence where we meet up.

The week before the convention, I'll post the final specifics on where and when at ASK GREG and at Station 8.

Hope to see at least a few of you soon.


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The Coming Deluge - Yet More Ask Greg Guidelines

The Coming Deluge - Yet More Ask Greg Guidelines

So, I truly hope I'm wrong, but I have to admit I'm anticipating a deluge of questions asking for SPOILERS after the airing of this Saturday's YOUNG JUSTICE: INVASION finale. I understand the impulse: "The television and comic book series are over, so there's no reason for him to hold back anymore! It means anything and everything are now fair game! He can never say 'SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT.' again"

But, see, that's not how I feel about it. So here's why, and here's how that should guide your future questions at ASK GREG:

1. Let's start here: OBJECTIVELY we're not over. YOUNG JUSTICE: LEGACY is due out in the fall, and it will contain new content - a SUBSTANTIAL amount of new CANON story content, based on ideas suggested to Little Orbit by Brandon Vietti and myself, and all vetted after the fact by us, as well, to make sure everything from dialogue to timestamps is consistent with the property as a whole. Now, LEGACY is set during the five-year-gap. So I'm not going to be inclined to answer questions that require me to reveal things that happened during our time skip. And not just Legacy related stuff either, because if I answer some questions about the gap but refuse to answer others, I'll be de facto spoiling. That I will not do, so please refrain from asking questions about the missing five years.

2. If I've learned anything from the long haul on GARGOYLES, it's that things sometimes DO come back. So SUBJECTIVELY I don't feel like we're over either. I still have hopes - however slim - of returning to Earth-16 one day. So there are secrets that I still may want to keep. Particularly about "Season Three". I'm not saying I'll never reveal anything. Sometimes a tidbit here or there helps keep fan interest alive. But I'm not going to wholesale give away the plans that Brandon and I came up with for what happens next. In general, I'm much more inclined to clarify what's already been shown then reveal what hasn't been shown. So try focusing your questions on what's aired or seen print and try to refrain from asking What Happens Next questions. When I feel like revealing something, I will.

3. ASK GREG is NOT a good format for me to tell creative stories. Any question, wherein the answer could fill an entire issue of a comic book or an entire episode of a television series or MORE will not be answered, because I will not short-change a story with a quick response, and I will not tell a story here at ASK GREG. So try to refrain from asking questions that would take an entire issue or episode to answer.

4. Brandon and I have many, many ideas for what happened before Season One, a few still left for what happened during Season One, many for what happened between seasons (including but not limited to Legacy), many ideas for stuff that happened off-camera during Season Two, tons of ideas for Season Three, and many, many, many ideas for beyond Season Three. BUT... ideas minus execution are subject to tremendous second-guessing. So I'm not inclined to give you new content. If I had told you before Season One that Red Arrow was the mole, minus how we executed that plot, it might have seemed quite weak. It's the execution that demonstrates whether or not an idea shines. And frankly, I don't need the second guessing and, well, nastiness that the internet encourages. So that's just another reason to refrain from asking what else we might have planned.

5. I will not lie to you here at ASK GREG, per this post: http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=982 . But I also will not state things that I believe to be true if stating those things will pretty much guarantee that I won't ever work in this town again. I have a mortgage to pay and kids to feed and clothe, etc. So you will not see me bad-mouthing companies in this public space. So please refrain from asking questions that would force me to do that. The best you'll get is no response.

6. Keep in mind, I answer questions because I like to be in touch with the fans, and I think it's fun for us all. But that doesn't mean I somehow OWE you an answer. The more entitled you think you are to the answer, (I can all but guarantee) the less inclined I'll be to respond in any useful way. Maybe that's me being needlessly contrary, but I'm just going to admit up front that it rubs me the wrong way. So tonally, try to avoid a sense of entitlement in your questions.

All this is IN ADDITION to the FOURTEEN guidelines already posted here: http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/ask.php I'll admit that these six new guidelines are perhaps even more subjective than the previous fourteen, but I guarantee you that we'll all be happier if you stick to them. And the happier I am, the more likely that I'll drop the occasional surprise here and there. Whereas, the more assaulted I feel, the more likely I am to get annoyed and clam up about everything. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Otherwise... thanks for stopping by. Seriously. The dark days at ASK GREG seem to have passed for the most part, and most days I enjoy doing it again. I just want to keep it that way. Thanks.



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