Anonymous writes...

You revealed at CONvergence that Nerissa and Cassidy were lovers.

1. Did the rest of CHKYN know?
2. If not, was it a secret because the 50's and 60's weren't the slightest bit progressive about same-sex relationships?
3. Were Nerissa and Cassidy still in a relationship when Nerissa killed her?

Anonymous writes...

Did Nerissa kill the real Mage?

Anonymous writes...

Hello Greg,
I know this question has nothing to do with the show "Gargoyles" but it is about "W.I.T.C.H", one of my favorite shows of all times. It is 2014 and W.I.T.C.H is still being viewed by newer fans and I wanted to ask about the songs from "S is for Self". "The Will to Love" and "Demon in Me" are my most favorite songs from the series and wanted to ask if there will be ANY chance at all for them to be shown in public and even if there was a chance for them to end up in iTunes. I would love to be able to buy the songs and be able to listen to them all day everyday. Thank you for your time.

Miya writes...

Hey Greg,
I know W.I.T.C.H must feel like forever ago for you now, but I want to say I really loved watching that show over and over again. It's really wonderful. I especially loved the whole Elyon story.

That being said, do you ever think W.I.T.C.H will see the light of day with a nice dvd release? Maybe you could nudge someone at Disney with a nice email asking about your other (less known) baby?

EXALT writes...

I have another little question.
We know that the Guardians are directly selected by the Oracle for specific reasons: was there any plan to reveal the specific reasons for the C.H.Y.K.N.'s selection (in particular Nerissa)?

EXALT writes...

A couple questions about "O is for obedience"...
1)Before learning the truth, did Caleb ever ask Julian abouth his mother's identity?
2A)If yes, what did Julian tell him?
2B)If no, who did he think his mother was?
3)What's the reason Julian decided not to tell Caleb of his mother's identity? Was there some kind of taboo against his love with the "Mage"?
4)Why wasn't Nerissa a part in Caleb's upbringing (or at least a stable part in his upbringing, since he still knew the "Mage")?
Thanks for your time!

beck writes...

if you had a choice what superhero show would you like to do

fallenlegend writes...

Hello Greg!

Just a quick question this time. The other time I asked you something about gargoyles and you said that you wouldn't write it for free... wich came as a bit of a shock to me as you have said before that it is your baby proyect.

It's understandable as this is your job and main source of income... But I have to wonder if you would ever have or if you have a personal proyect wich you would do for free.

You deserve every cent you get paid but.. Many (amateur/fanfic) writters write stories for fun and I wonder if this is the case with you. thank you!

fallenlegend writes...

Hello Greg it's me still annoying you :p

I would like to share my thoughts on WITCH if you don't mind.

I read the original comics a bit and one my issues is that in the original story the villains were superbland. I think you did a great job with "Nerissa". But villains like "phobos" came to me as one dimensional evil for the sake of being evil boringness (in the comic). I know you can't acknowledge this but I think your writing made the story much better than the original.

Another thing I didn't like from the original is that they basically gave everything easily to the main characters. (Superboy and superman didn't begin to bond until the season finale for instance...) WOuld you have done things differently?

thank you for your time!

fallenlegend writes...

Hello Greg! I have a question related now to witch tv series.

I know that you were basically hired to write a "magical girl series" that you had zero input on it's creation with this in mind...

Would you pitch a "magical girl" show idea of your own or would you rather pursue other projects?

Was it ever odd or hard to write for a girl power fantasy show? I don't know if you had experience but I think a show like "WITCH" could be hard to relate as a man when it is so obviously directed at girls as a main audience.

(I am sure many boys liked it but... I am sure most would enjoy more playing being like iron man than being a guardian)

what do you think was the main appeal of "WITCH"?

Do you think boys could relate to "magical girls" like the witch ?

Jibby A writes...

My question is about W.I.T.C.H. more specifically about Will. I was wondering what inspired you to give her the specific power of Quintessence? Because in the comics I don't think that's been mentioned, its always been Energy. However I think it's such an awesome power and your work on W.I.T.C.H. was exceptional! I thank you

GoldenAgeTeen writes...

Hi greg! First off , Young justice and W.I.T.C.H are some of my favorite tv shows ever. While watching young justice i couldn't help but notice that Rocket had the same voice as taranee! my questions are:
1. Was Asami's concept at all inspired by Hay Lin?
2. Was the Tye/Asami pairing inspired by Eric/hay lin?
3. How old is Rumaan Harjavti?
4. How old is Sumaan Harjavti?
And I wanted to say thanks for having this forum where fans can ask questions, Happy holidays!

Laura 'as astra' Sack writes...

Now that I've posted all my episode thoughts...(in theory I still plan on doing the same on the comics, but...) I want to say thank you for the series in general. (I'd go into details, but it seems redundant after posting all those responses.) I've thoroughly enjoyed it in all its parts. Well, by the time you read this the video game will be out. [Yep!] I probably will have to sit it out. Pathetic as it is, I have to admit to some motion sickness from a lot of video games. I'm assuming I'll be able to get some pretty detailed descriptions from the good folks here. I hope that there will be other continuations as well. (Also good luck on your new Star Wars series.)

I have to admit to more than a little annoyance that another show I enjoy is canceled, but also some confusion. If I understand correctly one of the major factors, if not the major factor in the cancellation is that the merchandise didn't sell as well as they companies had hoped. Good viewership numbers are almost inconsequential. If this is true, (big if, I admit), I don't understand the business model. Why continue making cartoons targeting the older demographic at all? I know the show aimed for a broad audience, but it aimed for each part directly. A lot of cartoons aim themselves at kids directly, and place bonus references and jokes for the older viewers. I've loved many shows like that. But the complexity of characters and plots in shows like Young Justice is not a bonus for older viewers, it is integral. (IMHO) A relationship like, for example, Guardian and Bumblebee is more relateable to a college or adult viewer than a kid. (I would have gone to Babs and Dick, but that was mainly expanded upon in the comics.) A kid would gravitate to the first season romances, or the M'gan/L'gan/Conner triangle. All the relationships were interesting and important to the show, and none were simple, it's just different parts resonant (from experience or at least plot type familiarity) better to different age sets. (Or for out of YJ examples- In Green Lantern- the complexity of Razor and Ia's relationship- given his past lost love, her resemblance, his survivor guilt and rage issues and her ultimate sacrifice is not something that targets the younger viewers of the show. They'll just accept the two are a couple and enjoy the fight scenes. It was perhaps more integral to the show than any Hal based plot. In Tron the entire looks of the show was aimed older, high teens and 20s would be my guess, and not particularly conducive to action figures to my eye.)

Older fans are less likely to buy toys, (or have toys bought for them), but they also have control over their own finances to buy what is actually advertised during broadcast. Between the 24 hour cable tv cycle and dvrs, grown ups will be watching when kids can't, allowing for targeted ads of the none happy meal/stompies/pillow pet variety. (For the record, my 4.5 year old adores her stompies. ~she's 5 now~) I get that a franchise like DC or Marvel or Star Wars can expect some cross product sales, and even a show not squarely aimed at a small kid can have a cool iconic action figure that sells well. But no one expects Smallville or Arrow to survive on toy and apparel sales, they stays on air based on the number and demographics of viewers, just like Birds of Prey did not last for the same reason. Have cartoons, or at least the beautifully animated ones, become loss leaders for merchandise like comics have become loss leaders for movies? And is that a reasonable burden to place on a show that does not squarely target the audience that will buy those toys? Is a high level video game an attempt to tap into an action figure equivalent of older viewers?

I don't want to turn this into a rant about how annoyed I am that YJ was canceled....er, not renewed. I will admit to being mightily confused why DC Nation isn't aiming to expand into more than an hour of programming. I just assumed it was planned to become a 2 or 3 hour block like the old Disney Afternoon, with perhaps a rotating stable of shows. But I am interested on your more insider insight on what the none creative aims are when a new cartoon is unleashed upon the world nowadays and whether they are reasonable. Thanks,

B writes...

In your W.I.T.C.H. canon, was Taranee adopted, as she was revealed to be in the comics, or was she the biological child of Mr. and Mrs. Cook? (Assuming, of course, that you thought about this)

B writes...

If the W.I.T.C.H. TV series had continued, did you plan to eventually have Caleb break up with Cornelia and get together with Elyon, as in the comics? Or, if there wasn't a solid plan about that yet, was that a possibility you were considering?

FallenLegend writes...

Hello greg

You previously said that you don't like gran finales and you don't intend to really give closure to any of your shows/stories. Not even gargoyles that as you described it is your "baby" even if you don't own it.

Does that mean that we will always get cliffhanger endings from your tv show when they get canceled?

What about your new book series, will it end in a cliffhanger too?

As much as I am a fan of your stories Greg, It feels empty not to have any closure at all.

No offense but basic story telling has beginning-conflict-resolution and as fans we never get to see a resolution of the overall plot.

I mean having an ending that gives the illusion that "the story never truly ends" is great (that's not what I am critical of).

But I think that not having an ending that acknowledges that the story has to end for real life reasons(maybe becuase you simply can't write stories forever, becuase you aren't getting more episodes, becuase you have to move on etc)... is disrespectuful to your fans that expect to have a complete story.

Take JLU unlimited ending. It even ended with wonderwoman saying "...and the adventure continues" and even left two unresolved plot points, But at the same time it ended the main plots and acted as a send off/good bye to it's fans and it didn't feel empty.

Sorry for being so critical, you are a big inspiration and even if I don't agree with you always I think you are a fantastic story teller (an inspiration for me in fct) and I am planing on buying our new book.

Greg Xanatos writes...

Dear Greg,

Through your career, you've shown a fondness for various "Master Planner" type villains (Xanatos, The Light, Nerrisaa etc.) You've also become notable for thinking out things to great detail (as your timelines and posts on askgreg have shown). So I wanted to know, has your own "master planning" informed these characters? For example, does Xanatos plan his schemes out with cards like you do? Do the Light's group planning sessions reflect an evil version of the Writer's room?

Thanks!

TIMEBRO writes...

Hey Greg a timeline question or threerather.

1. You have detailed timelines for Young Justice and Gargoyls, do you do this for everything you do even when you havent built the universe from scratch like in your Captain Atom comics or WITCH?
2. When did you start this trait?
3. You have time and time again noted that YJ has no "canon year" and that 2010 worked for Year Zero as a math thing. So does that mean season two being in 2016 by that reckoning was a coincidence?

MasterGhandalf writes...

I've recently been reflecting on your shows, and one thing that's really jumped out at me is that every one of them I've seen is extremely arc and continuity based, but also has, rather than a single "Big Bad", at least two core villains who contrast with and play off each other- Xanatos and Demona, Nerissa and Phobos, Tombstone and Norman Osborn, the Light and the Reach. Even the unproduced Stargate spin-off you posted about a while back had Osyros and Anubis. I was wondering if this was a conscious decision on your part to deliberately include this element in your shows, or if it's just something that flows naturally while designing a series?

Anonymous writes...

What are your thoughts about:

1- The Gargoyles fandom?
2- The W.I.T.C.H. fandom?
3- The Spectacular Spider-man fandom?
4- The Young Justice fandom?

Akino writes...

Sorry if these questions mean having to think way back. I've been reviewing the W.I.T.C.H. series, and now that I'm on season 2, I had a couple questions about developments in the show.

1. When season 2 first aired, rumors went around that Will's father was originally going to be written as unpleasant and manipulative as he had been in the comics, but due to resistance from Disney, this idea was scrapped. Is there any truth to this?

2. I absolutely loved how Matt ended up becoming Shagon. Did you plan from the beginning that this would happen, or did the idea come later on? Because this was brilliant.

3. Similar to the above, the relationship between Caleb and Nerissa. You hinted early enough into season 2 that the Mage might be Caleb's mother and that Nerissa was the Mage. Caleb was already very different from his counterpart in the comics. How did you decide that Nerissa should be his mother? It was such a surprise.

4. The final question is more of an opinion question. As I watch the series, I find myself wanting to feel sympathy toward Nerissa, despite the things she does throughout the series. What is your take on her?

Thank you and all the staff for doing an awesome job with this show, and for everything else you've worked on.

FallenLegend writes...

Hey Greg I just wanted to ask you if you have ever thought on finishing writing all your stories in case you never got to finish them in your life time?.

I don't want to be pessimistic. But just like Moses wasn't able to be on the promised land...

I recall Tolkien had the same issue with his unfinished tales. It would be cool if you at least considered finishing gargoyles. Many of your fans would be grateful if we got to know the full story :)

Jesse writes...

Hi Greg!!

First I would like to say i love Gargoyles and W.I.T.C.H.!

My question about the show is
-when did Beast Bboy find out about M'gaan's true form?
-Is Zatanna single at the moment?

Keep it up with the amazing show, Young Justice!!

Blaze writes...

Hello, I'm a big fan of your work, especially W.I.T.C.H, which never seems to get the credit it deserves. So I've just a got a few questions on that front.
1. About how old is Phobos?
2. Was there ever a plan to show more about Elyon/Phobos's biological parents, and if so, what were they like, especially to Phobos?
3. I know this is a bit vague,so no worries if there's no answer. I like to write, but I always have a hard time coming up with villains. Any advice on how to create an interesting bad guy?

Thanks!

gaiachild writes...

It isn't really much of a question, but all in all, I just wanted to say "Thank you". Thank you for all the high quality shows you produced that enriched my childhood and still give me intelligent and gripping entertainment in my favorite media, animated shows, as an adult.
Most off all, I also wanted to express my admiration for your resolve. While privately I may often joke bitterly about the "Weisman curse" whenever one of your shows gets unfairly canceled way too soon despite (arguably) having the best quality in the entire program. You will always have my gratitude for continuing to produce great shows despite all the stones placed in your way.

As for questions:
1. If you had the means to, would you do a Young Justice/Gargoyles Crossover?
2. Sorry to bring up this unfairly missed opportunity gain, but if you had remained on the staff for "The Roswell Conspiracies", do you think that show would at some point crossed over with Gargoyles?
3. In the spirit of question one, do you think Demona would make a good Red Lantern?

In any case, once again, thank you. Thank you for raising the quality and complexity of the already great W.I.T.C.H. cartoon, thank you for producing the best animated Spider-Man series to date, thank you for bringing Starshiptroopers to the screen in the way it should have been in the first place, thank you for doing such a great job with Max Steel, thank you for doing a huge part in keeping animated DC material extremely high quality, especially at the moment, and of course, thank you for Gargoyles, probably my favorite franchise ever, and I am rooting for you to one day get it back and do more wonders with it.

Simon writes...

Dear Greg.

My question is regarding the W.I.T.C.H. series and it would be greatly appreciated if you would take your time and answer my question. I will try to keep my questions as short as possible.

1. First of all, I loved the W.I.T.C.H. as a youth, it teached me important and valuable things in life. I would hope future generation can have the same opportunity to watch series like this. I think the series came to an abrupt end, when instead it was set for a new season, given introductionen of the new teacher. Why did it end like this?

2. Is there any chance that the series will see a resurrection?

3. What can I do as a fan, to affect the possibility of a resurrection?

4. Can you do anything to get all of us who wish that our dreams of a season, not just remain a dream, but a reality? If not, who can?

Once again, if you would answer, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Simon

Nerd1001 writes...

When I was watching W.I.T.C.H., I always wondered one thing. Does Mr.Huggles have some sort of increased intelligence when he's in his Regent form? Normally, he's just a regular dormouse. Napoleon was already magically enhanced, so does the same apply to Huggles so he understands when to regent up?

Motti writes...

When I was young i watched Gargoyles. My reaction? Meh. Fast forward, year 2009. TvTropes recomended The Spectacular Spider-Man as best animated Spidey show. I hate Spider-Man, but hey, let's give a try. My reaction? AWESOME!!! Hm, lets check other stuff this Weisman guy did. And i rewatched Gargoyles and W.I.T.C.H. My reaction? THIS WEISMAN GUY IS AWESOME!!! He's funny, creative and his villains are amazing. Hm, he's gonna produce Young Justice. Let's check it when it comes out. My reaction? GREG WEISMAN IS OFFICIALLY DEITY IN MY EYES!!! So thank you, Mr. Weisman for giving human kind such awesome cartoons! And now some questions:
1) If you have a billion dollar budget what movie or show would you create? (Shakespeare excluded. We know you would do Kennet Branagh style, 4 hours long, Hamlet)
2) Did you ever met Alan Moore or Neil Gaiman or Grant Morrison?
3) Did you ever considered writing again comics? P.S. Loved Captain Atom both in YJ and comics
4) Whom do you preffer: DC or Marvel? As world, not as a employer
5) Ever been in Europe?
Also, I'm kinda worried for YJ. It seems TV network can't endure your awesomeness, so they ruin 3rd seasons for your shows. That, and Teen Titans are back and new Batman show is in production. Of course, i could be paranoid. No matter what, your work will be always epic! Once again, thank you Mr. Weisman for your awesome work!
P.S. Steve Blum as Green Goblin and Josh Keaton as Spider-Man? BEST. CHOICES. EVER.

EXALT writes...

Ok, my question is about the "death rules" in your shows, AKA the conditions under which you could kill a character off (for example, you said in your Gargoyles' rambles that you could show Othello and Desdemona in "City of Stone, Part 1" because A)the audience already knew they were dead and B)it already knew they'd be back as Coldstone, otherwise you couldn't have personalized the victims of the massacre; you also said that, even though you killed off the Magus in "Avalon, Part 3", you couldn't actually say outloud that he was dead).
So, the question is: under which conditions you could actually kill a character off in Gargoyles, W.I.T.C.H. and Young Justice?
(Ok, fine, I suppose it counts as three questions)

Todd Jensen writes...

The first season of "Young Justice" takes place over the course of half a year, starting on the Fourth of July and continuing to New Year's Eve in the Season One finale (with episodes set on Halloween and Thanksgiving along the way). I remember that the first season of "The Spectacular Spider-Man" similarly stretched from the start of the school year in September to Thanksgiving (with a Halloween episode along the way), and that the second season got up at least to Valentine's Day. The time progression in "Gargoyles" was more vague, but we had two Halloween stories ("Eye of the Beholder" and the Double Date story) and three wintry episodes in New York ("Her Brother's Keeper", which ends with a snowfall, "Re-Awakening", and "The Price"), as well as a clear timeline for the Stone of Destiny story.

I like this sense of the year's progress through the seasons and landmark days (like the Fourth of July and Halloween), but it doesn't seem that common in animated series outside your own work. I've seen two speculations on why that element is so rare in animated series. One is that a lot of the people who engage in such creative work aren't big on continuity and change, far less than you are. Another is that most people involved in creating animated television series live in or near Los Angeles and other parts of California, where the climate is pretty much the same year around and there's less a sense of four seasons than in other parts of the United States. I was wondering what your thoughts were on these theories.

EXALT writes...

In W.I.T.C.H., why some of the Hearts, like Lillian and Elyon, have sentient forms, while others are simply majical objects?

EXALT writes...

Hello, Greg! I have some W.I.T.C.H. questions.
1)In the series finale, when the C.H.Y.K.N escaped from the jewel, why did Nerissa remain young, while the reverted back to their original forms?
2)Why Cassidy stayed alive, instead of becoming a ghost again?
3)Does Nerissa know that her fantasies (when she remains trapped in the jewel) are just fantasies, at least deep down, or she really believes they're real?

Zach Baker writes...

Hey Greg!

I recently saw this line from an interview with Steven Bochco in the early 80's, talking about Hill Street Blues (which currently has its first two-and-a-half seasons on Hulu Plus, by the way):

"Maybe the biggest problem with Hill Street, in terms of popular success, is that it is a show that demands to be watched. And most people do not watch television. They simply are in its presence."

I love that quote. What an insightful way to encapsulate about what was essential and great about Hill Street Blues, without going into all the details of what made it so outstanding. Just leave at this: unlike nearly anything before it, in many ways it was a show that demanded to be watched. I think that characteristic also applies to Gargoyles as well, no doubt due to the major influence Hill Street Blues had on the show (as you've often mentioned).

Nowadays, that quality, of being a show that "demands to be watched," is characteristic of so many excellent shows that appear on HBO, Showtime or AMC (before hitting DVD boxsets and iTunes), places where popular success isn't the one and only yardstick. And again and again, we've seen how this kind of series can flourish in the atmosphere of creative freedom offered by these outlets.

Can viewers hope that someday soon, that kind of environment will produce an animated serial drama that has the same level of quality, complexity and acclaim as these channels' current headline series? If so, what might it take for that to happen?

Fluttershy writes...

Hey greg what's up I would love to ask you a questions regarding your story telling techniques

You have said in the past that you could go be telling stories forever if you wanted and in fact sometimes not even the tv show is enough for them hence the comics.

But have you ever considered in giving your characters and stories a Grand finale?.

I think something that has made me a bit sad is that in your past shows you have been cut short due to executive decitions out of your control and we have been unable to get anything resembling an ending that actually gives closure (w.i.t.c.h,Spectacular spiderman, gargoyles etc)

However it is always nice when a tv show character directly says goodbye to te audience(like batman the brave and the bold) or when every major plot point is solved at the end.

A big trait of western media in it's majority like tv shows and specially comics is that the characters "are frozen in time".

Spiderman for instance will always be a young man that fights crime and the story won't go beyond that,same for superman and batman. When the story gets after a certain point we as fans tend to get reboots reapeaing the smae story.

I would like to ask you if given the chance will you give us a finale to your works like gargoyles.

Will we ever see the closure of them?
Do you believe in "grand finales"?

Or do you want simply to never give them a real ending o your shows and simply give the idea that the story will be around forever?

Lavariel writes...

Dear Mr. Weisman,

Thank you for all the wonderful work you've done from Gargoyles, to Spiderman, to Young Justice. Been a fan for years.

1) From your experience, what was more enjoyable to work with? Working on a show that was completely yours to control - Gargoyles - from character development, plot, and storyline? Or Spiderman and Young Justice where the basics has already laid out?

2) Was there more pressure to succeed working on Gargoyles because it was original and the creativity was your to control? Or was there more pressure to work on an adaption on Spiderman and Young Justice because the bar has already been set?

Julia writes...

This is...going to be an odd post.

Six years ago, I was a lonely and bored kid surfing the Internet for pretty pictures of one of my favorite shows, WITCH. I stumbled upon my first fanfiction. I was eleven and hooked. I've managed to bond with many people because of that discovery and self-published some of my writing.

Fast forward to December 2010. I heard of this fantastic new show, Young Justice, and unfortunately missed the premiere due to my DVR not working. I decided to surf the Web and stumbled upon an anonymous writing meme for Young Justice. It's still the most interactive, fun place I've been online, and it got me out of a slump I'd fallen into with my writing. In fact, the Young Justice fandom is the most active and interactive fandom I've ever been in.

I have Asperger's Syndrome- I find it difficult to connect with people at all. So...thank you. Thank you for making such great shows that people love so much that we can all connect to. It's really made my life so much better.

Harlan Phoenix writes...

Only two episodes of your run on WITCH, namely the first and last, have your writing credit (if my research is correct). Was there anything about WITCH's production that prevented you from contributing more scripts personally or was it a creative choice?

Sophie writes...

I love how badass Aqualad and all the other Atlantians are on YJ! Usually, Aquaman is considered kind of a joke by a lot of people, but you made them so cool and powerful on the show, which is great. I was wondering, was some of the water controlling powers Aqualad use inspired by Avatar: The Last Airbender?

Charlie writes...

Hey Greg
I heard that you wrote the lyrics for the will to love and even though the full song was never released, the lyrics for the full version were released. recently i have been learning the song by ear and have been making a tab for it. the one problem is that even though i can learn almost all of the song from 'S is for Self' the bridge is quite a problem for me. i would be quite happy to create my own chords and melody for it but i would much rather write it with the correct chords and melody. i was wondering if you would know any of the chords from the bridge or know anybody who might know them? just the chords will do because i will be able to create my own melody ontop. Please don't just look over this question as this project means quite alot to me as it is my first one.
Thanks!
Charlie

Harlan Phoenix writes...

Though I know your mind isn't the kind to play favorites, but given how you acknowledge The Mirror as your favorite/the best episode of Gargoyles, I think this might be able to fly.

Do you have any particular episodes of WITCH or The Spectacular Spider-Man that, if it wasn't your favorite necessarily, you felt was the best of those shows? And for what reasons, if so?

Matthew writes...

This is about pretty much all the series you've worked on. I've noticed that most of your series has a large cast of recurring characters (and that despite this characters tend to be very well delineated.) Now for Young Justice, WITCH, and Spectacular Spiderman that may be just because they were pre-existing properties and already have large casts. However, Gargoyles also had a large cast.

Was this a because of conscious choice?

Do you perfer working with a large cast of characters?

Greg Bishansky writes...

I know I wrote to you about a year ago with some thoughts on “W.I.T.C.H.,” but I just went through the series for a second time, and rather than just watch it, I was able to study it, catch all the clues and pieces of foreshadowing and other things that I missed.

Last year, it took me two weeks to make it through the first season, and twenty-four hours to make it through the second season. This time, well, I wanted to let the second season breathe a little more, which is why it took twenty-seven hours to make it through this time.

What can I say, it’s addictive.

I think I’ll start with the large cast, which seems to be a feature in every series you produce. I don’t feel like anybody got the short end of the stick. Will, being the lead, of course got the most time. Everyone else was well balanced also. Casts this big can be pretty hard to juggle. Five main characters, and so many supporting characters, recurring characters, villains, etc.

Irma was probably my favorite of the Guardians. She just had so much spunk. A huge sense of humor. I enjoyed how she often seemed like she would be the most fun to hang out with, but at the same time, probably the meanest when she was in a bad mood. Cornelia at her worst has nothing on a pissed off Irma. Very scary. God help you if you push her to anger. I’ve known people like that in real life, but I find that TV seldom ever does it well. So I have to commend a series that can take someone so likeable and make them nasty without losing their likeability.

The theme of the season seemed to be growing up. Hay-Lin and Taranee change and grow the most this season. Cornelia does well too, learning to be a better sister to Lillian. Will growing in her powers, as a leader, in her relationship with her parents, and their new love interests, and in her own relationship with Matt.
Ironically, Irma seems to change the least over the course of the season, but that’s okay, because she still got a lot of characterization.

Surprising nobody, my favorite character in the series was Nerissa. She always kept me guessing. Going through the series for the second time, I could really see her master plan and all the pipe-laying for her. I probably shouldn’t mention season one, but I paid much more attention to Trill this time, as well as the Mage. Nerissa just seemed to be everywhere, pulling everybody’s strings. I liked the twist that she wasn’t really out for vengeance, which is a twist that made sense. Watching it the first time, I asked myself why would she want to avenge Phobos, she wasn’t there. Well, she was, but you know what I mean. The Knights were all a distraction, and the second time, that seemed much more obvious. But I enjoyed how cold and intelligent she was. She was always scheming; always Machiavellian; and two steps ahead of everyone; all the while carrying around a mountain of repressed guilt. I once described her to a friend with the following words: “imagine if Xanatos and Demona had a baby together, that child would be Nerissa.” I thought Kath Soucie did a magnificent job.

I must also say that the twist that Nerissa was Caleb’s mother was brilliant. As I understand it, this was not the case I the original comic book. But I enjoyed it; I thought it worked quite well. It also made things even more chilling in that, when you think about it, she essentially raped Julian. Rape by deception is still rape, and that’s not something you see often in a cartoon. It almost reminds me of Merlin helping Uther deceive Igraine in order to create King Arthur.

And then there was Prince Phobos. It’s impossible to discuss what was done with him in the second season without talking about the first. I thought he was pretty one note throughout the first season, but season two did something far different with him, and you really felt how this guy could have held the entire world of Meridian under his control for so long.

I felt the same way about Lord Cedric, he got old really fast in the first season, and when he finally gets out of his cell in season two, he’s not doing much that he didn’t do in the first season until what had to be the shock moment of the entire season. I won’t say anymore, but it was nice to see a character I thought so poorly of get that moment. What inspired that twist, I wonder.

The Shagon mini-arc was very well done too. It seems to be a theme in Weisman produced shows to have a character change into something else, all under the control of a villain. David Xanatos turned Derek Maza into Talon; the Green Goblin turned Mark Allan into Molten Man; and Nerissa turns Matt into Shagon. What I also enjoy is just how different each of these scenarios really are. Shagon was a nice personal antagonist towards Will. As I understand it, this is another case where the TV series deviated from the comics for the better. Turning Matt into Shagon just gives that character a lot more chemistry with our heroes than he otherwise would have had.

Would I have liked to see a third season? Sure. But aside from the mystery of who this new teacher was, I thought it was all wrapped up very well, and didn’t leave me “needing” to see more the same way “Gargoyles” and “Spectacular Spider-Man” did. It was great television, and I’m sorry I didn’t get to see it when it was originally airing.

Harlan Phoenix writes...

When working on WITCH, did you ever meet or otherwise communicate with the creator of the original comic?

Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

Silly little question- Do you ever feel the urge, (or give into the urge), to slip something into a script purely because you know something about the actor? Like writing a song into a scene because you know the actor sings, (but maybe not telling them that they're going to be doing Sondheim or Gilbert & Sullivan till after they agree to sing 'some ditty'), or make them speak a foreign language because someone is fluent (but perhaps has a horrid accent)? Someone has a great cackle? Find a reason to have it come up. Someone is afraid of canaries? Put on on the character's shoulder for the whole episode. etc The only example I can think of now would be to have M'gan spout a long series of made up equations to see if Danica McKellar's head explodes in the face of nonsensical math. (Or replace of a series of made up equations with her own theorem at the last moment and wait for her to notice.)

Or does "Jalapeno!" qualify as such evil?