Laura (Ackerman) Sack writes...

Rather surprising that no post alerting readers that issue two came out... though by the time this is read it may be a post alerting of issue 10 that I'll be looking for:)

I am trying not to review comics on how they read at 2:30Am when I should be long asleep. This time I decided to reread 1 & 2 while fully awake and quite of few of my negative comments melted away. Still, there remained both pluses and minuses.

The most obvious change is the art. It seems to me that the two conflicting styles seen in issue 1 were melded together. Oddly enough the result is something far more reminiscent of the cartoon. Truth be told the art stood out more in issue 1- but so did the off model parts. This was miles away more consistent throughout the issue. There were some images that I took issue with: I don't like the new design for baby Alex, and Elisa looked rather Asian in some frames (more a problem with Dt. Yin over in The Batman) But there were some fantastic moments to more than balance. The facial expressions of Lex when baby Alex was reaching in the frame and playing with his face, or when Xanatos sheepishly admits that he knows it is not wise to annoy the Illuminati were fantastic. Broadway and Angela's scene was just lovely. And, of course, the full page of Goliath and Elisa when they first hit the ground. (also a nice frame when he is first hit by the hammer and she ducks.)

For some reason I just loved it when Elisa threw away her remaining shoe.

Some of the fighting was a little dark and muddled to my (sleep deprived) eyes. When Elisa stands above the mercenaries who had just talked about kissing their salary goodbye, I knew I was seeing a moment like Demona's, way back in Awakenings, when she appears saying, "no, you lost it all.", but I didn't feel it in my gut. (I reserve the right to feel it in my gut when I reread issue 2 with issue 3 and hopefully that night do so before midnight.) There was one very clever composition, where the hammer light swoosh and sound effects swooped through 4 levels of frames on one page. Problem was, some of the sound effects seemed a little too even. The helicopter sounds were correctly all the same, but organic sounds looked that way too. (I checked and didn't see that in #1). Of course I did get to see a downright heroic Vinny and got NOT to see Castaway escaping through the guts of the building.

Oh- and speaking of animation gaffs in the original airing…did Goliath end the issue gliding off on his injured wing?!

thanks and looking forward to #3!

La

Anonymous writes...

Why does Lexington have to be gay? I am a girl and I'm insulted by this. I was always told being gay is a sin. As a fan I don't believe he's gay at all.

Wintermute writes...

So, I tried searching for some info on this supposed gargoyles movie, but the site's archive search engine seems to be a bit haywire (my returned searches have off-color spaces in-between every character). I read the first few returns to my query, but I started to get a headache. As a result, I have decided to simply ask my question and hope it makes it through the queue reasonably soon. If it has already been asked (as it very well may have) I sincerely apologize.

My first question is, if this movie ever gets put together, will it be animated or live-action? As a follow-up, if it is live-action, will Disney prevent it from being overly violent and adult-oriented? I think that the bulk of gargoyles fans out there are getting old, and as much as the old episodes and the new comics still make me happy to engage with, I think a more mature, live-action/CGI/Costumed high-budget motion picture would generate a lot of hype, over and above another animated version. I'm not thinking of Goliath ripping muggers in half or anything, just a version where no one is afraid of showing a little pool of blood (a la "deadly force"). I think "Awakening" could be remade fantastically in this manner, as it is an incredibly epic storyline. Thanks for your time.

Asatira writes...

I wanted to take the opportunity now that the second season of W.I.T.C.H. is finished to give my thanks and comments about the season. I've got to say that this season, in my opinion, was vastly better than the first. While I enjoyed it the first season, I eventually started watching it just out of obligation, namely to see how long before Elyon got her act together. Not so with this season. I looked forward to each episode. The writing and characterizations for the second season seems so much more focused and consistent, and the plot more forward. I especially loved the Will-Shagon/Matt dynamic of the first half or so. (The "I'm so bad, I hate myself" quote stands out). And the last six were the most fun for me, especially "U for Undivided". I still smile when I think of Ed Asner as cute little Napoleon's voice. There are so many things in each episode, I can't possibly list them all.

Hopefully, by the time you get to this we'll know if season three is greenlit. But, just to let you and the rest of the W.I.T.C.H. staff know, thanks so much for such a fun season.

dph writes...

My Review of issue #2

The good:

Excellent story-telling. I liked the pace that the drama went through. I ordered my comic through SLG's website and got it before Christmas.

The bad:

The artwork. Granted that I'm not an artist and that I have no sense of color aesthetics, I have some issues with the artwork. The opening scenes with Macbeth remind me of looking at myself in the mirror when I'm half-awake. Lex doesn't quite look right in the scenes with Alex.

I am looking forward to buying the next issue when it is released.

Anonymous writes...

I've got to say, Puck is one of my favorite characters (which is funny, because most of my favorite characters aren't the favorites of other people). Maybe it's because he reminds me of my cat, but it's probebly because he has something I've never been very good at getting: a decent sense of humor. Oberon on the other hand..... It took me a while to warm up to him. I like him now though. Because I'm a person who has been taught humility since the age of seven, I think he's waaaaaay too proud. My mom thinks he's a bit of a baby, but she's amused by it. Maybe as a phycologist, she sees something I don't. The following observations and questions are about the two afore mentioned members of the Third Race. I guess they count as one topic....

I was suprised by Oberon's harsh punishment for Puck in 'The Gathering' (expecialy since HE was the one at fault), but I guess his banishment from Avalon could have been a 'So There' kind of thing. In my mom's oppinion (She's a fan too, by the way) Oberon was like 'Oh, it's BORING, is it? I guess you won't mind never coming back then....' and Puck was like 'Well, actually, I was just sort of..... whining.' Later, I thought I hit the moral of the story and told my mom (who was surprised I hadn't gotten it earlier). Our conversation went something like this:
Me: Mom! I think I got the moral of the story!
Mom: Hm?
Me: Your pride doesn't just hurt you; it hurts the people around you!
Mom: ..... Duh.
Yeah... now for some real questions.

1. You said Oberon probebly still cares for Puck. What about Puck still caring for Oberon? After a punishment like that, (which I figure was done more for Oberon's pride than anything else) I might be a little bitter.
2. If this wasn't fair, why didn't Titania say something? Is she still upset about the donkey thing? I can't say I blame her, but we're talking about a way extream punishment here!
3. Will this state of tension be adressed in future stories?

Zephyranthes writes...

Hi Greg,

This is more of an observation than a question.

In the episode Upgrade, Goliath had to choose a second in command. He stated that he didn't want to choose recklessly because it might put a rift between the trio. And he said that "I see now that nothing can come between you three." I guess he didn't count on the fact that Angela is alive and that she might someday fall in love with one of the trio and that might throw a rift between them.

Anonymous writes...

First off, I'd like to mention how much my family likes Gargoyles. I've probebly developed a slight obsession; my brother claims he doesn't like it, but I've caught him in a zombie-like trance staring at the TV when the dvd is in (complete with a gaping mouth); my mom likes watching it with me, and says it has better story lines than some of the shows she watches. My dad on the other hand.... at the time of typing, I haven't convinced him to watch it (I will though, just wait), but he's taking me to the 2007 Gathering. Our discusion went something like this:
Dad: So you want me to drive hours, in a car, to a place you've never even heard of, to spend a weekend at a convention about an old Disney cartoon?
Me: Yes.... please.
Dad: Sure!

Yeah... I'll have real questions in further posts.

dph writes...

In general, do you view the fall of Atlantis in the gargoyles universe as a good thing or a bad thing?

Nelio writes...

I have a biological question regarding the Gargoyles, one that I have been curious about for a long time. To ask it simply, do Gargoyles (or Gargates in general) have nipples? It is obvious that through out the entire series no nipples were detailed on male gargoyles, and where they would appear on the female body is covered. Further more, there are at least two times in the series in which two human males (Officer Morgan and Wolf) have been seen without shirts yet they had their nipples detailed.

Is this some sort of decency issue within the animation department, or do gargoyles actually lack them? A few other things that stick out to me is when the gargoyle clan was changed into humans by puck, they still lacked them, thus leading me to believe it was a animation issue. I also wonder if males lack nipples while female retain then, after all human males only have them because they develop on the fetus before sex is determined. Perhaps in gargoyle biology, development happens differently?

Well, thank you for reading my strange question, I really appreciate the time you put into this site and your product. I can only wish that the other programs I have a mild obsession with would have a wonderful site like Ask Greg to answer all my questions.