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lou-bert vs. q-bert writes...

Hi Greg, thank you for connecting to everyone. Fifteen years later, I'm sure questions about "The Kiss" never end, so who am I to part with tradition?

>It is my understanding that, for soap operas and/or ongoing series, actors do get sprung some story-surprises in their scripts. Although it was likely 1 to 2 pages of script, was "The Kiss" that kind of surprise for Salli Richardson and Keith David?

>Did they record their dialogue together? because it was extraordinarily acted.

Greg responds...

Honestly, I can't remember. Wish I could.

Response recorded on August 10, 2011

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Dragomir writes...

Hi Greg, I realize that Demona is the villain and thus HAS to lose in the end, but I've always been confused by how well Elisa Maza is able to handle herself in battle against Demona. We know for a fact that gargoyles possess far more sheer brute strength and durability than a human being, we see Goliath and company throw gangsters and mercs and various other bad guys around like rag dolls all the time. Even the Pack, who were basically at peak athletic condition for humans before they underwent their "upgrades," were little match for the gargs. Now, I am aware that there are humans who can take gargs on one on one, but they are usually exceptional fighters like MacBeth who has centuries of experience and skill plus padded armor under his clothes, or have armored exo-suits like Xanatos or Dingo to even the odds. However, Elisa Maza possesses neither of these things, she's no wimp of course, she's a cop trained to handle New York's baddest of the bad, but she shouldn't be in the same league as Demona. I mean, her combat experience & skills comes from her police training and experience dealing with criminals, but Demona has over a thousand years of fighting experience at her disposal PLUS all the strength and durability that comes from being a gargoyle, and yet, when she and Maza fight it usually ends up with them wrestling on the ground & Maza fairing far better than she should against someone more skilled and powerful than she is (and equipped with claws that can rip through stone and steel). If Xanatos or Macbeth pulled something like that on Goliath he'd rip them to shreds & beat them senseless, yet Elisa gets away with it with Demona...I guess I just find it confusing and inconsistent with what we've seen in regards to how well the gargoyles handle their human foes. I know Demona has to lose in the end cuz she's the villain and that during some of their battles there were extenuating circumstances (like Demona being in human form or Maza in gargoyle form), but I still find it unrealistic & hard to believe Maza could fare so well against someone so much stronger & more experienced/skilled than she is...Even Goliath himself finds her to be a challenging opponent to face, we're talking about a lady who can lift boulders with her bare hands and chuck them at people, I can only imagine what she could do to Maza with strength like that.

So yeah, sorry for rambling, I really do love the Gargoyle series, but Elisa's ability to "manhandle" Demona despite the obvious strength and skill difference has always irked me. I mean, even when angered Demona tends to fight even harder than before, just like any other gargoyle, and usually that makes them a decisive edge unless they face someone like Oberon who can't be fazed by brute strength & ferocity.

Can you please explain to me how Maza's able to get away with fighting Demona one on one & hand to hand and get away from it in one piece?

P.S. thanks for your time & congrats on Young Justice, I'm totally loving that show thus far, Miss Martian rules! And Cheshire & the Witchboy were awesome villains, hope we see them again.

Greg responds...

Uh... when has human Elisa fought one-on-one with gargoyle Demona? I seriously can't think of one time this has occurred. I mean you can't count when both were gargoyles or both were humans -- at least not in terms of your above complaint/confusion. Are you sure you haven't just ... well... imagined this problem?

Response recorded on April 29, 2011

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Richard Jackson writes...

A question about Elisa's shooting by Broadway.

It was confirmed on-screen in "Deadly Force" that only Broadway, Elisa and Goliath know that Broadway shot Elisa. Dracon may have overheard it, because he was being held upside down by Goliath when Broadway confessed. And perhaps the other members of the Manhattan Clan were told off-screen.

I wonder how the police investigation went on this shooting. In "Deadly Force", the gun was taken into evidence, but Chavez said that no conclusive prints could be found on the gun. She did affirm her conviction that Dracon did it and that no one who "hits" a cop would get away with it.

In "The Edge", Elisa tells Chavez that getting shot was an "accident". Was the shooting reclassified an accident off screen? What was Elisa's account of the shooting to the police? Were the police curious as to why someone would shoot Elisa in her apartment and then leave her outside the ER of a hospital?

Greg responds...

The shooting was reclassified as an accident with Elisa blaming herself. She offered no explanation for how she got to the hospital, and none could be found. Chavez, I think, found the story suspicious, which may have been one of the reasons she insisted that Elisa get a partner.

Response recorded on February 25, 2011

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Sasha writes...

Dear Greg,
I have always wondered about what happened to the audio tape which Elisa recorded in Season 1 Episode 12, when Fox confessed to her all of Xanatos's schemes concerning Derek/Talon. Did Derek/Talon ever listen to it, either before or after his mutation? If not, what became of the tape?

Greg responds...

I'll leave your first question to audience interpretation -- and refrain from answering the second question for now.

Response recorded on January 17, 2011

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Anonymous writes...

Hello Mr. Weisman,

I have a question regarding the relationship between Elisa and Goliath:

1. Did you always have in mind for them to be a couple or is this something that just came up as you kept writing?

2. Did you find it strange for a 7 ft mythological creature to fall in love with a human?

3. What does Goliath think of Elisa?

4. What does Elisa think of Goliath?

Greg responds...

1. Uh... pretty much always, if we're talking about Elisa and Goliath and not some of the development precursors.

2. Sure. But isn't love always strange? (I'm sensing a theme tonight.)

3. If that's not clear from the source materials, I have nothing to add.

4. Ditto.

Response recorded on December 22, 2010

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John Derrick writes...

I hate to say it, but I was extremely disappointed in the Young Justice premiere. Don't get me wrong--the animation was gorgeous, the dialogue entertaining, the story intriguing. But the gender imbalance was a huge turn-off for me.

Why was it that the women of the Justice League were only shown in the last five minutes of a two-part pilot? Why did the male sidekicks get to go on a rebellious adventure and force the League to accept them as a team of their own, while the first girl is only added to "Young Justice" at the very end, introduced by her uncle and guardian like some sort of token?

I expect that the women will have a lot more to do in the episodes to come, but I still find it profoundly problematic to introduce the characters in such an unequal manner. I believe there are too many men in the world as it is who see women as mere supporting players in their stories. Why reinforce this stereotype for a whole new generation of superhero cartoon fans?

Greg responds...

It's a legitimate gripe. And I doubt my answer will satisfy you, but it came down to a couple factors that we at least found important: (1) practicality and to a lesser extent - but intertwined with - (2) tradition.

Let's start with practicality.

You asked why there were no female Leaguers until the end. But where would they have fit? There are no female Leaguers with traditional first generation sidekicks. So Batman, Green Arrow, Aquaman and Flash could not be replaced by Wonder Woman, Black Canary or Hawkwoman. That leaves the four Leaguers introduced at the Hall of Justice. I needed Martian Manhunter to be there to set up Miss Martian. I needed Red Tornado there to set up his interest in the teens. I needed Superman there to set up Superboy. That leaves only Zatara. He was certainly replaceable. But then I would have had to hire another voice actress to read ONE LINE. I couldn't afford to do that. We have budgets. (And you'll notice that Red Tornado never speaks in the episode. Couldn't afford giving him a line either. None of which had anything to do with gender.)

There was NEVER any intent to introduce Artemis this early in the season for story reasons. Wouldn't make sense for her character. And I think the reasons why will become clear as the season progresses.

As for Miss Martian, yes, in theory, we could have introduced her sooner. Manhunter COULD have brought her along at the beginning. But then I'd have had FOUR characters running around the first half hour and FIVE in the second. That steals screen time and characterization from everyone. I think the entire production would have been weaker for adding another character -- ANY other character (gender notwithstanding).

Of course, that begs the obvious question - why not ditch one of the boys in favor of her to create a little balance.

But it seemed to us that would create balance at a cost.

There are FOUR TRADITIONAL sidekicks: Robin, Speedy, Aqualad and Kid Flash. To leave one out seemed wrong to us. Which brings in the Tradition argument, which I'll admit is somewhat feeble, but as an old comic book geek, I'll also admit it matters to me and to everyone else here.

The very first Teen Titans story ever in Brave and the Bold featured only THREE heroes: Robin, Aqualad and Kid Flash. Wonder Girl did not join until their second adventure. So we felt there was a precedent for beginning with Robin, Aqualad and Kid Flash and saving the real introduction of Miss Martian (beyond hellos) for OUR second adventure.

For what it's worth, if you give the series another chance, starting with episode three (i.e. the one immediately following the pilot "movie"), I think you'll see that female characters including Miss Martian, Black Canary, Artemis, Wonder Woman and MANY others will be playing ESSENTIAL roles in the show as we progress. I think the balance - and then some - is absolutely present in the first season when viewed in its entirety.

Yes, the pilot was very boy-centric, but that's not the rubric for the series. Personally, I love writing female characters, and if you're at all familiar with my past work, you'll know I have a history of doing them justice. (At least, I think so.) Gargoyles, for example, is FULL of strong female characters, including Elisa, Demona, Angela, Fox, etc. WITCH was nearly ALL female leads. Even Spider-Man had a strong female supporting cast, in my opinion at least.

If we did "reinforce a stereotype" (which I think is overstating it) then perhaps we've lured in kids that we will reeducate over the course of the season - organically without forcing it.

So I'd beg a little patience, a little indulgence... maybe even a little trust that we'll do right by this issue.

But judge for yourself.

Response recorded on December 21, 2010

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Blizzard Sprite writes...

Hello. I'm a first time poster on this site, though I've been browsing it for months, reading the archives so I don't ask an already answered question. I had seen sporadic episodes of Gargoyles when I was much younger, and so I never got to enjoy the benefits of the continuing and developing storylines. It wasn't until I actually watched the entire Gargoyle series over the summer on DVR on Disney that I got finally understood my sister's pure delight in the fantastic franchise. When looking for more information on Gargoyles, I came across this place. My question really pertains to characterization of a few characters, though I’ll submit the other questions separately so this isn’t constrewed as posting one question with separate topics.

One aspect of the Gargoyles series that really stands out is the diversity of the characters in terms of ethnicity. One of the main characters, Eliza, is of African American and Native American descent. I think that was one of the factors that made the series so good. The show was definitely progressive in that aspect.

1. I was wondering if there were any challenges in pitching a show whose main human character was of color?
2. Were there certain things that you weren’t allowed to do, or topics that were generally avoided, such as active discrimination and racism against Eliza or any of the other characters of color on the show?
3. Was there any doubt amongst yourself or perhaps the channel executives that Caucasian viewers would be unable to relate to a protagonist of color?

I understand the question might come off as offensive, but I do ask out of genuine interest.

Thank you for your time, Mr. Weisman.

Greg responds...

1. Nope. No problem. When we pitched the series, Elisa was Elisa Chavez and Hispanic. Then we cast Salli Richardson and altered her ethnicity to match Salli's. But there were never any challenges about either Elisa Chavez or Elisa Maza.

2. Nope. Though we preferred to address those things metaphorically, i.e. from the Gargoyles/Humans perspective, as opposed to Black/White or whatever.

3. Nope. Never crossed my mind.

Response recorded on December 02, 2010

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Charisma82 writes...

Did Matt ever tell Elisa that he was a member of the Illuminate? I ask because in the episode Revelations Matt says that it didn’t pay to keep Elisa in the dark about things (speaking about the incident with the Dracons in The Silver Falcon). After going on and on about how they should trust each other in the episode Revelations, it would seem contradictory of what Matt had just been through to not tell Elisa. But then, maybe he has his reasons to keep it a secret. Care to shed some light on the subject?

Thank you for your time and all that you do,

-Charisma82

Greg responds...

I do not care to shed light on the subject.

Response recorded on October 19, 2010

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Purplegoldfish writes...

Hi Greg, this is a rather silly question...

I was watching the "Avalon" trilogy the other day, and it came to the part where King Arthur, Elisa, and the Magus arrived at Oberon's Palace after Arthur is awakened. Elisa introduces Arthur to Goliath and the others, and Arthur comments that he needs someone to tell him "what is going on".

So, here's the thing...I find it hard to believe that neither Elisa nor the Magus gave Arthur any background info on the walk back from the Hollow Hill. Were they talking at all? ( I know if I were personally taking a hike with King Arthur, I would be embarassed to say anything dumb and would just cast sidelong glances at him awkwardly lol).

Greg responds...

I imagine Arthur was largely still in recovery mode from a LONG sleep.

There may have also been some delaying tactics on the part of Elisa and the Magus as they struggled to figure out exactly how to explain everything.

Mostly, my answer is "Use your imagination!" ;)

Response recorded on October 14, 2010

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Algernon writes...

Hey again Greg,
This question kinda came to me out of nowhere earlier and I tried searching the archives to see if it had already been touched on. To my suprise it doesn't seem to have come up so I'll ask it here. Did Elisa ever have a partner before Matt and if so, whatever happened to him/her?

Greg responds...

I'm sure she had at least a couple of partners over the years. But she was definitely a solo act when we first met her.

Elisa's backstory is definitely worth exploring, but I'm not going to do it here at Ask Greg.

Response recorded on September 21, 2010


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