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Anonymous writes...

How do you guys do Dr. Fate's voice? Do you play his voice and the person he is possessing at the same time or is it some sort of echo effect?

Greg responds...

We record Kevin Michael Richardson as Nabu and then whomever plays the host (Jason Spisak/Kid Flash, Khary Payton/Aqualad, Lacey Chabert/Zatanna or Nolan North/Zatara) saying the same lines. Then in post-production, we double-track them, so you here two voices. It's a trick I learned on Gargoyles while doing Anubis & Jackal and Anubis & the Emir. I've always been fond of the effect.

Response recorded on December 04, 2012

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Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

Hello Greg,

I have a question about Anubis.

Anubis is a death god, is strongly connected to death, and apparently has power over death (whether or not he chooses to use that power). But is he able to use magic that is not connected to death? Is he limited to only using and reversing the effects of "death magic," or can he mostly do anything he wants, magically speaking?

Thank you.

Greg responds...

He's still one of the Children. Power isn't infinite, as we've seen. But he has options.

Response recorded on November 11, 2010

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Jurgan writes...

Not a question so much as a comment. You've said several times you think you missed a bet in "Grief-" namely, that Coyote should have killed the travelers, to show that death was impossible with Anubis locked up. I may be in the minority on this, but I prefer the story we got to this alternate version.

First of all, it would reopen the Highlander-esque questions that you get regarding Demona and Macbeth. So, Angela's shot through the heart but doesn't die- when Anubis is freed, is the wound still there? If so, would the wound then kill her? If Goliath were decapitated, would the head still talk, or would it sprout spider legs and walk back to him (sorry, I just watched The Thing the other night- incidentally, Keith making a surprise appearance in a movie is something that always makes me smile)? I imagine that, if only for S&P reasons, the death would simply be through bloodless laser beams (sorry, "particle beams") and the issue wouldn't have come up, but it's still confusing.

The bigger point, though, is that it cheapens the characters' abilities. I've read most of the Lee/Ditko and Lee/Romita Spider-Man comics, and while they're great stories, one thing that always bothered me was how supervillains always let Spidey live. Typically, a new villain would dominate the wallcrawler and then arrogantly announce "I don't need to kill Spider-Man- I can beat him any time I want!" I don't have a count, but I really think this happened dozens of times in the Silver Age. I could understand if the villain had a reason to run, like Doc Ock's power running low in your show, but most of the time they just seemed stupid, since of course Spidey trounced them next time. The point is that it seemed like he was surviving more through luck than any particular skill. Likewise, our gargoyles have survived countless battles because of their own abilities. To say that they finally lose- but it doesn't count because, for this one day, they can't die, seems to cheapen their earlier successes. It feels like the only reason they're winning is because the writers want them to win, and if they get in big trouble, a deus ex machina twist will save them. The show starts to feel artificial, and I wonder if these characters are really that special, or if they're just the designated heroes.

Now, of course, this is hypothetical. It's possible that, if I'd seen the episode the way you envision, I would have loved it. As it is, it's kind of hard for me to imagine it working. Just something to chew on.

Greg responds...

I guess I wouldn't agree about one lucky break cheapening earlier victories... I guess I wouldn't agree with that at all.

I'm also not big on deus ex machina saves myself, but when an ENTIRE episode is ABOUT arresting death, having them live because death has been arrested doesn't feel like deus ex machina at all to me, even with a deus (Anubis) present.

And, as you noted, the beheading (et al) issue just wouldn't have come up.

I know you're arguing for the success of what we made, and I'm in the odd (very odd) position of arguing that we could have done better, but I still think a bet was missed...

Response recorded on August 17, 2010

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Paul writes...

Hi, Greg.

I have a few questions about Anubis:

1. Anubis' power over death was so great that while the Emir kept him imprisoned, nobody could die. How long had Anubis had that power?

2. Oberon banished the entire Third Race from Avalon in 995 AD to teach them humility. Did Anubis learn humility from his banishment as well, or had he always been as even-handed as he is shown to be in "Grief"? (After all, Anubis had been an Egyptian god long before his banishment from Avalon.)

Greg responds...

1. Is that a power?

2. Always is a long time. But I see him as having been pretty even-handed by 995.

Response recorded on January 27, 2010

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Clark Cradic writes...

Can no magic, in the Gargoyle Universe, bring the dead back to life? Even Oberon's? I ask cause I remember while Anubis said he wouldn't bring the Vizer's son back to life (it would upset the natural order) I don't remember if he ever said he couldn't.

Greg responds...

Anubis didn't say either way.

(And it was the Emir's son.)

Response recorded on October 14, 2009

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? writes...

Hi Greg! Now that I’ve watched Season 2 of The Spectacular Spider-Man, I have a few more questions. But first regarding the last set I asked:
I. Sorry about spelling your last name wrong, I didn’t realize it until it was too late.
II. With my 3rd question you did answer that you avoid biasness regarding characters which is great; I did mix the “parts” of my question together though (sorry about that again), so I was wondering if you liked the character of Venom? Most (not all) people I’ve met who said they don’t like Venom grew up in the “Stan Lee Era”. I understand you grew up during the “Lee/Romita Times”, but I also know that the “Greg hates Carnage Rumor” is false (I’m not a fan of Carnage, but I don’t hate him either, I’m “neutral/take or leave” to Carnage).
III. Thanks for answering my last batch of questions!
Alright, now onto the new batch of questions:
START OF SPIDEY SPOILERS!
1. I remember you said in an earlier post that you saw a little bit of the 90s Series but not enough to give a “true opinion” on it. My question is: Do you remember which episodes of the 90s series you saw? It’s OK if you don’t know the episode names; the villains from the episodes will suffice. I ask, because I noticed that the Symbiote arrives on Earth on John Jameson’s space shuttle in The Uncertainty Principle. This idea was 1st used in The Alien Costume Part I.
2. Why did the local authorities put Dr. Octopus in Raven Croft Asylum after Group Therapy when they had him in Rykers Prison before he escaped in that episode? I figured the “behind the scenes” reason was for your production crews’ plan, but what’s the “in story” reason (if you get what I mean)?
3. What was Eddie Brock doing during the Master Planner Arc? The most I can tell is that he was working out (he’s buffer then he was in Season 1) and that he made his own web shooters and costume. So where was he hiding and what else was he doing besides the things I mentioned earlier? I figured this was OK to ask as I don’t see how it would spoil anything in the future (sorry if it does).
4A. Whose idea was it to have Venom speak with 2 voices (Eddie’s voice and the Symbiote’s voice in unison)? I love the idea and I think it works so well for Venom.
4B. It actually reminds me of the fusion characters from Dragonball Z; have you ever herd of or seen Dragonball Z? If so, what did you think of it?
5A. What was your reason for making Walter Hardy/Black Cat’s dad into Uncle Ben’s killer? As someone else pointed out, it probably worked out better then it did with Flint Marko/Sandman in Spider-Man 3, because Walter was still the same guy Spidey let get away.
5B. What made James Remar your choice for Walter’s voice (I found him to be a great choice)? Do you remember who else tried out for Walter’s voice?
6. Seeing as how Norman and Green Goblin had different voice artists (for obvious reasons) I think it’s safe to say Roderick (or who ever you choose) and Hobgoblin will have different voice artists as well. My question is: If Season 3 does happen, will you just have Steve Blum voice Hobgoblin since he voiced Green Goblin or do you have someone else in mind for Hobby? The 90s Series used Neil Ross and Mark Hamil for Green Goblin and Hobgoblin respectively. I thought this would be OK to ask, since we already know Hobgoblin is in Season 3 and I’m only asking if Steve Blum is your voice choice for Hobby or not (not who exactly will be Hobby as we both know Season 3 is still undecided). Sorry if this was a “bad question” to ask.
Well, thanks again for answering my 2nd set of questions Greg! Hope you enjoy your summer (as far as temperature is concerned).

Greg responds...

SPIDEY SPOILERS!!!!!

I. Don't worry about it.

II. I like our Venom.

III. You're welcome.

1. I'm fairly certain that the episodes I saw involved Carnage's debut and a Hobgoblin/Green Goblin conflict. But I don't think I've ever seen a complete episode start to finish of that series.

2. He convinced them he was nuts.

3. I think you've pretty much covered all the important points.

4A. Mine.

4B. I once saw a bit of Dragonball Z in Japanese, and couldn't make heads or tails of what was going on. But the immediate inspiration for what we did with Venom was what we did with Anubis in an episode of Gargoyles called "Grief".

5A. We combined the Burglar with the Cat Burglar with the Cat, etc. It all just seemed to fit, to be right to us.

5B. No one else tried out. We don't audition for guest characters. Our voice and casting director Jamie Thomason suggested James, and I thought it was a great idea.

6. No comment.

Response recorded on July 31, 2009

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The MythMaker writes...

The Egyptian term "netjer", which a previous commentor says can be translated as "god" actually means "watcher". There is more to this story...

Greg responds...

...and you're hiding it from me?

Response recorded on July 08, 2009

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captjack writes...

hey whats up again Greg?
when a mortal becomes an Avatar they have all that child of oberon's powers which i would assume includes their "immortality" correct;then how could the Emir have died in that cave in while still merged with Anubus?unless they somehow seperated at the last possible moment beforehand

Greg responds...

Well, first you have to define "immortality", but in any case, I think the Emir did indeed relinquish his hold on Anubis at the last second.

Response recorded on July 03, 2009

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Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

Hello Greg,

While I was looking in the GargWiki for information about the Olympians, I saw that you wanted to know the Ancient Egyptian name for the Egyptian pantheon.

The word which can be translated as "god" is _netcher_ or _netjer_, feminine _netcheret_ or _netjeret_, plural _netcheru_ or _netjeru_. TCH and TJ are just ways to spell the CH sound at the beginning and end of English "church," without confusing it with the German or Greek CH. As with every Ancient Egyptian word, the vowels were never written down, so the vowels in netjer and netjeru are speculatively added to make N-TJ-R and N-TJ-R-W pronounceable.

Netjeru refers to all the deities, including large numbers of minor deities who are servants to the greater deities, and who are often referred to in English as "demons" or "spirits." Netjeru sometimes also include other beings: deified mortals, the _akhu_ or souls of the dead, and divine beings like Ammut and Apophis that were not worshipped. Netjeru can also include the _bau_, which are "manifestations or emanations" send forth from a deity.

I do not know if netjer was also used to refer to gods of other religions, but I'm guessing it was.

What I have told you comes from Richard Wilkinson's "The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt." In my non-expert opinion this is one of the best books on Egyptian Mythology that I have seen for the non-specialist.

Greg responds...

Wow, that's seriously helpful, both the info and the reference book. I'm definitely buying that book! Thanks.

Response recorded on May 14, 2009

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JANUARY 26

This day in Gargoyles' Universe History....

January 26th...

1994
The Emir's son is killed in a pointless car accident.

1995
Fox orders Hyena and Jackal to assassinate David Xanatos. And that morning, Derek Maza decides to quit the NYPD and accept Xanatos' job offer.

1996
At midnight, the Emir summons and imprisons Anubis, the Egyptian god of death. Elisa Maza and the gargoyles attempt to intervene but are captured. The Emir tries to force Anubis to bring his late son back to life. When Anubis refuses, the Emir attempts to become an avatar of Anubis' power. But Jackal intercepts the spell and becomes the Avatar of Anubis instead. Mad with power, Jackal destroys Coyote 3.0 and brings death to an entire Egyptian town, before the Emir recasts his spell and becomes the new Avatar. The Emir now understands that death cannot play favorites, and he destroys the temple to prevent anyone else from ever gaining access to Anubis' power. Elisa and the gargoyles spend the day outside the Sphinx. Then they return to Avalon. What's left of the Pack scatters.



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