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POSTINGS 2008-05 (May)

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Greg Bishansky writes...

Okay, first off... I never thought I would ever enjoy a Rhino episode that much. Rhino is a bug, dumb thug and those are usually not my favorite villains. Far from it. But this had to be the best fight scene they've done yet, even topping the Lizard subway battle. I loved how Spidey used his brain to defeat the Rhino. Steam, that clever.

While I'm on the subject of the Rhino, props to Clancy Brown. He's always been one of my favorite voice actors, whether he's playing Hakon, Wolf, Lex Luthor, Gorrath, or whoever. The man is very talented, and brought a real sense of menace to that Big Dumb Thug.

Big Man's identity was a surprise, but honestly, I am not entirely convinced. First off, Tombstone is a badass. But my eyebrow raised as soon as I heard Osborn refer to him as "Mr. Lincoln." This is not me being a comic book purist, far from it. If it is him, I'll be very happy with the decision. While it was fun in the 60s, a journalist leading a double life as a crime lord just doesn't seem like it would fly today. Why would a crime lord need that cover? That's what money and lawyers are for. But Foswell certainly seemed to know a lot about the Big Man... curious. I am expecting another twist here. But the Spidey/Tombstone scene was terrific, and damn, this series is beginning to get epic.

Norman Osborn is being paid to manufacture supervillains as well as imprison them. He's got quite the racket going on there. Good for him. But now that Hammerhead is threatening him, well... Norman obviously won't take that lying down, which makes a great lead in for the next episode, considering who the villain there is supposed to be.

Now, let's swing back to Peter's personal life.

Aunt May is an evil mastermind. So very manipulative. I loved it. Though I will admit, even knowing who was coming, I was kinda rooting for Peter and Betty. But, that all faded as soon as Peter opened the front door and who do we see? Mary Jane Watson, and we get that famous line... "face it tiger, you just hit the jackpot." As a long time fan, this pleased me. I am definitely in the camp that agrees that Mary Jane is Peter's one true love, but even there it annoys me how in most modern re-tellings, Mary Jane has been Peter's "It Girl" since they were toddlers. The movies did it, "Ultimate Spider-Man" did it, and it's refreshing to see the classic version here on screen.

It does make me wonder if Mary Jane fought with her Aunt Anna about meeting Peter Parker. "Their aunts are setting them up, this can't be good." Then again, in the comics, she knew Peter was Spider-Man before they ever met... she saw Spider-Man crawl out of Peter's window the night Uncle Ben died. Should be interesting to see if "Spectacular Spider-Man" follows this story or not.

I eagerly anticipate seeing Flash Thompson dressed as a cheerleader. BTW, Josh LeBarr as Flash cracks me up.

Greg responds...

Our supporting cast always cracks us up in the records, particularly Josh as Flash, Andrew as Kenny, Phil as Rand and especially Grey as Sally, whom I just think is hilarious. Oh, and Daran as Jonah is a hoot.

Response recorded on May 16, 2008

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Aldrius writes...

Ramble on episode 6. (I'll be back with 5 soon)

That "Mr. Lincoln" was kind of a blatant drop. I guess it's to prove he's NOT one of the more popular spider-man characters?

Are these three thugs the... uh... there are no spider-man villains left that I can think of... I guess that must mean next week we're getting a biggie or an encore.

That Peter Parker is persistent.

And now his aunt is showing up to have coffee with her. Peter and Betty are moving so fast.

"She's 20 and hot". That line made me laugh.

And the Rhino is looking for Peter Parker. He really should use an alias for taking those photos, it's kind of an invitation for supervillains to go looking for him.

Now here will be the test if Jonah is actually a good man 'Dante's 9th circle' deep. Or if he's just a big mouth who's willing to do anything for money/his own life. I'm kinda hoping and betting he'll cover for Peter.

And I'm right. That's encouraging.

The Rhino sure is durable in this show. Peter can't even dent him. Makes for a good 'how's he gonna beat this guy' moment. But I think that's because the show has established a rather cool trend of having an interesting way for Peter to beat the bad guy.

I wonder what Peter's gonna do with the Rhino out in the open... furthermore, where is he gonna find an open unpopulated place from the middle of Manhattan? Central Park? I don't know New York's geography very well.

Ah, of course. BENEATH New York. That's a good explanation. And sweating him out of that suit was a cool idea.

Ouch, Peter Parker is a jerk... and apparently he gets off on pretending to be Rhino's mother. That's... interesting...

Aha, so the Big Man is Tombstone. That's really cool too. And now he's bribing Peter. I kinda hope he accepts, just because that'd be really interesting in the long run. I have a feeling he'll end up accepting down the road at least. Maybe when the cops start putting the pressure on him every time he shows up.

What's with Harry's smirk? Is he just happy he's popular, or did he hear something while Norman and Hammerhead were talking?

And now we get Mary Jane. I saw that "Face it Tiger" coming from a ways away. But I'm sure I wasn't the only one. Mary Jane strikes me as coming a little too soon, I was hoping to develop the relationship between him and some of the other 'girlfriends' he's had before that, but just because she's here doesn't mean that can't happen. I have no idea if Mary Jane had been introduced after Gwen had died... I'm assuming she had been.

This was a good episode. I figured it was going to be more of a filler episode rather than anything major, but I learned not to listen to that assumption. Another good one, though I hate it because it was over too soon. :p

When you got the order for more episodes, were you able to re-organize your plans so the finale could be moved, or are we going to get a mid-season-esque "Avalon" soon?

Greg responds...

Creatively, we really have two seasons: Episodes 1-13 and 14-26.

Response recorded on May 16, 2008

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Cody writes...

I just wanted to say thanks Greg for the fantastic story you've created here. I went on a nostalgic kick awhile back and revisited some series from my childhood.. most did not stand up so well, but I actually appreciate what you were doing with Gargoyles more now than I ever did back then and, in hindsight, recognize just how far ahead of its time it actually was.

The world you have crafted here is so vivid and interesting, it got me to thinking, have you ever thought about writing a novel about the Gargoyles? Or do you see Gargoyles always existing in a more visual medium, like animation or comic books?
Just to go a little further afield, what are your thoughts on "opening it up," Stars Wars style, so other authors can write the stories while you maintain tight control over canon? I think I know what your answer will be, but I have quite the appetite for more Gargoyles stories than exist at the moment, so I have to ask.

Thanks again.

Greg responds...

As I've said (here) many times before, I'd LOVE to write a Gargoyles' novel.

As for your second question, that's pretty much how I ran the series in the first place.

Response recorded on May 15, 2008

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Greg Bishansky writes...

Since you're doing Spider-Man and obviously have gone back and studied the mythos intimately while prepping to do the series, I've been meaning to ask. Which writer's run on Spider-Man has been your favorite?

In my case, I'm a big fan of Roger Stern's run on the character, especially his Hobgoblin stories.

Greg responds...

I'm pretty focused on the Stan Lee era at the moment.

Response recorded on May 15, 2008

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CJ writes...

First off, I would just like to say that I am a huge fan of Gargoyles, and I look forward to any news on further DVD releases when it becomes available. With that out of the way, I'm curious as to whether or not Macbeth has any family ties to the Princess of Castle Wivern (I admit, I'm drawing a blank on her name). Are they both of the same royal bloodline, or are they from separate kingdoms within Scotland?

Greg responds...

Princess Katharine's cousin Maol Chalvim was Macbeth's grandfather.

Response recorded on May 15, 2008

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Anonymous writes...

As fan and amateur drawer I'd love to see the "original" Character Models and Character Sketches I suppose were done when you and the artists of your group were developing your wonderful cartoon and, now, the comic. Sadly the "official" images available online are terribly few: actually they are limited to the ones that can be seen in "Avalon archives" site (http://avalon.gargoyles-fans.org/gallery/official.html) - and even those pics are a bit poor, with just a pose (frontal) and no display of different facial expressions.

Do you think in the future the Gargoyles' fans will have the possibility to admire those drawings in some Gargoyle-related site (as Gargoyles wiki or the Imagery Resource, etc…)?

I suppose I'm not the only fan curious to know how a character is developed in a show production or what the gargoyles looked like in their earlier incarnations of the original comedy development (I've read of Amp, Lassie, Dakota, Coco or IsaDora, of the many faces of Elisa and so on).
My curiosity involved not only the old characters, but the new ones too (es. the London Clan and the ones will be soon introduced: I'm looking forward to discover Katana's look, but I think for this one in particular I only have to patiently wait).
My best regards and sincere compliments for your artistic projects.

Greg responds...

Thanks. I'm all for raiding Disney's archives and posting images, but I don't have the time or the technical ability to do so.

Response recorded on May 15, 2008

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film975 writes...

Let me just say that I am a huge fan of the show. I have both DVD sets and watch them all the time. It's just a shame that the rest of Season 2 didn't get released on DVD.

But I do have a question. If you ever got the chance to work on a Gargoyles live action film... how do you see the film being made? To me, it has tremendous potential as an exciting epic of a live action movie.

And with the success of recent films like Lord of the Rings and Transformers and other sci-fi/fantasy of films, I think Gargoyles would do just as well in that market. Since Disney has been itching for franchises lately, then they got a great one sitting right under their noses.

Greg responds...

I'm not sure what the actual question here is? I'd of course love to participate in the making of a live action movie, epic enough, almost by definition. There currently doesn't seem to be much interest on Disney's part.

Response recorded on May 15, 2008

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Aldrius writes...

And here's my ramble on number 4 and number 5 of le spider-man de spectaculare.

I've never really cared for the Shocker, so I had no real investment in his past identity, and his change affects me naught. I think it's cool that we saw like 5 pre-super villains in the first episode and only now are we starting to see them get their super powers.

Still like the theme song. Though I think I might get sick of it eventually. It's kind of repetitive. I love how in an animated show, it's always the characters that are credited, rather than the actors. It's kind of amusing.

Hmm... does Aunt May have a job? I guess she must be running off of Ben's life insurance or maybe she has her own retirement fund...

And 'ms. wonderful personality'. Teenage boys with super powers are so shallow. I mean he hasn't even gotten a look at her and already he's decided she's not worth his time. For shame, Peter, for shame.

I can never hear what Peter says when he's starts web slinging there... maybe I don't want to know...

Hmm... I'm not sure if I like Eddie. I think that's the first time I've ever heard the word 'emo' used in a cartoon anyway.

Team Weissman is sure keeping up with modern lingo.

I wonder if the slang will make any sense in 50 years...

Ah, Kevin Michael Richardson. I liked him as Gantu in Lilo and Stitch (the movie anyway) but he's never really stood out to me otherwise, always had an interesting, cool voice at least.

That Norman sure is a creep. Even when he's a nice guy he's still a creep. Kinda like Malcolm McDowell. Even when he's playing a good guy he's still creepy beyond reason.

And through that whole speech of Norman's, Harry is standing right there. Nice job, Norman.

Harry doesn't bother me in this episode as much as he did in the first episode. I think it's because he has more dialogue, and it allows for more emotional range. Rather than him just being the nerdy buddy. I still kinda hope he evolves into somebody who's a bit more... smooth... and less uh... nerdy. But from the looks of the next episode, that's a strong possibility.

That Harry sure is emotionally dependent on Peter... I guess it's fitting, Peter always has been pretty self-absorbed... or maybe that's not exactly the right word.

Ah, JK Simmons, where does your influence end? First Spider-man, then The Simpsons, now Spider-man... er... wait.

Ah, and now we meet Peter girlfriend number 2. Nice to see we're seeing some Spider-man girlfriends other than Mary Jane. It's more realistic. Outside of Harry Potter, it's extremely rare that someone marries their first girlfriend...

Shockers tough in this show... I bet all the hardcore fanboys are complaining about how he's not a loser.

Jeff Bennett sure likes his accents. I was surprised to hear him playing a serious villain in an older video game I played recently. Jennifer Hale was in that too, co-incidentially, and she played the Black Cat in the 90's show. Not sure if she ever played anyone in Gargoyles... wouldn't surprise me if she had, but I'm pretty sure she didn't.

Why do these villains always turn into jerks whenever they get super powers?

All joking aside on that matter, though, the theme of spider-man, and the theme of this show is really evident. Integrity, responsibility.

I like Robby, furthermore I like Phil LaMarr. So the two together should result in lots of... liking.

Hmm... even the camera salesmen in New York are irresponsible!

Aunt May is so easy at being a jerk when she's not trying to be.

And Flash is really annoying me. But as with everyone, I'm sure he'll develop down the line.

Peter is barking up the wrong tree I think. Asking an adult woman to your high school prom is just bound for disaster. Did he really expect her to say yes?

The way villains send messages to the heroes in these shows is just ridiculous. I mean I suppose Spider-man could just trail the tremors on his own, but Shocker is really counting on a lot.

Silly expositional dialogue. Rather straight-forward way to assess the villain's motivation, but I suppose it's fairly insightful, and it brings up that old responsibility angle. Even the Shocker is involved in that!

It's interesting the different ways the shocker can use his powers here. And more punny dialogue from Spidey. It's all very exciting and fun.

And more responsibility, with Norman this time. Though he is right. Don't blame other people for your problems.

Super-mercenary field? Is that a real field of business these days?

Kevin Michael Richardson is a good replacement for Keith David, I think. He sounds a lot like him, and while he lacks the resonance, he's got the edge.

I thought Peter got a new camera...

Hmm... that's interesting, Peter said almost the exact same line that Shocker did, when he was talking about responsibility. More of that mirror stuff, huh?

...and come to think of it, I'll write my ramble on episode 5 a little later.

Pretty good show this time around, not a huge amount of development, but more setting of the stage. A lot of necessary exposition and necessary introduction of characters, I must say, with this and a few other shows not out on the market, there's more than enough to keep my cartoon fandom happy this season.

Greg responds...

Glad you're having fun. We are too.

Response recorded on May 14, 2008

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Beto writes...

Hi all, just want to point out that I have greatly enjoyed the Gargoyles comics so far. I have been a fan since 1994 when the TV show came out. I have stuck with it up to now. If you do the math, this makes me a young twenty-something. This, I think, gives the title of "Gargoyles geek" (or most likely, simply just geek), and i'm cool with that. In reality if we are that old and still following an animated kid's tv show in comic book form, which one of us is not a dork. I do believe, though, that we have to take this awesome series for what it is...and awesome story line fabricated genius Greg Wiseman and co. There are more important things in life than to sit and figure out who laid what eggs at x point in the future, etc. Take Gargoyles for what it is: an older children's story transformed into a slightly more mature comic for us geeks. Sorry for the ramble, but I have seen many of this postings and half the time I wonder, "Where does all this come from? (I've watched every episode at least 5 times...literally and read all the comics to date).

Anyways as for my question. Any word on the Gargoyles license renewal? I'm really praying for other installments after Clan-Building and Bad Guys! Thanks

Greg responds...

No word that I've heard yet.

And I don't mind all the detailed questions. They helped keep us alive for ten fallow years.

Response recorded on May 14, 2008

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Todd Jensen writes...

Do you think that adapting a familiar comic-book figure from the medium of comic books to the television screen (as you're currently doing with "The Spectacular Spider-Man") is much like adapting a familiar legendary figure (such as King Arthur or Theseus) to a modern work of fiction (except, of course, that Arthur and Theseus have been around a lot longer than Spidey has)?

Greg responds...

There are common factors, but no. The main difference is that Spider-Man isn't public domain. Marvel OWNS the character and is quite the watchdog, as it should be.

Response recorded on May 14, 2008


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