A Station Eight Fan Web Site

Gargoyles

The Phoenix Gate

Ask Greg Archives

Bastards

Archive Index


: Displaying all 2 records. :


Posts Per Page: 1 : All :


Bookmark Link

Aldrius writes...

Okay, I'm writing an editorial for something, and it partially involves the Bastard archetype. I was hoping that you could illuminate whether or not my perspective on the bastard archetype was accurate.

The definition I was using for a Bastard was "a being formed from an unholy union that seeks reparations for the suffering that was incurred from this union. The bastard will also torture and manipulate others simply for personal gain or enjoyment."

Pretty basic, but am I on the right track? Thanks very much for any assistance, as usual, Greg.

Greg responds...

It's only half the definition, to my mind.

The Bastard is literally a pivotal figure between Good & Evil. He can (and often does) go either way, in his search to figure out who he is. Sometimes within the same mythos, you have bastards on either side of the moral fence. King Arthur and Mordred, for example, are both bastards. Both characters are searching for their fathers. Both are rejecting aspects of them and claiming others.

Response recorded on October 20, 2009

Bookmark Link

Greg Bishansky writes...

Just a comment on an archetype that seems to be a theme in your shows. I can't help but notice that the series you produce are populated by tricksters.

Puck is an obvious and classic example, the original trickster. Also, "Gargoyles" has Raven, Anansi, and Coyote who were also literal tricksters.

Beyond that, one of the lead villains, Xanatos, was a trickster... he even said so himself. That's an interesting choice of archetypes for the primary antagonist.

Thailog, while you've cited the bastard archetype often enough, outside of that, he seems like a trickster as well. Which makes sense since he was programmed by one. Granted, he's a more malevolent trickster than Xanatos, but he still displays those characteristics.

Meanwhile, over in in "Spectacular," you have Spider-Man as, perhaps, the most benevolent trickster you have yet to write. Fitting, he is the hero after all, and the people he acts like a trickster towards usually have it coming.

And, of course, you have a more sinister trickster in Green Goblin, hie arch-nemesis.

I know from personal experience how difficult tricksters can be to write, as I've often had to jump through hoops to do it right,

I haven't seen WITCH so I have no idea if this archetype shows up there or not. But it seems to me like the trickster archetype is a favorite of yours to write, and you do it so well.

So, does it just come naturally? Is Greg Weisman a trickster himself, or do you ever find yourself jumping through hoops as I sometimes do to create schemes worthy of the trickster you're writing?

Greg responds...

There's some definite hoop-jumping going on. Personally, I'm more of a bastard than a trickster. But I do enjoy both archetypes, so I do the work to make them worthy.

You'll notice, however, that each of the tricksters you named, with the exception of Xanatos, were based on existing sources, which helps. As for Xanatos, he was a variation on General Eiling (from Captain Atom), who was more of a bastard. And Eiling, in turn, was loosely based on Captain Kirk, or rather a dark mirror of Kirk (and, no, that's not a reference to the "Mirror, Mirror," as the Mirror Kirk in that episode couldn't fool anyone).

Thailog is more in the classic bastard mode than the trickster mode -- at least in my mind -- though I'll admit there's definite overlap between the two archetypes.

Response recorded on May 28, 2009