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Kiddo writes...

Hey, thanks for hours of entertainment through your shows. I just recently finished watching the canon run of Gargoyles on DVD through the library (Me and a friend greatly enjoyed the journey, and had a lot of fun watching it!) after growing up on your other shows, like Young Justice and Spectacular Spider-Man. So, thank you, and as I’m new here, I’d figure I’d try and put a question that isn’t quite so... obvious.
Did Eliza’s palate change much after the Avalon World Tour?

Greg responds...

Um... sure.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Hunter's Moon" yesterday (Sunday) on DVD - all three parts.

I've mentioned before spotting a lot of mentions of hunting, usually applied to humans going after gargoyles with hostile intent, and it struck me that this made it appropriate that the Hunters would be the gargoyles' adversaries in the finale. (Well, the Disney Afternoon finale/Season Two finale.)

And it struck me that the Hunters were the most dangerous opponents that the gargoyles faced in modern times, judging by results. They blew up the clock tower, destroying the gargoyles' home, and then exposed them to the public. The former was partly undone by the gargoyles getting their old home (the castle) back by the end of the episode, but not the latter - now the gargoyles are facing an alarmed public (even though they're safe at the end - for the moment). None of the gargoyles' other adversaries in modern times have been able to inflict that much damage on them. To top it, you'd have to go back to 994 and the Wyvern Massacre.

A few things that struck me this time around:

Goliath and Elisa are actually openly speaking to each other and even sharing a brief embrace on board the passenger train, just after foiling the robbery; fortunately, the passengers apparently didn't notice that.

Hudson greets the returning gargoyles as "lads" - then quickly adding in "And lassie, of course", for Angela. It reminded me of his use of just "lads" for the younger gargoyles in "Possession" that I mentioned in my post on it - apparently he's getting more adjusted now to Angela's presence in the clan.

The trio's clash with Demona in Part One seems the last "trio action" in the series; they're increasingly split up (or else acting with the rest of the clan present) after this.

Lexington and Brooklyn's shared uneasy glances when they return to the clock tower with Goliath near the end of Part Two seemed all the stronger when I realized "the audience knows that Robyn and Jon survived Goliath's fight with them, but Lex and Brooklyn don't - from their perspective, Goliath had apparently killed those two."

Jon Canmore's cry about the gargoyles when he's facing Jason at the end, "They killed dad!", struck me as a sign of how (even before shooting Jason) he was losing it; it was Demona who killed Charles Canmore, none of the Manhattan clan were even present at the event, and Jon was there so he knows it.

Broadway shows how much his attitude towards reading has changed since the start of "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time" when he's talking to Angela about how great the castle library is (and we'll see them there together in "The Journey").

This story really does seem like a good conclusion for the series in so many ways - the gargoyles are back in the castle again, their war with Xanatos is (seemingly) over, they'd defeated Demona's big scheme to wipe out humanity, Elisa finally admitted her feelings for Goliath and even kissed him. Except there's a big loose end with the gargoyles' existence being made public, and most of the New Yorkers aren't too happy about it. (Brooklyn's "And so it begins" remark does also support the feeling that the story could continue past this spot.) But it certainly makes a good season finale.

Oh, and I counted the number of "claw-mark transitions" in the entire two seasons during this review - 28 in all.

Greg responds...

We were pretty happy with it.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

New thoughts and observations on "Possession", which I also rewatched on DVD today.

Coldfire and Coldsteel's bodies are initially covered by cloths; while it serves the function of keeping their nature secret from the audience at first, it also does a good job of echoing the "Frankenstein" tone of Coldstone's introduction in "Re-Awakening".

When Goliath and Hudson return to the clock tower from patrol, Hudson initially says "lads" - and just that, with no mention that there should be a "lass" among them as well. We get an echo of this, I recall, in "Hunter's Moon Part One" when he addresses the clan as "lads", then remembers Angela and adds "lass" in; this moment brought that scene to mind.

Coldstone's line near the end about how "we truly lived again" echoed Goliath's "we live again" words in the opening narration, though I don't know if it was intentional.

Greg responds...

It's a pretty safe bet that most everything is intentional. (Or that I will intentionally take credit for it.) But seriously, we were very aware of pushing call back moments throughout. I do that on every series I produce.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I watched "Turf" on DVD yesterday as well, but don't have anything new to say about it, so my new thoughts on "The Reckoning", which I watched with "Possession" on DVD today.

In Act I, Hudson warns Angela that her mother "is capable of anything". Angela later uses those exact words when confronting Demona in Act III.

Elisa gets bitten by a mosquito while in the Labyrinth; I wonder if that was the moment when Sevarius and Thailog acquired her DNA for Delilah; it'd certainly be a "playing fair with the audience" moment.

While Demona professes outrage over Angela's claim to be her daughter, her eyes aren't glowing red - and later we learn that she'd known Angela to be her daughter all along. The "eyes not glowing red" part makes a good hint to the audience that she was feigning anger and disbelief.

Greg responds...

That mosquito is exactly when Elisa's DNA was taken for later use in creating Delilah.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Vendettas" today - this time around, I spotted what looked like a small village in the opening shot (near the former site of Castle Wyvern). A minor detail, I know, but I liked the discovery of a village or small town in the area.

Greg responds...

Yep. Especially one that the Vikings haven't sacked for a century or ten.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Gathering" (both episodes) on DVD today. A few new things I noticed about it.

A minor detail, but which I find touching: when Renard learns about Anastasia's remarriage,, he sadly clasps her hand.

The letter X is prominent among the Xanatoses: Xanatos, FoX, and AleXander. And then I thought of LeXington, who isn't one of the family, but who's close to Alex, and who became Xanatos's secret successor in "Future Tense". (And there's that bit, also, in your "Gargoyles 2198" piece, about the Lexington-Xanatos Corporation.)

Goliath's homecoming makes a lovely contrast with "Future Tense", as he warmly embraces the overjoyed Brooklyn and Lexington (the two members of the clan who'd been bitter towards his late return in "Future Tense") and Hudson says "I knew you hadn't abandoned us." (While Broadway hugs Elisa, tying in with his being the closest to her among the trio, ever since "Deadly Force".)

One feature of Goliath's pondering the possibility that Avalon sent him to Manhattan to stop Oberon from taking Alex away; if his speculation was correct, that means that Avalon was, in a way, going against its lord and master. Though that made sense when I thought about it; without going too deeply into hypotheticals, I suspect that things would have not gone well for Avalon if Oberon *had* spirited Alex away (no way would his parents have accepted that), and Avalon would be sparing itself and its lord and master a lot of potential trouble in thwarting him.

You mentioned once that you wanted to have Puck break the fourth wall, but the rest of the production team objected to it. I noticed that he does come close, though, when he turns towards the camera while saying "I'm on a roll". (And when somebody *did* break the fourth wall, it was Brooklyn instead.)

At the very end, Broadway turns to stone shortly before the rest of the clan does.

Greg responds...

Interesting observations. Thanks for all these, Todd.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Future Tense" on DVD today. Things I noticed this time on it.

Bronx looks sad when Hudson's death is revealed; given the bond the two had showed throughout the series, I thought if both fitting and touching (even if it's not really Bronx).

Goliath tells Brooklyn "we thought our odyssey was fated". I thought "odyssey" an appropriate term, since Odysseus spent twenty years away from Ithaca, and Goliath supposedly spent forty years away from Manhattan - and since gargoyles age at half the speed of humans, twenty years for humans would translate to forty years for gargoyles. (I'll admit I'm reaching here - and it feels odd to be linking Goliath to Odysseus when I'd normally think of comparing a different "Gargoyles" character to Odysseus - a fellow Greek trickster....)

The Xanatos Program's intention of using the "World Wide Net" to download itself on every computer marks one of the extremely few occasions I can think of where the Internet was alluded to on "Gargoyles"; the only other example that comes to mind was Sevarius receiving his instructions for "kidnapping" Thailog via "electronic mail". (It also got mentioned in one of the Goliath Chronicles episodes, but that doesn't count.) The near-absence of the Internet from the series certainly makes it appear
technologically dated" from today's perspective.

Greg responds...

I think "odyssey" is a particular apt word. And though Goliath and Odysseus don't have a lot of character traits in common, I do think the comparison here was intentional. And they are both big, strong heroes.

The absence of something like the internet is less of a problem for me - in terms of dating the series - than, say, the brick-sized cellphones that Xanatos and others occasionally use.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Ill Met By Moonlight" today.

I spotted more hunting allusions in it (though this time, the gargoyles' "hunter" isn't a human); Titania's incantation to temporarily restrict Oberon's abilities includes the line "Till hunt be done", and Oberon says, after defeating Goliath, "And so ends the hunt". (He also evokes hunting imagery when he says "the rabbits would face the fox" - though I couldn't help thinking when he said it, "Technically, they're facing the fox's stepfather, though the audience isn't supposed to know that for another two episodes.")

Greg responds...

Nice.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Cloud Fathers" on DVD yesterday.

This time while watching it, I wondered how Bronx left Beth's apartment. Goliath and Angela glided off without him, and I didn't see him going out the door with the Mazas (which wouldn't have been an option in any case, for obvious reasons).

We get another bit of hunting "verbal imagery", though one of the rare occasions where it's not directed at gargoyles, when Xanatos refers to Coyote the Trickster as his "true quarry".

Coyote the Trickster disappearing when he got the Mazas to look away for a moment reminds me of the tradition about how, if you look away from the faerie-folk for even a moment, they can vanish.

Greg responds...

Don't really remember Bronx's exit without rewatching. But mightn't he have just walked down the outer wall of the building.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Bushido" today (I rewatched "Sentinel" yesterday, but had no new thoughts on it).

What most struck me this time around was the parallel to "Awakening", with Taro as like a less-serious version of Xanatos. The two specifics I noticed were the gargoyles' awakening in the theme park, which reminded me of the clan's first awakening in Manhattan, and their wondering if someone had moved the temple, which evoked Xanatos moving the castle to New York.

Greg responds...

Those parallels were very intentional.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Green" today.

I might be reading too much into this, but I noted that the ones responsible for the theft of the Mayan Sun Amulet and the deaths of most of the Mayan clan were called "poachers" - a term for illegal hunters. Given the recurrent theme about gargoyles being hunted and facing danger from hunters that I've been paying close attention to in the 25th anniversary reviewing, I thought that an apt word choice.

This episode featured five "clawmark" transitions, the most I've noted to date in any individual episode of "Gargoyles". (I've been keeping track of those during the silver anniversary reviewing, and counted fifteen up to this point, of which five were in this episode - one-third, in other words.)

Greg responds...

Wow. That's a lot of claw wipes. But we also had more location transitions from Manhattan to the Green and back.

Response recorded on August 17, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The New Olympians" on DVD today.

Continuing the "hunting" theme in "Gargoyles" that I've paid closer attention to this time around, I noticed that Ekidne described the New Olympians' ancestors as "hunted". (I also spotted a New Olympian extra who looked a lot like traditional depictions of Artemis/Diana, the goddess of the hunt - though I think I'm reading too much into that.)

Goliath's words to Angela about how they cannot wage war on an entire city remind me of his words to Demona in "Awakening Part Five" of how he cannot wage war upon an entire world.

Greg responds...

Also intentional. I love those kinds of callbacks.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Eye of the Storm" on DVD today.

I noticed, this time around, that after Goliath rescues Elisa from Odin, Odin cries "This isn't over!" - the same words that Hakon used after his initial attack on the castle was turned back at the start of the series. It struck me as appropriate, since they were both "Old Norse". (I don't know if that was intentional, though, or just a fortunate coincidence.)

Greg responds...

Intentional.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Pendragon" on DVD yesterday. A few observations from this time around.

Hudson recognizes the wind that heralds the arrival of King Arthur and Griff; I suspected that there's an interesting story behind that and how he came to know it. Most likely something that would be told in "Dark Ages".

Griff refers to Westminster Abbey as "my abbey" when initially confronting King Arthur - for me, it evoked Goliath speaking of "my castle" when confronting Elisa back in "Awakening Part Three". Evidently part of the gargoyles' territorial nature manifesting itself.

Macbeth immediately recognizes Griff as a gargoyle, though all his on-stage encounters with gargoyles up till then were with the Scottish variety. (Of course, most of the things that went on during those nine hundred years of wandering in his life, we don't know about - only his fighting at Bannockburn on the Scottish side, and taking part in the 1950 removal of the Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey.)

I really like the term "rookery poem" as a gargoyle counterpart to "nursery rhyme".

Greg responds...

Someone should write a book of rookery poems...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Mark of the Panther" on DVD today.

I've mentioned before how I've noticed a strong "hunting" motif running through "Gargoyles" during my reviewing it; this episode included more of that theme, though, for a change, it didn't involve humans going after gargoyles. Instead, it was the Panther Queen and, later, Fara Maku, hunting for Anansi, and then Tea and the poachers hunting panthers.

Elisa lists the body parts of panthers that poachers are after as skin, teeth, and claws. When Diane Maza tells the story of the Panther Queen shortly afterwards, her description of the Panther Queen stresses those same three attributes (well, fur rather than skin, but it's close enough), but now focusing on their beauty, rather than the monetary worth that motivated the poachers. (And when Anansi turns the Panther Queen into a human, the story stresses the Queen's loss of those same attributes.)

Goliath's explanation to Diane, when they're trapped in the pit, that he can only glide, not fly, echoed (for me) his explanation to Elisa on the ledge back in "Awakening Part Three". Like mother, like daughter....

Greg responds...

Yep...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Hound of Ulster" yesterday, but I didn't have any new thoughts on it, so I skipped it over - and "Walkabout" today.

Things that struck me about "Walkabout" this time around:

I'd noticed this before, but Bronx growls at a kangaroo near the beginning. I wonder what he dislikes about them. (I also spotted a koala up in a tree - that I *hadn't* seen in past viewings.)

I was amused by Elisa's description of Dingo as "not one of the good guys" - since that could so easily be tweaked to "one of the bad guys". I don't know if you'd come up with the name for that spin-off at the time, of course.

Goliath at one point says "Aye, for now" - probably the one occasion where he says "Aye" - he usually leaves those Scottish-toned words to Hudson.

During the battle with the Matrix in the Dreamtime-world, Goliath imprisons it briefly within a dome that looks a lot like the domes it was producing in the waking world, and conjures up a shield with a sun-design upon it - a strange emblem for a gargoyle to bear.

Greg responds...

Maybe Bronx just had never seen a kangaroo before...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Grief" on DVD today.

The only new observation I have is that, this time, I noticed how Keith David did the "aged-up" Goliath; his voice sounded, while recognizably Goliath's, much older. I thought it another "mark of honor" for the "Gargoyles" voice cast.

Greg responds...

Yeah. Keith - and our whole cast - were just amazing.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "M.I.A." today. One detail stood out to me this time; the human Londoners grouped in the background at the very end are the same ones we saw in Act I staring at the gargoyles in shock and alarm, when Leo and Una are confronting Goliath outside their shop. It made a pleasant touch, I thought, to see that those people have now recognized (judging from the way they were shown at the conclusion) that they didn't need to be scared of the gargoyles.

Greg responds...

Yep.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Sanctuary" on DVD today. New observations.

Elisa writes Macbeth's name as "MacBeth". Not quite as serious as the infamous "Servarius" error in "The Cage", but still a bit unfortunate.

I was amused to note that Demona barely even registers Elisa's presence in the middle of her fight with Macbeth, even though Elisa's calling out to both of them - until just before Elisa shoots her. She does finally spot the detective and aim at her, but Elisa takes her down before she can do more than that. Apparently her feud with Macbeth tops even her hatred for Elisa.

I felt a sense of near-horror, though, as I noticed how Demona and Macbeth's fight was damaging the library, with several books apparently getting damaged or destroyed.

And the silhouette of a gargoyle against the moon in the newspaper photograph bears an uncanny similarity (obviously coincidental) to the Bat-Signal.

Greg responds...

Those typos drive me nuts.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "Golem" on DVD.

Not many new observations or insights, but I was impressed by the late Robert Culp's performance, the way he switches the tone of Renard's voice when he's in the Golem's body. It still sounds like Renard, but tougher, more vigorous.

I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I found the scene where Janus was petting Bronx on the head charming. (And all the more impressive, given that he's just encountered his first gargoyle beast only minutes before. He clearly picked up on Bronx's nature quickly.)

Greg responds...

Bronx is very lovable.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Monsters" on DVD today. (Appropriate timing, I thought, since November 30 is St. Andrew's Day, dedicated to the patron saint of Scotland - and on that day, I was watching Scottish gargoyles encountering Scotland's most famous monster.) A few fresh thoughts on it.

When Elisa describes herself to the man at the souvenir stall as "not really the adventuring type", I found myself thinking of her statement in "High Noon", "I'm no hero; I just do my job". Certainly, whatever her incliations, she's had plenty of adventures.

I wondered whether Elisa's remark about theme parks doing "robot Nessie-type" stunts five times a day was Disney poking a bit of fun at itself - we'd see something similar in "Bushido".

And when Elisa says at the end how some legends need to stay that way, she looks in Goliath's direction as she speaks, making me wonder if it was just the Loch Ness Monster she was talking about. Certainly Elisa's been zealous about preserving the gargoyles' secrecy - maybe too zealous, in light of "Revelations" and "Mark of the Panther".

Greg responds...

She wasn't just talking about Nessie.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I've now rewatched "Heritage" and "Kingdom" on DVD. No new thoughts on "Heritage", but I still really enjoy the gargoyles bringing Cagney to the clock tower to look after him in Elisa's absence. I thought it appropriate that it was Broadway who found the kitty (he's the one of the four left behind gargs who's closest to Elisa). And I liked Hudson's rapport with Cagney, while missing Bronx. Including Cagney rubbing affectionately against Hudson - he's got no problems with gargoyles (though Maggie's another story).

I found myself wondering how that containment unit was still functioning after Fang ripped the cables apart to transport it. (To make up for it, I noticed this time around - and really liked - the way they did Talon's voice while he was stuck in there.)

As you pointed out in your ramble, Xanatos's security system does far more damage to the castle than to the gargoyles - I cringe as I see it blowing pieces of the castle apart (small wonder that, by the time of the Double Date story, Owen was getting fed up with all those repairs!) - but Xanatos's lines made up for it.

Greg responds...

Xanatos is just so much fun...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

A postscript thought I had on "Shadows of the Past". Both it and "Future Tense" - the first and last episodes in the Avalon World Tour respectively - have Goliath being beset by terrifying magical illusions, but at last realizing that they're not real and confronting the person or people behind the illusion. I don't know if this was intentional or not, but I think it gives a great element of symmetry to the World Tour.

Greg responds...

It was indeed intentional.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Shadows of the Past" today.

Bronx was definitely not enjoying the wild boat ride through the stormy seas - his response put me in mind of the "series Pitch"'s description of him as angst-ridden and not fond of adventures.

I really enjoyed the little animation details in this episode - Elisa cautiously climbing up the path from the shore, grabbing hold of the stone wall at one point to steady herself, or Bronx slipping a bit when he starts climbing up the cliff.

The entrance to the rookery looked different than it did in "Awakening Part One" - apparently those doors and the gargoyle-like face over them were removed by Xanatos to New York, along with the rest of the castle. The depiction of the now castle-less cliff - with a huge gap - brought home just how much of it Mr. X had removed.

I really like the illusory Demona's words to Goliath "Join me in the dark" - it's an illusion of her, of course, but those words capture so well in metaphor what she's been trying to get him to do (when not simply trying to kill him).

This time around, looking at the giant skull-like shape left over from the Archmage's battle with the gargoyles in "Long Way Till Morning", I tried to work out (but wasn't certain) whether it was a real skull (if so, it belonged to something really huge) or just part of the cave sculpted into the likeness of a skull. I'll have to pay closer attention to it, the next time I watch "Long Way Till Morning".

Greg responds...

The animation on that episode was just lovely..

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched the "Avalon" triptych on DVD today. A few new observations.

The Magus's lyre in the "flashback on Avalon" scene looks a lot like Merlin's lyre in "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time". Obviously not the same one, but evidently both wizards share a common taste in musical instruments.

Princess Katharine and the Magus's telling Elisa "Little is known of the Sleeping King" struck me as all the more appropriate since in 995, nearly all the major works on King Arthur had yet to be written (Geoffrey of Monmouth's "History of the Kings of Britain", the oldest extant start-to-finish account of Arthur's life, wouldn't be written for over a hundred years). There were one or two, like Nennius's "Historia Brittonum", but that was about it.

A detail that I hadn't spotted before: a couple of gargoyle-like sculptures were "guarding" the bridge leading to Arthur's resting-place within the Hollow Hill.

King Arthur and Goliath have both used a mace while fighting Macbeth (Goliath did so in "Enter Macbeth") - one of a few points in common they share (others are awakening in the modern world from a long enchanted sleep, and having scheming illegitimate sons).

The Archmage's boast that he could destroy Goliath with "just a word" struck me as apt, since all the "enhanced Archmage"'s spells were one-word ones ("Vessel", "Revert", "Ice", etc.).

It's difficult not to smile at Elisa's "Souvenirs" question after Season One of "Young Justice". Fortunately, she was asking it in a lighthearted tone.

Greg responds...

Certain elements run through my work, I suppose...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Price" on DVD yesterday.

This time around, I noted the Macbeth-robot's "trophies" line, and how that continued the "hunting" imagery I'd been paying close attention to in the series during my 25th anniversary viewing. Because trophies are one of the reasons why someone would be hunting. (As far as I can tell, it's the only time that was given as a motive for hunting gargoyles - and, of course, it doesn't count, since it was all part of the misdirection tactic.)

Greg responds...

Yep.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Cage" on DVD today (and "Protection" yesterday, but I had no new thoughts or observations on it).

I noted, this time around, Elisa's joke about webbed feet during the family dinner scene at the start, followed by Peter Maza's "and a great duck impersonation" line followed by a quacking sound, and wondered if that might have been intended as a tribute to the Disney Afternoon's "duck shows" - both "Duck Tales" and "Darkwing Duck".

Greg responds...

It's not NOT a tribute.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Upgrade" today.

Continuing the "animals/beasts/hunting" terms used for gargoyles - I noticed Dingo's remark to Wolf "I hope you're not planning to eat your catch" and Hyena's I wonder if gargoyles taste like chicken." This is the first time anyone was actually suggesting eating the gargoyles - they'd hunted them for other reasons - control, sport, revenge (I found myself suddenly comparing Gillecomgain's vengeful pursuit of Demona with Captain Ahab's pursuit of Moby-Dick - in both cases, to get back at the quarry for a lasting physical injury, whether facial scars or a missing leg), but this is the first time anyone seemed to consider eating the gargoyles. And, naturally, it'd be the Pack who'd be the ones to consider that.

Hyena also addresses Lexington as "flying rat".

When Broadway foils the most crimes, saying "You just gotta know where to look", I thought again of his detective interests in "The Silver Falcon" - and which resurfaces again in "Protection", the very next episode.

Greg responds...

Not just the Pack, but Hyena specifically. Not sure the rest of the Pack has her appetite.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "Double Jeopardy" today - a few new thoughts.

Elisa's again driving along a lonely road by the coast, far from Manhattan, just as she'd done in the immediately preceding episode ("Revelations") - but this time, we know why she's out there (a warning about a power plant emergency - actually a hoax, courtesy of Thailog).

Broadway tells Elisa, as he and Lexington head off to Gen-U-Tech, "We're on the case". His way of phrasing it invokes again his interest in detective work (cf. "The Silver Falcon").

All the dates on Sevarius' video documentary about Thailog are written in the "British format" - i.e., "15 NOV", with the day first, then the month. Something you don't often see on American television.

Greg responds...

Dates are hard.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Revelations" on DVD.

The "creatures/beast" theme: Mace Malone describes Goliath as "a majestic beast". (The evidence, though, indicates that he recognizes Goliath as a sentient being rather than a mere "beast".)

This time around, when I saw Mace Malone's fate, I found myself thinking of the depiction of his ex-partner Dominic Dracon in the "Religion 101" radio play, searching everywhere for those diamonds in a way that indicated that he'd suffered a severe mental shock at the end of "The Silver Falcon". Though I recognize that the radio play isn't canon, I'd felt that it did seem like a probable consequence for DD, after discovering that those diamonds had never been in the Silver Falcon - and Mace Malone's own fate, frantically trying every door, convinced each time that this was the one which would get him out of the Hotel Cabal and to freedom, felt like a parallel to it.

Greg responds...

I like that observation.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

My thoughts on rewatching "Outfoxed".

Not much new to say about it, but I spotted two things. First, just after Goliath heads off in pursuit of Fortress-Two, we get a shot of it flying towards the Twin Towers. From a hindsight perspective, an unsettling moment.

I noticed, also (continuing my examination of the "monster/beast/creature" terminology used by humans towards gargoyles during this rewatch) that both Renard and Vogel call Goliath "creature". Renard, of course, soon recognizes that Goliath's a sentient being, capable of understanding him when he speaks about the importance of taking responsibility for your actions. I'm not so sure whether Vogel came to the same realization, though.

Greg responds...

Ultimately, I think he did.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "High Noon" over the weekend. ("Outfoxed", as well, but I'm giving it a separate entry.)

What struck me most about this episode this time around was that it was almost a "Shakespeare villain team-up" - Macbeth (and Demona, whom you could describe as a "Lady Macbeth" analogue) team up with Iago (more accurately, a gargoyle analogue for Iago, who's only called that in the voice actor credits). I doubt that Shakespeare should have objected to that, since he'd written at least one crossover himself ("A Midsummer Night's Dream", which blends Greek mythology with English fairy-lore).

I still like the touch of Hudson and Broadway learning to read from the newspaper - poor Broadway's still finding the word "right" a challenge (cf. "The Silver Falcon"). Again, I'm going to have to look through some books on the history of the English language to find out how so many words which sound like "-ite" came to end, in written form, with "-ight". It's probably one of the biggest challenges to someone learning written English.

Broadway's excited cry, as he and Hudson enter Macbeth's library, "Look at all these books!" struck me all the more, when I thought that, to someone who'd been born (well, hatched) and grown up in the 10th century, a library that size would indeed seem miraculous. What a difference the printing press has made!

"Iago"'s cry as "Othello" and "Desdemona" recover control of Coldstone, "I am besieged!", grabbed me this time around - such a dramatic way of describing the struggle within.

And this time, I also noted Coldstone's statement that, as long as "Iago"'s trying to recover control, "no *living* gargoyle" (emphasis mine) is safe from him. It brings home, I think, his awareness that he's now an "undead gargoyle".

Greg responds...

Glad you liked it, still, after all these years.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "City of Stone" today (all four episodes). A few things that stood out to me this time.

Continuing the "gargoyles being called beasts" thread: the granary guards in Part One call Demona's clan "filthy beasts". Gillecomgain doesn't use the term "beast" for Demona, but does call her a creature and a monster.

(By contrast, the "breastplate gargoyle" comments about their old home, after Demona and her clan have to abandon it following Duncan's attack, "The hunting there was good" - probably one of the few occasions where gargoyles are talking about being the hunters rather than the hunted.)

Demona's clan uses nets twice in this multi-parter - once against the granary guards in Part One, once against Canmore's army in Part Four. The nets being in Parts One and Four gave a nice sense of "bookends".

A detail that I can't believe I missed before: Demona was bearing the Hunter's mask at her belt, as if a trophy, after the battle with Duncan. (The young Canmore grabs it from her during his attack upon her.)

Demona calls Bronx "my pet"; I looked up your remarks on gargoyle beasts in the archives and found that gargoyles don't see gargoyle beasts as pets, but as equals. Maybe another sign that Demona thinks far more like a human than she'd admit (or than it would be safe to tell her)?

I like the touch of the various new kings (like Macbeth and Lulach) being hailed as "High King of Scotland" - the "high king" part conveys all the more a sense of Scotland as a collection of recently-united chiefdoms (which it would have been at the time in actual history).

Greg responds...

We tried to get a feeling for the actual history into the piece.

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Vows" today. A few new things that came to me.

I was hesitant about mentioning this, in case it comes across as an idea, but - from the way Goliath addressed Demona as "my angel of the night" at Prince Malcolm's wedding, I wondered if this was the first time he'd called her that.

When Xanatos referred to his getting the old coin that was the foundation of his fortune as "ancient history", I thought, "well, medieval history, to be precise".

I wonder how Prince Malcolm and his court must have perceived the Norman Ambassador's departure - he rides off just before the wedding, not staying to see Princess Elena, whom he'd escorted to the castle, wedded (even though he'd presumably be the closest thing to a representative of her father there). At least it doesn't appear to have caused a diplomatic incident between Scotland and Normandy.

The Archmage addresses Demona as "you stupid beast", continuing the pattern of unfriendly humans using such terms for gargoyles, that I've been paying close attention to this time around.

Brooklyn is the one most vocal about going to Goliath's rescue at the end; I wonder if Demona's involvement and his feelings about her had a lot to do about that.

I still think it's a pity that the original ending got onto the DVD; I hope that the Disney + version uses the corrected ending. (That's the main thing I miss from my old "Gargoyles" tapes.)

Greg responds...

<sigh> That damn ending...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched my DVD of "Eye of the Beholder" today. I didn't find as much new to notice with this one, unfortunately, though I was delighted to note the moment where Xanatos placed his hand on Goliath's shoulder while pleading for his help at the castle - meaning that he had an opportunity (which he used, obviously) to plant that tracking device on him. I'm glad that the episode played fair with that.

Brooklyn's eyepatch as part of his pirate costume seems all the more appropriate after the ending of "Clan-Building".

Goliath echoes "Re-Awakening" when he speaks of Manhattan as "my castle, my city".

Greg responds...

Lots of echoes in this one - backwards and forwards...

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

New observations from rewatching "The Silver Falcon" today.

One line of Broadway's dates the episode: he mentions that Lexington and Brooklyn "have dibs on the VCR". I wonder how many of us remember VCRS, and how many of us have forgotten them thanks to DVDs and Blu-Rays.

Elisa's line about Broadway "living out a movie fantasy" brought "Deadly Force" to my mind this time (of course, it helps that Dracon's back in this episode). Fortunately, Broadway's wish to do that has less disastrous results this time.

I also spotted, this time around, the parallels between Matt's entering the remains of the Silver Falcon night club and Broadway and Elisa's later arrival - and how both Broadway and Elisa say "I've had better nights".

And this episode continues "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time" , showing us that Broadway's begun to learn how to read, and has progressed enough to be able to read Mace Malone's note (and correctly figure out its meaning). In "Lighthouse" he'd initially been drawn to reading because of its ability to take you to other places and times; now he finds that it can be used to convey useful information. (And the poor guy has the word "right" in that note, though he manages to figure it out. It got me wondering - and I'll have to look it up - how so many English words which rhyme with "ite" are written "-ight" - bright, fright, fight, flight, night, sight, knight, tight, etc.

Greg responds...

Even DVDs and Blu-Rays are losing ground to streaming...

I always thought that for a new reader - which I can't quite remember being - words with the -ight formation would be tough. So would "tough".

Response recorded on August 16, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "The Mirror" today. A few new thoughts and observations.

I saw Demona's snarl at the "Dracula's daughter" in a new light this time. Dracula was a human before he became a vampire - and, naturally, Demona's going to regard any suggestion that she's related to a human - even a human who's become another "mythical creature of the night" - as the ultimate insult.

Not on the scale of Coldstone or the "Hunter's Moon" scheme, but Puck engages in a bit of "blending science with magic" when he uses the satellite dish and the television antenna atop the Twin Towers to help him turn all the humans in Manhattan into gargoyles and back again.

Bronx gets turned into an Irish wolfhound (or close to that kind of dog) - appropriate, in light of "The Hound of Ulster".

Greg responds...

Ah, memories...

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time" - a few fresh thoughts.

I remember your mentioning that you'd intended to have Goliath list a few specific books about Merlin, with Mary Stewart's "The Crystal Cave" as one of them, but weren't able to clear the rights for that. It recently struck me as particularly unfortunate you couldn't mention "The Crystal Cave", since it was published in 1970 and "Lighthouse" first aired in 1995. Goliath could have given it a 25th anniversary tribute.

Continuing the "'beast and monster' terms used for gargoyles" thread that I've been paying particularly close attention to for "Gargoyles"' own silver anniversary viewing, I noted that Macbeth addressed Broadway as "beastie" (evocative of Robert Burns, though Broadway's definitely not "wee, sleekit, cow'rin', timorous" and there didn't seem to be any panic in his breastie) and Goliath as "monster".

I spotted a drawing of a Celtic cross at the top of one of Merlin's Scrolls, when it was unrolled and the writing was visible.

Greg responds...

Yeah, I wanted to acknowledge some of my influences, but Disney legal said no.

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "Legion" today.

When Goliath and Lexington were reunited with Coldstone near the start, I suddenly found myself thinking of your mention of a (rejected) outline for a live-action adaptation of "Gargoyles" you'd written which had Goliath, Lex, and "Othello" as the gargoyles who'd be awakened in the modern world.

This time around, also, the Xanatos Program felt like a foreshadowing of "Future Tense".

I also wondered (just a wondering, not a question) whether the ivied balcony in Coldstone's memories (where he's standing while Iago's "pouring poison in his ear" about Desdemona and Goliath) was supposed to be an actual feature of Castle Wyvern before the massacre, or just a symbolic construct.

Greg responds...

Yeah, one thing I'd have loved to do was to better integrate the Coldtrio into the early episodes.

I think maybe the castle might have had some kind of ivy. Maybe. Guess I'd have to research that.

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "Metamorphosis" today. A few things that struck me this time around.

When Derek and Elisa had their "Xanatos as the reincarnation of Snidely Whiplash" exchange, I thought "No, he's a lot more dangerous than that."

I noticed the pigeons clustered around Goliath just before he awakened; you'd think they'd be staying well away from the clock tower by now. (Though they do fly off in a hurry once the gargoyles wake up.)

I spotted a few animals in cages in Sevarius's lab that I don't think I'd noticed before, though I'm not certain what they were; they were too small to be jungle cats, and the wrong shape for bats.

Greg responds...

I'd have to look at the episode again to see if I could remember what they were.

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Leader of the Pack" on DVD today. Elements that particularly stood out to me this time:

We see all the gargoyles awakening from their stone sleep, one by one. An appropriate way, I thought, to re-introduce them in the first episode of the second season.

Hudson displays his tracking skills in examining the traces of the fight between the Pack and Lexington, Brooklyn and Bronx at Pack-Media Studios. In fact, I've noticed him using that skill a lot - all the way back to "Awakening Part One", where he notes that the Vikings' horses' prints are too light.

Greg responds...

Yep, Hudson was our experienced tracker.

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

New thoughts on "Re-Awakening", after my rewatch.

I don't know whether this was intentional or not, but when Goliath and Elisa were having their conversation about the shopkeeper and why he doesn't leave the neighborhood, I found myself thinking of "Othello"'s suggestion, in the flashback, of abandoning the castle and letting the Vikings have it, and Hudson's response. I don't know if you intended those moments to be thematically connected, but they did feel that way to me this time.

It still strikes me that the fact that the gargoyles' resolution to protect the city and its inhabitants comes at the end of the first season says a lot about how different "Gargoyles" was from most super-hero series; the gargoyles are able to have plenty of adventures and experiences - thirteen episodes' worth of them - before making that vow. The series was rooted in their being gargoyles - ancient "mythical" beings with their own culture and world-view - re-awakened in the modern world, trying to make sense of it - and often making mistakes in the course of their attempts - rather than just crime-fighters.

Greg responds...

That was all intentional.

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched both "Her Brother's Keeper" and "Re-Awakening" today, as part of my "Gargoyles" 25th anniversary review. New thoughts on "Her Brother's Keeper" (ones that came to mind when I rewatched it).

Broadway's concerned remarks about Elisa near the beginning (including "If cops were meant to fly, they'd have wings") indicates that Elisa had shared with them how she was following Xanatos by helicopter before embarking on it.

Derek's remark to Diane that working for Xanatos "could be the start of a whole new career for me" feels all the truer in hindsight - though he obviously wasn't thinking in terms of running an underground sanctuary for Mutates and homeless people when he said it.

I spotted the clock's hands moving at one point in the episode; apparently Lexington had indeed gotten it working again.

Greg responds...

But was it telling the correct time?

Response recorded on August 13, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "Lnng Way Till Morning" today.

I'm not sure if I noticed it (or commented on it) before, but I spotted two parallel elements in the flashbacks (beside the obvious "Goliath and Hudson pitted against someone who made a poison dart attack upon a human friend"). The scene where Demona wounds Goliath parallels the Archmage's attack on Prince Malcolm; on both occasions, Hudson tries to block the attack, but to no avail. And in both the past and present parts of the story, Demona comments on the gargoyles going underground where their wings will be no use (though in different moods).

Continuing the study of how often "beast" imagery gets applied to the gargoyles: the Archmage calls Goliath a "beast".

Greg responds...

October 31st and you're not watching "Eye of the Beholder"?

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I rewatched "The Edge" today - appropriately, since today (October 30) is, according to some sources, Dostoyevsky's birthday, and Goliath was reading his work in the episode.

I spotted more "hunted like animals" remarks (I'm keeping close watch for those in the 25th anniversary review) from Xanatos during his conversation with Goliath at the castle. (I don't recall any of that imagery in "Deadly Force". I think that Macbeth addressed Goliath as "beastie" in "Enter Macbeth", but I'm not certain - if he did, I must have temporarily forgotten my resolve to keep track of that element.)

I also couldn't help thinking, this time around, how convenient for the series it was that Elisa only got a partner *after* the gargoyles moved out of the castle and into the clock tower.

Greg responds...

Yeah. It was too convenient, which is why we gave her Matt.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Rewatched "Enter Macbeth" today.

I can't help womdering what must be going through Hudson's head as he watches a Donald Duck cartoon, thoughtfully stroking his beard. The spectacle of a duck grown to human size, wearing clothes and speaking (kind of) could be an even bigger argument for not believing everything you see on television than the revelation of the Pack's true nature.

U remember in your ramble on "Enter Macbeth", your daughter spotted what looked like the Mona Lisa in Macbeth's mansion. This time around, I noticed a portrait of a man apparently in 18th century attire, who reminded me of portraits I'd seen of Bonnie Prince Charlie.

The doors to Macbeth get it both coming and going; they first get broken down when Bronx escapes, and when he returns with Goliath, they demolish a second pair of doors. (Of course, it becomes academic after the whole mansion gets burned down.)

Lexington talks about getting the clock working again; I wonder if he ever succeeded before the Canmores blew the place up.

Greg responds...

1. Donald is a mystery to us all... ;)

2. I think Macbeth owned a lot of expensive art.

3. Yeah, so much destruction.

4. He never did.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Features I'd just noticed about "Temptation", this time around.

1. When Broadway tells Goliath that Brooklyn had gone on a joyride, he makes motions with his hands suggesting someone gripping a motorcycle's handlebars.

2. Demona, when she talks about the events of "The Thrill of the Hunt", uses the phrase "hunted like animals" - which not only continues the "humans seeing the gargoyles as beasts" thread that I'd noticed all the more in "Awakening" and "The Thrill of the Hunt", but also put me in mind of the Hunters - no wonder she uses that description!

Greg responds...

1. Yep.

2. She's got a history...

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I also rewatched "The Thrill of the Hunt" and "Temptation" today. Things I noted this time in "The Thrill of the Hunt".

1. Lexington, angered about the Pack's treachery, cries that they're like animals. I thought that appropriate, given the Pack's "animal names".

2. The Pack continue the "referring to the gargoyles as beasts" practice from "Awakening" and even speak of hunting them, such as Wolf's cry "Let the hunt begin!" - the talk about hunting them also made me think of the Hunters (though they wouldn't be introduced until Season Two, of course).

3. When Brooklyn and Broadway arrive at the end to tell Goliath and Lexington how they'd seen a report on the news about Fox and Wolf's arrest, they come gliding in from outside the castle - so apparently they weren't watching television with Hudson when they found out, but somewhere else. (I won't ask where, but this detail struck me for the first time.)

4. Dingo's cry of "Stone me!" upon seeing the photographs of Goliath felt like a particularly appropriate response to a gargoyle.

Greg responds...

1. Yep.

2. Common themes running through the series, I think.

3. Or they were watching t.v. earlier.

4. :)

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of "Gargoyles", I watched "Awakening" (all five episodes) on DVD yesterday, and thought I'd share a few things I hadn't noticed before (or hadn't noticed enough) that struck my fancy.

1. When Goliath sends the trio and Bronx to the rookery, Bronx looks ashamed of himself - in a way that reminds me of times when dogs I'd known looked guilty over something.

2. When Xanatos tells Owen "Make the offer now" at the ruins of Castle Wyvern, I suddenly wondered whom he bought Castle Wyvern from. I won't ask here - it's obviously a "No spoilers" answer - but I was struck by the fact that this was the first time I wondered that.

3. I spotted what looked like a "foliate head" (or "Green Man"-type head) carved over the archway the gargoyles are standing beneath when the Commandos showed up in the courtyard, and a couple of winged figures on one of the tapestries. (I'll have to check for other unusual and remarkable features of the castle in later episodes, as well.)

4. Many of the human characters repeatedly call the gargoyles "beasts", both in the medieval scenes and the modern (Princess Katharine's protest at allowing beasts in the dining hall, Mary calling the gargoyles beasts, Bruno asking "Where's the beast?" while pursuing Goliath and Elisa).

5. Goliath asks Elisa, when they first meet, "What were you doing in my castle?" Despite Xanatos having bought it, he clearly thinks of it as still his - as if laying pipe for the arc about the gargoyles having to leave the castle and Goliath resisting it.

Greg responds...

1. The dogs I've had get that shamed look based on my reprimanding tone more than based on what they've done. As opposed to the cats I've had (and have), who at best stare at me as if to ask, "Are you talking to me?"

2. An interesting question.

3. Art Direction was pretty awesome on the show.

4. All very intentional.

5. We tried to keep each character's POV clear.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

Something I recently saw at the Phoenix Public Library reminded me of the fears you'd mentioned that "Gargoyles" would be perceived as a "Batman: TAS" imitation. I spotted a few copies (four in all - someone on the library staff must have had fond memories of the series) of the "Gargoyles Season Two Volume Two" DVD there, and noted that the blurb on the back called the gargoyles "Gotham's guardians". Well, Gotham *is* an old nickname for New York (going back to Washington Irving), and there's the alliterative appeal, but it still makes it look as if somebody confused the gargs with a different nocturnal crime-fighter.

Greg responds...

Eh. Maybe. Or maybe, as you said, people were looking for something alliterative.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I also recently read the "Oral History of Gargoyles" online, and enjoyed it. My favorite part was when you mentioned how "Gargoyles" was initially inspired by "Adventures of the Gummi Bears", only instead of "cute, cuddly multi-colored bears" it would have "cute, cuddly multi-colored gargoyles". I know you were talking about the original comedy development take on the gargoyles, but I laughed aloud at the "cute, cuddly" part - they're definitely not the adjectives I'd use for describing Goliath. "Majestic", yes, "awe-inspiring", yes, but not "cute" or "cuddly".

Greg responds...

Goliath wasn't in the comedy development so... cute and cuddly wasn't a job requirement for him.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Todd Jensen writes...

I thought you might like to know that I recently found a small book on gargoyles at the library (part of a series of books on mythical monsters), which included a few paragraphs on "Gargoyles". It gave a summary of the series (if a bit inaccurate, I regret to say - it made it sound as if the gargoyles' turning to stone during the day was part of the Magus's curse and stopped happening when they awakened in the modern world) - and also mentioned the Gatherings; it even included Station 8's comment room in the "Internet sites" section in the "Further Reading" at the back.

It also included much information about architectural gargoyles, including the mention that "true gargoyles" (that is, waterspouts designed to look like gargoyles) keep rainwater off the buildings they're mounted on, and even the non-waterspout gargoyles serve a similar function (the rain bouncing off them). So even real-world architectural gargoyles protect - if in a different way than the ones in the series.

The book was written by a Hayley Mitchell Haugen, and was published in 2007.

Greg responds...

Very cool. Thanks.

Response recorded on August 12, 2021

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Alpha 3 writes...

Hello! You most definately get this alot but i am a huge fan, and this question is of a personal nature, although not too personal i think.

You see there is someone close to me who keeps trying to "shame" me because i like to watch cartoons, such as Young Justice/Ducktales/Star vs the forces of evil
Just to name a few. As well as animated movies, this person believes that animation is solely for little kids, and i shouldnt be watching any of them just because im a young adult.

I have tried to get this person to watch some, you know give it a chance and all that, i tried getting him to watch the Gargoyles dvd i bought! but he is hellbent on not doing so. So my question is, how do i explain to this person that not every animated show and movie isnt just for kids?

I know getting him to do a complete 180 on this subject is just wishful thinking lol but i'm mostly asking just to maybe tell him a more indepth response, especially if it comes from someone who works in the industry.

Greg responds...

I'm not sure how to convince your "someone." But if you're a young adult, I think it's fair to say, "I disagree with you strongly. Animation is a medium. It is not by definition for kids or adults. It all depends on the content. And even if some of the stuff I watch IS for kids, how does that affect you in any way? Please respect that I know what I like and watch what I like."

Or something like that.

Response recorded on July 26, 2021

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Danny writes...

hello mr Greg Weisman im a really big fan of Gargoyles and i was just wondering did you make Gargoyles for kids ? or did you make it for a older aduience and just had to make sure it was appealing to kids ?

Greg responds...

We made it for everyone. Our primary target audience was (by decree of TPTB) boys, ages 6-11. But we made it for everyone. All genders, all ages, etc.

Response recorded on July 26, 2021

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Anonymous writes...

did you know that your show is awesome?

Greg responds...

I kinda feel like it's awesome. It is to me, at least. It's the kinda show I would like to watch. But I'm happy to have you and others confirm that. Very happy.

Um... which show are we talking about?

Response recorded on July 26, 2021

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The_Jezio writes...

Hi Greg,

Thank you for your work and Gargoyles, it gave a mature 13-year old kid a great show to watch and escape with when his world around him was falling apart.

I wanted to ask you about Goliath and his character ARC. he's such a complex character who spends so much time in grief and, carrying burdens from his past balancing good and evil, broken hearts and forbidden romances, an evolution of "Clan" and family.

Season three opened all of these new possibilities with new clans popping up all over the world after Avalon, and so my Question is, What would it take for Goliath to get his happy ending? Was there ever a plan to really wrap up Gargoyles, because the universe really is so deep and expansive everyone could have gotten 10 episodes plus about their own struggles and triumphs.

I even got to read Brooklyn's Comic Arc from "Clan Building" by Greg Weisman, and had even more love for what could have been! Thank you for answering if you get the chance!

Greg responds...

I think you're referring to Season Two having "opened all of these new possibilities with new clans popping up all over the world".

There is no plan to wrap Gargoyles forever. I don't do final endings. But that doesn't mean I don't have an end to Goliath's story in mind. But revealing whether it's a happy ending or not, would a spoiler.

Glad you liked the show and the companion comic!

Response recorded on July 26, 2021

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Laura writes...

Dear Greg,
You are really amazing!! I love how you have all made this! Sorry for my bad English, because I come from the Netherlands and english is not my mother launguage. Sorry.
I have a lot of questions. My first question is: How was your first day working here?

Thank you for your time!!

Your sincerly,
Laura

Greg responds...

Working... where?

I'm sorry. I know English isn't your first language - though you're doing better than I would do at ANY other language, but I don't know which series you're referring to. Or whether you're talking about ASK GREG.

Response recorded on July 26, 2021

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Dimona Dougherty writes...

Did you ever think the show would be the inspiration for someones actual deed poll name change?

Greg responds...

I don't know which series you're referring to. And I don't know what "actual deed poll name change" refers to.

Response recorded on July 14, 2021

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Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

I haven't posted in years, (too far behind in reading), but I just had to post my daughter's reaction to Future Tense.

My daughters, 9 and 6, and I have been watching Gargoyles from the beginning. Most evenings they greet me when get home from work with, "Do we have time for an episode?!?". They are not just hooked, they are obsessed. Miriam, my little one, is seriously considering being Elisa for Purim.

(I told her from the start I wasn't making a gargoyle costume. I learned my lesson from our watching of Avatar two years ago when I somehow found myself having agreed to make them water and air bending costumes because they are no longer cheaply available to buy. Hours and hours later they came out pretty dang good, especially considering I don't actually know how to sew. Their friend went as a earth bender...he wore a green t-shirt with the earth bending symbol silk screened on it - cheaply available on the internet :| .)

We watched Future Tense a few evenings ago. Miriam spent the whole episode tense and near tears asking, "they're going to use the Phoenix Gate, right? They have to use the Phoenix Gate right?" I had to sit with my arm around her. When we got to the end she smiled a big smile and told me it was a really good episode but too scary to watch again. She repeated her assessment a few days later to a friend, (the earth bender). The girls had him watch the first episode of Awakenings yesterday.

As for the big one, she assured me she wasn't scared the whole time.

Thank you for the shared experience with my girls!

Greg responds...

I haven't posted in about a year, either.

I love to hear about fans watching the show with their kids. And I'm so gratified that the kids appreciate it and are becoming a new generation of Gargoyles fans. And Future Tense IS scary!!

Response recorded on July 09, 2021

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Shana K writes...

Not a question. Just letting you know, my six year old daughter loves Gargoyles and was ranting that the bad guys were being mean to the Gargoyles. She'd make a great advocate for them. And she loves what you guys did with the comics. I had to change some of the words that my daughter does not need to learn yet. But that's okay. I hope someday you will be able to keep up the good work.

Greg responds...

Thank you so much. That really makes my day!

You know, when we first focus tested GARGOYLES, the moderator asked the kids, "Did you like Goliath?" The kids all said yes. Then: "Did you like Demona?" The kids said no. The focus testing folks then advised us to take Demona out of the show. We had to explain to them that the kids didn't like Demona because she was THE VILLAIN! (Duh.)

Response recorded on July 09, 2021

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Gia writes...

Congrats on Young Justice being continued. Always great if fans fighting for the favorite shows succeed.
I really liked Rain of the Ghosts and Spirits of Ash and Foam. Will you write Masque of Bones now things are going well again? The book series is as good as Gargoyles was both in quality, imagination and depth of characters and story arc... books so brillant should be continued. PLEASE!

Greg responds...

Thank you.

I still plan to get back to Masque of Bones and the Rain series someday, but unfortunately I just can't afford to do it now. I need to make a living, and with no one interested in publishing and paying me to write the book, I need to focus on other (paid) work instead. Sometimes real life is uncooperative.

Response recorded on July 09, 2021

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Catherine writes...

Well, this is more of a thank you for Young Justice, I am SUPER stoked it's coming back, it is a really amazing program and helped me through some tough times when I was a teen, and I remember thinking, "things might be bad, but at least I don't have to save the world as well". And now, I'm enlisting into the US Army as a combat engineer and am thrilled to be starting a new chapter in my life. The excitement of Young Justice will definitely motivate me through Basic. And thanks again for this show.

Greg responds...

Wow. Thank YOU for your service! Glad we could be part of your life!

Response recorded on July 01, 2021

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FallenLegend writes...

Hey Greg the topics on my questions are about popularity. The other day I was thinking abiut gargoyles, and W.I.T.C.H and I always wondered why it didn't get a far better mainstream appeal.

This was odd for me as gargoyles being your baby, it does have brilliant writting and well developed characters.

I mean sure it does have a relative big following , theres a fan hosting this very site. But on the whole of dinsey propierties Gargoyles is a bit on the obscure side of things. I apologize if that comes as an insult. By the standards of a 90's disney cartoon your show is reasnably well rememebered, sure.

But had the fanbase being larger, the comic would've lasted longer I think.

I rather consider this a paradox. A brilliant show with great writting doesn't gett that much attention. Consider for a second how ducktales got a revival, and gargoyles is still waiting despite our best wishes as fans.

I think I found the reason.

Gargoyles lacks escapism.

I'm not saying that's a bad thing. You love your show and just how things are. Nothing wrong with that. I don't want you to change what you love.

Gargoyles are supposed to be feared and disliked as the whole point of them is a statment against prejudice. That's the entire point.

But it does affect their popuilarity.

Say people might want to be like Nightwing or spiderman as teens with incredible lifes. But I think few people would want to be a gargoyle hiding from the world.

People admire Goliath but I don't think anyone (mainly the kids of the audience) would like to be him nor Hudson or Lexington.

X-men has also the prejudiced characters. But there's a line of kids that would love to be like Wolverine or even Mystique.

I think it's safe to say that nobody would like to be in Puck's shoes.

Xanatos, Fox and oberon were probably the closes to escapist characters given their confort. But I think that's a stretch give the gargoyles are the focus.

So my question is what do you think?

Greg responds...

I simply disagree. There's plenty of escapism in Gargoyles. More, I'd argue, than in X-Men. Why would someone want to be Wolverine and not, say, Brooklyn? (I mean from an escapist, point of view.) Is it because Wolverine is a badass? Well, so is Goliath.

Response recorded on June 28, 2021

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Jurgan writes...

Young Justice Season One Review

I didn't have to work Labor Day, so I spent it binging the second half of season one. I'm of two minds on the season as a whole. Thematically, it was about team-building, specifically through trust and revealing secrets. M'gann was hiding her grotesque (by Earth standards) real body is the best example I can remember, but there were others. In the last couple episodes they spent a lot of time baring their souls to one another, and they became a stronger team as a result. There were little character traits early on that got expanded over time. M'gann's catchphrase was annoying until we learned where it came from (a sitcom by those hacks Brandon Weisman and Greg Vietti). Red Arrow was obnoxious and I couldn't stand him, but then we find out it wasn't his real personality but conditioning from The Light. It ends on New Year's Eve, a great time for reflection.
On a plot level, though, I'm not as enthusiastic. The individual episodes generally had pretty good plots (the Halloween ghost story was one of my favorites), but the season long arc seemed kind of weak. Mainly, it's that there was a very long build-up to a masterstroke that was resolved very quickly. In the last episode, Vandal Savage and Thom Adcox (I don't remember that character's name) takes control of the entire Justice League. HOLY CRAP HOW ARE THEY EVER GOING TO- the Young Justice team frees them all in about ten minutes. It struck me as an anticlimax. Then Savage just left and talked about "phase two" of the plan. You've often referred to "Big Bads," a reference to Joss Whedon's standard plot structure, but in a typical season of Buffy the Big Bad would be utterly defeated at the end of the season. Maybe The Light are more like Wolfram and Hart from Angel. Well, it's not a big complaint from me. I enjoyed the season by and large, I just felt that they foiled The Light's plan too easily. On the plus side, I love Savage's monologue about survival of the fittest. He also referenced being thousands of years old but didn't explain further. I imagine if I knew DC comics I would know a lot about him, but instead I'm willing to enjoy the ride.
I already have season two, so I'll start watching it soon. Since it's called "Invasion" and Savage ominously referred to "phase two," I'm guessing it involves some sort of alien infiltration and Savage is worried that the Justice League has made humanity too soft to resist. I could be totally wrong, of course, but I'm eager to see where it goes.

Rating: 3.5/4

Greg responds...

Feel a bit damned by faint praise. But I respect your opinion... though I don't really agree with it. Glad it largely worked for you.

Response recorded on October 29, 2020

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Marvelman writes...

I know this isn't a forum, but I would like to respond to another poster who asked if Demona was ticklish by saying:

Would you really want to find out?:)

Greg responds...

I'm not touching this one (or her).

Response recorded on October 18, 2019

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Matt writes...

Hi Greg.

Been a long while since I've asked you anything here. I hope things are well with you. Sounds like you're busy these days and I'm glad to hear it.

I'm writing to ask you about Gargoyles. It's crazy to think that the property is approaching its 25th year. And very cool to think that "in-universe" Artus and other gargoyles around the world are less than a year away from hatching!

But what I'm writing about is the future of Gargoyles on television, in comics, novels, etc. It feels like the last few years have been very quiet for Gargoyles. The last Gathering is nearly a decade behind us. We've had no new material in even longer. Revisions on GargWiki only trickle in these days. Gargoyles fan sites are steadily being abandoned or dying. Even Ask Greg is far more of a Young Justice site these days. The Comment Room is pretty quiet, a shadow of what it was when I first discovered it over 17 years ago. And we fans are slowly growing older. And with all of these disheartening facts, I'm beginning to lose hope in new Gargoyles material from here on out.

It's hard for me to even admit that. I can remember getting very fired up and launching into pep talks when others would express similar thoughts over the years. Maybe I'm writing this in hopes of getting a pep talk myself. I don't know. Really, I just want to know what your thoughts on the future of Gargoyles is. Good or bad, I'd just like to hear it from the man himself.

Let me be clear: I'm not asking if you've given up on the property. I know that you have never failed to look for an outlet to tell your stories and I know that if you were given a chance you'd happily tell those stories in any medium. I'm just curious about your personal and professional opinion on any future Gargoyles products.

I will always be a fan. I will always love the stories you've told us. I will always have some hope that more stories will be told and I'll be quick to support the property if/when that happens. I'm just feeling like Gargoyles is all in the past. Honestly, am I right? Or am I just being dramatic? And if Gargoyles does have a chance in the future, what can we do to help it along after all these years?

Thanks, Greg. You rock. Thanks for everything!

Greg responds...

Hey Matt,

You're just being dramatic. Which doesn't mean you aren't also right. Which doesn't mean there isn't hope. Confused yet?

Here's a hard truth: Disney bought Marvel and Lucasfilm. Why take a chance on a 25-year-old action property that (to their mind) has an aging/shrinking fanbase when you can exploit sure things like Star Wars and Spider-Man?

That's the big hump right now.

In addition, comic book publishing of Disney's licensed properties has been in disarray. As I'm sure you've noticed, we made some progress with Joe Books... and then it all fell apart. We're now waiting for Joe's license to lapse and are hopeful -actually hopeful - that we can make new comics happen with a new publisher. [Name of new publisher being withheld for now until a deal is made.]

So, no, of course I haven't given up. Gargoyles is my baby, and I'll never give up on it. I hope the fans won't either, but I understand there isn't much new to talk about these days, so it's natural that interest wanes. But I hope if and when there is something new to talk about, the fans will help me launch a campaign to get that new stuff noticed.

I truly believe that our best bet right now is, in fact, comic books. I can tell original canon stories (with little or no interference), and then we can use the comics to demonstrate that the property is still viable, just as we used Netflix to prove that Young Justice was still viable.

I'm also hopeful that once Disney has its own version of Netflix up and running in 2019 (just in time for our 25th Anniversary), that they'll put Gargoyles up there for streaming. Then we can begin a #KeepBingingGargoyles campaign, and who knows what might happen?!

Meanwhile, though it's true we haven't had an official Gathering since 2009, we did have a Gargoyles-convention-within-a-convention that was VERY successful at CONvergence in 2014 in Minneapolis, honoring the show's 20th anniversary. We did all the old Gathering stuff: showed the videos, multiple panels on the subject (including the biology/cultural panel), an original Gargoyles Radio Play, and we had Marina Sirtis, Frank Paur & Greg Guler there, as well. Many old Gargoyles fans showed up, and we had a blast. http://www.convergence-con.org/about/archive/2014-convention/

I'll be back at CONvergence in July of 2018, and although it won't be a full-on Gargoyles convention-within-a-convention again, we will do a Radio Play, and I always do at least one Gargoyles panel.

Plus, I've been talking with a venue to do another Garg-con-within-a-con to celebrate our 25th anniversary in 2019. I'll keep you posted here, but you should think about attending. It'll get the juices flowing.

So, no, don't despair. I'm always pretty upfront about the likelihood of anything happening, and right now it's a bit slim. But down the road, I still see a lot of potential. Stick with us!

Response recorded on December 20, 2017

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Emily the Disney Fan writes...

Hello Mr. Weisman, let me just start by saying that Gargoyles is now My #1 favorite Disney Series, and I've gotten and read the first 6 issues of the Clan Building Comic books and the 4 first issues of the 'Bad Guys' Comic Books, and here are 2 questions that I do have

1. Do you have any general comment to all of the Fans out there Who make Fan Art and/or Write Fan Fictions about 'Gargoyles', or any cartoon show you created?

2. What general advice would you give to a Fan who writing a Fan Fiction about 'Gargoyles'?

Greg responds...

1. Not sure what you're looking for. Um... Go for it!

2. I don't read any fanfiction to protect myself legally. So I'm hardly an expert with advice and the like. So... try to be true to the characters, I guess?

Response recorded on August 15, 2017

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ClarkeC writes...

Happy belated holidays. This is more of a ramble of sorts in regards to Gargoyles. Now me personally I'm more of a superhero fan which is why I like Spectacular Spider-Man and Young Justice better but Gargoyles is still a blast to watch. Going through the archive and watching a couple episodes of Gargoyles, it's easy to see that you put a LOT of thought and passion into it in regards to crafting the Gargoyles mythos. I'm assuming that since it is more or less an original work out of your head and other writers of the show, you probably had a real blast in writing it. The rambles you wrote on how the episodes came together and whatnot were really entertaining to read. Probably my two favorite parts of the show were the Third Race and the Gargoyles interpretation of Arthurian lore. Weaving so many mythologies and folklore under one umbrella was a pretty neat idea. And I had no idea that the island of Avalon came from the legends of Arthur. I know Disney is in control of the property but if they ever give SLG (I think that's the company) the license again I would read it in a heartbeat. You both implied in the show and outright stated so many interesting things about the future of where you going to take the stories that my interest is beyond piqued. Thanks for reading this and hope it didn't waste your time or anything.

Greg responds...

Thanks for the kind words. We always thought we were working firmly in the super-hero genre - bastard genre though it is - in our storytelling, just minus the trappings (capes, tights, etc.). Glad the show's working for you. Obviously, I'd recommend watching all 65 episodes of the first two seasons in order, followed by the eighteen existing issues of the SLG comic book series.

And, yes, we're all hopeful that the comic will come back sooner than later.

Response recorded on March 16, 2017

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what do you put in this thing writes...

What websites do you usually look at when you want to see the fandom's reaction to something?

Greg responds...

I actually try NOT to do that at all. It makes me a bit crazy. One loves the praise and hates the haters, but if one values the praise, then one must place value on the hate. So I've learned the hard way - believe me - that I'm better off NOT. Just not.

Once in a blue moon, I can't resist however. But there's no set place I go. Just what I stumble upon, usually, that I don't have the willpower to click away from.

Response recorded on January 30, 2017

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EXALT writes...

http://www.eruditorumpress.com/blog/sensor-scan-gargoyles/
Thoughts?

Greg responds...

Well, my first thought in reading the first sentence was: "how completely obnoxious." And it only gets worse from there.

Look, no one has to like Gargoyles or appreciate it. But the writer makes all sorts of false assumptions about the MAKING of the show and the INTENT of those creating it. That's annoying to me.

See, I'm a HUGE fan of Batman, the Animated Series, and I have always openly admitted that the fact BTAS was successful gave Disney the courage to put Gargoyles on the air. But the assumption that we were chasing it, content-wise, is just wrong. So the idea that we were trying to emulate it and somehow blew it is ridiculous.

But in the end, to each his or her own. This review doesn't change my opinion. And if it had praised the series unrelentingly - that is, if it had praised something that I didn't feel deserved praise - it still wouldn't change my opinion of the series. My take: it's not perfect, but I'm extremely proud of the work we did.

Frankly, though, I'm not sure why you felt the need to bring this review to my attention. Is it fun to piss me off? Cuz it ain't fun to be pissed off.

Response recorded on October 31, 2016

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Magnus writes...

I have a comment, and a question.

1. I hope you never have trouble finding work, your writing is quite inspiring. I just rewatched and, with great difficulty, reread the comics (hard to find them without paying a month's rent). It's nice to remember why I loved it so much as a kid, and find a lot more to fall in love with, like how I -never- even noticed 'David and Goliath' before.

2. Would you ever consider Kickstarter or Fig in order to get fundage to be able to work on Gargoyles more in some way?

Greg responds...

1. Thank you. I have had trouble finding work at times, but that's the business I chose.

2. I can't crowd-fund something I don't own. And I don't own Gargoyles.

Response recorded on September 21, 2016

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Laura 'ad astra' Sack writes...

I'm way behind reading Ask Greg so I can't comment on anything current except this: Just showed my 7 year old her first episode of Gargoyles. (Also her almost 4 year old sister: My big one was willing to wait till seven, but not until we found a time my little one wasn't watching too, so she agreed to let her sister come into her bed if she woke up scared. I'm not being overprotective; she's crawled into my lap on Sofia the First episodes.) No big surprise, but they loved it. They begged to watch the second episode past bedtime because of the cliffhanger. (I would have caved had Awakenings been just a two parter.) It was pretty fascinating to keep my mouth shut and see them guess who was a good guy and who was a bad one.

Greg responds...

You have made my day!

Response recorded on September 13, 2016

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Matt writes...

Hi Greg,

Today I was reflecting on a few instances in my life where I had to make difficult choices: the easy road or the right road. I can specifically remember thinking about integrity in those moments, thinking about Renaud's "What have I become?" versus Demona's "What have they done..." Ultimately, despite the difficulties, I tended to do the right thing and tell the truth, both to myself and to others. In one case, this resulted in me being fired from a job.

The reason I'm telling you this is that, while I had some excellent role models growing up who showed me integrity, it would be unfair to say that Gargoyles didn't have a strong influence in my youth that would lead me to become the man I am today. I am now a teacher of elementary school students and see many young people with and without strong moral role models. In either case, it is clear to me that they are very influenced by the movies, TV shows, celebrities and social media in their lives. And it is my hope that mixed into all the stimuli they are receiving the kind of moral reinforcement that I had in Gargoyles. I am very grateful to you and your peers for creating a program that I not only wanted to watch, but that made me a better person. There is a lot of red tape that goes into public school education, and I know that in your field there is a lot of that too. But I wanted to encourage you to remember the impact you can have on young people. It is not all about ratings and toy sales and demographics. You have the power to guide the adults of tomorrow. You certainly helped to guide me.

Keep up the great work! And thank you from a lifelong fan.

Greg responds...

You just made my day. Thank you.

Response recorded on July 22, 2016

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Tyler Reznik writes...

Hello, Mr. Weisman.

I've been rewatching some episodes of "Gargoyles" and reading some of your ramblings about the show, and I had a couple of interesting thoughts about the Pack:

The two most human members of the Pack, Fox and Dingo, are also the first to break off from the group. Fox basically ditched them as soon as Coyote entered the picture; she'll manipulate or work with her former co-stars if the mood strikes, sure, but otherwise, she's pretty much done with them. Dingo took a bit longer, but he left as well, and he also seems to be pretty much done with the Pack, apart from working for Fox in "Walkabout".

On a similar note, Fox and Dingo are also the only ones out of the Pack to have had their real names (or, in Fox's case, her birth name) revealed. They go by Fox and Dingo, but they were born Janine Renard and Harry Monmouth.

Contrast the others: long after Fox and Dingo have (mostly) gone straight, Wolf, Jackal, and Hyena continue a life of crime. On top of that, we have no other names by which to identify them (although, for some reason, I keep thinking that Wolf's first name is something like "Thomas"; probably just getting a little mixed-up with one of Clancy Brown's other roles on the show). They're the ones who discard their humanity for an extra edge. Unlike Fox and Dingo, who are people with vague beastly motifs, Wolf, Hyena, and Jackal are beasts in human skin (metaphorically speaking). We know them by no other names because they need no others. What their parents called them is irrelevant. Not only that, but they stayed together as a team up until Egypt (and will eventually reunite under Coyote as the Ultra-Pack). The beasts stayed a Pack, and the people set off on their own.

One last remark on the Pack's chosen names: Fox's and Dingo's mirror their heritages ("Renard" is French for "fox", and Dingo's Australian), while the other members have names that reflect who they are (Wolf was always a huge, growling brute, Hyena's a cackling killer, Jackal's amoral). Fox and Dingo CHOSE their names; Wolf, Hyena, and Jackal already WERE their names.

So, what do you think? Is this little analysis accurate at all (I could be way off, or reading too much into it; you, sir, would, of course know better than I would)?

In conclusion, thank you for taking the time to read this, and have a good day, Mr. Weisman.

Greg responds...

I like it!!

Response recorded on February 05, 2016

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Kcops writes...

I'm guessing you're a fan of Star Trek? Anyways, you're the man. Gargoyles kicks butt.

Greg responds...

1. I am.

2. I like to think so.

3. Agreed.

;)

Response recorded on December 17, 2014

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Catherine B writes...

I just wanted to write and just give you some thanks for some of the great shows you have helped create, Greg.

Young Justice I enjoyed thoroughly, though I am more a fan of the first season than the second; I like fewer characters and more characterization as opposed to detailed plots just as a personal preference. I will also say I was not a fan of how Wally West was handled but I am sure you have heard your share of them. I will just say that the Wally of the comics and the Wally of Young Justice seemed to be entirely different characters which seemed a shame to me, given all that could have been done with him. He had such a rich comic book history that I really do not understand why more was not done with it but that is your creative decision. Just not my cup of tea.

I adored your version of Dick Grayson however. He was competent without being overly skilled; he suffered under pressure but learned from what he was exposed to. His relationship with Wally in Season 1 was one of my all time favorites. Thanks for the great run!

Secondly, I could not write you without mentioning Gargoyles. I mean, wow. I think I was in fifth or sixth grade when I first caught it on the air. I just remember being deeply enthralled with it. I thought Elisa was an awesome character, as I did not see a whole lot of strong female leads back then and she was definitely that. I also adored the interesting family background you gave her. So often, characters fall into the stereotypical white, black, etc and she brilliantly avoided those.

I also firmly owe you thanks for igniting my interest in Shakespeare. I remember that I saw "City of Stone" when we were having to pick plays and such to read/analyze for school and after seeing that awesome four parter, I went right to my English teacher and asked if I could read MacBeth. It is still my favorite of the Bard's works.

The characterization of Demona was incredible. Most villains are so one dimensional but all the villains of Gargoyles were so well fleshed out. I am a creative writer myself and working on my first work to aim towards publication and I definitely count Gargoyles among my top inspiration for how to do characterization. To this day, I will tell people if they want to see a well fleshed out villain, go watch Demona from Gargoyles. I honestly would rank her about equal to Gollum from "Lord of the Rings." She can be diabolical, sneaky, cruel and yet you can totally see why she would have turned out that way and I can switch very easily from feeling such anger at her to feeling overwhelming pity. Bravo, my good Sir!

Greg responds...

Thanks. Always nice to have the work thoughtfully appreciated.

Response recorded on October 07, 2014

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Giant Boy writes...

Since your famous show was on the blog, I figured I could watch the pilot episode of Gargoyles for the first time.

Enjoyed it. I had some questions about who was the hooded traitor, but I feel the twist with the Captain's betrayal will soon get resolved.

Keep up the good work, even though this episode was made 20 years ago. Wow, that's a long time ago...

Giant Boy

Greg responds...

Yes, yes it is. But we're always glad to have new viewers. Keep up the good watching.

Response recorded on April 18, 2014

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Charisma82 writes...

Greg Weisman: "I'd like to see a music video from Goliath's POV -- but featuring Elisa -- of "Amazing".

As per request:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6roY5udD8c&feature=c4-overview&list=UURD-80g-99JdhBskN6OXGGg

I hope it's the right "Amazing." Thank you for your time and the suggestion.

Greg responds...

WOW!

I'll be honest, I don't actually remember asking for this, so I'm not sure if it's the "Amazing" I was thinking of, but boy it's perfect, isn't it? Anyway, whether or not I was smart to suggest it, you did a fantastic job.

Response recorded on April 08, 2014

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Braylon Williams writes...

I don't really have a question, but I want to thank you...
I am currently 17, and some of the best memories of my childhood involve your shows. I pitty those who will never know the joys of shows like Gargoyles... I know you get hundreds of messages saying this, but thank you, and I miss your work. You are a genious!

Greg responds...

Thanks. (But I'm hoping you have no one to pity, because everyone's buying DVDs. Right? Right?)

Response recorded on January 21, 2014

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Masterdramon writes...

ASK GREG LIVE! - WONDERCON 2013 REPORT

First, a little background. I'm going to quote a section from the introduction I made to to Station 8 Comment Room, waaaaaay back in July 2010:

"Given that I was three when Season 1 of 'Gargoyles' first began airing, I was obviously quite outside the target audience at that point, and if I watched any of the episodes on first airing I definitely don't remember them. Rather, my first clear memories of 'Gargoyles' were watching it during the late 90s when Toon Disney was first starting up. This produced some interesting experiences; for example, I never saw and indeed never even had a clue that 'Deadly Force' existed until Toon Disney started airing it again in 2002 or so.

At the time that I first was watching this show voraciously it was amongst a litany of dozens of other cartoons, some well-written ('Batman: The Animated Series,' 'Darkwing Duck,' etc.) and some...well, not so much (here's looking at you, 'Captain Planet'). To an eight year-old, there was little differentiation between the relative qualities of these shows, and it was not until a few years on that I really began to appreciate what a true gem 'Gargoyles' was.

I'm not entirely sure when my perspective changed, though it might have had something to do with the aforementioned first viewing of 'Deadly Force.' By this point I was a pre-teen, and old enough to understand the basics of S+P...so to see one of the protagonists shoot another one in the chest accidentally, nearly causing her to die was an absolute revelation to me. Around this time I began watching the entire series with new eyes, and what I saw astounded me.

The depth, the complexity, the characterization was unlike anything else I had ever seen on the small screen, live-action or animated. The little things that escaped me on the first, second, or even tenth viewing (yes, I watched a LOT of Toon Disney) suddenly rared to life and showed me how amazing this show was, is, and always will be. Everything from the sheer emotion that Tony Shalhoub brought to the show's single greatest cameo role to the little nuances about Lexington that made me think, 'Oh, of course!' when I learned that Greg considered him to be homosexual all became clear to me, and clearer and clearer with each viewing.

'Gargoyles' did much for me over the years. To take a particular example, when I first began really reading Shakespeare during mandatory reading times in high school, I went with 'A Midsummer Night's Dream,' then 'Macbeth,' and then, after the obvious 'Hamlet,' moving to 'Othello.' It shouldn't take too many guesses to figure out what attracted me to those plays specifically.

I have many obsessions in my life, some that have faded and some that have stayed with me forever. 'Gargoyles' stayed with me forever, and by the time I was about 13 or so it overtook virtually all of my other obsessions to become forefront in my fiction-dominated mind. I began searching around the internet for various little tidbits and behind-the-scenes stuff, and was blown away when I first discovered Greg's Master Plan. That someone could have so intricately designed such a massive and complex fictional universe intrigued me to no end...particularly 'Bad Guys,' since Dingo was at the time my favorite character.

On one of my frequent revisitings of the Master Plan in 2004, I ended up clicking around some links that brought me to the FAQ...and consequently to AskGreg. If the Master Plan had blown me away, then this site caused my mind to spontaneously combust. So many hints and clues to what the future might hold for the series, should Disney allow it to somehow continue...straight from the mouth of the creator himself! In all the years since that I've been up and around the world wide web, never have I again seen such a direct, easy-to-access method of communication to the artist behind such a masterful work.

Over the years, I have read virtually every single post in the AskGreg archives, some of them several dozen times. It is one of the websites that I frequent several times a day without fail, and I have gained an uncountable amount of enrichment from reading it constantly. It was through this site that I first learned of the DVDs and comics, all of which I purchased as soon as I could possibly get my hands on them, and of the Gathering, the scope of which shocked and awed me.

One of my greatest regrets is that I was never able to attend one of these amazing events; convincing your parents to let you fly out of Hawaii to the mainland for a convention on a 90s cartoon isn't the easiest thing in the world. And although I WAS actually in town for the final one, Gathering 2009 happened to fall on the EXACT same weekend as my college orientation. If the Gathering had been just one week later, or my introduction to Pomona College just one week sooner...but I guess it's pointless to deal with hypotheticals.

In any event, my praise goes out to all of you unbelievably dedicated individuals who kept it alive for so long. If ever you are able to arrange some sort of smaller event in the future, you have my word that I will attend.

AskGreg also gave the chance to really get to know Greg Weisman (or at least, as much as this is possible without real-world contact), and he is currently one of my absolute greatest heroes in all of entertainment. I am not using hyperbole when I declare him to be the single most talented writer in animation history, and in my mind absolutely anything he touches turns to solid gold. I avidly watched 'W.I.T.C.H.,' 'The Spectacular Spider-Man,' and the various episodes he freelanced for favorite shows of mine like 'The Batman,' 'Kim Possible,' and 'Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!'...many of which turned out to be some of the best in their respective series. And I wait with bated breath (and fanboyish panting) for 'Young Justice.' Spider-Man is my favorite Marvel superhero and DC is my favorite comic book universe...so to have Greg interpret both with his usual flair for complex, multi-layered story arcs and deeply involved character development has left me positively salivating."

Now, as you can probably tell from these words, this was a moment I've been waiting on for nearly 10 years. So as you might expect, I was...anxious. Despite my personal contact with Greg over the past couple years due to my moderating duties here, as well as friends who had met him previously who assured me that he was a really nice guy in-person, I was still a little worried I'd screw this up somehow.

Thankfully, ASK GREG LIVE! turned out to be a great experience, and truly the highlight of the weekend. There was somewhere between 15-20 guests in attendance, including myself, my girlfriend, and Blaise (whom it was awesome to meet in person). Kudos to Matthew for holding up the event sign for over an hour, and to whoever it was that cosplayed as Batgirl.

We pretty much just jumped straight into an hour-and-a-half of questions, which I hope I didn't hog too many of. A few highlights from the revelations presented therein:

- Following the Season 1 finale, Vandal immediately called up Hugo Strange and told him, "Open all the doors." Which explains a lot. Now, Greg W. ALSO said that by Team Year Five, Belle Reve was fairly full again...but at least it explains why so many imprisoned villains were walking the streets again in Season 2.

- The Joker was originally considered to appear in "Auld Acquaintance," controlling the Justice League. But for a variety of reasons (mainly budgetary; they needed Klarion anyway for the "magic stuff"), they switched him out for Klarion.

- Greg also responded to my question about whether the Joker of Earth-16 knows he's in a cartoon show by saying, "I think he's crazy enough to believe that, even if he's NOT."

- Lieutenant and Sergeant Marvel were originally considered to be on the Team in Season 2. But with only 20 episodes, several intended arcs were cut or reworked to have occurred during the Time Skip: a Marvel Family arc, a Red Tornado arc, and a Zatanna arc. With nothing to do anymore, Mary and Freddy were slotted into the Time Skip.

- He hinted pretty damn strongly that we'll be hearing more about "poor, disgraced Ocean-Master." Presumably in "Legacy," which I am personally excited as all hell for.

- Clone!Roy, post-"Satisfaction," is a stay-at-home-dad. For the most part. He and Cheshire are "trying to make it work," to the degree that people like them can.

- I asked if working on YJ had made him give more thought to who the 16 Sixteens in the Illuminati are. He basically said, "not really," while adding that he's got most of the major players in the Illuminati pretty well figured out, and has for a while. Which isn't to say he doesn't leave a fair few slots open for moments of epiphany.

- Darkseid has been the Light's silent partner since Season 1. Which most of us had assumed, but it's nice to have firm confirmation.

- Victor Cook did a fly-by. No time for questions, just said hi and name-dropped "Mecha-Nation." But still...really cool.

- He described Jason Spisak's last recording with them. Jason came up afterward and said that it was rare for an actor to be able to end his role on such a great, final note, "instead of just flying off into the sunset, with no one having any idea if you survive or not." Having now seen "Dark Matter," Greg believes that may have been coded snark.

- Oh, and surprising no one with a head on their shoulders...Greg disproved the rumor that DC wanted Wally killed off because of the New 52. Though it WAS amusing to hear him call those rumors, and I quote: "Complete horse"...baloney.

- He said he's deliberately keeping mum on "Rain of the Ghosts" until he knows if his publisher is doing any advertising. If they don't, he may start teasing some plot tidbits on Ask Greg.

- He talked a bit about availability issues...about how it came to be that Wentworth, Kittie, and George were replaced toward the end of the season. Just a whole lot of REALLY bad luck regarding other projects. But he also revealed the replacement that almost was...if it wasn't for the fact that no one on Earth could do an impression that did justice to him.

That's right...they once almost lost Tim Curry.

He was shooting something or another toward the middle of the season. They simply could not get him before the episodes had to ship. So what they did...was Greg recorded the lines. Taaaaaaaaalking liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiike thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis sooooooooooo thaaaaaaaaat theeeeeeeey cooooooould AAAAAAADR iiiiiiiiiiiit aaaaaaaaafteeeeeeer theeeeeeey reeeeeetuuuuuuurned froooooooom ooooooverseeeeeeeeeeas.

Which they would NEVER do otherwise. For no one but Tim Curry. Greg had to do a bunch of takes, because Jamie kept having to stop him and shout, "SLOWER!" Needed the mouth movements SO exaggerated that no one would notice it was ADR'ed. Which I don't think anyone did.

- I think those are all the big revelations, but there was lots of real fun little stuff on Greg's writing process, the backroom thinking that went into Darkseid's cameo, and Greg's hopes for the future. As he said at one point, "I still haven't given up on Gargoyles, and that's going on 20 years at this point! Why would I give up on a series that ended THIS month?"

Beyond that, it was just an incredible experience to be in the presence of the guy - to hear him speak, to ask questions (even utterly silly ones) directly answered to our faces, to shake hands, and to be personally thanked for my years of hard work on Ask Greg...which, needless to say, was incredibly gratifying.

The atmosphere was great - casual, friendly, and with no pressure on either the askers or on Greg. We chatted, we laughed, and we got to hear Greg at his absolute "frankest." Which is to say, a little...off-color. And oh it was glorious.

At my request, we also did an impromptu signing at the end; I got my Clan-Building Volume 1 trade, my SpecSpidey Season 1 DVD, my Young Justice Volume 1 trade, a Captain Atom comic, and the essay I wrote for Contemporary Political Theory last semester (and submitted to Ask Greg afterward) signed, and pretty much geekgasmed into the floor. SOOOOO utterly wonderful.

[If you want to see pics of said signed stuff and/or other stuff I snagged at the Con, you can go here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/94547312@N04/sets/72157633137324644/with/8608204054/].

We also got to chat a bit privately, which was of course very good fun. And he even indulged my stupid, silly, obsessive request...to pose with my Fluttershy toy and say, "Fluttershy is best pony." His response was golden, too.

Greg: I have no idea what that means.

Me: I didn't expect you to.

Greg: Nah, what I mean is, am I saying something that will get a thousand angry bronies coming after me?

Me: No, most bronies tend to agree that Fluttershy is best pony, anyway.

Unfortunately, my girlfriend's phone appears to have recorded only the first second of the line. But I still posted it to YouTube because the image is gold:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qVVtIsNeb4

Overall, my first in-person meeting with Greg Weisman proved to be everything I was hoping for it to be, and more. He's a massively cool guy who doesn't operate on any pretense; he is what he is, and what he is is a genius at writing/interpreting fiction.

It was truly an honor to spend that time with him, and I very much hope it won't be the last.

Greg Weisman, you rock (woo-hoo!). Don't let anybody tell you different. Because this kind of treatment of your fans makes me truly proud to be involved with helping out here.

Thank you for ASK GREG LIVE!

Thank you for all the wonderful shows you've brought us over the years.

And thank you for never giving up hope. I await "Rain of the Ghosts" with bated breath, and I can't wait to here the announcement when you get your next television gig.

Because it's coming. And I look forward to watching the hell out of that show, whenever it comes.

Greg responds...

Wow. Dude, do you really want to stoke my ego THAT MUCH?

Anyway, it was great meeting you too. You're contribution to Ask Greg has been invaluable.

I hope you're thinking about coming to ConVergence this July for the Gargoyles Reunion convention within a convention. More details on that should be forthcoming this month.

Response recorded on January 06, 2014

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Demona's "White Flag"

Years ago in a long ramble (http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=225), I mentioned that: "I'd like to see a music video featuring Demona to Dido's'White Flag.'"

Well, NeillGargoyle found that obscure request and posted this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNGrg5Wm12E

Pretty much exactly what I had in mind!

Thanks, Neill!

Now if someone would just do this one: "I'd like to see a music video from Goliath's POV -- but featuring Elisa -- of "Amazing". (I think that's the title. I'm not sure who the artist or band is.)"


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Kris W writes...

Hello Mr Weisman,

I just wanted to thank you for your amazing work. I really hate to see Young Justice over so soon but loved every minute of it as a huge comic fan.
I also loved Gargoyles. My mom and I used to watch it together all the time. We loved the series from start to finish. My mom died a few years back and when I really miss her, I watch Gargoyles. Even after all this time I can still remember her comments on her favorite episodes and it's very comforting to have that to fall back on. I don't think I'm explaining myself well, but thank you for giving us something we could enjoy so much together, and something to help me remember her with. I look forward to your next projects.
Kris W

Greg responds...

Kris, my condolences for the loss of your mother. And thank you for such kind words. You could hardly have paid me a nicer compliment, and I truly appreciate it.

Response recorded on December 06, 2013

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Barnabas Born writes...

An attempt at alliteration.

Alice asked "And aliens are attacking? "
"Aye." Articulated Andrew "Asia, America and Australia are annihilated."
Astounded, Alice approached an alcove as Andrew advanced.
"And?"
"Assaulted as an apparition approached." Andrew answered.
"Appearing as?" asked Alice annoyed.

"Ant's, antlers, and arms amalgamated."
"Absurd!"
"Aye, Alice. An abomination, absurd, appalling and approaching."

Angrily Alice answered, "As always Andrew, Anonymous' annoying artifice as absurd as…"
"Ain't artifice, Alice." Andrew answered, "Article's accredited and authority approved."
"Aha! All authorized article are a__" Alice added acidly "And another airhead against acknowledging actuality approves absurdity again!"

Annoyed, Andrew absconded.

As an affiliate, Andrew acquiesced an alternate angle and amusedly appraised another acclaimed article about an author annoying an audience at an auditorium, apparently articulating asinine abstractions abundantly as animatronics animated and artificially attempted an aria affronted an attendant.

"Alice's always abrogating and annulling aberrations." Andrew accounted ambulating amongst an alley, again approaching Alice's abode.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH"

Awakened and activated at Alice's anguished articulation; Andrew approached an alarming appearance and aspired. An aliens arm arrested Alice against an archway.

Attempting an assault at an abdomen as Andrew appraised, an appendage altered and abated Andrews advancing attack. Astounded at an accelerated adaptation, Andrew arsled away, aimed an armament and applied an alternate approach.

Appearing accomplished, Andrew articulated again. "Ain't artifice Alice."
Astonished Alice answered, "Well, do you freaking blame me?"

Greg responds...

Um.... okay....

(backs away slowly...)

Response recorded on August 26, 2013

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Anonymous writes...

Which fandom do you honestly appreciate the most:
1- Gargoyles fans
2- Spectacular Spider-Man fans
3- Young Justice fans
4- Greg Weisman fans

Greg responds...

See, now, the Hulk is more powerful because the madder he gets, the stronger he gets. But the Thing can still beat him if he keeps his wits about him.

Response recorded on April 16, 2013

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Masterdramon writes...

Hey Greg! Hope that you're doing well, and that the holiday season is treating/did treat (depending on when you read this) your family happily.

What follows is a paper I recently submitted to my Contemporary Political Theory class at Pomona College, interrelating several of the concepts from the book we discussed that week ("You Are Not a Gadget" by Jaron Lanier) with the notion of namelessness in traditional gargoyle culture.

My professor (unfamiliar with the show, but very intrigued when I explained it to her) really got a kick out of the piece, and I earned a more-or-less "A-" equivalent for it. But as long as I've got it sitting around, I figured you might enjoy giving it a read as well.

[NOTE: You may want to review this post you made on Ask Greg in 2004 beforehand, as it is cited frequently: http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=387].

Now, without further ado, the essay. It has been edited from the submitted version only by rearranging paragraph breaks...

The 1994 animated television series Gargoyles posits a highly intelligent species which dominated the Earth prior to human genesis and ascendance.

These gargoyles possess a unique culture which predates humanity's by a significant period, but the first on-screen depiction of the gargoyle species takes place in the 10th century, after millions of years of convergent evolution between the two cultures.

Indeed, the pilot episodes depict the essential death of one lingering component of gargoyle culture, at least for the series protagonists: that gargoyles lack personal names. This idea is first discussed in a conversation between two gargoyles and a human boy:

TOM: I'm Tom. What's your name?
GARGOYLE #1: Except for Goliath, we don't have names.
TOM: How do you tell each other apart?
GARGOYLE #1: We look different.
TOM: But what do you call each other?
GARGOYLE #2: (shrugs) Friend.

For context, "Goliath" is the leader of the clan of gargoyles to which the protagonists belong, and their liaison to the humans with whom they share an uneasy alliance; those humans felt incapable of dealing with a nameless entity, and Goliath did not bother to reject the name they selected for him.

Still, he does not use the name in communicating with his own clan until a betrayal by their human allies and a magical curse cause the protagonists to sleep as statues and then reawaken in 20th century Manhattan.

Here they meet and befriend Elisa Maza, a police detective who is both confused by and - for reasons she has trouble articulating - uncomfortable with this traditional lack of names. The following exchange takes place between Elisa and the clan's elderly mentor:

ELISA: Are you coming on the tour…uh, what do I call you, anyway?
GARGOYLE: Must you humans name everything? Nothing's real to you till you've named it, given it limits!
ELISA: It's not like that! It's just that…well, uh…things need names.
GARGOYLE: Does the sky need a name? Does the river?
ELISA: The river's called the Hudson.
GARGOYLE: (sighs) Fine, lass…then I will be 'the Hudson' as well.
ELISA: Great! Hudson it is.

From that point onward, that particular gargoyle is known as Hudson, and only Hudson.

The younger gargoyles who survived the centuries follow suit; the two who conversed with Tom become Lexington and Brooklyn, for example. And Goliath more-or-less fully accepts the moniker afforded him by the Dark Age humans.

As Gargoyles creator Greg Weisman points out, "naming is clearly addictive," and once they are established the convenience they offer makes doing away with them virtually impossible. Thus, for the Manhattan Clan of gargoyles, namelessness largely remains a thing of the past for the remainder of the series.

In "You Are Not a Gadget," Jaron Lanier describes the phenomenon experienced by these gargoyles using the term "lock-in."

As Lanier puts it, "lock-in…removes design options based on what is easiest to program, what is politically feasible, what is fashionable, or what is created by chance." Furthermore, the process "also reduces or narrows the ideas it immortalizes, by cutting away the unfathomable penumbra of meaning."

Despite originally referring to programming language, this is a perfect description of the process that "Hudson" has been subjected to in the previous scene.

Names are a method of defining identity, which necessarily must involve "giving it limits." But in traditional gargoyle culture, identity has greater meaning than that; it is amorphous, and changes with the circumstances.

The gargoyle who first made a compact with the humans at Castle Wyvern is the same gargoyle who mated three times and produced three progeny; he is the same gargoyle who fought the evil Archmage and received a wound that blinded him in one eye; he is the same gargoyle who slept for centuries and once awakened, found himself fascinated with the television show "Celebrity Hockey."

Does one name - Hudson - really encapsulate all of these aspects of his identity?

In-and-of-itself, all it signifies is that the place Hudson awoke in was modern-day New York (a cut line from the episode's script even has Elisa commenting, "Good thing we weren't facing Queens," emphasizing with humor how off-hand and esoteric the choice was).

That name was "locked-in" as the full and entire representation of the character from that point onward, solely because it was politically feasible (it makes dealing with Elisa and later human allies far more expedient), it was fashionable (every other intelligent being in 1994 New York has a name, so why not the gargoyles?), and it was created by chance (quite literally in this case, as the "Queens" quote illustrates).

And the result is that the very meaning of his identity is narrowed. He is no longer capable of being someone at a particular moment, and someone else in the next.

He is always Hudson.

There is an even greater story here, however, which Weisman's later musings have helped to illuminate. As he once observed, "Gargoyles don't seem to have a native language. They acquire human language, perhaps much the same way that they acquire names…And language, in many ways, is just sophisticated naming."

This is a compelling point. As he later notes, a different and arguably much more persuasive response that Elisa could have offered is that the river is called "the river."

Languages are systems for describing objects, concepts, actions, etc. using strict and uniform definitions, confining them to names that society calls words.

But does a name like "the sky" really fully encapsulate the meaning inherent within the depths that humans observe from below? Does it even begin to provoke a holistic understanding of its astronomical, religious, chemical, or poetic contexts?

And even more to the point, what of metaphysical concepts like "justice"? Can a single clear definition even exist for such a weighty and nebulous notion - and if not, does sticking the name "justice" to it not necessarily limit it?

Lanier certainly appears to believe so. As he conceives it, the system of symbology under which all current human languages operate is itself a lock-in; at best, a "middleman" between intent and "directly creating shared experience" that he wants to work to cut out.

His method for doing so is improvements on virtual reality, until researchers develop "the ability to morph at will, as fast as we can think."

Lanier envisions a world where the rather simplistic words "I'm hungry" will not be the only way to communicate the sensation which has brought them on - instead, he sees potential in the power of virtual reality technology to place us in the bodies of others, as a way to intimate the sensation itself.

Humanity would no longer have to be limited to extracting some piece of the concept it calls "hunger," giving it that name, and using it as code so that others who know the symbology of the English language will understand some approximation of that concept.

The concept would simply be understood, and communication would be a straightforward matter of imparting that understanding.

But perhaps there is an even better solution than this - although one that is, unfortunately, largely forgotten.

Presented with the puzzle that gargoyles are highly gregarious and intelligent by nature and yet appear to lack any notion of their own language, Weisman has mused that perhaps, long before human language evolved and became the locked-in method for communication, the gargoyle species possessed "mild psychic abilities that left them with no need to create language."

While emphasizing that he was only asserting a possibility, the communication he imagines - where it was not "words that they intuited (or transmitted or read or whatever) but emotions, maybe images or sensations" - sounds exceedingly similar to what Lanier hopes to achieve through virtual reality.

Such communication would be consistent with what audience knows about pre-human gargoyle culture, where definition and identity are situational as opposed to consistently codified.

But if that is the case, it leads to a rather lamentable conclusion. As Weisman puts it, "perhaps the very language skills that gargoyles learned from the human race dampened their psychic intuitiveness;" in other words, lock-in of a very particular method of communication (symbology) "locked-out" another method that presented communicative possibilities human technology can currently only dream of.

The initial insistence on not using personal names, then, can be considered a lingering hold-out of a bygone era where every concept was considered unlimited, and every sensation intimated in their full depth.

In dealing with nascent human cultures, gargoyles must have gradually accepted the limiting of concepts like "sky" or "river" because this made interspecies congress significantly more efficient, but they resisted the longest on the limiting of the very depths of the self.

But with the permanent instatement of "Hudson" and the rest, there does not appear to be room to return to the possibilities an unlimited identity presents. Human language has killed them.

Of course, both the gargoyle race and their culture are fantastical constructions, but that does not necessarily mean that humans cannot learn from their fictional example.

While humans do not seem to share these "mild psychic abilities" (although there are some who would vehemently disagree with that statement) that Weisman hypothesizes, that there are methods of sensation and communication which precede language skills is clearly documented.

As with gargoyles, members of the species Homo sapiens did exist well before the development of the earliest known language, and while current understanding of those early cultures is limited at best, there is also a much more immediate example to turn to.

Newborns spend a few years before they learn to define the world around them in the code of words - the sun is an experience to them long before the strictly defined, limiting name of "the sun" is ever applied to it.

The depths of what could be learned from observing children raised without learning language skills, interpreting sensations and intimating them to others via methods of their own device, are boundless; of course, the enormous ethical travesty presented by such experiments means they are not a viable avenue for inquiry.

So instead, humans turn to fiction - attempting to realize through others what that they have long since lost, and yearn to find again.

Greg Weisman has often described gargoyle culture, and pre-human gargoyle culture specifically, as something of a wish fulfillment for him. "I'm such a human," he laments with a written-out sigh, "But I aspire to gargoylosity."

Well, if the virtual reality morphing that so excites Jaron Lanier can indeed allow humans to experience sensation as a pre-human gargoyle (or a pre-language human, or a baby, or even a cephalopod) did/does - if it has the potential to turn the clock back as well as forward, and show what it is like for things simply to be, without the cumbersome and restrictive middleman of naming them - then perhaps that is an aspiration that more humans should share.

Greg responds...

At first, when you mentioned 'You Are Not a Gadget', I couldn't help thinking the follow-up statement would be 'You Are a Chip, a Dale or a Monterey Jack'. Talk about lock-in.

Anyway, is it immodest to say that your essay warmed my heart? I enjoyed reading it. And I found it quite insightful. I do believe my own thinking has evolved since I wrote that ramble on gargoyles' latent psychic abilities. My thinking now is less psychic and more intuitive based on sensory clues.

But it doesn't change my positive response to your thesis. And it also speaks to one of my goals - perhaps even needs (NEEDS) - as a writer. Using words, multiple, multiple words, in an attempt to reach beyond the lock-in that comes with words like river or sun or Hudson or, most especially, Greg. The original version of Hudson's line was something like: 'Nothing is real to you until you've named it, defined it, given it limits.' More words to more fully illustrate the concept. And often in my writing I find myself trying to paint pictures with more and more words in an almost poetic sense. That verbosity is often counterproductive when writing dialogue. But I LIKE to think it lends - even when cut back and cut down - a certain depth to the dialogue. But it's a constant push and pull in my writing between trying to find just the one right word and using many, many to paint that fuller picture.

Response recorded on December 30, 2012

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Tyler Reznik writes...

Hello once again, Mr. Weisman.
Fully expecting it to be months before you get to this question, but patience is a virtue, so...
1) Is the Brain gay? I suspect that you may not answer this one, but nothing ventured, nothing gained, so I thought I'd ask.
2) How did the Brain become a disembodied... well, brain?
3) Two previous posts had you give Wonder Woman's age as 90, then 85. Was the difference because you'd already started working on the post-timeskip timeline?
4) For your production bible, do you assign real names to characters who traditionally lack them (Bane, the Joker, the Brain, etc.)?
5) How does the Light recruit supervillains to work for them (apart from the League of Shadows and the member's own forces)?
Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, and thank you for Gargoyles, a series I greatly enjoyed when I was younger (I've had the misfortune of not seeing an episode in several years). It meant a great deal to me, and helped inspire my interest in storytelling and Shakespeare (the former more than the latter, but Gargoyles introduced me to the Bard's work). It is very much appreciated, and I will remember Gargoyles for a very long time indeed. Have a good day, sir.

Greg responds...

1. He's still in the canister.

2. See Young Justice issue #19.

3. I dunno. The timeline is very long, and sometimes I misread it.

4. Generally, no. But I do - with the help of loremaster John Wells - reach back to find any name that might exist in the DCU canon.

5. It's all case-by-case.

Response recorded on September 20, 2012

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J&M writes...

Heya Greg! I know your focus has been on Young Justice lately (as it should be) but hopefully you won’t mind kicking it a little old-school and reading fans gush about Gargoyles. This is more of a ramble than a question but hopefully you won’t mind.

I have a good friend that lives in another state that is fairly arduous driving distance away so we only see each other in person every couple months. Naturally one of our main ways of staying in touch is talking via IM. And one thing we do is choose shows one of us has never seen (mostly her, but occasionally me) and watch episodes at the same time we talk to each other, so we’re watching ‘together’ even if we’re not actually together. We actually have a standing list of things we want to go through this way. And a short while ago my friend chose to start Gargoyles. We blew through all five parts of Awakening in one session and I thought you might get a kick out of seeing some choice bits of our conversation. (And yes my friend did give permission for me to share this with you.) There’s going to be more of what she has to say than me because I feel like reading me responding to her reactions with, “Why yes that IS awesome and part of the reason I love this show” would get old after awhile. The ‘choice bits’ are still pretty long, but hopefully you won’t mind too terribly.

Quick background. We are both of the female persuasion. I’m 24 and have a B.A. in English and am going back to school in the fall for a Library Science degree. She’s 20 and a Creative Writing major at a University that feels there is very clear divide between ’literature’ and ’entertainment’ and that all genre fiction falls into the latter category by default.

Needless to say, since both of us are fans of Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Animation…we disagree with that. A lot.

I’m going slightly out of order, starting with her reaction to seeing the theme song before getting into the actual episode stuff. I’ll use [] to indicate me making a comment or an edit after the fact. ‘J’ indicates my comments. ‘M’ is my friend.

J
Oh and THEME SONG OF EPICNESS
M
Preeeeetty
J
Awesome visuals are awesome
M
Hey wait a minute
I've totally heard this before
J
The interwebs loves Gargoyles
M
I've never seen the visuals to the theme song though
Heeeeee
J
So you probably have
M
As the interwebs should
J
I KNOW RIGHT!!??
M
IT'S EPIC

[Start of Episode 1]

J
What do you know about Gargoyles already?
M
There are charries named Puck and Oberon
That's all I know

[First battle between Vikings and Gargoyles]

M
Ooooh that was really good animation
J
1994
Damn straight
[Meaning that it‘s still impressive now, and considering that it‘s from 1994, is even more-so]

[The Banquet]

M
Hi hot lady
Hi fabulous Pegasus-like man

[Pegasus is a villain from season 1 of Yu-Gi-Oh with long white hair and a…distinctive personality]

M
Hey
I know your voice
Hi Jeff Bennet?

[Re Demona and Goliath‘s conversation with the Captain of the Guard after leaving the Banquet]

M
Redhead needs a haircut
I really like their relationship though so far
It seems rooted in a mutual respect
M
WHY AREN'T RELATIONSHIPS IN TV LIKE THIS ANYMORE
YES
M
THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO DO
M
THANK YOU GREG WEISMAN
M
THIS IS HOW RELATIONSHIPS IN TV SHOULD WORK

[Goliath and Hudson falling into the Vikings trap]
M
Hi horsies!
Oooooh
Uh oh
Raaawwwwr
Ohhhhh
I see
They turn to stone in the sun
J
Yep.
And at night they're awake
M
That was a good bit of exposition
I just got back from seeing Puss in Boots yesterday and while it was good there was a *ton* of unnecessary exposition in dialogue
Ummmmmm

[The start of the Wyvern Massacre with the Hakon and the Captain arguing over smashing the Gargoyles]

M
Oh dear
Oh dear
Hello high [conflict]
NO
DON'T DO IT
DON'T
NO
YOU DIDN'T!
NO!
M
Holy [censored]
I feel bad
And I don't even know who that guy is
That gargoyle rather
[J] why didn't I watch this show as a kid?

[Episode 2]

M
I love the Magus
J
Can I marry Keith David's voice?
M
NO
GET IN LINE

M
Maaaguuuus
I love you already
J
"He's going to slay her!"
J
Like Buffy
M
Heeeeee
Wait is she really dead?
GO MAGUS!
J
*is behind you*
M
"You are the betrayer?"
"All of my kind are dead"
M
"YOU LYING SCUM!"
Uh o
DON'T
FALL OFF
NO
Oh okay
Awwww Goliath
Uh oh
"What sorcery is this?"
M
Can I marry the Magus?
J
Get in line :P
M
Oooooh nice twist

[1994]

M
Pretty grass
Hello long time in the future?
long time passed*
Who is this guy and when can I [censored] him?
And his tech guy?
J
Xanatos is dark hair and beard
Blonde glasses is Owen
And again get in line :P
M
Heeeeeeeeee
DAMN
J
"Pay a man enough and he'll walk barefoot into hell."
M
He has a HELICOPTER
M
I want him
He just needs to shave and clip the ponytail
J
I think the goatee and ponytail are sexy. So clearly I love him more than you do and should have him.
M
Heeeeeeeeeeeeee
I'll take his tech guy happily
J
Yeah you can't have him either :P
M
Awwwwww
No fair
J says
You're about eighteen years too late :P
M
Heeeeeee
M
WAIT
Do we get to see the Magus anymore?
J
I can't tell you :P
No spoilers remember
M
Heeeeeee
Because if I don't I will cry
M
This may be an off guess but are any of the present-charries descended from the past-charries?
But you can't answer that either
J
No spoilers LOL
This is fuuuun
M
:P
Seeing all my wild guesses

M
Ooooh
I love Xan
J
I know you do.
M
This show has been really good about engaging right from the pilot
So far it hasn't really been talk-heavy

[Episode 3]

M
Owen is totally Magus
J
I think they're both voiced by Jeff Bennet
M
They're totally related in some way

J
Elisa is quipping a la Buffy before Buffy
M
But Goliiath wil save her
I love the Gargoyles
It's a nice deviation from what you'd expect
J
How so?
M
They're very respectful
M
And not all grrrrr
They have morals and principles they go by and they're fairly peaceful

M
Heeeee hundreds of spells
On a floppy
M
My 1TB talisman can kick its ass
M
I really really like this show so far
M
AND IS THAT THE REDHEAD LADY?
I saw poof
I'm so confused
M
But it's *really* hard for me to get into most shows and I'm into this one
Honestly I didn't think I would.
J
Am I not awesome at showing you things you'd like?
M
I mean I didn’t think I'd hate it
Heeeeeee
You aaare

M
Detective lady is wearing mom jeans
M
I really like that concept
J
Which concept?
M
Of not having names for things
M
And they utilize a large cast very well by having a few characters around at a time and having their different reactions ot the same world
M
We get expositoon that way and viewers aren't bogged down or feel the need to spread their interest too thin
Just "oh hey going on a NY adventure"

[When the Trio fight off the gang after saving Brendan and Margot]

M
Oooh interesting
That the guys react with fear initially and then charge
This show is really well-crafted
M
I mean you could just classify this as 'low-brow kids' entertainment' but it's really more than that
It's a beautiful work of art and storytelling that's fun and fanciful
J
Exactly.
J
There's so much work put into it and it shows.
M
And it has layered, deep conflict
Oh yes
J
IMO it's art
M
It's wonderful
Yes.
Exactly.
Very good, show!
Tranqs take a while to take effect

M
But yeah [censored] 'high art.' This is art
J
It's got all the complexity of a Shakespearean drama. It just happens to be animated and feature fantastic elements.
M
Oh yeah. I agree 100%

[Episode 4]

M
This show handles exposition beautifully
J
It does
Seriously Greg Weisman is the MASTER of set-up and payoff.
M
It really works.
M
THIS IS WHAT I SHOULD BE LEARNING IN FICTION CLASS
DARNIT

[Re Elisa hiding from the goons]

M
Uhhhhho oh
Way to make the tension rise
That's beautiful
M
THAT'S HOW YOU DO PACING FICTION CLASS
M
I rather like the music for this show too
M
I'm still kind of enamored by the whole show
It does action sequences very well too
M
Greg Weisman is incredibly talented and I bet my fiction prof would hate his guts
J
Oh yeah. The physicality is great. Not overdone and very realistic.

[Re Demona and Goliath‘s reunion]
M
That's an evil smile
I don't like that
Awwww wing hug
M
That's so BEAUTIFUL
SEEE LITERARY FICTION?
SEE WHAT YOU CAN DO?
M
SEE THAT THIS IS NOT BULL[CRAP]?
J
I totally wrote a paper for a Shakespeare course that involved Gargoyles. I got an A in that class. :)
M
You are amazing

J
They said KILL
M
THEY DID
J
Whooooo!

[Episode 5]

J
Do not mess with old guys and dogs
Especially if they're Gargoyles
M
Hee
J
And hi G-rated version of Lethal Weapon line
M
TRAAAIN
M
And that is why you back up your files

[Re the Blimp being on fire and falling]

J
And that would not be a scene post 9-11
M
No it would not
J
I think there'd be a lot less stuff blowing up in general
M
Yeah

[Again re Demona and Goliath]
M
THIS NEEDS TO BE THE MODEL FOR FICTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS
GOD WHY IS THIS SO AMAZING
M
Awwwww Goliiiiath

J
Look at Lexington his laptop
M
Heeeeeeee
J
That has like 250 MB memory LOL
J
Hi Demona
You want to marry her too yes?
M
No
J
Really?
M
I don't like her hair :P
*is shallow*
J
Aside from the hair :P
M
Yes
J
I kneeeeeew it
You villain sluuuuut
M
I aaaaaaam
I can't heeeelp it
J
Heh Chinese food
J says
HEEeeeeGiants
GO GIANTS!
M says
That's a funny way to spell Patriots Jess

[This was soon after the Super-Bowl. She‘s based in New England and I’m from New York.]

J
:P
And that's it
Final thoughts?
M
GAHHHHHHHH
THIS IS WHAT ART IS SUPPOSED TO BE
M
THIS IS WHAT ENTERTAINMENT SHOULD STRIVE TO BE
M
SCREW THAT HIGH ART CRAP
J
Exactly. I have taught you well young Padawan.
M
*bows*

Hopefully that put a smile on your face. We will be watching the rest of Gargoyles, and eventually W.I.T.C.H, Spectacular Spidey, and Young Justice.

I did want to ask, would you be interested in reading more of what we say as we watch?

Subsequent conversation snippets will probably be shorter, but I understand you’re very busy and that Ask Greg can get backlogged. I’d only want to continue sending this kind of ramble if it’s something that you would enjoy reading, as a small way to pay you back for the excellent entertainment you provide. I’d never want it to be a chore or something you feel you have to slog through.

So yeah. Hope you enjoyed! Please continue making awesome shows so we can keep watching. :)

Greg responds...

I would be interested - though even admitting that fact makes me sound conceited. It's like, "Hey, post praise!" But basically, what I mean to say is, "Hey, post praise!"

But of course, in the interest of accuracy, I should point out that in your responses to her you really give all the credit to me, and that's, well, silly. Michael Reaves wrote all five scripts that you were praising. Frank Paur supervised all the storyboards and editing. (And those two talented guys are just the TIP of the Gargoyles iceberg.) I'm not saying I didn't contribute. I like to think I contributed a lot to both script and picture, but it was NEVER a one man show.

Response recorded on April 28, 2012

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Briget writes...

Hi there! This isn't actually a question, but it's the only way I saw of contacting Greg. I just wanted to say thank you for creating Gargoyles and thank you for making such a rich, elaborate show. Your cartoon formed a big chunk of my childhood, and the storytelling introduced me to so many different aspects of the world of fantasy. It was my favorite thing to watch when I was little. I hope this gets passed along and you get to see it. This show just means a lot to me.

Greg responds...

Thank you for the kind words, Briget. It meant a lot to me to. Still does.

Response recorded on April 18, 2012

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Green Lantern's Nightlight writes...

I've mistakenly put typos in my name for my last two questions now & I'm terribly sorry for that especially since you put yourself out to answer all of our questions.

Greg responds...

Don't worry about it.

Response recorded on February 13, 2012

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Lurker writes...

As of writing this, it is the 17th anniversary of Gargoyles. Made a comment in the room but wanted to share here:

"Sorry about the double, I saw vinnie took two spots and decided THIS was a countdown I wanted to be a part of. My countdown number is especially fitting, as I was 10 when Gargoyles premiered.

17 years. My God. I remember seeing the preview commercial once or twice. Running home after school, literally running, so I could catch the premier and every episode thereafter. Enough to make me feel a little choked-up. Nearly getting a lump in the back of my throat.

Phoenician> I do believe I will join you in watching one episode of awakening everyday [this week]. It must be providence. I just received my season one back from a friend, to whom I lent my seasons so she could show her son.

She said that at first, he was watching the episodes alone. After a while, she remembered why she liked the show so much and they now watch them together. They are now somewhere in season 2.

It's nearly 1 AM. I believe I will put in the DVD, raise a toast, and enjoy the beginning chapter of a phenomenal series.

In the already spoken words of Vinnie, "And away we go on with the show."
Lurker - [!)]"

Greg, the show is something that has always stuck with me, as it has many others. In case you didnt know ;) I just wanted to thank you for continuing to work on the show, in the sense that you have never given up on it. Thank you for allowing fans to interact with you and ask you various things. Thank you for the contributions to my childhood and all the wonderful memories.

Greg responds...

You're very welcome. And thanks to all the Gargoyles fans who have kept the faith and stuck with me and the show for all these years.

Response recorded on January 30, 2012

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Harlan Phoenix writes...

Less a question, more of a comment. While visiting one of my dearest friends over in Long Island over the summer, one of the things we did together was watch Gargoyles (as part of a little trade of interests-her offering was showing me a documentary on the legacy and fandom of the Rock-a-Fire Explosion series of animatronics, which was fairly interesting and quite enjoyable in its own right). As we've mostly communicated online for our 9 or so year friendship, doing something like this isn't a common thing. Especially considering we've only been in person together for two visits, each lasting about a week.

I'm happy to report that after a viewing of The Mirror, Double Jeopardy, and Eye of the Beholder, she became quite fond of the series and has expressed interesting in indulging further. I was beyond happy that she did, as being able to share Gargoyles with her joins the rest of that week as one of many memories I feel lucky to have.

Thought you'd like to know.

Greg responds...

That's great. Thanks.

Response recorded on October 31, 2011

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Dan writes...

Not a question, more something you might like: http://nebezial.deviantart.com/art/gargoyles-goliath-3d-fun-200441030?q=sort%3Atime%20gallery%3Anebezial&qo=1

Greg responds...

It's great that folks are still doing fanart of the characters.

Response recorded on July 28, 2011

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Ozaline writes...

Not a question this time, just a comment I want to apologize I didn't think they'd send you both vesions of my initial questions cause I thought the first one was too leading and the second one was more civil.

I am still watching the series and not making too many judgements yet, my point wasn't to come off like I was attacking I was just wondering why you didn't do some things, you've got a good track record so I'm hoping things turn out.

I apologize if it seemed like I was attacking.

Greg responds...

Don't sweat it. I apologize if my response(s) got snippy.

Response recorded on March 17, 2011

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charles.wonsey writes...

also i know since i did not write a question it wont get posted but to the person that sends this to greg please let him get this. its real important to me. thank you again

Greg responds...

Everything comes to me, unless it breaks one of the rules. Doesn't have to be a question.

Response recorded on February 09, 2011

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Charles. wonsey writes...

Hello greg my name is charles and im currently in the navy. in about 4 months i will be a film student and i was interested in producing one of your works. i have a strong passion for film and i eat breath and sleep it. with that being said the school said i should contact you and maybe get to know you. so this is the only way i know that what i have to say will reach you. but i am very serious about my passion and when i finish school i have ideas of what i want to produce as far as film goes. so if you can please email me. im gonna put my email so you can contact me so i can have a better way to contact you. also the school i will be attending is full sail university. my email is charles.wonsey@med.navy.mil so i hope this reaches you . thank you for your time.

Greg responds...

Charles,

I'm afraid I have a policy not to contact folks directly. It's a fairness thing. If I did it for one, I'd have to do it for all, and that's just not practical.

Happy to answer your questions and/or communicate here at ASK GREG though.

Good luck in your last few months in the Navy and at film school.

Response recorded on February 09, 2011

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Jess writes...

Heya Greg! This isn't really a question. Rather a resounding "THANK YOU" for pretty much all of the work you've done over the years. Right now a few of my fandoms that are still on-going have come out with new installments that have, well, been disappointing me. I'm not going to name names because I don't want to put you in the position of having to bash a fellow professional's work and there's no guarantee you're familiar with the specific ones I'm speaking of anyway.

But to me it feels like the writer(s) have been failing, not because they're not talented, but rather because a) When they began their projects they failed to think far-forwardly to where they wanted their stories to go once the initial conflicts they set up have run their course. And B) Instead of letting plot-lines flow from characters that are complex and change over time, they fall back on comfortable clichés, simple black-and-white conflicts, and cookie-cutter romance. To put it simply, when given the opportunity they take the 'easy' dramatic choices.

Seeing this happen over and over has made me much more appreciative of the insane amount of world-building and planning that you must put into the things you undertake, and your skill as a storyteller to dig into the well of timeless archetypes and situations and do things that are new and exciting with them.

For me it's a relief to know that when Young Justice premieres as a series (I did see the pilot movie and loved it) I'll have something where I can sit down and be entertained, and trust that the people behind it are doing everything they can to ensure that it's the best it can possibly be. And even if at the end it hasn't matched my vision for what it could have been, I know it will definitely be just as good, and most likely a whole lot better. So, in conclusion: Thanks for being awesome! Please keep it up. :)

Greg responds...

Thanks for the kind words. One strives for awesomeness... and settles for "Hey, we did our best."

Response recorded on January 14, 2011

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Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

I just re-read The Moorchild by Eloise McGraw. It's a book I mentioned in a much earlier question to you, one about a changeling girl who is half human and half fae, and the weirdness and difficulty she has fitting in with either because she is different from both species. (It's even set in medieval Scotland.) It prompted me to ask you how different or similar, emotionally and psychologically, the Third Race are to humans, because the depiction in this book is of quite inhuman fae who really can't relate to humans. You have consistently answered that the Third Race are quite similar to humans, emotionally and psychologically -- that the main difference is that of great power without great responsibility, of never growing old or having to work, and of being able to look however they want on a whim. You've even said that a human could imagine what it is like to be such a being by imagining what life for one of us would be like with those benefits.

Reading The Moorchild again got me to wondering about what it is like growing up as a hybrid (in a family of non-hybrids), or as a non-hybrid changeling raised by another species, in the Gargoyles universe. The personality differences don't seem nearly as pronounced between humans and Third Race as they are between humans and fae in The Moorchild, so it seems like fewer problems should arise, although physically there seems to be quite a lot of difference between mortals and the Children even when they look human. Clearly a half-mortal child like Fox can grow up without ever figuring it out, or learning magic. But did she ever feel different from the mortal children around her? Did other humans notice anything different about her? Or was there nothing really out of the ordinary, no noticeable outward signs of her magical heritage?

And what about Morgan le Fay, who according to what you have revealed is a purely Third Race changeling. Was it strange for her to grow up among humans? I assume she looked human, but did she feel human, or did she feel different from those around her? Did she seem unusual to her human parents and siblings, or did they never really notice anything out of the ordinary, personality-wise or physically? Did she just seem like a regular human being to them?

As for Nimue, well, she can't have helped but notice she was different, not having the same nearly-effortless magical abilities and shapechanging that the Third Race have. That and not being made of pure magic, along with whatever that entails.

I imagine a slightly different dynamic for the Avalon Clan, since there was no human society around them and they actually outnumbered their foster parents 11-to-1, but I'm sure that was at least somewhat weird, especially for the humans.

Greg responds...

I guess if the question is: "Did they feel different?" then the answer is a resounding "YES!". Because, I'm pretty sure I'm not a magical hybrid and I felt different. Doesn't everyone?

Response recorded on December 22, 2010

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Greg Bishansky writes...

I originally wrote this for my blog, and decided to paste it in here.

Young Justice

Well, what do you know? This is my one hundredth entry. Appropriate that it is about Greg Weisman's newest TV series.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a huge fan of Greg Weisman's work. "Gargoyles" is my all time favorite TV series; I adored "The Spectacular Spider-Man;" I was quite fond of the second season of "W.I.T.C.H.;" and the freelance scripts he wrote for shows like "Men In Black" and "Buzz Lightyear of Star Command" were always fun.

Okay, I really hated "Max Steel" and couldn't watch more than one episode, but that show had all sorts of behind the scenes problems that were not his fault. And sadly, "Roughnecks: Star Ship Troopers Chronicles" never aired in my area, so I've never really seen it. But, overall, Greg Weisman is responsible for high quality television. So, I was greatly anticipating his newest series, "Young Justice."

"Young Justice" is loosely based on a DC Comics title by the same name, but draws from many other sources. It focuses on a group of sidekicks (but don't call them that) who band together to become a covert ops team connected to the Justice League. The stars of the show are Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Superboy, Miss Martian, and Artemis. Although, we have yet to meet Artemis and only briefly met Miss Martian.

The theme of the first season is "secrets and lies" and this is very apparent within the pilot already. The Justice League is keeping secrets from the members of Young Justice... which was enough to piss off Speedy, and get him to storm off. And Project Cadmus was keeping secrets from the rest of the world.

I love a good mystery, and we've got one set up with a shadowy organization called The Light, who were behind Project Cadmus. Although, I am somewhat reminded of the Illuminati from "Gargoyles" (Hmm... Light - illuminated - Illuminati) and the Council of Thirteen of the Guild of Calamitous Intent in "The Venture Bros." although, I highly doubt Davie Bowie is L-1.

The writing and dialogue are very sharp, and considering the pilot was penned by Mr. Weisman himself, that was to be expected. The animation is very strong, and I kept wondering what their budget was, because it looks great. The voice acting was also phenomenal, which is to be expected from any series voice directed by Jamie Thomason.

This series has just about everything going for it, and already, in my mind, blew the competition out of the water. Yes, I enjoy "The Avengers - Earth's Mightiest Heroes" quite a bit, but the quality of that show just doesn't compare to the quality of "Young Justice." The funny thing about that is that outside of Batman, and some Vertigo comics, I have no attachment to DC Comics at all. I've always been a Marvel reader. But Marvel has never had animated series as good as DC's, with the exception of "The Spectacular Spider-Man" which was just as great as "Batman the Animated Series." But then, look at who the mastermind behind Spidey was.

I give the pilot of "Young Justice" a solid five stars. It also left me intrigued enough to come back for more when the series really gets going in January.

Greg responds...

Glad you liked it!

Response recorded on December 21, 2010

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Todd Jensen writes...

Another comment, rather than a question. I've mentioned before about how well Goliath's statement in "M.I.A.", "Human problems become gargoyle problems" had been borne out so often in the series (especially when we saw how the struggles over the Scottish throne between 971 to 1057 - definitely a human problem - affected the gargoyles in Scotland, not to mention the Quarrymen being ultimately about a human unwilling to face his responsibility for seriously injuring his brother). Recently it occurred to me that the Humility Spell, though not actually a *problem* for the gargoyles (except maybe the occasion when it prevented Brooklyn from recovering Goliath's half of the Phoenix Gate in 997), is also an example of this at work.

We know from your statements (canon-in-training, of course) that the Humility Spell stemmed from Caesar Augustus' wish to improve the morals of the early Roman Empire, which extended to his disapproval of gargoyles awakening in the nude because their clothes were torn apart with their stone skin shells at nightfall. Thus, it's the result of another human problem which came to affect gargoyles worldwide (even gargoyle clans that presumably never even suspected that the Roman Empire existed).

Greg responds...

That's one way to look at it, certainly.

Response recorded on November 19, 2010

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Trevor Doyle writes...

Hello Greg

I just want to say thank you for creating such a wonderful world. Filled with complex, multi layered characters. I am nearly twenty three now, but I can still remember watching the premier of episode one just two days after my seventh birthday. The show definitely affected my childhood both conscioussly and subconsciously. Anyway I digress. I recently learned about the annual Gargoyles Gathering. I was disappointed to find out that it has been cancelled. So my question is why it was cancelled, and if there is any chance that it will start up again in the future?

-Trevor Doyle

Greg responds...

Check the archives.

Nothing stops fans from starting up a new or another Gargoyles convention. But I'd read the archives carefully before I tried. Keep in mind, I'm always happy to attend. But I don't want to see fans go into debt just so that I can have a fun weekend.

Response recorded on November 09, 2010


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