Dan writes...

hey greig,
I wouldn't know were this would go but I think it's more of a one on one question i guess. I've been alot of gargoyle myths and legends lately and rumors about gargoyles actually living on earth. I was wondering if you actually believed the legends, myths, and rumors? That there might have been gargoyles here thousands of years ago?

Steven L writes...

Hey,
I've asked a few questions now (kinda had to warm myself up) so I thought I might give a little background, especially considering that the ability to post is back.
My first introduction to Gargoyles was from a number of ads in Marvel comic books back in '94. Seeing as I live in Australia, it took us a while to get the series, but when we did, I managed to watch it every Saturday morning (which is quite a feat for me, considering I'm not a morning person, and never have been).
At the end of the first season, I never saw Gargoyles on Saturday morning television again. Not sure if it was because whatever channel it was on stopped broadcasting it, or because I stopped getting up early to watch cartoons. In any case, all I had was a vague memory of the show, and that I liked it at the time.
Flash forward to about a year or so ago, and Gargoyles is on the Disney Channel on cable, seven nights a week. I'd managed to learn a bit about it from the internet, and I gave it another shot. I was addicted. High production values, strong characters and imaginative story-lines. What really sucked me in was "City of Stone". I found it amazing that "Macbeth" had been used not only as source material, but that the character himself was a recurring one in what was otherwise a kid's cartoon.
So I'd really like to thank you for creating such an inspirational and imaginitive show, and say how cool it is that you afford the fans this oppurtunity to pick your brains, as it were.
I might have lost out on the show when I was a kid, but I've gotten it back in spades as...well...legally I qualify as an "adult", but the term is debatable ; )
In any case, thank you.
~A fan

Josh Wurzel writes...

Monday:

It's all over! NOOOOOOOOO! I have to say, the past four days were probably
the highlight of my entire summer. Never have I had so much fun with people I
barely knew. I made some great friends in Greg X, Revel, Mara, Aaron, Dreamie,
and Winterwolf, and met a whole bunch of people, and even (according to Jannie)
picked up a fan club.

I have only ONE complaint about the ENTIRE gathering! Yes, just one. And its
something that can easily be fixed and would cost NOTHING to fix! The name
tags! Most of us meet over the internet, and few have any idea what the other
people look like. The name tags should have our Internet handle/callsign/nickname
in LARGE letters at the TOP of the badge, with the real name in smaller letters
underneath, with the picture/artwork taking up the bottom. In other words, reverse the ratio of name space to art space on
the badge. I should be able to see someone's nickname on their badge from more than 2 feet away. It was a little awkward
feeling like I was staring at everyone's chest to see their name. "I'm reading your badge, really!"

Gathering staff? What do you guys think about that?

I got to gathering late today, as I really didn't care much about the lectures that were happening. I picked up the artwork I
bid on and watched the closing ceremonies, which was basically a brief thank-you by Greg Weisman.

After that six of us (me, aaron, mara, dreamie, winter, and warpy) piled into Wolf's rented convertible and went for lunch
at a chinese restaurant my family likes. Everyone was happy, which is good because i'd have been really embarassed if
they relied on me to be their guide and disappointed them. After lunch we drove back to the con hotel and dropped off
Warpy so he could catch a shuttle. Then we left again to find a movie theater...the first one wasn't playing the movie we
wanted to see, so we headed to my house and hung out for a while until about 7, when Evolution was playing at a nearby
theater.

During the interim at my house, Aaron and crew (esp. aaron) became very buddy-buddy with my little bro. The six of us
(including my little bro) were talking up a storm in the kitchen. How we managed to keep it at his level is amazing to me,
considering the collection of gutterminds present. He'll start posting in here soon, as soon as I set up his new machine.
He's very excited. Now, keep in mind, he's 13, so try to stay PG-13 with him 8-). When he asks what yaoi is, don't tell
him 8-).

Seeing as I was a total 5th wheel (literally, as I was with 2 couples), I selected a theater with massive love-seat style
stadium seating for my friends. The armrests move back, big comfy chairs, you get the idea. After the movie, I insisted
that they drop me off and head back to the con hotel before I got violently ill. Being a confirmed bachelor for life definitely
has its advantages, but there's always that yucky feeling I get when I see sappiness among couples.

So that pretty much concluded my gathering experience. It was a blast, and as of today I'm actually considering GOING to
Virgina, if I can pull it off (doubtful, but who knows!?).

To Revel, Mara, Aaron, Dreamie, Winterwolf, Jannie, and GXB: You guys made my gathering infinitely valuable, and its
an experience I'll treasure forever. If any of you are in my neck of the woods (although I'd not call either of the concrete
jungles I inhabit "the woods"), look me up: you've got a place to stay. ::fake sobs:: I love you guys ;-). Oh, and I'd really
like at least one of you guys to post your view of events today, as I'd like to see it from the tourists point of view. 8-)

Sadly, the people I went to the movie with know where I live and they've seen where I sleep (good luck finding your way
back, though. Buwahahaha!). Now I'll have to kill them. ;-)

The pictures, greg, are posted at www.kicktothenuts.com/gathering

Thanks, Greg.

Josh Wurzel writes...

Sunday:

So much went on today. There was a big Q&A with some of the voice talent,
including Goliath, Brooklyn/Owen/Magus, Lex, Obsidiana, and Hyena (i'm using
character names instead of real names b/c quite frankly I don't care and most
people won't recognize the names). There was an auction of garg stuff, one cell
went for $420, and some artists bible went for $300. I was part of a pool on a
Carl Johnson Garg Music CD that went for $200.

Anyone interested in borrowing money: talk to Aaron. I swear, that guy has more
money than god. I watched him outbid people just for fun.

A bunch of original artwork was displayed, I took pictures and they will be
available for download as soon as I get them off my camera and onto the internet.

Saved $53 by walking down the road to Subway instead of staying for the Banquet. I'm told all I missed was Crispin (sp?)
kissing Thom Adcox.

The costume contest was...interesting. My personal favorite was Aaron and Shinigami, who dressed up as Fox and David,
RESPECTIVELY. They won the Gorebash cross-dressing award. Best couple award went to Thom and Crispin. Dreamie
and Winterwolf did this cute commando thing where they hijacked Thom and demanded his boxers, leading Thom to drop
his pants in the middle of the dance floor. Thom dropped trou again while dancing later. Greg Weissman made numerous
comments about "any excuse to take your pants off, huh Thom!?"

I didn't get anything signed because, quite frankly, the only stuff that goes up in value when signed is sports memorabilia. I
mean, who outside the fandom knows who Greg Weissman is?!

I got some great pictures of CR members and other stuff, also to be posted soon.

Josh Wurzel writes...

Saturday:

Another great day at the Gathering.

Lets see, what'd I do today. Well I went to a bunch of different seminars about
writing, storyboarding, etc. Saw the radio play, which was SOOOO funny. Greg
revealed that the second episode after "The Journey" was to be a 22-minute porn
scene between Goliath and Elisa. Spent some time watching "Best of Gargoyles",
and a bunch of time in the art room hanging out with other TGS CR members.

A special apology to Jannie and Denis, who I left out of my list of people I met
yesterday (aka the list of people I strongly suspect exist).

Oh, and I've confirmed the existence of Todd Jensen. Although he doesn't APPEAR to be a cat, his conversational skills
make me wonder if he's a cat in a human costume.

Spent a large chunk of the day in just blabbing with Warpy, Aaron, Mara, Lynati, Dreamie, and Winterwolf (who, in case
you haven't figured out, is Dreamie's other half - I think), Revel, and GXB. Its a lot of fun hanging out with CR people, as
we all know a bit about each other's history and personalities, its not at all like meeting completely new people.

I'm finding out that I've pissed off a lot of people unintentionally. I mean, it probably seemed provoking, but since I don't
remember doing it, I obviously wasn't being malicious. I remember that kind of stuff. So that said, an apology to Jennifer
Anderson (sp?). Its quite interesting being introduced to someone and having them say "can I kick your ass now?"

Josh Wurzel writes...

I see you were looking for gathering essays. Since Aaron posted his, I thought I'd follow suit. These were posted in the TGS CR.

Friday:

Greg X and Revel say: NEENEER NEENEER NEEEEEENER! WE'RE AT
GATHERING AND YOU'RE NOT!!!

Everyone else says: Does anyone have a computer?

Gathering rocks. Loving every minute of it. The following people are now on my
list of those I STRONGLY suspect exist: Winterwolf, Dreamie, Dreamie's
Boyfriend (much to everyone's chagrin, though I discovered today that I could
care less), Revel, Greg X, Lynati, Warpmind, Christine, Tim, Becca, Lexy, Greg
Weisman, Thom Adcox, Coyote, Ravyn, Daniel Johnson, Aaron, Mara,
Guandalug, Patrick Toman, Kathy, CrzyDemona

Cute chicks: Okay, I'm an california boy, so you can imagine my standards are pretty high/picky. So you can imagine I
don't think there are any "Perfect 10's" at the Gathering. As it is, there are a few cuties. They are: Sorow, Dreamie, Ylla
(sp?). Just so you guys who aren't there know that I'm looking. Pictures to be posted soon.

The following people MAY exist: SJ, Robby, Gside, DPH. I suspect that they aren't at Gathering because they really are
someone else who's already there (robby-aaron, sj-me, etc).

Its really cool meeting all these people in real life, some of them are even cool in real life. But I have to say, I've been from
one end of California to the other. I've been to Santa Monica, West LA, and Berkeley. I've seen a lot of weird stuff. But
I've never seen a freak show quite like the Gathering crew, and I'm a weekly attendee of the rocky horror picture show.
That says a lot.

Greg Weisman showed us a sketch for his "bad guys" series, which was pretty funny, and he also showed us preliminary
story arcs for New Olympians and Dark Ages. Too bad he never got to make any of this stuff. If I were king...

I went to a panel group that included Christine and Mara, and learned a few tips for improving my fic...it may see the
black of the fic archive yet.

Then we MiSTed the gargoyles eps "The Gathering", where I demonstrated to the 20 people in attendance that I do, in
fact, have quite the guttermind ("The Puck has played many roles, but never that of straight man" "Yes, puck, we know
you've never been a straight man!"). But MiSTing gargoyles episodes it more fun than I can shake a really big stick at.
Even though they are the bane of our fandom, I really would enjoy MiSTing the TGC episodes.

Ian writes...

Aren't Shan's well written questions just a delight to read?

Shan writes...

The following is in response to a question you answered for me.

Greg wrote:

Claw was mute. Renard was confined to a wheelchair. I'm not tooting my own horn here, I just think that maybe you're overlooking characters because they fit so naturally into the series that you forgot they were disabled.

Shan responds:

I'm beyond exhausted at the moment, so other than Garrett from the show I worked on I can't think of anyone else who has have appeared in every other show (except Brutto if ROUGHNECKS continued). I think you may be right about characters at the supporting level -- the Robbins and Renards of the animated universe -- but most do seem to be one shots, sometimes even in storylines where their disability is "repaired" by the end of the episode (such as an injury-created blindness that surgery or something else corrects), which usually seems a cop-out. IMNSHO.

And while I do like Renard, particularly as Fox's father, he is older than most of the characters we're talking about and from what Puck shows with his images in "Gathering Part Two," wasn't always in a chair, was he? (Again, beyond exhaustion, I might be wrong) It's a combination of age and illness, or at least that's the impression I've had. But then again, Robbins was blinded in Viet Nam and he's even younger. Showing ability with disability at all ages and stages of life -- and that it isn't always congenital -- is a good thing.

I have no clue why this is such a personal springboard for me, but I'm not embarrassed about it. I can tell you it predates my seizure disorder (circa 1992). On that note, I know that seizures are usually used to comic effect in film and TV and living it isn't funny to me. I close my eyes and let it be though. I'm not going to tell people what they can and can't do. I just don't have to like it.

(Now jumping off soapbox...)

Greg also wrote:

I also would love to do a hearing impaired animated character with Marlee Matlin doing the voice. She used to come into Rockets and I once had such a big crush on her that I swore that if she came in one more time, I'd ask her to marry me. (She must have sensed that cause she never came back.)

Shan replies:

:) If you did the character as a lip-reader, it would probably work in limited animation. Sign language is a whole different ball of wax, though I do know I saw it done once as a kid (I want to say on DEFENDERS OF THE EARTH, but I am so tired right now). Christy Marx and I talked about this waaaay back when I first met her, though it's become public knowledge on the TRULY OUTRAGEOUS! JEM Mailing List over the years. Hasbro had Christy developing a JEM feature that never really went past treatment since the TRANSFORMERS and GI JOE movies did so poorly. They were going to have a deaf girl in that movie, which was integral to the plot. Later on, Christy had dinner with a woman who taught her there are many variants of sign language; ASA (American Sign Language) is just one of several so it might not be understood well in some markets that aren't familiar with ASA and thereby not translate internationally. Also the complexity of the hand gestures just might not come out right in limited animation. So she told me at that time she wasn't sure if it ultimately would have worked out it.

Just FYI...

Shan writes...

Ian>Um... thank you, I think, for complementing my questions. (I was passing through to see what other questions had been posted as long as I was online and saw your comment).

Greg>I hope my questions better exemplify your preferences, but you and I both know I can be error prone on occasion. I can think of instances both where I was your student and not proofing myself well enough as an interviewer (the latter being the greater embarrassment) where that was the case.

(And I just had to go look up embarrassment. I always have to stop and think about the "r"s and "s"s...)

Todd Jensen writes...

One thing that I thought that I'd mention here today, now that the question queue has gotten started up again, is on Goliath's smashing the Praying Gargoyle and foiling Operation Clean Slate in "Hunter's Moon".

I think that it's obvious to us all that Goliath was taking a big risk there, since if Demona had smashed the vial after that, all the gargoyles would have died alongside all the humans. But I wonder how many of us have noticed something else, that foiling Demona's genocide scheme entirely (as indeed happened here) could be almost as fatal to the gargoyle race. After all, at this point, the existence of gargoyles has been revealed to the world, and the public wasn't too thrilled with that. At the time that Goliath was confronting Demona, St. Damien's Cathedral was surrounded by an angry crowd practically howling for the gargoyles' blood, which was even prepared to charge in vigilante-style if the police didn't do anything. And even afterwards, as we saw in "The Journey", the public attitude towards gargoyles remained hostile; people were eagerly joining the Quarrymen when Castaway set it up, Margot Yale was openly calling for the capture and incarceration of the entire species on television, etc. We know, of course, from your "Gargoyles 2198" announcement that eventually humans do learn to recognize gargoyles' right to exist, and that by 2198, the days of near-universal attempts on humanity's part to hunt down and kill gargoyles are over - but Goliath, obviously, couldn't have known that.

I don't know whether Goliath had time to realize when he smashed the Praying Gargoyle (he took action extremely quickly, after all) that he was thus potentially endangering his species twice over, and that by saving humanity he was potentially dooming his race to brutal massacres (and I'm sure that even if he did know it, he'd have felt that there are just certain things that you have to do that are more important than mere survival and that wiping out one race so that another can survive is wrong - not to mention that he also knew that not all humans were crazed anti-gargoyle zealots), but I still think that that action of his was probably one of the most courageous and altruistic deeds that he performed in the entire series. I just thought that I'd give my thoughts on that here.

Virginia writes...

Are you going to be able to make any kind of art gallery in the near future? I love your work and would be interested to be able to purchase picutres from the gargoyle and Max Steel series. My 3 year old son loves the show too, btw.

Punchinello writes...

Mr. Weisman,

I'm sorry I did not acknowledge your response before now. I only realized that you had addressed my post on sentience a moment ago.

I did not really think that you condoned the obliteration of a family of polar bears (anthropomorphic or otherwise). I was raising the issue because I think I am observing a trend wherein people are only assigning value to a life based upon an inference of anthropomorphism. That is to say, some people are investing their ethical concern in something based upon how much it resembles a human being; and this is hardly an objective premise to begin with. Semblance to human beings, mental or otherwise, can not constitute a requirement for being worthy of consideration or protection. However I do believe that it is reasonable to assign values based upon certain criteria from within our own perspectives (it's the only thing we can assign values from) as long as we make a concerted effort to avoid an obviously centrist sentiment like using ourselves as a template for what is worth consideration.

If someone were to ask me what criteria I thought were appropriate, I would probably return to what has already been implied. Intelligence. Emotional intuition. Volition. And a whole host of perceptual characteristics. Those things from which emerge a picture of mental life. Perhaps an ability to suffer and to anticipate conditions which cause or alleviate suffering, and to desire to distance ones self from a cause of it. However, if we are going to determine the presence of those capacities with nothing but purely verifiable data, then we fall in league with the evolutionary psychologists foundation of mental within the biological. And the biological machinery necessary to mediate these abilities is certainly not the exclusive domain of Homo Sapiens. (I _do_ subscribe to the evolutionary psychologist foundation by the way. I like to have data I can verify beyond "it is true because it is so.")

For a lot of people though, these emergent mental properties are always considered as something transcendent of biology, immeasurable, even inviolate, because I have observed others react with hostility to the reduction of mental qualities to biology. On numerous occasions. Thinking that way leads to all kinds of misunderstandings, however. Another contributor to this board, Entity, had taken the position that humans and gorillas were intelligent but dogs were not. I found this extremely interesting because even outside the realm of biological architectures in the brain I could use as a foundation for taking the evolutionary psychologist position, it needs to be acknowledged that even within social psychology dogs are attributed a measurable intelligence. It's not extraordinary. My dog has an IQ of 12 or so for instance. And of course these kinds of figures are disputable, because it really requires the participation of the test subject past his simple presence to get accurate results. I would submit that the whole concept of IQ as it is accepted within the social sciences borders on being fraudulent anyway. The point is that the ascription of non-intelligence that was made about the dog was arbitrary. It was not informed by the physical _or_ social sciences. It was just an assumption. And that kind of casual valuization can be dangerous when it functions as the basis for how much respect we offer another. This is not a slight against this Entity. I'm just using this as an example to outline the stated purpose of my original post. If people are going to hold these positions they maintain, then they need to ask themselves why they have that particular belief. If they have this mental dialogue with themselves and they cannot answer that first question, then it is time to evaluate how much their beliefs represent reality.

____________________________________________________________________________
I'm probably as guilty as anyone of overusing, or rather overbilling the issue of "sentience". I think the concept has its uses. But it's probably used as a crutch too often.
____________________________________________________________________________

I would agree. I think of it as a crutch of language. Some people subscribe to an ideology that is a holdover from religious impulses. It maintains that the mantle of "human" is sacred and unapproachable. They need to define what the quality of "human" is that makes it thus, without any background knowledge of cognitive science so that it fits their sensibilities. They can adopt the hazily defined expression, "sentience", imported from popular culture, via star trek, to articulate their position. For some others, the mental capacities of non human animals may be very well understood. They may acknowledge capacities for reflection and emotion, but they still need a convenient means of distinguishing various abilities. So an imprecise language becomes common.

Punchinello writes...

I just reviewed what I have written here. It's so formal it's almost offensive. I'm sorry. I don't think one can talk about issues like this without sounding (obtuse? Stuffy? Something like that.) And not a word about Gargoyles.

Let me leave the realm of animal intelligence's for a minute and consider the intelligence of some of the more fantastical characters in your story. The fae. When I think about this kind of (ethereal?) character, these are the kinds of associations that I make.

-The thought of angels moves faster than human thought. (I don't recall where that comes from)

-A four dimensional object or being will cast a three dimensional shadow. (That's an observation Buckminster Fuller made.)

-A being that cannot die will have no concept of death, and certainly will not attach values, positive or negative, to the ending of a life. (This is a condensed and bastardized summary of some of the speculation of extraterrestrial intelligence's that participants of the SETI program publicized.)

I hope some of the above makes sense. My thinking is this. That the content of fae thought/mentality may be fundamentally different from homo sapiens thinking. Not just an accelerated or enhanced analogue of human thought, but structurally different. Our mental world is the emergent condition of innumerable biological systems interacting with one another. I have no reason to conclude that the fae's intelligence emerges from anything reductionist in nature. It is a condition that exists without origin in biology (potentially). Everything that we think of as intelligence rests on an evolutionary foundation of connections to allow us to successfully distinguish between things we can eat and things that will eat us. It would be absurd to think that the fae (who I don't think were subject to natural selection through predation) would have an intelligence structured upon the same principles. Simple alternative concepts like "either or" may not have the same meaning to them. This could go far towards explaining why they are so damned irritating.

My second thought on the matter, in reference to the three dimensional shadow concept, is that the visual representation we get of the fae in the story may be a poor representation of the reality. I use the concept of a hypothetical four dimensional being to illustrate. A two dimensional being could be aware of my presence if I allowed it to, although it would be a simple matter to remove myself from it's perception with a minor movement. However it's awareness could not give it a complete representation of what I am. It could only understand me as a fragment that can be translated into something comprehensible within the context of it's world. I can easily attribute an extra dimensional quality to beings like Oberon and Puck who seem o appear and disappear at will. We might not be able to understand completely, what they are. Only that the portion of them that is represented in three dimensions resembles a group of tall, angular, oddly complexioned people in period costume.

My third observation of the fae, and in particular of Oberon who has demonstrated a dispassionate distance to killing his rivals in certain instances, is that he may have no concept of murder because he may have no concept of death. (Yes I know that he reacted to the iron bell in such a way that would indicate it was harmful to him. Even lethal.) However, even if he were to express a concept of death we would not be able to be certain that his concept was anything like our concept. Does death mean an end for him? If it does not, then the gravity we attach to it may be lost on him and the other fae.

I think my point is that while it would certainly not be appropriate to think of a creature like this in human terms, i'm not even certain you can extrapolate "human" from him. There could be creatures, so far removed from human experience that it would be impossible. Of course, the associations that I make with the fae are not going to be the same ones that you make. Your concept of them may fall within human experience. You have other creatures though. Your space spawn. They would certainly have been subject to mental dispositions grounded in a different biology. We're conditioned with the genetic remainders of our hunter gatherer ancestors. They would be conditioned with something else. I dont know what. Something spawny probably.

Punchinello writes...

______________________________________________________________________________
It brings me to another distinction: the one between sentience and artificial intelligence. Coyote, for instance, can throw a zinger, but is he self-aware? I don't think he is. Xanatos hasn't achieved (or would wish to achieve) that much, has he?
______________________________________________________________________________

I don't know anything about computer technology past it's relationship to cognitive studies into artificial intelligence. There is a lot of dispute about the possibility of an actual computer intelligence. I'm not competent to say if the possibility is real but I would not discount it. I can see numerous avenues for foundations for intelligence besides the neurochemical variety. Incidentally, I once took a Turing test...and failed. I was delighted.

Todd Jensen writes...

Many mythological scholars believe that in the early days of the myths, humanity was matriarchal, worshipping some sort of "Great Goddess"-figure, but as time went on, it underwent a shift to a more patriarchal culture, producing male gods such as Zeus who toppled the "Great Goddess" and replaced her. Did such theories (assuming that you're aware of them) influence your vision of Oberon overthrowing his mother Mab and replacing her?

Chris J. writes...

Greg:

I have a million questions, but I would prefer to leave them unaswered. However, I would like to thank you (and all those others involved) for creating such a magical series. Gargoyles is truly a work that raises that bar when it comes to storytelling in an animated series.

So, regardless of whatever happens in the future with Goliath and the gang, thank you for producing some of best storytelling this fan has seen in any medium.

Entity writes...

Ok, you know what I have yet to do? Praise you on GARGOYLES 2198. I mean, there is so much worthy of praise. Here are some things I found most impressive:

1) Nicholas Natsilane Maza and the Order of the Guardian that he is a part of. It gives both Natsilane and good old Tom a legacy.

2) The idea of the Space-Spawn being born "amidst the fury of an exploding star." It's such an original idea, and in science-fiction, originality is sometimes very hard to come by. Speaking of which, maybe there's a question in here: do you know what element the Spawn Spawn are based off of? (e.g. carbon-based)

3) To have the Space-Spawn take over the world right off the bat, and in such a swift, painless manner. As you state, there is "very little loss of life, unless freedom matters to you." This puts drama before bloodshed, pure Gargoyles.

4) The Illuminati's dark pact with the Space-Spawn. This actually brings up another question (and I hope this one hasn't already been asked, if so I apologize): is Alexander Fox Xanatos IV a member of the Illuminati at the time of his abduction?

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

Lord Sloth wrote some words he/she? had learned from the show. you couldnt decifer one of them. Im not sure how to spell it, but it sounds like ESH-ih-lon (he's one of our lower ranking members, etc. at least I think thats where i remember it from)

someone may have said this already. i havent read the questions being submitted archive.

Marty "Kaioto" Lund writes...

Not really a question, but you have my sympathy on Team Atlantis. Working in a corporation, I understand that nothing quite feels the same as having a project you've invested a hefty chunk of time into suddenly get displaced. Well, maybe being kicked in the guts by a mule or something comes close. :(

I wish people would make up their minds about projects before men and women started investing large amounts of time into making the project a reality. It is even worse in a creative process.

In systems design, it feels so insulting to get along the Systems Development Lifecycle to the point where you're working to fulfill agreed-upon specifications and suddenly the client does a 180 and tanks the entire project. I imagine it is even more frustrating in an artistic / creative setting where it is only natural to put large portions of yourself into a production.

So, to you and all those with whom you worked, my sympathies. I appreciate your efforts and I'm disappointed that we'll miss out on Team Atlantis.

Bona Fortuna
- Kai

Sexy Queer writes...

Greg, I am so sorry to hear about Team Atlantis getting dropped before it even hit the air. This Demona and Fiona Cammore story did sound pretty interesting.
Hope you get another voice directing jod or somthing else soon.

Todd Jensen writes...

Count me as another person who's sorry to hear that "Team Atlantis" won't be coming out after all. From what I had heard about it (especially at the Gathering), it had sounded good (and not just because Demona was going to guest star in it). Such a pity.

zakhur writes...

This is more a comment than a question! I've been a Fan of Gargoyles for a long time, since it first aired on the Disney Afternoon! and after it stopped airing, I started looking in the internet, to see if the show would keep going, I mostly saw some fanfics, but it never was quite the same.
Although I was amazed on how many fans the show had, and more so that most the of the fans were adults.
now, when I rediscovered gargoyles on toon disney, and finding this site again, and actually asking questions, and joining the comment room.
I find myself so intrigued not only on how great the show is, but how many other people enjoy it and find so much entreteiment in it, and how wonderfull gargoyle fans are, they are very loyel and really care about Gargoyles.
So my question is, how does it make you feel, As one of the creators, that after the show has been cancelled for 5 years, so many people love and keep it alive in their hearts, through the internet and reunions such as the gathering?

Mary Mack writes...

Where can *I* buy a copy of Cree Summer's CD?

Everyone eat Round Table pizza!

Oh! And sign up for G2002!

And write to Disney asking for Gargoyles DVD's! (Greg, you can tell Mr. Fukuto that I'll by Gargs on DVD, and I don't have a DVD player.)

Todd Jensen writes...

During the course of the series, New York was struck by a number of events of a decidedly "unusual" variety, and ones which obviously weren't completely covered up (even if the true cause of them wasn't known to its citizens). Gargoyle sightings were the obvious part, but also so were the "missing nights" in "City of Stone" and Oberon putting everyone to sleep in "The Gathering", for example. By the time that the gargoyles were revealed to the public in "Hunter's Moon", therefore, New York had experienced two years' worth of Fortean activity.

While the obvious main reason for the public panic over the gargoyles in "Hunter's Moon" and "The Journey" was simple fear over them, do you suppose that the cumulative aftereffects of the two years' worth of weirdness (especially from "City of Stone" and "The Gathering") could have been a factor as well? After all, in real life, unexplained ongoing problems can often lead to people looking for scapegoats, and persecuting minority groups thereby (as in the case of persecutions of the Jews getting more severe in 14th century Europe during the Black Death). Do you think that some of that could have been at work here?

Anonymous writes...

You idiot, do you actually think he'll answer everyone of those questions. If he actually gives straight forward and clear responses for half of these then I'm a monkey's uncle.

Audra writes...

Hi Greg!!!
Gargoyles is such a great TV show. It's my favorite TV show. And it shows cartoons are not just for little kids. Anyways, I remember reading about your plans about Brooklyn's mate. I was just wondering, did you, or any or any other creators plan on what she was going to look like? Does she kind of have a "beak" like Brooklyn? It's ok if you don't want to answer, but I just wanted to know. But I am glad that Brooklyn would get a mate. I felt very sorry for him after Maggie rejected him when he was trying to help her and Anglea chose Broadway. I was just wondering if you guys planned what Katana was going to look like. Thanks for reading this. ^_^

Sincerely,
Audra

Artemis writes...

Hi Greg! First time poster here. I want to thank you on writing such a great show!! I only started to watch it a little over a year ago. I've only seen about 70% of the episodes, because of it's late airtime and the fact that I have older siblings who what dibs on the tv. What I really want to ask you is how did you come up with this whole series? It's really incredible how it all ties in, considering its complicated plot. My teachers have always told me that I have a gift for story telling, but most of its all been fan fiction. I love to write, but the only reason I do fan fiction is because I can't seem to make up my own characters. So how did you come up with all these complex characters? Did you have to sit down for hours to think of characters, or did they just suddenly come to you one day? Anything you're willing to tell me will be greatly appreciated. I don't care if writers don't really make it on their first story, I know that (I'm only 17, after all). I just want to write share with some people something that I can truly call my own. Thank you! (Next time around, I actually will ask questions regarding the show)
=^..^= <---Meow!

matt writes...

a couple weeks ago someone asked what gargoyles protected before the other races showed up and you said each other. but since we have the Mayan clan protecting a forest, the Loch Ness clan protecting prehistoric monsters, the London Clan protecting a shop in SOHO, and i'm sure there were other examples, what gargoyles protect has always been extremely varied and never limited to sentient beings.

1. it seems from clan to clan there is a wide range of what to protect. why is that?

2. every species, like the gargoyles, protect their own kind and eggs, etc., but why did gargoyles begin to extend that protection to more than themselves?

Todd Jensen writes...

Since you and Entity recently (as of July 20th) had a brief exchange about Xanatos's characterization, I thought that I'd give a thought of my own about him.

One thing that has occurred to me is that there was an intriguing paradox about Xanatos in his "feud" with the gargoyles. One advantage that Xanatos had over the conventional "cartoon super-villain" was that he was a level-headed, practical man who wasn't interested in revenge or pointless vendettas. And this, on one level, made him potentially a more challenging adversary for the gargoyles. Because as a result, he wasn't likely to get so distracted in carrying out his personal score with the clan that he'd make foolish mistakes which they could take advantage of and thereby win, the way that more conventional "master-villains" in animated series do (and which, elsewhere in "Gargoyles", the Archmage himself fell prey to, when he kept on making strategic and tactical errors in "Avalon" - such as not waiting until dawn to attack or in magically tormenting Goliath when he could just as easily have simply zapped him into a pile of dust). It removed the leading source of "mistakes that antagonists make" which can save the day for the protagonists.

But, ironically enough, this very trait of Xanatos's also may have helped the gargoyles in a way. For, since Xanatos wasn't a revenge-crazed man, he wouldn't be likely to be constantly pursuing the gargoyles obssessively in "conventional cartoon super-villain" style, and indeed, he didn't. He went after them because he had specific plans about what to do with them (using them as his agents for such operations as stealing the disks from Cyberbiotics). But that motive didn't take too long to be discarded, as it became increasingly aware to Xanatos that he couldn't make use of the gargoyles in that way ever again; in fact, I recently noticed, upon examining his actions closer, that in Season Two, despite his continued clashes with the clan, he had stopped attempting to actually capture and dominate them (the one exception being his capture of Hudson in "The Price", and then there was a different reason for that - the need to use Hudson as a guinea pig for the Cauldron of Life). So he no longer had a serious reason for capturing them, and consequently, didn't see the need to make those efforts. The only possible reason left for going after the gargoyles was that of revenge, and that obviously didn't interest him. So he had no reason to pursue them (and indeed, seems to have even been aware, as the ending of "City of Stone" makes clear, that leaving them more or less at liberty could be much more advantageous to him anyway). He could afford to leave them alone.

So I find it an amusing paradox that the very factor which could have made Xanatos a serious threat to the gargoyles actually helped to make him less of a threat than he might have been. He wasn't obssessively pursuing them on the basis of a pointless grudge. He went after them only when he saw a genuine need to, and there was increasingly less reason for him to capture or destroy the whole clan as the series went on (and good reason, on the other hand, to let them be).

KW Keller writes...

Well, I'm not Todd, but in response to the history of Excalibur, Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Caliburn" is thought by some to be derived from the Welsh "Caledfwlch" (Breton "Kaledvoulc'h"), or from the Irish "Caladbolg" or "Caladcholg." Caledfwlch appears in several Welsh Arthurian stories, especially "Culhwch ac Olwen." Caladbolg, "hard dinter," was the lightning sword of Fergus Mac Roth. Caladcholg was a similar sword owned by Fergus Mac Leti. Various people have argued at one time or another that the modern idea of Excalibur was taken from one of these sources.

Entity writes...

Hi Greg,

Don't let the death of Team Atlantis get you down, true brilliance is never recognized in its own time.

Anyway, I was wondering about your personal opinion on something: pop Arthurian Legend. First there was the "Merlin" miniseries, now there's another one on TNT called "The Mists of Avalon." Both take the traditional story of King Arthur and try to present its elements of magic to contemporary TV audiences in the guise of religion. Instead of accepting magic as a part of the legend, which I guess TV execs think is too "silly" or maybe even "controversial," they turn the Arthur legend into a morality tale about the old verse the new, Paganism verse Christianity, imagination verse logic, etc... take your pick.

What's your take? Do you think this is a constructive and innovative approach to telling the story, or a distracting and childish one?

Aris Katsaris writes...

A couple weeks ago, you posted a ramble in an interesting exchange of ideas with Punchinello, about the subject of "sentience" and how it's used in science fiction and fantasy, about whether it's a wall or not, etc, etc...

I thought to chime in, contributing with the concepts that Orson Scott Card introduces in "Speaker for the Dead" (an excellent book btw - I encourage everyone to read it). There he uses different words to differentiate between different kinds of 'alienness'... Let me quote:

"The Nordic language recognizes four orders of foreigness. The first is the otherlander, or 'utlanning', the stranger that we recognize as being a human of our world, but of another city or country. The second is the 'framling' [...]. This is the stranger that we recognize as human, but of another world. The third is the 'raman', the stranger that we recognize as human, but of another species. The fourth is the true alien, the 'varelse', which includes all the animals, for with them no conversation is possible. They live, but we cannot guess what purposes or causes make them act. They might be intelligent, they might be self-aware, but we cannot know it."

Obviously here the most important concepts are that of the 'raman' and of the 'varelse'. These can be useful, over and beyond the concept of 'sentience', because they refer to how much of an understanding can exist between different species - unlike 'non-sentient' for a species to be 'varelse' doesn't necessarily make it "inferior"... Only non-understandable.

On the other hand I find these concepts also intriguing because they *do* carry a moral judgment within them, even if it's a more subtle one. To recognize an alien as "raman" is to recognize him as basically human, to recognize that his fundamental motivations are the same as yours. It's the beginning of understanding and tolerance...

Now in the gargoyles universe, it's clear that both gargoyles and fae (and Nokkar's people also) are all "ramen": Other species which despite all their difference with our own, we can recognize as fundamentally 'human'. I'd also go on to say that this is what people like Jon Castaway refuse to see. By declaring that all gargoyles are monsters he doesn't necessarily refuse them their 'sentience' - he does refuse though to see that they are 'ramen'... and as such he can say things such as 'they are all evil', 'they must be destroyed', etc, etc...

And with that let me conclude with another quote from the book:
"Since we are not yet fully comfortable with the idea that people from the next village are as human as ourselves, it is presumptuous in the extreme to suppose we could ever look at sociable, tool-making creatures who arose from other evolutionary paths and see not beasts but brothers, not rivals but fellow pilgrim journeying to the shrine of intelligence.
Yet that is what I see or yearn to see. The difference between raman and varelse is not in the creature judged, but in the creature judging. When we declare an alien species to be raman, it does not mean that they have passed a threshold of moral maturity. It means that *we* have."

Sorry for the length of this ramble... :-)

Patricia writes...

Hi Greg!

In response to the Tootsie Pop commercial: I've seen it within the past year on TV, so.. it's still making its rounds on TV. And yes, I know the commercial, but.. I'm an early 80s baby (born in the early 80s). And that response fit with the question, very much so.

I'm running out of things to say.. whee.. ahem...

Oh! I found a quote or a poem or something about the "Hobgoblin of Little Minds," but I've forgotten where I put the paper that has it.. hmmm Maybe (hopefully) when I find it, I'll remember to type it up for you.. and see if that's what you're talking about.

Ok, general question that isn't really on Gargoyles or any of your other projects, but you might know.

What's the plural form of series? Is it series or seria? Or none of these? If it's not one of these, then what is it?

Thanks.

P.S. I can't wait for the next Contest to begin ;) Though I respect if you take a break, I just want to see how well I think I can do in them.. hehe... Umm.. yeah. Boy this covered alot of ground...

VF writes...

Some comments about the 2001 Gathering

I am a communications director at a university and can truly appreciate the vast amount of work that goes into event planning, so thanks to all the people who worked so hard on the Gathering 2001. I had posted a note in the Station Eight Comment Room a few weeks before the convention, expressing some slight trepidation about my two daughters and myself attending the event because I felt like a bit of an outsider, but we wanted to show our support for the series and encourage its revival. Several people, including you, Greg, responded in the Comment Room and were very welcoming and put my concerns to rest.

Or so it seemed.

Imagine my thoughts when, shortly after the Opening Ceremonies got underway, my now-infamous daughter says, quite out loud for just about everybody to hear: "Mommy, what's a con virgin?!" Yes, that was my 4-year-old, Caitlin. So after blushing a bit and trying to quietly explain the term to her, all I could think of was that maybe I'd have to carefully scout out any future sessions and try to pre-determine their age-appropriate level.

But I didn't have to worry. The weekend was really very nice. I'm not very good at remembering names, so unfortunately I don't know the names of the kind people we encountered. The women in the Art Room, for example, were so accommodating and welcoming when both of my daughters became inspired to draw Elisa (as a human and as a gargoyle) and Goliath pictures and submitted them to be displayed. The girls were so excited that we had to drop in and see them ... often.

The purchase of some Gargoyles coloring books and stamps and a Goliath mug, the art table that totally occupied my daughters' time while I sat in on your Mug-A-Guest session, hearing the writers discuss their work on the show, the voice actor panel, the Radio Play (thanks for the great choice of material), the Video Room - all were very interesting and fun for this con ... uh ... first-timer.

It has been interesting to read other people's diaries of the Gathering since, including one from Aaron. I didn't know it until I read his summary, but he mentioned watching my other daughter, 6-year-old Jessica, who, during the Radio Play, spent more time turned around watching Aaron's friend, Mara, while she sketched. Mara (whose name I didn't know at the time) was kind enough not to mind Jessica staring mesmerized at her work. Jessica really has an affinity for art, and Mara was very encouraging and gave Jessica one of the sketches she had done. It was beautiful.

I also had the pleasure of meeting your wife, briefly. We compared notes a bit, this being her second - I believe she said - Gathering that she had attended. She, too, assured me that although newcomers may feel awkward at first, her estimation is that it's a pretty nice group of people who make up the fandom. I concur.

While my girls and I had perhaps only modestly participated in the Gathering, it was fun and I hope it will do some good to perpetuate what I think is a really great program that deserves to be revived. So thanks for all your work and that of the con staff and the guests for all the time and energy invested. My daughters and I certainly appreciated it.

Anonymous writes...

You realize of course that giving us vague information on future gargoyle stories and the six spinoffs only hypes gargoyles beyond proportion making it impossible for you to satisfy your audience or at least those who have read about the master plan. I mean some people are expecting your to deliver something rivaling Babylon 5 which is nearly impossible and also TGS and the other fanfics are also setting your vision so if you do something which will make the fanfic universes appear off track like that owen being puck thing then you'll alienate a lot of hardcore fans. Example of this is Star Wars fans who grew up on the sequel novels and comics which is in someway fan fanfiction since they aren't exactly canon are demanding the appearances or cameos of novel or comic characters in the prequel movies or the legitimazation of the non canon novels and comics.

1.Do you understand what I am talking about?
2.Have I changed your mind about revealing more secrets of the gargoyles universe?

matt writes...

geeez, you should make a new archive catagory called "Tootsie Roll Stuff" cuz of all these people talking about it. and for the record, i'm 19 and i remember it quite clearly despite my terrible meory, in fact, my brother and i recited the whole commercial te other day, including the best part when the Owl says two. he says, "twhoooo" its funny.

twhooo bad you had to answer "The World May Never Know" to my question, cuz first of all, i'm sure the clans with garg beast DO know, and second i don't understand why you won't tell us how many eggs a garg beast lays? i mean, is there some reason not to tell us? why are you holding this back? how many eggs does a female garg beast usually lay in a lifetime????!!!! geeeez, you frustrate me! thje archives wouldn't be so big if we didn't have to keep repeating questions cuz you avoid answering them!

i'm just kidding Greg. you don't have to reveal this, and honestly, if i were you i probably wouldn't have even revealed as much as you have about all the Gargoyles stuff. but i suppose it keeps interest and the fans pysched about the series. i'll say that since i stumbled upon this site my fanaticism in Gargoyles has gone up considerly. so good for you for revealing just the right amount of secrets, but not everything!

still wish you'd tell me though...

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

"The world may never know.
(That smart-ass response was a reference to an old tootsie-pop commercial. Anyone old enough to remember it has my sympathy.) "

Its not that old. Im 21 and I get it.

Josh Wurzel writes...

Hi Greg

First, let me congradulate you on your great speeches at Gathering opening and closing ceremonies. I don't think I've had more fun in my life than I did at Gathering, and it was in part due to you (well, not counting the whole "Greg created Gargoyles in the first place thing" - I don't want to give you ALL the credit for having a good time in my own hometown). I didn't sit in on many of your panels, but the few that I did sit in on showed me that you are funny, intelligent, and not very arrogant, considering you get worshipped as a god for three or four days a year (which would make my head inflate like Oberon in "The Gathering")

Second, I was one of the people that attended the MiSTing of "The Gathering I & II". I'm sure you remember, we were making lewd jokes and comments at the screen. Greg Bishansky said you were watching us from the back row. I was the one making bizzare gestures with shadows, particularly the picking of Oberon's nose.

This brings me to my question 1): Do Oberon's boogers have any magical powers? If so, what are they?
2): In 2198, are any of Oberon's boogers still around?

I am expecting a sarcastic remark on this one.

Shan writes...

To my question about future occurences of Jeffrey Robbins you said:

>Yep. (And you worry too much. I'm not paying that close >attention.)

1. I'm glad Jeffrey wasn't a one-time character to you. Even as a teenager I wanted to see characters with disabilities in animation, to reflect the wide variety of people in society as a whole. My sister and I co-developed a series years ago where a visually impaired character was prominent (maybe someday we'll get to do somethin with it). Fifteen years after I first got seriously interested in animation, I've seen a wide growth in character ethnicity but still not much in this area. It's one reason I loved working on EXTREME GHOSTBUSTERS and having Garrett (voiced by Jason Marsden, also Pvt. Brutto from ROUGHNECKS) as our wheelchair bound hero who was such a good character you practically forgot about the wheelchair. Jeffrey's the same kind of character. While portrayed as the character is, ultimately you see the person.

To make this into a question, especially now that I realize that the elder Brutto in ROUGHNECKS ends up in a similar situation (not sure whose choice that was though): without forcing it into the story, would you be open to incorporating more characters with disabilities in animated series?

2. Me worry too much? I think there's a space in line for you behind my father and Kevin on that one. If Mom or my sister think it they're not saying. (In other words I get told that a lot.) Won't deny it. But you do I have to remember I didn't know you that well back then... much changes in a year.

matt writes...

i sent you this quote from St. Thomas Aquinas cuz of its implications in the gargoyle universe:

"Angels transcend every religion, every philosophy, every creed.
In fact angels have no religion as we know it...
their existence precedes every religious system that has ever existed on earth."

-St. Thomas Aquinas

and you asked if i had the dates of the quote, and as hard as i searched i couldn't find any, but i did some very interesting reading on him. Thomas Aquinas was an Italian philosopher and theologian who worked at various colleges in the Mediterranean world. he was probably born in 1225, and died in 1274, so most likely the quote was said between those two dates, LOL. hope thats helpful...

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

Just got done reading the Greg Weisman section of the archives. Time for a LONG rant.

I wanted to tell you at the gathering, but I forgot. which angers me to no end, because i went on and on about this at work for months before i left for LA. in awakenings, elisa makes the number three on her hand. you said how odd it was that the japanese animation studio had her make three in that particular way, with the thumb, index and middle fingers. the reality is that thats the PROPER way in AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE to make the number three. they must have looked it up to see "how americans do it." what people usually do as three, with the thumb holding down the pinky, is actually "six" in sign language. and the thumb holding down the index finger is "nine" (with the middle being eight and the ring finger being seven.) a 'hitchikers thumb' is ten. :)

speaking of awakenings, the "nice mask" comment isnt in the "movie". i was mad. i pouted all night last night.

re: goliath and elisa needing help to have a child
technically, theyre closely related enough that they prolly could have a child. that child would not be fertile tho. a Stallion and a female donky can have a hinny, a Mare and a male donky can have a mule, but neither a mule nor a hinny can have offspring. though, in your book, a garg and a human may be way farther from eachother than a donkey and a horse. despite the fact that donkeys and horses arent nearly as related as they look.

I know you dont think this way, but humor me for a second. if you were an animal, what would you be? Tore (my fiancee) would be a polarbear. he likes red meat. he likes the cold. he LOOKS like a polarbear, even when hes not overweight. he acts like one. people give him the respect of one. and he's all white collar(fur) on the surface, and blends in with the crowd(snow) but underneath hes jet black(covered in tattoos, a closet freak ;P) it took a long LONG time to find an animal for me. im nocturnal. im cute. im mostly herbiverous, but not completely. i like florida's hot and muggy weather. i sleep a lot. we went through many rodent and lemur species before settling on flying squirrel.

on the topic of what names mean (oh wise one :) my full name is Kelly Leigh Creighton. Kelly started as a gaelic name, i think spelled calleach, pronounced ka-LEE-ack(phlem sound here). Then the irish clan the O'Kellys took the name. and they were a big factor in the liberation of ireland. so it became fashionable to name boys Kelly. then in 1958 i believe, there was an actress named Kelly. so it became okay to name girls kelly. which is more the case now. anyway, Kelly means "warrior of the king" or "female warrior" Leigh is an english word still used today (in britan) which means "meadow". my last name, Creighton, started as a scottish name, and then spread to england and ireland, where it took many diversion such as Crichton, etc. my family roots have been traced to scotland. it means "near the creek." so fully, my name means "Female warrior of the King, in the meadow near the creek." i always wonder if i will find a meadow near a creek with some unmarked grave in it or something.

along the same track, have you seen the gargoyles code? its a long string of letters and symbols that, if you know how to read them, describes one's character. part of the code is for real life, and asks how obsessed you are. the maximum obsession is defined by one who would be willing to be a test subject for a mutagen that might make them a gargoyle. im one of those silly people. are you? doubt it... (thats not meant to be offensive, i just doubt youre that kind of person :)

at the gathering, while talking about all the spinoffs, specifically i think you were talking about 2198, you said "and its really sad that im still working on this." actually, i dont think its sad at all. im pretty happy about it. because it really is something special. and we all believe in you. its pretty cool that youre as obsessed with your own shows as your fans.

i also recently learned that you dont drink, and think smoking is pretty haneous (sp?). that rules. its nice to see other people out there like that, not just in the fandom too. its really rare these days. not that i didnt respect you before, but i really respect that, and in a way, appreciate it.

i read about how you fell out of the bunkbed when you were little. that reminded me of my bunkbet gymnastics. i hate using the ladder, since i can never find it when im sleep walking. (i sleepwalk a LOT). so ive trained myself to grab the bar on the side of the bunk, or if there isnt one, the lip underneat the bunk, and flip over the side to land on the floor. thing is, if i lose my balance i land on the edge of the bunk below, instead of the floor, and wake whoever is sleeping there. usually, though, since im sleepwalking, i wont remember that i did it unless they confront me about it in the morning. so no guilt ;P

on sleepwaling: i have recently discovered that any time someone tells me im dreaming, i get very angry at them and insist im not, even if i am. i have instructed my parents (specifically my mom, my dad did it anyway because he thought it was funny) to just agree with me, pretend i make sense, and send be back off to bed. o_O

ive wanted to tell you about my religion for some time, but ive been a little nervous to, because its a touchy subject with some people. but after reading your views, i feel like i can at least give you a short version, and it shouldnt be too bad. basically i believe that there are an infinite number of universes, all connected by a void. everything is true, in some universe or another. and some things can travel thru the void into other universes. so basically all religions are true, because there are an infinite number of universes. i simply choose to pray to an alternate set of dieties than the normally accepted ones. which isnt to say i put any less faith in God or Budda (sp?), etc. I just choose not to pray to him/them. which i think this kind of falls into your beliefs anyway, since you belive in alternate universes, and that all things are true. which is basically what my religion preaches. so youre Raptorian and didnt even know it ;P

theres actually scientific evidence coming to light to support the "theory" of alternate universes. cold dark matter, morphic fields, time as a fourth dimension, the possible non-existance of time... its fascinating. this thing that i knew all along is now getting proved by science. basically, the theory of cold dark matter states that there is a force in the universe that is more powerful than gravity. but it only partially exists in this universe, so it is hard to see and study. and most of the force it exerts is exerted in another universe, so were not even getting the full effect. morphic feilds is the theory that everything in the universe is connected by lines of force. this explains why when an atom is split, and two electrons go zinging away from eachother at high speed, one can look at the north/south orientation of one electron and know that the other electron is the exact same. because they are connected. which is why dogs know when their owner is comming home, even if the spouse does not. which is why people can sometimes instinctively know that something is wrong with a loved one, even if miles away. why twins, if separated, can still sense what the other is doing, even if they dont have a twin. why sometimes we can predict the future, or get flashes from the past. morphic fields trancend even time. there is also a theory that states that time is the fourth dimension. basically, since were three dimensional creatures, we can see the EDGE of things in TWO dimensions (meaning you can see the edge of a planar surface), and we can COMPREHEND things in the THIRD dimension (you cant see the edge of a 3D object, a coke can for example, the edge curves away from you and you cant see it. technically, it has no edge). fourth dimensional beings could see our EDGE, and comprehend the fourth dimension. we, as 3d creatures, can only measure what we think is the passing of time. a two dimensional creature could only measure the third dimension. of course there is another theory, who's own creator admits that its just a neat theory he came up with and doenst actually believe in. he said that maybe time doesnt exist at all. maybe we think time passes, just like when we watch a movie we think the pictures are going by, but its just many still frames. as in there is an alternate universe for each second in time. and we only think there is motion because at each second, we have the memories of all the things that have passed before. its an interesting theory, but im more inclined to think of time as the fourth dimension.

anyway, im done rambling for the night. please feel free to comment as you see fit, or not at all :)

Homer Thompson writes...

I read in the archives that you liked the Simpsons and Futurama.

1.Which episodes do you like the most?

2.What do you think of the new eiposdes thay had the last years (2-3 years ago)compared to the first ones (87-97)?

Gabriel writes...

In your latest Random Stuff, you said you thought Michael Reeves' thing about Demona casting a spell on the gargoyles the night before they woke up would make them switch to modern English...that doesn't work:
They were speaking and reading modern English syntaxicly (is that a word, syntatically) and verbally in the 10th century when they should have been speaking and reading Middle English. The familiar form of you (thou) wansn't even close to being uttered.
However, it could just be that "Awakenings" was just made into modern English so we could understand it; sort of like if an American wrote a novel about Russians, the characters' dialogue would be in English, but we're just supposed to know that it is really Russian. Get it? Is that what we were supposd to assume what was going on?
I just had trouble accepting the rambling as a concrete reason behind the Gargoyles' language.

matt writes...

for some reason i feel compelled to share this with you:

ok, i didn't even think about this until you mentioned the "Cairn" that Goliath and co. were imprisoned in in a recent question, but my dog, Gus, is a Cairn Terrier, and i've commonly called him a hound of ulster in my best irish accent. and i suddenly realized that that is funny not only cuz his species was named for digging into the same kind of place as "The Hound of Ulster" had its climax, but a Cairn Terrier was also Toto in "The Wizard of Oz" which was quoted twice in the episode (once by Elisa, and once by Banshee). and then at random i choose Cuchallin as my new screen icon in the Comment Room here! wow! i just thought that was an amazing string of coincidences, or are they coincidences?

why was "The Wizard of Oz" quoted twice seperatly in this one episode, even when it was never quoted anywhere else in the series? seems weird...

anyway, thats all i have to say... oh, and hey! now my dog is famous for being mentioned online to the Wizard of Ask Greg! hooray Gus (aka the hound of ulster reborn, lol)

Phil writes...

Another little ramble.

The last page of the Gargoyles 2198 proposal is more about the business side of the show. You wrote that WB has DC and Marvel is piecing out its characters; Disney has nothing to compete, "but Gargoyles was designed to be that competition."

I've been thinking about that statement and it does seem odd to me that Gargoyles is one of the few properties that Disney isn't taking full advantage of. Their animated features have be released and re-released on video and it seems that every new release is followed relatively quickly by a direct-to-video sequel and/or an animated series. They're even giving the sequel treatment to classics like Lady and the Tramp and Cinderella.

I wonder what it is about Gargoyles that prevents Disney from giving it similar treatment.

Phil writes...

Hi, Greg

This is just a ramble to say thanks again for the G2198 prize. I've read it several times, and I really hope the show gets made someday; I can hardly wait to see it.

Although it would be neat to have a document like this for any of the spin-offs, this is really the one to have. Gargoyles 2198 is really the culmination of everything we know. I see so many of the episodes (especially the World Tour) in a different light, and the other proposed spin-offs seem to be leading right into this one.

You said that the prize itself was worthless, but it has quickly become one of my prized possessions. Thanks again!

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

you asked for favorite smartass responses.

Heather "HUDSON" writes...
Greg,while at the Gathering, I was talking to Thom,who had this to say about Lexington:" But, I'm a virgin..."
I suppose, there has to be a celebate Gargoyle,eh?
Is this what you had in mind for the character? Or, does he get his jollies, through cyber-sex?
Personally, I don't care if he ever finds a mate...

Greg responds...

What's the question?

Are you asking if Lex is a virgin or Thom?

Ed writes...
'THE EDGE' comments.

Not a big favourite. The animation is gorgeous, and the ending is sublime. But the Steel Clan echoed the Foot Clan a bit much for my tastes. I can't remember my first viewing that well, but I'm pretty sure that I didn't expect the red robot to be Xanatos. (Although I should have, because I'd seen 'FUTURE TENSE' a few months previously).

In hindsight, there are several nice touches and the writing is delightful. But it wasn't one of those episodes where the difference between normal action cartoons and 'Gargoyles' leap out and grab you.

I guess I just never liked the Steel Clan.

Greg responds...

Oh, well...

They speak well of you though.

recorded on 07-03-00

and my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE (which actually had me in tears):

Okay... Let me try for something less revelatory... You said that Goliath and Elisa would raise a kid together. What *gender* kid? :-)

Greg responds...

Hey, how do you do that particular smiley face.

No. It's missing a nose. Wait a second.

No, that seems like too big a nose.

Large nostrils.

Hell, I just can't figure it out. :(

What was the question?

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

another science question (can you tell i have no life?)
i had a discussion with my biology teacher, specifically regarding the effects of a mutagen. she said it was actually possibly toalter the DNA of a creature, but the metamorphosis would take a long time, since it would only happen as the individual cells divided. some cells divide frewquently, like skin cells. bone cells do not. so basically the metamorphosis would have taken a lot longer. except im assuming sevarius would have taken this into account, and added a stimulant. sorry, not really a question, im just going on and on and on at this point ;P

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

ooh wait found another one. (please, if you dislike the fact that im posting dozens of questions, let me know and i will stop at once.)

Anonymous writes...
You said that the New Olympians had something better than nuclear tech could you tell us what it is?

Greg responds...

Zeracoy Enex Power.

(I just made that up.)

recorded on 06-29-01

thats great!

Aaron writes...

Monday

We headed down in time for the 3x3 eyes Q & A to look for Thom. But Mr. Punctuality is nowhere to be found. Turns out he left earlier to feed his dogs. So we stake out the only way in or out and do eventually waylay him for a bit, ostendably so he can pick up the stained glass Lex he bought. (And so he'll do the line) "C'mon, Greg's already going to rag on you for being late anyway." ;)

Thom does eventually record the line, so I also have a recording of Thom pretending he's Riff Raff, which I need to get to Lynati.

We attend closing ceremonies, which are always kind of bittersweet, and get pre-reged for next year.

After that, we sadly see Lynati off in a cab, and Wolfie, Dreamie, Warpy, Josh, Mara and I all piled into Wolfie's convertable and headed off to a chinese place Josh recommended for lunch. (Funny thing though. An hour later we were hungry again) ;)

Mara and I actually stayed until Wednesday, but that's the end of the Gathering stuff. Except for some...

Random Stories: I don't remember exactly when or where I heard these, but I thought they should be shared.

Crispy apparently had a running war with the hotel staff. He emptied his mini-bar and put his own stuff in it, which you weren't allowed to do. The staff takes it back out, and restocks the minibar. Crispy re-empties the minibar, and puts his stuff back. The staff swaps it again, and leaves him a note saying to cut it out. I don't even want to *think* about his minibar bill.

Why does Duke L'Orange sound just like Brooklyn? Apparently, when they created the character, he was supposed to be *French*. But they didn't like that, so they tried making him English instead. Apparently, they didn't like that either, so Jeff, just goofing around, starts doing his Brooklyn voice, and they're like "That's it! That's perfect!"

What were all those norms in formal wear doing at the hotel? On Friday, they were there for a wedding in the Roof Garden. A wedding that, according to Greg, trashed the place. On Saturday, I was heading up the escalator to get my auction cash, when I passed Myhr going down. He asked if I knew what was going on in the other big room downstairs, and I guessed it was a wedding. He shook his head and said "It's somebody's 18th birthday." Which blew me away. I said "When I turned eighteen, I got a cake and twenty bucks." Myhr says "I got thrown out of the house." "You win."

To sum up...

1 Coke from the hotel minibar: $2.65
Sushi dinner for two at Wasabi's: $40.00
Eye of Greg: $65.00
One week of Mara's company: Priceless.

Thanks for listening to me ramble, Greg. And see ya next year.