Sothis writes...

Hi Greg,

As a long time Gargoyles fan, and an even longer time Star Trek fan, I couldn't help but notice that like Star Trek, Gargoyles would subtly introduce touchy topics (well, touchy to the censors at least) like racism and guns into the storylines, using the cover of being a fanstasy/sci-fi-based show. Was this your intent, to do what Gene Roddenberry did, and pull the wool over the studio's eyes, or was it just the way the stories developed?

Thanks for your time,

Sothis

Demona Taina writes...

Hello! I was wondering if you had every single scene cut from each episode of Gargoyles before its first airing..

I was wondering this because in the Gargoyles "movie," Goliath says "Godspeed lads," before he says "They'd better not be harmed." Also, he says "Your worst nightmare." But I figure that scene was cut because it wasn't very well animated.. either that or it was created just for the movie?

Not to mention the numerous scenes either cut or created for the movie only.. like, Goliath taking a little bit longer to turn to stone when he was sedated, trailing off with the words when he was groggy.. and stuff like that.

Thank you for your time.. :)

Vashkoda writes...

Ok, let's see if I can reword this so that it satisfies Todd.

I asked you before if you were going to keep or throw out TGC, and you said it was too early to know. When I asked specifically about the clones episode where they are turned to stone, you said that it would be the easiest one to fix because "the clones could wake up at any time. So if the series came back in the present, I could wake them then. Or I could wake them anytime before 2158." Based on the information you revealed in the 2198 contest (I'll have to be vague here in case it gets me in trouble), I was inclined to believe that you had chosen to take advantage of the situation presented in that TGC episode, and so had decided to keep TGC. Am I wrong, or are you still undecided on what to do about TGC?

And since this was also deleted: how was your birthday?

aXvXia writes...

I just found DEADLY FORCE on video: you were right in your notes, it was aboslutely a gorgeous episode to look at. I almost cried. The gargoyles are so real, so emotional, so angry, it just gets to me... especially Goliath. It is obvious to the audience that he loves Elisa here. (i think that's what you wanted.) Thank you for the beautiful episode. After I saw it, i wrote an essay to the Toon Disney personnel about the message of this episode and why i think it would be wonderful if they aired it.
THe reply i got was cursory and almost smart-ass. They told me that it wasn't in "its(the episode's) contract." CONTRACT??! what contract?? ARRGH
anyways, i tried. now for a quick question, and i checked the archives on this one and I didn't find it. Please, Please tell me you have the information on this one at home: How old was Elisa in 1996? the last time i submitted this question you said you didn't have that information available...

Thanks anyways,
aXvXia, age 13

White writes...

I got a verry tricky question now... I noticed in many cartoons * including gargoyles * that reruns always differ from the first time they pass on tv. ( I'm french and having trouble making that question clear... omg !!! )
Ok ok... here's an example :
in the episode Awakening 2, when Xanatos's *employees* attack the castle... one of them throws a granade at Goliath and Hudson I beleive... he shouted :"CATCH".
When that episode played again on tv the voice wasn't the same and he didn't shouted it.

Same thing with the "MOVE NOW" of Awakening 1.

How come ??? * do they record the sound twice or do they correct things they don't like after showing it once ??? )

sorry for the long question. You forgive me ?

David Zevin writes...

Hi Greg, I am a huge fan of the Gargoyles series. It's hands down the best written/plotted series I've ever watched (cartoon or other). I recently graduated University of Southern California Film School. I am currently looking for work as an assistant editor. Any advice you might have on getting into the industry and/or breaking into the editor's union would be greatly appreciated. By the way, where was Gargoyles edited? Do you happen to know if was union? Thanks.

DrFaust writes...

I always thought it was interesting we could see the targeting lasers of Xanatos' particle weapons actually
moving through space.

So I'm wondering, is the speed of light in the "Gargoyles" universe different than "our" universe?

Entity writes...

Hi Greg,

Before I say anything, I'd like to apologize for the impersonalness of my last two guesses for the Clans Contest (about a dozen posts previous). I just figured a preamble was unnecessary, but looking back, it feels cold.

Anyway, I wanted to ask about the unrealized Tibetan adventure. Did it have to do with:

1) Religion
2) Politics/Current Events
3) One of Oberon's Children

Also, how far did it get in development before it was canned?

The revelation that this story was cut for episode volume is disheartening, especially since we won't get another World Tour, even if the show returns.

Todd Jensen writes...

One other tidbit on that description of Morgan (the prototype for Elisa) that occurred to me. Her bio mentions that she dressed up as Guinevere for Halloween. And you mentioned that in the early stages of development for "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time", other members of the production team had suggested having Elisa dress up as Guinevere, although you nixed that one. I wonder if that notion might have been another carryover from the original comedy development now. (One reason why these behind-the-scenes looks are so fascinating).

Laura 'ad astra' Ackerman writes...

I read _Viewing Violence_ which came to me attention from your comments. First off I would like to [publicly] compliment you on your modesty. You said she described Gargoyles (specifically Deadly Force) as an example of violence portrayed responsibly. That is an understatement- it was the ONLY such example she gave in cartoondom, and, at least for the first half of the book, non-educational children's program in general. That far I had seen her recommend just three television shows highly and without reservation, and those were Sesame St, Mr. Rogers and Gargoyles. Next up was Barney; its banality outweighed by its gentleness. Then Star Trek for its optimism; but only for children old enough to have truly begun to differentiate between fantasy and reality. Later she praised a host of the less pointlessly caustic family sit-coms ranging from Full House, to the Cosby Show to Roseanne that she felt dealt with the smaller day to day issues young children have to learn. Gargoyles got as much positive attention as ET and Stand By Me.

She did seem to put Gargoyles in the wrong chapter, although she probably did so to deal with cartoons as one unit. At that point she was dealing with shows appropriate for the very young before they have a sense of either fantasy versus reality or long-term perspective. Gargoyles fits into the next age group in which she felt it worthwhile to demand exactly what episodes like Deadly Force gave: real consequences.

Another thing the book had pointed out to me was the prevailing pessimism of today. I knew that crime has been dropping to all time lows and yet people are not feeling safe, but I had never connected it to entertainment so directly. [I had thought of violent media as symptomatic not causal, now I think it is both.] It made me stop and realize (among other things) that Gargoyles, despite its wonderful moodiness and difficult issues managed to be an optimistic series. Considering it is a series that starts with a massacre and has several powerful episodes that end on very low notes (ex. Metamorphosis, Sanctuary, etc) it is quite an accomplishment.

The author did not seem a fan of animation. In fact she seemed to think that little had changed since back when cartoons were more blatantly just merchandising and 'moral messages' were simplistic and tacked on. She did not seem to think about adult audiences being a big issue with cartoons, and didn't deal with other cartoons that might have strong adult fan followings. [Well..., she did say she didn't like X-Men.] Considering all that, I find it more impressive that she dedicated so much time to Gargoyles. It is impressive to have won her praise despite her bias, and given her focus on only young audiences, a good sign that the official target audience was well served.

While I did not agree with some of what she said, the book did make me think a bit more carefully about what I choose to watch.

Here is where I get totally subjective:
I really wish that Disney paid more intention to such things. I had enjoyed the Disney Afternoon increasingly leading up to Gargoyles, but less so after. In my opinion the following shows slid from respectable to hit or miss and finally to disappointing. Ultimately they ceased to be the most impressive force in Tv cartoons. [Now WB has taken over despite its over reliance on Pokemon. Fox is pushing hard, and the Cartoon Network grows stronger and stronger.]

I know that Disney is a business first and foremost, and I do not begrudge them being profitable- in fact I wish them great prosperity, but they do market themselves as Americana and a responsible influence on the country and world youth. I think they succeed most when they stay true to that vision. When they place profitability before vision instead of second or at most equal to it, the results are often formulaic and forgettable. I would have liked Disney to nurture and give time to Gargoyles above and beyond other offerings precisely because it was of such a high quality. It was a departure and radical in some ways, but in others, specifically the ways that _Viewing Violence_ spoke about, a logical extension of what Disney is all about. Still, I do realize that other times Disney has taken the high road profitability took years to become evident. The initial Fantasia was considered a flop, and I am very curious how well Fantasia 2000 did financially. Television is not a forgiving medium, and cartoons are very expensive.

In hindsight I can say Disney chose the wrong approach because it meant backing away from animation just before so many other studios were getting interested and anime influenced offerings were becoming mainstream. I realize some of it had to do with major broadcasting changes- namely acquiring ABC and the rise the WB as a network with its own competing programming, but I wonder, especially now that Disney tries to market Toon Disney, if there aren't execs slapping their foreheads and shaking their heads over some of the decisions made over the last few years. And if those execs exist, are they thinking, "How did we lose that advantage?" without a real sense of what they did to lose it, or are they looking at specific shows and saying, "that was real quality, why did we let that go?" Truth be told, the failure to are Deadly Force makes the second seem unlikely.

By now I have turned my praise relating to the book to a ramble, so I will stop.