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Greg "Xanatos" Bishansky writes...
Did Fox wear the Eye of Odin in public after Xanatos gave it to her? I'd imagine it would raise questions since it was stolen.
Greg responds...
She could always say it was a copy. But really, when did she have the chance?
AWAKENING, PART TWO
Watched the episode again last night.
Little things....
My two year old son is fascinated with Tom. And misses him in the second act after he's gone. Misses him in other episodes too. Kinda puts the lie to the strongly held belief I've always had that contrary to Network Executive Dogma, kids don't need animated shows to be about kids. Of course, my son is just two. My five year old has no problem with their being no "little girl" in the show.
Goliath says "What sorcery is this?" for the first time. We wound up using it over and over in the series, til it became something of an in-joke. But the truth is, we could never come up with a better line that said the same thing.
Goliath's "suicide" at the end of Act One, is still one of the most startling things I've ever seen in a cartoon. That was Gary Krisel's idea (my boss Bruce Cranston's boss). And I've always admired him for it. It's also the reminder I use to keep me humble when I'm listening to notes from the higher ups. Michael Reaves and I were just going to have the Magus offer to cast his spell on Goliath as something of a consolation prize. "Best I can do" kinda thing.
Love that Chernabog moment where Goliath says "I've been denied everything, even my revenge!" Man, Keith David is great.
The way it's edited you'd never know the problem the last fight in the Viking's camp caused me vis-a-vis Broadway. As you may recall from Part One, during the Viking's initial attack, Broadway stopped for a snack, and then opportunistically used the turkey leg to bonk a Viking. A nice little comedic beat. Well, in Part Two, we wanted to contrast that by having Broadway land in front of the roasting spit by the fire -- so that the audience again thinks he's just thinking about his stomach. But that after the massacre, the much more serious Broadway immediatlely starts using it as a weapon. That's pretty much what you see. But that's not what we received in Animation. What we got was a virtual replay of the scene from Part One. Broadway lands with a big grin and starts to eat. Then he gets attacked and uses the spit as a weapon. It took judicious editing to keep Broadway from feeling too one-dimensional. And even then as the series progressed, we started to downplay Broadway's appetite (another good Gary Krisel suggestion). We brought it up again in Hunter's Moon, Part Three to show how far the character had come. Yeah, great kitchen, but an even better library. That kind of thing.
We had a similar problem with Hudson's sword. We were supposed to make a big deal of him using it for the first time in the battle at the Viking camp. But some of the animation in both Parts One and Part Two showed him using the sword and/or having it by his side before that. That's what retakes are for, I guess.
Xanatos' first appearance... I'm really curious to know how many people, seeing this for the first time knew that Xanatos was the bad guy. I thought it was a little too obvious myself. There's a look he gives Goliath when he's taking the gargs' questions in the Great Hall that I thought absolutely tipped his hand to the audience. But we did try to create a guy who looked like he should be the hero of the show. Handsome athletic Bruce Wayne type up against scary monsters. And Jonathan Frakes is terrific.
(There was a while when Gary Krisel thought maybe we should have Xanatos -- or another rich guy, a pre-Renard if you will -- actually be the gargoyles modern benefactor. I'm glad that's one bit of advice I didn't take from Gary.)
We also get the first look at Owen. Jeff Bennett. Man. What a great cast we had. Wasn't Owen just fascinating from moment one? I didn't know he was Puck way back then, but I sure did know there was a story behind him.
Love that moment when they all Shatter out of stone near the top of Act Two. The sky spinning behind Goliath. The rotating camera for the others. Bronx leaning into the foreground. Still gives me a little thrill. Don't disappoint me Xanatos said. Well, it worked for me.
The first time we got the animation back on that sequence, their stone skins didn't really EXPLODE off them. In fact the first version of the footage had no stone at all. Those of you who have been to the GATHERING have seen that footage. We really had to push to make that concept of them exploding to life every night play visually.
There's an intentional this-ain't-Batman moment during the fight with the Commandos. Goliath gets tossed off the building. He's falling and he grabs for a flagpole, just like Batman would. But Goliath is so heavy, he rips the flagpole right off the building, and he has to use his claws to save himself. Back in those days, everyone was terrified that GARGOYLES was going to be perceived as a BATMAN rip-off. I actually had to write up a memo for the Marketing Department, listing all the significant ways the shows were different. This flagpole bit was our (me, Frank, Michael's) conscious reaction to the constant comparisons.
There's a moment during the fight where Goliath is facing a Commando, and from off-stage Xanatos rescues Goliath by firing his laser at the wall and dumping the masonry on the commando. But that scene gave us nightmares, because it looked like the laser beam was coming from Goliath's eyes. Like he was Cyclops of the X-Men. This made us nervous, because the concept was so new, we were afraid that the audience would think that maybe Gargoyles have all sorts of "cool" super-powers like that.
One line got cut from Part One that would have helped a bit in understanding Lex's character. In Part One, during the initial battle with the Vikings, we had Lex investigating a catapult, fascinated with how it works. That little scenelet got cut from the script for time. But I still miss it.
Anyway, please feel free to post your own responses here on the episode. Both how you felt when you first saw it, and what strikes you now looking at it again.
Todd Jensen writes...
Something that I've been wondering for some time about that secret passageway that Demona used to sneak into the great hall of Castle Wyvern in "City of Stone Part Three". How did she manage to conceal it from everyone else when the castle was being moved from Scotland to New York? I'd think that it would be extremely difficult to have hidden it while the castle was being transported stone by stone.
Greg responds...
I think so too. Maybe the transport wasn't quite as stone by stone as it looked to be. Or maybe in the replacing of stones the supervisors of the reconstruction didn't put two and two together and realize that by attaching stone A to stone B they were creating a secret passsage, and so neglected to alert Xanatos or Owen.
lisa writes...
you said that xanatos would be dead by 2158 how would he have died?
Greg responds...
Oh, come on. You didn't really think I'd reveal that?!!
lisa writes...
what did titania whisper to fox?{one day we'll find out}
Greg responds...
From whom? Titania or Fox?
Aris Katsaris writes...
In the gargoyles bible for the first season you had made mention of the existence of a 'very wise man' who first made an alliance with gargoyles building his castle of a gargoyle rookery and who ushered in the golden age of gargoyle-human relations...
Is this still how you picture it happening? The existence of a specific 'very wise man' was intriguing to me - is he just a generic figure, or someone whose name we would recognize? (I have my own idea on the subject ofcourse but I refrain from suggesting it in case it's considered a story-idea)
Greg responds...
I was being generic in the bible on purpose to simplify things. Honestly, I don't think I ever really thought there was just one person who did that. The world was too big a place and there wasn't any internet back then to facilitate communication. So that "wise man" was a place holder in my mind for a number of intelligent humans and gargoyles who made multiple alliances over multiple centuries in multiple places.
One such alliance of "wise men" was the alliance formed between Hudson and Malcolm, which was brokered by Robbie.
Another alliance was that formed between Xanatos and Demona, brokered by Owen, with a little help from Brooklyn, Mary and Finella behind the scenes.
Excelsior writes...
In "The Price," after Hudson escapes Xanatos's dungeon, Xanatos bitterly comments that he now has no one to test the Cauldron of Life's magic on. Ever the good servant, Owen volunteers and sticks his hand into the cauldron without a second thought.
Now, I know Xanatos isn't the most practical being on Earth, but couldn't he have just dipped one of his little lab animals into the brew, or even one of his lower-level lackeys?
Greg responds...
Owen didn't give him the chance. I think Owen was feeling a little jealous of Xanatos' praise of the Macbeth robot. He dived right in, so to speak.
Of course, both men knew that "Owen" really had nothing to lose by dipping his hand. That's why both had such mild reactions to Owen's hand turning into stone.
Dan writes...
I think I asked this earlier, so if you don't want to answer this, it's okay by me, but I'm still curious as to why David Xanatos did not decide to turn Elisa into a mutant panther instead of her brother in the "Metamorphosis" episode. Elisa as a mutant instead of her brother seems a better bargain to me, as Elisa as a human posed a ongoing danger to Xantos, and had more to offer in the way of skills, (Not to mention a certain revenge factor in turning Elisa into a mutant kitty on Xantos part). Even if the transformation was only on a short term basis, having a crack detective who was already your enemy transformed instead into a mutant powerless,ex-cop living in the sewers, who was dependent on your good will and had to follow your "requests" if she ever wanted a cure,would have been a great way for Xanatos to split Elisa from the gargoyles, get her off the force, if not actually working for him, and out of his hair at least for awhile.
Greg responds...
I feel like I've answered this already, but...
What good is Elisa as a mutate?
She'd only have become a more dangerous enemy. Maybe her effectiveness as a cop would be neutralized, but Xanatos had already managed that fairly effectiely, and his plan to turn her brother into a mutate further hampered her there. But meanwhile he would have a dangerous mutate, who knew he was a villain, knew he couldn't be trusted. It would hardly get her out of his hair, as you put it. She'd have nothing to lose, wouldn't trust him for a second to find a cure.
Derek, on the other hand, could be manipulated. In the long run, using him didn't accomplish all that Xanatos hoped, but for awhile it looked like he had what he set out to create, his own personal set of gargoyles. That could never have happenned with Elisa. Not even briefly. And I don't see how this would have split her off from the Gargoyles. She wouldn't have gone to live in a sewer. She'd have moved in with them. Arguably it could have made them even tighter.
As for revenge, we've seen over and over that Xanatos doesn't have a revengeful bone in his body. That kind of petty stuff doesn't interest him.
Biggest Fan Amanda writes...
Me and some buds have been haveing a contest and it was this What is Owen's Middle Name?
Greg responds...
Probably Alan.
Aaron writes...
Probably irrelevent, but... In Reawakening, when Xanatos says "It's alive! Aliiiive! I've always wanted to say that." does Demona know what he's talking about, or does she just think he's being goofy. In other words, does she get the reference?
Greg responds...
It's probably funnier if she doesn't.
Aris Katsaris writes...
This is a comment rather than a question and I was reminded of it due to E.J. Kalafarski's previous message. I've been meaning to congratulate you on the interconnectedness of all the elements in the Gargoyles universe as well as for the fact that most of the connections between the characters are given reasonable explanations and don't have to rely on farfetched coincidences (Charles Dickens-style...)
For example (to mention the characters that E.J gave) the idea that Puck was intrigued by Titania's role as Anastasia and from there on went on working for Fox's boyfriend, Xanatos, gave a perfectly reasonable explanation (not dependent on coincidence) on why two fay would be in the same area... Kudos for this and many similar instances...
Greg responds...
Thanks, Aris.
That's something I took some pride in. Made some effort to make play well. But again, it wasn't that hard. It just seemed to work and make sense almost beyond my ability to control.
All of the following were discoveries more than inventions:
1. Fox loved Xanatos.
2. Fox is Renard's daughter.
3. Anastasia was Titania.
4. Owen was Puck.
It all just seemed right.
E.J. Kalafarski writes...
Hey Greg, just one question that's been bugging me. Did Puck in any way influence Xanatos's decision to hire Fox as the leader of The Pack? If not, then it's a pretty incredible coincidence that a fey and the daughter of a fey just so happened to come under the employment of the same mortal man. I mean, according to Oberon's law, there shouldn't be too many fae wandering around in Manhatten in the first place, right? I'm assuming something (or someone) led Xanatos to hire (and marry) Fox, which caused Oberon (who was only trying to bring Alexander to Avalon) to run into Puck. If this question has already been answered, I ask you to forgive me :-)
Greg responds...
No, you've got it backwards, sort of. But it's not a coincidence at all, if you've seen "The Gathering, Part Two".
Puck became Owen because he spotted Titania posing as Anastasia. And he went to work for Xanatos because David and Fox interested him. They were already something of a couple before the Pack was formed. (Or at any rate, before "Thrill of the Hunt".)
Zeliard writes...
Just one quickie:
What was Fox's occupation by the end of Season 2?
Greg responds...
Full time mom.
Aris Katsaris writes...
Will Alexander by the year 2158 have a family (besides Titania and the possibility of Fox)? Wife, girlfriend, children?
Greg responds...
Not saying. Though obviously, he'll have a HUGE extended family.
Jonathan Frakes
Last night, my wife and I went to the WB's fifth anniversary party.
I talked with Alan Burnette and Rich Fogel. Two guys who I used to work with at Disney, but who are now on BATMAN BEYOND.
I also saw a number of celebs, including the actors who play the title roles in ANGEL and FELICITY. Plus Diedrich Bader, (Oswald on DREW CAREY and Jason Canmore of "Hunter's Moon"). I also literally bumped into Shiri Appleby who's "Liz" the female lead on ROSWELL. And she was very nice about me being a clutz.
And, best of all, I ran into Jonathan Frakes, who's an exec producer on ROSWELL. He was terrifically charming as always to both myself and Beth. (Beth and Jonathan's wife Genie Francis were once in MOMMY & ME classes together after we both had our respective first kids.)
Without any prompting from me, he bemoaned the fact that Disney stopped making GARGOYLES. He's still a big fan of the show. We started to talk some more but he was approached by Ray Wise, the actor who played Laura Palmer's father on TWIN PEAKS. I left them to talk, and we didn't get to hook up again before Beth and I had to leave. (Babysitters, school nights, plus as glamorous as it may sound, I feel very out of place at this kind of party. Very uncomfortable.)
Anyway, I realize it's not much of an anectdote, but I thought you'd like to know.
Airwalker writes...
Would Xanatos have eventually shown up in BAD GUYS?
Greg responds...
Could I have stopped him?
Todd Jensen writes...
Just out of curiosity - have you ever worked out what religion the major (or minor, for that matter) human characters in "Gargoyles" are, if on a purely "for personal amusement" basis? (I doubt that you were seriously planning to bring it up directly in the series, given how tricky handling religion in television can be). We know from Diane's "We can pray, Peter" line in "Deadly Force" that the Mazas have some sort of religious belief, and obviously Max Loew, his Rabbi ancestor, and Janus in "Golem" are/were Jewish, but that's as far as I can guess.
Greg responds...
Matt Bluestone is Jewish.
Maria Chavez is Catholic.
Halcyon Renard is a Calvinist.
Petros Xanatos is Greek Orthodox.
I think that Diane Maza is a member of some Protestant Christian sect, but I'd have to do some research to figure out which one.
Peter Maza spent most of his adult life as a dedicated Agnostic. But since "Cloud Fathers" it would be interesting to see how that's changed.
I think Elisa probably has a background in Christianity from her mother, but probably styled her beliefs after her father. Still, I'm quite certain that all the stories her mother told about African myths and legends helped her maintain an open mind.
I think Derek Maza has a more Christian bent. Maggie Reed too.
Beth Maza's more likely to at least attempt to connect back with Carlos Maza's Native American beliefs.
David Xanatos believes... in himself.
Fox believes in David.
Have I left anyone out?
Airwalker writes...
What would Titania's response be to Renard's death?
Greg responds...
Sadness. Peace.
She'd have been with him, as Anastasia, at the end, along with Fox, Alexander, Vogel and Goliath. I had a story planned for the third season.
Maybe someday...
Amina/Lupichana writes...
If this question has already been asked, then feel free to ignore it---I'll eventualy get around to looking at all the archives. (Wow, BIG archives.. 8)
What is David Xanatos's nationality? For that matter, his father's? (or, if it's easier, where his family originally came from 8)
Greg responds...
Petros is from Greece. David is Greek-American.
Fysen writes...
Approximately how much did Xanatos' Gargoyle Battle Armor Cost?
Greg responds...
I don't have any idea. A lot.
Alaxk writes...
1. By the end of "Journey", does Xanatos realize he has obtained his immortality already through his son or was he going to continue in his attemps to live forever (I realize the two, immortality and living forever are very different which leads me to my next question)?
2. Did Xanatos learn from Hudson in "The Price" the difference between living forever and immortality?
Greg responds...
I'll answer Question 2 first:
Cloud Fathers came after The Price.
As for Question 1, I don't think he'd fully seen the light.
Airwalker writes...
Why was Renard allowed to put a second flying fortress in orbit around the city? If the first one had gone a little bit to the left or right in either direction, it might have hit an area full of people. Wouldn't they consider it to be too much of a danger in case of an error or accident of some sort?
Greg responds...
I'm sure he had to do some politicking.
Airwalker writes...
How does Diane Maza feel about the fact that it was her advice that finally helped Derek decide to work for Xanatos?
Greg responds...
Probably pretty lousy. Wouldn't you think?
Though of course her advice was sound based on the info she had at the time.
Airwalker writes...
Once you stated that as late as 2158 Puck would still be around and stuck as Owen in the mortal world. You also stated that the way Owen avoids the effects of aging is that he basically resets himself whenever he transforms from Puck to Owen. If he is stuck as Owen in 2158, then how does he avoid aging?
Greg responds...
He's stuck starting in 2158. Stuck for a very specific reason. So starting in 2158 he does begin aging normally. Unless the situation changes...
Airwalker writes...
At the end of THE GATHERING 2, did Oberon restore Fortress 2 to the air and fix up Central Park so there was no evidence of any battle, or did he leave it in place?
If it wasn't moved, then how did Renard explain why it crashed again? And if people think that yet another flying fortress crashed, why would they be willing to allow it to go up a third time?
Greg responds...
Do you really think Oberon would have bothered?
And who said it went up a third time?
Demona Taina writes...
Oh, man, I forgot to include this question...
1. What's wrong with Renard? Why can't he walk? Why does he look so old? He was young when he married Anastasia.
Thanks for reading!
Greg responds...
Well, first off he married Anastasia a long time ago. But he's also in failing health from an illness that I was thinking might be Multiple Sclerosis. But I'm not sure, and haven't done the research to confirm if the symptoms we've seen him demonstrate fit that disease. I wouldn't want to be innacurate in dealing with something that real and difficult.
Aris Katsaris writes...
Asked about whether halflings like Fox, Alex and Merlin age slower, you responded "It depends." On what does it depend?
Greg responds...
On how human they live and believe their lives to be. On training. On appearance. On luck.
Aris Katsaris writes...
Did Titania really love Renard, or was he just a game? Around what time did she leave him? And was it before or after he became ill and paralyzed?
Greg responds...
Titania did love him when she married him and for years after. In a way, she probably still loves him. But he was too rigid, too mortal to hold her interests for too long. And I imagine they divorced before he became ill. He didn't blame her departure on his illness, but on his integrity.
Airwalker writes...
How does Petros feel about the Gargoyles personally? And would he approve of Gargoyles helping to take care of his grandson?
Greg responds...
Petros (whose name means 'rock' by the way) is very hard-nosed. If the gargs helped save Alex and if they have the kind of moral fiber that David lacks, I don't think he'd much care about issues of species or appearance.
Don't you agree?
(Please feel free to respond. As I mentioned a long time ago, I'd love it if Ask Greg became something of a dialogue.)
Airwalker writes...
How would Petros Xanatos react if he found out about the Mutates and his son's involvment in their creation?
Greg responds...
Badly.
Todd Jensen writes...
Something that I've wondered about "Metamorphosis" for some time, and finally remembered to ask here. Why did Xanatos choose Derek as one of his victims for the Mutates project? The reason why I'm wondering this is because unlike Maggie (whose folks were presumably all back in Ohio), Derek had family living in New York who would notice his disappearance and investigate - and indeed did. And in particular, Elisa was already definitely not a member of the David Xanatos Fan Club even before the events in "Her Brother's Keeper" and "Metamorphosis", and Xanatos was surely aware of this. It must have been pretty obvious that he'd be in real trouble with her if she ever found out that he'd turned her brother into a winged panther.
Obviously Xanatos must have felt there to be some practical benefit to turning Derek into a Mutate that was enough to outweigh the disadvantage of making even more of an enemy out of Elisa. What I'm curious about is: what was that practical benefit that was strong enough for Xanatos to take the risk?
Greg responds...
First off, Derek had qualities that Maggie, Fang and Claw did not.
Simply put if you are creating your own race of gargoyles, you might consider that you need your own equivalent of Goliath too lead them. Even, literally, to teach them how to fly.
Secondly, I don't think he really feared making an EVEN bigger enemy out of Elisa. That ship had sailed. Rather, I think he felt, particularly if he succeeded -- as he very nearly did -- in keeping Derek/Talon in his employ, that having Derek as a Mutate-bodyguard would be a very effective deterrent against anything Elisa might do. Using Derek was a huge potential bonanza. And the downside (to Xanatos at least) was minimal.
He never really suffered for it.
Great question, by the way.
Kevin writes...
This is my first time asking a question, although I've read your responses on and off for 2 years now.
I have never found any answer to this in the archives, so I figured I'd give it a shot.
1. Did David Xanatos actually choose to have Derek become a mutate? This is something I was never clear about...Yes, Xanatos and Sevarius were basically putting on an act for Derek, but was Sevarius shooting Derek with the formula come about as just part of the acting on the Mad Doctor's part, or was Sevarius told ahead of time by Xanatos to specifically inject Derek.
2. Another Metamorphisis question. If Sevarius is really not the old man with the cooky accent he portrayed in the beginning of that episode, why did he feel the need to dress up like one??? I ask because if it was to disguise himself so that after faking his death he could go about freely, well then it failed. Everyone reckgonized him immediatly, including Goliath and Derek. So why bother pretending to be an old man in the first place?
3. And how did Sevarius "pretend" to be electocuted to death by eels anyway??? Did he have some sort of insulated suit?
4. Another Metamorphisis question. (something about that episode) How did Maggie end up on the streets of New York anyway? Was she hooked on drugs? She looked very unhealthy, much like she was coming down off after being high.
5. Okay, this one isn't Metamorphisis related. And I don't recall this one being asked either, but it does concern the whole Time loop thing which has been discussed. How did the Archmage even know about Macbeth(and the older version of Demona for that matter). Why did he choose to perserve those particular two?
Thank you for your time
Greg responds...
1. I'm not saying there was no ad libbing going on, but the evening went pretty much as Xanatos had planned.
2. He's a ham. He was having a good time. Weren't you?
3. He had something, obviously. Does it matter what?
4. I think Maggie came to New York to be a "STAR". She was tremendously naive. She probably had, like a thousand bucks, and figured that would last her the two or three months it would take before she was "discovered". Of course, a grand won't last you one month in Manhattan. Not if you don't know anyone that you can trust and not if you have no where to stay. I think she was rather quickly in desperate circumstances and living on the streets. She might very well have been sick, but no she hadn't been using drugs.
5. O.K. Per our new rules, since this is a new topic, you'll need to resubmit this question as a seperate post. Sorry.
Airwalker writes...
I once asked "Now that Renard knows the truth about Anastasia, has it changed anything in terms of his feelings for her" to which you replied "What exactly does he know?"
So he doesn't know that Anastasia is Titania? Why not? I mean, why would Xanatos and Fox keep him in the dark about that if they already informed him about Oberon?
Wasn't he curious as to why Oberon was after Alex?
Greg responds...
This question gave me a headache. It's full of assumptions. I didn't say he didn't know that Anastasia is Titania. But is that the same thing as your initial question?
Precision. Precision. Precision.
But cutting through my obfuscation, I think that Renard will go to his grave loving Anastasia. Titania means nothing to him. That doesn't mean he doesn't know.
Sevarius Jr. writes...
Who was responsible for creating the concept of Fox? I've always thought it was very clever to name her "Fox Renard". A conscious effort to point back at the folk tales of old, huh (Renard the Fox is a fave of mine!)? ;-)
Greg responds...
Uh, it depends what you mean.
I came up with the original concept for the Pack. At least I think I did. At any rate, I led the development team that did. I definitely had Fox pegged as female. Her birth name came later. "Renard" was used in "Outfoxed" as both a clue to the clever viewer that Halcyon and Fox were related and a clue to the clever viewer as to where Fox got her name. I know it sounds like I'm always taking credit, but I think that was my idea as well. (But it might have been Cary Bates. I just vaguely remember that Cary named the character Something Halcyon. And I made Halcyon the first name and made the last name Renard. Frank Paur came up with the character of Halcyon Renard in the first place, though I think Cary and I figured out that he was Fox's dad.)
Jackson writes...
Me again! Since I tend to think up questions one at atime, your request is one I can easily handle! Anyway:
1. Does Thailog have a certain attraction to Elisa? His behavior in "Double Jeopardy" and "The Reckoning" Seem to indicate this (the way he speaks and acts toward her in "Double Jeopardy" and the fact that he mixed her DNA with Demona's instead of making a ordinary clone of Demona to create Delilah in "The Reckoning"). If he does, is it because of the fact that he was created with Goliath's DNA? Or does he just naturally find something about her attractive?
Greg responds...
Thailog clearly finds Elisa attractive.
Now as to the cause....
Well you could attribute it to Goliath's DNA. But that sounds extremely unlikely as Goliath wasn't physically attracted to Elisa until he saw her transformed into a Gargoyle in "The Mirror".
So you either have to attribute it to some facet or facets of Xanatos' programming...
Or to the knowledge of Goliath's feelings for Elisa.
Or both.
Or something else.
Aris Katsaris writes...
What would Oberon and Titania's son and daughter (thanks for providing that tidbit by the way!) feel about their half-siblings, Fox and Merlin? Indifference, annoyance, affection?
Greg responds...
Aris, I luv ya guy, but you ask HUGE questions as if they can be answered with a single word like "Indifference".
How does A relate to B?
How does A relate to Fox?
How does A relate to Merlin?
How does B relate to Fox?
How does B relate to Merlin?
And that assumes that A & B even know about Fox and Merlin. That A & B are even among the living?
When questions are that huge, I tend to give no useful information at all.
Maybe you've noticed.
Airwalker writes...
Would you have given some personal history to Jackal and Hyena as time went on?
(I'm curious as to what kind of people would be so willing to mutilate themselves. What kind of a past could have moved them to doing that to themselves?
Wolf mutating himslef didn't bother me because if anything he was increasing his senses, his physical being, while Jackal and Hyena were diminishing theirs. They threw away perfectly good body parts for what - dull feelingless metal?)
Greg responds...
Probably. But it wasn't a high priority for me. Sometimes it's fun just to have a couple characters who are nuts. Characters who don't have complex reasons for their actions. I'm very proud of the complexity that abounds in both Demona and Xanatos. But sometimes it's fun just to cut loose.
Zeliard writes...
Hello Mr. Weisman.
My first time ever that I ask a question in Station 8!
1.a)In "Her brother's keeper", did Derek listened to the tape Elisa gave him?
1.b)If Derek did listened to the tape, what did he thought about Xanatos and elisa?
2)What happened to Fortress 2 after the crash? Did Cyberbiotics left it or the air base is still operational?
3)Why Matt Bluestone hasn't revealed his membership to the Illuminaty to Elisa and the Gargoyles?
Thank you for your time, bye!
Greg responds...
1. I think that's an ambiguity better left ambiguous.
2. For you to answer, really...
As per our new rules, I invite you to resubmit your remaining questions as multiple separate posts.
Nick "Elessar" Oder writes...
Actually getting to communicate with THE Greg Weisman, should I be in reverental awe or just hop-up-and-down giddy? Maybe both at the same time. Anyway, here goes my long-winded questions...
This may take a while, but yes, it does actually get to a question :)
While watching Gargoyles, I can't help but get shivers down my spine and goosebumps whenever someone starts chanting in Latin. Whether it's the actual chanting in Latin, the creepy music, or the animation, I don't know. Though I tend to think it's the Latin, because it's how I noticed the difference between the two types of magic in Gargoyles. When watching the Magus cast the spell of sleep on the gargoyles, or Goliath throwing the Phoenix Gate into the void, I always get goosebumps. On the otherhand, when Oberon, Titania, or Puck use magic, there was no tingly feeling, and that's when I finally noticed.
Humans and gargoyles (hencefore refered to as mortals, even though some aren't) always chant in Latin while using magic. Members of the Third Race (henceforth refered to as Fay) speak in plain english, although it's usually in the form rhyme/short poem.
Though there were exceptions, which all proved dangerous, sometimes fatal, as Xanatos said "I'm told mixing magics is dangerous anyway."
Now I start making assumptions, generally intelligent ones though.
First off that all mortal magic is in Latin, while Fay is in English or whatever other language they prefer at the time, or subliminal, not requiring speech.
I can think of three instances of a mortal using fay magic, and perhaps one of a fay using mortal magic, and one of a fay realizing not to get involved with mortal magic.
Let's start with the mortals. In Grief, the Emir uses the Scroll of Thoth to summon Anubis, of the Fay. I will now be brash enough to assume that the Scroll is of Fay origin, since:
a) It was powerful enought to summon Anubis, a Fay (though Demona summone Puck with a Latin spell that I assume was of mortal origin)
b) It was spoken in english, like other Fay magic.
c) If Anubis is Fay, it stands to reason that all the other Egyptian gods were also and since it's the Scroll of Thoth, an Egyptian god, it must be Fay in origin.
And in the end the Emir presumably dies, the usual fee for mixing magics.
Second scenario. In the Avalon Trilogy the Magus casts two spells, both in english, whereas he previously used Latin. Which brings me to my next assumption, "When in Avalon, do as the Avalonians do," or that you can't even use mortal magic on Avalon, it has to be Fay in nature.
And the Magus also paid the price for magic mixing.
Part Three. All the uses of the Eye of Odin were pretty ugly, Fox almost died, Goliath went nuts, and the Archmage died since without it's assumed Fay (it's Odin's eye, he's a Fay, it's Fay) power, he couldn't contain the mortal-magic Grimorum.
Are we seeing a pattern here or what?
Ok, I lied, one more mortal use that could have been dangerous. Fara Maku and Tea being were-panthers. Um, that's just plain dangerous. :)
The fay perhaps using mortal magic. While I don't know if the Cauldron of Life is of fay or mortal origin, it was dangerous to Owen (fay in human form) and would have been dangerous/fatal to both Xanatos and Hudson. Which leads me to believe the Cualdron is of Fay origin, Xanatos probably wanted to see if this mixing was indeed dangerous. And even though it was a Fay trying out Fay magic, it did alter Puck's human form, but his natural form is still fine.
And Owen/Puck was smart enough not to try reversing Demona's spell in City of Stone, since he knew she used mortal magic. Which re-enforces the belief that the Cauldron is of Fay origin, otherwise I doubt Owen would have gone ahead with dunking his hand. Even though it was a Fay using Fay magic, his human form still got chumped. I suppose this was a learning experience for the Puck, don't use Fay magic in mortal form.
1) So the question is: Are my assumptions correct? Please correct me if I've goofed anywhere, I'd love to know the real answers if I'm wrong.
2) The Emir used the Scroll of Thoth to summon Anubis and used the Papyrus of Thoth to become a vessel. Are they two different things or one thing refered to by two names.
3) Even though the Phoenix Gate is of Avalon origin, it's used by a Latin incantation. Ermmm, why? Wouldn't this be mixing magic?
4) Why did Elisa hand Tom her gun in Ill Met?
4a) How did Tom know how to hold it?
4b) Why did she call it a revolver in Sentinel? Semi-autos have a very hard time revolving. :)
4c) Speaking of that, is it full auto, or just semi?
5) Where does Xanatos aquire all his cool stuff? The Cauldron of Life, the Star of Arabia, the Coyote Diamond, the Eye of Odin, the Grimorum Arcinorum, etc... I know where he got the diamond, but why would anyone be selling the other stuff?
Well that's it for now, my brain's starting to go numb. Thanks for taking the time to read these.
Greg responds...
1. Some of your assumptions are correct. Some aren't completely correct, but most are close enough.
Latin isn't the only language of magic. Hebrew works as well, we know. And they can't be the only ones. In theory, English could work, but it would take more than a literal translation to imbue modern English with the correct magical cadences.
The Cauldron, being iron, isn't Fay magic.
And Owen wasn't really at liberty to reverse Demona's spell or even to reverse the whole stone hand thing. He was bound by his pact with Xanatos.
2. The latter.
3. It clearly is. Don't you consider the Gate fairly dangerous?
As per our new rules, I invite you to resubmit your remaining questions as multiple separate posts.
Robin Wynn writes...
Hello, and thanks in advance Mr. Weisman,
1) Would Alex have be an only child, or would Xanatos and Fox had another child?
2) Xanatos and Fox are a reasonably young couple. Would they have remained together the entire time? I ask this somewhat based on the Eye of the Beholder in which we "learned" a little about Fox's true character. There seemed to be a bit about her that Xanatos didn't know, things she was holding back (I never understood the whole "self-loathing" thing), would this have gotten in the way of their relationship later on?
3) Would Alex have been immortal like Oberon's children? If not, would he have lived longer than normal humans or anything like that?
4) Would we have ever met any of Xanatos's other relatives? We've met his father, his mother's dead, and you've already stated he is an only child, but what about Uncles, Aunts, cousins, etc? If so, who? How would they be related to him?
4) What about Fox? Is she an only child? (I assume the answer is yes, but thought I'd ask anyway)
5) a. In the Future Tense spinoff, who, of the characters we already know, would have been on the bad-guys side?
b. Who'dve been on the good guys side?
Well, that's all i can think of now, (gosh, i used to have a whole bunch of em, but as soon as I get on to ask questions i always forget em....)
Thanks for your time!
Greg responds...
1. Only child. Definitely.
2. I think, to their mutual surprise, they would have been a Til-Death-Do-We-Part kind of couple.
3. Yes.
4. I didn't have any plans for other Xanatypes.
4. (The second question four.) Yes, Fox is an only child, though she has half-siblings foster-siblings and step-siblings on her mother's side.
As per our new rules, I invite you to resubmit your remaining questions as multiple separate posts.
*The Bride of Ringo* writes...
Ok.. WOW.. i have yet more... i'm comin' up royal tonight...
1a)In order to make Cold Stone, didn't Demona need at least some part of his original stone body (The pieces that were left after he was killed)?
1b) If she did need some parts of his original body, how'd she get them? Did she save some of him for a thousand years or did Xanatos have some saved parts of him? I can't imagine she could go back and gather up the pieces, because first of all how would she get back to Europe and secondly wouldn't erosion have kicked in after 1000 years?(If this doesn't make perfect sense i really apologize, but it makes sense in my head)
2) Goliath, Brooklyn, Lex, Bronx, and Broadway were in stone sleep for 1000 years.. why didn't any erosion or weathering occur on them even though the castle itself eroded? Is it because in reality these Gargoyles were living beings or did it have something to do with the magic involved in their being stone for 1000 years?
Greg responds...
1a. Yes.
1b. Xanatos collected them.
2. They weren't dead. They were asleep. Solar energy allowed for ongoing replenishment. But I wouldn't recommend the experience.
7-13-99
Airwalker writes...
1. What would be Katana and Nashville's reaction to Malibu?
2. Do you have designs in mind for Katana, Nashville, Tachi, Fudog, and Hudson's mate? If so, could you describe them?
3. You said that Brooklyn ended up with Mary and Finella in the 1970's. So doesn't that mean that they would still be alive today?
4. Why did you say that Shakespeare's MACBETH would amuse Macbeth? It portrays Gruoch as a Princess of Darkness. How can he take pleasure in that?
5. In what era did Demona arrive in America (Colonial, Antebellum, Reconstruction, etc)?
6. In what era did Macbeth arrive in America (Colonial, Antebellum, Reconstruction, etc)?
7. Now that Renard knows the truth about Anastasia, has it changed anything for him in terms of his feelings for her?
8. Considering that after all is said and done, Goliath was raised and lived most of his life in the 10th century, what is his stand on capital punishment?
9. What are the feelings of the Trio about the Magus and Katharine, considering that they only knew them before they changed, and have never seen their redemption, only heard of it?
10. What are the Mutates feelings about the Gargoyles now living in the castle?
11. Any news on the movie?
12. If you had done BAD GUYS, would Macbeth and/or Demona have appeared?
13. Why didn't anyone ever figure out that Gilcomgain was the Hunter? He has slash marks on his face that match the one's on the mask.
14. Broadway's blindness in FUTURE TENSE, was it just Puck playing with Goliath's sanity AND a prophecy or was it only just Puck playing with Goliath's mind?
15. If the show ever did come back, would you ever bring up or try to make clearer that the people Demona smashed in CITY OF STONE were truly dead?
16. You said that Demona would find love again. But what about Macbeth? Would he have found love again?
17. How rich would you classify Xanatos, Demona, Macbeth, and Post-RECKONING Thailog (Mildly rich, extremely rich, stinking rich, beyond the reach of ordinary people rich)?
18. What did the Mutates do with Sevarious' potion from THE CAGE?
19. Would you have shown us some of Fang's past and also some of his family if BAD GUYS had been done?
20. Can you give us a clue, where in the world, which hemisphere, which continent, where ever, is Coldstone and Coldfire's new clan going to be?
21. What was the name of Xanatos' mother and when did she die?
22. You said you haven't come up with real names for Jackal and Hyena. But do you have anything in mind?
23. Does Macbeth know about the Illuminati?
24. Does the Illuminati know about Macbeth?
25. Would we have seen some of Lexington's descendants in GARGOYLES 2158?
Greg responds...
1. That would depend on the circumstances of their introduction, don't you think?
2. I've dealt with this recently. I do have a fairly clear idea about Fu Dog. But I'm not going to pin myself down at this point.
3. Doesn't preclude the possibility.
4. It has a lot to do with Mac's relationship to Will.
5. In the immortal words of my Magic Eightball: "Try Again Later".
6. Which time?
7. What exactly does he know?
8. He probably has little trouble with it but feels that in an ideal world (which he knows this is not) it's a less than stellar solution. Of course, that's all very theoretical. In practice, we've seen how he responds.
9. Distanced.
10. The Mutates aren't a monolith.
11. Nothing new, since I last answered.
12. Maybe, eventually, but not in my immediate plans.
13. Dramatic license? Or.... There were a lot of people with similar scars running around Scotland back then. Yeah. That's the ticket.
14. You didn't really think I'd answer that, did you?
15. You mean go out of my way to cover that?
16. Sure. Why not? (I'm such an old softy.)
17. Xanatos is Beyond the Reach rich. Macbeth is just stinking rich. Demona's extremely rich. Thailog's just rich.
18. Maggie saved it.
19. Yes.
20. Huh?
21. Not saying now.
22. Jack and Hanna. (Just kidding.) (Unless, I decide that those names really amuse me.)
23. Not saying.
24. Not saying.
25. Not saying.
Airwalker writes...
Glad to see AskGreg is back up.
1. Does Demona know about the Illuminati Society?
2. Does the Illuminati Society know about Demona?
3. Why exactly did you decide that Jackal and Hyena would become Cyborgs and that Wolf would become a Mutate? Why specifically that combination instead visa versa?
4. How long has Nokkar's intergalactic war been going on?
5. What happened to the helicopter Lexington fixed in HER BROTHERS KEEPER?
6. You said that New Olympians generally live for 13-250 years. So would any of the New Olympians we know be alive and around in 2158?
7. How does the Avalon Clan feel about Demona and Macbeth? (They must know those two weren't acting under their own will during the fight with the Archmage but to someone who they injured that little bit of information might not exactly displace anger at being injured.)
8. After all these years, does Macbeth know that Demona was listioning outside his window when Bodhe suggested betraying her clan to the English?
9. What are the Mutates feelings towards Alex Xanatos?
10. Why didn't Xanatos try to make Coldfire and Clodsteel look more "alive"; meaning why not slap some fake flesh on them like he did for Cyoti 1.0?
11. In POSSESSION, why wasn't Angela shocked at seeing Coldstone? After all when Goliath first saw him, he called him an abomination.
12. What was Goliath thinking in SANCTUARY and MARK OF THE PANTHER when he kept tellin Angela that she has many mothers and fathers? Who was he thinking of? There's only him, Hudson, Coldstone, Demona, and the Trio at that point. Did he seriously expect the Trio to think of Anglea as their daughter?
13. In 2158, how do you picture the world political status? Are there still seperate countries for example?
14. What is the legal status of Gargoyles in 2158?
15. What is Renard's opinion of Petros Xanatos?
Greg responds...
1. Yes.
2. Quite a bit.
3. A lot had to do with what felt right for the characters I guess. Wolf was very animalistic and hostile. Seemed perfect to make him a genetic werewolf. Jackal & Hyena were just nuts. A sociopath and a psychopath. It felt right that they would take things to the ultimate extreme.
4. Quite some time, young feller.
5. Kenner decided not to make a toy out of it.
6. That wasn't my plan.
7. Indiviuals all react differently. I'm not going to give you thirty-six individual responses.
8. I think he figured it out that night on Lunfanan Hill.
9. Which Mutate?
10. Fake gargoyle flesh? What would be the point?
11. Well, the truth here is that Angela had seen him already in the Himalayas. At least that had been my plan if the comic book hadn't been cancelled.
12. He was trying to instill in her the idea that her preoccupation with her biological parentage was an unhealthy human notion. (And since he knew Demona was her biological mother, you can see where his fear was coming from.) Of course, he lost the forest for the trees as Diane Maza pointed out in "Mark". He tried to make up for it later.
13. Yes and no.
14. Protected minority.
15. They barely know each other. And on some level, I think they'd get along, except for one thing... Renard hates David. And though Petros doesn't approve of much of his son's actions, I can't see him standing calmly by while someone else berates his son. Blood. Whatchagonnado?
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