Kofi Ki-Moon writes...

Hey Greg. I just had one question I wanted to ask you.

1. In the 2nd episode of the Pilot for Gargoyles, Owen mentions that Wyvern castle is haunted. Was this just originally a throw away line similar to Matt Bluestone's line about the Illuminati, or was did was the line meant all long to lay the seeds for a possible episode in the (then) future about the ghost of Hakon and the Captain? Or has it been so long that you honestly don't remember, because if it was that I honestly do understand.

Thanks.

Melissa writes...

First of all, let me say that how much I have always enjoyed Gargoyles. It was a high point of the afternoon for my younger brothers and me during the original run (while our mother enjoyed having a half hour relatively free of sibling squabbles), and now I'm having a lot of fun introducing the show to my 4-year-old son. So, you see, your show has multi-generational appeal! Thank you for all your hard work and vision.

Secondly, I guess my question is about your writing process. I recently discovered via this site your ideas for the prospective Gargoyles spin-offs. This suggests to me that you write with a, for lack of a better term, "master plan" in mind. Unlike, say, David Milch, who famously writes and re-writes furiously as new ideas occur to him, and actually plans out very little.

1)Would you say this is accurate?
2)If so, do you ever deviate from this plan, if a new and different idea strikes you?
3)Again if so, would you mind providing an example? (A Gargoyles show example would be just fine, I'm not asking for spin-off spoilers here!)

Thank you in advance for your time.

Captain Fan writes...

Someone in a Captain Action discussion group, found a clip from a Gargoyles episode entitiled "Eye of the Beholder". There is a brief appearance by Action Boy, who is the sidekick of Captain Action, a 1960's action figure from Ideal toys. His emblems were blacked out, I'm sure for copyright purposes. I was wondering if someone envolved with the show was a Captain Action or Action Boy fan. Anyway, it was a cool thing to see.

Greg Bishansky writes...

Not a question, but a comment. I was watching "Temptation" again, and when Demona first approaches Brooklyn she has this line "wasn't this like old times, fighting together side by side, comrades in arms..." and I have to say, kudos. Thanks to "Tyrants" and "The Gate" there so many more layers upon layers to that line especially. I could be wrong, but I never got the impression that they knew each other all that well prior to the massacre, so I used to wonder if the reference was generic or if she was just trying to make an appeal. Now, well... now the context of the line has changed, and for the better.

I don't know if the idea for their team up against Constantine existed in your head way back when "Temptation" was written, but I love moments of creative serendipity.

Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

This is possibly a separate subject from my first question:

After "Grief," how did Wolf get to Scotland, and subsequently back to New York? Not that Xanatos Enterprises lacks the resources to do so, but privately flying him so he can make friends with a possessed axe seems like a waste of Xanatos' effort. And I imagine that most humans at an airport would freak out if they got a good sight of him, and not allow him onto a passenger airplane. At least in the U.S., we need to show a face and a photo ID that match before boarding.

Thanks!

Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

*rushing in before the queue gets flooded*

I have a kind of strange Gargoyles question.

When watching The Green, I began to wonder something:

When Jackal bought Hyena a first-class airplane ticket, was it for a regular passenger plane? I can't imagine how they could get through airport security, even before 9/11 -- their bodies are full of knives, guns, and saws!

Thanks for putting up with our questions all these years.

Anonymous writes...

In awakenings when fortress 1 is destroyed we see the crew jumping out into the river. Does this mean all the crew escaped safely, if not were there any actual deaths from that incident?

Ice writes...

Alright, so, I'm curious about something. In Episode 2 Owen tells Xanatos that the cost of moving the castle and rebuilding it brick by brick would be "Astronomical". He also mentions something about the castle being hunted. Now, obviously now I know it was Hakon and the Captain. What I am wondering is if that was what was meant by that line at the time it was written for Owen, or if it was just a random throwaway line that ended up evolving into a part of the story like with Matt Bluestone's line about the Illuminati.

alfred writes...

I just wanted to ask something about the gargoyles episode The Gathering part 2.

Was Xanatos wearing an iron suit?If the suit is iron,how was Titania able to freeze him?

Anonymous writes...

According to your timeline, Demona and Thailog were back in New York when Oberon put the city to sleep. Did Demona and Thailog fall asleep?

Anonymous writes...

My question didn't appear for some reason:

In one episode of Gargoyles ("High Noon", I think it was), Lexington is attempting to fix Coldstone. For a split second, the name "OTHELLO" appears on his laptop, is this a name that Xanatos (or possibly Lexington) gave to him for programming reasons (or possibly as a Project name?) or was it an easter egg that was not meant to be taken literally?

Anonymous writes...

In Avalon Part II, why do the Weird Sisters say they are "banished from [Avalon] by a magicians parlor tricks"? Did the magus do more than turn them into owls or was it part of Oberon's law?

MasterGandalf writes...

Something that I've always wondered about "Double Jeopardy"- when Xanatos and Owen are discussing who could have "abducted" Thailog, Xanatos explicitly lists a small number of enemies- and he uses that exact word- who could have pulled it off. Specifically, the three he names are Demona, Renard, and Macbeth. Now the first two are easy enough to understand- Demona is the enemy of all humanity and has a history with Xanatos personally, while Renard is his main business competitor- but so far as we've seen Xanatos and Macbeth have only met in person twice (once in "Enter Macbeth", when Mac was actually working for Xanatos, albeit for his own reasons, and once in "City of Stone" when Mac pretty much ignored Xanatos and focused all his efforts on Demona). So my question is- why does Xanatos consider Macbeth an enemy? Have they had an offscreen run-in that we never saw, presumably because it didn't concern the gargoyles, that would lead to this attitude, or is it just a case of Xanatos naturally being wary of someone with the resources and skills to pose a legitimate challenge to him? Or is there some other reason?

A.B. Washington writes...

Hi, Mr. Weisman!!

In the episode "Eye of the Beholder", I've seen "Fox"(a.k.a. Jeanine Xanatos" turns back into her human self and she was naked in this episode, how did you guys come up with that story which aired many years ago??

Richard Jackson writes...

In "Leader of the Pack", there was that ship, Otoshiana-maru, and "otoshiana" means "pitfall" or "trap" in Japanese. While watching Targets, I got a kick when Superboy was giving the history of Rhelasia and he talks about the Bokun Dynasty starting in 1855. I realized, "bokun" means "split" or "cleave" in Korean, the ultimate fate of Rhelasia. Do I get a no-prize? I love how you use serendipitous names.

Anonymous writes...

Hey Greg, just curious: the folks who did Batman: the Animated Series have often said that if they could go back and change any one thing about any of their episodes, it would be to make Mr. Freeze's tears turn into snowflakes in "Heart of Ice"

My question now is this: if you could go back and change any one thing about one of your Gargoyles episodes, what would it be, and why?

MacLeod writes...

Hey Greg,

This one's about High noon. Did Demona ever pay for that taxi? And if so, were did she keep her money? I mean, she was wearing her Gargoyle outfit after all.

Tiffany writes...

I'm trying to find out which episode this part I remember comes from. In 1996 I saw part of an episode where Angela and Goliath were chained to the wall in a dungeon or metal room. The shackles were overhead and bolted into the wall, like the ones Doyle's men used on Lexington in Ransom. They were struggling when Elisa ran in and hit a button or switch that released them. "But we weren't able to leave," Goliath remarked. Do you know which episode this is? I've tried looking up guides, but I still haven't been able to find it.

Richard Jackson writes...

In "Golem", when Vogel reads the spell to transfer Renard's consciousness into the Golem, was he reading Hebrew in the original alphabet or a Latin alphabet transliteration?

John writes...

Dear Greg

Thank you for taking the time to answer all of our questions and for your part in creating so many works of exceptional story telling. May I please ask a few questions about City of Stone?

1. May I ask what the people of Manhattan thought of Demona's appearance when she appeared on their TVs? Did they just assume that she was a human in a really good costume?

2. May I ask whether the Weird Sisters saw the entirety of Demona's broadcast? In part 1, they appeared as super models standing with a crowd of New Yorkers in front of a TV store. If they did see the entire broadcast, were they unaffected simply because they're Children of Oberon?

3. Did Bodhe happen to see Demona when she first confronted the Hunter at Castle Moray? If so, may I ask if he recognized her and if he still thought of her as a potential ally?

Thank you for your time, and I apologize if any of my questions have been asked before.

Jurgan writes...

Thirty minutes left until the reairing of the Young Justice premiere, so I thought I'd pass the time asking a completely unrelated question.

I saw your recent response about zombies, and how you like the old-fashioned "voodoo zombies" but not the modern, post-Romero zombies. I at least partly disagree, as I feel the best zombie movies can be good vehicles for social commentary (for instance, I thought the recent Land of the Dead was a brilliant metaphor for war profiteering- on the other hand, Dawn of the Dead was probably pretty clever at the time, but criticism of shopping malls now seems hopelessly dated). But that's just a difference of opinion. I was more interested in seeing how zombies might show up in your work.

1. Did you think of Goliath in "Temptation" as a zombie? Was that intentional on your part?

2. Do you think zombies may make a more formal appearance in Gargoyles, or have you covered that ground in "Temptation?"

Thanks for reading. I'll probably write up a ramble on YJ sometime this weekend, once I've seen it.

Xander writes...

As the conspiracy buff that I am, I found a few references to the Erisian's Law of Fives on Gargoyles (most of which from "Revelations") that I would like you to bear in mind:

a) Mace Malone's key number was 23 (2+3=5).
b) Matt's key number was 13 (23-5-5=13; or 5+5+13=23)
c) Elisa and Matt work on the 23rd precinct;
d) and the most creepy of them all: this episode is the 36th to be produced, which means that by subtracting the 13 episodes of season one, it becomes the 23rd produced episode of season two!

I was wondering if these references were intentional or are just coincidental.

Sasha writes...

Dear Greg,
I have always wondered about what happened to the audio tape which Elisa recorded in Season 1 Episode 12, when Fox confessed to her all of Xanatos's schemes concerning Derek/Talon. Did Derek/Talon ever listen to it, either before or after his mutation? If not, what became of the tape?

Anonymous writes...

In "City of Stone," Demona said that after the clan and Xanatos blew up, she would take her laser cannon to Owen, Elisa, and Bronx.

Why was she going to kill Bronx? What did the poor beast ever do to her? She's another gargoyle, and still clan as far as Bronx knows. Couldn't she just take him home?

Emily writes...

What inspired the Gargoyles episode A lighthouse in the Sea and the improtant message of reading? Was it tricky to make without sounding like after school special? (It's a really great episode by the way.)

CapFan writes...

Is there a taboo against using Nazis in cartoon shows? I know "Gargoyles" featured Nazis in one episode, but most cartoons, even when they have flashbacks set during World War II seem to do everything possible to not address the enemy as Nazis.

Take the new "Avengers" show for instance, they got rid of the Nazis in Captain America's past and replaced them with Hydra. Hydra was now conquering Europe.

Did you have trouble getting Nazis and swastikas onto MIA? And why are so many cartoons scared to say the word Nazi?

Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

Hello Greg,

Following (far) behind my long-overdue reaction to Bad Guys, here's my first question about it:

Why does Yama ask which specific gargoyle and human Sevarius used for the mutate DNA he was planning to use on Robyn and Yama? Why does Yama care? Is some human DNA more undesirable than others, or is he just curious?

Thank you.

Anonymous writes...

In High Noon, why could Elisa see Coldstone, Demona, Macbeth, and the gargoyles at the park when no one else could due to the spell that Demona had cast on them?

Thank you for your time and all that you do,

-Charisma82

Purplegoldfish writes...

Hi Greg, this is a rather silly question...

I was watching the "Avalon" trilogy the other day, and it came to the part where King Arthur, Elisa, and the Magus arrived at Oberon's Palace after Arthur is awakened. Elisa introduces Arthur to Goliath and the others, and Arthur comments that he needs someone to tell him "what is going on".

So, here's the thing...I find it hard to believe that neither Elisa nor the Magus gave Arthur any background info on the walk back from the Hollow Hill. Were they talking at all? ( I know if I were personally taking a hike with King Arthur, I would be embarassed to say anything dumb and would just cast sidelong glances at him awkwardly lol).

Greg Bishansky writes...

You've said in the past that "Awakening" was originally written and recorded as a four-parter. Out of curiosity, in the four-part version, where would the cliffhanger between parts three and four have been?

Charisma82 writes...

In Outfoxed, did Fox let Vogel keep the money she’d sent to him for betraying her father and helping her take out Renard’s company or did she take it back? Or did he give it back to her? If he kept it, what did he do with the money that was used to make him betray Renard (I would assume he’d feel guilty having it, but correct me if I’m wrong)?

Thank you for your time and all that you do,

-Charisma82

Charisma82 writes...

In Outfoxed, who was Mr. Vogel going to blame for sabotaging the robots on the ship before Goliath showed up?

Thank you for your time and all that you do,

-Charisma82

Charisma82 writes...

In High Noon, what would Demona and Macbeth have done if Iago hadn’t been the personality to take control over Coldstone? What was their plan if Desdemona or Othello had taken over?

Thank you for your time and all that you do,

-Charisma82

Mal writes...

Did Demona really need Thailog to bust her out of that cell? Those bars didn't look like they were that tough, and we saw some great feats of strength from her in other episodes. Like that time she lifted and threw that huge boulder in Temptation and that time in Hunters Moon where she tore that warehouse door out of the building and threw it down the street.

If Thailog never came to rescue her do you think she could have got out by herself?

I miss the Blue Mug a Guests writes...

At the Gathering in Chicago, during the Blue Mug a Guest, you and Keith David were asked if Goliath and Demona had sex during Awakening 4. After the scene where they reunited in the Great Hall it fades to black. Then we see them on the turret with the rest of the gargoyles.

When you both got asked at the Gathering about this, Keith said something like "what couple in their right mind would meet again after a thousand years and go see the kids first?"

I don't remember if you answered. So, did they?

Richard Jackson writes...

In "Temptation", Demona gives Brooklyn a tour of New York to show him how she views humanity. She and Brooklyn witness a purse snatching, a married couple fighting, and a murder scene. I can allow that at night and in a big city like New York, it would probably be easy to find crimes being committed or the aftermath.

what I always found a little suspicious is how Demona knew which house to go for the fighting married couple. And they are fighting (the wife even throws a vase at her husband) the exact moment Brooklyn looks in the window. Was there more to the married couple than meets the eye or does Demona just have a nose for troubled homes?

Richard Jackson writes...

Hi Greg,

Okay, I consider this the anti "What did Titania whisper in Fox's ear?" question.

In "Ill Met By Moonlight", towards the end, Oberon can be seen in the background talking to Angela while Tom the Guardian stands nearby. His lips are animated as moving, but we can't hear what he says, because the focus is on Goliath and Titania in the foreground discussing Oberon's trustworthiness.

My question is: What was Oberon saying to Angela?

If you wish to review, here is the clip. From approx. 5:25-5:29. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcmHmG0cylg

Clark Cradic writes...

Who's remains did Goliath confuse for Demona's when he returned to Castle Wyvern?

TZ writes...

Another question...
When Elisa told (or admitted, however you want to look at it) Angela that it was true that Demona was her mother at the end of Sanctuary, was Goliath angry with her? Did they discuss it at all later or did he just let it go? Was he actually relieved to not have to be the one to tell Angela?

Clark Cradic writes...

Did the thought ever occur to naming one of the Gargoyles "Queens"? I know, bad joke. Sorry.

Random Fan writes...

Sorry for asking so many questions. I hope you've at least found them interesting. Any way, on to the next one I want to ask you. When Grandmother healed Elisa was that realy just the plants she used that did the trick or was it a little magical intervention supplied by a loophole of some sort?

mage_cat writes...

I’ve been thinking about “The Hound of Ulster” lately and a question came to mind. While the episode obviously takes place in, well, Ulster, Ulster has been divided between two countries since the early 1920s. So my question is: does the episode take place in the Republic of Ireland or in Northern Ireland?

M. writes...

Related to "Future Tense":
When/How did Puck find out about Goliath having the Phoenix Gate. I don't recall Puck ever knowing this before.

Daniel writes...

Hi Greg. In the Cauldron of Life episode, why was Xanatos so disheartened when he lost Hudson as a test subject?

"I was so close to finding out if the legend was true. Now there's no one to test it on."

Couldn't he have secured a simple test animal to dip into the cauldron? You'd said that he never expected Owen to lend a hand. It's odd for him to voice defeat without thinking of another plan.

On the subject of stone skin, why weren't there any skin shards lying around from all the times the Gargoyles had awakened at the castle? I seem to recall an episode where someone assumed an identity to get to the castle and he found a skin shard (unless, of course, that was from season 3).

Caitlin (again) writes...

Since your only involvement in the Goliath Chronicles was the first episode why did you have Goliath standing outside of Elisa's apartment? Wouldn't it have been safe to be inside while New York City is on a manhunt for gargoyles?

Lexar writes...

Hi there, Mr. Weisman.
It's a great oportunity for all of us fans to be able to write you a few questions (a few thousands by now) about a show that we all enjoyed so long ago and keep loving through all these time, and to keep up with the spirit to publish/share your ideas withs us is even more than I had dreamed possible. Thank you for your time, your efforts, and for sharing that gift of creativity that makes us dream of another world of great adventures, while we secretly (or openly) hope someday will become true.
Now what intrigues me:
I was watching episode 10 - The Edge, and about minute 17, when Broadway makes a Steel Clan robot crash into the book of the Liberty Statue, he makes a very distinctive gesture: to pass a finger over his tonge and then draw a "1" in the air... the same gesture that Gillian uses in the opening sequence of Jayce and the Wheeled warriors. Who's idea was it to include a reference to the Wheelies? I almost fall from my chair when I saw this (and a lot of other puns, references and dialogs!). I'm sorry if someone already pointed it out, but I have read more than 500 records from the archive (only 138 from the search of "edge") and I haven't seen any reference to this.
By the way, I love some (if not most) of your short answers... The "Hey, if we can keep you uneasy, then I think we've succeeded." to Greg Bishannsky... wonderful. And answering to one of your questions in the rambling "Chapter XLIX: Eye of the Storm" that has an "edge" word in it, I was lightning-struck to find out that Odin's eye was actually his EYE!

vgmaster831 writes...

Dear Greg Weisman,

How exactly did Boudicca get beack to Avalon after "The Gathering: Part 1"? If I am not mistaken, she is not seen throughout the rest of "The Gathering".

Your brand new fan,
vgmaster831

Battle Beast writes...

Hello!

Greg,

Since we now call them "Beasts," if you could, would you change the line in "Awakening 1" from "I see you've met our Watch-dog..." to something like "I see you've met our Beast..." ?

Gargoyleslady writes...

Hi Greg! I have another question about Broadway. In The Silver Falcon, did Brooklyn and Lex really have dibs on the vcr or was that just an excuse Broadway came up with to stay at Elisa's?

Gargoyleslady writes...

Hi, Greg! I've got a question about Broadway. In Deadly Force, did Broadway feel so guilty about shooting Elisa that he felt like throwing up?

Derek writes...

Why did Thailog not clone Angela? I know in the past you've said that Demona never released the mosquito to gain Angela's dna and that's why. But Thailog could have easily have had his own mosquito(sounds so silly when I say it like that) and got dna samples from the clan himself like he did from Demona and Eliza. Wouldn't he have wanted the additionally manpower? He was planning on betraying Demona anyway that's why he created Delilah. Why respect Demona wishes with Angela? Did he think the other male clones would be easier to control without another female gargoyle?

Todd Jensen writes...

A comment, inspired by my last question about the Standards & Practices deaths.

Many of the "deaths by falling" that you had in the series, such as Findleach's and Gillecomgain's, were there simply because of S&P, and I don't think that it would have made a sizable difference to the story and characterization if, say, Gillecomgain had run Findlaech with a sword instead.

But it made good dramatic sense, I think, to have the Captain and Hakon die that way. One of the crucial points of "Awakening"'s opening was Goliath being driven to despair by one blow after another, to the point where he finally commits suicide (in a sense). The Captain and Hakon falling off the cliff rather than being ripped to shreds by Goliath worked there; now, not only has Goliath's clan been massacred, but he can't even exact vengeance upon the two people most responsible for his loss. It brings him one step closer to devastation.

So I think that even without Standards & Practices, it was a good idea to have the Captain and Hakon die that way.

Todd Jensen writes...

In "City of Stone", you had Findlaech, Gillecomgain, and Duncan all die by either falling off something or getting burned up by the Weird Sisters' magic, to make the methods of their deaths acceptable for Standards & Practices.

But in Part Four, you had Canmore temporarily slay Macbeth by running him through with a sword. Did you have any difficulty with Standards & Practices over that?

Wesley Nichols writes...

I have another question regarding Oberon and Titania. Before the beginning of the Gathering and Titania offered to be his wife again was Oberon considering asking her to marry him?

OTHELLO writes...

In the "City of Stone" Part 1. How does Demona restrain Owen into a chair when shes speaking the "Stone By Night" spell?

Landon Thomas writes...

In 'The Mirror', I appreciate the real-world reason why the human-form Manhattan Clan gargoyles look the way they do, namely that they more or less represent their respective voice actors. But I also like the cohesiveness it gives the Gargverse when you give a canon/in-show reason for something. In that spirit, when Goliath turns into a human analogue, why does he have darker skin--or appear to be of a different racial group--than the others who appear to be more Scottish?

Kevin Shane writes...

Did Demona and Macbeth realize that the "Coldsteel" personality was in control of Coldstone. Did he tell them? I was wondering because Macbeth seemed surprised when the real Coldstone took over the body and turned the tables.

J. K. Moyer writes...

Mr. Weisman,

I'll start by saying that the commitment you have shown to your Gargoyles creation and its fans over the years is very admirable. Not many people in show business demonstrate that much long-term dedication to the consumers of their product. Bravo. Furthermore, as a biology/chemistry major I always get a kick out of the way you craft the creatures in the world of Gargoyles both in the TV show and the comics. If you're ever up late at night and need something interesting to read, look up the real-life term cryptobiosis (as in ''hidden life''). It isn't totally unrelated to the idea of stone hibernation.

That being said, I have a Gargoyles question for you that not at all science-based: The season one episode of Gargoyles entitled "Deadly Force" was one that I found to be one of the series' best. What served as the inspiration for a gun control episode? And, perhaps I am naively overlooking something, why did the first season of Gargoyles show the use of realistic, bullet-firing guns by both sides of the law and by the time season two rolled around, Elisa was the only one carrying a real firearm (even most of the street thugs we saw had some sort of laser weapon or no gun at all). It seemed odd that after making an episode like "Deadly Force" that went out of its way to deliver a message of responsible firearm use and care, the series would resort to use of futuristic, sci-fi weapons (with a handful of notable exceptions).

I'd like to end my post by saying that Gargoyles never failed to give me some issue of morality to ponder as I waited for the next episode. To this day, I have lines like "trust is not a commodity to be bartered for" sewn into the fabric of my consciousness, and I look forward to reading the maxims you weave into the dialogue of the Gargoyles comic. Rock on, Greg!

Tay writes...

In the episode Long Way to Morning, when Demona, Goliath, and Hudson turn to stone, why does Demona's cannon turn to stone too?

Chris Velazquez writes...

During my reading of Bad Guys #3, one of the things I liked seeing the most was watching the clock tower being reconstructed (along with the absolutely psychotic expression the artist gave Robyn during the flashback of her blowing it up). Anyway, watching the clock tower being reconstructed reminded me also of Owen mentioning about being tired of overseeing the constant reconstruction of the castle due to the battles there. So, my question being, after the events of The Reckoning, is Coney Island being reconstructed? I'm quite curious about it, as Coney's quite a special place for both me and an aunt of mine (she's in her sixties of age and also a huge Gargoyles fan).

Demonskrye writes...

This is more of a Wyvern Clan culture question than a hypothetical one.

After Goliath sends the Trio and Bronx to the rookery and Demona questions his decision to punish them (out of their earshot like a good second, as you noted in the commentary), Goliath tells her that he will make it up to them somehow. If the Wyvern Massacre hadn't intervened, what are some things Goliath might have done to make it up to the Trio and Bronx?

Chip writes...

I was wondering...in "MIA" when Leo and Una noticed Goliath outside Into the Mystic didn't it strike them as odd that Goliath hadn't aged a day since they saw him in 1940? It seems like the kind of thing that I would notice...then again I'm not a gargoyle.

Ashley writes...

In the episode "Kingdom", the gargoyles talked about how Goliath and Bronx had been missing for days. But when they all lined up to sleep on the clocktower, there's a shadowy Bronx climbing into position. Was that an artist mistake, or did some scenes just get copied and reused from episode to episode to save money?

Chip writes...

When Taro kidnapped the Ishimuran Clan (and Goliath, Angela, and Bronx) what did he do about the Gargoyle eggs? Obviously there were eggs in the Ishimurian Rookery, did he leave them in Ishimura, or did he take them "Gargoyle World" with the clan?

UncannyGarlic writes...

I'd like to start by saying that I like what I've seen of your work with Gargoyles (was around the target demographic when it was produced, the move to comics is probably for the best [even though I miss the quallity voice work]), WITCH (amusing show, interesting enough story and humourous dialogue [some of it is just that special kind of terrible ;)] keeps me watching when I'm awake for it), and 3x3 Eyes (quite the rarity, a good english dub for anime, major props for that) standing out. I'd comment on your newest serries but I haven't watched The Spectacular Spiderman, never really been a fan of the franchise.

Onto the question:
After watching "The Gathering: Part II" again I noticed that when Hudson attacked Oberon's hair with his sword (presumably made from steel as it was from the tenth century) he couldn't cut the hair and was zapped; however, when Angela and Brooklyn (I think, may have been Broadway...) attacked the hair with shards of the broken iron clan they cut clean through it without any negetive effects. My question is, why was Hudson's sword (presumably containing iron) ineffective while the scraps of iron worked great?

Wheeljack writes...

Hey Greg,
just watched Temptation again. Right after Brooklyn escaped from Officer Morgan, he throws out the rest of his Donuts out of his BROKEN car window. When did the glas break? Was the chase originally planned a bit longer?

Vaevictis Asmadi writes...

This is not a question, but a comment about "Heritage." I enjoyed the story (even though I prefer a less malevolent version of Raven), but I think there must be an error in it. Maybe you're already aware of it. I don't aim to make the show look bad, but only to inform you, because you have said you have future plans for Natsilane and the Haida.

The scene with the error is when Natsilane ascends the volcano to battle Raven. He is dressed in a buckskin jacket, buckskin pants, and a feather headdress. This is the kind of clothing that many people think of when they imagine a Native American chief, but this kind of clothing was only worn in or near the Great Plains. Before European clothing became common, each region of North and South America had a separate style of clothing, with further variation between the different cultures within each region. The traditional clothing in the Northwest Coast area did not include any buckskin or feather headdresses. In general, in the Northwest Coast people traditionally wore brightly colored woven cloaks and wide-brimmed conical hats.

Matt writes...

Can you give us some clarification on what is going on with Macbeth's coronation in "The Rock" versus "City of Stone". Is this a retcon or did both scenes happen?

Demonskrye writes...

I've gone through the archives and asked in the Comment Room and as far s I can tell, this question has never been asked or answered.

In the story memo for "Metamorphosis", you make mention of a "pinkie swear" concept, some kind of in-joke call and response back and forth between Elisa and Derek that is specific to them. So that when Elisa is talking to "Talon" and starts in with the first part of the phrase, Derek finishes it with his particular twist out of habit and Elisa immediately realizes who he is. But in the final episode, they just say "cross my heart" "and hope to die", which is pretty much the standard version of that saying which everyone uses. Granted, it would be a little odd for someone to finish the phrase when a complete stranger starts it, and I can accept the idea that hearing Derek say something that he says fairly often would be enough of a trigger for Elisa to recognize him. But I still can't help but think that the scene would have been clearer and more ffective if it had been established that Derek says "and cross my eyes" or "and hope there's pie" or something equally silly and unique whenever Elisa says "cross my heart". So why didn't the final script use the suggestion from the story memo?

Ice Tyrant writes...

Hi again. Last time when I asked a question, I wasn't really that curious, I just kinda threw in the question so the message wouldn't be totally meaningless. So anyway, not sure if you remember this scene or not.

In Thrill of the Hunt when The Pack is fighting Goliath and Lexington, Goliath pulls off the circle thing (>_>) on the fire hydrant to push away jackal and Hyena. How could he have known that those Hydrants would make water come out? Maybe he figured out in previous episodes? Not that there are many previous episodes to that one... (That's the earliest I've seen so far.)

Charisma82 writes...

Hey! I was reading up on the episode Hunter's Moon part 3 last night on GargWiki and when I was reading the part about Broadway giving Elisa a lift to where Goliath was fighting the hunters, I started wondering about something. Why was it that Broadway was the one to take Elisa and not one of the other gargoyles? I have some ideas on why it was him and not one of the others, like the fact that he and Elisa are somewhat closer than she is with the other members of the trio, and if she asked him to take her, he probably would. I also wondered why not Brooklyn since he's the leader while Goliath is gone, and then I thought that since he is the leader, he wouldn't want to go against Goliath's wishes. But I want to know what your reason was for having Broadway take Elisa, and not just me guessing at it. Now that starts me thinking on which of the gargoyles thought it was okay for Broadway to take Elisa and which ones didn't agree that it was the right thing to do. Do you think any of them were against them going, which would be going against Goliath's command? Could you please shed some light on this for me?

Thank you for your time and all that you do.

-Charisma82

Todd Jensen writes...

In "Deadly Force", Lexington and Brooklyn describe the movie "Showdown" to Goliath as a "new western". The movie itself is a black-and-white one, however. Were the gargoyles describing it as "new" in a relative sense (the way that they described Shakespeare as a "new writer" in "Enter Macbeth")? Or was it a recently-made movie that had been deliberately shot in black and white rather than color?

Bazell writes...

I never noticed before, but in Awakening Part 1 the Trio are sent into the rookery for making threatening advances towards the humans, Broadway wasn't doing anything but eating... he was just in the wrong (or the right) place at the wrong time. Didn't he protest the mistreatment? Did the other two just let him take the fall with them? What about Demona, she saw the whole thing, didn't she say anything? Of course, it worked out in his benefit, cause he survived the massacre, but at the time, the injustice must have pissed him off...

simon jardine writes...

If a gargoyle saw and herd the spell in City of Stone whould he stay stone at all times.

Carita writes...

Where was Fox during City of stone part 2 til 4?
did she remain in the helicopter whole night during part 2?
did she know what exactly happened during the entire episodes?

dph writes...

1.Why did Thailog set the ransom demand in Double Jeopardy for $10,000,000? I mean why not more or why not less.

Bazell writes...

In "A Long Way To Morning," Demona, Hudson and Goliath do not turn to stone until the clouds clear and the sunlight shines through - with the sun clearly well over the horizon, suggesting a bit of time has passed after sunrise. However, in "The Silver Falcon," Broadway turns to stone even though he is in a basement, cut off from the light of the sun, suggesting a circadian rhythm. Was it simply an animation error in "A Long Way To Morning," or is there a reason for this. (I assume it's the animation, but I was curious)

Shannon 'Shan' Muir writes...

About the Dracon and G. F. Benton name choice... I never stopped to think about it before.

And I have a pretty good guess where Cary might have gotten Benton from.

See, Dracon is pretending to be someone else, which is like an illusion. Another type of illusion is a hologram. The name of the man who invented the hologram is Stephen Benton.

Which is why it was chosen as the last name of the two sisters in JEM, the show you first wrote on with Cary. (The other Holograms last names, Leith and Elmsford, also come from pioneers in holographic tech FYI).

Or it could just be total coincidence...

Zeki writes...

Still haven't gotten my paws on the lastest two comics, but when I was watching the Price I found myself wondering - if Xanatos didn't know that Owen was Puck, would he still have been so nonchalant about him turning his arm to stone?
I'm assuming probably yes, but you never know. Would he have a least looked for a way to reverse the effect?

On a more mindless note, it sounds like Macbethbot is saying, 'I've been WOOKING for you.'

I also like imagining that if he hadn't been destroyed, he'd have just flown around yelling 'TROPHIES! >=D' at people until he ran out of batteries.

Michael writes...

Hi Greg. First, I just wanted to say thanks for everything. For shaping Gargoyles the way it is. For being so open and accessible and involved with the fans.

In "Silver Falcon" Mace pretends to be this G. F. Benton character. I was wondering if there was anything behind the name G. F. Benton? Is it just something Cary Bates pulled out of thin air or was there a deeper meaning (as it seems is the case for a lot of what's put into an episode of Gargoyles).

Thanks again.

Polgara writes...

Where was the toilet in Demona´s and Fang´s cages back in the reckoning?
Whom cooked for them?
How would they bath?

dph writes...

Banks (and other businesses) usually have security cameras running during their normal office hours and throughout the night recording footage in case of a robbery. During City of Stone, assuming nothing happened to those cameras, the cameras would have caught people turning to stone on film. What happened to those video tapes showing evidence of Manhattan's human population turned to stone?

Purplegoldfish writes...

Now you can't get rid of me...
So, watching through my tapes of the later episodes, and I just watched "The Green," one of my favorite world tour eps.

I remember when I first saw the scene after Goliath's and Elisa's argument, when Goliath turns around to glare at Elisa, and thinking 'What was that all about?'
I never felt he did that because he was simply angry at her for her point of view. All the other arguments that we've seen the two get into usually ended with either him agreeing with her, or just shrugging her off (or screaming in her face heh)-typical male ;)

So the way Goliath just stops in his tracks and slowly and deliberately turns to stare at her for a good five or six seconds suggests more to it-as if a realization about her just hit him.

So here's my theory: I think it just kind of hits Goliath how human Elisa really is. There's not just physical differences, but cultural ones as well. He realizes they're going to clash on many things because of their respective instincts and upbringings. Maybe he's thinking of his growing feelings for her-perhaps there's some human prejudice mixed in with those feelings as well-as if he realizes their vast differences and wishes for a moment that she were born a gargoyle and not a human.
And the way Elisa looks back at him suggests that she probably knows what he's thinking and is most likely sharing those same thoughts.

So am I on the right track or totally off?

Titanium Dragon writes...

I have a question about the episode "The Mirror". In it, Demona has Puck in chains (presumaly iron ones, given the nature of the fey). The thing about that episode was that it always felt to me like Puck wasn't really her captive at all, and was really just playing with her and using her as an excuse to do mischief. Was this intentional, or am I reading it wrong?

IncubusKitten writes...

Dear Greg,

First off, thank you for being the brain-child behind such a great series. During 'City of Stone', Demona went strolling about smashing humans left and right. My question would be: when everyone was released from the spell/when the sun came up, would they have seen rubble on the ground, or possibly body parts? (I would've tried to read the Demona section to see if this was addressed, but at 6am it's a bit too much).

Thanks for your time!

Shadow Wing writes...

In "The Mirror," would the battle between Demona and Gargoylisa be considered a batfight?

Ntripy writes...

Hi Greg,
I just re-watched Double Jeopardy and noticed the last line by Xanatos is in stark contrast with one of his lines in Re-Awakening.

In Re-Awakening, Xanatos says, "Its alive, alive! I've always wanted to say that."

Whereas in Double Jeopardy, when he says, "Owen, I think I've created a monster", he seems to say that with the lament of a man who wishes he'd never have to say that line.

Was the line in Double Jeopardy intentionally meant to contrast the line in Re-Awakening, or, is this just another example of how in tune you are with the Gargoyle Universe? ;)

Wesley writes...

Where the young Gargoyles (Bronx's generation) of the Wyvern clan killed by Hakon and his vikings as well? Or did they somehow escape?

Makhasu writes...

In COS part one, when Findlaech raises his sword to kill Gillecomgain, Bodhe can be seen next to Gruoch behind him at the entrance to the balcony. Do you consider this an animation mistake or canon?

Battle Beast writes...

Posession>

<<FINALLY...
We wanted that giant pocket watch (or whatever) that Puck pulls out at the end to be a MICKEY MOUSE WATCH... but Disney would just not allow it. They were afraid it would come off as product placement in a kid's show or something.>>

...Because Puck is a mickey Mouse kinda guy???

Todd Jensen writes...

I read and enjoyed your "pre-ramble" for "Possession". One tidbit that I especially liked was the very appropriate concept of Xanatos and Fox's specific destination when they went out that evening being a performance of Verdi's "Otello". Pity that it wasn't mentioned in the actual television episode.

Greg Weisguy writes...

In your ramble about the episode "The Mirror", you said you couldn't resist turning Bronx into a dog.

In response to why Thailog never cloned Bronx in "The Reckoning", you said it was because Bronx never guarded Demona like the other Gargoyles did.

Why is it that you made sure Bronx was included in the plot twist de jour of "The Mirror", but denied him similar inclusion in "The Reckoning", when it seems like it would have been relatively easy to just write him into having guard duty with one of the other Gargoyles. Did "cloning the dog" just seem like something too silly for Thailog and Demona to do?

Agoaj writes...

I thought the DVD was coming out next year! What a pleasure to have found it in the DVD aisle. I loved the extras, get more in the next volume if you can.

Now the question came from something I noticed on the DVD. During the episode Vows, around when Goliath and the two Demonas are using, Demona kicks Goliath and blood comes out of his mouth as he reels back from the hit. I was quite shocked when I saw this, having read about the three moments in the series where you used blood.
Was this blood in there on purpose? Was it put in by the animation staff and S&P just missed it?

Idril writes...

I have a question about city of stone. Everyone kept saying that you had to see and hear the tv program to turn to stone. If thats true how can all those people outside driving or walking turn to stone? they were no where near a tv?

Idril writes...

hi i have a question about the episode wear elisa goes under cover. At the end when elisa is talking to Goliaith and wearing her normal clothes. why dose she she suddenly wear her under cover cloths again for a few seconds? I haven't made a mistake I paused it right there and Its true. Is that a glich?

Spen writes...

I just have one little comment about your ramble on "Awakening part V". You were wondering about Elisa holding up two fingers and her thumb instead of the usual three fingers. Now, I'm not sure if that is a Japanese custom or not, but I do know that my boss does that all the time, and he's Irish-American. My old Spanish teacher did the same thing.

Harvester of Eyes writes...

Hey, Greg. I just read your ramble on "Temptation," and since it was posted five years ago, what I'm about to ask might sound a bit dated, but I just watched the episode recently on my DVD (it being my favorite Season One episode), and noticed something. Did you ever find it odd that in Act III, when Demona lifted Brooklyn off the ground and is screaming at him, her eyes weren't glowing? The rage lines on her face were quite distinct, and on other episodes, I've seen gargoyle eyes glow over lesser things.

Susan Leonard writes...

Something has always bothered me about the way the clan reacts to Elisa's hysterical sobbing on the hay at the end of the Metamorphosis episode. Why doesn't at least Goliath,who has more than a platonic interest in her at this point, go over to comfort her. The whole episode evolved with Brooklyn wanting to pursue Maggie due to his compassion over what she had gone through. I thought the episode was wonderfully done otherwise. I was despite knowing Xanatos always had some kind of agenda was willing to bite at first when he seemed shocked that Derek became a victim of Sevarius' mutagenic dart.

Rhea writes...

'The Mirror' is one of my favorites eps. But one thing bothered me about it when I first found out about Owen being Puck.
Did Puck transform Xanatos into a gargoyle with the rest of the city? Or did his terms/agreement with Xanatos prevent him from doing so?

Wheeljack writes...

Hi Greg,
at the end of M.I.A there's a guy walking by playing on a Gameboy (not looking like the real one for legal issues or what?). The game he's playing looks so much like "Solar Striker". This can't be a coincidence, can it?

Oh... speaking of M.I.A. Una has a line like "I know the books I'm selling". Do the customers know, the books of the store actually contain real spells?