Wing writes...

Aboot the Digimon scheduling> What I meant to say about it was that it has two runnings. One where it goes from beginning to end continuously. This is good for first time viewers and viewers that may have missed an episode. Then, it has another running (sort of) where they can show new episodes without having to run through however many episodes there are first. Plus there's advance warning about the airing of new episodes. I just thought that was an effective airing method. I wanted to share. Sharing is good. I should stop before I go Barney on you.

Blaise writes...

THE EDGE

This is always a fun episode for me to watch just because of Xanatos. To me this seems very much to be his episode. Agreed, the fact that he didn't penalize Owen for having beaten him at sparing was very refreshing (and totally in-character for him, I thought). The scene between him and Goliath is priceless. Usually in "animated action/adventure shows" it is the villain who blows his top and rants while the hero remains cool. Here, just the opposite occurs. It's very nice to see the villain not falling prey to the usual pitfalls and cliches.
And no, when I first saw this I didn't think that Xanatos and the Red Steel Clan were one and the same. When the "robot" began ascertaining the status of his comrades, my siblings and I (we were all watching this episode together) remarked that Xanatos had apparently created a robot that could think. Then our jaws hit the floor when we came to the Tag at the end.
The cliff-hanger of Act I did have less of an impact on me because I knew the thief was Steel Clan, but I still did wonder what Elisa might do, and how she'd explain herself out of it.
Matt left me intrigued. Not so much from his little spiel on the Illuminati, but from the fact that he DID make a good point about partners (you already gave the quote). One would almost expect his type of character to be an idiotic bumbler and/or a complete jerk--comedy relief. I'm glad he wasn't just a one-note character, but actually got to grow and develop along with everyone else.
I also enjoy the scenes of the clan adjusting to their new home. Goliath reading Dostoyevsky (however the heck you spell that). I haven't read any of his works yet, but maybe when the mood takes me.... (Considering what Goliath ruminated on while reading the book--Xanatos, the castle, and so forth--I think I can guess the title of the book).
And of course, SUPERB animation.

VF writes...

My two young daughters prompted me to watch "Gargoyles," and now I'm hooked, too--just for different reasons. Hmm, then again, maybe not for different reasons. ...

I think it's great that you incorporated elements of Shakespeare, Arthurian legend, etc. (My kids really impressed their preschool teacher when they started name-dropping Shakespearean characters left and right.)

And I am especially impressed with how you and your colleagues were able to make me care so much about animated characters--a definite tribute to the quality of the storytelling and characterization is my guess. The romantic in me just loves the careful development of the Goliath/Elisa relationship. Subtle-but-emotion-filled glances, touches and comments (sometimes even unbeknownst to the characters themselves) make it all the more romantic and all the more regrettable that there are no more episodes to see it play out further.

My question relates to "Hunter's Moon, Part III." How does Goliath internalize his failure to save Elisa since he had promised that he would always be there for her (I think in "The Gathering")? Now, granted, I don't think Elisa would ever expect ANYONE to always be there to save her (although it's a nice and loving concept she can appreciate). But I think Goliath expects it of himself and would have a difficult time, at some point, accepting that he was not able to save her (not to mention that he was in part responsible for causing her to fall, albeit accidentally) and would not be able to just put that behind him.

Of course, I'm the first to cheer when their relationship does move to the next level with the kiss and all (and later in "The Journey" with the mutual statement that neither of them regrets their chosen path). The earlier "Hunter's Moon" scenes involving Jason, as well as the revelation that Elisa is OK after all, certainly provide the two with plenty of compelling motivation to more openly acknowledge how they feel about each other. But still, I can't help feeling Goliath's characterization would not allow him to simply consider all that happened while he was caught up in seeking vengeance as a lesson learned and move on. Your thoughts? (And thank you.)

Lexy writes...

Hey again:)

Episode Ten..The Edge..man..one of my faves. The animations was AWSOME. *gets all girly* AND they drew Lex's face just perfect!! Not to angular, not to large. His eyes were great, and his head shape was perfect! Ooooh And I just LOVE the sceens between him and Broadway. When the show a quick shot of Broadway helping Lex out of the ruble. Broadway is talking to Goliath saying something like, "But why? I thought they..blablabla. Lex gives Broadway this really fast smile. I just love that moment. They really are good friends. *stops being girly* OK anyway

I think it was pretty obvious that it was David the whole time..but I didnt really care much. It was still cool to see him and G-man duke it out. I loved when David said, "I'd fire you if you did." That was the best.

As you mentioned, the whole robot/Goliath thing was rather annoying. I did find myself saying, "well duh" during it. It is too bad. But we know you had good intentions ;) Sometimes the animation gets away from ya.

The shots of the Trio on and around Lady L. were excellent. The animation was just..stunning..gee have I said enough about the animation in this ep? Well. I loved it. I suppose I should shut up now:) see ya!

Todd Jensen writes...

A sort of "ramble-response" on "The Edge".

The revelation at the end that that "red Steel Clan robot" was really Xanatos in "gargoyle-armor" certainly did surprise me when I first saw the episode; up until the end, I had thought that it was just a more improved Steel Clan robot with some proper artificial intelligence programmed into it so that it would know when would be a sensible time to retreat. But it certainly did make sense, particularly in the context of Xanatos's explanation at the end (which did indeed nicely fit in with his judo match with Owen at the beginning).

I definitely sat up and took attention at the inclusion of a jewel named "the Eye of Odin", being a big Norse mythology fan, but I must confess that I never suspected that it was literally that until I saw "Eye of the Storm".

One of my favorite parts of this episode remains the exchange between Goliath and Xanatos at Castle Wyvern, which I feel so effectively captures their respective characters; Goliath's passionate nature, Xanatos's calmness and arrogance. (His "You're taking this way too personally!" line has to count as the ultimate chutzpah).

Thanks for the filling in a bit about Travis Marshall, by the way. (He seems to have gotten promoted near the end of the series, by the way; in "The Gathering" and "The Journey", he's been advanced to anchorman, and even serves as moderator in the debate between Macbeth and Margot).

Jeffrey Chow writes...

Not a question but a comment. I had thought that this show was just a kids show. I was proven wrong. The complex plot lines, the mix of magic, medieval history, Shakespearean characters, old English myth. It was great. I am only sorry I didn't video tape the series and that I didn't have a chance to see them sequentially.
Just some Kudos to the creators and people responsible for the series.

LSZ writes...

If Goliath ripped off Macbeth's leg with Macbeth's full consent and agreement, and beat Demona to death with it, would that count as Macbeth killing Demona?

Ambrosia writes...

Ah, The Edge…
I just adore that scene where Owen and Xanatos are sparring. The first time I saw that episode though, I thought it was laughable: Owen Burnett in a gi, his glasses and electronic organizer set aside so he can be beat on by his employer. I was quite surprised when he actually won. I looked at Owen a lot differently from that point on. He is, as Demona likes to say, "A force to be reckoned with."
I'm afraid I did guess that the red robot was Xanatos. Still, the part at the end where he removes the helmet is wonderfully dramatic.
It's been a long time, so I don't remember for absolute sure, but I think, since the museum was so dark, I thought it *was* Goliath stealing the Eye. You're right, it seems obvious, but after that scene with him roaring at the news report and the whole clan looking at him in that, "uh oh, he's lost it," kind of way, I thought he was enraged enough to do it.
About Munch's "The Scream" (and this is straight from my art history text): it's in Nasjonalgalleriet, Oslo. Don't ask me where exactly that is… but it's not in Manhattan. Sorry.
Absolutely amazing that the Emir was mentioned this early in the series but wouldn't physically appear for another season or so. Were you planning the Avalon eps in that much detail, that much ahead?
I *love* Travis Marshall. He always seems to tell it the way it is… whether it's against public opinion or not.
I'm with Erin. I was on the edge of my seat in the battle scene, seeing this ep for the first time, not as much because of the danger and action, but because I was sure someone was going to damage Lady Liberty. Why did Xanatos choose her as their battle field anyway? Goliath had said before that he probably didn't want anymore damage done to his city…
Thanks, Greg. We love ya!

Phil writes...

He Greg,

Last week I posted a treatise on the current status of Disney TV Animation. I just learned that Disney/Pixar is working on an animated series called "Buzz Lightyear of Star Command." So much for my stagnation theory.

No question, just comment.
Thanks

Kalara of Athiria writes...

Mr. Weisman,

I would just like to say Sir. that you and the team at Disney did a fine job when you created Gargoyles. It was a great show with indepth characters and interesting plots. Each time I watched a episode I always looked forward to the next episode.

maggie wright writes...

I am sure that you must know of many gargoyle sites,so I was hoping that you might know of a place to obtain patterns for making stuffed versions of gargoyles (not the ones from Disney but general gargoyles).

Nick writes...

Hey hey. I still remember seeing the first episode of Gargoyles. I guess I was about 9 or so. I still get goosebumps when I watch the intro. And I wasnt surprised to read that you work on the ST series. I've watched it too from its first broadcast (in my area anyway). I think I've only missed it 3 times but seeing how they dont play the episodes in any specific order odds are I havent missed anything I havent already seen. But onto my question. Can you sum up the Goliath Chronacles for me? I never saw them since for a while I didnt have cable and dont currently have toon disney. Thanks.

Heather N. Allen writes...

Jeez, I guess it was a subconscious want for a response, when I threw that little 'Bone' comment in with my last question. *blushes* But really, I didn't expect you to; in fact I thought you'd say more about the Canmore brothers than you did. Oh well :Þ

By the way, Jeff is getting his movie made. Nickelodeon pictures is fronting it (for an undisclosed six figure sum), but he's directing and writing and producing...in other words, everything he SHOULD be doing in order to get the job done right. This should be a VERY good film, scheduled to come out some time in 2001/2002. Character Builders in Columbus, OH, which Jeff helped to found, is doing the animation.

But then again, he owns his creation. If only you owned Gargs...well, we always contribute it you anyway. When I think of Gargoyles, the 'D' word never pops into my head, until it's blared out at me during the dumb ToonDisney commercials.

Well Greg, keep on keepin' on, and hope all goes well with the future (for both you and Gargs).

~H\A~

Scott Iskow writes...

Hi, Greg.

Just last night, I was talking to a few of my floormates, talking about childhood cartoons, toys, and the like, when the subject of the Disney Afternoon came up. After going through each cartoon in the order that they aired, we came to "Gargoyles," at which point I was surprised to learn that it was pretty much a consensus that the show was "amazing." I say "surprised" because I didn't figure these types of people to appreciate a show like that, yet here they all were, in the same room.

One person in particular appreciated the "Avalon" storyline. He loved the mythology, and didn't know until a chance encounter at the library after "Mark of the Panther" that Anansi existed outside of the show.

Just letting you know that there must be tons of people you reached with "Gargoyles" that aren't even part of the fandom.

Mike J. writes...

ENTER MACBETH

A series like "Gargoyles" is build (in my opinion) on the strength of its villians, and Gargoyles had some of the BEST villians going, especially Macbeth. Even Xanatos, in armor, didn't try to take on all the gargs at once (The Edge) much less succeed the way Macbeth does. Throw in the character's phenomanal personality and history, and you have one very engaging and dangerous guy.

As to the episode itself... I'm forced to agree it was the worst animation in season one. Did you notice in the final shot of Macbeth (in the tape Owen shows Xanatos) that he's got a mustache! Personally that bugged me more than the other probelems. At least keep the character's LOOK right! :)

My favorite part of the episode, amongst many cool moments: While Goliath battles Macbeth, Bronx frees Brooklyn and Lex by CRASHING BODILY STRAIGHT THROUGH THE ELECTRIFIED BARS! This time without the benefit of diveted current. This feat is so impressive it even shocks Brooklyn and Lex. Just look at their faces! I think their actually scared of him at this moment. In my mind, this established Bronx as being, pound for pound stronger than all the gargs, including Goliath.

My two cents... thanks for listening, er.. reading.

Alex Destine writes...

THE THRILL OF THE HUNT comments
You said we take for granted such things as Continuity & Real Ramifications. Well maybe in Gargoyles we do, but that's cause you've spoiled us! :P
But I think that's one of the main reasons Gargoyles is so loved by it's fans. Things don't just happen, everything we see has a reason for it and in turn everything we're seeing will be a base for future actions.
At the end of that ep. I also loved it when Lex mentioned that it was nice to know there were a few heros left (implying Goliath was his hero). I found that beautiful since it would explain Lex's disapointment on Future Tense. (seeing as how the whole clan felt abandoned)
About the change in POV, (could you believe I hadn't noticed till now) but now that I did, I loved it!
Great Job Mr. Weisman! ^_^

Todd Jensen writes...

A ramble-reply to "The Thrill of the Hunt".

I liked reading your comments on it. I will confess that I can't remember now what my response was, when I first saw this episode, to the fact that Xanatos was still in prison or to Elisa's indication that the gargoyles would have to leave the castle (although looking back on it now, I'd say that I appreciate both - and the bit at the end where we get that look at Xanatos again and that taste of his character). A few bits that do stand out to me:

1. I always get a bit of a chuckle at the way that the announcer shouts, "Oh, no, it's the Evil Ninjas!" The guy sounded there as if he'd taken the same acting class that Sevarius did :)

2. That little bit where Lexington enthusiastically calls the Pack "defenders of the realm". I liked that touch as fitting in with the gargoyles' medieval origins and the fact that, so soon after their awakening, they'd still be seeing the world in such a light.

3. The bit where Billy and Susan show up was extremely funny, particularly the groans and facial expressions from Fox and Hyena over the timing of their arrival. (And I must confess, I hadn't even given that much thought to Wolf showing a bit more smarts in that scene in coming up with a way of explaining the gargoyles to those kids. Thanks for pointing it out).

I'm looking forward to the rest of your rambles on each individual episode.

Bengali writes...

In response to your recent {though you're probably reading this a few months from when you posted them} rambles about the gargoyles episodes. You asked for responses to the episodes "Awakenings" so heres mine. I loved Awakenings parts 1-5, they were very well animated and written, when I first heard about Gargoyles I figured that it was another dumb cheap cartoon that lasts for ten episodes before being cancelled because nobody likes it but needless to say Gargoyles proved to be the best animated series I have ever seen. It had everything I liked in it, from mythology to Shakespeare to history to wonderfully unique characters to great animation etc, etc, etc...Awakenings was not the first episode of Gargoyles I saw but it was great nonetheless. Xanatos's quotes were great {finally a main villian that isnt a moron, another thing I liked about the series is that the villians were not a bunch of idiotic side-show freaks}. You, Frank, Michael Reaves and everyone else always did a superb job on the show.

Pyro X writes...

Awakening 5:

Demona's name revelation got me interested in thw hole series. I had heard that they were adding this show to the dis afternoon, and I thought "What a horrible title,". Boy, was I wrong! It was the first ep I'd seen, and at that point, I turned on the TV to "See" what the show was about. That was the first scene I saw... and it got me hooked. It was very dramatic... Walking through the smoke, eyes glowing... very cool. I loved the Animation!

Coldplasma writes...

Here are my comments on Ramblings of Awakening (1-5)

I must admit, when I first saw Gargoyles, I thought it just another Ninja Turtles clone. Strange creatures in NY, a pretty woman vow to help the creatures. But Goliath made the difference; he never smiled, he was way too serious; he wasn't like other heroes.

I wasn't hooked up on Gargoyles yet, but I kept watching. I couldn't tell why. (Maybe because it played only on friday at that time). Anyhow, I still admit that animation, dialogue, characters were great, but I found that action was so-so.

But later, I'll learn that there are things more important than action in cartoons. Thanx for changing my views Greg!

Ambrosia writes...

I'd never thought about it until you said so in your rambling about Awakening 5, but it does seem strange that right after he is reunited with his love, Goliath goes, "Well, it's been nice seeing you, but I have to go meet Elisa." The crash of the airship affected him much more than he let on from the outside. Perhaps they were DONE far before Vows… maybe before even Demona knew they were…

BTW, I *always* use my thumb, index and middle finger to say "three." Oh, and get this, I use all but my ring finger for four. I'm just weird like that.

That line, "There is good and evil in all of us. Human and gargoyle alike," has always been my favorite. It says so much with so few words… and it's a universal truth for so many scenarios…

Adam writes...

Hi Greg

Once again thanks for the opportunity to chew the fat.

One thing that always bothered me was how easliy the surviving clan memebers pick up their lives after the sudden murder of almost everyone they cared for. When they wake up in Manhattan for the first time, by their reckoninging, the massacre occurred the day before and would be fresh in their minds. I couldn't even imagine getting out of bed or even wanting to go on if I lost my family. Yet the trio are resilient enough to go exploring. I know they are in a brave new world and all but would they be so thrill seeking after so recently being rocked with grief. I hope I don't sound overly critical here, I don't mean to be. It just appears that the emotional impact of the massacre on the clan isn't as pervasive through the series as I'd expect. I just keep coming back to the notion that grief over a loss of that magnitude would be almost paralyzing. Would they even want to be alive?. Obviously, for the show, yes but ..... uhhh .

And then there is Tempatation. I know Brooklyn is grateful to Demona for saving him from the bikers, but you have to think that in the back of his mind he's thinking, "My family and friends were killed because of what you did !" I'm surprised he didn't go for her throat. How angry are we at the drunk driver who unintnentional kills. I certainly wouldn't want to be in the same room with that individual let alone take a tour of the city them.

If the clan is capable of getting on with their lives so quicky and still not give into to hating Demona then they are certainly better than I am.

Todd Jensen writes...

My little "return-ramble" to your "Awakening Part Five" ramble.

One part of this that I especially like is Xanatos's response when Goliath's holding him over the edge of the castle, correctly pointing out that "without me, you'd still be gathering moss". It's refreshing to see a major villain in an animated series who doesn't start whining for mercy in such a situation but maintains his sang-froid. That's one reason I find myself having that sneaking fondness for Xanatos: he defies so many of the cartoon master-villain cliches. (Other examples of that are his complete lack of interest in getting revenge and his having the highly efficient and capable Owen for his chief assistant in contrast to the conventional "bungling sidekicks" that most cartoon villains seem to be saddled with).

Your remarks on the little ironies in Goliath and Demona's conversation surprised me: I hadn't even considered the fact that Goliath's remark that the people responsible for the Wyvern massacre was deliberately intended by the writers to be wrong because of Demona's part in it, but it makes sense to me at once. I've got to admit, I think that Goliath must have afterwards had a very hard time believing that he'd actually argued that Xanatos was proof that there are good humans out there :)

One certainly can't help but feel a little sorry (or maybe even more than a little sorry) for Goliath; first he thinks that his "Angel in the Night" is lost to him forever. Then he gets reunited with her, only to discover that she's become lost to him in a much darker sense, turned into a vengeance-driven would-be genocidist. At least he has the rest of the clan and Elisa; that must be some consolation there.

I must confess that I never made the connection between Goliath's "Giants?" line at the end and Oberon's gigantic form. (There do seem to be giants apart from that in the Gargoyles Universe, since I remember spotting a couple in Oberon's throne room in "The Gathering Part One"). I did see that line, though, as another good little example of how Goliath is still seeing the modern world through his 10th century eyes. (One of my favorites, which I forgot in my earlier "Awakening" responses, was that bit where Xanatos has to describe the "stolen" disks in terms of "magical talismans filled with hundreds of spells". I thought that the production team did an excellent job of showing the gargoyles' response to the modern world).

Bud-Clare writes...

"Anyway, to indicate three she holds up her index finger, her middle finger and ... her thumb."
It's part of the secret Illuminati handshake. They had a member working at Disney Japan. (Didn't Roy work on Elisa? No one trust him...)

Personally, I liked the part where Demona announced her name... although I had already seen The Mirror by then, so I'm not sure if the fact that I already knew her name and what she was like affected my impressions of that scene in some way.

Um... I have no idea which topic Gore will archive these under, so I don't know if they should have be submitted separately or not. He needs to add a "Random Comments From Fans" topic to the archive, so I won't have to be confused about it anymore.

Ambrosia writes...

Hi Greg!! I was just reading your interview with Lexy. You said that you hoped Gargoyles would inspire people to learn more about sujects you touched on... and I realized that it has done exactly that for me. In fact, I don't know if I realized the magnitude of an impact Gargoyles has had in my life until I thought about that...
In The Mirror when the clan is trying to explain to Elisa who Oberon's Children are (I thought everybody knew this??), Brooklyn says, "Yeah, that guy Shakespeare wrote a play about them: A Midsummer Night's Dream." The next day after I saw that episode, I had the play in my possession and began poring over it. This began a love/obsession for Shakespeare- particularly that play.
Also, I read your ramblings about Theseus and decided I needed to learn more about him. Mary Renault's The King Must Die stuck out in my memory one day between classes and I found it in the library. I'll post again when I'm finished with it.
In ancient history 103, I could be tired and completely tune out my professor, but I'd hear the word "Scotland" and snap back awake and pay perfect attention.
I never really thought about these things as they were happening, but looking back I can see that so many things I've learned or done came from gargoyles: I'm teaching myself to draw, I want to visit New York... stuff like that. I wanted to say... thanks!