GATHERING 2009 - Sunday, August 23rd

GATHERING 2009 - Sunday, August 23rd

1am - Got back to my room.

2am - Went to bed.

9am - I woke up. Wow, a real night's sleep. I showered and dressed quickly, attempting to make the tail end of the staff breakfast, but got waylaid along the way by arriving guests, like Bob Kline. Managed to snag one croissant, but that's it.

10am - Gargoyles Production panel with Frank Paur, Bob Kline, Brad Rader, Pamela Long, Vic Cook, Greg Guler and Doug Murphy. More fun old stories.

11:30am - Spidey Production panel with Bob, Pamela, Vic, Greg, Kevin Altieri, Jennifer Coyle, Sean "Cheeks" Galloway, Joey Mason and Phil Weinstein. We showed the unaired scenes clip from ComicCon and the animatic for the main title. And again, more fun stories.

1pm - I finally had a break, but I couldn't resist sitting in on the Composer's panel with Carl Johnson, Gargoyles Composer, and Dynamic Music Partners (Lolita Ritmanis, Kris Carter and Michael McCuistion) the Spider-Man composers. They were WELL-prepared. Way more well-prepared than I was for any of my panels. Brought a bunch of clips and talked process. It was fascinating.

2:30pm - Writers Panel. From Spidey: Andrew Robinson, Kevin Hopps, Nicole Dubuc and Matt Wayne. From Gargoyles: Bob Skir and Michael Reaves. Michael has Parkinsons, so first Bob and later Michael's daughter Mallory Reaves served as interpreters for him. It was great having everyone there.

4pm - The writers (and Karine) had a signing.

5pm - My wife dropped my son Benny off at the con. So we hung out a bit.

6pm - Benny and I went to the Banquet. We sat with Gayle, Lauren, Ryan, Grey Wolf, Read and Abbie. Real sweet spread at the buffet. But I've forgotten exactly what. I guess I'm just not that into the food this time. Is that progress?

7:30pm - Another Q&A. This time with myself, Bob Skir, Vic Cook, Greg Guler, Nicole Dubuc, Kevin Altieri, Jennifer Coyle, Ben Diskin, Crispin Freeman, Karine Charlebois and Wendy Pini. Michael Reaves kibbitzed a bit from the sidelines too.

8:30pm - By this time, Beth had picked Benny up again. I went to the bar and hung out with Vic, Guler, Kevin, Jennifer, Wendy and Karine. Just had a coke.

9:30pm - Masquerade time. The judges were myself, Wendy Pini, Keith David, Thom Adcox, Ben Diskin, Carl Johnson and Karine Charlebois. I will attempt to remember all the awards we handed out, but I forgot to save my award sheet...

Best Junior - Ryan & Lauren as Owen & Banshee
Best Performance - Abbie as the Lady in the Lake
Best Original Character - Rika as Venus
Cutest Trio - Jade, Eric and Kyari as Fox, Owen and Alex
If I give you this, I'll have to kill you award - Zehra, Tony & Andrea as Shari & the Illuminati
Best Canon - Aaron as Upgraded Jackal
Excalibur Award - Justin as King Arthur
Gorelisa Award - Charlie as Kalia Sartre
Thom Adcox Memorial Award - Rebecca as a Star Trek Dispensable Red
Best in Show - Esopus as ... okay, this was best in show and it was really great, but I just can't remember the name of the character! SORRY!!!!

10:30pm - We all just hung out in the Ballroom for awhile. I chatted with GXB, Carl Johnson, Zehra & Sarah and many, many others...

MORE NEXT WEEK!!!!!

GATHERING 2009 - Saturday, August 22nd

GATHERING 2009 - Saturday, August 22nd

3am - Went to bed.

8am - Woke up, with five hours sleep being the most I'd had in any one night in over a week.

9am - Staff Breakfast. Usually, I'm all about telling you what I ate at every meal, but I just don't remember. Orange Juice and a croissant, I think. But also... uh... not sure.

10am - Jennifer and I were joined by Gargoyles/Spidey Voice Director Extraordinaire Jamie Thomason for our second round of auditions.

11:30am - Casting session. We only had thirteen slots for fans to participate in the play because of the LARGE pro "turnout". You see, most years I ask the pros to participate and we get one or two saying yes. But this year SIXTEEN said yes. So from a fan standpoint, we had an embarrassment of riches. Over forty people auditioned and most of those did great, so we decided to cast the thirteen slots, plus STEAL a role from Thom Adcox and give that to another fan, PLUS cast a couple of fans as understudies in case someone didn't show. (But everyone did.) We posted the cast list...

12pm - Lunch in the staff room with Marina Sirtis, Keith David, Karine Charlebois, Greg Bishansky, Thom Adcox and Keith's son Owen. It's always great to see Keith, but it was very cool to see Marina again, whom I haven't seen in years. And, man, has Owen grown!! Broccoli soup, salad, and... see, can't remember!

1pm - Gargoyles Voice Acting Panel with Jamie, Keith, Thom, Marina and Elisa Gabrielli. Fun stories told. Marina and I have very different memories about how she was cast. (I'm right, but I'd never say that.)

2:30pm - Spidey Voice Acting Panel with (again) Jamie, Keith and Elisa. Plus Dee Bradley Baker, James Arnold Taylor, Ben Isaac Diskin (what's with all these three name guys?), Steve Blum, Daran Norris, Deborah Strang, Vanessa Marshall, Josh Keaton, Andrew Kishino, Phil LaMarr, Crispin Freeman and Eric Vesbit. More fun stories. Jamie and I disagreed about how many characters we auditioned. And once again, I'm right. It's a blessing and a curse, as Monk would say.

4pm - Radio Play Rehearsal. We barely had time to do one full read through of the ridiculously long and over-stuffed radio play. There was really no time to direct the actors at all, beyond telling them to project louder, though Jamie and I tried to give an occasional pointer.

5:30pm - Radio Play. Gotta say, thanks to my shameless pandering in the script and the amazing talent of my cast, we really had a phenomenal success with the three night mess of a bloated script I wrote. Got lots of laughs, even a few gasps. Pros were spot on, of course, including some Gargoyles folks who hadn't played their characters in years. But our fan cast was great too.

Here's the cast list:

THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN MEETS GARGOYLES
“Religious Studies 101: A Handful of Thorns”
(Radio Play)
CAST LIST
NARRATOR - Greg Weisman
DEMONA/DOMINIQUE DESTINE - Marina Sirtis
SPIDER-MAN/PETER PARKER - Josh Keaton
GOLIATH - Keith David
LEXINGTON - Thom Adcox
ELISA MAZA - Zehra Fazal
BROOKLYN - John Clemens
CURT CONNORS/LIZARD - Dee Bradley Baker
BROADWAY - Crispin Freeman
ZAFIRO - Joshua Poole
MAY PARKER - Deborah Strang
GREEN GOBLIN - Steve Blum
OBSIDIANA - Elisa Gabrielli
KRAVEN THE HUNTER - Eric Vesbit
HARRY OSBORN - James Arnold Taylor
DOCTOR OCTOPUS/OTTO OCTAVIUS - Michael McAdam
J. JONAH JAMESON - Daran Norris
MARY JANE WATSON - Vanessa Marshall
ELECTRO - Crispin Freeman
VENOM/EDDIE BROCK - Ben Isaac Diskin
GEORGE STACY - Lucas McClain
BIG MAN - Keith David
CALYPSO EZILI - Jennifer L. Anderson
ASHLEY KAFKA - Elisa Gabrielli
ROBBIE ROBERTSON - Phil LaMarr
LIZ ALLAN - Kaitlyn Robrock
SALLY AVRIL - Jennifer L. Anderson
GWEN STACY - Sarah Williams
MATT BLUESTONE - Eric Tribou
GREG BISHANSKY - Greg Bishansky
KENNY KONG - Andrew Kishino
COLONEL JUPITER/JOHN JAMESON - Daran Norris
NED LEE - Andrew Kishino
VULTURE - Seth Jackson
FLASH THOMPSON - Ian Bassett
SHARI - Zehra Fazal
FANCY DAN - Phil LaMarr
GULYADKIN - Dee Bradley Baker
CARNAGE/CLETUS KASADY - Ian Bassett
HOMUNCULUS #1 - Dee Bradley Baker
HOMUNCULUS #2 - Phil LaMarr
HOMUNCULUS #3 - Steve Blum
HOMUNCULUS #4 - James Arnold Taylor
HOMUNCULUS #5 - Thom Adcox
SMUGGLER #1 - Andrew Kishino
DOMINIC DRACON - Seth Jackson
BLACKIE GAXTON - Steve Blum
EMILY OSBORN - Kaitlyn Robrock
TINKERER - Thom Adcox
SEYMOUR O’REILLY - Steve Blum
SILVER SPOON MANAGER - Crispin Freeman
ANGELA - Sarah Williams
PUMPKIN BOMB - Nicki France
THAILOG - Keith David
MARIA CHAVEZ - Elisa Gabrielli
FREDERICK FOSWELL - James Arnold Taylor
ALAN O’NEIL - James Arnold Taylor
ROSIE THOMPSON - Vanessa Marshall
MARGOT YALE - Marina Sirtis
MORGAN MORGAN - Keith David
JASON IONELLO - Ben Isaac Diskin
RAND ROBERTSON - Phil LaMarr
BRENTWOOD - Fox Anderson
CHAMELEON - Steve Blum
NORMAN OSBORN - Eric Vesbit
DILBERT TRILBY - Steve Blum

Thanks to the entire cast. You guys were amazing, and totally saved my butt.

7pm - Once the play was over, all the tension and adrenaline that it had generated over the last week or so melted away, leaving me nearly comotose. I went to dinner in the hotel with my wife Beth and my son Benny. I didn't eat much. Clam Chowder, a roll, a coke and a shrimp cocktail. I was all but passing out. Fortunately, I got a second wind... and I'd need it.

9pm - Blue Mug w/Thom Adcox and the staff of Blue Mug Productions: Mara Cordova, Kalia Sartre, Jennifer L. Anderson and Boswell Bosley. I had to duck out for awhile, and I hear Edmund Tsabard showed up and pretty much insulted everyone in the room. (So what else is new?) I came back, by which time Edmund was gone. I picked up my water glass to take a drink, and someone told me that Thom's chihuahua had sipped from my glass. Someone else pointed at another glass and said that was the one the dog had lapped from. I shrugged it off and sipped from my glass. Then Jen told me Edmund had used that glass. I did a spit-take. I mean do you know where Edmund's mouth has been?!!! I hate to do anything to promote anything that reprobate is working on, but the work of the rest of the Blue Mug staff is so good that I'll ignore his contribution and recommend BlueMugProductions.com to all of you (who are 18 or over). I've seen the work, and it's really good!!! By the way, whomever took my Vox-made macrame Greg doll and put an eyepatch on it to turn it into an Edmund doll: UNCOOL!!! I don't even see the resemblance anyway!

11:30pm - After the mug, a few of us -- Jennifer, Mara, Eric and Tony -- went upstairs to the staff room. I had a virgin jello shot. Black Cherry!

More tomorrow!

GATHERING 2009 - Friday, August 21st

GATHERING 2009 - Friday, August 21st

12am - Went to bed. I was completely exhausted from the last few nights of working on the Radio Play instead of sleeping...

2am - So of course I wake up two hours later.

6:30am - Finally fell asleep again.

10:30am - Woke up, having missed staff breakfast.

11:30am - I went downstairs to check out the Art Room-in progress. Aaron gave me a very cool Phoenix Gate pin. (Thanks, Aaron!)

Noon - Had my mug-a-guest with Leah, Fan, Abbie, Eva, Kathie and others. I'm embarrassed over how little I can remember already, I'm afraid.

1:30pm - Jennifer Anderson and I held the first batch of auditions. Some real good people.

2:30pm - Back to the art room. I also bought two copies of the Bad Guy Trade, one for myself and one for the Sperlings.

3pm - By this time, I was pretty hungry, so although they had JUST eaten, Tony and Andrea Zucconi accompanied me up to CityWalk so I could get a Tommy Burger, fries and a coke/Root Beer semi-suicide mix. I ate; we chatted.

4pm - We headed back down to the hotel/con.

4:50pm - My wife Beth arrived at the con. We hung out, waiting for Opening Ceremonies to start.

5:40pm - Opening Ceremonies. I got the ball rolling. We had a bunch of con virgins -- for whom this was their first Gathering. And of course we had four people who had attended ALL thirteen Gatherings: myself, Gathering Co-Chair Patrick Toman, Bad Guys artist Karine Charlebois and a Fan. Gathering Co-chair introduced her staff and then they presented me with a very cool macrame doll of me, commissioned by the staff and created by the talented Vox. I then stood up again and talked about the great programming we had in store for the weekend. Then I presented Patrick and Jennifer with the Fan Guest of Honor, represented by great prints of Puck and Demona by Karine and Kythera of Anevern. Next, I spoke a brief tribute to the late Gary Sperling, and we presented his wife and kids with a copy of the Bad Guys Trade and another fantabulous print by Karine. After that came the Rocky Horror Gargoyles Show, i.e. the same old schpiel I always do. Showed the Pitch, the Jim Cummings version of the pitch, the promo, the Frakes presentation piece, the New Olympian and Dark Ages pitch, the Bad Guys animatic and "The Last" animatic -- nearly finished and almost entirely done by fans.

8pm - Having eaten a late lunch, I decided to skip dinner. But I hear Edmund Tsabard and the staff of Blue Mug Productions (Mara Cordova, Kalia Sartre, Jennifer L. Anderson and Boswell Bosley) had a dinner business meeting at Versaille up at CityWalk. Edmund had Ropa Vieja, Plantains, Beans, Rice and a coke.

9:30pm - A few of us hung out in the staff suite upstairs on the hotel's top floor. Liz, Patrick, Mara, Jen, Nikki, Eric, Seth, Sammy, Rebecca, Fox, Sydney, Steph, Scott and Marina all stopped by at one point or another.

11:59pm - I went back to my room...

More tomorrow...

GATHERING 2009 - Thursday, August 20th

Well, gang, I'm back from the final Gathering. Had an amazing time. Truly. I'll start my conjournal now. One day at a time...

As always, all times and quotations are approximate. Please forgive any mistakes or omissions.

GATHERING 2009 - Thursday, August 20th
I was up all Wednesday night, prepping the scripts for the Radio Play, which I had written over the three (largely sleepless) nights previous.

7:30am - Finally went to bed.

11:30am - Got up. Drove to my office in Beverly Hills to finish prepping for the Gathering.

6pm - Finally finished prepping. Drove home to pack.

7pm - Left for the Universal Hilton. Parked and checked in and unpacked in my seventh floor room. The staff then gathered to go to dinner at Bucco de Beppo's in CityWalk. It was a big table. I think a complete list of those present would include me, Liz Chesterman, Mara Cordova, Joe, Susan Leonard, Sammy Behr, Seth Jackson, Eric Tribou, Jennifer L. Anderson, Kythera of Anevern, Rebecca Bochner, Patrick Toman, Tony Zucconi, Andrea Zucconi, Cindy Kinnard and Karine Charlebois. I had garlic bread, calamari, spaghetti and meatballs, apple gorgonzola salad, two kinds of fettucini, green beans and manicotti. Afterwards, we went back to the hotel to check out the rooms for the con.

10:30pm - I went back to my room to continue prepping my script for the radio play.

More tomorrow... please post YOUR ConJournal here at ASK GREG! Thanks!

Gathering 2009 - Los Angeles CA

Gathering 2009 - Los Angeles CA

Okay, gang, I leave tomorrow for the Gathering. This is our last one for the foreseeable future, so I plan to make the most of it. We've got a TON of programming (including panels on both Gargoyles and The Spectacular Spider-Man and ElfQuest, production panels, voice panels, writing panels, comic book panels), a TON of professional guests (Comic book pros, animation pros, actors, artists, writers, sculptors, directors, etc.) These guests include Frank Paur, Victor Cook, Sean "Cheeks" Galloway, Greg Guler, Thom Adcox, Keith David, Josh Keaton, Steve Blum, Crispin Freeman, Wendy Pini and Demona herself: Marina Sirtis.

We have screenings of exclusive Gathering footage, like the Bad Guys reel and the pro/fan Team Atlantis collaboration. I'm bringing the only once-before seen footage clip from Spectacular Spider-Man ONLY shown at ComicCon last month. And Michael Reaves, Gargoyles writer and story editor, is bringing his STAR TREK webisode, professionally produced and starring George Takei himself as Sulu.

We have a Radio Play (that has nearly killed me to get ready in time) that presents an ORIGINAL Feature-Length crossover between Gargoyles and The Spectacular Spider-Man, with EVERY voice actor guest performing with fans.

We have a Banquet with a pro/guest at every table. We have our "Mug-A-Guests", i.e. a chance for a small group of fans to chat with individual pro/guests. We have the Masquerade and Dance.

We have fan/pro discussion panels on Gargoyles Biology and Culture, mythology, ABJD, Fanfiction, etc. We have Mature Content programming -- including Edmund Tsabard and his Angels at the Blue Mug.

We have Universal Studios and Universal CityWalk right next door.

And we have the opportunity to purchase all three Gargoyles Trade Paperbacks, both volumes of Clan-Building and Bad Guys: Redemption. Plus the auction features more gargoyle merchandise than you could possibly carry home. Great art at the art show.

And a few surprises...

Anyway, if you're anywhere near the Universal Hilton in Los Angeles, we hope you stop by. Let's make this last Gathering the best one yet!

And I'll see you back here at Ask Greg next week...

Oh, and as always, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE post Gathering journals here at ASK GREG!!!!!

Thanks,

gdw

STONE OF DESTINY -- SPOILERS!!!!

STONE OF DESTINY -- CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME TWO SPOILERS!!!!

GXB sent me a question about the Stone of Destiny in Clan-Building. He wrote:

"Just to be clear... Xanatos has the original Stone of Destiny? Scotland has a fake? That's... kinda cool. :)"

Now, of course, I shouldn't have responded. The book SHOULD either stand and fall on it's own. But of course, if that was my policy, we wouldn't really have ASK GREG at all, would we?

I apologize that I wrote with so little clarity that an explanation is necessary at all, but here's my answer to him, and before the rest of you get a chance, to all of you:

You're missing the point.

Which was the original, the one Moses sent with Gathelus or the one Moses kept and used to bring forth water in the desert?

Which was the original, the half that stayed at Tara or the half that sailed to Dalriada? (Note that both halves are the same size as the so-called "original".)

Which was the original, the one that was kept in London or the one that became the Blarney Stone?

There is no original. There is no fake.

But if you're asking where the specific stone that had been at Westminster went, Peredur has it in Carbonek. Look at the timeline. Xanatos switched the stone at the bridge and was about to make a DOUBLE switch at Leith before Blanchfleur came to pick it up. He was planning to keep the one he assumed was the original, when the stone itself told him it was pointless. So he gave Blanchefleur the stone the Illuminati wanted, i.e. the Westminster stone.

Xanatos kept one of the two "fakes" and Edinburgh has the other "fake", except both are still real stones. (It's not like they're paper mache or something.) And ANY stone can be THE stone.

Gargoyles: Clan-Building, Volume II TPB

Reports indicate that the Gargoyles: Clan-Building, Volume II TPB has arrived in some (though not all) stores, and is being shipped out from SLG and other sources. As most of you know, this trade contains the previously published issues #7 & #8, plus the unpublished issues #9- #12. There is TONS of new material here, tons of revelations. Tons of new canon. And if we hope to get more Gargoyles comics of any stripe in the future, it is imperative that this volume sells. If you don't have it already, I'd recommend purchasing Volumes I & II together. Read the stuff in order in (more or less) one sitting, and you'll get more out of it.

If your store doesn't have the book, ask them to order it for you!

And please, please, please, help us SPREAD THE WORD!!!!

Thank you.

TRADE PAPERBACKS!

Hey gang,

I know -- and share -- the frustrations over the vague release dates of the two remaining trades. Both are DONE. So it's just an issue of getting them from the printers, through customs, out to Diamond and then into stores, etc.

BUT, Dan Vado has ASSURED me that all three trades (GARGOYLES, CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME ONE; GARGOYLES, CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME TWO; GARGOYLES: BAD GUYS, REDEMPTION) will be available for purchase at the Gathering. Hopefully, they'll be available everywhere sooner or at least shortly thereafter, but at the very least -- if you come to the con, you can get the books!

Hermione R.I.P.

Our basset hound Hermione passed away in her sleep yesterday. She had a large inoperable malignant cancer tumor, so it wasn't a shock.

I know it must seem like we go through these dogs rapidly, but that's because my wife and kids always choose elderly dogs from the Basset Rescue Ranch, because they feel that everyone always wants the puppies and young dogs, and the old ones never find a home. So we get dogs. They're old. They die. My family grieves. And we start the process again... all too often, I guess.

We still have one basset left, Murray. Plus our cat Emmy. I'd like to put off getting any more pets for the time being, but it's never up to curmudgeonly me.

Hermione was a handsome girl, definitely the Alpha Female of our pets. Very common sense. We'll miss her.

Blue Mug Productions

Blue Mug Productions is up and running!

If you're 18 or over, check out http://www.bluemugproductions.com/ for the very latest in story-driven mature content.

They've got preview pages of the web-comic LAST TENGU IN PARIS, so you can see what you're missing. But I suggest getting a membership which gives you access to all existing pages of LAST TENGU, as well as a forum, Gallery, even an ASK EDMUND feature and more. This is good stuff. You don't want to miss out.

[Okay, Edmund, I gave you your damn plug. Now put down the gun...]

ComicCon 2009

Hey gang,

Had a fun convention. We had 100 copies of Clan-Building Volume Two on sale, and they went like hotcakes. David Hedgecock and I did multiple signings.

Also did a signing at the Ape booth for Mecha-Nation with Vic Cook.

And Vic, Sean "Cheeks" Galloway, Josh "Spider-Man" Keaton, Robert "Vulture" Englund, Kelly "Sha Shan" Hu and myself had a successful Spidey panel on Sunday.

Saw friends. Ate meals. Bought a Captain Atom action figure.

Good times.

SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON 2009

Hey gang(s),

Here's my basic itinerary for SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON 2009. You can find me at the following places at the following days and times. So I hope you'll stop by and say hello!

THURSDAY, JULY 23
11:30am - 1pm - SLG BOOTH.
David Hedgecock and I will be signing Garg stuff. Dan Vado assures me, we WILL have 100 copies of GARGOYLES: CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME II, sent FED EX directly from the printer. We might even have copies of GARGOYLES: BAD GUYS: REDEMPTION, although that's not definite. And of course we'll have copies of GARGOYLES: CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME I, as well as individual issues of both series. We're also hoping to have a prototype of the Electric Tiki Goliath statue on display.

FRIDAY, JULY 24
4 - 5:30pm - SLG BOOTH.

SATURDAY, JULY 25
2 - 3pm - APE BOOTH.
Vic Cook and I will be signing promotional postcards and talking about MECHA-NATION, our new comic book series (with Greg Guler and Antonio Campo). This was a project that was seen at a couple of Gatherings and was previously announced with SLG. Unfortunately, SLG had to bail, but the good folks at APE scooped it up.

3:30 - 5pm - SLG BOOTH.

SUNDAY, JULY 26
10 - 11am - ROOM 6A.
THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN panel. Vic Cook, Character Designer Sean "Cheeks" Galloway and voice actors Josh "Peter Parker/Spider-Man" Keaton, Kelly "Sha Shan Nguyen" Hu, Robert "Vulture" Englund and Greg "Donald Menken" Weisman will all be there, talking, answering questions and showing NEVER BEFORE SEEN FOOTAGE. This is not stuff you'll find on as-aired episodes or DVDs or YouTube or BitTorrent or anywhere else -- except maybe the Gathering next month.

12:30 - 2pm - SLG BOOTH.

NOT A TRUE STORY...

So I stopped by the bank this morning, because my wallet was totally cash-free. Both ATM's are "Out of Service" so I go into the branch to get some money. It occurs to me that I haven't actually been inside a bank in many months, maybe in a couple years. But here I am in the single rope-line that traverses back and forth in front of the tellers. The line is fairly long -- probably because the ATMs are down. Within a minute or so, there are a few people behind me and about a half-dozen in front of me.

The next customer achieves her teller, and I turn the corner so that I'm now facing the entrance to the bank. My eyes are wandering about, bored mostly, when I notice a tall man enter the bank wearing a trenchcoat. Now, it's July in Los Angeles, so this is odd. And maybe I'm kidding myself -- I am a cartoon writer, after all -- but the security guard who's standing by the door, seems to think this is odd too. He takes a few steps forward to keep an eye on this guy.

Trenchcoat marches right up to the end of the line, and says -- not loudly, not muttering: "The A.T.M.s are out of order." The guy at the end of the line turns at this and nods curtly to Trenchcoat. Then Trenchcoat says: "Get out of my way." End-of-the-line gives him an incredulous look. If he says anything at all, it's too quiet for me to hear (and I'm about two yards away).

Then shouting "GET OUT OF MY F***ING WAY!", Trenchcoat pulls -- I kid you not -- a goddamn MACHETE from out of his coat and swings it down at End-of-the-line over and over. But -- and it's a huge but - he's not hacking at him. He's WHACKING him with the FLAT of the blade. End-of-the-line is holding up his arms defensively and screaming. I don't think he even realizes he's not being chopped into horror-movie bits. All he sees is this maniac swinging a machete down at him.

Meanwhile, nearly EVERYONE in the bank -- myself included -- does absolutely nothing. We all stand, rooted to our spots. Maybe we're too shocked to react, maybe too afraid. I remember noticing that Trenchcoat is hitting him with the machete instead of cutting him, but still I don't move. I don't even run away, let alone help. I just stand there.

The only person who does react is the Security Guard, who is standing behind Trenchcoat. There can't be anyway for him to know that End-of-the-line is not being horribly murdered. Security Guard pulls his gun. He says something like "Drop the knife!" (He said "knife", but it really was a machete.) Trenchcoat turns to face Security Guard, holding the machete high. He does not drop it, but takes a step toward Security Guard, who promptly shoots him twice. The gunshots are very loud, and I can almost still hear them echoing in my eardrums. Trenchcoat goes down. The machete clatters to the (probably faux) marble floor. The Security Guard advances quickly and kicks the machete out of Trenchcoat's reach. It goes skittering across the (probably faux) marble floor until it hits the carpeted area where the loan officers have their desks.

Security Guard then kneels beside Trenchcoat, who is lying on the (probably faux) marble floor, breathing heavily with his eyes open. Security Guard, keeping his gun aimed the whole time, pulls open Trenchcoat's coat. I lean forward and see that Trenchcoat is wearing what appears to me to be a bullet proof vest of some kind. In any case, there's no blood that I can see.

The police arrive almost immediately, which suggests that at least one of the tellers was not quite as paralyzed by events as I was and hit a silent alarm. End-of-the-line is freaked out but basically fine. He has some nasty welts and a few extremely superficial scratches on his arms, I suppose from where the edge of the blade dug into his skin a bit. The cops insist on him going to the hospital. An ambulance arrives to take Trenchcoat away. One cop actually suggests that End-of-the-line get in too. Unsurprisingly, End balks at riding with the guy, and then makes it clear he's not even willing to go to the same hospital as "that F***ER". He eventually gets in a squad car and is driven away.

They keep all of us there for about two and a half hours. I talk to a uniformed officer and then to two plainclothes detectives. I tell them what I saw, but I have more questions than answers. I get no answers. And since I knew I wouldn't get any, I make very little effort to ask the questions. Finally, they take my information and let me go. I leave, passing the useless ATMs as I go.

It's all like some really bizarre performance art, and now that it's over I can't help wondering if that's exactly what it was. But if so, it was incredibly elaborate and damned irresponsible.

But in any case, that's why I'm broke and late for work.

CONVERGENCE converges with the GATHERING

I just got the following e-mail from a buddy on the staff of CONvergence (http://www.convergence-con.org/), which is taking place NOW:

Hi Greg!

I'm at CONvergence, and I am seeing flyers all over the hotel
advertising for the Gathering. They are having over 40 guests? Wow!

So thanks to those posting our flyers at ConVergence (my second all-time favorite convention). Have a great con!

But don't miss the Gathering, which as of yesterday actually has OVER FIFTY GUESTS attending! Fifty and counting. Soon the guests will outnumber the fans. ( And, dude, I wish I was kidding.) You will NEVER find a better fan to pro ratio at any convention ANYWHERE, ANYTIME!!!! Sign up now at http://www.gatheringofthegargoyles.com/g2009/ !!!!!

Comment Rooms

Before I begin, let me make something perfectly CLEAR. The Station 8 Comment Room is NOT my comment room. It is the property of and under the management of Gorebash for him to run as he sees fit. Personally, I like the Comment Room as is. I'm not a big fan of forums. If the vote goes that way, and Gore decides to make a change, so be it. But I voted against the change. My problem/issues with the comment room is about the (occassional) bad behavior of some people who post and what I perceive as the over-reaction of other people (often the same people, I suppose) to what I perceive as innocuous (or only slightly bad) behavior. But to reiterate, I stand by whatever decision Gorebash makes.

So what follows is only my opinion. Not even that really. What follows is my brother's opinion. And it's not even his opinion on the Station 8 Comment Room or on anything Gargoyles related. As some of you know, my brother, Jon Weisman, has a blog: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dodgerthoughts/

This blog on the Los Angeles Dodgers gets more hits in a day then we get here in a week. Or two. Probably even three. One of the main features of his blog, one of the things that he has told me is a big draw for DodgerThoughts, is the comments that his readers post regularly, their exchanges and their dialogue with him and with each other. So Jon has developed some basic guidelines for commenting that I think are calm and intelligent and worth considering for what we do at Station 8. Here they are:

Dodger Thoughts Commenting Guidelines
Thank You For Not ...
1) using profanity or any euphemisms for profanity
2) personally attacking other commenters
3) baiting other commenters
4) arguing for the sake of arguing
5) discussing politics
6) using hyperbole when something less will suffice
7) using sarcasm in a way that can be misinterpreted negatively
8) making the same point over and over again
9) typing "no-hitter" or "perfect game" to describe either in progress
10) being annoyed by the existence of this list
11) commenting under the obvious influence
12) claiming your opinion isn't allowed when it's just being disagreed with

I think these guidelines are very common sense and with the possible exception of #9, apply directly to Station 8. #12 seems particularly applicable. I'd actually add a #13:

13) thinking that just because no one has responded to your post that you are unwelcome. (Your post may simply have inspired no comment.)

These guidelines seem SO straightforward to me, I was stunned to learn today that some people over at DodgerThoughts OBJECT to them. So here's the post Jon made responding to these objections:

Dodger Thoughts commenting is healed - in practice, if not in spirit
After nearly two months, the folks at Typepad have finally solved the bug that prevented comments at the bottom of a page at Dodger Thoughts from appearing until several had been cached. So in that respect, we're back to smooth sailing. Any of you who departed out of frustration, please feel encouraged to return.

On another commenting note, some have voiced to me, either on the site or in e-mail, dissatisfaction about the commenting guidelines and a feeling that only one point of view at Dodger Thoughts is tolerated. I'd like to address these concerns in this post. ...

Starting with the guidelines ... I realize that they are not everyone's cup of tea, but I still feel they do far more good than harm. Conversation can quickly become heated on the Internet, and I firmly believe the guidelines keep things from getting out of hand. It'd be nice if we were all mature adults -- but we're not. Myself included.

The guidelines are meant for everyone, and they apply to the most diehard regulars. If, for some reason, you feel that a comment has been posted that should be deleted, don't hesitate to let me know, either here or via e-mail. If you find the guidelines too confining, then consider the big picture of what they accomplish. If that big picture doesn't look attractive to you, well, I've learned all too well that I can't please everyone. Believe me, it's been humbling.

There are a few other points I'd like to emphasize:
*Although off-topic conversation is allowed at Dodger Thoughts, it is meant to broaden the discussion and the community here, not narrow it. If someone's talking about television when you want to talk about Chad Billingsley, then make a comment about Chad Billingsley. There's nothing stopping you.
*No Dodger Thoughts rule prevents a point of view. Every point of view is welcome.
*People who agree on some issues disagree on others. We're all human.
*There is no ban on any style of conversation that would be allowed in a civil, offline venue.

One quirk that occurred to me overnight is that the people who complain the most about the site's rules tend to be the people who, frankly, are most protected by them. A primary purpose of the comments is to safeguard those who have minority viewpoints.

Since more than one reader is encountering this problem, I take it very seriously. I want to remind people to treat everyone with respect -- especially those with whom you disagree. This is of the utmost importance.

At the same time, I'd like to remind those whose comments meet opposition that disagreement is not censorship. It's easy to become defensive -- it happens to me, like anyone else -- but if someone is rebutting with you without attacking you personally, the simple thing to do is respond to the rebuttal. Or write it off. The point is, we're all here for the same purpose.

If you feel you are being chased away, let me know. But first, examine if that's truly happening. It's not easy to be in the minority on an issue, but inevitably, someone is going to be.

My transition to The Times has not gone as smoothly as I had hoped, for three reasons that I can name (not counting the requirement to capitalize both Ts in "The Times"). One has been the technical problems, and another has been a bit of a culture clash between readers.

Perhaps the oddest wrinkle in the transition has been the effect of the Dodgers surprising all of us by having the best record in baseball. That itself has led to a divide between those who find some complaints about the team petty, against those who feel that no problem is too small even when the team is winning.

It's not so much that there's heated disagreement on the main issues, as there is disagreement about how to respond to those issues. For example, I would say a minority of readers believe Matt Kemp should bat low in the order, but a majority feel it hasn't been worth losing sleep over. A minority of readers think the Dodgers have a playoff spot locked up, but a majority don't seem to think it's time to panic. And so on.

I can see both sides. The level of negativity this season has struck me as remarkable and kind of depressing, not because I'm a knee-jerk defender of all things Dodgers (another accusation I've encountered more than once lately) but because I simply want to savor the good times as they happen. That being said, I should probably be more tolerant of the negativity and not make such a big deal of it.

But also, maybe that means that some other commenters shouldn't make such a big deal over some things as well. From the site's very first day, long before commenting was even a notion, I've wanted Dodger Thoughts to be a place to seek perspective on the team (and the sport, and life). That doesn't mean a "No Griping" rule. But it does imply that the gripes should have a sense of context -- and sometimes, I feel that is lacking.

In the end, I consider this site my responsibility. As we near the All-Star Break and I look back at the first half of the season, aspects of site management that I could have handled better shout out at me. I am going to do my best to improve over the second half of the season, which may bring us a breezy jaunt to October or a tense pennant race. I hope, win or lose, people continue to find this a nice place to hang out.

Greg again here. What strikes me is that even though Jon is discussing very specific Dodger-related issues above, it's stunning how much this seems to apply to us here at Station 8.

*Griping is totally legit. But griping without any sense of context does get old and leads to temper flare ups.
*The MORE you disagree with someone, the MORE respectful you should be. If you can't be respectful, don't respond. Or at the very least, GO AWAY for an hour or two until you calm down.
*Don't sink to the level of the most obnoxious posters. If we've got a troll, it does NOT help to troll back at him or her.

I think it would be a good idea, no matter what format the comment room takes going forward if some version of the DodgerThoughts guidelines were adopted and POSTED on the sidebar for everyone to see every time they post.

Again, that's merely my opinion. Gore can and should simply do whatever he wants.

Finally, I want to thank my brother, whom I admire to no end. I'm sure he has no idea of the problems we had here last week. It's not like I planned to post anything else on the subject. But there it was. This incredibly well-written common sense response to a problem he didn't even know I was having. Thanks, Jon.

Spidey Ratings

FYI:

THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN episode "Blueprints" delivered 1.57 B6-11 rating, up +76% from prior 4 week time period average, retaining 89% of Catch that Kid lead-in in B6-11 and delivering the time period's highest B6-11 Rtg in over one month… since THE INCREDIBLES on 5/4/09.

"Destructive Testing" delivered 1.86 B6-11 Rtg, its highest ratings yet on DXD, while up +54% from prior 4 week time period average, delivering the time period's highest B6-11 rating in over one year...

Last Gathering

The announcement has been made that the current Gathering of the Gargoyles (the thirteenth annual) will be the last in this form. I'm saddened by this of course, but even more saddened by some of the vitriol I've seen toward the constaff. So I posted this at Station 8:

Hey folks,

Thought I should speak up. In part to defend my friends, I suppose, but also just to make my position on all this clear.

I'm the person who suggested we end the thing. Me. Frankly, I was simply horrified to discover how much of their own MONEY the con staff was putting toward the convention year after year... with it costing them increasingly more with each succeeding convention and with attendance falling at a steady clip. And that's on top of the incredible amount of hard work that these people put in. There have been other individuals and groups who have run individual Gatherings here and there, but most burn out after one year and don't do it again. This group volunteered their time year after year. Stuck with it when others wouldn't. They deserve praise, not scorn.

Are they my friends? Of course. Are they loyal to me? I think so. I like to think I'm just as loyal to them. Are they cliquish at times. Yeah. I've noticed that too. It happens with any group of people who work very hard together to do something and, frankly, feel largely unappreciated for their efforts. They get tight.

But I don't buy the notion that this is an impenetrable clique -- especially since new members join the group all the time. I've known some of these folks for over a decade. Others, just for a couple years. And even if you aren't admitted to this so-called "Inner Circle", what difference should that make? The Gathering is big enough for multiple cliques. Big enough for you to bring your own clique. The Gathering has interesting and informative events whether or not you're in ANY clique.

When someone asks "Why would I want to give any money to hang out with people who have no interest in including me?" I think the question itself is off point. They're throwing you a convention! They're including you! Does that mean they have to personally enjoy your company? Personally, spend time with you? That's unreasonable. You may be great. You may be annoying. I don't know. But they don't have an obligation to coddle you. Just to put on a great show, which I think they've done year after year.

And you're not paying to spend time with them anyway, you're paying to attend the con. Or not. No one's holding a gun to your head, but then don't complain if the thing isn't somehow able to continue indefinitely on SOMEONE ELSE'S DIME.

Don't get me wrong. No one is going to miss the Gathering more than I. I think there's some real truth to the accusation that the thing became Greg Weisman's annual ego boost. Because without a doubt it is a HUGE ego boost for me personally. Year in and year out, I have a blast. I'm treated VERY well, and I enjoy that treatment. I'd be lying if I said otherwise.

But it's not as simple as that. For starters, the reason that the con has consistently featured me and the various series that I've worked on is because I'm willing to do the work to help put the convention together. Frank Paur, just as an example, is ALWAYS welcome, but he doesn't always choose to come. I ALWAYS want to be there. So it's something of a not-so-vicious circle. I provide the convention with contacts -- and the convention uses those contacts to hold panels on Starship Troopers or WITCH or, this year, The Spectacular Spider-Man. All of which is an attempt to INCREASE the attendance by bringing in other fandoms and exposing them to Gargoyles. It's worked to some degree, but not enough.

I've also provided contacts for shows like Darkwing Duck and TaleSpin and Kim Possible, and we've had panels on those that I wasn't a part of because my involvement on those series was nearly non-existent. But I knew those guys, so I got 'em to come. I'm sure everyone would have loved it if I had gotten, uh, say, the Avatar/Last Air Bender guys to do a panel on that show. Trouble is, I don't know those guys. So no luck.

And, hey, I did create the show that we're theoretically celebrating. I am the guy who's fought to get the DVDs and the comics, etc. It's because of the fandom that I never gave up. But it doesn't change the fact that I'm the guy who never gave up. So maybe it's not SUCH a bad thing that I've been the primary beneficiary of the con. Or maybe it is. I'm not going to worry about it.

What I am going to do is enjoy the last convention. I really think we'll be going out with a bang with a ton of special guests. And, ironically, because of the low attendance the BEST FAN-TO-PRO RATIO you'll find at any convention EVER!!! If you can't afford to come this year, we're very sorry. We'll miss you. Really. But if you can, you should try, because once again, I think it'll be a great show.

But of course I'm biased. ;)

And as Jennifer pointed out, if anyone else wants to have a Gargoyles convention in 2010 or 2011 or 2198, no one's stopping you. I'm still willing to attend, still willing to help. Or willing to stay away, if that would be best. But I'd advise thinking long and hard about both the time commitment and the financial aspect of it before jumping in. Cuz it's tough. Not for me. It's easy for me. But for whomever happens to be the constaff in any given year, it's a lot of work and not cheap.

Now, I suppose for some people, all I've done in this post is prove their point. I'm tight with the constaff. They're tight with me. All true. But they've still put out an open invitation year after year to friends and so-called-foes alike. All they're really saying is that they're done. You think you can do better? Go for it!

Greg Weisman

Oregon Shakespeare Festival 2009

I've been meaning to post this all week.

Last Friday, my family and I headed up to Ashland, Oregon to attend the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The Festival runs for nine months a year, producing 11 different plays. During the summer months, there are nine productions going on in repertory at any given time. We saw five plays in three days, and just had a blast.

We started Friday night with Shakespeare's HENRY VIII, and this was the best production of this play I've EVER seen, including the production I saw in London years ago. Vilma Silva as Katherine and Anthony Heald as Wolsey were both fantastic.

On Saturday, we saw EQUIVOCATION, a new play by Bill Cain that was the highlight of the entire trip (which is saying a lot)! Equivocation is set during the reign of King James I of England (a.k.a. James VI of Scotland). William Shagspeare has been commissioned to write a play about the Gunpowder Plot, and his attempts to tell the truth -- and not get hanged in the process -- are played out. The cast of characters includes his daughter Judith (and for those of you who saw my "Doc Shakespeare" radio play at the 2005 Gathering in Las Vegas, you can imagine how fascinated I was by this), the King, SIr Robert Cecil, Guy Fawkes and various members of the Kings Players. It also features bits of King Lear, Macbeth and Henry VIII, giving a sense to the origin of those plays as well as Shakespeare's later "romances" such as Pericles, Winter's Tale, Cymbeline and The Tempest. Anthony Heald, so good the night before as Cardinal Wolsey is fantastic as Shag. An actress, whose name escapes me unfortunately, is wonderful as Judith. (She played Anne Boylen in Henry VIII) and four other actors (all fantastic) cover all the other parts. I liked this play so much, I immediately went to the gift shop and bought the text. And stayed up reading it that night.

Saturday night, we went to see a Nigerian play called "Death and the King's Horseman", based on a true story and set during World War II. This was a fascinating look at African vs. European (Western) values and theater.

Sunday, we saw Shakespeare's MACBETH. I've seen a LOT of productions of Macbeth of course, but there were a lot of cool elements to this version, including a sense that the Weird Sisters weren't done with Fleance at the end, which was something completely fresh to me. It was also great to see it right after seeing Equivocation.

Finally, Sunday night we saw a wonderfully funny production of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING.

In addition to the shows, we had a number of wonderful meals -- and okay, a couple mediocre ones too -- in Ashland. And my daughter, father and I had a great hike through an absolutely gorgeous park.

All and all, I can't recommend the Festival, Ashland and especially EQUIVOCATION enough.

Spidey on Disney XD

FYI, Disney announced this morning the rollout of SSM Season Two on June 22 with two back-to-back episodes: "Blueprints" and "Destructive Testing."

For times, check local listings.

Spidey Ratings

Folks at Sony are feeling pretty good about Spidey's recent ratings on Disney XD. Here's some info...

Returning to its regular time period, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN "Nature vs. Nurture" delivered a season high 1.71 B6-11 Rtg, up +67% from its season average (1.02).

The 18-episode marathon on 5/25/09 improved significantly over the time period's prior 4 week average… +279% in B6-11 Rtg, +250% in B6-14 and +226% in B9-11.

Second Season episodes will begin airing Monday 06/22/09. Check local listings for times.

SERIOUSLY...

It's the return of the giant invisible flying monkey brain. Damn thing won't leave me alone. Where's Mongo Mingi Mungu when you really need him?

TRADE NEWS!!!!!

Today, I e-mailed Dan Vado at SLG, asking about the two trades. Here's his response:

Hey Greg,

I was going to be emailing you this week.

Gargoyles I have scheduled for July, and that looks good for Comic-Con. Bad Guys I have scheduled for August and it a possibility for comic-con, but not a lock.

The Gargoyles trade will be in the May issue of Previews, I cannot stress enough that the fans really need to come out of the wood work on this one (not that they were in the wood work, but you know). They need to be "annoying" (i.e. pushy with retailers) as they can be because with the economy what it is right now nothing short of a huge groundswell of apparent demand wll get some of these guys (comic retailers and regular booksellers alike) to even buy a single copy. I am not a fan of getting people to be annoying, but this is going to be a case where it is needed.

Likewise Bad Guys (June Previews) will need an even BIGGER boost. I separated them because I did not want them to cannibilize each other sales-wise.

There you go, hope all is well with you...

Dan

So that's the news, both the good and the scary. I know I sound like a broken record. I know the fans shouldn't HAVE to be responsible for this, but if the fans don't, who will? I'll do my part. And Dan will do his, relative to his limited economic resources. But we NEED the fans to really step up and do two things:

(1) SPREAD THE WORD!!!! Please make sure EVERYBODY knows about these trades (and Volume 1 too).

(2) HARASS YOUR RETAILERS!! Make sure they KNOW how much you want these books. Pre-order them!! Put them on your pull lists!! Talk them up to every employee of every store!

Please!!

Remember, if these trades do well, we might be back with more original stories sooner than later. If they don't, it'll make it MUCH harder for SLG to justify risking more on the property, much harder to convince Disney that the property is viable and much harder to convince any other publisher to give us a shot.

Thanks,

gdw

ASK GREG is back, MARCH 23, 2009.

Ask Greg will once again open for question submission on March 23, 2009, which is coincidentally the date of The Spectacular Spider-Man's premiere on DisneyXD. (Okay, so maybe it's not exactly a coincidence.)

I would ask -- even beg -- that you carefully read the submission guidelines before posting here. In particular, PLEASE check the archives and the questions-already-asked sections before posting a question that's already been asked and/or asked AND answered. Try to avoid FLOODING Ask Greg, as it will only serve to slow down my ability to respond in a timely fashion. As always, comments are encouraged and appreciated... on Spidey or Gargs or whatever.

Thanks in advance...

Latest bit of news...

Hey gang,

Back from WonderCon. Had a nice Spidey panel, among other things. (I enjoyed the screening of the Wonder Woman direct to DVD.)

Also talked to Dan Vado. He assures me that the two trades (GARGOYLES: CLAN-BUILDING, VOLUME TWO and GARGOYLES: BAD GUYS: REDEMPTION) will both be out in time for this summer's Comic-Con in San Diego.

WonderCon 2009

Hey gang,

I'll be attending WonderCon 2009 this week in San Francisco.

I'll be signing Gargoyles stuff at the SLG Booth on Friday, February 27th from 4-6pm and on Saturday, February 28th from noon to 2pm.

We'll also have a Spectacular Spider-Man panel on Saturday, February 28th from 3-4pm, where Vic Cook, Sean Galloway, Josh Keaton and myself will have a Q&A and be premiering footage from Season Two, some of which hasn't even been shown yet in Canada or Bulgaria! That'll be followed by a Spidey signing from 4-5pm.

Hope to see some of you there!