Biology
Members of the clan are not necessarily related biologically (bloodlines
are shown to mean little to most gargoyles during the course of the series).
Nevertheless, the gargoyles in a clan will consider themselves members of a
single extended family, often referring to others of their generation as
"Rookery Brothers" or "Rookery Sisters". This reflects the
fact that gargoyles are hatched from eggs, which are stored communally in a
rookery. As such, parents are never certain which of the hatchlings is their
biological offspring. Rather, hatchlings are "children of the entire
clan".
The creator of the series, Greg Weisman, has stated that he considers
gargoyles to be naturally attuned to the planet's rhythms. As such, female
gargoyles will become fertile on the autumnal equinox every twentieth year, and
will lay a single egg on the following spring equinox. All of the eggs will be
stored together in the clan's rookery, and the communal hatching occurs ten
years later.
Known clans
Besides the Manhattan Clan which is the focus of the series, several
other clans were introduced during the second season of the show. In the show's
continuity, gargoyles had once been an abundant species that had dwindled due
to the rather antagonistic co-existence with humanity. Only a few clans survive
today, each for different reasons.
Each clan has different physiological and cultural differences based
upon where in the world were they are located. Despite this, they all share the
same attributes: they go into stone sleep during the day, all are fierce and
formidable fighters, and they all have a specific area, persons, or concept
that they protect. Series creator Greg Weisman has also indicated that despite
looking very different, all gargoyles are members of one species, and do not
necessarily have all the biological features one would assume from their
appearance (for example, though Leo resembles a lion, he is not amammal, nor is any other gargoyle).
Manhattan Clan
Clan history
Originally from the fictional Castle Wyvern in Dark Age Scotland, they
were part of a larger Wyvern Clan of gargoyles, living alongside humans and
protecting them. Castle Wyvern sat on top of a cliff, of which the gargoyles
originally lived in caves within the cliff face. Once they were fully matured,
they would perch on the battlements during daylight hours, in order to be ready
to protect the castle once night fell. However, they were betrayed by the
humans, and their castle attacked by Vikings. Many of the gargoyles were
destroyed - smashed into rubble while in their stone sleep - and only six
survived: the leader, Goliath, and his mentor, who had followed bad information
and were away from the castle tracking the Vikings during the attack, and three
younglings and their pet, dog-like creature who had been locked in the
underground rookery as punishment. A seventh, Demona, also survived, though
this was not known at the time.
The Vikings then captured many of the castle's human inhabitants, as the
surviving gargoyles pursued. They successfully rescued most of the prisoners,
but the Magus of Castle Wyvern, mistakenly believing the gargoyles had caused
the death of his beloved Princess Katherine during their counter assault, cast
a spell on five of the remaining clan, turning them permanently to stone.
However, when the Princess returned after being rescued by Goliath, the Magus
realized that he had made a terrible mistake. Unfortunately, the necessary
counterspell was destroyed earlier when the Viking leader Hakon burned a page
from the Magus' spellbook to taunt him, thus precluding restoring the clan,
except for the fact that the curse would end when the castle "rose above
the clouds" which seemed impossible at the time. A grief stricken Goliath,
feeling alone and wanting to join his brothers, asked the Magus to perform the
spell on him while Katharine and the Magus would care for the rookery eggs.
One thousand years later, billionaire industrialist David Xanatos acting
on a tip from Demona and the Grimorum Arcanorum that he owned, purchased Castle
Wyvern and had it moved, brick by brick, to the top of his skyscraper, the
Eyrie Building on Manhattan in New York City, New York. As Xanatos anticipated,
the building was high enough to satisfy the requirement for the spell to be
broken. This liberated the gargoyles from their stone sleep, only to be stunned
to find themselves 1000 years in the future in a place far away from their
ancestral homeland. After the initial shock passed, the clan would eventually
attempt to fit in to their new environment with the five unnamed gargoyles
(apart from Goliath), taking names from New York boroughs and landmarks to
allow the people of this world to better relate to them. For the most part
however, the period of adjustment was relatively smooth, for the younger trio
in particular who delighted in the vast varieties of goods and activities
available.
Despite being grateful for their release from their slumber, the new
Manhattan Clan was reluctant to put their trust in another human. This was
fortunate, as their benefactor David Xanatos intended to use them for his own
Machiavellian schemes. Instead, they befriended NYPD detective Elisa Maza, and
were eventually forced out of their ancestral home of Castle Wyvern and into a
clock tower above Eliza's precinct.
From their new home, they charged themselves with defending the island
of Manhattan, as well from Xanatos and Demona, now their enemies who still
wanted to dominate them. As they acclimated to the new home, the clan worked to
reestablish their command structure, with Brooklyn appointed as Goliath's
second after the elderly Hudson had stepped down from the role. Later on,
Goliath, Elisa and Bronx were called away to help the grown children of the
Wyvern clan on the mystical island of Avalon where they met Goliath's daughter,
Angela and the surviving rookery eggs. After defeating the threat of the
powerful sorcerer known as the Archmage, from the time of Castle Wyvern as he
tried to take over Avalon, the group of gargates, with Maza as the only human
member of the "Avalon World Tour" group. were sent on a quest by
Avalon to battle evil and correct wrongs worldwide with Angela accompanying
them. In the meantime, Brooklyn had some initial difficulty assuming leadership
of the clan, but soon proved a capable leader on his own. The group returned to
Manhattan with the new addition to the clan, but also with the hope that the
gargoyle species is doing far better than they ever hoped with the discovery of
numerous clans in existence worldwide.
Following the destruction of the clock tower at the end of the canonical
season 2, they moved back into their ancestral home at Castle Wyvern courtesy
of a grateful Xanatos, who was thankful to the gargoyles for defending his
family against threats towards them. Thanks to the Hunters, the general public,
now aware of their existence, fears and seeks to destroy them. These were
largely the issues the clan had to face of the non-canonical season 3, The
Goliath Chronicles. This series was poorly received and has been supplanted by
the current comic book series, Gargoyles, written by Greg Weisman himself and
published by Slave Labor Graphics as canonical.
In addition to readjusting to life in the Castle, the clan would receive
a new enemy in the form of The Quarrymen (formed by John Castaway who was
formerly known as Hunter Jon Canmore). Goliath and Elisa, after an attempt to
find love within their own species, declare their love to each other. Other
relationships form include Broadway and Angela becoming mates, Lexington
befriending Alex Xanatos and Hudson's friendship with Jeffery Robbins
improving. Brooklyn as a result becomes more distant from the clan.
Shortly after, Lexington and Hudson aid Macbeth in London to watch over
The Stone of Destiny and encounter both Coldstone and Coldfire. Back at home,
Brooklyn is whisked away by the Phoenix from The Phoenix Gate, only to return
40 seconds later (and 40 years older). During his journey in the timestream,
Brooklyn was joined by a female gargoyle from Japan, Katana (whom he would be
mated to), Fu-Dog (his gargoyle beast companion), Nashville (His and Katana's
son) and Egwardo (His and Katana's yet to be hatched child). Lexington and
Hudson return home from London as well (with Coldstone and Coldfire who were
convinced in rejoining the clan). The newly strengthened Manhattan Clan head to
Time Square to apprehend The Pack (Jackal, Hyena and Wolf).
Clan members
Goliath
Goliath is a leader of the Manhattan Clan and the primary protagonist of
the show. He was voiced by actor Keith David.
Hudson
The gargoyle that would later be known as Hudson was a former leader of
the Wyvern Clan and friend to both Prince Malcolm, Wyvern's original human
governor and Katherine's father, and the Captain of the Guard. He was voiced by
Ed Asner .Having retired after being blinded in the left eye battling the
Archmage, the elder gargoyle (who was around 100 years old at the time) gave the
leadership of the clan to his current second-in-command, Goliath. He
nevertheless remained a fierce warrior, cunning strategist, and unparalleled
tracker. Goliath often relied on his counsel and his experience. They were the
only two gargoyles that left the castle to track the Vikings, and were thus
absent during the raid that destroyed much of the rest of the clan.
Having been awoken in the present day, Hudson was the first of the
then-nameless clan members to pick a name for himself, after the Hudson River.
He befriended the blind author Jeffrey Robbins who could accept him as a person
without being aware by his being non-human (though he later revealed to Hudson
he had figured out he was a gargoyle "by his Scottish accent, visits only
during the night, and his smell of old leather and concrete"), and who
taught him how to read.
Hudson often feels his age, and many times is relegated to watching
television and guarding the clan's homestead while others are on patrols.
Nevertheless he remains a proud warrior, ready to answer any challenge. Hudson
is also the only gargoyle of the clan who regularly uses a weapon (a short
sword), which he began using sometime after losing an eye. He was also the
clan's second in command until he insisted Goliath pass it down to a younger
member of the clan.
In an episode of the non-canonical The Goliath Chronicles, the series'
third season, Hudson developed glaucoma in his remaining eye and reluctantly
underwent surgery to regain his vision on the advice of his first-ever human
friend, blind author Jeffrey Robbins, who had revealed he was aware of Hudson's
true nature.
In future stories, it would have been said he was the biological father
of Broadway, though during the show's run neither of them was explicitly aware
of this fact. It may have been a moot point, given the cultural attitude of
'collective family' most gargoyle clans seem to hold.
According to series' creator Greg Weisman, the role of Hudson was all
but made for Asner. Part of the description of Hudson's character was that he
"hates spunk", taken from a famous line spoken by Asner's character
Lou Grant in the first episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
Brooklyn
Brooklyn, Goliath's second-in-command, is one of the younger gargoyles
of the clan. He survived the Wyvern Massacre along with his two
Rookery-Brothers by being locked in the castle's rookery as a punishment for
misbehaving. He is voiced by Jeff Bennett.
In the modern day, he displays an occasionally reckless and sardonic
attitude, but is also a skilled tactician and leader, as evidenced by his
promotion to Goliath's second in the second season episode Upgrade. He took his
name from the New York City borough, Brooklyn. Brooklyn harbours a deep hatred
for Demona, who tricked him in an early episode into betraying Goliath and
allowing Demona to gain control of the lead Gargoyle via a spell. As such, he
is prone to attack her on sight, much to the impatience of the clan who value
his calculating nature.
During an extended absence by Goliath, Elisa Maza and Bronx, Brooklyn
took control of the clan and led them with all the masterful skill Goliath knew
he had.
Brooklyn is known for having bad luck with romances. His first apparent
crush, on a human-turned-Mutate named Maggie Reed, ended badly, with her
blaming him for her condition and saying he was a monster who wanted to keep
her a monster. Though they later became friends, she entered into a
relationship with Talon, another Mutate. Brooklyn also pursued Goliath's
daughter Angela as a mate, and was heartbroken when she chose Broadway instead.
Shortly after, Brooklyn is whisked away in time by The Phoenix Gate
(which transforms into a Phoenix) to 997 AD. He aids Mary and Finella (last
seen trying to keep the Grimorum away from Constantine [). He persuades Demona
and her clan to help Kenneth III defeat Constantine. After the battle is won,
the Phoenix appears to whisk Brooklyn away to another era (though not shown, he
brings Mary and Finella along with him). After 40 years of traveling through
the time stream, Brooklyn would return to his original time 40 seconds later
with his family.[
In the Spanish language adaptation, Brooklyn was given a catchphrase,
"Shooby Dooby!"
When the character design of Brooklyn was in the process of being
finalized the creators and animators consciously made him red in color due to
the fact that Brooklyn was meant to be a "hothead".
He and Fu-Dog would also be main characters in Gargoyles 2198. They
would arrive in that era in the second episode, with Brooklyn being the POV
type character. He would make efforts not to learn too much about his clan's
future as he hopes to make it back to his time someday
Lexington
Lexington (called Lex for short) is the smallest gargoyle in the
Manhattan Clan. He is often shown being eager, analytical and outgoing, and
sometimes impatient; in the episode, "Upgrade", Lexington chooses his
motto to be, "Speed is the key". He is named for Lexington Avenue,
New York and can be recognized by his olive skin, his hairless head (like
Broadway, but without any spikes) and the fact that his wings are not the
classic "bat" configuration (as separate "limbs") of the
other gargoyles in the clan, but are more like a webbed membrane between his
arms and legs, akin to a flying squirrel, with one extra set of limbs below his
arms that help support the membrane. He is voiced by Thom Adcox. Interested in
science, Lexington adapted quickly to the technology of the modern age, as he
demonstrates by figuring out how to control a motorcycle and a helicopter, and
with well-developed computer skills. He became the clan's unofficial techie,
taking leadership whenever technical obstacles needed to be overcome.
In an early episode, Lexington attempted to reach out to what he
considered to be like-minded individuals: a group of television superheroes
called The Pack. However, not only did he find that they were fake, but that
they were mercenaries working for David Xanatos. Feeling betrayed, he often
behaved irrationally where it concerned The Pack, especially their leader, Fox,
though at the end of the series, he reconciled with Fox and vowed to
specifically protect her son Alexander.
The Gargoyles storyline continues in comic books, published by Slave
Labor Graphics, wherein Greg Wiseman is free to continue the story and the
character development the way he wants. In these comics, Lex is set to realize
his sexuality at one point, and with the introduction of a white-furred,
British cervine-appearing gargoyle named Staghart (Amp for friends, although
Lex is the only one to call him so), whom it is suggested is homosexual and the
strong bond they formed in a short time, it is already hinted that Lexington
will realize this soon. Whether Staghart really becomes his mate or whether he
will help him realize his attraction for the same sex is still not clear.
Broadway
The large, round, and bluish green-skinned gargoyle called Broadway, is
a jolly and occasionally naive clan member with a fondness for food (even using
food as a weapon on some occasions), as well as Westerns and detective movies.
He is named after the famous Manhattan street known for its prominence of the
American theater industry. He has the largest wings of all the group and has
small bat wing-like structures as his ears. He is loyal, reliable, friendly and
quite intelligent despite his appearance, and was the main focus of several of
the show's more thought-provoking episodes. He is voiced by Bill Fagerbakke.
Like the other gargoyles, he survived the 994 slaughter and was cursed
to sleep as a statue for a thousand years. In the modern world, Broadway
developed fast likings for Western and detective movies and cooking. He also
made fast friends with the NYPD detective, Elisa Maza, possibly to a greater
extent than any of the other gargoyles except Goliath.
Broadway was the star of the episode "Deadly Force", a
somewhat controversial episode that was not aired on television for a long
period. In it, Broadway finds Elisa's gun and imitates gunslingers that he had
seen in a Western movie. In the process, he accidentally shoots and seriously
wounds Elisa. Though she survives, and bears him no ill will for his actions,
they both learn a valuable lesson about gun safety. Broadway takes it upon
himself to destroy any firearm he finds, and Elisa learns to keep her weapon
properly secured. In fact, the episode seemed to only bring the two closer
together, and later Broadway was often seen aiding Elisa in her police cases
serving as her unofficial "partner" using skills he picked up
watching detective movies. Broadway seems to have been the gargoyle of choice
for writers who intended to ground their stories in the real world, because of
his down-to-Earth nature. Several stories featuring human criminals had only
Broadway (and leader Goliath) in pivotal roles.
Broadway also appeared in a main role during the pro-literacy episode
"Lighthouse in a Sea of Time", in which both he and Hudson (both
previously illiterate) come to realise the value of the written word.After this
in subsequent episodes, the gargoyles diligently struggle to master reading.
Along the way, Broadway discovers a taste for poetry and the dramatic arts,
particularly Shakespeare, as he is seen reading from Romeo and Juliet in the
final canon broadcast episode of the series.
Following Goliath's return at the end of the Avalon World Tour, Broadway
began courting Angela, Goliath's newly discovered daughter, as did Brooklyn and
Lexington. After she expressed her frustration with them, Angela ultimately
chose Broadway, as he saw her as the person she was, rather than simply an
object to be won. Likely this was helped by the episode "Possession",
in which they were briefly possessed by two of the personalities that made up
the gargoyle Coldstone, two lovers that are called Othello and Desdemona.
According to Greg Weisman, Broadway is Hudson's biological son, though
neither of them are aware of this, nor likely would they consider that fact
significant (In Gargoyle culture, all elders are viewed as parents). Also
according to Greg Weisman, Broadway had an elder sister, referred to as
Hyppolyta. Both she and their mother died prior to the Wyvern Massacre. In the
future, he and Angela would have two sons and a daughter (named Artus,
Gwenyvere and Lancelot), and a grandson (or great grandson) Samson, the hero of
the proposed spin-off Gargoyles 2198.
Bronx
Bronx, though a member of the Manhattan Clan, is not technically a
gargoyle. Rather, he is a gargoyle beast- resembling a dog more than a human.
He could not talk, but was nevertheless depicted as intelligent and a
fully-fledged member of the clan. He mostly sticks with Hudson and sits beside
him watching TV. He was "voiced" by Frank Welker, and named by
Brooklyn after The Bronx. He accompanied Elisa and Goliath to Avalon and the
quests that Avalon sent them on. On Avalon, he met his future mate Boudicca,
another gargoyle beast that is part of the Avalon clan. In the episode Hound of
Ulster, Bronx was mistaken for - or could have been the reincarnation of - the
eponymous hound by the reincarnation of the Irish hero Cúchulainn and his
nemesis the Banshee. Cúchulainn comments that he once had a dog like Bronx,
suggesting that within the Gargoyles universe, a gargoyle beast served as
partial inspiration for the legend.
Angela
Angela, voiced by Brigitte Bako, was a late addition to the cast.
Hatched from one of the clan's eggs while they were being safeguarded by
Princess Katharine, the Magus, and Tom the Guardian on Avalon, she was
originally a member of the Avalon Clan of gargoyles. However, after Goliath,
Elisa Maza and Bronx visited Avalon for the first time, she left with them as
part of the worldwide quest that Avalon had sent them on known by fans as
"the world tour".
On the journey, Anton Sevarius revealed to Angela that she was Goliath's
biological daughter. Despite pressure from Angela and others, he was unwilling
to treat her as such for a long while (claiming that to a gargoyle the whole
clan is its parents), until Diane Maza, Elisa's mother convinced him. Beyond
this, Angela also learned that her mother was Demona (now an enemy of the
Manhattan Clan) and attempted to bond with her. Elisa early on commented that
there was something about Angela that reminded her of Demona; indeed, Angela
resembles Demona in build, but has her father's (Goliath's) coloring and
personality.
Despite her sheltered, peaceful upbringing on Avalon, Angela is an
extremely perceptive and cunning warrior with a temper reminiscent of both of
her parents. Her natural curiosity and thirst for adventure is what inspired
her to leave the safety of Avalon - as she told her rookery brother Gabriel,
she wanted to "see the world, find [her] place in it". Having been
raised by loving humans, she has difficulty understanding the prejudices that
the majority of the human race displays towards her kind. She is also an
extremely moral individual unaccustomed to deception, as evidenced by her
shocked reaction to Goliath's lie about his hallucinations in "Shadows of
the Past".
Upon returning to Manhattan, she was readily accepted by the other clan
members. The three younger males of the Manhattan clan, also known within the
Gargoyles storyline as "The Trio", all close to her own age -
Brooklyn, Lexington and Broadway - all attempted to woo her as a potential
mate; their aggressive courtship tactics frustrated her so much that she was
forced to angrily put them in their place in the midst of a battle, against
Czech gangster Thomas Brod, when he was in Manhattan. Later on, she more gently
asked them to slow down so that any romantic feelings she might feel one day
could develop naturally. Furthermore, to encourage them to be patient, she
tells the boys the delightful fact that she has 15 rookery sisters back at
Avalon. She eventually chose Broadway (much to Brooklyn's disappointment), though
the two had not consummated their relationship as of the end of the show's
initial run. Writer Greg Weisman planned for Angela and Broadway to eventually
have three biological children named Artus, Gwenyvere, and Lancelot. Samson,
the main character of the Gargoyles 2198 spinoff, would have either been a
grandson of Artus or Gwenyvere or would have been the son of Lancelot.
Slave Labor Graphics comic characters
These characters never appeared in the television series. They appear in
the Gargoyles comics series and its spin-offs published Slave Labor Graphics,
which is considered to share the same canon by many fans and Weisman.
Fu-Dog
Fu-Dog is a green-skinned, leonine gargoyle beast and one of Brooklyn's
companions during his Timedancer adventure. He is from ancient China, possibly
the ancestors of the modern-day Xanadu Clan.
Katana
Katana is Brooklyn's mate. She is described as a light blue color
gargoyle with long, dark black-bluish hair, and having a shorter beak than
Brooklyn's. She is originally from ancient Feudal Japan, possibly from the
ancestors of the modern Ishimura Clan. Brooklyn would meet her during his
Timedancer adventure She is named after the Samurai weapon, the Katana blade,
which she wields along with a wakizashi of her own, as a traditional daisho
pair of swords.
Nashville
Nashville was Brooklyn and Katana's first child, who closely resembles
Brooklyn in general appearance, except for his light blue skin and bluish-black
hair, both inherited from his mother. He will be hatched during Brooklyn's
Timedancer adventures. The origin of his name is unknown, but Greg Weisman said
it has to do with where he is hatched. Nashville wears human clothing (an
armless T-shirt and short khaki trousers) and wields a short sword, as depicted
in the SLG comic.
He goes by Gnash for short.
Egwardo/Tachi
Egwardo or Tachi is Brooklyn and Katana's second child. Katana will lay
her egg during the Timedancer adventures but Egwardo will not hatch or be
properly named until 1998. It is unclear what effect the Timedancing will have
on Tachi's egg.
Coldstone
Coldstone
Publication
information
Publisher
Disney
First appearance
Gargoyles 1x13 Reawakening
Created by
Greg Weisman
In-story
information
Alter ego
None (was named by Demona and David
Xanatos)
Species
Cyborg
Team affiliations
Manhattan Clan, Wyvern Clan
Abilities
Same abilities and powers of a Steel
Clan robot including attached laser weapon, supersonic jet flight,
hearing, and sight
Alloy waterproof skin that makes him impervious to intense cold or heat and
violent physical contact
Can function during the day unlike regular gargoyles
Coldstone
Publication information
Publisher
Disney
First appearance
Gargoyles 1x13 Reawakening
Created by
Greg Weisman
In-story information
Alter ego None (was
named by Demona and David Xanatos)
Species Cyborg
Team affiliations Manhattan
Clan, Wyvern Clan
Abilities Same
abilities and powers of a Steel Clan robot including attached laser weapon,
supersonic jet flight, hearing, and sight
Alloy waterproof skin that makes him impervious to intense cold or heat
and violent physical contact
Can function during the day unlike regular gargoyles
Coldstone is a character in the animated series Gargoyles. He is voiced
by Michael Dorn, one of many Star Trek actors to lend their voices to the
series.
Biography
As part of their bids to possess gargoyles that they could personally
control, Coldstone was created by Demona and Xanatos from the stone remains of
three of Goliath's rookery siblings, named "Othello",
"Desdemona" (Othello's mate) and "Iago", that were killed
in the Wyvern massacre. The Coldstone fragments were recovered by Demona
shortly after the massacre (a scene alludes to this in the episode City of
Stone), and combined with robotics and weaponry from Xanatos' Steel Clan
robots. In the episode Reawakening he was resurrected in a scene reminiscent of
Frankenstein (Xanatos repeats the line from Frankenstein "It's
alive!"), and in many ways he serves as Gargoyles' version of the monster.
He took the name Coldstone when Demona informed him that he was "cold
stone given life".
History
When he first appeared, he had turned bitter and confused after a
thousand years of oblivion as well as thanks to the lies and manipulation of
Demona and Xanatos. Demona and Xanatos then tried to use him to destroy Goliath
and the Manhattan Clan. Goliath initially saw Coldstone as an abomination, but
soon saw past horrifying appearance to the family ties that lay beneath. After
a long battle, Coldstone sacrificed himself to save his brother, falling into
the cold depths of the Hudson River. However, this was not enough to destroy
him as he escaped from his confinement to confront Goliath and the gargoyles
again.
The cyborg body housed the souls of the three deceased gargoyles that
served as a vehicle that brought to the show another adaptation of William
Shakespeare's plays: Othello. The original gargoyles were never named on the
show (except for Goliath, no gargoyle from that clan had a name in the time
that the three lived), although they were listed in the credits and in production
material as "Othello", whom the cyborg most resembles, his mate
"Desdemona", and a villain, "Iago". In life,
"Iago" had desired "Desdemona", and before they were slain
at Wyvern, attempted to drive them apart by insinuating to "Othello"
that Goliath was trying to take "Desdemona" away from him (as such,
Goliath in this instance plays the role of Cassio). Within the body, the three
souls continued to struggle for control of the body, with "Iago"
relying on trickery and deception, much like Shakespeare's character. Such
struggles formed the basis of the Coldstone character throughout the series.
Demona and Xanatos were aware of such a struggle, and had often taken advantage
of this (often by trying to bring out the "Iago" persona to control and
dominate the robot) so they could control and manipulate him to do their
bidding.
Demona (aided by Macbeth) inserted a disk to reactivate Coldstone,
though Iago was the personality to become dominant. Othello lost any desire to
get involved in the battle (as he did not consider himself a true Gargoyle)
until The Weird Sisters persuaded him to take up the fight. Afterwards,
Coldstone departs before nightfall figuring that no living Gargoyle is safe
until he and Desdemona can gain dominance over Iago.
Avalon sends Goliath and Crew to the Himalayas where they encounter some
monks, as well as Coldstone who has taken residence there. The monks leader
Master Dawa has been trying to help him control his personality. Coldstone
learns of the rookery eggs survival. During the discussion, Angela figures
Coldstone/Othello to be Gabriel's biological father. Goliath is convinced that
Avalon has sent them to the Himalayas to find Coldstone and bring him back to
the clan. Before Coldstone can object further his evil personality (apparently)
surfaces and he attacks Goliath and crew. After knocking them unconscious, it
is revealed that Coldstone was pretending to be evil, as he knew Goliath was
determined to bring him on their travel. He sends them on the skiff floating to
the Shambahla (purposely spelt that way rather than as Shambhala) Lake.
Puck uses a lesson to the young Alexander Xanatos as an excuse to
simultaneously have some fun while also helping Coldstone's respective
personalities. Taking the form of Goliath, Puck manages to possess Angela with
Desdemona's spirit, Broadway with Othello's, and (unbeknownst to anyone)
Brooklyn with Iago's; he also possesses Lexington with Alexander, presumably
since the child is too young to speak and thus work magic. Alexander then
completes his lesson by putting the various lost souls into robotic bodies, and
Desdemona and Iago take the names of Coldfire and Coldsteel, respectively.
Coldfire and Coldstone then leave in order to pursue and stop the evil
Coldsteel. They promise to join their clan as soon as they complete their
mission.
Later in the year, Coldsteel is visiting Xanatos at the Scarab
Corporations. The being that Xanatos seeks his and Coyote 5.0. help and in
exchange will remove a tracer that is on his body. They are sent to London to
steal The Stone Of Destiny and are aided by Steel & Iron Clan robots.
Coldstone and Coldfire appear to offer assistance to Hudson, Lexington and The
London Clan. The two of them are on their own during the following day as they
fight with Coyote and Coldsteel. Coyote is soon destroyed, with Coldsteel
returning the Coyote Diamond to Xanatos. Coldstone and Coldfire stay around to
get acquainted with the London Clan, and with Hudson's persuasion, rejoin the
Manhattan Clan.
Spin-off plans
Weisman also wanted to create a spin-off detailing the struggle among
Coldstone, Desdemona, Iago, and Goliath at Castle Wyvern in 994 and the years
before. However, the show was canceled before it came to pass. Whether this
storyline will make it to new Gargoyles comic book is subject to conjecture.
Weisman has remained mum on the issue.
Future Clan members
These characters aren't considered canon, as they were only proposed.
Their status may change in the future as non-canon, if they appear in the SLG
Gargoyles series, which is considered to share the same canon as the television
series.
Artus is Broadway and Angela's first child and first son. Called Artie
for short. Angela would lay this egg in the fall of 2008 and Artus would hatch
in the spring of 2018. Artus would most closely resemble his father, Broadway,
and his paternal grandfather, Hudson. Artus is named after King Arthur
Pendragon.
Gwenyvere is Broadway and Angela's second child and only daughter.
Called Gwen for short. Angela would lay this egg in the fall of 2028 and Gwen
would hatch in the spring of 2038. Gwen would most closely resemble her mother,
Angela, and her maternal grandmother, Demona. She is named after Guinevere,
King Arthur's wife from Arthurian legend.
Lancelot is Broadway and Angela's third child and second son. Called
Lance for short. Angela would lay this egg in the fall of 2048 and Lance would
hatch in the spring of 2058. Lance would most closely resemble his maternal
grandfather, Goliath. He is named after Sir Lancelot, the knight from Arthurian
legend.
Coldstone
Publication
information
Publisher
Disney
First appearance
Gargoyles 1x13 Reawakening
Created by
Greg Weisman
In-story
information
Alter ego
None (was named by Demona and David
Xanatos)
Species
Cyborg
Team affiliations
Manhattan Clan, Wyvern Clan
Abilities
Same abilities and powers of a Steel
Clan robot including attached laser weapon, supersonic jet flight,
hearing, and sight
Alloy waterproof skin that makes him impervious to intense cold or heat and violent physical contact
Can function during the day unlike regular gargoyles
Alloy waterproof skin that makes him impervious to intense cold or heat and violent physical contact
Can function during the day unlike regular gargoyles
The six gargoyle warriors
comprising the Manhattan Clan are the protagonists of the series. They managed
to survive through to the modern time with the aid of a magic spell that froze
them in stone for a thousand years. Originally members of the Wyvern Clan in
Scotland, they now live in New York City. They were once part of a sub-species
of Scottish Gargoyles that were all but wiped out long ago by the Hunters.
The addition of Angela, Katana,
Fu-Dog, Nashville, Egwardo (who will hatch in 1998) Coldstone and Coldfire has
brought the clan's number up to thirteen, as well as diversifying the clan
(Angela from Avalon, Katana from Feudal Japan, Nashville who is a mix between
Scottish & Japanese and Fu-Dog from China).
Avalon Clan
The Avalon Clan is a clan that
resides on the mythical Isle of Avalon, where an hour spent on the island
equates to a day in the "real" world. This means that for the island's
inhabitants, that while a thousand years passed since their arrival on the
island, the inhabitants have only experienced just over forty-one years.
Unusually among many clans in the Gargoyles universe, the clan includes three
human members who protected the clan while still unhatched.
Much like the Manhattan Clan
around which the show revolves, the Avalon Clan is an offshoot of a gargoyle
clan from Wyvern Castle in Scotland. When the majority of the clan was
destroyed by Vikings, the 36 gargoyle eggs in the rookery were taken away by
four humans - Princess Katharine, the Magus, and the peasant woman Mary and her
son Tom. The eggs remained protected by these humans and brought to Avalon
(only Mary remained behind), where they remained and grew to adulthood. They
were raised by the humans that had protected them as eggs, and were largely
untouched by the outside world. Angela later stated that she had "fifteen
rookery sisters" on Avalon, and Greg Weisman has stated there were three
gargoyle beasts in the clan, meaning that the remaining seventeen gargoyles
were male.
The Avalon Clan was introduced to
the show when Tom (now the elderly Guardian of the Eggs) arrived in Manhattan
searching for Goliath, to see if he had been woken from his stone slumber.
Goliath, along with the human Elisa Maza and the gargoyle beast Bronx, traveled
to Avalon and helped save the clan from attack by the Archmage.
Unlike traditional gargoyle
clans, the Avalon Clan was raised by humans. Series creator Greg Weisman has
indicated that because of this, the gargoyles on Avalon tend to have a more
"human" nature than most of their species; perhaps most notable is
the fact that each member was given a name at birth (such as Angela or Gabriel)
rather than the usual gargoyle tradition. Similarly, Angela developed a
human-like expectation of being acknowledged by Goliath as a daughter, which he
was initially uncomfortable with on cultural grounds.
Human clan members
Princess Katharine, voiced by
Kath Soucie, is the granddaughter of Malcolm I of Scotland through his
fictional third son, Prince Malcolm and a fictional Norman, Princess Elena.
Upon her father's death, she became the lord of Castle Wyvern during the 990s.
She was at first prejudiced against the clan, thanks in part to her father using
them as bogeymen to make her behave, and also due to the advice of the Magus
and general prejudices of the time. After Goliath saved her from Hakon and
learned the rest of the gargoyle clan had been destroyed, she vowed to protect
the clans' unhatched eggs. Fleeing the now abandoned Wyvern, Katharine, the
Magus and Tom traveled to the castle home of her uncle, King Kenneth II, who
welcomed them and the eggs with open arms. Unfortunately, this arrival place
them into the midst of a political struggle, as a devious lord of Kenneth's
court Constantine assassinated the king and usurped his throne. He had then
planned to cement his claim by marrying Katharine. If she refused, he intended
to destroy the eggs. Katharine and the Avalon clan, with the help of a local
princess Finella, escaped Constantine and fled to Avalon, their last area of
sanctuary. The eggs hatched and she raised them on Avalon as her own children.
During her time on Avalon, she fell in love with Tom, the Guardian of the Eggs.
The Magus, voiced by Jeff
Bennett, is the court magician of Castle Wyvern and eventually Princess
Katharine's top advisor. It was the grief stricken Magus that cast the spell
that imprisoned Goliath's clan in stone believing that the Gargoyles were
responsible for Katharine's supposed death. Feeling shamed for his actions, he
froze Goliath at his request and felt compelled to protect the rookery eggs. He
used his magic to guide Princess Katharine and the eggs to Avalon, giving up
his spellbook for the chance to join them. Though he loved Princess Katharine
greatly, he felt that he had little to offer her without his magic, and watched
sadly as the love between Katharine and Tom grew stronger. In the episode
"Avalon", the Magus gave his life while fighting the Weird Sisters,
and was interred in King Arthur's Hollow Hill.
Tom the Guardian is a peasant boy
at Castle Wyvern and the only human friend to the Gargoyles at the time, Tom
also accompanied Princess Katharine and the gargoyle eggs to Avalon; he took on
the role of Guardian, protecting the eggs and training them when they hatched
(despite having little to no formal training himself). Tom visited the outside
world once every hundred years or so in order to see whether Goliath and his
clan had yet woken, and thus it was that he brought Goliath, Bronx and Elisa
Maza to Avalon. He wears medieval armor modeled after Goliath (minus the
wings), in a style similar to David Xanatos and his Steel Clan robots. He was
voiced by J.D. Daniels as a boy and Gerrit Graham as an adult.
Gargoyle clan members
Gabriel, named from the archangel
Gabriel, he is the leader of the Avalon Clan (though he gives deference to
Katharine, the Magus and Tom as his Rookery Parents). Biologically, he is the
son of the gargoyles now called Coldstone and Coldfire. He was voiced by Ruben
Santiago-Hudson.
Ophelia, named for the character
in the Shakespeare play Hamlet, is Gabriel's mate (and, since Angela joined the
ranks of the Manhattan Clan, also his second-in-command). She was voiced by
Kath Soucie. The character was named after the Shakespearian character by the
series writers, but internal to the story her birth on Avalon predates the
play.
Angela, Gabriel's original
second, left the island along with Goliath, Elisa and Bronx to see the world
and eventually joined the Manhattan Clan. See Angela for more information.
Boudicca is a Gargoyle beast and
a skilled tracker, and the planned mate of Bronx. She was used by Oberon to
track down Puck in "The Gathering Part 1". She was named after
Boudicca, the historical Queen of the Iceni.
London Clan
The London Clan resemble
creatures of heraldry. Unlike other clans, they appear very much like
anthropomorphised animals (mostly mammals) with wings. In the show, only three
members of the clan were introduced, running a magic shop in the Soho area of
London for income, but the actual population of the clan is 196. While easily
one of the more successful gargoyle clans in that they were able to elude
near-extinction, this clan of gargoyles, have, until recently, neglected their
brethren's ways as protectors of humanity and not just their own kind. They
manage to fool customers into believing that their bizarre appearances are
costumes as part of fetish within the Magic Shop they run; and at least one
member, Una, even being knowledgeable in the magical arts. Other members of the
clan do live on an estate outside the city called Knight's Spur. Although The
clan is easily the most prosperous one known in terms of population, it is very
much aware of the danger of overcrowding their secure area. To control that
problem, stringent precautions are taken to control their population growth
with a resulting total number of eggs at present being 25.
Griff
A brave and noble warrior during
World War II who opted to covertly assist the soldiers of London fight off the
Nazis rather than simply safeguarding his clan's territory, the griffin-like
gargoyle called Griff disappeared during The Blitz and was presumed dead. In
fact, he had been transported to the future by Goliath, using the time-traveling
Phoenix Gate after the latter decided to go back in time to find what happened
to Griff (and possibly save him in the process). When Goliath learns that it is
impossible to change the past (after several consecutive incidents that nearly
killed Griff), he instead brought Griff along to the present-time London. Once
in his old home again he was reunited with his friends Leo and Una, and
encouraged them to once again take up defending the city.
Griff later encountered the
wayward and awakened King Arthur Pendragon in Westminster Abbey (the king had
broken in to hold vigil there, and Griff assumed he was a vandal before
learning the truth). He and the Manhattan clan helped Arthur fight off Macbeth
and retrieve the sword Excalibur from New York City, and was later dubbed as
the first of Arthur's new knights. He later accompanied Arthur on his quest to
find Merlin.
Griff was voiced by Neil Dickson.
Leo and Una
Leo and Una, who resemble a lion
and a unicorn respectively (see the Lion and the Unicorn), run the magic shop
that provides income for the clan. Una, voiced by Sarah Douglas, is also the
leader of the clan, and a powerful magic user. She shares a number of features
with Demona, particularly in her tendency to "rewrite" history to eliminate
her own culpability, though she is diverted from Demona's path by the end of
the episode and spared her lonely fate. Leo is her mate, voiced by Gregg
Berger, although it is suggested on the show that Una was romantically involved
with Griff before his disappearance.
The two of them had refused to
join Griff when he went out to fight in the Battle of Britain and they were
devastated when he did not return. They funded a memorial statue of Griff and
Goliath, as in a predestination paradox Goliath had appeared at the shop before
the battle and left with Griff. Believing that both had died, Leo and Una
became cynical and insular, no longer protecting the people around them. When
Goliath arrived in the modern day (before he had traveled back in time), they
blamed him for Griff's disappearance though he did not yet know them. They
managed to forgive Goliath when he brought Griff forward in time (thus causing
the disappearance in the first place) and reunited the trio.
Lunette
Their daughter Lunette (relation
was specified by Greg Weisman in Ask Greg) was shown in Gargoyles #8. She was a
winged unicorn.
Staghart
Staghart (or "Amp" to
his friends), who resembles a handsome stag, is introduced in the Slave Labor
Graphics series in issue #7 who meet the Manhattan gargoyles Hudson and
Lexington while they are on a mission in London. There is some suggestion for
now that he is homosexual and forming a mutual bond with Lexington, who is
slowly realizing he is of the same sexual orientation. Greg Weisman mentioned
that he would have cast Alan Cumming for the voice of the character.
Constance
Constance (or "Coco" to
her friends), who resembles a stocky warthog sow, is a good friend to Staghart,
although it is hinted that she is well aware of his sexual orientation which
precludes being his mate. She is also very aggressive in battle and disdains
weapons in battle in favor of her own abilities. Coco is loosely based on Greg
Weisman's original concept for Broadway. According to a post on Ask Greg (from
Greg Weisman), Constance is Una's Second In Command. Greg Weisman vaguely
considered Zoë Wanamaker as the voice for the character.
Ishimura Clan
Ishimura Clan are the gargoyle
residents of a small village in Japan. Unlike most other clans, the Ishimura
gargoyles co-exist peacefully with humans. Their ancestors fought many battles
alongside humansamurai before settling in Ishimura. They live by the code of
bushido, which they teach to humans. But by the late 20th century, they had run
out of students. While they protect the village and its human residents during
the night, a group of humans protects the clan's home during the day - to honor
this association, gargoyles from this clan enter stone sleep facing inwards
from their battlements, to their human protectorate as a sign of trust, whereas
gargoyles like Goliath traditionally face outwards to face potential threats.
It also seems to be for this reason why they assume less threatening poses
before entering stone form.
The leader of the clan is Kai
(voiced by Clyde Kusatsu), and his second was Yama (voiced by Bruce Locke).
Yama was known to have a mate called Sora (voiced by Haunani Minn). He betrayed
the clan by aligning himself with a human named Taro, a former student of
theirs who wanted to capture and imprison the clan in a Gargoyle-themed
amusement park and then reveal them to the public. He tricked them into
thinking their protectorate wanted them gone and he helped them escape so they
could teach children. Unfortunately, the "children" were actually
reporters Taro had invited. Yama realized the error of his ways and, along with
his clanmates and Goliath, helped defeat Taro. They soon fled just as the media
arrived. The Ishimura Clan then decided to teach bushido once again.
Yama was banished as a result of
his actions in Bushido and has to determine when he regains his honor. Robyn
Canmore, Dingo and Matrix arrive in Tokyo to recruit him. Robyn mentions the
chance for him to find Redemption, as well as threatening to reveal his clan to
the world. He reluctantly joins, but doesn't approve of being blackmailed and
the idea of working with a gargoyle hunter. Yama also doesn't like the idea of
Fang joining (as he made a joke at the expense of a suicide).
Sometime during the Feudal era of
Japan, a time traveling Brooklyn would arrive because of The Phoenix that came
from the Phoenix Gate. He meets his future mate Katana. Though it is unknown if
she joins him at first by choice or by accident.
Guatemala Clan
The Guatemala Clan are the
protectors of the rainforest of Guatemala. This clan possessed four amulets,
powered by a larger Sun Amulet, forged by their previous human protectorate the
Mayans that allowed the wearers to stay awake during the daytime for 24 hour
protection. Shortly before their appearance on the show, the clan was attacked by
poachers, and all but the four gargoyles wearing the amulets (who were out at
the time of the attack) were killed (the clan's eggs were also spared) and the
Sun Amulet was stolen. The amulet later sat in the American Museum of Natural
History in New York and was almost destroyed by Hyena who was to destroy it in
a coordinated attack with Jackal in Guatemala. Broadway and Lexington from the
Manhattan Clan foiled that attempt and now hold the Sun Amulet.
The four members of the clan are:
Zafiro - the red-skinned male
leader, voiced by Hector Elizondo, wore the sapphire amulet. Unlike other
gargoyles, Zafiro resembled a winged snake (a possible inspiration for
Quetzalcoatl myths in the universe of the show) or nāga, with a snake-like face
and tail instead of legs.
Obsidiana - Zafiro's mate, voiced
by Elisa Pensler Gabrielli, wore the obsidian amulet, and an expert herbalist.
Jade - (pronounced Ha-day),
voiced by Jesse Corti, wore the jade amulet, and closely resembled Goliath in
general appearance.
Turquesa - voiced by Marabina
Jaimes, wore the turquoise amulet.
After their encounter with
Goliath, Elisa, Bronx, and Angela, Jade and Turquesa went to Avalon, to plant
and raise several valuable plants and herbs threatened by the development of
the rainforest. Had the series continued, Zafiro would have traveled to
Manhattan to recover the Sun Amulet.
Labyrinth Clan
Residing in an underground
research facility beneath the streets of New York City, once run by
Cyberbiotics, now home to many transient humans, as well as two groups who are
firm allies of the Manhattan Clan: The Mutates and the Clones.
Mutates
Humans, spliced with animal genes
by Anton Sevarius to resemble gargoyles. They have cat-like bodies, bat wings,
and can discharge electrical pulses like electric eels.
For further information, see
Anton_Sevarius#The_Mutates.
Clones
Created by Anton Sevarius, with
funding from Demona and Thailog, the five clones are true biological gargoyles,
with simple minds, who are genetically identical to the Manhattan clan. Talon
gave them sanctuary in the Labyrinth. They were artificially aged, which
altered their colorations (in general, their colours are photo-negatives of
their originals). They were named after places in Los Angeles, in parody of the
Manhattan Clan who are named after places in New York City. In the
non-canonical season 3, the clones had a genetic defect that eventually
"killed" them by permanently freezing them in stone hibernation. This
defect also had happened to Thailog as well.
Malibu - Clone of Brooklyn.
Brentwood - Clone of Lexington.
Brentwood is no longer a member of the Labyrinth Clan, having left it to join
Thailog as of "Bash"
Hollywood - Clone of Broadway.
Burbank - Clone of Hudson.
Delilah - A hybrid of Demona and
Elisa's DNA. Secretly cloned by Thailog to be his perfect servile mate.
Unknown clans
As well as these clans, four
clans have been mentioned by the show's creators, though they were never seen
during the series. These clans are:
New Olympus Clan, who live on
Mount Thanatos on the hidden island of New Olympus. An isolationist clan.
Loch Ness Clan, from Loch Ness in
Scotland. The only semi-aquatic clan remaining, they protect the Loch Ness
Monster species. They do not appear in the cartoon when Goliath and company go
to the Loch Ness.
Xanadu Clan, from Xanadu in
China. They protect the waning gargoyle beast population. Brooklyn's companion
gargoyle beast Fu-Dog originated from this clan (though the time he visited
China wasn't specified).
Korean Clan, from Pukhan, South
Korea. They protect their concept of justice.
These four clans, together with
the clans detailed in the animated series, make up the entire remaining
gargoyle population on earth. Series creator Greg Weisman once estimated that
the total population worldwide is only about 400.
Further, Greg Weisman has stated
that more clans would have been created in the future had he had a chance to
continue the series. These clans include:
New Wyvern Clan, formed on the
former location of Wyvern Castle in Scotland
Camelot Clan, residing on the
continent of Antarctica, in the location of New Camelot
Liberty Clan, founded on an
island off the west coast of Canada
Notre Dame Clan, in Paris, France
(a version of this clan appeared as a "Gargoyles" spoof in a
Weisman-penned issue of Captain Atom)
In addition, other clans are
shown to have existed in the past, which were wiped out by humans. In the
multi-part "City of Stone," for example, Demona is shown to have led
a clan of gargoyles several years after the destruction of the Wyvern clan,
which Weisman indicates was created from remnants of several other destroyed
Scottish clans. These gargoyles were later killed by the first and second
Hunters. He once indicated that one of those clans was a "colony"
created when the Wyvern clan was too large (though he admits to making that up
to explain why a certain gargoyle model was used for a member of the original
Wyvern and of Demona's clan).
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