[7.4/10] You can feel Gargoyles taking stock a bit as it closes out its second season (and unbeknownst to those involved, the last stretch of episodes with the original creative team). The incident on the subway that opens is this episode is some standard meat and potatoes Gargoyles action. Elisa is undercover. She holds her own when in danger, but the winged crew arrives to bring might and muscle. The team toasts to their success and there’s a moment between Goliath and Elisa freighted with longing.
In a weird way, it’s a “My how far we’ve come” sequence to open up the “Hunter’s Moon” trilogy. Once newbies to New York City, our heroes have become a well-oiled machine who’ve grown comfortable here. As Broadway says, it’s a good life.
Of course, something has sto come along to disrupt it. This is a T.V. show after all. And I like the fact that it’s the Hunters, another piece of Gargoyles’ lore repurposed for something new. Considering all the foes they’ve faced over the course of the show, this one allows Gargoyles to introduce a new threat with ties to the old ones.
My problem is with how it’s done. For one thing, there’s no mystery, despite the pretense of one. We see three masked villains threatening the good guys who speak in menacing tones. Gee, I wonder if it’s 1. Elisa’s new partner, 2. Demona’s new assistant, or 3. The new reporter interviewing Xanatos who all just arrived in this episode? Maybe the show is going for dramatic irony, to where the audience is supposed to know, but the characters aren’t, but I don’t think so.
Also, I’m really unclear on the state of the Hunter mythos at this point. I thought the mantel had gotten passed down to MacBeth? It feels like there’s a little bit of retconning going on with their order being wholly devoted to getting rid of Demona. But maybe I’ve forgotten something from the last arc that introduced the Hunter.
All that said, I like the ideas at play. The notion of a group of villains who have a reasonable grievance against Demona, or at least a lifelong quest passed down from time immemorial based on an incident the audience has already seen, is pretty cool. In many ways, Gargoyles is a show founded in prejudice and the insidious cycle of vengeance it can create. So seeing this group not only go after Demona, but spread that mission to a hatred of all gargoyles, and prompt even the understanding Goliath to swear lethal vengeance when his daughter is threatened, services some of the major ideas of the show.
At the same point, call me a sucker, but I like how the episode teases the mutual attraction between Elisa and Goliath at the same time she finds herself drawn to this hunky new partner. There’s meat in the notion of Elisa having romantic feelings that can likely never be fulfilled given the cross-species issue, at the same time she meets another burly protector type who she could actually date. I assume that the fact that he’s the head Hunter (hah!) is going to torpedo things quickly, but it’s still a worthwhile interpersonal dynamic to explore.
And of course, Demona’s involved, so the combined tragedy and menace of her character is in play. I like her making her way in the business world, and the imagery of her bursting out of a sensible skirt suit is unexpectedly cool in a body horror sort of way. I’m interested to know precisely what she’s up to.
Overall, I have some issues with this one, namely the barely-hidden twists at play, but despite that, this is shaping up to be a solid conclusion to the show’s second season.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2021-08-22T15:58:36Z
[7.4/10] You can feel Gargoyles taking stock a bit as it closes out its second season (and unbeknownst to those involved, the last stretch of episodes with the original creative team). The incident on the subway that opens is this episode is some standard meat and potatoes Gargoyles action. Elisa is undercover. She holds her own when in danger, but the winged crew arrives to bring might and muscle. The team toasts to their success and there’s a moment between Goliath and Elisa freighted with longing.
In a weird way, it’s a “My how far we’ve come” sequence to open up the “Hunter’s Moon” trilogy. Once newbies to New York City, our heroes have become a well-oiled machine who’ve grown comfortable here. As Broadway says, it’s a good life.
Of course, something has sto come along to disrupt it. This is a T.V. show after all. And I like the fact that it’s the Hunters, another piece of Gargoyles’ lore repurposed for something new. Considering all the foes they’ve faced over the course of the show, this one allows Gargoyles to introduce a new threat with ties to the old ones.
My problem is with how it’s done. For one thing, there’s no mystery, despite the pretense of one. We see three masked villains threatening the good guys who speak in menacing tones. Gee, I wonder if it’s 1. Elisa’s new partner, 2. Demona’s new assistant, or 3. The new reporter interviewing Xanatos who all just arrived in this episode? Maybe the show is going for dramatic irony, to where the audience is supposed to know, but the characters aren’t, but I don’t think so.
Also, I’m really unclear on the state of the Hunter mythos at this point. I thought the mantel had gotten passed down to MacBeth? It feels like there’s a little bit of retconning going on with their order being wholly devoted to getting rid of Demona. But maybe I’ve forgotten something from the last arc that introduced the Hunter.
All that said, I like the ideas at play. The notion of a group of villains who have a reasonable grievance against Demona, or at least a lifelong quest passed down from time immemorial based on an incident the audience has already seen, is pretty cool. In many ways, Gargoyles is a show founded in prejudice and the insidious cycle of vengeance it can create. So seeing this group not only go after Demona, but spread that mission to a hatred of all gargoyles, and prompt even the understanding Goliath to swear lethal vengeance when his daughter is threatened, services some of the major ideas of the show.
At the same point, call me a sucker, but I like how the episode teases the mutual attraction between Elisa and Goliath at the same time she finds herself drawn to this hunky new partner. There’s meat in the notion of Elisa having romantic feelings that can likely never be fulfilled given the cross-species issue, at the same time she meets another burly protector type who she could actually date. I assume that the fact that he’s the head Hunter (hah!) is going to torpedo things quickly, but it’s still a worthwhile interpersonal dynamic to explore.
And of course, Demona’s involved, so the combined tragedy and menace of her character is in play. I like her making her way in the business world, and the imagery of her bursting out of a sensible skirt suit is unexpectedly cool in a body horror sort of way. I’m interested to know precisely what she’s up to.
Overall, I have some issues with this one, namely the barely-hidden twists at play, but despite that, this is shaping up to be a solid conclusion to the show’s second season.