GARGOYLES: THE AWAKENING, PART 1 {SERIES PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
The premiere of this animated series about a cadre of centuries-old gargoyles living in secret in modern-day New York City.
The people of New York City are perplexed and frightened when a series of strange explosions ring out atop a skyscraper, sending chunks of stone hurtling to the street below. NYPD detective Elisa Maza investigates, discovering a strange claw mark on one of the stones. A thousand years earlier in Scotland, a band of Vikings led by the bloodthirsty King Hakon storm a fortress called Castle Wyvern. The castle is protected by gargoyles, creatures that exist as statues by daytime but come to life at night. The gargoyles, under the command of their leader, a large, imposing gargoyle called Goliath, fight off the Vikings. Goliath hurls Hakon from the battlements and tells him and his people to leave and never return; Hakon and his army retreat.
The people of Castle Wyvern treat the gargoyles with open disdain despite their aid. Only one, the captain of the guard, appreciates Goliath and the gargoyles' efforts. Goliath's second-in-command, a female gargoyle, expresses her hatred of humans for their ungrateful behavior, but Goliath keeps her in check; she and Goliath are lovers as well. Goliath urges the gargoyles not to fight with the people of Castle Wyvern, as he is dedicated to maintaining peace. After some discussion, Goliath elects to track down the Vikings and frighten them away once and for all. Meanwhile, a hooded figure rides out to the Viking camp, offering them the means to capture Castle Wyvern in exchange for some sort of bargain.
A boy hiding in the castle with a party of refugees attempts to befriend several of the gargoyles, learning that none of them have names aside from Goliath. The other refugees attack the gargoyles and the female gargoyle is ready to kill them in retaliation. However, the other gargoyles scare the humans off instead. As punishment, Goliath locks up the three troublemakers (along with a creature referred to as the gargoyle "watchdog") in the Rookery, the place where all gargoyles are hatched, until his return. He flies out to find the Vikings, accompanied only by his friend, an elderly gargoyle.
Goliath and the old gargoyle are lured into a trap. They try to return to the castle before sunrise, but are too late and turn to stone where they stand. Just after sunrise, Hakon attacks, and several acts of sabotage allow him and his men to ransack the castle and capture its occupants. It is revealed that the captain of the guard was the one who betrayed Castle Wyvern to the Vikings. Hakon smashes the remaining gargoyles to bits while still in their statue forms, despite the guard captain's efforts to stop him. The episode ends as Goliath returns that night to the castle, wracked with grief and anger over the deaths of his fellow gargoyles. Commercials deleted. Continues with B:38690.
Details
- NETWORK: Syndicated
- DATE: October 24, 1994 4:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:25:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:38110
- GENRE: Animation; Drama, fantasy/science fiction
- SUBJECT HEADING: Animation; Drama, fantasy/science fiction
- SERIES RUN: Syndicated - TV series, 1994-1996; ABC, 1996-1997
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Frank Paur … Producer
- Terada Kazuo … Director
- Hashimoto Saburo … Director
- Jamie Thomasen … Voice Direction
- Takeuchi Kazuyoshi … Animation Director
- Kudo Masaaki … Animation Director
- Kawamata Hiroshi … Animation Director
- Yasue Madoka … Animation Director
- Tsuchiya Kenichi … Animation
- Ohtaku Mitsuko … Animation
- Matsumoto Masayo … Animation
- Hara Atsuhiko … Animation
- Torii Manao … Animation
- Takasaki Yuri … Animation
- Matsuo Yuko … Animation
- Wakabayashi Sachko … Animation
- Tanihata Osamu … Animation
- Sagawa Kazumi … Animation
- Okumoto Shizuka … Animation
- Minami Shizuko … Animation
- Eric Luke … Writer
- Michael Reaves … Writer
- Carl Johnson … Music by, Theme Music by
- Keith David … Voice, Goliath
- Thom Adcox Hernandez … Voice, Lexington
- Edward Asner … Voice, Hudson
- Jeff Bennett … Voice, Brooklyn, Magus
- Bill Fagerbakke … Voice, Broadway
- Marina Sirtis … Voice, Demona
- Salli Richardson (See also: Salli Richardson-Whitfield) … Voice, Elisa Maza
- Clancy Brown … Voice, King Hakon
- J. D. Daniels … Voice, Tom
- Ed Gilbert … Voice, Captain
- Kath Soucie … Voice, Princess Katharine
- Frank Welker … Voice, Bronx