Awakening Part Five

"Awakening: Part Five" is the fifth televised episode of the series Gargoyles, and the fifth episode of Season 1. It originally aired on October 28, 1994.

• Producer: Frank Paur
• Co-Producer: Greg Weisman (Uncredited)
• Story: Eric Luke, Michael Reaves
• Teleplay: Michael Reaves
• Story Edited by: Michael Reaves
• Directed by: Kazuo Terada, Takamitsu Kawamura
• Animation by: Walt Disney Animation Japan
• Backgrounds by: Studio Fuga
• Additional Production Facilities: Nakamura Production, Studio Robin, Light Foot, Studio Cats, Takahashi Production

Main Plot

After Elisa reveals to Goliath that the diskettes his clan "retrieved" never belonged to Xanatos, Xanatos and Goliath's mate - who reveals her name as "Demona" - show their true colors, attacking the gargoyles with the Steel Clan, a team of gargoyle-shaped robots that were brought on-line thanks to the information on the stolen disks. The gargoyles manage to destroy the Steel Clan, and soon after, Elisa rescues Goliath from death at the hands of Demona. Goliath rescues Elisa when a stray rocket causes the tower on which she and Demona are standing on to collapse, leaving Demona to fall. Goliath then nearly kills Xanatos, but relents, allowing him to be arrested for receiving stolen goods. The castle is won, opening the way for a whole new adventure...

Subplots

Demona destroys Fortress-1, causing it to crash into the Hudson River. Elisa sees her and Goliath flying away from the wreck.

The trio are successful in obtaining the disk from the Cyberbiotics Tower. Hudson and Bronx run into some trouble when they are accosted by security guards in the underground base, but they manage to escape with their disk.

Goliath argues with Demona, realizing that she's not the same person he remembers. He leaves her to see Elisa. Demona permanently cuts herself off from Goliath.

Demona reveals that she helped the Captain with his plan to betray the castle, which led to the Wyvern Massacre. She rants that all humans should pay for the way gargoyles have been treated.

The Story

Act One

At the Cyberbiotics tower, Brooklyn, Broadway, and Lexington are confronted by armed guards. The three gargoyles escape through the elevator shaft to the floor above. Broadway punches a hole through the floor and all three drop down through the ceiling of their original destination. Brooklyn grabs one of the frightened scientists and gets him to reveal the location of the disk they are looking for. Lexington obtains the disk as the guards try to enter the room. Broadway tosses a piece of heavy equipment through a window and the gargoyles make their escape through the resulting hole.

Meanwhile, the underground fortress receives word if the attack on the tower and unconfirmed reports of "monsters." The reports are soon confirmed when Hudson and Bronx approach a large steel door and are spotted on a security camera. Hudson is taken by surprise by the facility's guards and led inside at gunpoint. Bronx leaps in after him and the two fight with the guards. Hudson makes his way to a console. Puzzled by the various lights and buttons, he bangs his fist on the console in frustration, causing the disk to pop out. Hudson and Bronx go to leave and just make it through the rapidly closing steel doors. More guards approach and the gargoyle and the beast flee through an access shaft to a caged walkway above another subway tunnel. The guards pursue them. As the guards draw closer, Hudson pulls off a panel from the side of the walkway, grabs Bronx, and jumps down with him onto a passing subway train. The train exits the tunnel and Hudson takes off, still carrying Bronx. The two land awkwardly on a nearby roof and Hudson complains of Bronx's weight and the aches he'll be feeling after his adventures. He hopes the disk is worth it.

High above the city, the airship Fortress-1 has learned of the attacks on the other two Cyberbiotics bases and the loss of two-thirds of the data. Goliath kicks down the door to the control room and his mate informs the Cyberbiotics employees that they have now lost all of the data. While Goliath subdues the guards, his mate retrieves the disk, then pulls a cable out of the console and uses it to set the ship ablaze. Goliath is surprised by her actions and reluctant to leave the humans to their fates, but his mate pulls him out the door. Fortress-1 crashes into the river. Elisa Maza arrives on the scene just in time to see the two gargoyles flying away from the flaming wreck.

Act Two

Goliath and his mate return to the Eyrie Building and deliver the disk they retrieved to David Xanatos, who promises to use the knowledge on the three discs for the benefit of both humans and gargoyles. Goliath tells his mate he is going to see a friend. Realign that Goliath means a human, she protests. She tells Goliath that humans are their enemies and must pay for what happened to the Wyvern clan 1000 years ago. Goliath replies that the humans who massacred their clan are long dead and he cannot battle am emitter world. He reflects sadly on how vicious and unforgiving his mate has become, not at all like the gargoyle he knew centuries ago. He leaves to meet with Elisa. Xanatos watches this unfold over a security feed and notes that Goliath is too difficult to control.

Goliath arrives for his rooftop meeting with Elisa and she confronts him about the Cyberbiotics robberies. She hands him a paper with the insignia from the tracker she found on him and tells him it belongs to a company owned by Xanatos enterprises. Elisa has also looked into the robberies and found that the disks the gargoyles took were Cyberbiotics property. The "theft" of the data from the Eyrie building and the attack in the park, she surmises, were setups to convince Goliath and the gargoyles to help Xanatos steal the Cyberbiotics data. She asks Goliath to trust her and he signals his assent by crushing the paper.

Back at the Eyrie Building, Xanatos stands before a line of sheet covered figures. The gargoyles, he tells Owen seem to have outlived their usefulness and the data from the disks will let him activate their "replacements." Owen notes that sunrise will arrive in three hours, making disposing of the gargoyles and easy task. Stepping from the shadows, Goliath's mate points out that the replacements need a test run.

Outside, the trio relax and enjoy the comforts of the 20th century: computers, sunglasses, and Chinese takeout. Broadway remarks that adjusting to this new time and place was tough at first, but everything seems fine now. He reconsiders as a box of takeout is blasted out of his hand. The blast comes from a robotic gargoyle, one of five standing behind Xanatos, Owen, and Goliath's mate. Xanatos orders the robots to attack. They dive-bomb the three young gargoyles. Broadway is knocked out of the air by their laser blasts. He attempts to grab onto the castle wall but the brick he is holding comes loose and he falls to the floor below unconscious. As the fight continues, Xanatos points out the robots' advantages over the gargoyles: steel bodies, no need for sleep during the day, full flight capabilities versus gliding, and unquestioning loyalty. Lexington is shot out of the sky and Brooklyn catches him. One of the robots targets Brooklyn and Lexington, but Goliath soars in at tackles it, smashing it against one of the castle towers. Goliath takes the unconscious Lexington from Brooklyn and sets him down next to Broadway. The noise of the battle alerts Hudson and Bronx, who are soon under fire from another robot. Bronx grabs the robot by the tail and brings it to the ground, dodging its laser blasts until Hudson can dispatch it with his sword. In the skies above, Goliath gets on the back of one of the remaining robots and steers it into another, destroying both. As robot parts rain down, Xanatos comments that his "Steel Clan" is not faring so well. He, Owen, and Goliath's mate go back inside the castle to regroup.

Broadway and Lexington regain consciousness just in time to avoid being blasted by the on remaining Steel Clan robot. As it flies towards them, Goliath and Brooklyn push an unstable piece of the castle tower down onto the robot, crushing it. They celebrate their victory, but the celebration is short lived. Xanatos and Goliath's mate emerge from the castle with laser weaponry. Goliath's mate takes aim at Goliath and Brooklyn and fires.

Act Three

The laser bazooka blast knocks the two gargoyles off the tower. Brooklyn lands near the rest of the clan while Goliath lands in front of his mate. The other gargoyles move to help Goliath, but Xanatos keeps them back with his weapon. Goliath's mate reveals that she conspired with the Captain of the Guard to betray Castle Wyvern 1,000 years ago. Her plan was to have all the gargoyles go with Goliath, then return the following night to find the humans gone and take the castle for themselves. When Goliath instead went after the Vikings with only Hudson, Goliath's mate took action to save herself. She continues to hate humanity for how they treated the gargoyles and carries on her vendetta to this day. Goliath points out that the destruction of their clan would no have happened if not for her. She is angered, but gives him one last chance to join her. He says nothing and she fires her bazooka, knocking him to the ground. As she prepares to fire a final shot, she tells Goliath that the humans named her too, long ago. She is Demona.

Elisa, at the building on police business, charges into Demona, causing her shot to go wild. Xanatos is knocked out by falling debris. A massive piece of a tower falls close to Elisa and Demona, demolishing the floor beneath them. Both fall from the castle. Goliath leaps into action, catches Elisa, and sets her down safely at the castle, but Demona falls to an unknown fate. Goliath roars in anguish. As Xanatos regains consciousness, Goliath picks him up by the collar and threatens to drop him off the castle. Xanatos snakily tells Goliath, to "go ahead" and reminds him that the clan would never have awakened if not for him. Elisa and Hudson intervene and convince Goliath that vengeance isn't what he wants. Goliath tosses Xanatos aside.

As dawn approaches, Xanatos is arrested. Goliath wonders if Demona might have survived and Hudson responds that if she did, they're sure to know about it before long. The gargoyles settle onto their perches for the day and Goliath agrees to meet Elisa again tomorrow. She jokingly suggests that they go to see a Giants game and Goliath freezes in stone with a confused expression on his face. Smiling, Elisa wonders if New York is ready for the gargoyles.

First Appearances

Character

• Cyberbiotics Commander
• Fortress-1 Captain
• Eyrie Building Security Guard

Location

• Cyberbiotics Underground Base

Object

• Steel Clan

Quotes

• "Ach! I'm getting too old for this." - Hudson

• "Ye need to be losing some weight, and that's a fact!" - Hudson

• "Rest assured that the knowledge on these disks will be put to beneficial use for humans and gargoyles alike." - Xanatos

• "I cannot make war upon an entire world!" - Goliath

• "You said the centuries have changed me. They changed you too. You've become hard, unforgiving. You are not as I remember you." - Goliath

• "But you've got to trust somebody in this world, and I think you'd be better off with me than Xanatos." - Elisa

• "I"m afraid the gargoyles have outlived their usefulness. I can't count on their loyalty. But now with the data on those disks, I can bring their replacements on-line." - Xanatos

• "You need to test these replacements, do you not?" - Demona

• "We won, dude!"

"'dude?'" - Brooklyn and Goliath

• "Let's just let them play out their little drama, shall we?" - Xanatos

• "I've stayed alive because I don't trust anyone." - Demona

• "There is good and evil in all of us, human and gargoyle alike!" - Goliath

• "I have a name too, Goliath. The humans gave it to me long ago. You should know it before you die. I am Demona." - Demona

• "She wanted me to destroy humanity. I think I'll start with you!"

"Go ahead. Without me, you'd still be gathering moss." - Goliath and Xanatos

• "It's nice to know I have at least one human friend in this new world."

"I hope you have more, lots more. But whether you do or not, I'll always be your friend Goliath." - Goliath and Elisa

• "Good, maybe we'll catch a Giants game."

"Giants?!" - Elisa and Goliath

Tidbits

Hudson's line "And they say the Middle Ages were barbaric!", while amusing, is (from a perspective of strict realism) questionable. The term "Middle Ages" only came into existence after the medieval period, as a way of describing (in a patronizing fashion) the period of history between the classical age of Greece and Rome and the rediscovery of its art and literature during the Renaissance. Nobody in 994 would have recognized the term. One could, of course, assume that Hudson had picked it up from some of his television watching (maybe a historical documentary), although it would have been fast work.

The scarab logo of the robotics company owned by Xanatos that manufactured the tracer is that of the Scarab Corporation, which was originally designed by the Gargoyles Production Team as one of the leading divisions of Xanatos Enterprises, alongside PackMedia Studios and Gen-U-Tech. However, it received far less attention than these other divisions, thanks to the fact that stories involving its products focused on the products themselves (such as Coyote) and did not involve the corporation staff at all (unlike stories featuring Gen-U-Tech, for example, where Sevarius was certain to play a prominent role). We get another brief glance at that same logo in "Legion", and the firm is finally named "on-screen" and shown in "Reunion".

The scene where Demona reveals her name is another hint that she was lying about having been under the Magus' spell for the past thousand years like the rest of the clan. If she had actually been in stone sleep during that time, she would scarcely have had the opportunity to have gained it from a human "long ago".

Demona's line of "1,000 years of solitude" is a reference to the title of One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez.

Toon Disney/Disney XD Edits

When Demona fires her bazooka at Goliath, in the original it showed the bazooka light up right before cutting to commercial and now it just stops short to when Demona and Xanatos come out with rifles and goes to commercial.

Also in the same episode, when Demona says "If you are not my ally then you are my enemy" you usually see her fire the bazooka head-on at the camera and then Goliath dodge the missile in the next scene. On Toon Disney, when Demona says her line, it cuts back to the scene of Goliath with tears in his eyes as you hear the bazooka fire and then goes to the scene of Goliath dodging the missile.

VHS/DVD Release

• Gargoyles The Movie: The Heroes Awaken
• Gargoyles: The Complete First Season

Links

• Greg's Ramble
• Extensive Synopsis and Review

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