Eye of the Beholder
"Eye of the Beholder" is the twentieth televised episode of the series Gargoyles, and the seventh episode of Season 2. It originally aired on September 13, 1995.
- Story: Steve Perry
- Story Editor: Michael Reaves
Summary
Main Plot
Fox receives the Eye of Odin as an engagement gift from Xanatos and is transformed during the full moon into a werefox, and is in danger of dying from heightened metabolism. Xanatos enlists the help of Goliath and Elisa to stop Fox from rampaging through the city and get the Eye off of her. Fox crashes the Halloween block party and leads Xanatos, Goliath and Elisa to a rooftop. The werefox lunges at Elisa but is intercepted by Goliath, who pushes her against a large electric sign allowing Xanatos to pull the Eye off her and return her to normal.
Subplots
Xanatos proposes to Fox in a business-like manner, believing he is incapable of true love. When Fox is in danger he realizes he does have feelings for her, and his true motive is to save her life rather than to reclaim possession of the Eye.
Elisa confronts the werefox rampaging for food at Mr. Jaffe's shop. Fox runs away when the police arrive and Elisa informs Goliath of the creature, who is concerned over Elisa's safety when he's not around.
Fox had been transforming into the werefox for a few weeks before Xanatos realizes what's going on and attempts to remove the Eye of Odin from her. Owen shoots her with a tracking monitor dart before she escapes the Eyrie Building. Xanatos then lures Goilath and Elisa to a meat factory where Fox is and confesses the truth to them when he's unable to remove the Eye. At first they refuse to help, but eventually Goliath, understanding what it's like to lose a loved one, relents and teams up with Xanatos.
The gargoyles have been looking forward to Halloween because it's the one night of the year they can go out amongst the humans. The trio dress in costumes for the block party, and Elisa, dressed as Belle, shares a dance with Goliath.
Goliath takes possession of the Eye of Odin from Xanatos, who assumes it's a trade for Fox's life.
Quotes
- "Marry me."
- "Are you serious?"
- "We're genetically compatible, highly intelligent, and have the same goals. It makes perfect sense to get married." - Xanatos and Fox
- "I fail to see how it would be any easier to get the Eye from the gargoyles than from Fox." - Owen
- "Your manipulations have failed, Xanatos. I don't suppose you have a plan D?" - Goliath
- "I have no more love for Fox than I have for you. Even if what you say is true, why should I help her?"
- "Because you know what it means to lose someone you love." - Goliath and Xanatos
- "Come on, I've wanted to stroll down the city street with you for a long time." - Elisa
- "If Xanatos speaks the truth; if someone like him can love, perhaps there still is hope for this world." - Goliath
- "How did you find us?"
- "Old habits die hard." - Elisa and Xanatos
- "So now you know my weakness."
- "Only you would regard love as a weakness." - Xanatos and Goliath
- "Actually Mr. Xanatos, I believe he's right; you've never looked more heroic."
- "A momentary lapse, I assure you." - Owen and Xanatos
Continuity
This is a good episode for incidental characters: in order of appearance, we have Mr. Jaffe (whose grocery store is attacked by Fox near the beginning), Officer Morgan, Travis Marshall, Bruno and his commandos, and Brendan and Margot in their second appearance in Gargoyles (with Fox and Goliath both jumping on the hood of their car as they watch in astonishment). And one of the crowd at the Halloween block party, judging from his voice, is clearly Vinnie (for once, having a pre-"Vendettas" encounter with the gargoyles that doesn't wind up disastrously for him - assuming that he didn't have any comical misfortunes when Fox showed up and broke up the party).
Elisa alludes bitterly to Xanatos' mutation of Derek into Talon from "Metamorphosis" (one reason why she is so reluctant to help him in this episode).
Xanatos places another tracking device on Goliath, commenting when it is revealed, "Old habits die hard". He had previously done the same thing in "Awakening Part Three". (This episode plays fair in having Xanatos place one hand briefly on Goliath when the latter shows up with Elisa in Castle Wyvern, giving him the opportunity to plant the tracer.)
The Trio all have their own Halloween costumes, appropriately chosen. Broadway wears his trenchcoat and fedora from "The Silver Falcon" again (in light of all the destruction that his outfit underwent in that episode, these would have to be a look-alike replacement). Brooklyn wears a pirate outfit, fitting his swashbuckling nature, and Lexington dresses up as an old-fashioned airplane pilot (straight out of the time of World War I flying aces and Charles Lindbergh's transatlantic flight), as an echo of his ambitions in "Her Brother's Keeper".
For Halloween, Elisa dresses as Belle from the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast (this is the only explicit reference in the series to that movie, which served as an inspiration for Elisa and Goliath's relationship). The following Halloween, shown in "Masque" and "Bash", Elisa dresses as another Disney heroine: Jasmine from the film Aladdin.
David Xanatos and Fox appear together for the first time since "Leader of the Pack", in which it was revealed that they were in love, and in this episode Xanatos proposes marriage. The wedding takes place in the following episode, "Vows".
The Eye of Odin, Fox's engagement gift, appears for the first time since its introduction in "The Edge", and for the first time it is revealed that it has powerful magical properties. This foreshadows the Eye's later appearances in "Avalon Part Two", "Avalon Part Three" and "Eye of the Storm".
At the end of the episode, Goliath takes the Eye of Odin for safekeeping. It will remain in the Clock Tower until "High Noon".
Tidbits
There is a small animation nit when the transformed Fox is attacked by the Commandoes outside the elevator shaft. As the scene shifts, the Commandoes' headgear switches from all grey to all red and back again.
Despite several superficial similarities (not least the existence of an immortal Scotsman in the Gargoyles universe), this episode contains the only confirmed, intentional references in Gargoyles to the film Highlander, when the sign (which says "Mercury Building") explodes at the end of the episode.
Links
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