Enter Macbeth

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"Enter Macbeth" is the ninth televised episode of the series Gargoyles, and the ninth episode of Season 1. It originally aired on January 6, 1995.


Summary

Main Plot

Macbeth introduces himself to Xanatos while the latter is in prison, and offers to remove the gargoyles from the castle a week before Xanatos is to return home. Macbeth then goes to the castle at sundown and attacks the gargoyles after they refuse an invitation to stay at his home. He abducts Brooklyn, Lexington, and Bronx in order to lure Goliath to his mansion, and reveals that he's using the gargoyles in a doomed ploy to get Demona to seek him out. Goliath and Macbeth fight in the latter's medieval style mansion which goes up in flames during the battle. The gargoyles escape and Macbeth retreats.

Subplots

Elisa uses Macbeth's attack as further proof that the gargoyles should leave the castle, but Goliath still refuses to listen to her.

Elisa, Broadway, and Hudson take the Grimorum Arcanorum from the Great Hall after defeating Owen, and leave the castle while Goliath is out confronting Macbeth. With Broadway and Hudson's help, Elisa finally convinces Goliath to leave the castle, but not before he tells Owen that the clan will return, before settling into the Clock Tower.

While in Macbeth's mansion, Brooklyn and Lexington figure out a way to let Bronx out of his cage by diverting the electricity from their own cage. Bronx escapes and finds Goliath, disrupting New York traffic and passersby in the process, and leads him to the abducted clan members.

Xanatos returns home from prison, and is intrigued by what has transpired between Macbeth and the gargoyles.

The Story

Previously on Gargoyles

Act One

After their reawakening in modern-day Manhattan, the gargoyles have fallen into a routine at the Eyrie Building; Broadway cooks in the kitchen, Hudson and Bronx watch cartoons on the television, Brooklyn and Lexington play cards in the great hall, and Goliath reads in the castle library.

David Xanatos, on the other hand, serves another day in prison, with his sentence only a week from being fully served. During a visitation, he tells Owen that his time in prison has been a "learning experience". Owen reminds Xanatos that he has never made a decision regarding the fate of the gargoyles, and suggests they'll be easy enough to destroy during the day. Xanatos sees that course of action as wasteful, but admits that can't have them in the way when he does return home. It is at this precise moment that a bearded, white-haired prison guard enters the room. Owen tells the guard he still had ten minutes. The guard isn't concerned about the time, for he is there with a business opportunity for Xanatos. Xanatos's curiosity is piqued; the guard offers to help with Xanatos's "infestation" problem, offering to remove the "pests" for a price. When Xanatos asks for more details, the guard offers his name: Macbeth.

It is moments before sunset. Elisa climbs to the highest tower of Castle Wyvern on crutches and confronts Macbeth, now wearing tactical armor and a long duster coat. Owen watches from a security camera. Elisa tries to take the conversation elsewhere, but Macbeth assures her that she hides no secrets; he's known about gargoyles for some time. Night begins to fall. Stone skin from every sleeping statue begins to splinter, before bursting apart as the gargoyles awake amongst the two humans. Macbeth smiles at the sight.

The clan is quick to notice the additional company. with Lexington asking Elisa who her friend is. Broadway is more openly suspicious, asking if the stranger is bothering Elisa. Bronx begins to growl. Macbeth is unfazed and gets to the point. He is there to offer the clan an invitation: leave Castle Wyvern and be guests at his home. Goliath's face is proof he is in no mood to comply, but he politely refuses. Macbeth declares that he must insist, explaining that he would never attack the gargoyles before dusk. Broadway confidently steps up to Macbeth, saying he doesn't care for his attitude. Before he can forcibly convince Macbeth to leave, Macbeth grabs the gargoyle and hurls him at Hudson, knocking both gargoyles off the tower, to crash-land in the courtyard below. Macbeth then hurls smoke bombs at the remaining gargoyles and Elisa, putting on goggles to enhance his vision through the smoke. He dodges Bronx who crashes into Lexington, and Macbeth springs an electric net on both of them. One hand on a crutch, Elisa pulls out her service weapon while Goliath jumps into battle. Macbeth avoids Goliath and kicks Brooklyn, riding him off the tower, and landing on his feet at that. Now in the courtyard, Macbeth fires an electric net on Brooklyn as well, who collapses, unconscious.

As the smoke clears for Elisa and Goliath, Goliath leaps from the tower and dodges Macbeth's firing. Continuing to observe the melee, Owen has seen enough. Macbeth just manages to kick Goliath into a circuit breaker (which catches fire), when Owen begins to chastise him, reminding Macbeth that he was hired by Xanatos to "fumigate" the castle, not destroy it. Macbeth agrees to take the conflict elsewhere. With a remote, he collects the unconscious Brooklyn, Lexington, and Bronx and takes them aboard his aircraft. Goliath manages to leap on the aircraft, claws clinging to the cockpit. Macbeth shocks the gargoyle leader with electricity emitting from the entire aircraft, dropping Goliath back down to the castle, near Hudson and Broadway who are still recovering from their tumble. Elisa manages to reach the courtyard as Macbeth flies off.

Act Two

Goliath is through with Elisa telling him the clan isn't safe at Castle Wyvern anymore. He insists that the castle is all that they have left. He will not abandon it, but Elisa won't relent. Xanatos could very well send some "freak-job" with a sledgehammer at high noon, she argues. Goliath ignores her and announces he's off to find Brooklyn, Lexington, and Bronx, ordering Hudson and Broadway to protect their home. Elisa can't understand why Goliath won't see reason. Broadway agrees with Elisa, and Hudson admits that what she says makes sense. However, Goliath is clan leader, and Hudson won't challenge his authority. Elisa commends his loyalty, but points out the reality of the situation: Goliath said to protect their home, but Castle Wyvern isn't their home anymore.

At Macbeth's mansion, curtains billow from the winds outside. Paintings and sculpture furnish the mansion, but the most prominent feature is a stained glass window featuring Macbeth looking up at a gargoyle silhouetted against the full moon.

In the dungeon below, rats scurry across the pipes and water drips down on Brooklyn, who is being held with Lexington in one of two giant cages – the other houses Bronx. While Brooklyn and Lexington struggle to work out why Macbeth's name sounds familiar (Lexington eventually recalls Goliath mentioning the play Macbeth), Macbeth observes the young warriors through a live-feed.

Back at the castle, Hudson is confident Goliath isn't going to like what's about to transpire. Elisa explains that Goliath doesn't have a choice. At any rate, Hudson knows they can't leave the Grimorum Arcanorum in Xanatos's hands, so they enter the great hall to retrieve it. They are stopped by Owen, who cannot allow them to take Xanatos's property. "And who's going to stop us?" Hudson questions, "You?" But Owen removes his glasses carefully into his jacket and smartly kicks Hudson to the ground. He pulls a gun on Broadway next, telling them all they are trespassing, but Elisa knocks the gun out of Owen's hand with a crutch. Broadway takes the moment to hurl Owen towards the great hall's elevators and smashes Owen's gun. Hudson gets back on his feet, smashes the glass case holding the spell book, takes the Grimorum and tells Owen they'll "be going now".

Back in the dungeons of Macbeth's mansion, Brooklyn passes the time shocking himself against the electrified bars with the tip of his pointer talon. Lexington asks how long he intends to keep shocking himself, and Brooklyn responds that he's only doing it until Lexington figures out a way for them to escape. As Brooklyn continues with the tiny but painful stinging, Lexington realizes that the lights in the dungeon dim with every shock. He wonders if the two can divert enough energy to their cage to allow Bronx to escape his. Brooklyn realizes quick enough what's being asked of them both; the two gargoyles simultaneously grab the bars with their collective four hands, suffering from the electric shock long enough for Bronx to break out of his cage. Weary from the pain, Lexington manages to tell Bronx to "Go get help" before passing out. Bronx works his way out of the mansion, smashing through the doors. Macbeth watches from a camera, biding his time.

Goliath soars above Manhattan, looking for any trace of the abducted gargoyles. He pauses for a moment to listen to the city, when he hears the sound of cars swerving and crashing. Bronx is charging down the middle of a bustling New York street, taxis, trucks, and pedestrians all colliding to get out of the way. Goliath lands in front of the gargoyle beast in the middle of the commotion, asking where Lexington and Brooklyn are. Pedestrians cannot believe what they are seeing. Bronx turns around and begins to lead Goliath, who jumps atop a taxi to gain enough height to begin gliding once more.

Act Three

With a cup of coffee steaming on the control panel, Macbeth continues to monitor the security cameras. He spots Goliath nearby and smiles in anticipation. Bronx and Goliath now completely obliterate the doors Bronx smashed through earlier. Macbeth quips, "Don't bother knocking. After all, we're all friends." Goliath orders Bronx to find Brooklyn and Lexington and begins to make his way toward Macbeth but stops when Macbeth brandishes his electric-net gun. Macbeth is more than ready to face Goliath in his own home after defeating them at their home. Goliath chases him down a corridor; Macbeth slides past a dropping steel door that enrages Goliath until he manages to ram it off its hinges.

"Bronx must have found Goliath," Lexington notes.

"Yeah," Brooklyn deadpans.

Goliath makes his way through the mansion but is cut off by an electrified barrier. Goliath promptly grabs a nearby suit of armor and flings it at the barrier, shorting it. Macbeth corners Goliath and reveals himself by laughing, shooting a net at the gargoyle, which Goliath deflects by knocking a marble bust of a Roman soldier at it. Macbeth manages to outrun Goliath and blocks him off with another steel door, which Goliath manages to tear through this time. But to Goliath's utter frustration, he finds himself in a small bricked chamber with no other exit. Goliath begins to break through the brick wall in front of him, revealing light on the other side and eventually finding himself in a veritable house of mirrors. As Goliath begins to maze his way through his reflections, he crashes into a reflection of Macbeth. His rage subsiding, Goliath asks Macbeth the reason for his provocation. Macbeth admits that he let Xanatos pay him – otherwise suspicions might arise. Goliath begins to grow frustrated again; they've done Macbeth no wrong. But Macbeth doesn't want any of them, saying they are just pawns to him. He wants their "queen". Goliath is confused – they have no queen.

"No?" Macbeth pushes. "What about Demona?" Reflections of Macbeth continue to surround Goliath.

"You know Demona?" Goliath asks.

"Know her?! Ha ha ha ha! I named her!"

Goliath then falls through a trap door to the mansion's dungeon. With a lit torch, Macbeth explains that if he captures "the last" of the gargoyles, Demona will come to rescue them. In the end, Demona is who he wants. At this, Goliath begins to laugh – maniacally. He calls Macbeth a fool. Demona is their enemy and wouldn't lift a talon to save Goliath and his clan. This development stuns Macbeth. He throws the torch into a fire pit and tries to flee, but Goliath catches up to him and the two square off once more. As they fight, the two knock the fire pit to the ground and the dungeon begins to catch fire. Macbeth manages to escape the dungeon through a lion-faced iron maiden with a hidden passage, but Goliath is quick to pursue him.

Bronx makes his way back to the part of the dungeon where Brooklyn and Lexington are being held, crashing into the electrified bars with such ferocity it surprises them both. They go to make their escape.

Macbeth enters his armory, and pulls a broadsword from the wall. Goliath and Macbeth charge at each other, Goliath dodging Macbeth's blow and grabbing a mace off the wall. As they circle each other, smoke and flames enter the room, with tapestries catching fire. Goliath breaks Macbeth's sword blade at the hilt, and Macbeth once more goes for his electric-net gun. But Goliath takes hold of Macbeth's wrist with his tail, disarming him, then holds him up him up by his collar. Macbeth squirms out of his duster coat, and disappears behind the glowing flames. Goliath is about to give chase again, but is interrupted when he is beckoned by the sound of Brooklyn's voice. He joins the other gargoyles.

With the mansion completely engulfed in flames, Macbeth flies off in his aircraft. Goliath, Brooklyn, Lexington, and Bronx look at the devastation from a safe distance. Goliath tells the others, "Let's go home," as the mansion begins to collapse.

Soaring above the city, Goliath and the others hear Broadway from the rooftop where Elisa and Goliath rendezvoused the night after they first met. Hudson and Elisa are with him. Goliath is livid. Why aren't they guarding their home? Elisa answers for Broadway and Hudson: they don't live there anymore. She has found them a new home. Goliath is now seething. "How dare you?!" he growls at Elisa, "I told you that castle is our home!" but Broadway cuts him off, telling him that it's suicide to stay there. Hudson jumps in, explaining why Elisa and Broadway are right. The castle is just a place of stone and wood. Home is the six of them, wherever they can be together, safe. Goliath briefly redirects his rage at the sky. Hudson invites him to their new home, but Goliath asks for a minute. He glides back to the Eyrie Building, where he finds Owen cleaning up the glass from the Grimorum's shattered case. He gives Owen a message for Xanatos: they are leaving, but they'll be back to claim what is theirs. Owen agrees to deliver it.

From the top of Castle Wyvern, Goliath quietly contemplates his new reality. He soars off into the night. The following morning, David Xanatos returns to the Eyrie Building. Owen welcomes him home and informs him that the Grimorum Arcanorum and the gargoyles are both gone. He then shows security footage of Macbeth fighting Goliath, to which Xanatos finds fascinating, deeming Macbeth to be a "new player in the game". But all that can wait. He's home.

The following night inside a Clock Tower, the gargoyles tour their new home. Lexington figures he can get the clock working again and Hudson spots the perfect spot for a television. Elisa admits the place needs some work, and Goliath is content to call it home, so long as they are all together.

Featured Characters

Gargoyles Humans

First Appearances

Characters

Location

Object

Miscellaneous

Quotes

  • "All in all, I would say my stay has been . . . a learning experience." - Xanatos
  • "Mr. Macbeth, Mr. Xanatos hired you to fumigate his castle; not destroy it." - Owen
  • "This castle is all we have left. We will not abandon it!"
"What, you need a castle to fall on you?" - Goliath and Elisa
  • "Elisa's right. We're sitting dorks here." - Broadway
  • "And who's going to stop us, you?"
"Indeed." - Hudson and Owen
  • "I defeated you in your home. You think I wouldn't be ready for you in my own?" - Macbeth
  • "It's not you I'm after; you're just a pawn. I want your queen." - Macbeth
  • "You know Demona?"
"Know her?! Ha ha ha ha! I named her!" - Goliath and Macbeth
  • "We'll be back to claim that which is ours." - Goliath
  • "It would seem we have a new player in the game." - Xanatos
  • "Yes. As long as we're together, it's home." - Goliath

Continuity

Macbeth is introduced in this episode (the first character from the works of William Shakespeare to appear in the Gargoyles Universe). Although Demona does not appear, Macbeth mentions that he named her. This is finally seen in flashback in "City of Stone" Part Three.

Elisa is still using crutches in this episode, after being shot in "Deadly Force".

The Manhattan Clan move out of the Eyrie Building in this episode. Elisa had previously tried to convince Goliath to leave the building in "The Thrill of the Hunt" and "Temptation" with little success – even in this episode, she is only able to convince him with Hudson's help. The clan will eventually move back into the Eyrie Building in "Hunter's Moon" Part Three.

The gargoyles take the Grimorum Arcanorum with them when they leave the castle. They will guard it there until "High Noon".

David Xanatos is released from prison in this episode, after being incarcerated in "Awakening: Part Five".

Tidbits

"Enter Macbeth" suffered a severely-delayed release thanks to animation difficulties; the original version of it came out so poorly animated that it had to be extensively redone. This resulted in "Awakening" (all five episodes of it) being repeated on the Fridays between the premiere of "Deadly Force" (November 18, 1994) and that of "Enter Macbeth" (January 6, 1995), to buy the animators time. Fortunately, this repeat of the series opener allowed people who had only just discovered the series after "Awakening" first aired to see how it began, and does not appear to have done the program any great harm.

The episode's delay premiere prompted the inclusion of Previously on Gargoyles for non-multi part stories, though the VHS release omitted it. The segments were used for all episodes from "Leader of the Pack" to "Hunter's Moon" Part Three.

This episode contains the first of many references to Shakespeare and his works throughout Gargoyles (stemming from Greg Weisman's fondness for the Bard). Alongside Macbeth, the Weird Sisters, Oberon, Titania, and Puck would all make on-stage appearances in the series, and other allusions would be made to Shakespeare's plays and characters (which will be duly noted in the entries for the episodes in which they appeared). Greg also had (currently) unrealized plans to introduce Queen Mab from Romeo and Juliet (as Oberon's mother), and Prospero, Ariel, and Caliban from The Tempest, introducing a modern-day parallel to Romeo and Juliet in the projected New Olympians spin-off, and even trapping the gargoyles and their associates in an actual performance of Macbeth (with Macbeth in the title role, Demona as Lady Macbeth, Goliath as Macduff, and Elisa as Lady Macduff).

Near the beginning of the episode, Hudson is watching a Donald Duck cartoon – judging from the way Donald is dressed, apparently an episode of Quack Pack (which, in real life, premiered in the fall of 1996, about two years after the events in this episode).

VHS/DVD Release

Links

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