Gargoyles Was Far Better Than a Disney Afternoon Cartoon Needed to Be
Toons Up North
The setup
A clan of gargoyles cursed to sleep in stone for a thousand years awakens in modern day New York, where they become secret protectors of the city while dealing with old enemies and new threats.
Gargoyles could easily have been a basic monster of the week cartoon, but in an effort to compete with Batman The Animated Series they ended up creating something with a level of quality you rarely see even today.
The medieval backstory gives the characters real history, David Xanatos is one of the best animated villains of the era and the show is not afraid to pull in figures from mythology like Loki, or real world historical figures like Shakespeare for their long running story arcs.
Keith David gives Goliath exactly the sort of voice a giant stone warrior should have, and Elisa Maza stops the human side of the show feeling like an afterthought.
It is still very much a 90s animated series in places, but there is much more going on here than you might remember if you only caught random episodes as a kid.
Unfortunately the show does end up falling off in its later seasons thanks to executive meddling which is a shame because this really did capture a lot of kid's attention back in the day.
They keep threatening to do a live action reboot of this show but I think without the original voice cast, it might not have the gravitas of this cartoon.
Positives
Excellent voice cast, ambitious mythology, great villain in Xanatos, strong atmosphere.
Negatives
Some episodes feel dated, the third season is noticeably less consistent.
Verdict
A smart, darker Disney series that deserved to be remembered as more than Saturday morning nostalgia.
