Gargoyles: The Reckoning – Episode Review Continued


Thailog, Demona, and Fang lead Talon and the clan into a trap. It’s not the trap that our heroes expected, though. No, they’re about to walk into way more than they bargained for. They’ll see themselves in a new light. See, Thailog and Demona, with the help of Sevarius, have created clones of the clan. Will they be a match for themselves? And will blood ties be strong enough to change hearts?

Miss last week’s? Read The Reckoning episode review.

Spoilers are in the 20/20 moments. Info from Ask Greg is in the According to Greg bits. 


Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - carnival
Amusement parks are always the best evil lairs.
 Goliath wakes up first and helps Talon out of the pile of rubble.

Meanwhile, Thailog and Demona and Fang are flying in to meet Joker at an abandoned amusement park. Oh wait, no, I guess Joker’s not coming tonight. He had to get some more laughing gas at the last minute. He ran out because he used it on all the fish in Gotham. Where was I? Right. So they go to an amusement park.

They take the Funhouse as their base. Of course it’s a trap. And of course Talon and Goliath know this. Goliath goes to find help, namely of the clan, as Talon scouts the area.

When the clan returns, Talon tells them there are three ways in. So, the gang splits up and takes the entrances.

Shockingly, yes, it is a trap. But it’s not quite the trap that they expected. You’re expecting one of the three villains to be at each entrance. But what they find is something so much worse. It’s the clones Thailog was working on. And boy are they creepy.

Hudson’s the first one to find his clone. Jumping ahead a bit, it’s name is Burbank.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - burbank
Cool how this is a younger version of Hudson.

 

Then we’ve got Lexington and Brooklyn. They meet Brentwood and Malibu, respectively.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - brentwood hollywood
The metal stuff on Lex’s clone looks a bit like the metal in Future Tense Lex.

 

Broadway meets Hollywood.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - hollywood
Ogre much! Oof.

They all have these weird color patterns. It’s like when you got a coloring book of your favorite show as a kid, and you decide to alter the traditional colors of their wardrobe. You might even color outside the lines, or put more than one color inside the same line enclosure.

They also have armor and different weapons. No loincloths for them! Leave it to Thailog to come up with some stylish duds. He’s got Xanatos’s slant on life, after all.

Going one-on-one, the clones beat the originals.

Demona and Thailog meet Angela and Goliath. Goliath thinks he’s still got his gang. Until Thailog shows him his unconscious clanmates. And Thailog’s very conscious clones.

They tie up the clan on a torture device setup. Thailog loves using manacles on his foes.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - clan captured
Talon, if you just lay down, you could crawl out.

Demona and Thailog reveal that they staged the whole deal with Demona getting imprisoned. She wanted to try to get Angela on her side and against Goliath. Angela says that she’ll never turn, and that she hates Demona. I don’t know why she would expect to hear anything else from her daughter, whom she abandoned and whose father she now tries to kill.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - clones clan
Such a great family photo!

Upon seeing this, Thailog suggests they go ahead and get rid of Angela. But surprisingly, Demona jumps up to defend her. It’s causing strife between Demona and Thailog.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - demona attacks thailog
And there’s the end of that alliance.

Thailog strikes back by revealing Delilah, a combination of Demona’s DNA and Eliza’s DNA. She’s quite hot, actually. He’s even got her a little red jacket like Elisa has.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - delilah
She got all the hot genes.

Now all hell breaks loose. Demona is in a rage. Delilah tries to kill the clan. Demona lets the clan loose. Everyone fights everyone.

Even Talon shows up. He partners up with Fang.

Demona and Thailog go after each other too. Thailog seems to have the upper hand, with his foot on Demona’s throat. That is, until Goliath tackles him through the roller coaster tracks that they’re standing on. Oh, by the way, Talon’s zapping has caused a fire in the roller coaster.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - thailog vs goliath
Thailog vs Goliath, the fight of the century! Well, maybe not…

The rest of the clones and the clan fight. The clan uses teamwork and strategy to take down the Low IQ Clan. See, Thailog only gave them enough programming to follow his orders.

Brooklyn calls his clone a forgery. He doesn’t take to Goliath’s idea of being its father. Good for him. So, it’s not the clones’ fault that he’s a clone.

The fire gets worse. Goliath lands by Talon at a safe distance / location. None of them know where Angela is, though.

Then Delilah walks out of the smoke. She’s chained. And Angela is holding the reins.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - angela delilah
I just really like Delilah’s design.

The clan watches in semi horror as Demona and Thailog fight on top of the burning roller coaster. The coaster topples and becomes an inferno.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - thailog fights demona fire
If only they had wings! They could fly away!

Angela thinks Demona is dead. And the last thing she said to her was that she hated her. Goliath  tries to console her, saying that Demona showing Angela love is the first love that she has shown in a long time. Perhaps it’s a new beginning for her, and for the clan.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - goliath angela cry
Save your tears, hun. You’ll wish she was dead soon enough.

According to Greg: This episode was supposed to be the last of the series. Hunter’s Moon would have come after as a direct-to-video release.


The clones are all still alive. They’re tied up, though I’m not sure how ropes are holding them, given their strength. But without Thailog, they have no direction and no purpose.

With its usual welcoming nature, the clan decides it can’t invite them back to the clock tower. No real reason is given. I guess it would be hard to have them around, since they basically are like having giant babies.

Thankfully, Talon volunteers the Land of Losers – er, I mean, the Labyrinth. This is more than he bargained for, but…I guess Maggie will have to consider these as their kids.

Disney Gargoyles - The Reckoning - clones tied, talon
I’m sorry, but Brentwood / Lex is too creepy for me.

Final Thoughts

This is an interesting episode because we get to see a different side of Demona. She legitimately wants to protect Angela. I’m sure deep down she thinks maybe she can turn Angela to her side. Then again, maybe she really genuinely does want to have a relationship with her. None of Demona’s other relationships have panned out. Because of her own doing, I should add. Goliath will never come to her side. Thailog is no longer her ally. Her old clan is dead and dust by now. Indeed, she is alone. And she has only her revenge left to her, as she points out just before she and Thailog fall to their “deaths.”

20/20 moment: We know from Hunter’s Moon that her love did not affect her in a positive way or give her a new start. It is possible to love another exceedingly and yet hate others even more. Love does not negate the lust for revenge. In fact, it makes it worse. If one can delude themselves into thinking that the revenge can actually make life better for their loved one in some way, well then… You see where that’s going to go.

Thailog’s another interesting character. He made a clan of his own. And that means that like Xanatos, he wants loyalty. But unlike Xanatos, he will happily get it by forcing people to be his minions. David wants it willingly. That’s why just capturing the gargoyles was never enough. Neither was killing them. For Xanatos, what fulfilled this urge was having a wife and child who genuinely love him and whom he can genuinely love back. In fact, it wasn’t loyalty he wanted so much as real love and acceptance. Oh, he still wants loyalty – who doesn’t? But his basic need is fulfilled.

But Thailog is only focused on power. He will stop at nothing for it. Unlike Xanatos, who wants to have a good time while he does his plans, Thailog will throw anybody under the bus to achieve his ends. It’s all about strong-arming.

It’s so interesting that Thailog chose to spend all this time and effort making clones. He could have made other genetically modified creatures, or even robots. He had access to advanced technology. Sevarius would have happily come up with something new. But no, he went with a clan. That’s because he’s got both Goliath and Xanatos in him. Goliath loves and needs his clan, and Xanatos has always wanted the clan to be at his beck and call. Xanatos considers the clan as something to be used. Or at least, he did until The Gathering.

And of course we know that Demona and Thailog aren’t dead. You can’t kill such great villains. It’s Joker Immunity. And there’s no easier death to return from than one that happens in a raging inferno.

Tune in Tuesday for a reunion with Cold Stone, courtesy of Xanatos. He’s aiming to repay the debt he owes the gargoyles for saving Alex. Puck sees this as a grand learning opportunity for young Alexander. We’re bound to have a great time with the fey involved!

Thoughts? Comment!


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