It’s not every day that a magical artifact drops out of the sky, especially one that enables time travel. The Phoenix Gate is back, proving you can’t run from your problems. There’s a gap in the past that needs filling, and Brooklyn is just the gargoyle to do it. Welcome to Scotland, 997 AD.
Miss last week’s? Read Rock of Ages review.
Spoilers are in the 20/20 moments. Info from Ask Greg is in the According to Greg bits.
Gargoyles Clan-Building: Chapter Ten: “The Gate”
Reason(s) for existence: The start the Timedancer saga. To clarify history after the Avalon eps.
Main antagonist(s): Gillecomgain, Constantine
Time(s): January 10th, 1997; 997 AD
Location(s): New York City, New York, USA; Scotland
We’re closing in on the end! Or is it the beginning? Well, it’s the beginning of Brooklyn’s Time Dancer story. I’ll start with the disclaimer that while I at first thought this would be a good idea for a spinoff, since Brooklyn is my favorite of the gargoyles (Jeff’s voicing helps). But now…I dunno, it’s not as appealing. Possibly because I realize how little of my other favorite characters I’d be seeing.
Brooklyn is off sulking, when Angela and Broadway track him down. They’re all bored cuz Hudson and Lex are off in London.
Things get really interesting really quickly a moment later, when the Phoenix Gate fireballs out of nowhere, right in front of them.
Angela explains that Goliath tossed the Gate into the time stream because the artifact was too dangerous. And the best way to get rid of a dangerous artifact is to throw it out. Like Jumanji.
Brooklyn goes to pick it up.
A giant fire phoenix materializes. It eats Brooklyn.
The phoenix pukes Brooklyn out beside King Constantine and the Hunter.
The Hunter leaps at Brook, but the garg tosses him. It dawns on Brooklyn that he’s not in 1990s Manhattan anymore.
A mage with the king shoots Magic Missile at the gargoyle.
The king’s pal Brother Valmont says the gargs have the Grimorum Arcanorum.
The Hunter tacks up a poster on how to draw Tom, Mary, Magus, and Finella. Wait, no, it’s a wanted poster. They’re charged with murdering King Kenneth. Constantine actually killed him, we know. This is a continuation of the stuff in the Avalon trilogy. He also charges them with kidnapping Katherine and being witches.
Finella and Mary explain all this to us. Brooklyn is listening nearby as he yanks out an arrow to the knee.
They want shelter in a village. They can pay.
Then a guard shows up and puts the kibosh on the deal. He recognizes them. WITCHES!
Finella bluffs, going with the sorceress idea.
Brooklyn swoops in, disarms the guard, and saves the damsels.
They charge off in a wagon. The horse’s name is Magus.
In another place, the Grim is seeing Maol Chalvim in his tent. Findleach of Moray (Macbeth’s place) is there too.
Young Bodhe is there too. Stop here and remember that City of Stone’s events take place years later.
The guys talk about battle plans. The Grim wants the gargoyles involved.
Except…in another place, Constantine is bashing them to bits. Gillecomgain is also going hog wild.
Brooklyn wakes up and chats with Mary and Finella. Mary recognizes him and remembers Magus’s spell. He tries to explain that he’s here to protect them, and he’s from the future.
The problem with time travel is that half the Gate is stone with Goliath, and half is with Demona.
Final Thoughts
Wow, this turned out really short. It’s not entirely my fault. There are a lot of cinematic shots that eat pages. We also have loads of backstory and orienting. So…stay tuned. We’re working up to more plot.
Brooklyn impresses me. He takes everything in stride, despite the fact that he may be forever stuck in 997 AD.
Tune in Tuesday: We face off with the villains from 997. Will Brooklyn be stuck here forever?
Thoughts? Comment!