Line #83 Creator/GregWeisman


1	[[quoteright:299:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gregweisman.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:299: [[{{Pun}} The Weisman about to speaketh...]]]]
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4	Greg Weisman (born September 28, 1963 in Los Angeles, California) is an American writer and producer. He was the creator of ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' and a scriptwriter for series such as ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible''. He was also the supervising producer for the second season of ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'', the supervising producer for all of ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' until its cancellation, and is a producer for ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010'' alongside Brandon Vietti (of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnderTheRedHood'' fame). He also had a good run in the 1980s with his ComicBook revival and update of ''ComicBook/CaptainAtom''. His most recent project was a ''Franchise/StarWars'' animated series titled ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'', which he worked on with Creator/DaveFiloni, former supervising director of ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars''. Can be seen as the Western Animation equivalent of Creator/StevenBochco and Creator/JayWolpert.
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6	He has also written the first two books of his own original series, ''Literature/RainOfTheGhosts'' and ''Spirits of Ash and Foam'', a supernatural young adult book series with heavy references to Caribbean mythology and folklore. An audiobook of the first book with a full voice cast and original music has also been produced. (The kickstarter video for this project can be found [[https://twitter.com/Greg_Weisman/status/582486299417841664?t=1&cn=cmVjb3NfZXhwbG9yZQ%3D%3D&sig=b590402104e003ee911b580df201340c9f14cfa2&al=1&refsrc=email&iid=643af5233da641e5822f371ce75e0dac&autoactions=1427754743&uid=1284968966&nid=244+143+20150329 here]].) As a writer for hire, he is the author of the [[Franchise/WarcraftExpandedUniverse World of Warcraft novel]] ''[[Franchise/WarcraftExpandedUniverse Traveler]]'' and its sequel, ''Traveler: The Spiral Path''. He was also revealed to be the author of [[TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering Ravnica]], the conclusion to the Magic: the Gathering's "Nicol Bolas Arc" and its return to the novel format after years of online publishing.
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8	Oh, and [[ComicBook/{{Watchmen}} Rorschach's]] fingerprints [[https://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?qid=12606 are actually his.]]
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10	Greg also does voice acting in anime and cartoons.
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12	Had a Twitter account, but after repeated hacks, has left the site.
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14	!!Writing credits:
15	* ''ComicBook/CaptainAtom'' (1987-1991)
16	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Jem}}'' (1988)
17	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' (1994 - 1996)
18	** ''ComicBook/GargoylesClanBuilding'' (2006 - 2008)
19	** ''ComicBook/GargoylesBadGuys'' (2009)
20	* ''WesternAnimation/MenInBlackTheSeries'' (1998 - 1999)
21	* ''WesternAnimation/HerculesTheAnimatedSeries'' (1999)
22	* ''WesternAnimation/BigGuyAndRustyTheBoyRobot'' (1999 - 2000)
23	* ''WesternAnimation/RoughnecksStarshipTroopersChronicles'' (1999 - 2000)
24	* ''WesternAnimation/BuzzLightyearOfStarCommand'' (2000)
25	* ''WesternAnimation/MaxSteel'' (2000)
26	* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' (2003 - 2007)
27	* ''[[WesternAnimation/TheMummyTheAnimatedSeries The Mummy: Secrets of the Medjai]]'' (2003)
28	* ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}: Mask of Light'' (2003)
29	* ''WesternAnimation/SuperRobotMonkeyTeamHyperforceGo'' (2004 - 2005)
30	* ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'' (2004 - 2007)
31	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}}'' (2006 - 2007)
32	* ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'' (2nd Season) (2006)
33	* ''WesternAnimation/LegionOfSuperHeroes2006'' (2007)
34	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' (2008)
35	* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' (2009 - 2011)
36	* ''WesternAnimation/DCShowcaseGreenArrow'' (2010)
37	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Young Justice\|2010}}'' (2010-2013, 2019-2022)
38	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaijudo}}'' (2013)
39	* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' (2013)
40	* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersRescueBots'' (2014-2015)
41	* ''WesternAnimation/BewareTheBatman'' (2013-2014)
42	* ''Literature/RainOfTheGhosts'' (2013-Present)
43	* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' (1st Season) (2014)
44	** ''ComicBook/StarWarsKanan'' (2015-2016)
45	* ''ComicBook/StarbrandAndNightmask'' (2015)
46	* ''WesternAnimation/ShimmerAndShine'' (2016-2017)
47	* ''[[Franchise/WarcraftExpandedUniverse Traveler]]'' (2016)
48	** ''[[Franchise/WarcraftExpandedUniverse Traveler: The Spiral Path]]'' (2018)
49	* ''Literature/WarOfTheSparkRavnica'' (2019)
50	** ''War Of The Spark: Forsaken'' (2019)
51	* ''WesternAnimation/CatwomanHunted'' (2022)
52	* ''ComicBook/TheSpectacularSpiderMen'' (2024-)
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54	!!Tropes in his works:
55	* AllThereInTheManual:
56	** Weisman has an extensive online encyclopedia of the Gargoyles universe: http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/ It's technically owned by a user named Gorebash, Weisman just uses it.
57	** And in several interviews, he's hinted at having a rather thick production bible for ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010''.
58	* AuthorCatchphrase:
59	** If someone's been reduced to just their head, expect him to be taunted "What are you going to do, bite my kneecaps off?" (Appears in ''Gargoyles'' and ''Spider-Man'') Likewise, references to "beating up a beach" are favored when fighting sand villains (''Gargoyles'', ''Spider-Man'', and ''W.I.T.C.H.''). Also some variation on "revenge is for suckers," both as a quote and ideology, often spoken from one villain to another (''Gargoyles,'' ''Spider-Man,'' and ''Young Justice'').
60	** When Weisman himself is asked questions on Twitter, he often responds with "#nospoilers", even in regards to shows that are a good twenty years old.
61	* BoundAndGagged: The characters Creator/LaceyChabert voice in his shows are often given this treatment. [[ComicBook/SpiderGwen Gwen Stacy]] was gagged and hung from a Thanksgiving parade float by ComicBook/{{Venom}} in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. ComicBook/{{Zatanna}}, whose powers are vocal, had her mouth taped and was threatened with a crossbow in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010''.
62	* CanonDiscontinuity: Weisman has disowned the entire ''Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles'' season, since he was not involved in its production.[[note]]Originally, he stated that the premiere episode, "The Journey", was still canon, but he eventually retold that story in the ''Gargoyles'' comic, which rendered that episode non-canon as well.[[/note]] The ''Gargoyles'' comics he wrote for Creator/SlaveLaborGraphics and now the ongoing ones for Creator/DynamiteComics replace ''The Goliath Chronicles'' in canon.
63	* CrossOver: He likes to cross ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' with other shows he's worked on. He wrote up a non-canon one with ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'', and also planned one for ''[[WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire Team Atlantis]]'' before it became a StillbornFranchise (but he's declared it still canon in BroadStrokes). ''W.I.T.C.H.'' had the [[RecurringExtra yuppie couple]] from ''Gargoyles'' appear as well, albeit as teenagers.
64	* DeadpanSnarker: An entire section of [[WordOfGod Ask Greg]] is called [[http://s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/archives.php?lid=38 Smart-Ass Responses.]]
65	* ExecutiveMeddling: He does his best with it, but it just seems like everyone is determined to kill his shows. He's worked it to his advantage but most of the time the networks he's on don't know what to do with him.
66	* GreyAndGrayMorality: Frequently found in characters on many of his shows.
67	* HeAlsoDid: In addition to his writing and producing credits in animation, he was also the ADR Director for the English dub of the ''Manga/SazanEyes'' anime as well as the voice of Motoko in the English dub of ''Manga/IkkiTousen''.
68	* HypotheticalCasting: On his website, he used to reveal who he mentally imagines the voices of characters that have yet to receive one (like in ''Young Justice''), although [[https://s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?qid=21162 as of 2016]] he no longer does this out of respective for the voice actors they wound up with instead if it were to happen.
69	* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: He seems to do this with the episode titles of most of his major works:
70	** His personal episode titles for ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' were almost always one word long.
71	** Every episode of ''WesternAnimation/MaxSteel'''s first season started with the letter S.
72	** His ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'' episodes were all stylized "___ Is For ____", with blank 1 being a letter of the alphabet and the second blank being a word starting with that letter.
73	** ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' titles tended to reference academic concepts, with overall arc titles various "courses" such as Biology 101 to emphasize "The Education of Peter Parker" as a series theme.
74	** ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010'' averted this for the first two seasons, but the third uses this trope in a unique way: [[spoiler: the first letter of each episode spells out ‘Prepare the Anti-Life Equation’, hinting at the return of ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} after his reveal at the end of ''Invasion''.]]
75	* MeaningfulName: His surname is pronounced "Wise Man", which corresponds perfectly with his writing style and depths.
76	* OldShame: If he has a regret about ''Gargoyles'' (other than the third season) it's to do with how much he jerked around Brooklyn romantically.
77	* PainfulTransformation: If you're going to turn into something in a Greg Weisman show, particularly if you're the bad guy, odds are it won't be pleasant.
78	* RaceLift: He's very big on this, with some extremely pronounced examples in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' and ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010''.
79	* ScrewedByTheNetwork: His shows seem to have trouble with their third seasons, with fans jokingly calling this continued trend "The Weisman Curse."
80	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' third season was subject to ExecutiveMeddling that had Weisman leave its production early on. This third season, deemed as non-canon by both Weisman and fans, would also be the show's last.
81	*** There were only two general DVD releases for ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}''. The third one that would've finished the ([[CanonDiscontinuity canonical]]) run was quietly ignored for eight years until finally becoming a Disney Movie Club exclusive.
82	*** The comic book replacement for the third season suffered from chronic ScheduleSlip and ended when Disney raised the licensing fees.
83	** After the lackluster first season of ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'', Greg Weisman was hired to head the second season. The show was widely thought to have improved under his hand, and Greg had plans for more seasons. It was not to be.
84	** When Disney bought Marvel, Sony [[ScrewedByTheLawyers gave up the TV rights]] to ComicBook/SpiderMan in order to keep the movie rights from falling into Marvel Studios' hands, preempting any third season of ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''.
85	** ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010'''s lackluster toy sales made it too unprofitable compared with its high costs for animation and licensing, so Creator/CartoonNetwork cancelled it after two seasons. However, after rabid fan support and years of petitioning, it was UnCanceled for a third season and has since been renewed for a fourth. CurseEscapeClause?
86	* ShoutOutToShakespeare: ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' had a ton of these, some of which were not mere shout-outs but plot-relevant. ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' also featured Shakespeare in the second season's school play subplot. ''Literature/RainOfTheGhosts'' has several references to ''Theatre/TheTempest'', the series takes place on a group of islands called the Prospero Keys and one of the characters is named Miranda.
87	* WhatCouldHaveBeen: [[https://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/archives.php?lid=727 He and Brandon Vietti]] were in charge of two series that never got off the ground. The first was a Comicbook/GreenLantern cartoon that would've focused on Charlie Vickers. [[WesternAnimation/GreenLanternTheAnimatedSeries A Green Lantern series]] would eventually be made, but with Hal Jordan as the lead and a different creative team. The second was a ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGhost'' cartoon.
88	** Greg was working for the original TV division of Creator/DreamWorksAnimation in the late 90s, and [[https://s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?qid=8617 developed a bunch of things that never happened]], including a show based on ''Film/SmallSoldiers'', an adaptation of ''VideoGame/TaiFuWrathOfTheTiger'' (a Creator/DreamWorksInteractive title), and ''Steven Spielberg's Cliffhangers'' (an action anthology series with new heroes every week; each episode would end on a cliffhanger).
89	** Other projects [[https://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?qid=7908 listed on his resume]] that never happened include ''Anime/{{Robotech}}: Mars Force'', a Creator/WarnerBrosAnimation series based on the ''Robosapien'' toys, two different Disney projects (''Mechromancers'' and ''Creature Force''), an adaptation of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'' for Dreamworks' 2D feature animation division, and ''Franchise/{{Stargate\|Verse}}: The Hunted'' (an animated series, long before ''WesternAnimation/StargateInfinity'', with a series bible that can be read on his website).
90	** He was originally going to showrun ''WesternAnimation/RoswellConspiraciesAliensMythsAndLegends'' and wrote a series bible that, like the one for ''Stargate: The Hunted'', can be read on his website.

Context Creator / GregWeisman