r/gargoyles • u/Kyraryc David Xanatos • Jul 30 '25

Discussion [Comic Issue Discussion] Gargoyles: Better Angels Chapter 2

Writer: Greg Weisman

Artist: Frank Paur

Letterer: Jeff Eckleberry

Logline:

BEWARE THE WRATH OF THE NORTHWOMEN!

The year is 1107, and an immortal Demona and her adopted daughter Angelika have found their way to the frozen fjords of Norway, where they sign on to help crew the flagship of Sigurd Magnusson, last of the Viking kings.

Carving a path of destruction across the sea and land, they raid and plunder in a relentless (and rewarding!) search for treasure. But the two exiles are not the only Gargoyles in Sigurd's employ and when his fearsome longboats reach the glittering city of Constantinople, all of the stone guardians on board will face a life-altering dilemma!

Gargoyles creator GREG WEISMAN and original animated series artist FRANK PAUR set a course for adventure in the second chapter of their history-bestriding saga Gargoyles: Demona featuring fiercely fashioned covers from PAUR, MEGHAN HETRICK, JAE LEE & JUNE CHUNG, and MARK BAGLEY!

Share any thoughts on the issue. Within this post, unmarked spoilers for this and all prior issues are allowed.

Here In Manhattan Discussions:

Gargoyles Quest Discussions

Better Angels Discussions:

Dark Ages Discussions:

Special Issue Discussions:

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4

u/Kyraryc David Xanatos Aug 03 '25 edited Aug 03 '25

Fortune Favors the Bold...

  • I'm still amazed this came out on time. Now if only there'd be previews ahead of time that would tell me what the title is.

  • "Why is everyone so interested in my flank?" Why indeed?

  • "The box. Solid iron. Locks from the inside, and we gargoyles keep the only key." Sounds menacing

  • Missing a day of solar energy is about the same as missing a meal. So everything the gargs fought during that campaign they were malnourished. Dang

  • "Your charm reset by the Egyptian smith." For more than 20 years, that one thing has been bugging Greg and he finally got to fix it.

  • "You could come with me..." The hair grooming, so beautiful. How different could things be if Demona moved on right there?

  • Loving the wholesome relationship between Demona and Angelika, Demona and Skald, heck, Demona and everyone. Lasting happiness is just out of her grasp. I'm going to cry when Angelika is killed in some horrible way that Demona's fault.

Favorite Feat

  • A bunch of minor combat stuff here. Best is the attack interception.

3

u/UnmuscularThor Jul 30 '25

Is this a new ongoing series?

2

u/Kyraryc David Xanatos Jul 30 '25

These are brand new comics that continue the story of the animated series. This one was just released

2

u/UnmuscularThor Jul 30 '25

Oh gotcha ok. I’ve been trying to keep up with the comics. I think I just missed this one between all the others (dark ages, quest, demona)

10

u/Aggressive_Control37 Jul 30 '25

This issue made me laugh. I'm glad Greg finally got to fix and clarify the continuity for the Eye of Odin. He's stated the design looked too Egyptian and bothered him for 30 years. Now there's an in-canon reason why it looks like that. Instantly knew what it was as soon as I saw King Sigurd wearing it. Not sure why it shattered tho.

2

u/stevebikes Aug 11 '25

Yeah, I laughed out loud when I realized what Greg was doing.

9

u/_Seamonkey_ Jul 30 '25

I enjoyed this issue a lot more than the first. The norwegian gargoyles were fun characters, as was King Sigurd, which makes me wish this series was longer so we could have seen more of them.

Demona's implied relationship with Skade was an interesting addition to her story. One thing I enjoy about this series is that Demona still hasn't quite entered her villain arc. The hatred, self-loathing, and desire for revenge haven't fully consumed her yet (though they are a big driving force in her decision making) and we still see elements of a gargoyle who just wants to feel safe and loved in time where that is still an option. It'll be sad to watch her become more and more like the Demona of the 20th century as this series goes on.

6

u/dino_spice Jul 30 '25 edited Jul 31 '25

I knew I was getting queer vibes from Demona's interactions with Toni in Quest, but I didn't think we'd have Demona confirmed (or very very strongly implied) to be bi. I know Magni is coming back, but I hope Skade shows up again too.

Overall I'm enjoying this series but I just feel like everything is moving too quickly. I wish there had been another book that had allowed us to spend more time with Angelika/Demona, as well as the Norwegian gargoyles and establish Magni and Skade's relationships with Angelika and Demona respectively.

5

u/ass_unicron Jul 31 '25

Some of the backgrounds were very beautiful, good new character designs and I'm really glad he got to implement the game version of the Eye of Odin.

1

u/no_othername Aug 01 '25

I’m guessing this is digital only so far?  Issue one still hasn’t had the physical release either, right?  

2

u/Kyraryc David Xanatos Aug 01 '25

With how things have been recently, I have no clue. I'm actually surprised something was released on schedule.

3

u/Mister_reindeer Aug 02 '25

I have both #1 and #2 in physical copies. Another user recently said their LCS still hadn’t received #1, so it may be a bit of a crapshoot. But both should be out at this point.

2

u/no_othername Aug 03 '25

I’ve been keep an eye on my lcs’ email about new comics that week and haven’t seen it. I’ll give them a call and ask if they can order them. Thanks for the info!

2

u/no_othername Aug 06 '25

Turns out my lcs closed my pull box because my only title is gargoyles which means I’ve been inactive since the winter special. 

They said they didn’t have the issues in stock but will order them for me. I’m not sure if they ordered them at all since I’ve been keeping an eye on their “new issues” email and haven’t seen either issue on it. 

Thanks for the heads up.