What a fantastic show. Don't be fooled by its Disney origins; Gargoyles is not a show for young children. The closest possible comparison would be to "Batman: The Animated Series," which shares Gargoyles' dark, serious tone and respect for its audience. Also like BTAS, the Gargoyles universe operates on a slightly grayer morality scale than most children's programming. The heroes always do the right thing in the end, but almost all of the villains are portrayed sympathetically, as flawed people rather than absolute evil. In fact, several of the villains care more about defeating each other than defeating the heroes, giving them yet more dimension. The show is full of mythological and literary references, and it doesn't go out of its way to explain every reference, expecting that people will be able to follow along. The voice acting is also excellent, and fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation will be especially thrilled, as a good chunks of the VAs are alumni of that show. All in all, this is unarguably one of the finest television series Disney has ever produced, and a refreshing antidote to shows that rely on bathroom humor and pop culture references to hold kids' attention.
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Gargoyles
(Rated TV-Y7-FV, Children, cartoons, & animation, Starring Keith David, Jeff Bennett, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Where to watch: Toon Disney, DVD)
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings(Flash is loading. If this text does not disappear you need to install the latest flash version)
Not age appropriate for kids under 5, age appropriate for kids over 8; suggested age 8. -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Dark, Gothic action cartoon is OK for tweens.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 8 and Up
The good stuff
What to watch out for
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Violence & scariness:
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Language:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
About Gargoyles
Parents need to know that this complex, character-heavy cartoon is about Gothic stone gargoyles that spring to life at night. It's fairly dark in nature: Hand-to-hand combat happens frequently, and the gargoyles are quite fierce looking and might scare some kids. That said, most episodes are centered around themes of civic duty, honor, and friendship.
Read our full review by Andrea Graham
Families Can Talk About
- Families can talk about the gargoyles' efforts to maintain their close-knit clan. The relationships found within the gargoyle group are based on honor, honesty, and dedication; families can compare and contrast themes found in their own families and friendships. Why is it important to be honest to the people you care about? Have you ever been disappointed or hurt by a friend? How did you feel? What's the best way to react in that kind of situation?
Our Members Say
Most Recent Reviews
- I rate this title on for age 9 and give itMy concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- My highlights are:
- Educational
Character-Driven Disney Cartoon? What?
- I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My highlights are:
- Educational
- Good role models
My absolute favorite TV show, and one of Disney's best shows ever. This was before Disney channel turned into garbage.
This was probably Disney's most entertaining and edgy show they ever produced, and yet it has some of the best character development and storyline that I've seen in my entire life. Disney makes plenty of references to their older movies (The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, etc..) in this, which I found very funny and entertaining as well. You'll also find very familiar voices in here that you might hear in places like Spongebob and other cartoons (the actor that plays as Patrick also voices as one of the main gargoyles). Battles, usually with guns or explosives or futuristic weaponry, happen in just about every episode. Very little blood, and only in a few episodes (one of the Gargoyles grabs a sword, and blood trickles down his hand for a moment). Romance is a big theme in the show, but it's one of the things that makes it so much better. This was the good stuff before Hannah Montana, Jonas Brothers, and God-knows-what else talentless-cash-milking scams Disney filled their channel with after the 1990's. The characters developed amazingly well, and they made actually care about what was going to happen to them in future episodes (I in particular fell in love with the red skinned and white-haired Brooklyn, who was always trying his best to win over a female, and saved quite a few, but yet, they would all end up already with someone else, and poor Brooky was left in misery, but always determined). All in all, this is a show you don't want to miss out if you have a kid about 10 or so and older.
- I rate this title on for age 8 and give it
one of the best animated cartoons that disney had
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Ratings at a Glance
| 100% | of parents say it's educational |
| 100% | of parents say it's too violent |
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