Disclaimer:
Disclaimer:
I don't own the Gargoyles. I don't own Iron Chef, either. Suing me is pointless, as I'm making no money off this fic nor am I intentionally violating any Copywrites. Original characters are mine and I tend to be VERY possessive.
Information on chickens provided by www.urbanext./eggs/res08-whatis.html.
Now, on with the fic.
…oooOOOooo…
Clan Wyvern Presents Iron Chef
…oooOOOooo…
"Welcome to Castle Wyvern. I'm your host, Renee. Tonight in Kitchen Wyvern it's the battle of …well, Owen and Broadway are going head to head in order to solve the ultimate question…"
"The answer's 42!"
"That's the Answer to the Ultimate Question, Brooklyn, not the question! Now, as I was saying: Tonight, Owen and Broadway will face off with the secret ingredient. Since it wouldn't be fair to have the mates of these gentlemen judging, we had to choose four others. First off, we have a man of few words, people, but look at those muscles! Say hello to the people, Goliath."
"Hmrph."
"Like I said, a man of few words. Next we have our fur wearing, bet making, purring prankster – Haxot! How are you, Kitkat?"
"I am happy to be here, mage, and ready for the food."
"Very nice. And the next judge on our panel, a man who needs no introduction, David Xanatos. Welcome to the club, David."
"Thank you, Renee."
"Not a problem, David. Finally we have Matt Bluestone. A detective from the 23rd precinct, this handsome hunk is currently engaged to the lovely Raqueal. Now over to my co-host for the evening, the lovely Ms. Angela. Angela?"
"Thank you, Renee. Now tonight at Kitchen Wyvern we're going to be doing things a little different than you see on Iron Chef ™. Instead of five entrees, the chefs here will have to prepare a full meal. Basically, that's meaning one appetizer, one soup or salad, two entrees, and one desert. Five plates, four judges, and a single hour. To assist our two competitors are Lily and Lilac for Broadway and Raqueal and Artemis for Owen. Points will be given for creativity, plating, and taste with a score of 5 points per judge per category or 15 points per judge. The chef with the most points settles the feud and claims the coveted 'Top Chef' spot here at Castle Wyvern. We'll now go over to one of our interviewers, Lexington. Lex?"
"Thanks, Angela. I'm here with my rookery brother Broadway to find out just how all this came about. What are your thoughts on all this, Broadway?"
"I'm here to put Owen in his place. I overheard him boasting to Renee that he was the best cook in the castle and…"
"Wait, did you say you overheard Owen 'boasting'?"
"Yeah, it was hard to believe at first, but then Renee came to me with this whole idea about a face off between her mate and me. I didn't want to at first, but then I thought it might be fun. I agreed."
"So this is Renee's fault?"
"Isn't everything?"
"No comments from the audience, Brooklyn! So, Broadway, how do you think you'll fair in tonight's competition?"
"I'll definitely get the top scores in creativity and taste, but I'm a little nervous about plating everything. Why does it have to look super pretty if they're just going to ruin that look with their first bite?"
"Well, my guess is the more it appeals to sight the better reception it's bound to get on the tongue. Something like a colorful plate feels more appetizing than grey pork, white potatoes, and a colorless vegetable. I'm only guessing here, bro."
"Thanks Lex, I'll keep that in mind tonight."
"And now, over to Athens with Owen."
"Thanks, Lexington. Hi everybody, I'm here with majordomo Owen Burnett for his thoughts on tonight's event. So tell me Owen, what do you think of this?"
"I am only doing this because Renee asked me to. I do not believe I have anything to prove, win or lose."
"Are you afraid of losing?"
"No."
"So, you're pretty confident you'll be the winner then?"
"I know that Broadway is a very accomplished cook who has come up with many ways to cook many things. His strongest point is that he doesn't relay solely on recipes, but more so on taste. The outcome not with standing, this should prove an interesting evening."
"Any thoughts on how you got roped into this?"
"After nearly losing her twice, I would do anything to see my wife smile. She asked me if I'd be interested and with the look on her face, I simply could not deny her this."
"Are you nervous?"
"No."
"Thank you Owen. Good luck in tonight's competition."
"Thank you."
"Now, back to Angela."
"Athens. Now, with the kitchen remodeled to better suit two cooks preparing several different plates, I do think we are about to begin. Once our buzzer starts, our two chefs will have one hour to prepare their plates and get them ready for judging. Let's go to Elisa to reveal our secret ingredient."
"Tonight on Kitchen Wyvern, our chefs will be working with… CHICKEN! Ready chefs?"
"Sure, Elisa."
"Yes, Mrs. Maza."
"START COOKING!!"
"So tonight's battle will be battle chicken. Makes me wonder what they're going to make for the desert portion. What about you, Renee?"
"Yes, Angela, that thought did cross my mind, but we can only wait and see. Did you know that there are approximately 175 varieties of chickens grouped into 12 classes and approximately 60 breeds? A class is a group of breeds originating in the same geographical area. The names themselves — Asiatic, American, Mediterranean, and so on — indicate the region where the breeds originated."
"You know what? I did not know that Renee. Did you know that a male chicken's heart rate is about 286 beats per minute? The female heart rate is about 312 beats per minute in a resting state. All I can say is that sure beats the 70 to 90 beat average for humans."
"Indeed it does, Angela. What is it your mate's got out down there? It looks like some sort of stock. Is he making a gumbo?"
"It appears that way. It also looks like he's got his assistants cutting up a lot of buffalo wings, so maybe that's his appetizer. He'll have to get really creative with a sauce to impress this crowd."
"Especially Haxot!"
"I heard that, Brooklyn!"
"Over here on your mate's side we seem to have skinned chicken breasts being cut into strips, but it appears the skins are being laid over several small bowls and set aside. Perhaps we'll be seeing them come back into play here shortly.
"Why don't we go talk a little to our judges, eh Angela?"
"Sure, take it away, Elisa."
"Thanks ladies. I guess I get the great pleasure of chatting up our judges after all. Let's start with Matt. Matt, what did you think when this was brought to your attention?"
"I was all for it Elisa. I mean, what night off could be better than this? Seriously? Broadway versus Owen in the kitchen; who could ask for more?"
"Do you have a favorite as to the outcome?"
"I'd have to say Broadway, for creativity purposes."
"Thank you, Matt. Xanatos, what did you think of all this?"
"Well Elisa, I was all for this. First of all, just to hear Broadway's claim that Owen was boasting was more than enough to catch my interest. Renee came last Friday and suggested a cook off, stating Iron Chef as her inspiration. I couldn't help but agree. We went over the little details, made a couple of stipulations, and then got together with you and the others. The rest is history."
"Who would you pick as winner?"
"I'm just going to wait and see. Picking now might sway my judgment."
"Thank you. Moving on brings us to Haxot. What are your thoughts on all this?"
"My thoughts? How long can an hour last and when can we eat?"
"Any wagers on the outcome of this match?"
"Yeah, I have a few people betting against Broadway, several against Owen, and a couple people who believe a tie will result. Want in? It's pretty hot."
"Ten on Broadway."
"You got Elisa."
"Finally we come to Goliath. Well Goliath, what are you thoughts on all of this?"
"I'm interested in tasting both chefs' meals, but am certain Broadway will come out ahead."
"And why is that?"
"He's had to improvise and alter recipes. I doubt Owen has ever had to change something mid meal. Owen has more experience in the kitchen, but Broadway is more flexible."
"Thank you Goliath. And now, back to Angela."
"Elisa. Let's check back on our chefs, as fifteen minutes have elapsed. It seems like Owen has fried up those strips of chicken earlier, after breading them. It seems to be chicken strips. Not very creative if you ask me. He also has some soup broth starting to boil over here and some whole birds over here getting stuffed. He'll probably be frying those up – baking will take too long at this point. Renee?"
"You're probably right. Over here on Broadway's side it looks like we're going to be seeing a bit of gumbo and maybe a pot of chili. He's taken the meat out of several rounds of bread so that they look like bowls. What's that?"
"I said hey Renee."
"Hey Broadway. Can you tell me what you're doing with that bread there?"
"Sure, they're going to be bowls for one of my dishes. I thought I'd stick to a more Cajun theme and give myself something to work with."
"Is that jalapeño sauce there?"
"Yes it is, but I'm not going to say what for."
"Thanks Broadway. Let's go back to Elisa for another explanation on the scoring system."
"Thanks Renee. Now, as we were told earlier a total of 60 points will be given out. That evens out to 15 points per judge. The points are giving for creativity, presentation, and taste. We chose creativity instead of originality mainly because of our choice of ingredient and neither of our chefs having claimed professional status. Presentation or plating is pretty self explanatory. Chefs will be judged on how well the present their dishes to the judges. Of course, taste is also a 'gimme' category. Of course our judges here claim not to be picky about what goes into their meals, so no one should have a problem taking that first test bite. Back to you, Renee."
"Thanks Elisa. So far we've seen chicken strips on Owen's side and wings on Broadway's. I also see a soup type dish heating away on my mate's side, while Broadway has what appears to be gumbo and chili moving along down there. What else is going on there, Angela?"
"Well it looks like Owen has some ice cream going down there and he seems to be deep frying those skins from earlier. It looks like your mate also has some ranch covered chicken baking in the oven. Colorful vegetables are making an appearance on Broadway's side. Carrots, tomatoes, green peppers, and onions are being cut up and set aside in some bowls. Almost looks like fajitas coming along over here."
"Indeed, which continues the apparent Cajun theme your mate has going. That should earn his some points. Well, it would if I were judging."
"You'd vote in Broadway's favor, Renee?"
"I'd be an impartial judge, yes."
"Then why didn't you judge instead?"
"Well Angela, to be completely honest, I don't think I couldn't sit that still or quiet for an hour. At least this way I get to walk around and talk and not get in trouble for it."
"Well, why don't you tell us how all this came about? Everyone blames you."
"Because it's her fault!"
"BROOKLYN!!"
"Oops."
"Actually Angela, I was talking to Owen about dinner one night last week while we were watching Iron Chef and uncharacteristically, he made a boast about being the best cook in the castle. Even in my elven form, I overheard Broadway's grunt of disagreement from nearby. The TV program gave me the idea for this cook off. I asked Owen almost immediately if he'd be interested. Of course, my mate can't deny me anything even if he claims otherwise."
"Which he does!"
"Brooklyn, one more peep out of you and I will cast a silence spell on you."
"Ok, Renee."
"Anyway, after I spoke with Owen, I went to speak with Broadway. You were there when I proposed the idea to him and that's when we agreed we, as mates, wouldn't be judges. Getting Owen and Broadway to agree was my biggest hurdle and that seemed pretty easy considering how I thought it would go. Last Friday I took the idea to David and he was all for it as well. We spent part of the day discussing the details. You and I worked out the judges, assistants, and even the revision of the whole meal/plating thing. Not really too much there that you didn't already know."
"True, but now the others know as well. Elisa, how much time is left on the clock?"
"About five minutes to go, Angela, and it looks like both chefs have started the plating portion of their meals. If I remember the show correctly, they seem to both be right on time too."
"It looks like Broadway's putting that chicken chili into the bread bowls he made earlier. I'm impressed. It's a nice thick, chewy bread making it perfect for this sort of presentation. Points for practicality there."
"I agree, Angela. Wonderful use of the bread. Can you tell us what Owen did with that chicken skin he fried up?"
"Well, Renee, it looks like he's using it as a bowl for some ice cream he's taken out of the mixer here. Smells like strawberries. It also looks like he's topping it with some fresh blueberries. I'm not sure if that's wise, as the two tastes may come back to bite him. He's also taken the chicken strips form earlier and placed them in a cocktail glass partially filled with what looks like a creamy white sauce. Owen, what is that?"
"Garlic."
"There you have it, its garlic. Not much of a talker you got there, Renee."
"Well, actions generally speak louder than words."
"You're turning as red as I am, Ren."
"Brooklyn! I am not!"
"Uh huh, right."
"Anyway, over to Broadway. How's he holding up with the plating?"
"He seems to be doing just fine, Renee. Apparently he's taking Lex's earlier observation to heart and using a lot of colors in his plating. It looks like his fajitas are getting a drizzling of honey over them. They look like baby fajitas. Maybe this is his desert dish."
"It could be. We've got one minute until time runs out and the chefs are adding the final touches to their plates. It does look like they both got the required five dishes ready and I'm sure the judges are more than anxious to taste them."
"We should know the final results in about ten minutes then, yes?"
"Right Angela. Now we go to Elisa who is with Broadway for his explanation of his dishes."
"Thanks, Renee. Care to tell us how you based your dishes Broadway?"
"Sure Elisa. First of all I started with some buffalo wings with a creamy blue cheese dipping sauce flavored with a bit of cilantro and rosemary. I chose chicken chili for the soup course, plated in its own bread bowl and topped with some parsley for color. Chicken gumbo makes up my first entrée while sautéed chicken breasts smothered in a jalapeno sauce. I wasn't sure about desert, so I whipped up baby chicken fajitas and drizzled them with a bit of honey as a late snack. Most of the meals have a small kick to them. I just hope everyone can handle them."
"Thank you Broadway. I'm sure the judges will be just fine. You'll receive your score shortly. Next, Owen will tell us a little about his meal while the judges complete the judging. Owen?"
"Thank you, Mrs. Maza. I breaded several strips of chicken and fried them up as chicken strips with a creamy ranch garlic sauce, decorated with a leaf of parsley. For the soup course I made a spicy chicken vegetable soup with some French bread. Next I had several whole chickens stuff and then deep fried. I surrounded them with potatoes, carrots, celery, apples, and some onions. Following that I decided that I'd go with a more traditional dish of ranch covered chicken and some simple twice baked potatoes. Following up for desert I fried up several chicken skins and made them bowls for fresh strawberry ice cream topped with blueberries."
"Thank you Owen."
"So who won?!"
"Brooklyn, you'll find out when everyone else does. Be patient!"
"Yes, dear."
"Thank you. And now, back to Elisa with the final result. Elisa?"
"Renee. And here's the answer we've all been waiting for. Who is the best chef here at Castle Wyvern? Tonight's battle has been brutal, the chefs using every last minute of their time. So it comes down to the judges final decisions.
And the winner is
… oh my god
… its Owen."
…oooOOOooo…
Author's notes: Ok, this is my first time writing a fic with nothing but comments, so please don't shoot me. If you're read my other Gargoyle fics you'll know who all my characters are. If you read carefully you'll get some hints of things yet to come later on in my series. I went with gut instinct here when choosing the format. As far as the winner, it was voted upon in s8. waves Review and tell me what you think. J
Renee: Wow that was wicked.
Brooklyn: It should have been 42.
Goliath: What should have been 42?
Haxot: Boy, you need to get your nose out of those books Goliath.
Angela: Yeah, haven't you ever seen The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy?
Xanatos: It's actually a better book than movie, Angela.
Elisa: Great idea. We'll rent the movie and find the book. Bye guys. exits w/ Goliath
Lexington: And here I though Goliath had read every book in the library.
Broadway: … he wasn't always reading…
Matt: chuckles Libraries always were a good place to make out.
Athens: Wow, really?!
Artemis: Matt! gives scathing look
Owen: Good night everybody.