Everyone loves the gremlins, and Gizmo is adorable. Let’s get that out of the way.
They’re slimy, they’re gross they’re mean, and best of all, they’re hilarious—the gremlins. After watching the second movie, fans still clamor for more of the mayhem from Gizmo’s green, sometimes brown, hairless brothers. Let’s get that out of the way.
But when fans think of Gremlins, they will always keep in mind the young man who made it all possible: exposing Gizmo to outsiders, getting him wet, and ultimately becoming the gremlins’ primary threat for survival.
This post is a tribute to Billy Peltzer, played by actor Zach Galligan, and will focus on the strengths, weaknesses, and accomplishments that shape his character and show the world the powerful impact introverts can have on society.
Strengths
Mild Mannered & Positive
Billy Peltzer is a soft-spoken, mild-mannered young man who, like all people, has his share of misfortune. He owns a brokedown Bug that runs when it wants to run. He works as a bank teller and receives threats from his boss and the town miser. He is the sole “breadwinner” in his home where he lives with his mother while his father travels to promote his crazy inventions. And in the beginning, he doesn’t have a girlfriend or a best friend to spend time with.
Nevertheless, he stays positive and keeps pushing on.
Even when others try to break his spirits, he continues being himself. He never raises his voice, he keeps his cool, and he never appears dispirited. When stressful situations arise, he remains calm and collected.
The love of his family, his circle of friends, his dog, and of course, Gizmo, give this introvert the strength to stay positive.
Artistic and Creative
Billy’s passion is drawing comic books. The imagination built over the years gave him the “think outside the box” mentality, which he used to twice defeat the gremlins.
If a typical person discovered a devilish creature tearing up their kitchen, they would most likely run out of the house and call 911. Billy tried notifying the authorities in both movies, but they didn’t believe him. So he took matters into his own hands, and with the familiarity of the rules mixed with on-the-fly creative thinking, he was able to develop a strategy to kill hundreds of gremlins in one fell swoop.
Self-Reliant
Introverts draw energy from alone time, or at least with as few people around as possible. The power of self-reliance is seen in Billy mostly in Gremlins 2. When he learned that Kate brought home the wrong Gizmo, he quickly took action by planning to cut off the Clamp building’s water supply. His plan would have succeeded if it were not for a meddling security officer. Luckily we had Crazy mogwai on the scene to eat away at his nose.
Billy is responsible for every plan in stopping the gremlins, from having Mr. Clamp turn back the clocks and cover the building to fool them into thinking it was nighttime, to spraying them with water and releasing Electric Gremlin onto them and watching them melt.
Excels in Stressful Situations
Yes. I remember Billy screaming for help as Crazy Gremlin was about to drill out his teeth. The poor boy was trapped and couldn’t do anything. But in other stressful situations, he succeed where most would have failed.
One instance, in particular, is when he conquers the seemingly unstoppable Electric Gremlin. It appears out of nowhere as a literal live wire ready to zap anyone in sight. Before it can shock Billy, his quick thinking enables him to pick up the phone handle and suck Electric Gremlin inside trapping it while the call is on hold.
I don’t understand how the trick worked, but it worked.
Respects Team
Although not exactly an introvert trait, his humble sharing of credit with his team for the demise of the gremlins is honorable and a sign of a genuinely great person.
He even included Carla, his bully of a supervisor who tried to take advantage of him, and who did nothing but smoke. Regardless of how he views her, Billy believes no one person on a team is worthless.
Introverts can be leaders as well as important contributors. Gremlins 2, in particular, shows Billy reaching out to each person he is familiar with to stop the gremlins’ takeover. Everything worked out and everyone involved was recognized.
Weaknesses
Pushover
Not everyone is perfect, especially in their beginnings.
As awesome as Billy is, there are others who do not see him as such. They are bullies. They take advantage of his kindness and introverted nature to showcase their dominance.
Leaders in the business world will attack their victims like sharks if they display one slight sign of weakness. In both Gremlins movies, the managers see him as a pushover—one they can easily command and manipulate. Although it is Billy’s place, as a subordinate to follow the commands of his leaders, he does it in a careful manner that comes off as weak.
Gerald, his superior, played by Judge Reinhold, advises him to be tough. Billy seems to shrug the words off his shoulder as he continues drawing his comic in the bar scene. As arrogant as Gerald may appear, his advice would have benefited Billy in his final showdown with the gremlin leader, Stripe. His overly cautious and pushover nature almost got him killed.
Irresponsible
He exposes Gizmo to bright light. He gets Gizmo wet, twice. He feeds the evil mogwai after midnight.
Although to err is human, Billy breaks the three rules and could have been solely responsible for the extinction of mankind. Some may believe that if Rand hadn’t bought Gizmo, an animal unheard of in society, none of this would have happened, or there would be no movie. However, it was Billy’s responsibility to care for Gizmo and mindfully adhere to the rules.
In Gremlins 2, his irresponsible nature resurfaces when he finds Gizmo at the company biology lab. Believing he can keep him a secret and safely take him home was a huge mistake that might have cost him everything.
After the life-or-death adventure from the previous film, the thought of another gremlin threat never crosses his mind.
And yes, Billy saves the day at the end of Gremlins 2, takes Gizmo home, and lives happily ever after without a Gremlins 3 being made. But no one is perfect and old habits
are hard to overcome. Unless the oceans, lakes, and rivers dry up, the mogwai will get wet once again.
Growth
Becoming an artist
Artistry and creativity go hand in hand and are essential for building personality and ingenuity.
Billy starts out as an aspiring artist who draws comics in his spare time and shares them with his friends. His passion for art eventually lands him a job as an illustrator for the mega-broadcast corporation, Clamp Enterprises. There, his work catches the eye of owner, Daniel Clamp, and the two develop a business relationship.
It began as a typical encounter—boss notices the work of a common employee and moves on. When the gremlins arrive and Billy plays a large part in eradicating them, Mr. Clamp is able to witness his true worth.
He realizes that a talent such as Billy’s will help catapult his company to new heights. Clamp Enterprises is stronger, and Billy’s career has advanced to a new level.
I guess banking wasn’t his niche after all.
Conquering the gremlins
Billy’s impressive creative mind is not only proven in his drawings. The years of making art have strengthened his imagination and ingenuity which later help him beat the gremlins twice.
His strategies for fighting them are simple, yet inventively done. From trapping them inside a movie theater and blowing them up, to spraying them with water and shooting an electrical volt to melt them, he was able to best the vicious green, sometimes brown, little monsters using clever tactics they never saw coming.
The Future
The statement from Gizmo’s former caretaker at the end of Gremlins 1 is a lesson that Billy and the movie audience should forever take heed:
“You do with mogwai what your society has done with all of nature’s gifts. You do not understand. You are not ready.”
Perhaps Billy proved he was ready after all. As I mentioned previously, there has not yet been a Gremlins 3.
Thank you for reading.
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