This is one of those episodes of the show that focus around a
treasure that Scrooge finds himself fighting over against a set of
opponents. The opponents in question
here are Sharkey (who has a strong resemblance to the classic Disney villain,
Pete) and Yardarm, and during their raid on an island known as Banana
Island, they find what appears to be a common pearl and through a series of
fun comedic bits, they steal it.
After the thieves sell the pearl to Scrooge, unaware of the true powers
of the pearl, the story takes a turn that’s interesting to say the least. We’re treated to a lot of time devoted to
Webby learning how to play marbles from the boys, Huey in particular. Then, in an attempt to get herself a Great
Masher so to compete in an upcoming marbles competition, Webby sees the stolen
pearl as what she needs just as Scrooge, as well as Sharkey and Yardarm,
discover the true lore of the pearl.
It’s known as the Pearl of Wisdom, and can grant infinite knowledge to
anyone standing on the shores of Banana Island while holding it at sunrise,
which naturally entices them to try and get it back from Webby. With this in mind, it’s worth noting that the
highlight of the episode puts the overly cutesiness of Webby to good use. She just minds her own business of taking
what she thinks is a Great Masher to the competition while Sharkey and Yardarm
secretly thwart her to get the Pearl of Wisdom back. It’s something that’s best described as both
cute and funny. However, it would be
great if Webby’s moments of using the Pearl of Wisdom as a marble while others
pursue it goes on to play a big role in the episode’s climax. The thing is though, after Scrooge arrives
and explains the truth about the Pearl of Wisdom to Webby and the boys and the thieves
steal it back to take it to Banana Island, Webby is given close to nothing to
do. This unfortunately makes all the
time spent on her learning about marbles somewhat unsubstantial and deprives it
of any value that could have been enhanced by a big moment set on resolving the
main conflict. The climax we do get
gives value to Huey’s skills we saw earlier, but since we were given more
marble scenes with Webby and she’s currently just cute and girly, I think she
needed to shine in the climax more. That
factor aside, the climax is still pretty fun, especially when both Scrooge and
the thieves get infinite wisdom from the pearl in a way they didn’t expect,
which all I’ll say, is a pretty clever twist.
While the missed opportunity to give Webby a moment of greatness holds
it back, this episode is still a fun treasure-focused escapade with a few
clever twists for good measure. 8/10
The Ranking
- Hotel Strangeduck
- Maid of the Myth
- Hero for Hire
- Top Duck
- Robot Robbers
- Much Ado About Scrooge
- Magica’s Shadow War
- Duckman of Aquatraz
- Armstrong
- Sir Gyro de Gearloose
- Master of the Djinni
- Sphinx for the Memories
- Send in the Clones
- Down and Out in Duckburg
- The Lost Crown of Genghis Kahn
- The Money Vanishes
- Where No Duck Has Gone Before
- Dinosaur Ducks
- Pearl of Wisdom
- Superdoo!
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where we get a look at where Scrooge came from as well as some good Scottish lore as the gang learns about "The Curse of Castle McDuck."
If you would like to check out other reviews on this blog, click here for the guide to all the reviews posted so far.
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