'Toon Reviews 12: DuckTales Vol. 2 Part 21: Double-O-Duck

Double-O-Duck

With a comedic character like Launchpad getting roped into something as big a deal as a spy mission, you can bet that this spy-centered episode will have its own unique edge to it.  Not only is that the case, but this setup makes for a really great episode.  After an opening you’d expect from a spy story with a mysterious figure sneaking around with two agents following him and a lot of well-constructed gags, Launchpad, who’s introduced through innocently going about his day, is mistaken for that very spy, Bruno von Beak.  As amusing as it is to watch Launchpad act clueless to the fact that the agents think he’s an actual spy, it’s refreshing that this routine doesn’t last too long when Scrooge gets involved and sees Launchpad for who he really is.  Even with the truth known, the fact that the agents see a striking resemblance to Bruno in Launchpad and Scrooge hears of a way to make money off this mission sets Launchpad on a mission as Bruno’s double to spy on a suspicious mastermind known as Dr. Nogood.  As we follow Launchpad as he goes on his mission, we’re treated to a lot of memorable moments that serve as a comedic foil to the typical beats of spy stories.  Most of the time, we have a Launchpad spin on the use of cool spy gadgets which have their own creative design like a gun toupee, a comb phone, a camera bowtie, literal elevator shoes, and a spy vehicle that can transform into anything he needs.  The spin is that every time Launchpad uses the gadgets, his typical shtick of not being aware of how they work causes them to be set off at the wrong times or them to not work right when he needs them to resulting in effective humorous hijinks.  Launchpad’s lack of understanding is also put to humorous use in the mission itself, the standout gag being Launchpad hearing about New Delhi and flying all the way there only to realize that he was meant to go to an actual deli named New Deli.  Now, unlike in “The Right Duck” where Launchpad’s flaws had him constantly mess up until the end which made him seem like a huge nuisance, here, in spite of his bumbling ways, he’s competent enough to be helpful in some way which is what’s so great about Launchpad.  For one thing, when he meets up with one of Dr. Nogood’s partners, the seductive Feathers Galore, he has the right mind to get away from her constant kisses which eventually turn out to be dangerous.  Also, even though it takes a few attempts, he forms a clever plan of hiding in a pickle barrel to be free to uncover Dr. Nogood’s secret fortress and later drop in on his big plan which is to erase the markings off of all money to make it worthless, so he can be the richest man in the world with his own gold stash.  Finally, at the climax, it turns out that Launchpad’s getting away was more effective than it seems when he finds Feathers Galore punished for failing to keep him imprisoned.  This persuades her to work with him and together through enjoyable interactions, and more examples of Launchpad fumbling through his use of the gadgets working to comedic effect, they beat Dr. Nogood, though some could reasonably argue that his demise is a little too brutal.  Overall, after a disappointing performance that didn’t do justice for him in his last starring role, Launchpad returns to greatness in this humorous take on the spy genre big on entertainment and creativity. 10/10

The Ranking:

1. The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 5: Too Much of a Gold Thing
2. Catch as Cash Can Part 2: A Whale of a Bad Time
3. Catch as Cash Can Part 1: A Drain on the Economy
4. Back to the Klondike
5. Double-O-Duck
6. Raiders of the Lost Harp
7. The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 2: Wronguay in Ronguay
8. The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 4: Cold Duck
9. Time Teasers
10. The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 1: Don’t Give up the Ship
11. Catch as Cash Can Part 4: Working for Scales
12. Ducks of the West
13. The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 3: Three Ducks of the Condor
14. Merit-Time Adventure
15. Back Out in the Outback
16. Scroogerello
17. Catch as Cash Can Part 3: Aqua Ducks
18. Scrooge’s Pet
19. Horse Scents
20. The Golden Fleecing
21. The Right Duck

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where we head over to Ireland for "Luck o' the Ducks."

If you would like to check out other DuckTales reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

'Toon Reviews 12: DuckTales Vol. 2 Part 20: Scroogerello

Scroogerello

 

Episodes that place characters of shows in a fairy tale go both ways.  They can be creative ways for a show to step out of its comfort zone, but can also be big timewasters for not affecting the show’s actual world.  This episode falls into that category, yet it’s still pretty good.  The episode is about Scrooge being put to bed due to a cold, and he’s difficult with everyone trying to tend to him.  We finally ease into the fairy tale bulk of the episode when Webby decides to read to Scrooge to cheer him up, and Scrooge winds up imagining himself in the story of Cinderella.  The fairy tale itself is mostly a gender swap version of the familiar tale with Scrooge acting as the main protagonist, Flintheart Glomgold as his stepfather, the Beagle Boys as his step-brothers, and even Glittering Goldie as his the love interest he meets at the ball.  Other roles are more in-line with the genders and roles of other characters of Cinderella like Huey, Dewey, and Louie as Scrooge’s helpers, and Webby and Mrs. Beakley as Scrooge’s Fairy God People, although Webby as the Fairy Godchild is far more prominent.  We have Scrooge, or Scroogerello as he’s called, being forced to serve Flintheart and the Beagle Boys, which leaves him unable to attend a ball designed to find a suitor for the Princess Goldie.  It’s here though where the twists to the average Cinderella story become noticeable.  Rather than just wanting to go to the ball, when Scroogerello hears that Flintheart and the Beagle Boys want to win over Goldie, his desire to go to the ball has more to do with making sure the princess ends up with the right man, and that selfless desire is what brings on the fairies and their magic.  This original aspect to the tale adds in some depths to what we’re familiar with which make it more interesting.  More twists to the story help enhance the feel, namely how Scroogerello doesn’t just leave the ball when midnight strikes, but leaves to rescue Goldie with the boys and the Fairy Godchild when his stepfamily kidnaps her for their own gain.  There’s a chase in a car made of Junior Woodchuck cookies (which like Scroogerello’s ball appearance disappears after midnight ala the events of Cinderella), fun antics from a literal frog prince portrayed by Launchpad on their way to his castle where Goldie is held prisoner, and a fun chase to rescue Goldie from said castle.  While mostly fun, the adventure does have some detracting factors like Webby getting a lot of exposure as the Fairy Godchild without being a big help most of the time which makes her cutesy ways a hindrance to the enjoyment, and some pointless gags in the final castle chase. The biggest one is when our heroes lead the stepfamily upstairs past Goldie for no reason when they could’ve easily saved her right then and there.  After that chase though, the story ends as you’d expect with Goldie finding Scroogerello with the gold top hat he left behind fitting only him.  The fairy tale sequence, however, ends just as the stepfamily catches our hero to force him into servitude again just as Scrooge wakes up.  It hardly matters that the fairy tale ends with no resolution because Scrooge sees it as a reminder that some love, like his for Goldie, is better for fairy tales, which is interesting coming from a happily-ever-after company like Disney.  It makes the episode a rare product from them that’s more realistic than their perceived ideologies.  So, even if it adds very little to the show and has pretty noticeable problems with the story, for what it is, this episode is a good fresh take on a fairy tale that’s worth listening to. 9/10 

The Ranking:

1.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 5: Too Much of a Gold Thing

2.      Catch as Cash Can Part 2: A Whale of a Bad Time

3.      Catch as Cash Can Part 1: A Drain on the Economy

4.      Back to the Klondike

5.      Raiders of the Lost Harp

6.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 2: Wronguay in Ronguay

7.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 4: Cold Duck

8.      Time Teasers

9.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 1: Don’t Give up the Ship

10.  Catch as Cash Can Part 4: Working for Scales

11.  Ducks of the West

12.  The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 3: Three Ducks of the Condor

13.  Merit-Time Adventure

14.  Back Out in the Outback

15.  Scroogerello

16.  Catch as Cash Can Part 3: Aqua Ducks

17.  Scrooge’s Pet

18.  Horse Scents

19.  The Golden Fleecing

20.  The Right Duck

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where Launchpad is mistaken for a spy called "Double-O-Duck."
If you would like to check out other DuckTales reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

'Toon Reviews 12: DuckTales Vol. 2 Part 19: The Right Duck

The Right Duck

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As I’ve viewed this show, Launchpad McQuck turned out to be one of my favorite characters in the cast.  Yes, he often causes problems mostly through crashing everything he operates and is pretty unintelligent, but he always shows that he has a good heart and usually turn out to be a productive ally to those he’s closes to in the end.  This is mostly the case here, but the way to it just takes Launchpad’s habit of messing things up to the extreme which doesn’t do justice for his character.  In the opening scene, harkening back to “Hero for Hire,” Launchpad messes up one of Scrooge’s prized valuables which gets Scrooge to fire Launchpad who’s left to lament his failure with only Doofus Drake around for moral support.  However, the lamenting part doesn’t last nearly as long as the earlier episode when Launchpad decides to try out for a newly opened astronaut position to prove to everyone that he’s not an idiot pilot.  For the first part of his time as an astronaut, he’s put through training exercises against a monkey so the scientists can determine who’s better fit for space travel, and the reason all of Launchpad’s moments with the training backfire is because the monkey keeps sabotaging him from doing his best.  Even when Launchpad gets a chance to one-up the monkey, he keeps getting the short end.  Also, even though he still gets to go into space, it turns out that it doesn’t mean anything good for his social stance because the scientists were looking for the dumbest astronaut the whole time. The thing is though, even with this sympathy towards Launchpad from all the mistreatment he gets from this part of the episode, his problem-making habits are on such a full display that it becomes too overbearing to enjoy, and that undermines the established sympathy.  He first mixes up the instruction of what rocket he’s supposed to board and then set it off with himself and Doofus, who comes along after learning the truth about the astronaut the scientists want, inside.  This doesn’t sound so bad nor is it out of line with the usual Launchpad antics, but there’s more than that. We have Launchpad idiotically convincing a tyrannical alien king of Mars to blow up Earth, he's too clueless to break himself and his friend out of the prison the king puts them in leaving Doofus to finish that job, and the ship he takes control of turns out to be the missile being used for Earth’s destruction.  The point is, Launchpad messes up way too many times here making him look not just stupid, but also incapable of anything.  His heart is still there, but given that he’s shown to find a smart solution to big problems many times before, how he’s portrayed in this episode is very concerning especially since his own number one fan, Doofus starts doubting him.  Thankfully, the conclusion is solid enough when Launchpad stops the missile in time through randomly pushing buttons and he’s honored for saving Earth in the end.  The monkey who got him sabotaged gets off scot-free by becoming the new emperor of Mars, but whatever.  As for Launchpad, this may overall be one of his weaker episodes, but at least him saving the world redeems him somewhat.  Along with some solid comedy and appropriate sympathy, even with Launchpad’s problematic moments, this episode is ultimately still pretty good. 7/10

The Ranking:

1.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 5: Too Much of a Gold Thing

2.      Catch as Cash Can Part 2: A Whale of a Bad Time

3.      Catch as Cash Can Part 1: A Drain on the Economy

4.      Back to the Klondike

5.      Raiders of the Lost Harp

6.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 2: Wronguay in Ronguay

7.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 4: Cold Duck

8.      Time Teasers

9.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 1: Don’t Give up the Ship

10.  Catch as Cash Can Part 4: Working for Scales

11.  Ducks of the West

12.  The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 3: Three Ducks of the Condor

13.  Merit-Time Adventure

14.  Back Out in the Outback

15.  Catch as Cash Can Part 3: Aqua Ducks

16.  Scrooge’s Pet

17.  Horse Scents

18.  The Golden Fleecing

19.  The Right Duck

 

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode, a gender-bent version of Cinderella starring Scrooge, "Scroogerello."

If you would like to check out other DuckTales reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

'Toon Reviews 12: DuckTales Vol. 2 Part 18: Raiders of the Lost Harp

Raiders of the Lost Harp

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A lot of entertaining and creative things happen in this episode, and they’re all made engaging by the characters we follow.  The treasure Scrooge is after this time around are the artifacts of the lost city of Troy which he plans to put in his museum.  There turns out to be a lot of ancient artifacts in what appears to be a dark cavern that used to hold Troy, but as the title implies, the artifact that Scrooge sees the most value in is a magic harp that belonged to Helen of Troy held in a stone box that’s in the arms of a Minotaur statue.  The reason why the harp is so special to Scrooge occurs when he finds that it has the ability to detect when people fib in an operatic voice that’s set up to be grating but turns out to be hilarious and gets even more so the more it does its thing.  Scrooge being who he is uses the harp’s trait to his advantage from small things like finding out if the boys cleaned their room and are doing well in school, to big things like striking deals, and with the established humorous effects of the lie-detecting harp it, the episode is always entertaining.  It’s not just Scrooge and the harp that make the episode such a joy though.  We also factor in the antagonist of the episode, Magica de Spell in her first appearance in a long time (which is even longer if you follow the DVD arrangement of the series).  She continues to delight in her scenes through her eccentricity and magic powers as she plots to one-up Scrooge and steal the harp knowing how powerful it made Helen of Troy.  She’s just a full show of character which makes her a great addition to the cast.  Even when she’s completely oblivious to the reason for the harp’s power, making it easy for Scrooge to detect her when the harp points out her lies, Magica is still able to put up a good fight to get what she wants.  One particular instance of this is when Scrooge locks the harp in his desk and Magica turns into a wrestler to try and beat it out.  These two highly entertaining characters on the opposite ends of the morality scale have a great sense of banter with each other and that’s all it takes to make for a great fight sequence that sends Scrooge sliding through Duckburg on his desk into a bunch of road hazards with big comedic effect.  However, even with Scrooge having a major benefit with the harp and others growing to live with it, Scrooge still comes through with doing the mature thing.  Throughout the episode, we’ve seen bits of the Minotaur statue from Troy coming to life as a result of Scrooge taking the harp it was holding.  We witness how huge of a threat it is when the forces are unable to stop it, and all of Duckburg has to evacuate leading to a vacant museum opening for Scrooge.  Finally, when the Minotaur reaches the museum and Scrooge has to resort to bubble gum of all things to temporarily stop it, he eventually figures out what it really wants, and he willingly sacrifices his handy harp for the protection of the innocent.  We’re left with Scrooge as not just an entertaining character who’s amusingly great with benefits, but also one who’s smart enough with decisions, making this episode a great example of a great character he is.  His performance along with many others and the humor from the harp and the ways the story grows in engagement make this another noteworthy episode for this show and highlight of this DVD set. 10/10

The Ranking:

1.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 5: Too Much of a Gold Thing

2.      Catch as Cash Can Part 2: A Whale of a Bad Time

3.      Catch as Cash Can Part 1: A Drain on the Economy

4.      Back to the Klondike

5.      Raiders of the Lost Harp

6.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 2: Wronguay in Ronguay

7.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 4: Cold Duck

8.      Time Teasers

9.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 1: Don’t Give up the Ship

10.  Catch as Cash Can Part 4: Working for Scales

11.  Ducks of the West

12.  The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 3: Three Ducks of the Condor

13.  Merit-Time Adventure

14.  Back Out in the Outback

15.  Catch as Cash Can Part 3: Aqua Ducks

16.  Scrooge’s Pet

17.  Horse Scents

18.  The Golden Fleecing

 

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where Launchpad's lack of intelligence shows off its strengths and weaknesses in "The Right Duck."

If you would like to check out other DuckTales reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

'Toon Reviews 12: DuckTales Vol. 2 Part 17: Back Out in the Outback

Back Out in the Outback

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For this episode, the story takes us to Australia, and it turns out to be well-constructed, if too cute for its own good.  Scrooge and the gang are called down to Australia when it’s reported that his sheep ranch down there is being attacked by strange glowing UFOs called willywisps.  With this setup, you’d think that the focus would be on everyone trying to figure out how to fight back against the willywisps.  It’s not just that they ruin the sheep’s wool threatening the existence of the ranch.  They’re also powerful enough to take out planes.  It just opens up so many mysteries to the troublesome anomalies.  However, playing with the audience’s expectations, the plot is not what one would expect.  The most focus is on Webby of all characters, especially relating to her feminine quality of loving animals.  Since Australia is known for being home to many unusual animals like kangaroos, koalas, and warthogs, that opens up many possibilities for new friends for Webby.  Her befriending moments would be fine if they were in small scenes that don’t get too many focus, but these moments go on for a very long time which gives the episode an overly cute tone that doesn’t really fit the series.  It starts taking up the space when Huey, Dewey, and Louie are assigned to look after Webby even though she’s usually treated as one of the kids and doesn’t need them looking after her, and she wanders off to chase after a kangaroo before the boys even have a chance to keep an eye on her.  From there, Webby and her cutesy girlish ways are suddenly the most important thing in the episode.  We have her chase the kangaroo through the Australian woods, talking with it along with a koala and baby warthog, and a whole forest of animals tending to her after she gets chased by warthogs.  It just makes what happens less interesting than it could have been which isn’t what one would want to see going into an adventure series, especially since it’s separate from the main mission, for the most part, and Scrooge has to call it off to find her.  Even if Webby taking up the focus isn’t that interesting, the episode is still admirable for what it is.  The warthog chase is exciting and intense enough to engage the audience, putting Webby’s love for animals against her.  However, when the animals comfort her at night and later rescue her prized Quacky Patch doll, it’s a nice moment that helps her regain her love for something since it honestly would’ve been sad for Webby to give up a part of herself because of one bad experience.  Plus, all her cutesy moments with the animals lead her to play a significant role in the willywisp plot.  While it’s Huey, Dewey, Louie and Launchpad who ultimately find out that they’re really special glowing boomerangs and take them out with real boomerangs followed up with a humorous one-liner relating to how boomerangs always come back, Webby and her Australian animal friends take care of the man who set them up.  They find out one of the ranch’s employees was working behind Scrooge’s back and used the willywisps to scare everyone away so he could get to the opal discovered in the ranch’s wells.  So, in the end, Webby taking up the focus for her cutesy ways turned out to be worth it.  For that, even if it’s not that interesting, it still stands as a noteworthy entry with likable qualities from the characters, creativity, and story, not to mention being a solid Disney Australian adventure three years before The Rescuers Down Under. 9/10

The Ranking:

1.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 5: Too Much of a Gold Thing

2.      Catch as Cash Can Part 2: A Whale of a Bad Time

3.      Catch as Cash Can Part 1: A Drain on the Economy

4.      Back to the Klondike

5.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 2: Wronguay in Ronguay

6.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 4: Cold Duck

7.      Time Teasers

8.      The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 1: Don’t Give up the Ship

9.      Catch as Cash Can Part 4: Working for Scales

10.  Ducks of the West

11.  The Treasure of the Golden Suns Part 3: Three Ducks of the Condor

12.  Merit-Time Adventure

13.  Back Out in the Outback

14.  Catch as Cash Can Part 3: Aqua Ducks

15.  Scrooge’s Pet

16.  Horse Scents

17.  The Golden Fleecing

 

Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode featuring a new treasure for Scrooge to uncover and the return of Magica de Spell, "Raiders of the Lost Harp."

If you would like to check out other DuckTales reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.