Lead On, McDuck.

Was Ducktor Who foreseen? Nah, but I want to play along and assume it was.

In 2008, BBC Books published a Doctor Who tie-in novel by Lance Parkin called The Eyeless. It's a grim story set during the waning years of The 10th Doctor's tenure as "The Doctor" as he wanders through an urban dystopian landscape, seeking out an unusual power source sought after by a race of eyeless, ethereal, transparent aliens. It's a gloomy affair, but he gets the job done. It's certainly readable - I recommend you check it out; I recall it's available to download in E-book format, or just hunt for a carbon copy to buy online.

What's this got to do with Ducktales? Well, the 10th Doctor was played by David Tennant, the actor who succeeded the late Alan Young as the voice of Scrooge McDuck in the new revival of the 80's cartoon. The announcement of his casting inspired a slew of Doctor Who + Ducktales ="Ducktor Who" fanart. His casting was a huge surprise to me and the rest of the world; he simply wasn't on anyone's betting pool for the part, but when he was revealed, nobody cried foul. In fact, if there's one thing that old fans seem amicable about in the steady buildup to the big premiere, it that's the new actors seem okay. It's the new character designs/personalities for the nephews and new look of the show that's got fans' feathers ruffled..

Ah, the irony. I can recall that, for decades, Ducktales was often judged harshly by so-called "purists" as a crass deformation of the Carl Barks material. Now the new revival is being looked down in terms of fidelity to that same cartoon! It's all humbug, to me. I'm still amazed we're getting new episodes at all. I want to see this new series - I'm looking forward to it.

In the final 1/3 of The Eyeless, The Doctor drops a reference to Scrooge McDuck as Ebenezer Scrooge in Mickey's Christmas Carol, with the line, "Lead on, McDuck." The character/companion whom he's dropping this line to doesn't really get the nod...and the Doctor's way of explaining why he said it - that the nature of the short trips to the past, present and future of his companion's timeline/lifespan is reminiscent of the Ghosts of Christmas Spirit accompanying Scrooge in Mickey's Christmas Carol and has repercussive effects felt on the traveler - is so offhand that it's really oddly put; I had to read those passages several times to understand it.

So...I thought that was a fun bon-bon to chew on among the other Ducktales bon-bons we've been fed. We were shown hints that the crew knows who these characters are, knows about the old comics, knows about the new comics, remembers the lyrics to the theme song, has a tie-in comic book coming to coincide with the premiere..there was even a life-size replica of the inside of Scrooge's bin as a photo-op booth at the Disney23 convention... They KNOW. We just have to watch. We've been assured we're not getting a journeyman effort from this team.

...confidentially...I DO wish they had kept Scrooge's coat blue with the red collar, cuffs and matching spats. Was that so much to keep?

"The Alternate Duckiverse" (alt. title: "Is St. Canard In Callisota?")

Darkwing Duck is 25 years old. No news yet about an animated revival of the Disney TV series, but there is an ongoing comic book series published by Joe Books that's available at your (hopefully) better-than-average comic shop currently on it's 4th issue.

Series creator Tad Stones was interviewed by The Hollywood Reporter about the milestone and dropped what's been reffered to on social media as a "bombshell": he never really saw Darkwing Duck as a direct spin-off of Ducktales and believed both shows took place in separate universes.

It always seemed like a natural assumption that Ducktales and Darkwing Duck were linked together, first because the latter program featured Launchpad McQuack and Fenton Crackshell/Gizmoduck, two major Ducktales supporting characters who were introduced in said series. A later episode of Darkwing Duck ("In Like Blunt") featured the major Ducktales villains - Flintheart Glomgold, Magica de Spell and the Beagle Boys - in non-speaking cameos. And while Scrooge McDuck and Huey, Dewey & Louie Duck remained offscreen, there was an infamous "Welcome To Duckburg" billboard with Scrooge's face appearing in the episode, "Tiff of The Titans". More-obvious examples of Disney TV shows that likely took place in separate universes, yet featured anthropomorphic talking ducks in the main cast were Bonkers, Quack Pack, The Mighty Ducks and House of Mouse. Those three series depict their lead characters inhabiting worlds that include cartoon humans, yet neither would mix well, unless you add a conceit that one or the other is a fictional series of cartoons being "filmed" within the world of another series, and the protagonists are ret-conned as actors, which is what House of Mouse does.

What supports Stones' logic is that both shows featured stylistic differences that set eachother apart..and I don't mean drawing style. Darkwing was a sendup of genre cliches featuring spies and superheroes. It also featured a lot of broad slapstick and cartoon violence in the vein of Tom & Jerry and the Looney Tunes shorts. Characters were often acutely self-aware and would break the fourth wall, knowing they were in a cartoon. Ducktales was a more conventional adventure-comedy series. Whenever there was any broad slapstick, it stayed firmly in relation to how things would happen in the real world, not cartoon physics. There were exceptions, but Darkwing would often survive a barrage of explosives and heavy metal objects and would shake it off; Scrooge suffered head trauma/amnesia after getting hit on the head with a skateboard in one episode. For Darkwing Duck to get amnesia, it would probably happen with twelve pianos falling on his head. You see what I mean?

The only way to reconcile this revelation with what's already established and all in the past is that a different version Scrooge McDuck and the Ducktales cast of characters exists within Darkwing Duck's..cartoonier universe. That's all. Not knock-offs, just apropos of Darkwing. By the same token, we can assume a different version of Darkwing Duck and his cast of characters exists apropos of the Ducktales universe as well.

And what if they crossover? Which universe does the episode take place in? Well, if it's a self-contained one-shot story, it's set within the context of the respective series. If Darkwing appears in the new Ducktales episodes premiering on DisneyXD in 2017, it'll be within the context established by that series. Same deal if Disney ever thought of a "The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones"-esque TV movie featuring these characters.

And if they really want to run wild...there's the cake gate. It was established in Darkwing Duck that portals/wormholes to parallel universes exist disguised as giant decorative cakes. There could be a cake to the Ducktales universe, a cake for the Super Goof universe, a cake to the Double-O-Duck universe*, a cake to the Carl Barks comic book Durkburg, a cake to the DC Comics universe, a cake to a mashup universe, a cake to the real world and the Disney Parks..and even a cake where Darkwing and Scrooge accompany Sorra instead of Donald and Goofy in Kingdom Hearts..it's a piece of cake.

Happy Anniversary, Darkwing Duck. :)

*Double-O-Duck was the original incarnation/concept for Darkwing Duck in it's early stages of development..I'm actually surprised that the team got as far as creating a press-kit for the character before revamping it into the character/series that we're familiar with today.

The "New Look"- Era of "Ducktales" is Coming..

When the original Ducktales premiered on television in 1987, it's appearance was consistent with two other series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation that debuted the previous year: The Wuzzles and Disney's Adventures of The Gummi Bears.

With this in mind, it makes sense that the revival of Ducktales would look like other DisneyXD fare: the Mickey Mouse shorts, Wonder Over Yonder, Gravity Falls and Star vs. The Forces of Evil. It really does look like a crossover between the shows is not impossible..I can't help wondering what Launchpad McQuack and Darkwing Duck would look like in this "New Look" era...it definitely looks like there's a humorous tone..I'm getting a Venture Brothers meets Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated vibe off this image that was revealed by E!Online.

And of course, early reaction from old-school Ducktales fans resembles Donald Duck's expression at the bottom of that teaser image..."What the doggone blazes is that?..Is Deputy Dawg gonna' show up?"

I'm looking forward to it. :)

Alan Young, RIP.

Alan Young was still doing voiceover work as Scrooge McDuck for Disney when he was well into his nineties, which is quite an achievement. In cartoon form, his last appearance as Scrooge was in "Goofy's First Love", one of the recent Mickey Mouse cartoons. In videogames, he can be heard in Ducktales Remastered, Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep and Ducktales: Scrooge's Loot.

And of course, the original Ducktales TV series and Mickey's Christmas Carol. He was actually the 2nd actor to have played Scrooge (the 1st was Bill Thompson in Scrooge McDuck and Money) and reprised the role in Ducktales after Will Ryan played the tycoon in the TV special Sport Goofy's Soccermania. It's no secret that Alan was not going to be the voice of Donald Duck's wealthy uncle again for the upcoming Ducktales episodes premiering on DisneyXD next year, but whoever the 4th Scrooge will be (possibly Craig Ferguson - my choice), he's got big spats to fill. Young's Scrooge voice was instantly likeable, hearty, feisty. Prior to the show, Scrooge was purely a comic book character whose token appearances in animation were a reminder of Disney characters lives expanded on ancillary tie-in merchandise; afterwards, it felt like he had always been part of the cartoon stable - or an oversight that had finally been corrected. It's become his best-known work - eclipsing his co-lead role in the sitcom Mister Ed - at least where social media is concerned. I'm particularly fond of Darkwing Duck creator Tad Stones' tribute, so it got a prime spot as the headliner for this post.

I'm well aware that Disney still offers Volume 1 of their Ducktales series DVDs at very affordable prices, and the theatrical feature, Ducktales: Treasure of The Lost Lamp, is still available.* If you don't own those videos, I recommend them as a good viewing experience, particularly as a marathon. And if you own any Mister Ed DVDs..sure, give those a spin as well.

Alan Young, RIP.

*Some day, Disney will get around to releasing ALL the remaining episodes of Ducktales on DVD, AND hopefully re-release Volumes 2 & 3 - and Volume 1 is still in circulation as an "Anniversary Edition", yet carries no bonus features?...

What Will The New "Ducktales" TV Series Look Like?..

So..precisely one year after announcing to the world that new episodes of the classic Disney TV series Ducktales were going to premiere on DisneyXD in the Fall of 2017,  the folks at Disney gave the world a teensy peek at what the final product could look like...just to keep our anticipation from cooling down..or become too preoccupied with other..stuff...like, life 'n stuff...I got a coloring book I need to finish...

The artwork posted depicts Scrooge McDuck in a pit helmut driving a ramshackle jeep through the jungle in the midst of a high-speed chase - possibly by angry natives throwing spears, with his nephew Donald clinging for dear life in the back, grandnephews Huey, Dewey & Louie (and kind of/sort of informally adopted grandniece, Webbigail "Webby" Vanderquack) riding shotgun.

What can we infer from this?

1) This looks like "Concept Art": I recall reading that this new show was going to rendered in CG...i.e., Mickey Mouse Clubhouse meets Star Wars Rebels. This could just be the artwork used to pitch the concept for the new focus of the series  ("We want to show more of the Duck family in the style of Carl Barks' comics that inspired the original Ducktales series"), which is fine, though the nephews remind me of Quack Pack a bit...Huey's the only one wearing a cap and consulting the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook, Dewey looks like the one with a temper, Louie seems to be fearful and wearing a hoodie, Webby is enjoying the ride, Donald...looks like he's watching his life flash before his eyes..Scrooge lends this a lot of gravitas by looking consistent..does this mean we'll get the Quack Pack that was initially planned but scrapped in favor of ...what Quack Pack wound-up being? I haven't found anyone who likes Quack Pack..although that show began the idea of recasting the voices of the nephews with voices dissimilar from the late Clarance Nash's original performance..could this show continue that trend with their recast of the cast? I could imagine Kristen Schaal as the new voice of Webby, Craig Ferguson as Scrooge, Tress MacNeille as Magica DeSpell, Daran Norris as Gyro Gearloose and Fenton Crackshell/Gizmoduck, Bruce Campbell as Launchpad and Clancy Brown as Flintheart Glomgold..but Tony Anselmo should always be the voice of Donald Duck.

2) Donald is no-longer "recurring" - in the original series, Donald Duck was at sea, having joined the navy, appearing sporadically in the first two seasons. It looks like he's back, now permanently ditching the French naval uniform that was/still is his default outfit, in favor of the U.S. Navy uniform he wore on Ducktales...with a twist: the shirt is black. That distinction, in my humble opinion, is the code for Carl Barks' Donald Duck. That's very important, because Barks' take on Donald has proven to be a more-interesting character than the duck that picked fights with bees, bears and chipmunks in otherwise entertaining, if frivolous cartoon shorts from the past..

3) That drawing style sure looks different.. - if it matches the final product  (and is not merely the style of the artist who drew it ), then we might see a show that fits well with current DisneyXD fare - Star vs. The Forces of Evil, Wander Over Yonder - but not too jarring like The Looney Tunes Show redesigns of the Looney Tunes stable that made longtime fans recoil in horror.

But...will Phooey Duck be in it?  :)

Heading Back To Duckburg...

New episodes of Ducktales will premiere on DisneyXD in 2017...and that's all we know, but it's enough. Lots of people, myself included, LOVE THAT SHOW. Without using a calculator, I would say the show will have had a 27-year "hiatus" before the series returns to television...on expanded cable. The only other show that's had this kind of belated renewal was The Jetsons, which had 51 new episodes premiere in 1985 - almost 25 years since the original series debuted in 1962 and abruptly ended in 1963 after just 24 (!) episodes. And 2017 will mark the 30th Anniversary of Ducktales' debut.

The press release announcing the return suggested that Donald Duck might be joining the cast of characters in a regular supprting role; fans of the series are aware that he was only a recurring character in the first two seasons, appearing in a handful of memorable episodes. If he DOES return as a regular, then we might see more episodes inspired by the Carl Barks comic books that inspired the series, plus we'll see some more byplay between Scrooge, Donald & Launchpad McQuack, who is also coming back. I'm also curious about whether the production team behind the new series will incorporate other elements from the Disney Comics Universe, whether they be design elements  (Donald's black shirt, which is my shorthand indicator that we're watching Carl Bark's Donald, who is a more interesting incarnation of the duck than in the old Disney cartoons), storylines (Don Rosa & William Van Horn's duck-tales), or characters  (Brigitta MacBridge, Rumpus McFowl, Fethry Duck), or whole status quos ( Donald's Paperinik incarnation, aka, Duck Avenger or P.K., which is a whole phenomenon in Europe and South American Disney Comics, and has occasionally seen print in the United States - I'll know for sure if I can spot Ducklair Tower incorporated in the new designs for the city of Duckburg). There is some debate across the web about what the new episodes will look like, since most revivals of older cartoons tend to adopt new influences in animation and design - the only exception being Family Guy, which it's creator, Seth MacFarlane, sought to have the series return be seemless, as if there had been no "break" between the 3rd and 4th seasons.

Also notably absent in the list of characters returning to the series are late-series additions Fenton Crackshell/Gizmoduck and Bubba Duck...I suppose with Donald back, you don't really need Fenton or Gizmoduck - especially if they adapt Donald's superhero incarnation...and Bubba didn't have much to do after his initial introduction, so I wouldn't be surprised if they were recurring guest-stars instead. Speaking of guest-stars, what about Darkwing Duck? Do I need to explain why? What about Darkwing Duck?

I'm not sure what the new series will look like, but if Disney is looking for new hands, I wouldn't mind seeing Dave Alvarez contribute - he's been trying his hand at sketching Disney characters and posting the effort on his Facebook page after becoming better known for his work drawing the Looney Tunes gang, and I am impressed with the results, particularly the gag with Donald's shirt and the brawl in Scrooge's money bin. I also recommend James Silvani - his work on the Darkwing Duck comics has been stellar, plus his Facebook page has a phenomenal gallery of sketches.

I'm also curious if Disney will promote the series with a new freemium game. I wasn't impressed with Scrooge's Loot, but I liked briefly having an app icon with Scrooge's face on my mobile phone. I would prefer a city-building game similar to Simpsons Tapped Out, which would have the player build their own version of Duckburg using familiar buildings and characters.

2017 seems too far away to me...maybe in the interim, Disney will finally release the remaining episodes of the series on DVD? At least the comic books are coming back...and viral marketing campaigns - I saw an episode of "Fresh Off The Boat" that featured a brief clip of Scrooge swimming in his money bin, most likely culled from the Ducktales title sequence, just one week after the big announcement was made. My response? "More viral marketing promoting my favorite childhood TV cartoon, please." :)

The Apocryphal Scrooge McDuck, Part 4

"Many is the book report that have been written by just reading the dust jacket"

- Linus Van Pelt in the TV special, Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!

I have reached the point in this series where I inevitably wind up highlighting books I don't own, but would like to have read, and would've owned if I had encountered them at any toy store/bookstore/dollar store/flea market/sidewalk book peddler table offering them. This means I unfortunately don't have a generous gallery to offer, or insightful snarky comments regarding key plot details, but my interest in these books remains piqued and they will be duly noted. As a bonus, I get to post another Christmas-themed essay! Ho ho ho/You didn't know/ Yo ho ho/ and a bottle of rum! ;)

The self-implied rule here is that I'm blogging about original Children's books featuring Scrooge McDuck as a member of the classic Disney stock players, be it as a primary character or guest-star, not Ducktales tie-in books, because I already wrote about Ducktales kid books in my Silver Dollars: Ducktales Anniversary series of posts, so why am I breaking the rule?...

...I didn't know Ducktales: Christmas At The North Pole existed, that's why. The book was part of Disney's "Wonderful World of Reading" mail-order book club series, which means only a faithful subscriber keeping up with his/her dues would've recieved this installment, rather than bailing out after receiving the umpteenth Alice in Wonderland or Cinderella. You would've also received the bizarre Disney Year Book, a Highlights for Children -esque book of stories mixed with anecdotal educational content featuring Disney characters.

The plot? Donald Duck, who is still in the Navy, is stationed at the North Pole and has invited Scrooge McDuck and Huey, Dewey and Louie to join him to celebrate Christmas. Mrs. Beakley, Webby, Duckworth and Launchpad get to come along, but  Launchpad drops the ball when he crashes the plane in a location that's vaguely North-ish. While McQuack makes repairs to the plane, the cast set up a campfire and fret about missing Christmas and Donald, but begin to perk up as they keep eachother entertained and attract the attention of local wildlife, who peacefully join in at the camp. Launchpad finishes the repairs and the gang is able to resume their trip. I  gather the point of this tale is that Christmas is a holiday that need not be celebrated in materialistic ways, nor can it be "ruined" if events don't work out as planned. Meanwhile, Donald was guzzing egg nog wondering why nobody showed up.

The 1980 Christmas tale, Merry Christmas, Uncle Scrooge McDuck!, looks interesting because it appears to suffer from a clash of art styles: it looks like Scrooge crashed the set of A Charlie Brown Christmas while dressed in an outfit he borrowed from Mister Magoo's wardrobe...I wonder what Ducktales would've looked like if it had been animated by DePatie-Freling Studios instead of TMS or Cuckoo's Nest...something like that cover, maybe?

The plot in this tale is that Scrooge refuses to give Donald an advance on his pay before Christmas, meaning Donald can't afford to buy presents for Huey, Dewey and Louie. There are two ways the plot of this book could go: 1) Donald enlists Mickey Mouse and Goofy's help in cobbling together four ghost costumes and they procede to scare Scrooge into having a change of heart and forking over some spare change; 2) Scrooge leaves work early and observes other people enjoying Christmas, even partaking in some holiday-themed pastimes (like a snowball fight, perchance?) then realizes how his nephews are missing out on the fun and has a change of heart. I'm going to guess the latter option, which sounds alright. After all, two visits with three spirits would be...goofy. ;)

I  hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have a Happy New Year. And if you were visited by three spirits on Christmas Eve...you should've called the Ghostbusters. Happy Holidays! :)

Meet Phooey Duck

Imagine a tale in which Donald Duck was only awarded joint custody of a FOURTH nephew, who might be the one standing offstage with camera in hand, chronicling the adventures of his better-known family members...only sometimes joining in on the fun...

Now let's celebrate April Fool's Day...meet Phooey Duck. He's Donald Duck's fourth nephew. His existence is part of a popular fan theory that explains why one of Donald's nephews is sometimes dressed in yellow on merchandise, storybooks & comics (everyone knows that Huey wears red clothes, Dewey blue and Louie green) and, most important, occasions when the artist made a mistake and drew a fourth nephew into the panel of one of the comics - perhaps during a deadline crunch in the wee small hours of the morning.

Anyway, here's a batch of images I've rounded up so that you'll know how to spot Phooey. Enjoy hunting for more!