Disney LongBox Reviews: Walt Disney Comics & Stories # 732

WRITER’S NOTE: The following review of Walt Disney Comics and Stories contains imagery from a comic story (Search for the Zodiac Stone Chapter 12) that was created in an earlier time and contains occasional historically-dated content. IDW and Disney Comics includes it here with the understanding that it reflects a by-gone era.

 

THE SEARCH FOR THE ZODIAC STONE CHAPTER 12 of 12

FIRST PUBLISHED IN TOPOLINO #1791 (1990)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: ITALY

FIRST TIME PUBLISHED IN NORTH AMERICA 

This is it ,Mousketeers,the moment we waited an year for ….

The conclusion of The Search of the Zodiac Stone

Our story begins with Mickey and the two scientists standing in their room with 11 of the 12 stones in their possession. Mickey mentions that the final stone was lost an century ago in a Western espacade and that not even their oddball luck could help them with this sticky situation.

Mickey goes on to talk about how Pete was also on the lookout for the stones and hopes that he hasn’t found any traces of Newton Figg, a name that tigers Goofy’s curiosity since he spent the entire morning reading the diary of his Great Grandfather, ,Goofalo Bill.

Newton Figg is mentioned in the diary as Mickey asks him to read on hoping to find clues to the final stone. Our story then turns into a separate story involving Goofaloo Bill (think of it as a comic within a comic like in Magic Kingdom Comics #1). The ancestor soon arrives in a little city called Cactus Flats, stopping by for a snack at the saloon in the middle of some cowboys bullying a meek citizen for his choice of attire and defenses.

Goofalo Bill soon steps in to defend him, making one of the bullies give him his hat to replace the one they filled full of bullet holes earlier. Goofalo asks him to come along with him as guides for a caravan travelling west and takes Mr.Figg under his wing. One day as they were picking some berries, disaster strikes.

A local Native American tribe attacks the duo and takes them to their tents, tied against some poles. The chief orders them to be tickled until they are shamed but the princess soon steps in, having fallen for Mr.Figg and begs her father to let him stay in the village. The chef tells her the only way he could stay is if he proves himself to be a bow and arrow master.

Goofalo Bill soon takes on the task of teaching the weakling on how to become a master archer , but it dosen’t go too well at first until later on he proves his worth and marries the princess as Goofalo rode on to another adventure with the Zodiac Stone in tow as a farewell gift.

Goofy informs them that he found the diary in a trunk in the attic as Mickey decides to go investigate in case the last stone was there.They soon find the stone against an old quiver and rush back to the lab to tell Uncle Scrooge the good news. Scrooge departs on his helicopter with Donald and the nephews to meet back with Mickey. ( If only a certain klutz of a pilot were in the story).

The wait for their arrival is agonizing for Mickey and the gang as they wish to assemble the stone. After a while, Donald and the nephews arrive at the lab but in a sour mood, turns out that scoundrel Pete and the slimy Phantom Blot knocked out Scrooge and hijacked the helicopter wanting the Zodiac Tablet for themselves.

Turns out Pete and Phantom Blot were a step ahead of them all this time, having placed a bug in the lab’s telephone in case of any spotting of the Stones.

It was time to strike as the Tablet was finally finished.Pete soon takes the tablet and assembles it, releasing… Just what is inside that Tablet? Will Pete and Blot emerge victorious ? Grab yourself a copy and find out dear readers.

BIG BAD WOLF IN POP GOES THE WEASEL

FIRST PUBLISHED IN WALT DISNEY COMICS DIGEST #3 (1968)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA 

This is just a simple story of the Big Bad Wolf harassing the Three Little Pigs, nothing really to talk about honestly.

LUDWIG VON DRAKE IN WEINER SCHNITZEL WOES

FIRST PUBLISHED IN DONALD DUCK AND CO.#42 (2008)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: NORWAY

FIRST TIME PUBLISHED IN NORTH AMERICA

Ludwig Von Drake, everyone’s favourite know-it-all is in the middle of teaching his class over at Coot University as the mailman interrupts his class to give him a package of Austria, he dismisses the class and heads over to his office to open it.

Along the way, he corrects several teachers upon incorrect facts much to the annoyance of the teachers.  The teachers soon decide that they have had enough and visits Von Drake at his office as they smell something cooking.

The professor soon explains the package contained a rare treat from his dear mother : Weiner Schnitzel a la Weltschmerz since no one can replicate the way he likes them. He explains he would move back to his old country if his shipments were to stop,this gives the teachers an idea on how to get rid of him.

Ludwig spends two days looking for his missing Schnitzel as his nephew Donald Duck shows up for a visit. He brought over some steak to try and convince Ludwig to make his own version of the tasty treat (I will have to try to make it myself one day if it’s a real thing).

Their efforts come to no fruition as Ludwig detects something odd on the floor. He soon finds out the teachers took it and then ate it since Ludwig made it sound so delicious and unique earlier. Ludwig then makes them help him out with his replica. 

 

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

SEARCH FOR THE ZODIAC STONE PART 12: 

After an entire year, the adventure is now finished and I have to admit the ending felt very rushed. With most of it being a separate story involving an ancestor of Goofy ( similar to the Disney Comics Goofy Adventures comic from 1990 to 1991), it ends up making the Mickey segments feel very rushed and tacked on just to bring it to a conclusion instead of it being another part on its own. Phantom Blot felt un-needed, he only shows up in the first and last issues in small bits, this story could have just featured Pete alone and nothing would have been lost.

The entire arc was a mixed bag, it could have been easily split in half and have the filler stories re-released as stand-alone stories with all mentions of the Zodiac Stone removed.

WEINER SCHNITZEL WOES:

It’s always nice to see some of the lesser known Disney ducks get their chance at the spotlight as Ludwig stars in this comic. The art is beautiful as it reminds me of some of the Donald stories I read years ago involving Donald being a prison guard and letting a group of brothers escape by accident. No , not the Beagle Boys, these were storks.

CREDITS:

WRITERS: BRUNO SARDA (STORY 1) UNKNOWN (STORY 2) LARS JENSEN (STORY 3)

ARTISTS: MASSIMO DE VITA (STORY 1) PETE ALVARADO (STORY 2) MAXIMINO TORTAJADA AGUILAR (STORY 3)

EDITOR: SARAH GAYDOS

ARCHIVES EDITOR: DAVID GERSTEIN

PUBLISHER: IDW AND DISNEY COMICS