Disney LongBox Reviews: Uncle Scrooge #19
This month on Disney’s Uncle Scrooge, Magica outfoxes Scrooge, stealing his fortune and placing it in the Himalayas, Gyro invents a foam bubble gum, Glomgold talks about his origins much to his annoyance and has Magica finally won ? Find out when Scrooge and Donald travel to the future to discover the horrifying thruth.
Himalayan Hideout
Originally Published in Kalle Anka & Co #26 to 28 (2013)
Country of Origin: Sweden
(First USA Publication)
Another sunny day in Duckburg begins as Scrooge reminisces about all the various businesses that he has owned the years while looking outside the window at his money bin on top of Killmotor Hill.
At the same time over at Readum and Weep Publishing, Daisy has been having trouble selling her latest books as the publisher urges her to come up with better ideas. While overlooking a window, he gets an idea. He suggests that Daisy should write a biography of Scrooge McDuck since he refuses to give out interviews. Due to her connection with Donald, he feels that she has a shoe-in for such a project.
Daisy soon heads to Killmotor Hill dodging nearly all of Scrooge’s anti salesmen traps to get her story. She soon crashes into Scrooge’s office as she informs him people are dying to know about how he amassed his vast fortune. Scrooge reluctantly agrees to the interview in return of a small fee per copy sold.
Scrooge prepares to show off his money bin for Daisy as he comes in to an empty bin. Where could his money have gone ?
A few weeks have passed, Daisy notices that the Killmotor property has been seized by the town due to Scrooge having vanished. Daisy searches all over the city until she finds him under a bridge. Scrooge begs for her to forget about him since he had lost his fortune until a dollar bill lands on his beak. Scrooge recognizes it from a mining operation he owned years ago as they meet a traveler who had discovered a treasure over in Tibet. Little do they knew this was a trap set up by the devilish Magica DeSpell.
Will Scrooge and Daisy get this rare treasure before Magica outfoxes them one last time ? Read this story to find out.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
This is a rather unique story since this is the first time that Scrooge has an adventure with Daisy without the presence of Donald Duck and the rest of the duck characters. The ever eager reporter with the stingy Scottish rich duck. What a duo indeed.
What makes this interesting is that Daisy is a character that isn’t used to all the adventures that the gang usually go through every day on the hunt for treasure so it shows off more of her character since she now has to deal with a magical being rather than a deadline at work. Check this story out if you are a Daisy Duck fan.
Gum Disease
Originally Published in Topolino #2511 (2004)
Country of Origin: Italy
(First USA Publication)
In this short story, Gyro invents a new gum that doubles as a toothpaste as he and Donald decide to try it out.
The Glomgold Heritage
Originally Published in Donald Duck & Co. # 24 (2015)
Country of Origin: Norway
(First USA Publication)
A reporter from Duckburg has flown to South Africa to get an interview with the billionaire duck, Flintheart Glomgold. She asks him for a photo of him tossing money in the hair, he refuses at first due to all his money being boxed away. The reporter gives him some of her money for the photo instead.
Glomgold tells her to get on with it since he hired the newspaper to run a story about his upcoming contest with Scrooge McDuck. She tells him the newspaper wants more since the contests always end up with Scrooge winning (This plot was often used in the Duck Tales television series) , she suggests that they should do a article about his history. He then tells her there is more to him than it seems as he gets his family album to show her some of the Glomgold history.
He starts with Stoneheart Glomgold, who began his career as a cab driver in London, England. Then one day, he got arrested for a crime he did not commit. He got cleared of the charges but he left for South Africa seeing the world as being cruel and unfair after what happened to him. He taught that lesson to his son, Brickheart.
Want to hear about what happened to Glomgold and his father throughout the years ? You will have to read the rest of this story to find out for yourselves.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
I loved this story, I have always wanted to know Glomgold’s origin in a manner smiliar to Don Rosa’s Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck. While this is heavily condensed, it still shows off enough of Glomgold’s past to satisfy all curious fans. The art is a bit rough at times but the writing for this story is top-notch
When Magica Won
Originally Published in Kalle Anka & Co #39 (2014)
Country of Origin: Sweden
(First USA Publication)
Scrooge is off on a walk, collecting coins lying around on the ground as he recalls the first time he met Magica DeSpell. He thought she was harmless only wanting a dime he touched for a magical amulet but she got more dangerous when she found about the Number One Dime which had been touched many more times. During his walk, he comes across a strange fog which knocks him out.
Donald wakes Scrooge up as he informs him that Scrooge had been out for an entire year and asks if he could remember anything. Scrooge informs him about the fog as Donald tells him it was one of Magica’s Foof bombs. Scrooge tells him a Foof bomb should not have lasted this long considering all the times he faced her in the past. Donald tells him none of those encounters, he got Foofed during their first encounter and had been out since.
Scrooge thinks this is all a joke as he storms outside of Donald’s house and discovers a Duckburg in ruins. The buildings are all crumbled, the statue of Cornelius lies in ruins as Scrooge tries to pinch himself to wake himself up. Donald re-assures him that it is not a dream explaining what had happened.
Donald explained that Magica went to Mount Vesvius to melt his dime into the amulet to give the Midas touch. She thus caused financial crisis when she rendered gold useless as prices soared throughout the town, right to an 800$ apple. The police could not stop her because she technically did not break any laws until one night…
What did Magica do that broke the law ? Can Donald convince Scrooge to find a way to stop Magica once and for all ? Find out by reading this thrilling story.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Here is an rather unusual story where the villain actually won for once. There have been many of these stories in the past like Scrooge’s Quest from 1990. But this acts as a spiritual sequel to the first Magica story back in 1961. I did not expect the plot twist at the end at first since no one would have suspected Donald as being something off but after re-reading the story, I did notice the small clues the writer left behind to hint the readers that something is not right in this apocalyptic Duckburg.
CREDITS
WRITERS: Jens Hansegård ( STORY 1) Enrico Faccini ( STORY 2) Lars Jensen ( STORY 3) Olaf Solstrand ( STORY 4)
ARTISTS: Francisco Rodriguez Peinado ( STORY 1) Enrico Faccini (STORY 2) Marco Rota (STORY 3) Noel Van Horn ( STORY 4)
EDITOR: Sarah Gaydos
ARCHIVAL EDITOR:David Gerstein
PUBLISHER: IDW Publishing