Here's a list I've kept, with the stories listed in chronological order. The first date is the date of first publication, according to Inducks. That's followed by one place (not necessarily the first) where it appeared in English, with the date of that publication in parentheses.
A Moving Story--Naerum/Midthun--October 2016 (can't get the link to work on this right now, but you can find the link in MacDuck's post below)
That's two each for mover, cleaner, cook, pest removal guy (not "exterminator" because we can't kill pests in Disney comics!), and landscaper/topiarist. EDIT post-Zantaf: Two also for demolition. The rest are one-offs. EDIT post-MacDuck: Three for moving! though the stories might focus on different sorts of moving/removal.
Post by Scrooge MacDuck on Oct 24, 2017 9:36:06 GMT
Thank you! Perhaps we ought to note with every story what Donald has become a master of, however?
I recall an Italian story similar to Master Wrecker, centered on explosives, where the tipping point was trying to bring down an ancient oak tree to make way for a highway. Can't find it though.
I'll also add The Village Blacksmith (Barks, 1969) as a riff on the typical brittle mastery tale, which follows the structure of 'Donald is working new odd job, takes pride in it, solves a few problems, then is asked one big masterpiece and chaos ensues' except Donald is already incompetent at smithing from the very beginning; by the same token, there's Hot Sauce! (Korhonen/Branca, 2005) where he is a master hot-dog-maker, solves a few people's problem, and chaos ensues, but there's no 'masterpiece' involved, nor has Donald given up by the end of the story.
Thank you! Perhaps we ought to note with every story what Donald has become a master of, however?
I recall an Italian story similar to Master Wrecker, centered on explosives, where the tipping point was trying to bring down an ancient oak tree to make way for a highway. Can't find it though.
I'll also add The Village Blacksmith (Barks, 1969) as a riff on the typical brittle mastery tale, which follows the structure of 'Donald is working new odd job, takes pride in it, solves a few problems, then is asked one big masterpiece and chaos ensues' except Donald is already incompetent at smithing from the very beginning; by the same token, there's Hot Sauce! (Korhonen/Branca, 2005) where he is a master hot-dog-maker, solves a few people's problem, and chaos ensues, but there's no 'masterpiece' involved, nor has Donald given up by the end of the story.
Area of mastery added to my list (when it's not perfectly clear from the title). If we find the Italian story you remember, demolition would be another area of mastery showing up in two stories.
Yeah, there is of course the issue of exact definition of parameters for what fits the category of Brittle Mastery stories. Hot Sauce! does come close. In the Gladstone Company's all-Barks Brittle Mastery comic album, they included Barks' Spare That Hair!, which only partially fulfills the definition.
I recall an Italian story similar to Master Wrecker, centered on explosives, where the tipping point was trying to bring down an ancient oak tree to make way for a highway. Can't find it though.
Can anyone check on sirredknee's suggestions, to establish whether they are brittle mastery stories? Also, on the Barks Remarks podcast episode on Master Wrecker and other brittle mastery stories, one of the guests thought that of the Norwegian job stories, the one that fits the brittle mastery pattern best is one where Donald is delivering cakes--he thought it was by Knut Nærum. Would that be Cake or Break?.... And since it's six years since I first asked, I thought it was worth asking whether anyone could come up with any more recently published brittle mastery stories, or any older ones we missed first time around.
Thanks! Clearly *some* of the stories collected in that book are brittle mastery stories, while others are just stories where Donald takes on some new job. If anyone can say which of these are brittle mastery stories, that would be a big help. The McGreals’ story with the margarine sculptures is actually titled “Master of Margarine” in German—does it fit the brittle mastery pattern?
Brittle Mastery stories: Donald is excellent at some new job, shows his expertise more than once, is given or chooses a major challenge which could be his masterpiece, but some combination of hubris and bad luck leads to a spectacular downfall, and typically it ends with his being run out of town.
I thought it'd be fun if we did a list of these(Donald's "Brittle Mastery" stories) — Barks or otherwise.
I've written a few of those:
(1) Donald Als Badmeester (Ridder van de zilte zee) - (Donald as Lifeguard) H28062 (DDWeekblad 2010-16)
Donald goes through a rigourous training to become a lifeguard to meet good-looking young women. He has two failures in impressing them. But in his 3rd, he becomes a hero by accident. Perhaps this story doesn't fit The Brittle Mastery mold, exactly?
(2) Koffierestaurant (Donald operates a Coffee Restaurant) H29052 (DDWeekblad 2011-05)
Donald becomes a great success baking pastries to serve with his coffee, but his 3rd "specialty" ends in disaster.
(3) Donaldo da Vinci (Donald as Inventor) H 27136 (DDWeekblad 2012-05), Donald invents a few successful inventions, and his "pièçe de resistance" 3rd invention ends in disaster.
(4) Who is Who? (Donald as Secret Agent (Spy)) D 2014-069. (Anders and & Co. 2015-15)
After taking a mail order "Secret Agent Training Course", Donald wants to get hired as an agent. He goes in disguise (long trench coat and Fedora (Humphry Bogart hat) to Duckburg's Government Agent Office, is mistaken for the secret agent they are awaiting, He ends up saving them against the counter spies, and is made a master double agent. Perhaps this story also doesn't fit the "Brittle Mastery" mold as outlined above?
(5) The Greatest Hoax of All Time (Donald as expert Trickster/Leg-puller) H94215 (DDSonderheft 162 1999)
Donald seems to win "The Greatest Hoax contest" for his team of Leg-Pullers" by convincing Scrooge to hide his money on The Moon, which ends up being a disaster for Donald.
(6) The Master Counter (Donald’s job Counting US’ money) D 2016-249 (Tollsten Geschichten(DD Sonderheft) 394 (2020)
Although this is not a "new" business set up by Donald, after bragging he could succeed at it, or after his taking a mail-away training course of questionable value, Donald uses his "expert experience" with having counted Uncle Scrooge's money for so many years, to save much money for his uncle in an emergency.
Thanks, Rob! #2 especially sounds like it fits the mold. I like the title of Koffierestaurant in German: Kaffee, Kuchen und Chaos! I have #3 in Super Picsou Geant 210, and I like it--love the callbacks to Scrooge's personal mythos, the gold teeth, the prospecting, the trapdoor chute. Also love the nephews' reactions throughout. "But does the world *need* it?" Doesn't strike me as a brittle mastery story, though, because there's no real sense of success on Donald's part in the lead-up, nor any public recognition of his expertise. It turns out he has been successfully carrying out Da Vinci's instructions and creating an energy-amplifier, but neither he nor anyone else realizes that until the end.
Maybe I can get a copy of Koffierestaurant in German...as happens often, I wish I could get the Dutch comic, but the Dutch don't sell their used comics on eBay! They sell them on Marktplaats, and I can't buy things on that site from the USA.
Thanks, Rob! #2 especially sounds like it fits the mold. I like the title of Koffierestaurant in German: Kaffee, Kuchen und Chaos! I have #3 in Super Picsou Geant 210, and I like it--love the callbacks to Scrooge's personal mythos, the gold teeth, the prospecting, the trapdoor chute. Also love the nephews' reactions throughout. "But does the world *need* it?" Doesn't strike me as a brittle mastery story, though, because there's no real sense of success on Donald's part in the lead-up, nor any public recognition of his expertise. It turns out he has been successfully carrying out Da Vinci's instructions and creating an energy-amplifier, but neither he nor anyone else realizes that until the end.
Maybe I can get a copy of Koffierestaurant in German...as happens often, I wish I could get the Dutch comic, but the Dutch don't sell their used comics on eBay! They sell them on Marktplaats, and I can't buy things on that site from the USA.
Hi Matilda,
IF you still have my E-mail address, please send me an E-mail message, so I will have your address again, as I can't remember your real name to bring it up on my system. Then, I can send you scans of the Dutch printing of The Koffierestaurant story, as well as 2 others that fit the "Brittle Mastery" criteria which are in English. If you want me to, I can translate the Dutch story into English for you.
I thought it'd be fun if we did a list of these — Barks or otherwise.
These are the first ones that come up to my mind:
D 7130 D 7056 D 5784 D 7478 D 7414 D 7148 (this one feels very Barksian) D 7462 D 6050 D 7168 (another Barksian one)
We have to consider that Gutenberghus editors encouraged this kind of stories. In their own 1978 guide to authors, it's written: "When [Donald] does work he has four alternatives: ... 3) As the owner of a business, acting as some kind of an expert. Carries out jobs most satisfactorily until the all important task is given him which he fails catastrophically."
plus:
I TL 2443-2 and the Midthun stories published in this volume.
Barks' ten-pager "Instant Hercules" is not usually numbered among the mastery stories, but it more or less fits the parameters; we see Donald demonstrating his deep-sea retrieval prowess for several pages (locating a missing pet goldfish, fishing up a scientist who was hiding from his wife in a diving bell, etc.) before getting hired to look for ancient amphorae in the Mediterranean, which leads to an encounter with a sea serpent which winds up shattering his nerves. It doesn't quite feel like a mastery tale, though--mainly, I would say, because it brings in treasure-hunt elements which evoke a different subset of Barks stories.
