I TL 3184-1P Prince Ducklet Topolino 3184, 2016 Writing by Giorgio Salati Art by Paolo De Lorenzi 64 p.
As relayed by the Bard long ago, this story tells the tale of Prince Ducklet at Castle Duckinore, of poison that turns you intangible to all but your closest family members, the plotting of Rocklaudius, and the antics of Fethrencrantz and Goosenstern...
This story was a joy to read! It hits all the notes of a Hamlet parody, without being overly dark or overly twee. In fact, Castle Duckinore seems mostly made up of goofy incompetents descending into chaos. Salati and De Lorenzi have an excellent timing for jokes, with a couple of comic beats that really made me laugh. It seems that De Lorenzi has taken a page or two from Mastantuono, but Saluti's jokes are quite original. The ending isn't quite as strong as the rest of the story, but it reads like a breeze.
Unlike the contemporary Celoni/Mottura parodies, which are much more cluttered visually, this art style draws a great line between being clean and readable, while also remaining outrageously funny.
Rating: A D 2015-007 A Marvellous Mutt Kalle Ankas Pocket 448, 2015 Writing by Carol and Pat McGreal Art by Massimo Fecchi 20 p.
This story is an homage to Peanuts, Snoopy in particular, while also having shades of the Warner Brothers cartoon "One Froggy Evening". Gyro builds a device that can make animals just as clever as people. After Donald uses it on a white dog with a big nose, it gets kidnapped by crooks who try to sell it to a carnival.
I am not a fan of Peanuts. Not am I a fan of Fecchi's art work, especially since he gets saddled with sub-par writers so often. But this is a fairly quick story that doesn't outstay its charm, and it's not nearly as depressing as Peanuts. The plot is basic. It's not the kind of story that invites much thought.
Rating: C- I TL 3155-4P The Stories of Edgar Allen Duckoe Topolino 3155, 2016 Writing by Riccardo Secchi Art by Libero Ermetti 44 p.
I'm not sure what to make of this story. It's a Scrooge v. Rockerduck story set in the 1830s, with Donald the hapless printer's boy as third wheel. Supposedly this is the story of Edgar Allan Poe before he became a writer, as shown in all the references to Poe stories that are in this story. But many of them fly over the readers' heads, unless you're quite familiar with Poe's work. Which, I mean he's well-known, but he hasn't permeated pop culture to that degree, has he?
What remains is an uneven plot that jumps to a great deal of hoops but it loosely centered at its core. It's well-illustrated, to be sure, but there's not a very strong idea at its core apart from "Edgar Allan Poe references". It also has the furthest thing from a Gothic tone that you can imagine.
Rating: B- I TL 1784-C The Adventures of Mick Sawyer Topolino 1784, 1990 Writing by Fabio Michelini Art by Maria Luisa Uggetti 57 p.
This is an old-fashioned story, even for its time. Uggetti's art style has some signature 1980s quirks in the vein of Guido Scala, and the characters lack the influence of either De Vita or Faraci. It seems to be a fairly close retelling of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, with Mickey as Tom, Goofy as Huckleberry Finn, Minnie as Tom's girlfriend and Pete as the designated villain.
I don't know. In the context of this series, it seems to fall a little flat. It's a 1990 adaptation of an 1876 book, with little of satire of the original.
Rating: C I TL 2116-4 The Picture of Uncle Scrooge Topolino 2116, 1996 Writing by Caterina Mognato Art by Valerio Held 61 p.
Scrooge commissions an artist, Van Gray, to paint a portrait for his gallery of McDucks. However, the artist gets a bad view of Scrooge, who is totally out of line here. He goes so far that both Battista and Donald (his replacement) resign, and Grandma Duck refuses to send him some of her famous jam. Haunted by images of the miserly portrait, Scrooge makes amends where he can, before finding out that the malformed picture was running due to a damp patch in the wall behind it before drying properly. And behind the frame, he finds a portrait of one of his ancestor by a famous painter.
So you're thinking, wait. Isn't this The Picture of Dorian Gray done backwards? And that's right, but given the limits of the story, I think it works. Held adds in a lot of Dutch angles during Scrooge's madness, and his offences are light enough that he can feasibly go through the required change of heart --- another element that wasn't in the original, but is much appreciated. And it was very cathartic to see some remorse from Scrooge after the whole Treasure Chest series.
This story manages something very few literary parodies do: it works as a stand-alone story as well as a parody. This is feasibly Scrooge, not "Scrooge". And for that, I think it's really rather good.
Rating: B+ I TL 3073-2 The Loot of the Barkservilles Topolino 3073, 2014 Writing by Marco Gervasio Art by Marco Gervasio 24 p.
I've gone on record as not being much of a Gervasio fan, and I stand by that feeling. In this story, Lord Quackett and Dolly travel to The Hound of the Baskervilles, and manage to pull one on Sherduck Holmes, although Holmes does manage to figure out Fantomius' secret identity. Other than that, he doesn't do much. Quackett still doesn't make much of an impression on me. Neither does the plot. All these Quackett stories seem a bit dull and pointless. Is this the best they could do with the period setting? Where's my Poirot parody? Where's The Great Ducksby?
Rating: C In the summer, we'll be looking at SEVEN SAMURAI.
The only ones of this set of stories I've seen are Prince Ducklet and the Portrait of Uncle Scrooge. I can't comment on the humor of the script of Ducklet, because the version I read was translated by Erin Brady, so, pretty flat. But they seemed to do a good job adapting the tragedy to Duckworld. On The Portrait of Uncle Scrooge, I agree that it works well as a story about the characters themselves in Duckburg, which makes me happy. The art is memorable, the adaptation to a Duck-appropriate story is done well, and it is nice to see Scrooge feel remorse now and then.
Another Eastern story, much in the vein of Shadow of the Dragon, but more directly inspired by The Seven Samurai. Mickey, Goofy, Horace, and Minnie help to defend a small village threatened by bandits -- Pete and his gang. It's a nice story, a great example of what Disney parodies can aspire to. Minnie's role is quite prominent in this one, which is nice, and Goofy provides the appropriate comic relief. Sciarrone clearly loves to work with Japanese art. Some panels are intentionally made to look like old Japonistic woodblocks, which is a nice touch. I can't read the characters used, but I assume they're genuine.
Rating: A- D 2013-036 Back to There Again Gigant Poleca 163, 2013 Writing by Pat and Carol McGreal Art by Cèsar Ferioli Pelaez 24 p.
This story, on the other hand, is how not to adapt a story. It's a truncated version of The Hobbit, with Mickey and Donald visiting several locations in the book in rapid succession. Pandalf -- that's purple Gandalf -- comes and goes without and any clear explanation given. Sure, this is funny if you're familiar with the original book, but the jokes should be able to stand on their own. The story moves too quickly to say anything meaningful, and parodies the original in such a way that it relies on knowledge of the original. That's generally not how Disney literary parodies work, and I can't say it works for me here.
Rating: C- I TL 1875-A The Metamorphosis of a Duck Topolino 1875, 1991 Writing by Nino Russo Art by Andrea Freccero 46 p.
This story plays on Kafka's Metamorphosis, but takes the story in a different direction. Donald/Gregor, a dead-end travelling salesman in his uncle's cheap textiles, gets accidentally poisoned by Scroogetek when the latter tries to feed him some of Gyro's pep juice. Instead, Donald grows hair. He then gets approached by Rockerduck's travelling circus to work with him for a month in order to pay off his uncle's debts. Unfortunately for Gregor, his uncle finds him on the last day just before the last performance to give him the antidote, making Gregor's contract with Rockerduck null and void.
I have to give this one some credit for going in a new direction, but I don't think it ultimately adds to the story in any meaningful way.
Rating: B- I TL 3267-1 Little Big Women Topolino 3267-69, 2018 Writing by Marco Bosco Art by Silvia Ziche 100 p.
The sisters Dickie, Daisy, Emily, and Brigitta live with their grandmother across the street of the richest man in town (played by Scrooge). However, when the new bank director (played by Rockerduck) threatens to evict them if they don't produce the entire mortgage before the end of the month, the girls decide to stick their heads together and perform a light entertainment show at the local theatre. Along the way they meet Donald, who's looking for his destiny, Gladstone, who's too self-centered to tie himself down, Battista, whose shyness prevents him from vocalizing his love for Emily (Quackfaster), and Scrooge, whose unused grand piano and frosty exterior hides the secret history of a young man who dreamed of being a concert pianist.
It's quite a touching story in places, and I can't help but feel that Ziche's art isn't entirely suited to it. Of course, she has a history with costume dramadies, but her characters' grimaces undercut some of the more serious moments in the story. It's funny and affectionate, but it's not exactly a pantomime.
Another problem this story has is the casting. Some of these parodies character stretch the cast really thin -- but Dickie and Brigitta as sisters, with Goldie (!) as their crabby great-aunt, is a bit too far-fetched for my taste. Perhaps the Mickey characters might have helped here, but they don't seem to exist in this story's universe.
Rating: B D/SAN 2016-003 The Duck Without a Past Ankka villa menneisyyttä, 2016 Writing by Kari Korhonen Art by Giorgio Cavazzano 36 p.
This story is much the same as the previous one: charming, with some odd casting decisions. Among others, Pete plays a corrupt but nice authority figure who happens to own Bolivar and Donald's car, and Grandma Duck is extremely hotheaded in this one. I enjoy the story of The Man Without a Past, and his being welcomed by the hobos is rather touching. His romance with Daisy, a volunteer social worker, is also cute. It's just a bit strange to see Horace and Clarebelle, Gus and Fethry, and Pete team up to save Donald from the Beagle Boys! Thankfully, it was all just a dream Donald had in the cinema.
I TL 3292-1 Pride and Prejudice Topolino 3292-94, 2018 Writing by Teresa Radice Art by Stefano Turconi 110 p.
Jane Austen and Martha Lloyd narrate Pride and Prejudice, as portrayed by the Ducks. Daisy, Dickie, April, May, and June are the Bennet sisters, with Brigitta as their aunt and Grandma rounding out the family. The Bingley sibling are portrayed by Fethry and Magica, Gladstone plays Mr. Wickham, Gyro plays Colonal FitzWilliam, Ludwig plays Mr. Collins, the Gardiners are Gus Goose and Emily Quackfaster. And of course, we have Donald Duckcy and his Uncle Scrooge de Bourgh.
I've seen a few Austen movie adaptations, which I quite like. This story doesn't deviate much, so that's good. Stefano Turconi's art is soft and gentle, perfect for the Regency atmosphere -- and very different from Silvia Ziche's hectic comedy in Little Big Women! (see previous volume)
It's a bit on the long side, but likely about as good as a Disney adaptation of Jane Austen is going to get. I encourage anyone who's into both to seek out this story.
Rating: A I TL 2992-2 The Odd-yssey Couple Topolino 2992, 2013 Writing by Tito Faraci Art by Marco Gervasio 34 p.
Mickey and Pete bust out to jail and join a traveling troupe of actors managed by Casey portraying Homer's Odyssey. Meanwhile, Trudy is courted by several annoying neighbors (Emil Eagle, Scuttle, and the Phantom Blot) because the treasure they were locked up for is probably in her house. As it turns out, the troupe is a front for a criminal gang and Mickey was a double agent all along.
I enjoyed the references to the Odyssey, but overall this was all over the place. Maybe I should have seen the Coen brothers movie on which it was based.
Rating: C I PM 195-2 The Master of Suspense Paperino Mese 195, 1996 Writing by Tito Faraci Art by Anna Marabelli 30 p.
Donald has an anxiety problem ever since he fell from a building in pursuit of debtors. Scrooge gives Donald a job as movie production assistent with one of his directors, an Alfred Hitchcock analog. Over the course of days, Donald finds himself in Hitchcockian situations: Psycho, North By Northwest, The Birds, and Vertigo. As it turns out, the director is used to using his production assistents as guinea pigs for his ideas, and Scrooge deliberately withheld this information from Donald as a kind of 'shock therapy'. In return, Donald and the director come up with a trick that makes it look like Scrooge's money bin was emptied.
Though I'm not Hitchcock fan, I enjoyed the movie references. The plot is bizarre and unfairly malicious, just like a Hitchcock movie I guess. Nice introduction, but the sort of thing I love.
Rating: C+ I TL 3109-1P On the Road Topolino 3109, 2015 Writing by Fausto Vitaliano Art by Paolo Mottura 65 p.
This story, based on the Jack Kerouac novel, follows Mickey as a midcentury would-be novelist traveling across the United States with two sheets of printer's paper and his friend Dean Moriarty, here played by Goofy. However, they soon find themselves pursued by crooks and cops alike, as one of Mickey's sheet is used to print counterfeit money!
I've read the original book, but its constant lawbreaking and rash irresponsiblity didn't do much for me. Quite a feat, to write a travel book about midcentury America that does nothing for me. The adaptation whitewashes most of the grimer elements, and ends up with Goofy as a kind of traveling sage who teaches Mickey about learning about life in the outdoors, rather than cooped up at home. It portrays Goofy in a way that removes almost all of this Goofiness. It's also not the sort of thing to print during a global pandemic. Go outside? I wish!
This story is nothing like the movie it's based on, and it's all the better for it. Rather, it follows Scrooge as he tries to unravel the motivations of Rose Nelson, the Beagle Boys' lawyer. She claims to believe in justice for all, but when he hires her for a case in which he has to defend himself against the city water board, she loses. Convinced of her bias, Scrooge publicly discredits her. Her reputation and her career are ruined.
That night, Scrooge gets a visit from Grandpa Beagle, who has come to clear things up. Years ago, Rose's uncle Bill was partner in crime with Grandpa. When Bill received the guardianship over his niece, he planned to quit, but Gramps convinced them to do one more case together -- and Grandpa Beagle was apprehended. Refusing to name his accomplice, Grandpa faced a longer jail sentence, but gave Bill a chance to raise Rose. In return, she now defends the Beagles. It soon transpires that one of Scrooge's employees deliberately sabotaged the water filtration, and Scrooge is in the clear. In light of these events, Scrooge publicly restores Rose's honor. A rare humble moment for the magnate. He also attends her newest trial, one in which neither he or the Beagles have any stake.
I really liked this story. It shows a different side of both Scrooge and the Beagles, and is a rare look into the inner workings of Duckburg. If you're more familiar with Barks' Beagles, you might look at this story and say that two wrongs don't make a right. But I think it's rather sweet.
Rating: A-
Last Edit: Nov 14, 2021 15:19:44 GMT by That Duckfan
So, "The Odd-yssey Couple" is based on the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou"? That's an interesting choice for a Disney comics story. I used to think that the Disney "parody" stories were based on classics that kids might be exposed to at school, or movies (Star Wars) kids might be expected to have seen. But Kerouac's On the Road or this movie...even more than Hitchcock movies, those are objects of parody which seem to count on an adult audience. Oh yes, there is also that "Metopolis" parody of the 1927 Fritz Lang movie!
I am off to eBay.fr to see whether I can get a copy of "Uncle Scrooge...and Justice for All"!
Clearly the genre of Disney parodies has evolved, and many writers are into all kinds of movies and books that aren't necessarily kid-friendly.
I think there was some issue with "And Justice for All" - the story was canceled shortly before it was supposed to be printed, and it resurfaced some months later. I'm not sure if the rewriting or whatever had to be done was ever explained.
On "Little Women", there is an older two-part adaptation too, which doesn't cast the sisters as lots of existing characters, rather has them look as various long-haired variations of Daisy.
So, "The Odd-yssey Couple" is based on the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou"? That's an interesting choice for a Disney comics story. I used to think that the Disney "parody" stories were based on classics that kids might be exposed to at school, or movies (Star Wars) kids might be expected to have seen. But Kerouac's On the Road or this movie...even more than Hitchcock movies, those are objects of parody which seem to count on an adult audience. Oh yes, there is also that "Metopolis" parody of the 1927 Fritz Lang movie!
I am off to eBay.fr to see whether I can get a copy of "Uncle Scrooge...and Justice for All"!
I think it's supposed to be the other way around. The literary parodies* are a way for children to get up to date on (popular) culture by Disneyfying stories that are normally too long/adult/complex to read. After all, the original parody was Dante's Inferno. At least, that's why I like to read and review this genre of stories myself. I don't have the patience to put myself through a 500-page novel, and I love the use of popular culture as a way to excite interest and educate.
Le grande parodie aren't really parodies as such. They don't exist to make fun of the original. They're loose adaptations and homages. Sometimes overtly, other times not so much. Mickey's On the Road (which features Sal Paradise as his neighbor), the Hemingway tribute, and the Fellini tributes are essentially in the same class as The Man Who Drew Ducks --- only some boring people draw an arbitrary line between those authors!
I think this is the last volume in this series. There are no new issues planned as far as I know. If so, I will lay down my virtual pen and thank everybody for reading along. Happy reading!
Yeah, it's the same as Classics Illustrated: An easy and inviting way for children to get introduced to a lot of great classics that would otherwise look way too imposing for them to even entertain beginning to read. Both Classics Illustrated and the Disney Grand Parodies introduced me to LOTS of stories I'd later go on to read in their original form, and these adaptations are definitely what nudged me into doing so.
Well, we'll have to disagree on Casablanca - I think it's a beautiful version, especially with the black & white atmosphere. Could be more serious, I guess, but it's still Topolino material, several years before PKNA (which made it easier to go into that whole "grey area" thing and to break some taboos)...
Btw, I wonder if Casablanca is the only Disney comic that was designed to be printed in black and white and isn't a newspaper strip.
Btw, I wonder if Casablanca is the only Disney comic that was designed to be printed in black and white and isn't a newspaper strip.
The first printing of "Topolino ino ino" (that ultra-small Disney comic) was in black and white, but the extended regular version is in colour: inducks.org/story.php?c=I+TL+2185-4
Well, we'll have to disagree on Casablanca - I think it's a beautiful version, especially with the black & white atmosphere. Could be more serious, I guess, but it's still Topolino material, several years before PKNA (which made it easier to go into that whole "grey area" thing and to break some taboos)...
Btw, I wonder if Casablanca is the only Disney comic that was designed to be printed in black and white and isn't a newspaper strip.
It depends on your definition of a Disney comic. On the more obscure side, you will find more black and white:
The Japanse manga is printed originally almost exclusively in black and white, with Disney manga (XJ codes in Inducks) being no exception on this;
There are also 3-D comics that are not really coloured, but neither black and white (since they are black and white and red). But perhaps, when reading with proper glasses, they do count for this?
If so, then stories published in Cheerios 3-D Giveaways should be really included (of 1954!): each issue contains a single story that is only known to be printed there, ever, for all countries (except for one story, Kid Kokonut, that was published in colour in a Brazilian comic): talking about obscure stuff!
The Disney Adventures also published now and then 3-D stories that are sometimes directly made for this issue (like ghost writers in disguise in the November 1993 issue; compiling a complete list is a task of 3-D comics for the reader).
Other stories designed to be printed in black and white were stories made in the beginning of the Disney production, like the British or the Yugoslavian production, but perhaps this is on the other side of obscureness, since printing in black and white was the norm.
(Note: it is a bit hard to decide whether or not a story was designed to be printed in black and white: I use in this post the definition that if the first real print by the publisher that made the story was in black and white, that then the story was designed to be printed in black and white.)
I was mixing up the Scala adaptations. This actually happens in The Robbers. 
