"The First Adventure!" is the sixty-sixth episode of DuckTales. It premiered on November 16, 2020 and is the sixteenth episode of the third season (though it is the first episode in the series' chronology).
Plot[]
In the 1960s, Beakley, then known as Agent 22, brings in Black Heron after she tried to carve her face into Mount Neverest. Bradford Buzzard, an accountant at S.H.U.S.H., pitches his idea to director Ludwig Von Drake to transform the organization into an all-powerful overview that retains peace and order in the world. Von Drake scoffs at the idea, especially since it sounds more like an evil villain organization. With no other option, Bradford secretly meets with an incarcerated Heron and pitches his idea for O.W.L. (Organization for World Larceny). Heron likes the idea, but adds an "F" at the beginning for "F.O.W.L.", which Bradford reluctantly accepts. He then frees Heron, allowing her to escape.
Years later, Scrooge McDuck is tending to his corporate business dealings with the help of his still living butler, Duckworth. He is informed by him that his sister, Hortense has left her children, Donald Duck and Della Duck with him after they placed a firecracker under their father's chair which put him in the hospital. Scrooge wants nothing to do with them due to his work, but after being informed by Beakley about an artifact that needs to be recovered, Della excitedly convinces Scrooge to take herself and a grungy Donald along with him.
While on the plane, Scrooge tells Donald and Della about the Papyrus of Binding, an ancient scroll that whatever is written on it becomes reality. The last holder of the scroll was the famed pirate Yellow Beak. Heron suddenly reveals herself to be the one piloting the plane, and she and Bradford jump off with the intent to let it crash. However, Della manages to get the plane to land safely on Phantom Island, much to Heron's confusion and Bradford's irritation towards the fact that Heron chose to be blunt about her work.
Scrooge, Donald and Della traverse the island and set off a trap set up by Heron. The trap launches Donald in the air who spots a pirate ship wrecked on a tall mountain side and informs the group when he lands. Heron wants to use the Papyrus for world domination, but Bradford informs her that the reason he wants it is to prevent other people from using it, as it takes everything literally and could be harmful if the wrong thing is written.
The Ducks reach the ship and discover the bones of Yellow Beak who had written a message on the Papyrus revealing that nothing, but misfortune befell him from the artifact and that his final request was to be freed from its curse which was done when Donald and Della pulled the Papyrus from his bones. Heron and Bradford arrive with the former attempting to use the Papyrus to have "Scrooge's sidekicks perish". However, Scrooge does not view Donald and Della as his sidekicks; they are his family.
A fight for the Papyrus breaks out and Heron uses it to bring Yellow Beak's bones to life and fight Scrooge. Yellow Beak gets knocked off the ship by Della while Donald angrily attacks Heron. Bradford gets the Papyrus and uses it to make himself disappear and have everyone forget that he was even there. Heron threatens to harm Donald and Della, but Scrooge writes on the Papyrus that only the rightful heir of McDuck can claim it and that those who attempt to harm any of them will be incapable to getting it. Heron falls off the ship attempting to grab it.
Scrooge realizes that he did indeed have fun on this adventure and welcomes Donald and Della to any future adventures. Back at home, Bradford applies to work for Scrooge, who true to the Papyrus cannot remember him from the adventure, and he accepts. As Scrooge makes him his CFO at his company, Bradford ironically declares that it will be the start of a beautiful friendship.
Cast[]
- David Tennant as Scrooge McDuck
- Toks Olagundoye as Bentina Beakley
- Paget Brewster as Della Duck
- Cristina Vee as Young Donald Duck
- Marc Evan Jackson as Bradford Buzzard
- April Winchell as Black Heron
- Corey Burton as Ludwig Von Drake, Yellow Beak
- David Kaye as Duckworth
Trivia[]
- This is the first episode to be set entirely before the events of Woo-oo!, the pilot episode.
- The episode "Last Christmas!" also involved events set before the pilot, but this was only for part of the episode.
- Most of the episode takes place after "From the Confidential Casefiles of Agent 22" because Black Heron has her robotic arm.
- It is revealed that Bradford worked for S.H.U.S.H., and worked with Black Heron to create F.O.W.L.
- The role of Young Donald Duck has been taken over by Cristina Vee due to Russi Taylor's death in 2019.
- The note Scrooge receives from Hortense is a reference to the Donald Duck comic "Donald's Nephews".
- Scrooge gives Young Donald & Della Duck marbles to play with, like he did with Huey, Dewey & Louie in "Woo-oo!"
- The use of Yellow Beak in a young Donald's first adventure serves as a nod to "Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold" being the first major Carl Barks duck story.
- This is the second episode after "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!" in which all the kids (Huey, Dewey, Louie and Webby) are collectively absent.
- This is also the third episode in which all three nephews are absent. The first was "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!" and the second was "Friendship Hates Magic!".
- Scrooge recalls the events of "The Treasure of the Golden Suns" to Donald & Della Duck. Said adventure was also the "first adventure" of the original DuckTales series.
- To jump over the gorge, Scrooge tells Della and Donald to climb onto his back and uses his cane like a pogo stick like in the DuckTales, DuckTales 2, and DuckTales Remastered video games.
- Despite the Rubik's cube not being invented until 1974, Von Drake is seen playing with one at the beginning of the episode, which takes place in the 1960s.
- Even then, it wasn't popularized until the 1980s.
International premieres[]
- March 19, 2021 (United Kingdom; premiere on Disney+)
- June 5, 2021 (Japan)
- December 8, 2021 (Italy; premiere on Disney+)
- April 21, 2022 (Portugal)
- July 19, 2022 (Spain)
Gallery[]
