That isn’t a bad thing, when DuckTales want to it can go big with its action scenes. It’s just that we got a little taste of something deeper with Launchpad and I wanted more of it. As is that end of episode revelation does give us a little to chew on when it comes to Launchpad. He may not realize how dumb he is but he does take his friendships very seriously and worries that he can’t quite measure up. It gives this mostly comedic character some welcome depth and I hope we’ll get to see more of it as the season goes on. Is Suave!Launchpad still inside our Launchpad somewhere? Will he emerge to fight F.O.W.L.?
Steelbeak was a fun addition to DuckTales’ rogue’s gallery, especially his continual anger at being called stupid. What is this guy’s deal? It seems he’s aware that he isn’t as smart as everyone else so he overcompensates by being loud, barreling ahead without thinking, and making fun of everyone around him. That’s some great color for the character and makes him more than just a reference to the Disney Afternoon past.
The same can’t be said for the Rescue Rangers. Gadget’s short appearance during Black Heron’s exposition about the ray was a nice wink to the old series but the two appearances of the full Rescue Rangers team felt forced. I guess it was supposed to be a gag that a whole team of small animals had been turned smart but it fell flat. I have no doubt this is set up for the future but in comparison to how the series first set up Darkwing Duck, this didn’t measure up.
The B plot following Scrooge and Webby was delightful diversion. Scrooge still needs to work on his greed, even when it comes to arcade tickets. The way he got completely engrossed and Webby had to keep in check was wonderful. The fact he only ended up with a comb was perfectly true to how these arcades work.
It wasn’t a deep plot or anything but not all of them need to be, sometimes it’s fun to just fun with these characters and I suspect that holds true for the A story as well. Sure this could have been a deeper exploration of Launchpad but as is, it’s still a great watch.