matt_zimmer | Gemstone Disney Comics Reviews (Reply)

Mythos Island:

Well, we finally got around to the last part of the huge Disney Comics crossover saga. As far as I know this is the first crossover saga where both the Duckverse and Mouseverse co-exist. Other "crossovers" seem to have been more either adaptations of cartoons or the Disney Gang being different characters. This is the first time we've seen both world's interacting outside of a few rare exceptions.

My thoughts? It was decent but could have been a lot better. The huge revelation that Mythos Island was disappearing simply because people stopped believing in mythical creatures seemed kind of like "They needed ten parts for this?" After World of the Dragonlords I learned that Disney Comics are perfectly capable of pulling off huge multi-part stories that are neat the entire way through and that this just doesn't stack up.

That said, it was a real treat to see all of the characters ineracting. The duo of Goofy and Scrooge was great and Donald constantly complaining about Mickey NEVER gets old. I often feel Donald's persona is so vastly different in the comics than it is in the cartoons (probably because of his bigger vocabulary) that I don't think of the shorts as "real" as the complex character Carl Barks, Don Rosa, William Van Horn and Romano Scarpa have made him. His annoyance with Mickey seemed almost justified here which is something that would NEVER happen in any of the cartoons.

We even got to see Clarabelle, Gladstone Gander and other characters from both world's even if they never made it to the island. A BIG misstep was putting both Gyro Gearloose AND Doc Static on the island. Seriously, when you put Static up against Gyro it becomes VERY apparant what a vapid character he is.

I liked the story a lot but it could have been MUCH better. ***1/2.

Trick or Treat:

Carl Barks' classic Donald Duck story, and one of the few straight up adaptations of a cartoon he's done is superior to the short in every way. I LOVE how Carl Barks is able to still have Donald in his vastly different comic book persona all throughout the book even though the prankish elements of the story were based on the cartoon. I loved the witch and it was neat seeing the ghoul the original comic had cut out even though Gladstone reprinted the original comic in album format. Best of all, no ads! ****.

Hoblin's Goblins:

A fun short story of the nephews and Gyro in a small give-away comic. It was a neat read and I have ALWAYS loved the stories when the nephews try to slip out on chores and use short-cuts to their ultimate detrement. They are usually portrayed as really smart and it's always fun to see Donald get the upper hand whenever they choose to be irresponsible. Free Comic. Couldn't ask for anything more. ****.[/lj-cut]