Dell Giant: Christmas in Disneyland #1

Instead of gifts from Santa, a little boy and girl ask Santa to take them on a magical trip to Disneyland in this 1957 Dell Giant. 

Santa obliges, telling the children an assortment of stories based on the various lands and rides throughout the park. The Carl Barks classic 'The Black Pearls of Tabu Yama' starts things off with Uncle Scrooge and his nephews marooned on a deserted island at Christmas. Chip n' Dale must rescue Jiminy Cricket from the clutches of Br'er Bear, who forces the wise insect to teach him how to become Santa Claus. Mickey and Goofy attempt to deliver a payload of gold to a group of miners before Christmas Eve. The L'il Bad Wolf thinks his papa is making him a snow blowing machine to help him in his snow shoveling business. And in the surprise of all surprises, Peter Pan and Tinkerbell attempt to rescue Santa Claus who has been kidnapped by the dastardly Captain Hook!

I was extremely excited about that Peter Pan story. The 1953 Disney classic plays into the story of how my wife and I met. I had no idea about the existence of this story. It was such a great read and I loved seeing the Tick-Tock Crocodile fly after getting sprinkled with pixie dust.

There were also several arts and crafts activities and a fun and games section in the back. Considering that this issue is nearly 70 years old and only 1 of those pages was torn out, probably by some child who had zero idea how collectible old comics would one day be, I consider myself very lucky. I paid less than $10 for this issue and if that page hadn't been missing, the book would probably have been priced out of my price range. 

On my wish list of Christmas comic books, I've got issue #38 of Gold Key's Walt Disney Comics Digest. The front invites readers to enjoy 'Christmas at Disneyland'. I have a feeling that the contents of this special are reprinted in that digest edition. I'm still keeping that book on my wish list. However, as I now own this book, in 99.% entirety, obtaining the Gold Key book is on the back burner for now.

Sure, this was a big ol' commercial for Disneyland which had opened less than 2 years prior in California. But the whole thing was jammed packed Christmas fun starring many of my favorite Disney characters and it's a treasured addition to my Christmas comic book collection!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Comics and Stories: 75th Anniversary Special

This year is the 90th anniversary of the debut of that rascally Disney character Donald Duck. So when I saw this issue for sale, at a local coffee shop that sells comics, I thought that this was a tribute issue to Donald. Instead, this book from 2015, is an 75th anniversary salute to Walt Disney's Comics and Stories in all of it's various incarnations thanks to the license being passed through several publishers, including IDW, the latest and currently last company to produce the long anthology.

There are a total of 10 stories and shorts in this giant sized collection, split over a dozen segments. While Donald and his nephews kick off things in a story about a war of pranks amongst the ducks, Disney's brightest star Mickey Mouse stars in a 3-part story divided throughout the book. Titled 'Ridin' the Rails' from 1955, whomever did the restoration job on that story should have won an Eisner or other similar award. They made Mickey and Goofy and Grandma Duck look so modern and not from a 60 year old book. 

Some forgotten characters such as Little Hiawatha and Bucky Bug from Silly Symphonies, the Li'l Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs and Walt Kelly's World War II rapscallions, the Gremlins, all make appearances that fall under IDW's editorial trigger warning that some material in this book may be culturally insensitive but kept in the retrospective for historical purposes. Less offensively, there's visits by Scamp, the young son of Lady and the Tramp as well as a lesson on dinosaurs presented by Ludwig Von Drake!

But really this is a Donald Duck book because he appears in 3 stories. Along with the aforementioned opener, Donald is given the runaround by the antics of Chip and Dale before wrapping things up with Huey Dewey and Louie once more. In that story, the fellas take on Magica de Spell in a caper that doesn't even star Uncle Scrooge, even though the enchantress is trying to steal McDuck's singing flea! Even the variant cover stars Donald Duck. But where is Uncle Scrooge in all this? He's a WDCAS icon who made his very first appearance in any form in the pages of this series. He belongs here! At least Scrooge's creator Carl Barks is featured...

Be sure to read David Gerstein's article at the end of this issue. It dives into the history of the long running anthology and has some interesting in-depth info. So good, I'd love to read a book about the history of Disney comic books.

This 75th anniversary collection was a good read. But to not have Uncle Scrooge involved, other than his name in passing, seems a tad unforgivable. So I'm going to knock a couple of stars off of my rating. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Mickey and Donald: The Big Fat Flat Blot Plot (Family Comic Friday)

Years ago, I wasn't a big fan of the IDW Disney books. While full of modern reprints compared to the classic works that comprised the Gladstone and Gemstone titles, the stories were from overseas; primarily from Italian and Danish publishers. The artwork was fantastic and clean. Just the English translations didn't have the right syntax. However, I believe I would like to amend my original view of these works.

I had read an early entry in IDW's run of Disney works. The publisher had the license from 2015 to 2020. I had gotten my hands on the company's first issue of Walt Disney's Comics and Stories. As with pilot episodes, things were a little rough. However, after reading this collection, which features IDW's first two issues of Donald and Mickey, you can tell that those early issue language barrier kinks have been worked out.

I've read a lot of Disney stuff lately. I've experienced having a beloved pet stolen and really needed some lighthearted things to read to help with the emotional toll of it all. An amazing assortment of comics starring the cast of characters from the House of Mouse have been such a mood lifter for me. As I review these books, I've done a ton of research on them and I've learned that even though the United States is considered the fore front of super hero comic books, our love of Disney comics is nothing compared to the rest of the world- especially Europe!

European Disney fans put us Yanks to shame. Now that I understand that those markets are actually leading the way instead of following in our footsteps (I know, that's such an arrogant American way to think), I appreciate these books so much more!

One way the international books overtook the American titles is their portrayal of Mickey Mouse and his eternal foil, the Phantom Blot. Mickey's creator, Walt Disney, made it virtually impossible for the mouse to be anything but a goody-goody. Why do you think Donald Duck was created? It was to be the bad boy when Walt mandated Mickey to be the saint! In the States, the Phantom Blot was merely a hooded thief who was constantly apprehended by Mickey Mouse. Mostly by shear dumb luck. Thankfully, the rest of the world hasn't been hindered by those domestic restrictions. 

With that freedom overseas, the Phantom Blot became a criminal mastermind that required a ton of pluck and a little bit of snarkiness on the part of Mickey Mouse to apprehend him. In the United States, Mickey would probably break down and beg for mercy on the Blot's part at a parole hearing. In Denmark, Mickey would jump on the parole board's table and proclaim,  "Are You Nuts???" 

In the title story, the Phantom Blot has figured out a way to reduce himself and his stolen loot to 2D thanks to some ingenuity. Eating this formulated candy, the Blot can go back and forth from 2D to 3D. Thanks pretty darn clever. But the villain points out that anything his flattens that is inorganic remains that way forever. You'd think after the first time you did this, you'd maybe stop stealing new stuff until you could figure out a way to change the booty back! However, I think the Blot just keeps doing it to get under the skin of both Mickey and the inept Mouseton Police Department. 

Mickey's other main foe, Peg Leg Pete, also makes an appearance in a super-sized story. Mickey and Goofy find a treasure map and take a job as a ship's mechanic and galley cook in hopes of getting close enough to search for it. Turns out that the captain of the boat is Pete and he's looking for the buried jewels as well!

Being a Donald and Mickey book, there's plenty of Duck to be had. The all-out war with his next door neighbor Jones erupts in a pair of stories. Donald also finds out what can go wrong for the entire city of Duckburg when he takes a day off from his hot dog stand. Lastly, Donald tries to find a job for a character named Princess Oona; a prehistoric ancestor that Gyro Gearloose brought into the present but can't seem to get back home!

Speaking of characters, this volume ends with a character called Eega Beeva. From the 1940s, but totally unfamiliar with me. Is he a highly evolved human from the year 4000? Is he an alien? Is he both? You decide! 

I really enjoyed this book. I feel that my original misgivings towards IDW's Disney run was a little premature. If I can find more of these on the cheap, I will definitely get them. Tons of fun for the whole family and pretty darn wholesome too!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Darkwing Duck: Just Us Justice Ducks: Disney Afternoon Adventures, Vol. 1 (Family Comic Friday)

The Disney Afternoon. From 1990-97, Disney ran a 2-hour block of TV shows in the late afternoons after school let out. The event was syndicated, but eventually ran on the Disney Channel. Shows like Ducktales, Tailspin, The Adventures of the Gummi Bears and Darkwing Duck ran in a rotation that was a direct competition to Fox Kids. As part of the Disney Afternoon marketing campaign, Disney's publishing imprint released a monthly magazine called Disney Adventures.

Along with features on upcoming Disney TV shows and films, Disney Adventures contained comics! Stories based on the Disney Afternoon line-up, along with adaptations of long-form Disney films were released on a semi-regular schedule. As many of these stories were multi-parters, this rather irregular schedule meant that part one of a Ducktales story might be released on issue #1 but part two might not appear in print until issue #5!

Disney Afternoon Adventures Volume 1 was released in the summer of 2021. So yes, I am a little late maybe on reviewing something new. But the reason I found out about this book in the first place is because Volume 2 was released just last month and seeing the advertisement for that collection got me rather interested! Plus, I've really been digging some volumes from the Carl Barks Library lately and I've been wanting so more Disney goodness to read.

My kid sister is 12 years younger than me. So I am rather familiar with the stories despite the fact that I was 12-15 when the shows these comics were based on aired. Well, Ducktales actually came out in 1987 and I am a fool for anything with Uncle Scrooge in it! But everything else in this book was stuff that I probably was too old for. Yet, because of her, I'm actually pretty familiar with most of the material in this book. 

There's a lot of short stories in this edition and they are rather fun little reads. But the highlights of this book are the two larger stories that take up much of the real estate of this 200-pager. First up was a comic adaptation of A Goofy Movie. The second tale was a 5-part adventure that crossed-over all the way from Tailspin to Darkwing Duck, with Goof Troop, Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers and Ducktales filling in the gaps! A crossover that wasn't really a crossover, it was an epic romp on par with the works of Carl Barks, Don Rosa and William Van Horn! 

By the way- did you know that Tailspin took place 50 years before Ducktales and the other members of the Disney Afternoon? I didn't either. But now I understand why there weren't any flying pirates in modern day Duckburg!

I really enjoyed this book. I just wished that Fantagraphics did a better job letting fans know where these stories originally appeared. In the Carl Barks books, the level of research and background material on the Donald Duck stories is professional grade stuff. Here, we get a small bit of info on the material of origin on the ISBN info page and it's printed in a font of 3 at best!

A 3rd volume is scheduled for release in July. Hopefully, I can get both volumes for a good price. And hopefully, the amount of background material will get even better. Sure, these volumes are targeted for millenials and their children. But surely, even 30-something comic book lovers will delight in knowing more about the publishing and design history of these stories!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney Comics and Stories #556

A trio of stories from years gone by, helps to make this holiday season bright. 

The first adventure takes place in Duckburg. A surprise blizzard on Christmas Eve throws the city into chaos. Being unseasonably warm, none of the stores stocked up on sleds and skis which are suddenly in huge supply. Scrooge McDuck has promised to provide Duckburg with those needed supplies. However, his inventory is several towns over. With the snow piling up and travel options running thin, it's up to Donald and his nephews to save Christmas and bring those toys to Duckburg!

Up next is Silly Symphonies newspaper strip character Bucky Bug. It's Christmas Eve and the local metal-smith is stuck in bed with a bad back. His injury means that the holiday chimes won't be assembled in time for the Christmas festivities. But there is a plan B. The craftsman's son has the talents to install the bells. But he's gone travelling. So it's up to Bucky and his BFF Bo to find him before it's too late!

This issue wraps up in sunny, arid Arizona. Mickey and Goofy are on vacation when their jalopy breaks down. A dust up with the dastardly Pete draws Mickey into a plan to save a ranch from being lost in a lopsided bet against the big bully. Not one to let Pete get away with his antics, Mickey has become the newest ranch hand in a rodeo competition. Only Mickey doesn't have any experience in busting cattle and the contest is just a couple of days away!

It's not Christmas without at least 1 holiday story starring Uncle Scrooge and Donald. I'm not sure who crafted this story as the author and artist credits are unknown. It's not Carl Barks and the eyes are right for it to be Don Rosa. Regardless, the opening story was great. I just wish that the comedic twist to this story wasn't given away by the cover!

When I saw that Bucky Bug was one of the features in this issue, my heart jumped for joy. I just love those old school Christmas touches to these Disney holiday books. I finally learned why Bucky and friends always speak in rhymes. It's cause of Bucky being the star of Disney's Silly Symphonies strip. The rhyming is actually singing. Only there's no music notes to be seen.

I really wish that the Mickey and Goofy story was Christmas themed too. Maybe the pair went out west for Christmas to escape the bitter cold. It was a very exciting story and having Pete involved was the next best thing to be expected if you can't have the Phantom Blot as the antagonist. This is not the first issue I've come across where the capper isn't Christmas themed. Was it so hard for Gladstone and Disney to produce an all-holiday issue? At least I got my Uncle Scrooge and Bucky Bug!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars. 

Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #579

It's all about Disney in Day 6 of my Thanksgiving reads. Unfortunately, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #579 isn't 100% Thanksgiving. 

There's 3 stories in this issue. Of the non-Thanksgiving tales we have the son of the Big Bad Wolf having to going on a 3 Little Pig hunt with his pop and Mickey & Goofy playing engineers against some train robbers. The L'il Bad Wolf story was lots of fun. It had a lot of big idea fails like you'd seen in a Road Runner & Coyote cartoon. But something was off with the Mickey & Goofy story. I'm wondering if it was originally printed in a foreign Disney Comic because the syntax in those translated issues are often wonky and the dialogue in this story definitely had some awkward moments.

Let's head to the Thanksgiving adventure now. Just like on the cover, Donald is on the hunt for a wild turkey in full Pilgrim regalia. The reason- he refuses to pay 70 cents per pound for the seasonal bird at his local butcher. (Obviously this was a story from the 40s or 50s cause I couldn't tell you the last time I was able to buy whole turkeys that freakin' cheap!) 

Anyways, with Pilgrim Donald on the hunt, it's the perfect time for Huey, Dewey & Louie to play some tricks on their uncle. But when a turkey actually shows up, it's big, bad and mean (as all turkeys are) and ready for a fight.

Disney is a good go to for holiday comic reads. There's not a ton of Thanksgiving themed comics out there. So for this book to only be a partial Turkey Day issue, I'm not complaining. And L'il Bad Wolf was a laugh riot, as usual. But that Mickey & Goofy story was hard to read. Even the punchline last panel was terrible. It alone is why I am deducting a few points in my rating. 

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Comics #673

As I'm wrapping up my Halloween reads, I go to another one of my favorite go-tos for safe spooks. Just about any comic book by Disney is a great read. But the collective works of masters such as Don Rosa, Carl Barks and Paul Murry are considered some of the best when they A) star Donald Duck or one of his Duckburg kin and B) take place during the holidays. This issue of Walt Disney's Comics has both!

William Van Horn returns to illustrate the issue's cover. It features a Donald classic by Van Horn called 'Kids Play' in which the duck takes one a job to paint a haunted house. Only Donald doesn't know about the house's history. So, as he's doing a great job, his nephews decide to put the scare onto him. Only, there might actually be a haunt in this haunted house whose out to spook Huey, Dewey, and Louie.

Then we've got Lady and the Tramp's l'il boy Scamp going to play hide and seek with some friends in a haunted house. In another classic, The Three Little Pigs inherit a broom factory in which the Old Witch from Snow White(?- that's what she looks like!); who really seems to have her eyes on what with the factories' precious inventory. And in a two-parter, Donald Duck has been assigned as a concierge at a hotel in Transylvania! And he's actually really good at it! Naturally, that success doesn't work out when his boss surprise visits in order inspect Donald's progress. 

Okay- none of these stories take place during Halloween. But with the inclusion of ghosts, witches and monster vacationers, this is a perfect read for a cool Halloween time night. But at least these stories are more suited for this time of year than the all-new two-parter that fills the rest of this 64-page beauty. 

'Dimes Are Forever' starring Uncle Scrooge and Donald and the Mickey and Goofy adventure 'A Kidnapping in Yubet' are two stand alone stories that make up the 7-part Orb Saga. I like that you could read the stories without really missing anything. And the presence of Magica De Spell and The Phantom Blot were classic touches. However, I don't think the pair do anything to read add to the Halloween ambiance that was established by the other reads. But that's okay as they were both really good stories. 

I had a lot of fun with this one. With a little something for everyone, this is spooky Disney fun for the whole family- without the nightmares!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Dell Giants #26

The cover is touted as 'Walt Disney's Christmas Parade'* and the entire amount of over sized content does not disappoint. I didn't count pages. But I would estimate that this was either an 86 or 100-pager. Every story was Christmas themed from a team-up with Pluto and Grandma Duck against those tricky crows from Dumbo to a Goofy and Mickey caper involving a ton of stuffed moose heads. Then Donald and his nephews learn about Christmas in other lands from friends Tinkerbell, Jiminy Cricket and others. Uncle Scrooge gets in over his head in anticipation for a winter ball thanks to his desire to save money... Man- it was just an awesome issue from 1959. 

I was lucky to find this issue is really decent shape. There's a bunch of games and puzzles. A page to color. And no less than 3 opportunities to cut up this beauty with do-it-yourself holiday crafts. But other than a small nick on a corner on the front cover, there's not a page missing or fun page filled in. 

True, the pages have yellowed some. But the colors inside are vibrant. Especially the yellows! Those hues look almost like the printers used highlighters, those yellows are that full and bright.

The only thing that might have aged poorly was the Br'er Rabbit story. The cultural value of the Uncle Remus stories, especially in regards to the Disney film, Song of the South, has warranted a lengthy debate over whether such stories should be cancelled. If this issue was reprinted today, there's a very good chance that the Br'er Rabbit tale might have been censored if not omitted all together. I thought it was a charming story about a Americanized version of the classic trickster god character seen in stories about Loki and Anansi otherwise But yes, I did wonder if it was wrong of me to enjoy it or not.

As a whole, this was a timeless collection of Christmas stories. The art was crisp and clean. The jokes were fresh and plots delightful. This Christmas Parade was a welcomed diversion from a holiday season that was anything but normal. And heck yes- I'd read the entire thing again from cover to cover!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

* Despite what the cover says, this was a part of the Dell Giants series. Leaving off that 'S' can make database searches quite difficult as I learned the hard way. 

Walt Disney Comics and Stories #546

This issue isn't 100% Thanksgiving. In fact, only one story takes place during the start of the holiday season. But considering how rare it is to find a Turkey Day story compared to a Christmas or a Halloween, I was thrilled none-the-less about this holiday feast for the brain and eyes.

In the main story, Donald and the rest of the men of Duckburg are challenged by Daisy and her women's club to be like the original pilgrims and Indians and forage for the materials of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. The winner who provides the most food will get to have dinner with the feast's queen. Naturally, that'll be Daisy. Thus, it's Donald vs his scheming cousin Gladstone, who just manages to have the best of luck.

On hand for the rest of this special double-sized issue are several short stories starring a slew of Disney superstars including Lady and the Tramp's son Scamp, Winnie the Pooh and Walt Kelly's Gremlins. There's also a deluxe story starring Mickey and Goofy on the hunt for a rare stamp. Rounding things out is a rather unusual story. It stars Grandma Duck, Daisy and the dastardly Peg Leg Pete, who seems to have both limbs. But that's not the odd part. What is strange is that Jaq and Gus from Cinderella also star in this tale. So does that mean that the adventures of Donald's family take place at the same time as Cinderella? If so; why is Duckburg more technologically advanced than the realm of Prince Charming?

I really enjoyed this fun comic, even if only 10 pages (and the cover) were devoted to Thanksgiving. Okay, the holiday story was predictable. But I enjoyed reading it on the night of Thanksgiving. It was a nice opener to my 2020 holiday comic reading season.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 9

I made an executive decision for today's Advent. See, I've been working on this Advent for several weeks, researching and drafting ideas. I had another toy planned for today. But a recent review I posted on this blog inspired me to make a change. 

A couple of days ago, I reviewed Disney A Christmas Carol Starring Scrooge McDuck. It was a recent birthday gift from my wife. As I was reviewing the graphic novel from Dark Horse, I remembered a much beloved set of toys that I got over the 1984 holiday season. I'm talking about Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Minnie and ole' Scrooge himself- all in stuffed animal form!

If you read that review, you'll know that I was a huge fan of Mickey's Christmas Carol. It debuted in theaters; to which I remember going to see it with my mom at the old Cameron Village movie theater in Raleigh, NC. You might also recall that in one of my previous Advent posts, I recalled that unlike today's almost instantaneous release of films on home media formats, it could take a couple of years for movies to come out on VHS in the 80s.

In the Fall of 1984, the fast food company Hardee's ran a promotion to coincide with the long-awaited release of Mickey's Christmas Carol on home video. For a period of 5 weeks, you could go to Hardee's and get one of 5 plush figures based off of the characters from the animated film. 

(I think you could have also bought the movie at the restaurant. But I am not certain on that.)

I remember each Friday night after we visited my grandparents after school, we'd stop at the drive-thru of the Hardee's near our house. My mom would order a Pepsi for her and a stuffed Disney character for me. 

I loved those guys. I remember putting them out on display for the Christmas season for many years. Uncle Scrooge wore his purple nightshirt and cap. Mickey, Minnie and Donald were in Victorian era garb. Goofy was decked out like an English gentlemen. The only problem is that I really thought Goofy was colored blue like a ghost. But apparently, I remembered that wrong. I guess I got that mixed up with later beanbag versions of these guys released by Disney in the 90s. 

Oh well... I still have fond memories of them. 

Needless to say, the promotion was a success for Hardee's. There was at least one or maybe two more runs of plush Disney. Characters such as Dumbo, Pinnochio and Bambi were sold in the years to come. I collected those too. But the first wave was and always shall be my favorite!

As my Advent present for you today, I thought I would share with you the commercial for the plush dolls from all the way back in 1984. If they inspire you to go out and grab a set for yourself, may I recommend eBay? 

Enjoy!

Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #721 (Family Comic Friday)

      Folks, I was really excited about this week's Family Comic Friday selection: Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #721 . I had just gotten the issue in a grab bag and with it being IDW Publishing's first issue since obtaining the Disney license from Gladstone/Gemstone, I was excited to see what new blood the company would add to a group of Disney books that had become rather stale. There hadn't been any new stories done by the folks at Gladstone/Gemstone for a while and the Disney titles had become nothing more than a collection of reprints. Plus, IDW has done such a fantastic job with licensed products like Star Trek, Doctor Who, and Transformers that I had actually been looking forward to reading this for quite some time. 
    Plus, the spooky Mickey Mouse villain, the Phantom Blot, was on the cover! I love reading stories of Detective Mickey taking on the Blot! I always thought of those stories were perfectly suited for fall reading in anticipation for Halloween. So, I waited a bit longer to read it.
    Well, last night was the night! I got home from working a double shift and I was ready to read this all-new Disney comic. So imagine my disappointment to learn that this book was A) nothing but reprints B) contains a story with my biggest comic book pet peeve, an unanticipated cliffhanger (spaced out into 12 parts no less) and C) the Phantom Blot, despite being on the cover, was nowhere to be found!!!
    I muddled through it anyways . The first tale was sorta new. Published in the 90s in an Italian comic, this English version story had never been published in the States. This adventure involved Mickey and Goofy going back in time to learn the mystery of the Lost Colony (which I assumed was published by Gemstone just before the license switch.) While back in time, the guys learn of a mysterious amulet that was divided between 12 astrologers. Back in the present, Mickey and Goofy set out to find the 12 missing pieces before their arch-enemy Peg-leg Pete (who has 2 perfectly fine legs in this story) can get to them first and become a powerful villain! This story was the one that ended in a cliffhanger.
     The second story was from a Swedish Disney Comic from 1990. I don't know if it was ever published prior to this book but it stars Donald and his nephews. Donald Duck has taken on a job as a bookkeeper, taking off site racing bets from the residents of Duckburg. Poor Donald accidentally forgets to submit one of the slips and when that bet comes through, the hapless Duck is in the hole for $2,000. And the guys whose bet got misplaced sure aren't happy. 
   Both stories were a comedy of errors and they were funny. But the art of the Mickey story just looked wrong and the translation of the Donald story seemed oft mismatched. There were also a couple of short stories featuring some unknown Disney characters from the 30s and 40s, which were okay but not great.
    Before writing this review, I decided to check out my favorite LCS to do a little more research on this title. I thought maybe IDW Publishing didn't have enough time to produce any new work thus all the reprints. But upon checking a couple of issue published in the last 3 months, those books too are nothing but reprints!
    I'm wondering whether to blame Disney on this. They own Marvel and have for sometime. I think it weird that Marvel doesn't have the rights to produce Mickey and Donald comics since the publisher has produced books based on Disney World rides like Thunder Mountain Railroad and other Disney properties like Star Wars. So what gives? Why isn't Walt Disney's Comics and Stories along with other titles like Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge putting out new material? Why stick with the reprints?
     While the classic Walt Disney books are a cult classic among adults, there seems to be a disconnect with them and young readers. So before you splurge on a bunch of these for your child, maybe try just one to see if it strikes their fancy. It couldn't hurt. It's just disappointing to not get what you expected.

   Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Christmas Parade #2

This Christmas season, I read not one but two Walt Disney's Christmas Parades. This one published in 1989 was released by Gladstone. (The whole Gemstone/ Gladstone publication history is quite confusing and subject to another time.) Anyways, the second volume was actually a step up from the holiday fun of the first edition.

   This time around all of the stories occurred during the Christmas season. However, not every story was all that great. Bucky Bug returned in this treasury and even though his story did involve the holidays, it was extremely corny. I'm just not a fan of that character, plus his vintage style just seems a little culturally insensitive to me. I cannot put my finger on it, but it's like the character is based on the Al Jolson minstrel stereotype or Chaplin's Little Tramp but less dignified.

    Speaking of racial stereotypes, there is a Lil Bad Wolf story in this book that contains characters from "Song of the South", as well as some redneck forest animals and the Seven Dwarfs for some reason. I have a feeling that the inclusion of Brer Bear and Brer Fox probably wouldn't fly if it was reprinted today in anything but omnibus form. Even then, I'm sure Disney would include some sort of disclaimer about racism and differing attitudes in the 50s and 60s (when these stories were originally published) at the beginning of the volume. But this story was reprinted in 1989, and while it probably seemed harmless then, it smacks of the racial tensions plaguing our nations currently in New York and Missouri.

      The biggest thing going for this book are the tales based on the characters of Duckburg. Along with several cute one-page gags, Donald and Uncle Scrooge compete in one story to provide Huey, Dewey, and Louie with a real working steam shovel for Christmas after Donald forgets to mail their letter to Santa. Then the nephew and uncle duo return with Donald hypnotizing Scrooge into giving him all the gifts from the '12 Days of Christmas' but somehow, Scrooge decides to bestow these gifts on a mean mutt guarding an old lady's mansion.

      My favorite story starred Mickey Mouse and Goofy. Here, they help a friend harvest some Christmas trees and end up in the clutches of some poachers. There's a lot of laughs and some actual gun fighting as both Mickey and his nemesis Pete both carry rifles and fire at each other often. I never seen Mickey so bad-as...oops, sorry kids.

     Once again, another Disney holiday comic that I got for pennies on the dollar.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Christmas Parade, 1988 (Family Comic Friday)

    I promised to try and review some newer titles in time for Christmas. But I just couldn't pass this up. In the past year, I've found several Disney holiday comics for $3 or less at stores such as Dollar General and the Dollar Store. Not to mention that there's dozens of Disney holiday comics to be found at your local comic shop. If you live in the Durham area, I recommend searching the Disney section at Books Do Furnish a Room. They also carry the current selection of Archie Christmas-themed comics, of which I will be reviewing next week.

 For a very long time, Gemstone published the Disney titles. That's now changed over to Marvel, now that Disney is their parent company. However, they don't seem to release very much in comics form nowadays.

    Gemstone losing the licensing rights is one reason you can find Disney comics for cheap. Another is that many of the Christmas-themed books were comprised of reprints. With no artists or writers to pay, the cost of books was lower. Also, first run stuff is more sought after than reprinted material. But that doesn't mean that these books are not worth owning or reading. Let's look at the book I read.

    In this treasury from 1988, Donald and his nephews deal with some new residents living in his Christmas Tree, later Huey, Dewey, and Louie must figure out what Donald wants for Christmas if their going to receive the only item on their wish list. Then Minnie tries to spread some holiday cheer to the animals of the forest while Mickey and Goofy deliver a ceramic Santa to a mysterious client. Then Jiminy Cricket helps Thumper outfox a wolf, so they can make it to Christmas Dinner with the Seven Dwarfs and Uncle Scrooge tries to recall one good deed he did in the previous year in hopes Santa will visit him. Along with a few one-page gags starring the nephews and Goofy, there are two tales starring characters I've never heard of before.

     One is a fellow named Bucky Bug. He and a friend build a house out of discarded candy while annoyingly talking in verse. Then we meet the Three Little Kittens who've taken up residence with a young girl, but can't seem to keep out of trouble. Neither of these tales is Christmas or other holiday related. Yet, with 9 out the 11 or so stories being holiday themed I will excuse this oversight (and frequent pet peeve of mine.) Plus, with material dated from 1950-1988, only the Bucky Bug story feels dated. The rest were fresh and relevant to me as I am sure they were when first published.

    I think I paid $4 or less for this book online and as I mentioned before there are Disney comic treasuries galore to be found at discount stores and comic shops nationwide. You just gotta search. You and your kids will be glad you did.

  Worth Consuming

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.