Disney Afternoon Marathon; Darkwing Duck: Back when parodying superheroes was more unique

Computer: Functional again. Wi-Fi: About as stable as my network currently gets (hopefully being fixed soon?). Country: Looks like it's still on fire but it's back to being manageable. Ankle's healed, writer's block is gone, I think it's finally time to review content again!... About bloody time...

With the Ducktales Reboot teasing at the cast expanding greatly for the upcoming season, drawing more inspiration from the cartoons that ran in the same programming block that the original show aired in, I thought it might be fitting to review some of those older cartoons, especially now that it's very easy to view them. Yeah my first review of actual Disney+ content is a bunch of cartoons from the '80s-'90s and not The Mandalorian (maybe May 4th). While I could start off with something like Gummy Bears, I figure it would be fitting to start with the show refferenced the most in the Reboot, even bringing in the newest incarnation of the terror that flaps in the night, Darkwing Duck.

In a general sense, Darkwing Duck is a villain of the week superhero parody. Imagine if Will Arnet's Batman was in his own TV show basically, and you have Darkwing Duck in a nutshell. It works for a general set up, but if you're expecting something deeper then that, you're better off looking somewhere else.  Though the villains can be hit and miss at times, what works well in the show is the way the characters play off each other, something that helps bring out the best in Superhero parodies. The perfect example of this being DW and Gosalyn. Those two work off of each other perfectly, and are probably the best Parent/ Child relationship that I've seen when it comes to Disney... though considering most of my experience comes from their live-action tweenage girl shows that my sister was watching, that might not be saying much...

Due to Darkwing clearly drawing inspiration from Batman, I can't help but compare the show to Batman the Animated Series, and in terms of animation, I don't think DW matches it. Though it still looks nice, and actions have a clear weight to them in the animation and sound design, the darker colours of Batman TAS makes the action scenes look more exciting and interesting. Darkwing's animating gives off more of a Looney Toons vibe, which helps make it distinct, but again, I don't think it is a favourable comparison for DW, as the Loony Toons do it a lot better. Does this mean that I hate the animation in DW? No, I think it looks good and works for the show itself. But coming from someone who saw the show when he's 24? I can't help but compare it to works I've seen before it and works that I think do it better.

Is Darkwing Duck a bad show? No, not at all, I can see why it has it's fans, and it's something I'll probably revisit at some point. The biggest problem I have with it is my own personal baggage, the past experiences I have with shows like it. Is it a Disney+ seller? No, not a hope in hell mostly because the Darkwing Duck fans probably already have the DVD's of the show (if they even exist). But it's still a good show, one at least worth experiencing. Up next on the marathon, one of the more... out there pitches that got turned into a show, Tailspin.