Why ??--Treasure Hunts / Glasdtone Luck / DR is right / Favorites

[Olivier]

Hello everyone!
One long message, sorry; I hope you'll find a few interesting bits to make up for the length.


1/
Mohamed:

>>>> Why don rosa at his comics when the duck family is on tressure hunt they
>>>> mostly find The Secret Doors or passges By Donald Falling or Hitting Walls  ??????

As I said, discussing this requires some research, which I unfortunately don't have time to do right
now. Yet I didn't want to let this interesting topic pass without at least a germ of  a reply.
Could you give a few examples please? References to particular stories, I mean. I browsed through
several and had a hard time finding something; but then, I'm doing this very quickly. I'd like to
search through Barks' stories as well; I really can't think of  anything, I need more time to delve
further in this.
Once instance I found is "Return to Xanadu". The ducks find the tunnel / drain  that leads them to
Xanadu by chance, as Donald leans against the wall and falls through the snow. The ducks, here, were
looking for Mongol treasure.
Beyond the visual gag (at Donald's expense, indeed), what does it say about finding treasure-hunting
(that's where I need more examples)? Despite all their cunning and knowledge, the ducks do somewhat
depend on luck to throw a hint their way, to uncover a trail, to discover a clue; the path is
definitely not a straight one, and only chance may put them (back) onto the right track-- "The
Philosopher's Stone" and "Guardians of  the Lost Library" are strings of  clues leading to one place
to another, then another, ...
The initial discovery of  Tralla La was due to a stroke of  luck-- twigs popping up in the water.

There is an article in the CBL in Color on Treasure Hunts: "Reading and Reveries of  Earth", by
Lonnie McAllister (U$A Album 10; condensed from "Barks' Treasure Tales: Reading and Reveries of
Earth"; CBL set 3).
Somewhat related to this, incident-wise, there's also an article by Geoffrey Blum on corners in
"Back to Long Ago" (CBL of  U$A In Color, Album 16: "Reincarnations")-- Blum credits an unpublished
article by Lonnie McAllister for making him aware of  Barks' use of  corners.

Now, to paraphrase your corollary question (not quoted here), why the discovery of  the tunnel in
"Xanadu" the consequence of  a slapstick joke rather than a reflection based on such clues as twigs?
I can't tell, but let's think about it.
What are the narrative possibilities?
1/ Something hints at a passage; someone (a/ Scrooge; b/ the nephews; c/ Donald) notices it and
makes the right deduction;
2/ They accidentally find it because : a/ an incident occurs (a rock falls, an animal comes out), or
b/ someone (a/b/c/) finds it in a funny way.

In case 2/b/, Donald is often the victim.
Ever since Scrooge's adventures, Donald has become a second player; since he has always been a
bumbling fool, any incident "naturally" happens to him-- whoever writes the story.
A couple of  things do happen to Scrooge in Rosa stories, though ("Guardians of  the Lost Library").
Conversely, this doesn't mean Donald can no longer be a hero-- "Xanadu" is a case in point.



2/
Kristian:

>>>I would venture the guess that the most
>>>unbelievably lucky event happens to Gladstone in
>>>Barks' story about Hondorica

That was certainly one more extraordinary occurence.
Donald can  be amazingly lucky too, occasionally. I especially like WDC&S 96 (Sept 48; "Links
Hijinks", Album 13), where Donald & Gladstone are playing golf: Donald's ball makes an incredible
turn, bounces off  a turtle, is carried by a bird, thrown away by a gopher, and rolled toward the
hole by a freak earthquake-- but then, naturally, Gladstone's luck prevails.



3/
Mohamed:
>>>What is the use of DCML may some one remind ME
>>>is for Quakin All day with no use or objective or a place where some ppl
>>>meet ,, There is lots of place if u want to meet someone to shitchat
>>>but if u wanna join here u r here to read and to hear real discussion about comics
>>>so plz some one tell me  What it is for so  i wouldn't waste my time here
>>>Any how If No Real discussions and story analysis is Done Here I better be leaving

As Rob said, it's an ebb & flow thing: sometimes we're swamped under great discussions, sometimes
the topics are scarce.
Unfortunately, you subscribed at a moment when the list is plagued by petty conflicts.
I find your "treasure-hunting" subject interesting. However, you ought to be more patient: you
cannot expect people to reply at the tip of  a hat.



4/
Cord:
>>>What are your favorite Disney comics publications? Those you would never
>>>sell for a million Dollars?

First, I won't ever sell any of  my Disney comics-- I'll die starving reading them; and I'll place a
curse so my descendants won't event hink of  selling them (but I'll have raised them with these
comics, anyway).

The dreaded desert island question... I'm always tempted to answer: a handful of DVD-ROM's onto
which I will have already burned my favorite everything for just such an occasion. :o)

Seriously? May I cheat a bit and smuggle a comic inside a set?
- the first Donald & U$ CBL sets (the only ones I have)
- The L&T series
- Gottfredson's mouse
But I'm missing an awful LOT of  my beloved comics in there.

Among my favorites...
- "Lost in the Andes": imaginative, funny, well-plotted
- "A Christmas for Shacktown": wonderful wonderful Christmas story-- so much fun and satire, and
such pacing!
- "His Majesty, McDuck": my very first Don Rosa (in a PM anniversary issue)
- "The Treasury of  Croesus": I love the parallel Donald draws at the end.
- "Hearts of  the Yukon": action, humor and-- "mellowdrama", as the author might say, but SO well
done!
- Such Gottfredson classics as "Editor-in-Grief" & Bill Walsh stories ("The Moook Treasure", for
instance)


Have a nice week!


Olivier