Walt Disney’s Donald Duck “Christmas in Duckburg” is Volume 21 in Fantagraphics’s The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library. The book collects comic-book stories starring Donald and his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie along with Grandma Duck and her Farm Friends that ran from October 1958 to September 1959.
Buy Walt Disney’s Donald Duck “Christmas in Duckburg”: The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library Vol. 21The title story finds Donald overseeing the transfer of a 100-foot Christmas tree from Canada to Duckburg on behalf of Uncle Scrooge. The prior year Scrooge was teased about his cheapness the prior year by Ollie Elderduck, who promised to eat Scrooge’s spats if he gave the town a tree that big. To keep Scrooge from succeeding, Ollie hires a couple of Beagle Boys to foil matters. The other Xmas-related story in this volume is “Rocket-Roasted Christmas Turkey” in which Donald explains in flashback how his invention of the explosive weemite led to their tasty holiday dinner.
In another flashback story, “Tracking Sandy,” Donald explains to Daisy how Uncle Scrooge paid for the Junior Woodchucks science hall, although Scrooge isn’t as noble as he sounds. His true nature is seen in “The Floating Island” when Scrooge’s greed costs him more than he gains. The Junior Woodchucks are in action during “The Black Forest Rescue” when they test their searching skills looking for Donald, who will win a prize if he stays “lost” until sundown.
Donald and his cousin Gladstone Gander compete to impress Daisy in a few stories. In “Dramatic Donald,” they both want the lead role in a play put on by Daisy’s drama club. At “The Beachcombers’ Picnic,” they search for a gift that will please Daisy in order to share her picnic lunch. Donald gets help from the boys but a tidal wave is what turns the tide in the victor’s favor.
A few stories offer plot twists that don’t follow the typical Donald Duck story, keeping the stories fresh and the readers guessing. In “Noble Porpoises,” Donald needs money to take Daisy to the Clambakers’ Ball so he tries to catch dolphins to sell to the aquarium. Not sure “The Lovelorn Fireman” is an accurate title as Donald chooses his responsibilities as a volunteer fireman over spending time Daisy. “The Master Mover” finds Donald successful at a job. He is challenged though when it comes to moving animals from a zoo to a remote mesa because of a pesky mynah bird who agitates the animals if he doesn’t get prunes.
“The Littlest Chicken Thief” is a young coyote at Grandma Duck’s. She wants to collect the bounty for the pup from sheriff. However, Donald takes pity and wants to train him, but the animal proves rather feisty. Donald is a bit feisty when he gets “Spring Fever.” So excited to fish, he unintentionally breaks the boys’ kites repeatedly, which is very funny. The story gets even wilder when Donald runs from the game warden because he forgot his license.
The last four stories are not written by Barks. “Jungle Hi-Jinks,” script unknown, sees Donald and the boys head to the jungle to get nature footage to sell, only to come home with an ingenious way for Donald to make money. The last three are written by Vic Lockman and star Grandma Duck’s Farm Friends. In “A Honey of a Hen,” Uncle Scrooge tries to take advantage of Grandma’s good nature but his greed gives him away. “Weather Watchers” sees her billy goat respond poorly to inventor Gyro Gearloose’s “honest-to-goodness weather vane.” “Sheepish Cowboys” sees Zeke Wolf unintentionally helping Grandma.
This volume of The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library delivers a good variety of stories and a good variety of characters from the Disney Duck universe. The adventures may not be as far flung as his other tales, but he still fills his panels with great location details, especially when on water like the tidal wave Donald and the others get caught in. The art is colorful and Barks makes good use of blacks and shadows. This volume is another good entry point for this new to the series and should be appreciated by fans.
