An Update on The Depths of βGanderβ: Issue 18!
Back in December, I speculated about Issue 18 possibly giving us hints about a future situation regarding Della's return. I observed Cover B and noticed how the moon was present and how the mysterious submarine pilot had a space-vibe about her appearance despite being someone from underwater.
I've been anticipating to read it ever since. (And apparently many others did too, due to the fact that the issue is sold out on Atomic Empire as Iβm typing this!) Now that itβs finally released...oh boy, do I have some things to say.
(Please read the comic book first. Lots of spoilers ahead.)
We find out early on that the Mysterious Submariner is a queen named βDianeβ. Her name begins with a βDβ and it has Greek origins in relation to the Moon. Amusingly enough, I was mislead into thinking her name was βStellaβ based on the way Atomic Empire listed the comic, yet she still ended up having a Space-related name.
- Itβs implied that sheβs a tough girl whoβs skillful with weapons, such as swords, and she enjoys taking risks. Launchpad thinks of her when he looks into the night sky.
- Every time Launchpad brings Diane up in conversation he gets ignored. Itβs a trend in the show that whenever he constantly gets ignored about something, it leads to something else worth paying attention to: Constantly being ignored about being a pilot led to helping to save Scrooge after he struggled to stop Pixiu and played a part in discovering why Scrooge was being so ignorant of the word βpilotβ. LP's constant fear about one of the children being evil was disregarded even though Magica was nearby. If it weren't for Launchpad being determined to let Scrooge know about getting his driver's license, Fenton may have never became Gizmoduck.
- Whatever Launchpad βknows a lot aboutβ, thereβs a good chance that heβs going to be ignored at first, but then the others realize how relevant he is.
- There was a lot of focus on the Sun in the βToth-Raβ episode, another example of Launchpad proving to be important. Could this have been alluding to him doing something surprising when the Moon is involved?
The comic takes place ENTIRELY at night despite Cover A taking place during the afternoon. This gives Cover B even more significance.
- The story takes place in a dark environment with a body of water, just like βGanderβ and βDepthsβ. As I brought up in my previous post, multiple comparisons can be made between being in space and being underwater. The show highlighted this when Fethry referred to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge as βliquid spaceβ and LP called it βthe underwater skyβ.
- Iβm intrigued by the artists seeing Diane as so important, that they placed her on one of the covers instead of keeping her design hidden within the story. This is the first time we've seen any of Launchpadβs reboot exes up close; let alone get to met any of them. The show never gave us a glimpse of Ziyi and we still donβt know what type of mermaid Oceanika is. This comic could definitely be hinting that the next lover we see on screen will be just as close. (Or even closer.)
Diane caused such a commotion; a tsunami warning was issued out.
- Multiple people were alerted by her arrival, could Della contact Earth and it causes enough interference that a lot of people end up receiving her message?
Scrooge isn't fazed by the tsunami warning at all, he sees it as an opportunity to go out surfing.
- This reminded me of my speculation about Scrooge being so busy doing other things that he doesn't pay attention to Dellaβs call. I wondered if the bet he made with Glomgold would be the distraction.
- In an out-of-context quote, Roxanne Feathery talked about a storm forming over the mansion. Could the tsunami have been alluding to that?
- The idea of Scrooge planning on riding the tidal wave kind of reminded me of what Della was trying to do with the cosmic storm. Is there some sort of loose parallel going on? There was a vehicle, a pilot, a natural disaster and Scrooge's involvement.Thereβs also the idea of the Money Bin being threatened as a result: Scrooge assumed Diane wanted to steal his money and Scrooge almost causes himself to go bankrupt by using his money to search for Della.
Later on in the story, we find out that Diane came to Duckburg to save Launchpad. She was told that he was kidnapped and enslaved by Scrooge, but this, of course, was just a misunderstanding.
- In another post of mine, I speculated about Launchpad possibly being part of Della's motivation for taking the Spear due to his lack of input on her decision. Even after βLast Crashβ when we find out that he knows why everyone was moving out, he doesn't bother to weigh in on the situation. His reactions to the family crisis are hardly focused on. If he doesn't blame Scrooge and he doesn't seem to want to blame Della...then who does he blame?
- Could Launchpad have actually been in trouble years ago and Della took the Spear early to save him? Was she baited into space travel by being lied to and fell into someoneβs trap?! LPβs character has a history of space travel and heβs been abducted by aliens in the original Darkwing Duck series.
- If Launchpad was the reason for taking the Spear, could the natural disaster be in reference to Della's disappearance disrupting the family?
Iβve been holding on to the theory that Dewey could be reminding LP of Della for the longest time and this comic just increases that belief.
- Their friendship is being highlighted in the same issue we find out about one of Launchpadβs previous lovers and Dewey is said to be a lot like Della.
- The RI Cover has Launchpad turned around, looking at Dewey's portraits.
- After learning about the tsunami warning, he was quick to snatch up Dewey to take him to safety instead of snatching up both him and Webby at the same time.
- In the show, Launchpadβs attachment to Dewey feels like it came out of nowhere. He suddenly revealed that Dewey was his best friend in βTerrorβ without having much interaction prior and even after Huey was kind enough to check on him after the snake trap Dewey set off and Louie being the first to consider Launchpad as family. (Hm, but I guess to be fair, LP was dazed on both occasions.)
- In βShadow Warβ, Launchpad was more upset about Donald and the boys moving away than Webby and Dewey was at the base of most of his concerns.
- In βJaw$β, Dewey wasn't the only one to get eaten by the Money Shark, but Launchpad rushed towards him for a hug. (And then later scooped up Huey and Louie.)
- Dewey is always the one chosen to ask Launchpad about his mysterious, romantic adventures. Perhaps their friendship was sparked by Dewey checking on Launchpad after his search for Ziyi, but with all these other facts surrounding this, I canβt help but think that something more is going on.
Iβm so baffled by Diane and LPβs relationship status. They both still have strong feelings for each other, so why did they split? Why did she go back home so quickly instead of sticking around for a visit? Because she had a kingdom to attend to? Because he couldn't stay underwater with her? What got in the way? And what could this tell us about Dellaβs relationship with Launchpad if she had one?
- LP kept referring to her as just a friend rather than an βex-girlfriendβ or a βspecial friendβ. So they dated briefly? Or he just doesn't want anyone to know their status? Is it because even though theyβre not together, theyβre not entirely done with each other, so βfriendβ is the best way he can describe her? Why is his love-life so dang secretive?!
- They didn't even hug. Iβm sad.
Donaldβs exclusion from this story makes me wonder about his role in any episode that could reveal Launchpad having a connection to his sister...reminds me of when I tried figuring out why he was excluded from the news report and if itβs indicating the possibility of him being pushed back during a space adventure in some way.
Since Dewey and Webby are the kids featured in this comic, I wonder if theyβll be the first to question LPβs history and start doing an investigation.
Taking a small step away from Della: In the B Plot of the story, Huey is having trust issues with Louie the Money Bin. He things his younger brother made up the tsunami warning as an excuse to dive into Scroogeβs gold coins instead of cleaning up the treasures like they promised.
- Is this hinting towards a situation where his family doesn't believe him about something important? And could it tie in with Della in some way?
Keeping track of the occurrences that took place before the issueβs released was almost as interesting as the story itself:
The issue was originally set to release on February 13th, a day before Valentineβs Day, but it got pushed to later in the month, the 27th was considered according to Amazon but the 20th was ultimately decided and every outlet switched to this date.
iTunes released a three-page preview a week before the 20th. (I suppose it was queued with the original date.) None of the other sites had a preview available until the day before the issue came out and it was during the later half of the day. Usually, previews are available in multiple places at least a few days before the comicβs release date. I'm probably jumping the gun a little with this, but it seems like there could have been some hesitation over releasing any part this comic... it's not unusual for comic dates to change, but if it had stayed on the 13th, maybe that would have been too suggestive. Maybe they were trying to figure out the best way for people not to catch on too quickly? Whatever the situation may be, the fact that we're getting this comic not only in a month associated with romance, but a date that isn't too far from the premiere of βWhatever Happened to Della Duck?!β, feels a little too intended.
I was originally planning to holding off on all my Issue 18 thoughts on this blog until the new episode, but wow! This comic gave us so much potential hinting, I couldn't keep quiet about it! Perhaps I'll make another βGanderβ update picking back up on some of these points and what interesting things the episode has to offer.
I checked the preview for this comic and just now realized a photo of a mountain on Scrooge's desk..."there's always a mountain to climb"?
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