Writer: Amanda Deibert
Art: Carlo Lauro
Publisher: Dynamite comics
Price: $3.99
Release Date: May 24th, 2023
If you’re interested in this comic, series, related trades, or any of the others mentioned, then simply click on the title/link to snag a copy through Amazon as you read the Darkwing Duck #5 Review.
THE DISPATCH
Another new and exciting exploit from the Terror that Flaps in the night! Darkwing Duck #5 really nails the humor of the series as well as the dialogue for the characters. Liquidator speaks in slogans, per usual. The comic does a good job of depicting the Liquidator, and captures his speaking style so much that it’s easy for fans to hear the voice of the late Jack Angel, his voice actor as they read. It needs improvement however at reintroducing readers to the character of Dr. Nogood. For those unaware, Dr. Nogood is a character who appeared on an episode of the original Ducktales series called, “Double-O-Duck”. This is the episode that inspired the creation of Darkwing Duck, though Darkwing did not actually appear in that episode. Darkwing has never canonically met Dr. Nogood, yet this is written as though they have a history. It also isn’t clear what breaks Gosalyn free from mind control. It does present from very good alliteration on Darkwing’s part though, something he is known for.
ART
The art in Darkwing Duck #5 is very good, staying true to the animation style of the show. It does a good job of depicting both funny scenes and action scenes well. Readers will enjoy how the opening page draws you into the story by causing you to wonder what is happening until it is revealed. There is also a humorous scene of Darkwing freezing and becoming a pile of ice cubes. The scene of Darkwing and Launchpad seeing signs for the “Nourishing Organic Good” company within the bustling city is somewhat reminiscent of the opening shot of the Bonkers theme song, another Disney Afternoon cartoon. Very bright colors are used throughout, making the characters stand out, but there seems to be a little bit of an inconsistency with the coloring, in particular with the sky. It appears to be day, then night, then day again with no indication of significant amount of time passing. There also is a fun callback to Liquidator’s origin episode, “Dry Hard” with the appearance of his “jingle-singing” girls. In the episode, they appeared dressed in various costumes of inanimate objects with only their legs visible. Their legs appeared to be human in the episode, but this comic changes their legs to duck feet, which makes more sense.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Darkwing Duck #5 presents a good story, but hopefully more backstory of Dr. Nogood will be given in the future for readers unfamiliar with the character, as well as to show how he and Darkwing ended up crossing paths in the first place. It was also revealed that he had been bankrolling Megavolt, Bushroot and Liquidator, so what other devious denizens of St. Canard could be under his employ next issue?