#Jason Zurek

[shychick-52]

Where was Gyro in 'How Santa Stole Christmas' (and other thoughts)??

(A LONG post from my defunct blog)

Whenever I watch the season 3 DuckTales episode ‘How Santa Stole Christmas’, Gyro’s absence hits me hard.

This is for three reasons:

(1) We see everyone else on Team Science (Fenton, Manny, Lil Bulb, even Boyd) get a present delivered to them, except for him. Huh??

(2) It’s yet another reminder that Gyro had been absent from most of the third season after episode 6's ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’ (‘How Santa Stole Christmas’ is the 19th episode, and he would finally show up again in the very next episode ‘Beaks in the Shell’).

(3) If you’re a huge Gyro fan like me, back when the final season was still coming out, you were probably waiting anxiously for his next appearance after his incredible character development in ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’ (and what more they would do with that). And honestly, I originally wondered- and dearly hoped- if we might see a scene of Gyro celebrating Christmas with Boyd (you have no fucking idea how gutted I was this wasn't the case).

(Doofus Drake's house - nooooo)

Gyro home on Christmas Eve and how he even feels about Christmas?

On the other hand, does Gyro’s absence from the lab mean he actually went home for Christmas Eve instead of working late?? Apparently so, and honestly, that is really cool if it's true!! I always imagined him being totally indifferent to Christmas at best, thinking it’s a frivolous waste of time for a stoic workaholic like him, so it would make even more sense for him to have fallen asleep while late at work! And it was really weird to see the lab all decked out for Christmas, unless Fenton, Manny, and Lil Bulb secretly did it after Gyro left for the day! And maybe Fenton and Team Science insisted he go home for Christmas and he begrudgingly listened (which I can totally see), or maybe Gyro surprisingly enjoys Christmas! OR if the episode- which is a standalone episode, not meant to take place at any particular point during the third season, which I discuss more below- is meant to take place after ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’, then maybe as part of his emotional and mental healing, he wasn’t staying so late at work as much. What do ya'll think??

But still, whether at the lab or at Gyro’s house (and since he wasn’t at the lab on Christmas Eve, it would’ve been a neat excuse to actually show where he lives), it’s just unfair that he was the only member of Team Science not shown receiving a gift! And this episode was directed by Jason Zurek, who apparently did a lot of the Team Science episodes and was apparently the biggest Gyro/Team Science fan on the show, so why wouldn't Gyro have a scene??

Manny and Lil Bulb:

Manny

I know the production crew was obsessed with Manny and loved using him every chance they got, but couldn’t they have Gyro asleep at the lab with Lil Bulb instead?? I mean, it’s practically canon that Gyro pulls all-nighters anyway, so it just would’ve made perfect sense!

(And was Manny’s presence meant to imply that he doesn’t actually have a home and lives in the lab??)

Lil Bulb

So, I mentioned what a wasted opportunity it was for Lil Bulb to have his own little stocking with his name on it (especially if Gyro had actually been shown with him). But it especially makes no sense for Lil Bulb to not be with Gyro, especially since he’s his loyal, right-hand machine and is pretty much always with him (I always assumed he stayed with Gyro at his place when the inventor's not at the lab). And you’d think he’d especially want to be with his inventor/father for Christmas (and vice-versa). The thought of Gyro being alone on Christmas is really sad. I mean, Lil Bulb’s friendship with Manny is cute, but still…

Boyd:

But I think what infuriates me even more than Gyro being excluded from this episode altogether is the fact that Boyd was shown to still be living with the Drakes!!

Like I said, When I first watched 'How Santa Stole Christmas', I was so hoping that we’d see Gyro with Boyd after neither of them had been seen since ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’ (and somebody on Tumblr asked Frank Angones if their relationship was improving, and Frank responded- and I quote exactly- “Oh, yes. Very much so”, and I always felt his answer placed a lot of emphasis on that, which gave me a LOT of hope… but they weren’t seen together again until the very last episode; and even though the few scenes they shared were absolutely lovely, they still didn’t feel like enough. We never really learned know how they interact or what their relationship is like). I’ll never forget how utterly GUTTED I was to learn that not only was Gyro absent from the Christmas episode altogether- especially after the rest of Team Science was included- but that Boyd was still living with the Drakes after all.

But then… I learned a couple of interesting things. One- ‘How Santa Stole Christmas’ is a standalone episode, not meant to take place at any particular time during the third season (although I would argue that ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’ took place fairly early in the episode- both when it actually aired and within the actual show). And two- according to the production codes of the third season, ‘How Santa Stole Christmas’ was actually made before ‘Astro B.O.Y.D. even though it aired much later:

At first, this relieved me! But then, I thought of something else. Even if 'How Santa Stole Christmas' was actually produced before ‘Astro B.O.Y.D.’ and wasn’t meant to take place at any particular time during the season, Frank said that the premise for AB was created way back when season 2’s ‘Happy Birthday, Doofus Drake’ was in production. Not only that, but they obviously knew ‘How Santa Stole Christmas’ would air way later in the season, being a Christmas episode… so, they obviously knew it would air after AB. In that case, there was no excuse for them not to show Boyd with Gyro!

I was really hoping the book The Art of DuckTales would offer some behind-the-scenes explanations for some of these questions, but Gyro wasn’t even mentioned under this episode.

[dorothydalmati1]

The Great North Season 3 Episode 18: Pa-shank Redemption Adventure

Written by Mike Olsen

Directed by Neil Graf

Storyboard by Ban Adams, Jennifer Shang, Alyx Jolivet, Arthur Valencia, Robert Parker, Polly Guo, Joe Ryan & Jason Zurek

Prop design by Marty Warner & Anthony Weinstock

[martinjost]

Ein VOYAGER-Museum 🖖🏻 «Star Trek: Lower Decks» 4×01 »Twovix«

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A post shared by Star Trek on Paramount+ (@startrekonpplus)

🗄Lt. Cmdr. Josts kleiner Star-Trek-Episodenführer

(#01119) Die U.S.S. CERRITOS erhält den Auftrag, das historische Raumschiff VOYAGER von einer geheimen Museumsbasis zum Auftakt seiner Ausstellungstournee zu überführen. Dabei können Boimler (Jack Quaid) und sein Trupp nicht nur viel kaputt machen, sondern auch schlummernde Gefahren aus der VOYAGER-Geschichte heraufbeschwören. Eine davon ist die außerirdische Orchidee, die nicht in den Transporter geraten sollte, wenn man nicht beim Beamen einzelne Crewmitglieder zu neuen Hybriden vermischen möchte. Die versehentlich hybridisierten Kolleg*innen entwickeln eine eigene kulturelle Identität, vermehren sich und wehren sich dagegen, wieder in ihre Ursprungspersönlichkeiten aufgeteilt zu werden.

Neben «Picard» entwickelt sich «Lower Decks» zur Museumsserie. Dass die Ressource Raumschiff in der Sternenflotte in dieser Zahl archiviert wird, ist erstaunlich. In «Picard» sahen wir am Ende von Staffel 3 ein ganzes Flottenmuseum aus lauter leistungsfähigen Schiffen.

Früher hätte man große Raumschiffe zugrunde geflogen, bis sie auseinander fielen und nach einer Reihe von Modernisierungen noch als Kadettenschulschiff benutzt. Vielleicht ist aber auch das Sondervermögen für den Flottenausbau im Zuge der romulanischen Evakuierungsmission schuld? In diesem Fall gäbe es auf absehbare Zeit Überkapazitäten und folglich eine neue Wertschätzung für die museale Nutzung von eigentlich nützlichen Raumschiffen.

Die Episode »Twovix« ist jedenfalls eine bunte «Voyager»-Easter-Egg-Revue. Jeder Winkel jeder Einstellung wird für visuelle Anspielungen gebraucht, der Soundtrack zitiert ausführlich die «Voyager»-Melodien und wir behandeln direkt und humorvoll unser »Tuvix«-Trauma, die schlimmste «Star Trek»-Folge aller Zeiten, deren bloße Erwähnung uns als Fan erschaudern lässt.

«Star Trek: Lower Decks» 4×01 »Twovix« ★★★☆☆ Regie: Barry J. Kelly Drehbuch: Mike McMahan, Jason Zurek Erstausstrahlung: 7. September 2023 (USA, D-A-CH) Laufzeit: 25 min Stream auf amazon Prime (← Affiliate-Link)

[disneytva]

Disney And Gallery Nucleus Team Up For “The Art Of DuckTales” Panel To Celebrate Art Book Release.

Disney and Gallery Nucleus will host a book signing and panel named The Art Of DuckTales this to celebrate the release of The Art Of DuckTales by Dark Horse Comics.

The art exibit will have a special panel with Matt Youngberg and Frank Angones and the DuckTales crew to give insights on behind the scenes of the book followed by a Q&A.

NOTE: Don't ask questions about the big elephant on the room (Darkwing Duck Reboot being connected to DT17).

The Art Of DuckTales

November 5, 2022

Opening Reception / Nov 5, 3:00PM - 6:00PM

Nucleus is excited to welcome the creative minds behind 2017 DuckTales for an in-person / virtual Q & A and signing!}

Pre-ordered copies of The Art of DuckTales will be signed by the panelists listed below.

SIGNING AND PANEL DETAILS  (Nov. 5th 3:00pm - 6:00pm PST)

If you can't attend in-person join us live on TWITCH

LIVE Q&A PANEL & SIGNING TIMELINE

3:00 - 4:00 pm : - Moderated Panel

4:00 - 4:45 pm : - Q&A 

5:00 - 6:00 pm : - Signing

FEATURED PANELISTS

Matthew Youngberg - creator / show runner

Frank Angones - creator / story editor

Sean Jimenez - art director

Valerie Schwarz - assistant art director

Tanner Johnson - storyboard artist

Jason Zurek - storyboard artist

Suzanna Olson - producer

Laura Leganza Reynolds - associate producer

[thecraggus]

Star Trek: Lower Decks S2E01 - Strange Energies Review

#StarTrekLowerDecks S2E01 - Strange Energies #Review

STAR TREK series rarely start their seasons firing on all cylinders, even – actually make that especially – when they are resolving a cliffhanger and while STRANGE ENERGIES isn’t the second part of a cliffhanger ending to the first season of STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS, there are some unresolved plot threads that the episode barely acknowledges in favour of just having an absolute ball rifling through…

[ravenconspiracy]

Jason Zurek: “This Monday is the big season 3 Ducktales/Darkwing Duck two-parter! @americanninjax directed part one and I directed part 2 of LET'S. GET. DANGEROUS! Hope everyone enjoys it!”

(twitter link in source)

[dragonsareawesome123]

Poster for “Astro B.O.Y.D!” from Jason Zurek’s Twitter.

[schmuckbre]

TOMORROW!!

Credit to: Sam King Credit to: Jason Zurek

[lunargenerala]

[ my favorite piece of lunaris art by sam has never been posted on tumblr and i need it on here so here it is.

bonus gif by jason zurek that y’all definitely need to see ]

[sounmashnews]

[ad_1] Peanut Hamper is again! The AWOL exocomp first launched in Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 1 returns on this week’s episode of the present. And as you possibly can see in Decider’s unique take a look at “A Mathematically Perfect Redemption”, this Peanut is getting tremendous salty. In the look, PH has been deserted by Starfleet (technically, the little robotic ran away) and gone full-on Castaway, even creating her personal pal out of some floating particles in a star-field. And although she’s refusing to name her former crewmates for assist in the episode, it seems that the exocomp that would goes to be happening an journey of her personal. “Peanut Hamper is so funny to me,” Lower Decks creator Mike McMahan instructed Decider of the episode. “Kether [Donohue] plays her so amazingly, and I already love exocomps in that they’re like these little self-preservation bots, that if they decide to help you, they can save the day.” Though the circumstances of how Peanut Hamper returns, and what occurs subsequent are beneath wraps till the episode streams, this week’s episode does push Peanut Hamper to the forefront of the motion — and McMahan couldn’t imagine they “dedicated a year of work to an episode” about “something without a face.” Though, he added: “That’s what animation is for.” Star Trek: Lower Decks stars Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noël Wells, Eugene Cordero, Dawnn Lewis, Jerry O’Connell, and Gillian Vigman. Written by Anne Kim and directed by Jason Zurek, the official synopsis for “A Mathematically Perfect Redemption” is purposefully obscure: “A wayward Starfleet ensign struggles to find a path to redemption.” But given the title, will Peanut Hamper discover redemption, and her method again to Starfleet? You’ll must tune into the brand new episode when it streams tomorrow to seek out out. [ad_2] Source link

[shychick-52]

Frank Angones quotes - Pt. 2

So, Feb. 12, 2020 was the date the episode 'Astro B.O.Y.D.' got screened before the production team to fully review for the first time (it aired on May 2nd). But I love that Frank got emotional over the hug between Gyro and Boyd when they saw the finished episode (and felt compelled to tweet about it that very day)!

And that scene made storyboard artist Sam King tear up back when she was only storyboarding it, which is so cool and shows that the emotional impact came through even in that early stage.

Also, in The Art of DuckTales, co-creator Matt Youngberg had this to say about the episode (he was referring to that scene):

Jason Zurek, the director of the episode, had this to say in Art of DuckTales:

(Click here for Part 1 of my ongoing Frank Angones quotes about Team Science).

[dorothydalmati1]

The Great North Season 3 Episode 13: Sister Pact Too Adventure

Written by Carlee Malemute

Directed by Neil Graf

Storyboard by Ben Adams, Jennifer Shang, Polly Guo, Arthur Valencia, Robert Parker & Jason Zurek

Prop design by Marty Warner & Jessica Speights

[aion-rsa]

DuckTales Season 3 Episode 18 Review: How Santa Stole Christmas!

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This DUCKTALES review contains spoilers.

It’s hard for any TV show to surprise me but when they opened that gift and discovered Scrooge was actually delivering coal all this time? I gasped. WHAT A BETRAYAL. Scrooge, how dare you! But… it made sense.

DuckTales has done a lot of work in growing Scrooge from the person we first met in the premiere who only cared about money. He’s slowly grown to love his extended family and isn’t quite as much of a curmudgeon as he used to be. Still though, just because Scrooge has changed some parts of himself doesn’t mean he’s flawless. There are a lot of ingrained world views that can’t be changed in just a few years. 

Scrooge loves to remind us of his impoverished background. That he worked himself up from nothing. It makes for a great “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” story but Scrooge never likes to dwell on what it was like to live in poverty. Growing up without any coal for the fire, it’s not a pleasant way to live. 

Since it’s a Christmas episode we can look at this in the schmaltziest way possible, Scrooge’s heart turned cold, to ice. It had to in order to survive. He was forced to live practically, making money any way he could. At first he might have felt jealous at not getting frivolous gifts but to combat that he turned his jealousy into a deep hatred. Who needs frivolous things, practical is the way to go! If you want frivolous things there’s something wrong with you!

This insight helps to illuminate why his friendship with Santa broke down. Seeing his kindness reminds Scrooge of what he never got. The defenses he built up pushed Santa away. If he gives away frivolous gifts that means Scrooge’s whole mindset is wrong, his whole life is wrong! Scrooge refuses to acknowledge how awful growing up was and instead romanticizes the awful conditions he was in. It’s what’s kept him going… and he wants to inflict it on everyone else.

Of course Scrooge isn’t trying to be that awful, this is all beneath the surface. In his mind he genuinely thinks he’s helping people (and making a nice profit to.) However it’s when he meets Jennifer that he realizes how wrong he’s been. She doesn’t want something practical; she just wants something fun to play with. Scrooge can’t believe this at first. It makes no sense! You need to be practical to survive!

But no… you don’t. Sure the coal would make the house warm for a night but it’s the joy at the nice gift that’ll get Jennifer through the hard times. In that moment Scrooge realizes how wrong he’s been. Not just tonight but his whole life. His cold, icy heart wasn’t something to be proud of. It was simply a way for him to survive and that wasn’t good in the long term. He kept his defenses up long past when they were useful and in the process hurt others. 

Scrooge discovers that no, frivolous things aren’t bad. Being practical doesn’t automatically make it better. Sometimes you just need something nice.

I absolutely love this insight into Scrooge and the wider message the whole story conveyed. If you’re in a rough place financially it’s easy for others to look down on you for owning anything frivolous. If you have nothing the only things you should be getting are PRACTICAL. But no, no matter who you are you deserve something nice. Something that isn’t just for survival. That can keep you going, no matter how frivolous it might be.

It’s awful that so many rich people in the world, who have everything and could be beyond generous, refuse to help others in this way. They look down on those less well off and chide them for not living practically. It’s the annoying “if you stopped buying Starbucks you’d be rich!” adage. Jeez, just let people have some small comforts in life!

That’s what makes Scrooges turn in this episode all the more powerful. He rejects the ice-cold worldview he’s kept inside his whole life and finally allows his heart to be open to warmth again. He mends his broken relationship with Santa and does right, giving frivolous gifts to the whole world! More of the wealthy in our world could learn a lesson from Scrooge. (They should also share their wealth and not hoard it but hey, DuckTales hopefully has a long run to tackle that issue to.)

After so much build up I wasn’t sure DuckTales could pull off finally revealing why Scrooge hates Santa so much but they made it work! It was schmaltzy, yes, but it’s a Christmas episode and it was a damn good lesson with some rich insight into Scrooge’s character. 

Major credit goes to writer Colleen Evanson, storyboarders Sam King, Kathryn Marusik, Stephan Park, director Jason Zurek, and everyone else who helped bring this wonderful story to screen. You all deserve the most frivolous gifts possible!

DuckTales Quotes To Make Your Life Better

-“Probably a bunch of carolers spreading lies.” “Let’s go silent their night.”

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

-“What kind of toy is this?” “One of our most powerful resources.” “Love?” “No, coal!”

The post DuckTales Season 3 Episode 18 Review: How Santa Stole Christmas! appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2JoVkVb

[fly-pow-bye]

DuckTales 2017 - "New Gods on the Block!"

Story by: Francisco Angones, Madison Bateman, Colleen Evanson, Megan Gonzalez, Christian Magalhaes, Ben Siemon, Bob Snow

Written by: Megan Gonzalez

Storyboard by: Sam King, Kathryn Marusik, Stephan Park

Directed by: Jason Zurek

Does this episode have the right stuff?

Scrooge and company have reached the Helmet of Hengis Khan, which is currently being guarded by a bunch of giant silkworms! Just take my word for it. However, Scrooge is ready, and knows that his nephews and honorary niece are up to the task to take on those mere worms. He's got Huey, the planner, Dewey and Webby are good as the distraction, and Louie is just good at doing something greedy like snatching the helmet while the silkworms are distracted. They lock hands together, a universal showing that they are an inseparable team, and Dewey does one of his classic one-liners to start this amazing fight scene.

In fact, the fight scene was so amazing, it just couldn't be animated.

Instead, we suddenly cut to the kids walking through the door of the Manor, where we learn that the fight scene would have amazing for the silkworms rather than the Ducks, as they have apparently failed. Outside of a few lines suggesting that Huey's inability to predict the unpredictable was a major factor in it, they don't go much further than the mission was a failure. They didn't seem to get any battle damage from them at the very least. I'm obviously not expecting blood, but I would think their hair would be a little messed up.

While Della couldn't predict that this mission would be a failure, as she had confetti cannons and a giant banner ready for what she assumed would be their triumphant return, she does tells her kids exactly what happens when Scrooge fails, something she should know from participating in countless adventures with him. First comes the wallowing, then the anger, then he just shakes it off and comes up with a new plan. Webby decides to add to that; each failure is just a reason for the team to grow. Scrooge tells Webby that is a great idea: he should grow the team by getting better, more experienced people to join it!

In other words, after trusting Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Webby ever since they proved themselves in the first episode, this one failed mission that didn't even get a scratch on their clothing gives Scrooge a reason to abandon them for a different team. On one hand, a team of non-children would be better for Scrooge's PR, but on the other hand, this just feels like an overreaction to make this plot work. Della seems to agree; she tells the kids that they would be able to handle whatever is going to barge through that door. No, she did not put it that way, but she may as well have.

In comes Zeus, Selene, and Storkules, a trio of gods from the Greek pantheon. The moon goddess Selene and the demi-god Storkules have successful taken the now former god of lightning/king of the gods Zeus's godly wreath, and now he's merely just a powerless jerk rather than a jerk that can smite people. As Selene says, he hasn't done anything good since locking up the Titans, a reference to the original myths, so it was coming to him.

Why are they here? Because they now need a god who can take his place in the Olympus pantheon, and they each have their own idea that happens to currently be in the Mansion. Storkules thinks it should be Donald, Selene thinks it should be Della, and Zeus thinks it should be himself. I can't help but think Storkules and Selene are not even trying to hide who their true loves are among the mortals. Nobody tell Penny.

As the children mope about how the gods surely wouldn't choose them if even Scrooge couldn't, Della decides to reject it and say her kids and kids' friend deserve it instead. What Della would do if she had the powers of Olympus will forever remain a mystery. Selene is convinced because, while they're children, they're still less immature than her father, who still threatens to smite people with lightning despite not having any powers anymore. I still like this slightly more accurate to the original myths version of Zeus.

As the children mope about how the gods surely wouldn't choose them if even Scrooge couldn't, Della decides to reject it and say her kids and kids' friend deserve it instead. What Della would do if she had the powers of Olympus will forever remain a mystery. Selene is convinced because, while they're children, they're still less immature than her father, who still threatens to smite people with lightning despite not having any powers anymore. I still like this slightly more accurate to the original myths version of Zeus.

Storkules wasn't there to see this plan change, as his candidate for godhood was still in the houseboat preparing his houseboat. After Donald takes out the garbage, Storkules bursts through the door and gives his friend of friends the biggest hug, and is impressed that he even prepared a celebratory feast as if he knew what Storkules was about to offer him.

Much like Della, what Donald would do if she had the powers of Olympus will forever remain a mystery, because he's got bigger plans on this day. That celebratory feast was actually him preparing for a big date with the only person who can stand his singing.

Don't worry, Storkules takes his friend of friends going on a date with someone else very well. Maybe a bit too well, and it's not just to Donald's chagrin, as he decides to do a labor worthy of being among the twelve he did that one time: make the perfect wedding feast! Anyone who knows this character will know where this is going.

It's also pretty predictable where the other half of the episode is going, even if I did think at least one of them would have done better than the others. Selene decides to give Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Webby each a chance to prove their worth on being in the pantheon. They each decide on an ability similar to the ones in the myths, they get a little test run at a random location, and, if they fail, Selene can just clap or snap her fingers and everything reverts back to normal. Even if she didn't reveal the last one, it would be just too good this early on if we had any victors here.

Louie wants to be the God of Fortune, so he gets the Louie Touch, which he instantly trademarks despite being a clear knockoff of a certain king's. This is most likely because he never really heard of the tales of King Midas's golden touch, as he ends up turning the entire park he was put in into gold. This includes a dog. Not a dog-person, a dog much like in real life.

Huey wants to be the God of Intuition, so he gets the power of prophecy, similar to Cassandra minus the "nobody believing him" problem. In fact, he has the opposite problem; Huey doesn't seem to catch the hint that telling the misfortunes that are going to happen to people aren't going to make people happy. It doesn't help that his powers are causing his brain to expand.

Webby wants to be the Goddess of Friendship Sunshine Get-A-Long Time, so she ends up being able to control the weather. Oddly enough, controlling the weather was one of Zeus's specialties in the original myths, so this should give her the biggest chance out of all of them since this is supposed to be "who is going to replace Zeus." Unfortunately, just giving the boardwalk a sunny day and getting Glomgold off of a kiddie ride he had been hogging doesn't cause everyone to hug, so she ends up striking everything with lightning in the end. With Webby becoming mad with power in the span of a minute, I don't wonder how Zeus ended up the way he did.

Dewey apparently wants to be the God of Dance, and tries to woo the judge with a dance. Even if he didn't manage to torment a random location to the point where it would have to be reversed by a moon goddess's snap, the lack of any god powers disqualifies him as well. I know it can barely be seen in that screenshot, but that reaction from Selene makes this whole scene even funnier.

It's not like these abilities aren't fitting, but it's such a foregone conclusion that they were going to fail these tests spectacularly that it just felt predictable.

While these trials are happening, Zeus decides to call up one of his more notorious brothers: Hades, god of the underworld. Despite only showing up as an unknown number, which would make sense even if Zeus was calling from a cell phone of his own rather than Scrooge's house phone, he picks up to hear the voice of the guy that trapped him in a world surrounded by bones. He's not too happy about his situation, needless to say.

Following in the footsteps of not following the Disney version of the Greek pantheon besides Hercules being treated as a 100% god, Hades is more like a goth who doesn't really care about anything. He doesn't go with Zeus's idea of causing an undead rebellion, reminding Zeus that he's too busy keeping the Titans locked up, which gives Zeus a different idea. Hades won't be involved with this idea, as, other than revealing that one of the few things that delights him now is Zeus being powerless, he decides not to do anything else. Despite this, it's neat to see this amount of world-building with the pantheon, and it makes me wonder if we'll see him again.

Being failures at being Scrooge's teammates and Greek gods, we get another mope scene. Scrooge actually calls this his "special ops" team, which makes me think that Scrooge actually wanted a different team for different situations, and it seems like they're hinting at an ending that would cast Scrooge in a better light: he was just planning a B team. Such a shame that doesn't really come up anywhere else.

I think the other plot is better, with Hercules acting like the unwanted friend getting in the way of Donald and Daisy's date, and it eventually falls apart. Even with Storkules in the background holding a tied up Cupid, a part of one of his earlier plans, one can really feel Donald's pain as he floats in a garbage-filled pool. This feeling of pain is even shown in-universe, as the normally oblivious Storkules decides to get some help.

Sadly, he goes to his father, Zeus, completely devastated that he had forsaken his best friend, and asks what he could do to help out two people in love. Zeus tells a story about how Hera fell in love with him after he defeated the titans, and that if Storkules can defeat one of them, maybe they'll be impressed. He laments that it's too bad there's no god with god-like strength that can unleash one of them.

To make a long story short, Storkules hits the ground, a titan comes out, Scrooge and the rest come out to see this madness, and the titans ends up eating Donald right in front of Daisy's eyes. I love this line that reveals, among other things, that Donald is still okay:

Storkules: (keeping the titan from eating Daisy) Don't worry, we can salvage this!

Daisy: You killed my boyfriend!

Donald: "My boyfriend"? (reveals to be in the Titans see-through stomach, still indigested) Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

It reminds me of that scene in Coco. I can't spoil it, but there's a similar line there that also made me smile.

Della and Scrooge are climbing up the titan, Shadow of the Colossus style, where they talk about the other plot. This is their way to get the plots to converge, and it’s a good idea. In fact, while this goes against the idea that Scrooge was merely trying to expand his team rather than remove his kin from it, Scrooge getting confronted with his negligence while trying to deal with an even bigger problem is a pretty powerful moment.

The stakes are set pretty high, as the titan manages to turn pretty much everyone except for Daisy and the kids into dinner. Even Selene, the one that could reverse problems with the snap of her finger and the character that was pretty much treated as the Queen of the Gods until now, as Hera is only mentioned, manages to get caught in the titan's grasp, dropping the godly crown on the ground as she joins the rest of the party in this titan's stomach. Considering all of this eating of his fellow gods and mortals, maybe this titan is meant to be Cronus. He even manages to do what Cronus wanted to do in the original myths.

Whether or not that generic titan is Cronus or not, that victory doesn't last too long, as we get this really cool scene where Daisy manages to startle the titan with her own roar, and, using that as a distraction, Webby takes the crown, splits it up, and gives herself and her friends the god powers they wanted. While I wasn't that much of a fan of this plot, I can safely say it ends really well. Not only does Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Webby prove themselves as helpers of Scrooge, but kids worthy of have the powers of Greek myth. The latter doesn't last, of course, but still, it's great.

In the end, everything seems to work out just fine, and I really do mean everything, as the other plot also ends very well. While I don't want to ruin the moment, I'll say this: I find it very funny that Zeus ended up helping with Storkules' problem in the end, even if it wasn't his intention.

How does it stack up?

At first, I was a little miffed on this episode; I just don't think Scrooge would just throw away his team just because they failed miserably on one mission, especially in an episode after he trusted them so much, and especially after the episode after the one where he outright recruited one of them to go through his deadly danger dungeon. However, this episode has plenty of ways for me to forgive that: the scenes with Donald and Daisy, the cool god powers in the end, and Zeus being Zeus all throughout.

Still, this ended up being just merely in the middle for me.

Next, we get to see an Scrooge adventure with young Della for the first time outside of the IDW comics!

← The Split Sword of Swanstantine! 🦆 The First Adventure! →

[leeannclymer]

Blog Post: New Commissioner Speaks and Other Texas-sized Updates

For the first time in a public setting, the new Commissioner of the Division of Workers Compensation (DWC) provided her insights on the direction of the agency and the workers compensation system as a whole at the Insurance Council of Texas (ICT) Fall Conference. ICT is the preeminent provider of education to workers compensation stakeholders and the education lived up to its new location on the campus of the University of Texas. Former Commissioner and current ICT Executive Director Alfred Betts introduced and grilled (ok, more of a pleasant conversation among friends) Cassie Brown, the new Commissioner for DWC and formerly the Deputy Commissioner for Regulatory Policy at the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI). (Immediate past-Commissioner Brannum was also in the audience). The Commissioner highlighted the improvements made by her predecessors and praised her staff for operating a system that she considers a model for other states. Commissioner Brown intends to use technology and other innovations to streamline operations and improve efficiencies. Commissioner Brown wisely avoided any of the more controversial topics but expressed her desire to work with system participants. She of course will be preparing for the legislative session in 2019 and Sunset Review following shortly thereafter. She addressed one of the hot button issues of first responder claims providing a glimpse how DWC will use technology to track and monitor claims made by first responders and the denials issued by carriers to help determine if those denials are appropriate. Mark Pew of Preferred Medical entertained and challenged the capacity crowd to envision what workers compensation might look like in 12 years. The Rx Professor rightly prophesized the workers compensation system would look very different than it does now. The Gig Economy itself will change the employment landscape. Changes to our country’s delivery of medical care will alter the treatment options as much as new technology and medical innovations. Jason Musick with Burns, Anderson, Jury and Brenner gave a thorough review of 2017 legislative changes and the recent rule developments, most notably for first responders. He also retailed the expected new rules governing designated doctors (DD). Mr. Musick explained the new DD rules are expected to increase the use of medical doctors (at the expense of chiropractors) by increasing the amount a medical doctor can earn in one day of performing exams and increasing the number of cases DWC will choose to select a medical doctor. The first panel discussion brought different perspectives to the charged topic of peer reviews in workers compensation. The two advocates, Daniel Morris representing injured workers and David Loughlin for the employers/carriers, explained the legal and practical limits of peer review doctors. Mr. Morris explained his (perhaps surprising) fondness when carriers hire “Dr. No” (the peer review doctor who always says “no” to medical treatment and procedures and return injured workers back to work full duty) because the report might look good to the adjuster but not to the judges who hear the cases and know the “players.” Deputy Commissioner Matt Zurek warned of possible sanctions for carriers who fail to follow the peer review statutes and rules. Hiawatha Franks with Texas Association of School Boards gave real works examples of “good” and “bad” use of questions sent to peer review doctors and stressed the geographic differences requiring state-specific expertise and knowledge. Dr. Albrecht explained that good peer reviewers try to use evidence-based medicine to reach optimal results for injured workers but he too has encountered more than a few “Dr No’s” as a practicing orthopedic surgeon. The panel recommended carriers use well-qualified doctors, share reports with the other side, update and improve the questions posed to their experts, and avoid sanctions for the improper use of peer review doctors to make medical utilization decisions. Brandi Prejean of Thornton, Biechlin, Reynolds, & Guerra LLC led Dr Albrecht through a discussion of how to use diagnostic testing to properly arrive at a diagnosis. Dr Albrecht explained doctors often fall victim to treating the test results rather than the patient. Only a clear understanding of the history and a thorough physical exam can provide a doctor with information to base a treatment recommendation much less a causation opinion. A diagnostic test result confirms medical opinions; they rarely should be the opinion. Finally, Judge Carothers joined Ms. Prejean, Mr. Morris, and Mr. Franks for a panel discussion on the compensability of workers injured while travelling. The panel discussed the applicability of the Coming and Going Rule, Access Doctrine, Dual Purpose Rule, Personal Comfort and Convenience Doctrine, and Good Samaritan Rule. Diving deeper, the panel explored what the courts envision when the employer does provide transportation, or when the nature of employment required workers to work many miles from their place of employment, often for long periods of time. The legal practitioners predictably argued their cases with ease until asked to present the case for their opponent. Judge Carothers calmly explained what evidence he needs, and often what evidence the parties fail to provide, when deciding these travel cases. At the conclusion, system participants took away the following: Societal changes in employment and medical care will force workers compensation stakeholders to change their practices in ways we don’t yet understand Commissioner Brown plans on using technology and innovation to address problems or concerns system stakeholders bring to DWC (including first responder issues) First Responder claims handling is a top concern of the legislature and DWC now and for the foreseeable future including the 2019 session Expect new DD rules to significantly decrease the DWC’s reliance on chiropractors as designated doctors Diagnostic test results are often not associated with the mechanism of injury, especially when inconsistent with the history and physical exam DWC and TDI adopted complicated rules for the proper use of peer reviews for (1) extent of the injury and (2) utilization review; failure to follow those rules are grounds for sanctions Don’t use a Dr. No for peer reviews Travel cases are exceedingly complex with various doctrines and new case law explaining and sometimes changing decades-held understanding of compensability; know the latest pronouncements by the courts © Copyright 2018 LexisNexis. 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