Growing up in the late 80’s and early 90’s, everyone watched the Disney afternoon shows. The DuckTales theme song was so ingrained in our generation’s head that even today when someone says Ducktales, the proper response is “Whoo-hoo!” When the news came out about the Ducktales 2017 reboot, it was hard to not be skeptical for such a beloved show. This show had big shoes it would need to fill in order to compete with the nostalgia and engage the current culture of today. My first impression of the released artwork for the show was that I was disappointed that it did not reflect the same artwork of the original. My next thought was that I would be devastated if the intro for the show did not reflect the original theme song. When Disney began releasing promos for the show it included the intro and other short videos showing off the artwork, which began to peak my interest for the show. The promos provided some insight on how the characters would be portrayed and generated some excitement for me to watch it.

Finally, we got our first few DuckTales’ episodes and I absolutely fell in love with the new characters. Huey, Dewey, and Louie were given individual personalities, Webby was no longer a helpless little girl who always needed saving, and Scrooge McDuck was no longer motivated by greed but a thirst for adventure. I believe these were some of the changes that needed to happen to connect with the current generation. People connect more with these characters because they have no longer become the stereotypical characters they used to know. For the most part all of the character changes I have enjoyed (Hoping for some character growth for Dufus).

So how did the show actually reignited our passion for Disney Ducks? It started with the hiatus. We got a few amazing episodes to start and it left us wanting MORE! We thought it was going to be a short hiatus, but it went on and on. To fill our time waiting for more Ducktales, I began reading the new Ducktales comics. I used to read a lot of comics growing up, but the last few years I have slowly stopped purchasing comics. For the first time in many years, I remembered why I enjoyed comics. For me comics brought new stories, amazing artwork, and collecting each month’s issue. I was rediscovering my love for reading and artwork yet did not realize it.

The DuckTales 2017 comics led to a new discovery of old materials, reading Don Rosa and Carl Barks. After reading all of the current ducktales comics, I learned about the rich history of comics that came before it. While I remember seeing these comics as a kid, I never read any of them. Through the DuckTalks’ community, I have learned so much about the original comic series and how DuckTales 2017 pays tribute to these stories. Learning the history of these characters from stories like “The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck,” I have began to better appreciate these characters and DuckTales 2017.

As season one of DuckTales 2017 progressed, I also began to love the artwork of the show more and more. The style of the show is top-notch and it has inspired many of us to create fanart. I have not drawn in many many years, but I felt that the artwork for Ducktales 2017 was simplified enough for me to attempt to draw fanart. While I do not have the artistic abilities near what is required to produce the show, I find myself drawing these characters. I know I enjoy the fanart created from the DuckTalks community and it inspires me to keep trying my own.

DuckTales Merch is now all over the place and I am a sucker for buying anything DuckTales! I don’t know about you but I just want to buy all of the DuckTales Merch. I used to be a collector as a kid, but stopped collecting in high school. Seeing all the collectables, clothing, and decorations has reignited that need for collecting. We live in a golden age of DuckTales merch from the original show and DuckTales 2017. There has been so much Merch come out in the last year that I think I have almost surpassed my original collection. DuckTales has me wanting more merch!

To sum up my experience with Ducktales 2017. I feel that Ducktales 2017 has brought back something in me I felt that I had lost, the feeling of being a kid and enjoying Disney Ducks. In today’s political economic climate it is nice to have something that can bring us back to things I enjoyed as a kid. It has brought me back to comics, drawing, collecting DuckTales Merch and becoming a part of the DuckTalks’ community. While there were some choices that I thought were strange, I believe season one of Ducktales 2017 has been a success and I absolutely loved it. I can’t believe we get to share our love for Disney Ducks with a new generation, and I can’t wait until season two!