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15
scattered remarks:
The gun is just a
toy, which the nephews confirm after Donald heads for Scrooge's office in order to try and hypnotize him into handing over
a sack of his money.
The story is carried
by a mantra that is repeated constantly and being well remembered by
the fans: Bing! You're hypnotized!
Donald is hypnotized into thinking
he is a woodpecker, a
chicken, a gopher, a gorilla - and a bill collector.
Barks drew a rather puzzling appearance of Scrooge in the
first part rendering him full of scratches and band aids without
giving any initial explanation. Only later it is revealed - via a
lengthy flashback - that he had been out collecting money from a
debtor.
Barks includes one
of his joyous tomfoolery moments by showing a blackboard behind
Scrooge with the interesting calculation: $2 + $2 = $5.
Barks very rarely
included the reader into the goings on in the panels, but this
story makes an exception; in one panel Scrooge makes direct visual
and mind contact with the reader.
The
band-aids on Scrooge's head keep moving about from panel to
panel. This also happened in WDCS157 'Climbing Old Demontooth'.
Donald suddenly
imitates a woodpecker in Scrooge's office ending with him
destroying his uncle's desk.
Even after a dunk in a full water barrel followed
by a roll in an ash can, Donald emerges both dry and clean.
A truly rare moment: Donald receives a sack of
money from miser Scrooge for having taken care of the job.
Donald was not
unfamiliar with bill collector jobs; in
WDCS074 'The Money Collector'
and in WDCS124 'Under New
Management' he had the same type of job.
Donald is sometimes very physically
powerful for brief moments as in this story in which he imitates a
fierce gorilla. Other examples can be found in
WDCS107 'The Super Snooper
Story',
FC1184 Mighty but Miserable,
and
WDCS292 Instant Hercules.
Donald changed personality in several
other stories as well. Examples are seen in
WDCS141 'Think Boxes', WDCS278 Have Gun, Will
Dance,
and
U$057 The Swamp of No Return.
Barks liked to invent hilarious and
still to-the-point character names. Here is a selection of some of
the more dubious personages: Boaregard
Swinely,
Blacksnake McQuirt,
De Sleezy, Foulcrook, I.M. Slick,
Pulpheart Clapperhead, Porko de Lardo, Porkman de Lardo,
Scarpuss McKnucks, Sharky, Slyrat, Snake
McViper, Soapy Slick, Whan
Beeg Rhat - and, of course, the character in this story: Rockjaw
Bumrisk...
Barks: This is the sort of story that
only Donald can portray convincingly. Mickey could never be
'hypnotized' by such a simple gadget and Goofy could be hypnotized
too easily. A good example of Donald's versatility as an 'actor'.
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