DuckTales, Season 2 Episode 14: "Friendship Hates Magic!"

Episode: 214 "Friendship Hates Magic!" 5/15/19
Starring: Webby Vanderquack, Lena, Mrs. Beakley, and Launchpad McQuack
Costarring: Emily Quackfaster
Featuring: Violet Sabrewing
An Appearance by: Duckworth
Special Appearances by: Darkwing Duck, Quackerjack, and Paddywhack (all on television)
Setting: Duckburg (McDuck Manor and the Duckburg Public Library)

PlotTales
Before a “friend’s friend” helps “bring bitter jealousy to a bitter end,” Webby finds herself in the middle of a different kind of “Shadow War” - one for her friendship.  Although Lena unwittingly starts this “war” (through the Tulpas she subconsciously conjured) she also does her part to end it.  With help from a new friend and a little bit of magic, Webby is rescued from the Shadow Realm and Lena is restored to her physical, technicolour form.     

It’s the arrival of Webby’s new friend, Violet Sabrewing, that acts as the catalyst for their “supernatural sleepover.”  While at first drawing concern and igniting a jealous streak in Lena, Violet’s interest in Webby along with her possession of the amulet are proven to be benign.  Her curiosity of ancient mysticism may have brought her to McDuck Manor but it’s Violet’s belief and trust in the power of friendship that prove she’s the genuine article and not just some “second-rate knockoff.”  And in the end, there’s no more “friend’s friends,” just friends.

Much like Webby’s and Violet’s mutual interest in shadow magic sparks their friendship, Mrs. Beakley and Launchpad also find common ground that allows them to bond after a number of failed and forced attempts.  It’s incredibly sweet and satisfying when LP’s favourite TV show, Darkwing Duck, becomes the method by which they come together.  Launchpad’s effort to share and Beakley’s willingness to try something new prove to be their own special brew of magic sauce.

Quacking Points

With no mention of Della, it would appear that this episode may be airing out of order.  

A violet sabrewing is the name of an actual species of hummingbird.  It’s native to Central America, is violet, and much larger than your average hummingbird. 

Just some of the light reading that Webby and Violet partake in are The Myth of the Shadow Realm and the Spirits of the Shadow Realm. 

Mrs. Quackfaster, who can normally be found working as Scrooge’s archivist, has taken up a second job as a librarian at the public library to pay for a retirement condo in Birbados. 

Scrooge and his nephews are celebrating Bin-ventory Day where they spend the evening cataloguing treasure at the office.

The episode of Darkwing Duck (1992) from Launchpad’s VHS is “The Haunting of Mr. Banana Brain.”

Citing previous sleepover shenanigans, Mrs. Beakley mentions the “mystical shark” which was The Money Shark aka Tiffany from "Jaw$!" (S1, E14).  She also brings up a “unicorn battle” which is in reference to the “sword horse” that attacks Webby in “The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck.” (S1, E19),

In Webby’s attempt to “make this the most normal sleepover ever,” she suggests they play the game Baggle Kids.

The “magic rocks” Webby hides resemble the Sankara Stones from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984).

While Beakley reads the Scarlet Pimperbill (a parody of the Scarlet Pimpernell), Launchpad spends his time colouring (not within the lines, mind you) in a colouring book.

Tulpas are manifestations of powerful emotions - hatred, jealousy, greed. They live in a dark realm adjacent to our reality.  They have a similar place in our reality and derive from Tibetan concepts.

Along with Tulpas, a lot of the figures and concepts from Ancient Mysticism that Violet and Webby speak of are myths drawn from our world too: 

• Rakshasa is a humanoid demon from Hindu mythology
• Elder Futhark is the oldest form of the runic alphabets from the 2nd to 8th centuries.
• The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are Biblical figures known as punishments from God appearing in the last book of the New Testament.
• The Shadow Realm is a euphemistic expression of death from the Anime franchise Y-Gi-Oh! (2005).
• Ancient Syriac is a dialect of Middle Aramaic of the Northwest Semitic languages during the 1st century.   
• Old Norse was a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlements from about the 9th to the 13th centuries.