Autumn-reading

[Sandven, Halvor]

Hello!

Some of the issues in the norwegian weekly have been 96 pages in the
summers. I am very glad to see that this year we also got two 96-pages
issues in the autumn, where the extra pages are called 'autumn-reading' The
first issue included a reprint of the Murry-story 'The Mysterious Knight
Rider' (MM 119). This may not be Murry at his very best, but still, it's a
nice story. The last issue was the best one. This issue includes the Marco
Rota story 'Paperino e la palla misteriosa' (AT 292), where Donald discovers
a 'ball' that is really a living being. This is a very good story that has
never been printed in Norway before. The first panel in this story looked
very familiar, it remindes me of a Barks-story. Beside the extra pages, this
issue also included the first part of Rosa's 'Return of the 3 Caballeros'.
The story made me think about Donald's situation a bit. I have never
realized that he may be a bit lonely at times, but it makes sense, because
we seldom see that he has any really good friends. Of cause, HDL may be his
friends, but he's also their 'parent' making their relationship a bit
special. He's relation with Scrooge may also be a bit up and down, as
Scrooge for the most part looks upon Donald as just a cheap worker. He's
also disgusted by Donald's way of living. Even so, I believe that they can
be friends, as several of Barks stories show us that their relationship
isn't really that bad. This is seldom seen in Rosa's stories though.
Donald's relation with Gladstone are seldom very good, as Gladstone is
Donalds rival. Gladstone luck also iriitates Donald a lot, making him a bit
jealous. Even so, I'm certain that we have seen moments where they can
co-exist. Maybe this is a topic for closer study. Daisy is Donald
girlfriend, and she does count, even if HDL don't think so. However, she is
not always very faithful, as she also dates Gladstone on several occasions.
I would say that Grandma Duck is Donald's friend, as it looks like she means
much to Donald, and also that she cares about him. She is, however, an other
generation than Donald, and they may not have much of the same interests.
Maybe Gyro is one of Donald's best friends, but he's always to busy making
invetions, and does not have much time for a social life. I have not read
the last part of Rosa's story yet, but it would be nice to see more of his
two Caballeros-friends in other stories, as I believe that Donald could need
a couple of good friends who can meet every now and then, and go out an just
have fun. This could make some good stories too.
An other topic I just had to get off my chest: Some weeks ago there was
something called the 'Raptus-festival' in my hometown Bergen. Among
celebrities like Mort Walker, there also was one of my favourite artists,
namely Flemming Andersen from Denmark. Great was my disappointment when I
got sick, and could not attend to this festival, as I had really looked
forward to get a chance to chat with this excellent artist. Most of his work
is published in the pocket-books, and very often his stories is worth the
price of these books alone. He draws a very funny Donald, and almost every
page makes me snicker. Look out for his work, he really deserves more
recognition than he's got.
Regarding Horace and Clarabelle, I find these new stories for the most part
very amusing, and I hope to see lots more of these. I also applaud the use
of not-so-known characters, as I think there's a bit too much
Donald-oriented stories in the weeklies today.
---Halvor


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