Don't Give Up the Ship is the pilot episode of DuckTales 1987, and the first part of The Treasure of the Golden Suns. It aired on September 18, 1987 during the movie premiere and on November 9, 1987 individually on syndication.
Synopsis[]
Scrooge McDuck is forced to take in his three nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie, when their Uncle Donald enlists in the Navy. As they learn to get along, the mysterious El Capitán (1987) hires the Beagle Boys to steal a small wooden ship from Scrooge's museum, saying it is a map to a real treasure ship.
Plot[]
The show begins in the city of Duckburg, where Scrooge McDuck is swimming in his three cubic-acre vault of cold hard cash. He is forced to stop, though, by the realization that he is late for something. So, with a quick change out of his swimsuit and into his regular attire, he makes his way to the pier, where Donald Duck is preparing to ship out, now that he is enlisted in the Navy, of course. As Scrooge arrives, Donald bids farewell to his nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, leaving them in Scrooge's care while he's away. The boys are not very keen on staying with Uncle Scrooge for an indefinite period of time, and Scrooge is not keen about this idea either. However, he is "the only one [Donald] trust[s]" with watching the boys.
After Donald leaves, Scrooge brings the boys to his grand, stately mansion, where he introduces them (and the viewers) to Duckworth the Butler. The boys are forced to live in the attic, where they receive a letter from Donald about his so-called "adventures" in the Navy. After reading the letter, the boys manage to escape the attic to fool around the mansion. Scrooge decides to leave for work at his Money Bin. Duckworth has firm orders to not let the kids leave the mansion for any reason. However, the boys tie him up with a curtain sash ("This is definitely going to delay their dinner"). Scrooge reluctantly allows the trio to hang around his bin, providing they don't touch anything. Scrooge tries to get the kids off his mind by kicking out many solicitors. Among them is the leader of the Junior Woodchucks, whose offer Scrooge shows interest in. Just then, the nephews get ahold of a small wooden ship at the museum that they thought could be sent to Uncle Donald. Infuriated, Scrooge has them grounded.
Meanwhile, three of the Beagle Boys - Bigtime, Burger, and Bouncer - escape from jail, using bombs that were disguised as bonbons. They then meet up with El Capitán, the mysterious person who delivered the bombs, at the abandoned L'Orange Theater. El Capitán, an anthropomorphic dog in a trench-coat, arranged their escape because of their expertise on Scrooge's Money Bin. He commands them to steal a small wooden ship from it.
Upset with Scrooge's punishment on them, the nephews decide to run away. However, they notice El Capitán on the city's streets. They also notice the Beagle Boys approaching Uncle Scrooge's Money Bin, as they run in to investigate. They fail to stop the Beagle Boys from stealing the model ship, but the criminals end up leaving behind a map drawn on the back of a theater flyer. Scrooge enters, having been awakened by the alarm; the boys try to explain what happened, but he refuses to believe them, thinking they are the only ones who were interested in stealing the small boat.
Luckily, the nephews figure out that the theater advertised on the flyer is where the Beagle Boys are hiding out. Thanks to the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook, they construct a hang glider to get out of the attic. Afterwards, they head for the L'Orange Theater, where they find El Capitán and the Beagle Boys discussing about the boat. According to El Capitán, it is actually a map that leads to a sunken treasure ship full of gold. Therefore, he is the only one who can interpret the code. The nephews grab the ship and escape, figuring that Scrooge will help them.
The Beagle Boys chase the trio all the way to a confectionery plant, where Scrooge himself is answering questions for an interview, which eventually causes him to admit he has grown fond of those pesky nephews. The two trios crash in; Scrooge's nephews explain the whole situation. A food fight breaks out, eventually resulting in the Beagle Boys being covered up in chocolate and escorted back to the jailhouse. Scrooge apologizes to his grandnephews for not believing them in the first place, realizing that this odd map may have something deep to it. Meanwhile, El Capitán swears his revenge.
Cast[]
- Tony Anselmo as Donald Duck
- Jim Cummings as El Capitán
- Chuck McCann as Duckworth, Burger Beagle and Bouncer Beagle
- Russi Taylor as Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck
- Frank Welker as Big Time Beagle
- Stanley Wojno, Jr. as additional voices
- Alan Young as Scrooge McDuck
Video releases[]
VHS
- "Treasure of the Golden Suns" (June 17, 1994)
DVD
- "DuckTales: Volume 2" (Region 1)
- "DuckTales: 2nd Collection" (Region 2)
Adaptations[]
Trivia[]
- Toon Disney's reruns of this episode, as well as the iTunes release, cut out Big Time lighting his matches.
- Scrooge is the very first character to speak in the series.
- Coincidentally, this episode aired on June Foray's birthday.
- For the Toon Disney airings, the first commercial break starts, after the Beagle Boys made the prison escape.
Errors[]
- When Louie puts on his Junior Woodchuck coonskin hat, his cap can be seen, however, after the screen wipe, the cap is gone.