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Recap / DuckTales (2017) S2 E8 "Treasure of the Found Lamp!"

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A strange swordsman named Djinn comes to McDuck Manor, seeking a lamp that he has sworn to guard. Scrooge is forced to admit he has misplaced the lamp, and has to stall while the boys search for it.

Tropes for this episode include:

  • Adaptational Badass: Dijon in the original movie was an Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain compared to Merlock. Here, renamed Djinn, he is an ace swordsman and a Badass Biker bordering on The Dreaded.
  • Adaptational Heroism: In the original movie, Dijon was a greedy Mook for Merlock. Here, while he is threatening Scrooge at the beginning, he says he is seeking the lamp to ensure that it is safe. It turns out the lamp is a family heirloom (it held the genie who, once freed by the woman who last held the lamp, married her; Djinn is their descendant), and he wants it back for purely sentimental reasons.
  • An Aesop: Family heirlooms can be just as valuable to a person as any treasure. Scrooge is actually so heartened by Djinn's story that he opts to tell the kids the various stories behind the artifacts he's acquired over the years.
  • Bad "Bad Acting": Charybdis when delivering the lines Webby coached him on.
  • Bland-Name Product: Gladstone's Gladyear blimp.
  • Bloodless Carnage: Djinn is seen slashing at the Beagle Boys with his scimitar. While no blood or cuts are shown, the Beagle Boys he attacks end up laying on the side without any signs of movement.
  • The Bus Came Back: Gladstone, Doofus Drake, Selene and Charybdis all reappear.
  • Call-Back: Scrooge puts all of his treasures in a museum wing at the end of the episode. In the first episode, Webby confused the garage for the McDuck museum.
  • Chekhov's Gun: The Ferryman's Flame lamp that opens a portal to the Land of the Dead comes back when needing to find Duckworth.
  • Continuity Nod:
  • Cool Airship: Doofus offered Gladstone a luxurious blimp in exchange for the lamp.
  • "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot:
    • The whole crisis would have been averted not only if Louie didn't sell the lamp but Scrooge had bothered to tell anyone about his old artifacts.
    • The B-plot to Ithaquack could have been avoided if D'jinn had explained his situation a little more clearly.
  • Dope Slap: Huey and Louie slap Dewey out of annoyance at his heroic monologue after the dump truck drives off with the lamp.
  • The Dreaded: It's overshadowed by the Aesop(s) about proper communication and the value of a story, but the episode demonstrates how this kind of intimidating presence can unnecessarily make things more difficult (the boys probably would've had an easier time tracking the lamp down in Duckburg with Scrooge and Webby's help, but they had to distract D'jinn out of a real concern that he'd simply destroy the mansion), or negate problems entirely (the Beagle Boys are fine with calling it a night once D'jinn gives them an explanation and the option).
  • Easily Forgiven: Though insulted over the fake quest, Djinn forgives the Ducks rather quickly because It's the Journey That Counts and this will be a fun addition to the lamp's story.
  • Foreshadowing:
    • The Reveal of Faris Djinn being a descendant of a genie is quite obvious when you consider that his last name is based on the Arabic word "jinn" or "genie".
    • Scrooge mentions he examined the lamp and found no trace of a genie or magic in it. Djinn confirms the lamp is indeed empty, for his ancestor freed the genie inside it out of love.
  • Freeing the Genie: As it turns out, Djinn's ancestor only used one wish to free the genie that was inside it, because they fell in love.
  • Grail in the Garbage: Carelessly stowing mystical artifacts in his garage with mundane paraphernalia comes back to bite Scrooge when Louie mistakes the titular lamp for old rubbish that won't be missed if he sells it. More literally, Doofus throws it away after he's done with it. The thing is, it is a worthless piece of junk to the average Joe, but to Djinn, it has sentimental value.
  • Hawaiian-Shirted Tourist: Duckworth is wearing one when the triplets summon him from his vacation.
  • Hey, You!: When reuniting with his nephews, Gladstone refers to them by nicknames associated with their colors: Dewdrop, Greener Pastures, and Red Hat.
  • Interspecies Romance: Djinn is descended from the union of a woman and a genie-turned-mortal. They are described as having been very Happily Married.
  • Ironic Echo Cut: Louie claims to have a "very simple solution" to contact Duckworth. Cut to the brothers attempting a seance...
    Huey: This doesn't feel simple.
  • Irony: Djinn notes how the genie was freed by the woman he fell in love with and spent the rest of his days granting her wishes.
  • It's the Journey That Counts: Djinn believes this wholeheartedly. He sets retrieving a family heirloom before his birthday as an epic quest to this effect.
  • Kick the Dog: When Ma Beagle grabs the lamp, she immediately wishes for better kids while her brood is standing below her.
  • Knotty Tentacles: How Djinn defeats Charybdis.
  • Know When to Fold 'Em: After explaining what the lamp is and why he wants it, then recovering his lamp from Ma Beagle in badass fashion, Djinn asks if anyone else would like to try him on his birthday. The assembled Beagle Boys immediately back off, with one even meekly saying, "Happy birthday, dude." Justified by how easily he dispatched them earlier ...and how pointless any further fighting would be over a completely mundane lamp.
  • Leeroy Jenkins: While Huey tries to plan a stealth mission past the many sleeping Beagle Boys, D'jinn rushes up and loudly announces his presence before the rest could stop him. Justified by D'jinn being entirely capable of curb-stomping the full Beagle Boys gang on his own.
  • Let Us Never Speak of This Again: What Scrooge proposes to do after detailing his plan to get the lamp back from the Beagle Boys.
  • Monster Façade: Charybdis is still on the act, only this time it's much more obvious.
  • Mythology Gag:
    • The very title of the episode calls back to the DuckTales Classic theatrical movie, Treasure of the Lost Lamp.
    • Webby mentions that the lamp could've been stolen by a wicked sorcerer, which is exactly what happened in the aforementioned movie.
    • The scene involving Scrooge and Ma Beagle climbing a tower of tires to reach the lamp is a homage to the scene in the classic episode "Master of the Djinni" featuring Scrooge and Glomgold in the same scenario, which served as the final shot of the opening credits.
    • In Djinn's backstory, the genie's design also resembles the one from "Master of the Djinni", especially the shape of his turban.
    • One of Scrooge's artifacts in his new museum is the Candy Striped Ruby, which figures in stories by both Carl Barks and Don Rosa.
  • Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant: Doofus is an in-universe example for the boys. Louie is absolutely terrified of going anywhere near Doofus again, and instinctively tries to shield Dewey from getting too close to him. All three of the boys are extremely uncomfortable seeing the way Doofus acts, especially when he makes his dad pour syrup onto his pancakes from his hands. Doofus somehow makes talking about using the lamp as a syrup boat into a horror story.
  • Not So Stoic: Djinn is a bit excitable but mostly reserved while trying to complete his quest. Upon learning that everyone thought there was a genie in the lamp, he laughs himself silly.
  • Oh, Crap!: Two back to back. One for Louie when Scrooge describes the missing lamp, and one for Scrooge when he learns what Louie did with it.
    Scrooge: What do you mean YARD SALE?!
  • Our Genies Are Different: The Genie in this episode was the classic wish-granting slave. However, he fell in love with his master, who wished for his freedom, which in change turned him into a mortal man. He married his master and had children, and Djinn is his descendant ten generations later.
  • Pals with Jesus: Scrooge and Webby were able to get Selene and the sea monster guardian to help them with their goose chase in only a moment's notice. They're delightfully informal with each other and Selene seems to be having the time of her life.
  • Poor Communication Kills: While Louie shouldn't have sold Scrooge's items in a yard sale without asking first, this whole plot could have been avoided if Scrooge had bothered to tell his family about all the treasure he's collected over the years, something that both Louie and Mrs. Beakley call him out on. He finally learns from this in the end.
  • Roof Hopping: Djinn infiltrates Scrooge's mansion this way, although it's the trees in Scrooge's garden instead of rooftops.
  • Sadly Mythtaken: In the phony quest, Scrooge and Selene disguise themselves as the Minotaur and ask Djinn to answer riddles (which Selene gets from a joke book). A sphinx would have been a more appropriate choice... but Selene isn't associated with them in mythology, nor does she have anything to do with the Minotaur either. However, she is associated with bulls; presumably they had to throw together a costume with what she had.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Louie attempts this when the boys arrive at Doofus's mansion, so Huey and Dewey drag him.
  • Seen It All: When Huey spots Djinn coming through the window, he's only momentarily frightened before calling to Scrooge that someone is here to see him.
  • Shout-Out: In Djinn's backstory, the genie is a muscular figure in a blue outfit and shackles on his wrists.
  • Snipe Hunt: With the help of Webby and Selene, Scrooge sends Djinn on a fake quest to stall while the triplets find the real lamp.
  • Tom the Dark Lord: The monster spirit Duckworth saves the boys from is named Francis.
  • Totem Pole Trench: Scrooge and Selene disguise themselves as a minotaur by the former standing on the latter's shoulder and covering themselves in a blanket, while holding up the skull of a bull as the head.
  • To the Tune of...: Gladstone literally sings his own praises with the melody of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy."
  • Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Scrooge could have given Djinn the lamp, no muss no fuss, if Louie hadn't sold it in a yard sale behind everyone's back.
  • Was It All a Lie?: Djinn is stunned when he finds out the lamp had been simply thrown away, asking if his quest with Scrooge had all been a fake to cover up that fact (long story short, it was). He then shakes it off, turning it into a part of the journey.
  • Worthless Treasure Twist: Played with in that the lamp's lack of value is something that would be fairly obvious to most of the characters who have laid their eyes on it, but Djinn oversold its nature and made others believe otherwise. As it turns out, the boys were right from the beginning that it doesn't have any stellar value (the lack of magic proved just as much), but rather it had sentimental value. Djinn meant that if he doesn't get it back, it would break his heart.

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