Magica's plot to steal the Number One Dime using her own shadow goes awry when her shadow develops a mind of its own.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- An Aesop: If you're relying on someone's help, don't treat them badly and give them an excuse to turn on you.
- Ascended Dragon: Magica's shadow takes over as the villain of the episode after having enough of being mistreated by Magica.
- Blinding Camera Flash: The Woodchuck Camera creates a flash so bright that it blinds anyone that gets a picture taken. The flash even dulls the ink of Scrooge's dollar bill. The flash ends up coming in handy against Magica's shadow.
- Chekhov's Gun: The Woodchuck Camera helps finish off Magica's shadow after her spell weakens it enough.
- Enemy Mine: When Magica's shadow gains sentience and ejects her, she and Scrooge were forced to work together to stop the shadow as it was even more sinister than its host as it plotted to cover the world in eternal shadow.
- Is That the Best You Can Do?: Magica asks this of Poe when she sees that he brought Scrooge to help her. The raven looks sheepish in response.
- Keep Away: When the shadow gets a hold of Scrooge's dime, he tries to get it back, only for her and her army to play this.
- Last-Second Word Swap: While Scrooge always refers to Magica as a Witch with a Capital "B", the way he stutters here when he says, "Free that... th-th-that witch?!" sounds like he truly was about to call her something else but caught himself at the last second (his 10-year-old nephews were there, after all).
- Living Shadow: Magica uses a spell to bring her shadow to life. It then turned on her and did the same with the rest of the shadows in Duckburg.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Magica isn't very nice toward her shadow, explaining why it decides it would rather be in charge and locks her in a closet.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Scrooge's plan to defeat Magica's shadow only ends up enabling it to create an army.
- Pun: When Poe flaps up to McDuck mansion and begs Scrooge and company to save Magica, Scrooge says it would be "just ducky" from his perspective if she stayed locked in the closet forever.
- Refuse to Rescue the Disliked: Magica's raven Poe turns up and begs Scrooge to save her after her Living Shadow locks her in a closet. Given that Magica is one of the most persistent members of his Rogues Gallery, Scrooge refuses, until the nephews tell him they probably need her help getting rid of the shadow, along with mentioning the electric bill if they keep the lights on to keep it away.
- There Can Be Only One: When Magica confronts her shadow in the climax, she states there's only room in the world for one Magica DeSpell.Launchpad: Thank goodness!
- The Voiceless: Magica's shadow doesn't initially speak, only gaining a voice when it grows more determined and undergoes a Power-Up.
