Rewatching DuckTales! It’s all Greek to me as we go back the mythic times in episode 30, “Home Sweet Homer.” I’ll let you go ahead and make your own Simpsons reference.

Here’s what happens: Donald sends his nephews a letter with some photos, and Scrooge deduces that remains of a lost city are in the background. Scrooge and the boys sail to the scene, called Ithaquack. There’s a flashback to old Ithaquack, where the witch Circe plots against young King Homer, hoping to send the boy to another time. Scrooge and the boys get caught in the spell, arriving in ancient times. Scrooge rescues Homer, and plans to confront Circe to return to the present. Homer, meanwhile, frets that he’s not as strong and manly as his predecessor Ulysses.

After another attack by Circe, Scrooge, the boys, and Homer end up shipwrecked. Then it’s a travelogue through various takes on characters from the Odyssey. There’s King Blowhard with superhuman breath, the hypnotic singing of the sirens, and a deadly whirlpool guarded by a dragon-like creature. As the heroes approach the main city of Ithaquack, we learn Homer hopes to be reunited with his love, the Princess Ariel. Circe then disguises herself as Ariel to fool everyone.

Once Circe deduces that Scrooge is not a sorcerer as she feared, Circe transforms Scrooge and Homer into pigs. Huey, Dewey and Louie later sneak into the palace and find out what happened. The boys steal Circe’s magic medallion, and she puts up a chase. The boys break the medallion, which undoes all of Circe’s spells. This also unleashes a second magic storm that sends Scrooge and the nephews back to the present. They’re then rescued by Donald’s Navy battleship.

Humbug: Scrooge says his favorite books are Treasure Island and The Odyssey.

Junior Woodchucks: Huey, Dewey and Louie talk about wanting to grow up to be just like Uncle Scrooge. At the end of the episode, Scrooge encourages them not to emulate him, but to grow up and be themselves.

In the Navy: Donald’s clumsiness continues to make him an annoyance to his superior, Admiral Grimmitz. The admiral joins the family for the episode’s final wrap-up scene, though, suggesting that he’s one of the gang.

Fowl fouls: Circe is basically a variation on Magica Dispell, complete with animal sidekick. Her motivation is simple revenge, as she and Ulysses were sworn enemies.

Down in Duckburg: The episode begins with a weird gag as the mailman delivers Donald’s letter. The mailman is walking tilted to the side, and has trouble getting the mail in the slot because he’s at a perpetual 45-degree angle. I guess the idea is it’s because his mailbag weighs so much.

Reference row: Because Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey began as an oral tradition, there’s no exact date of its creation, just that it originated between 700 and 750 BC. The first written versions of the poem appeared sometime in 4th century BC. The first officially published version was in Greek in 1488, and later translated into rhyming English in 1614. That’s the one we all read in school.

Thoughts upon this viewing: Here’s another variation on the find-a-lost-civilization plot that DuckTales keeps relying on. Now that I’m in deep on this series, I’m getting every-episode-is-the-same vibes. I like how the sirens are all freaky-looking, though.

Next: Bermuda shorts.

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app. Coming soon: MOM, I’M BULLETPROOF.