DuckTales rewatch! What do you when you debut a new superhero? Debut a bunch of variations of that superhero. That’s what the show is doing in “New Gizmo Kids on the Block.”

Here’s what happens: Fenton’s mother learns about a “mother of the year” contest, and she decides to enter so she can win a big-screen TV. She does the laundry, accidentally shrinking Fenton’s Gizmoduck armor in the wash. She also shrinks the codeword from “Blathering blatherskite” to just “Blaaa.” Elsewhere, Ma Beagle hears of the same contest and she also decides to enter. She busts the Beagle Boys out of jail in a public display to show what a great mom she is.

Fenton’s mom swaps the Gizmoduck suit with some aluminum cans to hide them from Fenton, and the cans end up with Huey, Dewey, and Louie on their recycling run. They find the shrunken suit. When Huey tells Webby to stop “blabbing,” that activates the armor, turning Huey into… Gizmo Kid! There’s a lot of slapstick gags as he tries to figure out how the armor works. Fenton discovers his armor is gone, just as Scrooge contacts him about Ma Beagle’s plan to steal from the Duckburg museum. Fenton instead dons a suit made of scrap metal his mother made for him. Ma Beagle again makes a public display of the heist for the contest. Fenton fights the Beagle Boys as “Garbage Duck.”

The kids hear about the heist. This time Dewey tells Webby to stop blabbing, and the armor is transferred to him. Dewey fights the Beagle Boys at the museum, doing all right for himself. But then Louie tells Webby to stop blabbing, and now the armor is on him. He successfully stops the robbery, and the Beagle Boys escape empty handed.

After a chase through the streets of Duckburg, the Beagle Boys next try to steal from a fancy clothing store. Huey again tells Webby to stop blabbing, and the armor goes to him. He stops the Beagle Boys, and the kids realize that they have the new codeword. The Beagle Boys recover while they horse around with the armor, and they snatch the three boys. A fourth Gizmo Kid shows up and defeats the Beagle Boys once and for all, handing them over to the cops. This is Webby, finally getting her chance to be the hero. Fenton’s mother comes clean, admitting this is all her fault. She loses the contest, but wins a “mechanic of the year” award for the garbage suit.

Humbug: Scrooge praises the kids’ recycling efforts, saying it’s smart business.  

Junior Woodchucks: As Gizmo Kid, Huey is a total klutz, wrecking everything. Dewey is much more capable, able to put up a fight against the Beagle Boys. Louie is somewhere in between. He stops the heist, but gets himself stuck in the ceiling doing so.

Maid and maiden: But then Webby is the best at being Gizmo Kid. Her turn in the suit goes from comedy action to a minute of full action as she wipes the floor with the villains.

Pro-rata: The Garbage Duck armor has a few gadgets of its own, including a propellor and hair dryer. It also has its own codeword, “Galloping garbage.”

Your move, creep: The Gizmoduck armor now has rockets, allowing him to fly more like Superman, in addition to the helicopter blades in the helmet. We’re told that the armor is made of a “polyester-aluminum blend.”

Foul fowls: The Beagle Boys this time are Big Time, Burger, Baggy, and Bouncer. Ma Beagle’s plan is to give her sons some culture by stealing from the museum and a fancy clothes store.

Down in Duckburg: Look closely, and you’ll see that Fenton’s mother is watching a TV show starring actress Gloria Swansong, who appeared back in the episode “The Uncrashable Hindentanic,” and has had a few cameos since.

Reference row: The episode title is obviously a reference to mega-popular boy band New Kids on the Block. The internet informs me the guys are still at it, still touring, producing new music, and even hosting New Kid-themed cruises.

Thoughts on this viewing: An amusing superhero spoof, although predictable once the premise is set up. If DuckTales had continued, I wonder if Garbage Duck would have returned at some point.

Next: Is this… the end?

• * * * *

Want more? Check out my new ongoing serial, THE SUBTERKNIGHTS, on Kindle Vella. A man searches for his missing sister in a city full of far-out technology and hidden dark magic. The first three chapters are FREE, so give it a shot! Click here for a list of all my books and serials.