I finally read the full Uncle Scrooge and the Christmas Leap Lamp, including Mickey in the World without Blot, and I have some thoughts.
I have to say, it feels a bit surreal to see stuff that I kind of thought was just fanfictiony stuff that would never happen in any canon, actually just straight up happen.
I mean, just look at how Mickey is with the Phantom Blot...
Mickey has nightmares about him and is so focused on him, to the point where he makes it his New Year's resolution each year to capture him and has even been tracking everything he can about the Blot, including his family tree.
Just the way Mickey talks about him...
and even feels a connection with him.
Honestly, if I wrote any of this, I would've felt like I was doing too much... and yet here it is in a more "canon" capacity. It makes me feel so vindicated. Like the relationship I've always seen Mickey and Blot having was further legitimized.
Now granted, the reason why Mickey feels a bond with the Phantom Blot is a direct result of the events in Coral Island Nightmare (a really good comic, please read it).
However, that raises even more questions, given that it also introduced the Phantom Blot to mysterious Dr. Plume, a character who has become more and more important in Marco Nucci's stories as of late. It even has me wonder something...
Spoilers if you haven't read this comic yet...
Throughout the comic, Mickey has been having weird dreams with the Phantom Blot, who seems to be threatening him.
At first, you wonder if the Blot is trying to tempt or taunt Mickey into heading over to Dr. Plume for some kind of scheme. But later, it is actually revealed that due to Scrooge making a wish to get rid of Christmas, he actually got rid of the Phantom Blot as his great great grandfather was born on Christmas.
And when Mickey and Scrooge have to solve a riddle to get the lamp that would return everything back to normal, Mickey realizes that the "nightmares" he's been getting actually include a hint to the answer.
Side tangent: One of my favorite things about the Blot is how he manages to make pretty much anything threatening. Like even when he thanked Mickey for letting him see his daughter in "A Phantom Blot Bedtime Story", he still managed to say it in such a menancing way. Such a great trait.
But back to the main point. This whole moment really made me wonder whether that was the real goal of the Phantom Blot. Whether his threats through the nightmares were actually just a way to help Mickey bring him back into existence.
And yet I can't stop thinking about that other part he mentions. The "lock you in my shadow". Could that be a hint at a future plan by the Phantom Blot? I mean, this comic is a clear follow-up to the Nucci & Casty Phantom Blot trilogy, and Dr. Plume has been making appearances in other comics. Is it possible that, outside of just helping Mickey out, he was also leading him to his doom?
By the way, what's interesting about this comic is how it also captures another pair of arch-enemies, where the villain ends up helping the hero. I'm of course talking about Scrooge... And Magica.
You see what's interesting about Scrooge and Magica's relationship compared to Mickey and Blot's is that while Scrooge and Magica are on opposing sides more often than not, there are quite a few times where they would help each other, even out of their own volition. It's not uncommon for Scrooge to go to Magica for magical help or even for Magica to go to Scrooge. They're enemies, but they also have no problem being allies. The story even ends with Scrooge inviting Magica for Christmas dinner as a thank you. Something I can never imagine Mickey doing with the Blot (at least this version).
I don't know, I just think it's really cool how this comic highlighted the different pairs of enemies and how vastly different their relationship is to each other. Mickey and Blot have this obsession with taking each other down. And even when the Blot "helps", it's laced within nightmares and threats, as well as being arguably solely self-serving, given that Mickey's help brings him back into existence... and perhaps something else as well.
Meanwhile, Magica and Scrooge care a lot about thwarting each other, and yet also kind of care about each other as well. They both have no problem putting aside their differences as needed, solving whatever issue comes their way. Granted, you could argue she just helped Scrooge this time, so he would be the richest duck in the world again, and she could get his dime. But they still have this sort of friendly rapport with each other. Something I feel like Blot and Mickey don't really have, and likely don't really want.
Final Thoughts:
I really like this comic. I know some people were wanting more of an exploration of what the world would be like without the Phantom Blot, specifically. But I think the comic accomplishes what it was trying to do very well. It's paced nicely. The characterizations are on point. Scrooge and Goldie are just way too sweet together. I really loved their interactions and them just enjoying each other's company. Mickey and Minnie are also really cute, and I genuinely started to feel my heartstrings pull when Mickey realized that Goofy was gone and when they got reunited. I really hope we get a follow-up to this in the future.
A beaver berth covers the shoulders of this Brildiaz de Lesur suit. Two high pockets highlight the waist at their ends. The skirt is straight. Védrenne umbrella. Casty jewelry. Photo Philippe Pottier.
Model/Modèle : Rose Marie Le Quellec.
Une berthe de castor coiffe les épaules de ce tailleur en Brildiaz de Lesur. Deux hautes poches soulignent à leur extrémité l'emplacement de la taille. La jupe est droite. Parapluie Védrenne. Bijoux Casty. Photo Philippe Pottier.
