Recap / DuckTales (2017) S2E15 "The Dangerous Chemistry of Gandra Dee!"

When they met, it was electric.

Fenton meets a punk rock inventor and plays up his own invention more to impress her.

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Tropes:

• 555: Gandra's phone number is 555-0145.
• Achilles' Heel: Gandra attempts to short out the tech empowering Beaks just as she did with the Gizmoduck suit, only to find his skin has become too thick for it to work. Fenton, however, realizes that Beaks should still be vulnerable internally. Thus they charge his Fentonium with electricity and launch it into Beak's mouth to destroy the nanites.
• Attention Whore: Mark Beaks per his usual MO is Driven by Envy of all the attention Gizmoduck is getting. He blows Gandra's cover because he can't stand her ignoring his calls and can't wait to finally get the power he craves. Fenton manages to distract him at a crucial moment with an article about his rampage with a headline that calls him a fame hungry monster.
• Bad Liar: Huey, as usual. This time he completely blows Fenton's coincidental appearance as Gizmoduck flies by with an obviously fake lie that Webby sees through right away and clues her to Fenton's secret.
• Becoming the Mask: Gandra Dee later starts having feelings for Fenton for real during their date, to the point where she joins his side.
• Be Yourself: Played with. Fenton's mom emphasizes that when it comes to dating you should be the "best version" of yourself.
• Big "NO!": Mark lets one out when he realizes he cannot use a phone in his mega-buff form.
• Bio-Augmentation: Mark Beaks uses minor cybernetic implants and a Super Serum of Nanomachines to turn into a musclebound giant.
• Bland-Name Product: "That barista at Starducks" is listed among the people who know Gizmoduck's identity.
• Brick Joke: When Fenton shows off his spray that makes food taste like glazed doughnuts and Gandra asks what if someone doesn't like the flavor, Fenton asks "What kind of monster doesn't like glazed doughnuts?" Later, during the battle, after calling him a monster, Gizmoduck uses the spray on Mega Beaks, who recoils and expresses his distaste for glazed doughnuts.
• Call-Back: Just like with Magica in the Season 1 Finale, Beaks is confused by the McDuck family-employee structure.
  • Once again, we see the consequences of Fenton releasing Gyro's Bulb-Tech data onto the internet.
• Chekhov's Gun: All of the inventions Fenton shows Gandra come back in the climax in one way or another.
• Continuity Nod:
  • Fenton's list of people who know he's Gizmoduck includes Dewey, Launchpad, Huey, Mark Beaks, and Scrooge.
  • Launchpad mentions two of his exes being a mermaid and a deadly ninja.
  • The windows in Gyro's lab now have proper self-sealing shutters, upgraded from needing a manually-pressed emergency switch. No more flooded basements for the Money Bin!
• Conversational Troping: Huey calls out Gandra and Fenton's Meet Cute by name, quoting directly from the JWG.
• Creative Closing Credits: Similar to the previous Gizmoduck focused episodes, this one has a date montage song
• Disappeared Dad: It's implied that he's passed away after Fenton's mom gives him his older suit to wear, saying she's been saving it for him. (Though the style of the suit is specific to the mid- to late-80s, there's nothing to indicate that Fenton's dad didn't pass away later on.)
• Does Not Know His Own Strength: When trying to use a phone in his buff form, Mark Beaks crushes it with his finger taps.
• Double-Meaning Title: The "dangerous chemistry" refers to both the romantic chemistry between Gandra and Fenton and the nanite serum created by Gandra.
• Foreshadowing: Gizmoduck has had a lot of recent activity with a proportional amount of news coverage. One news report specifically says that the attention for the new Waddle Watch was drawn to Gizmoduck instead. That and Gandra hanging up her phone with an annoyed expression and wearing Waddle headphones foreshadows Mark's scheme.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus:
  • The list of everyone who knows who Gizmoduck is includes Fenton's dry cleaner, his mailman, a barista at Starducks and everyone on his block.
  • The app Mark Beaks uses to hack into the Money Bin's security system is called wHack.
• Growing Muscles Sequence: Mark Beaks's transformation from his original scrawny self into the hulking Mega-Beaks.
• Hollywood Acid: The Universal Solvent is designed specifically to be this, being able to melt through anything but the toughest of minerals. Gandra quickly deduces that it's a means for Scrooge to quickly seed out valuable metals and gems by simply melting everything else.
• High-Heel–Face Turn: Gandra Dee was working for Mark Beaks the whole time. However, after getting to know Fenton better, she actually grows to like him and helps to stop Beaks' mega-buff form.
• Hypocrisy Nod: Fenton points out that Gandra's criticism of him working for Scrooge doesn't hold up at all when she works for someone as blatantly selfish as Beaks, and neither does her assertion of being an independent scientist work if she is willing to sell out to such a man in exchange for resources. In her defense, Gandra didn't think Mark Beaks was actually going to hurt anyone.
• In Name Only: Gandra Dee shares a love interest and absolutely nothing else with her DuckTales (1987) namesake.
• Interspecies Romance: Between Fenton, a duck, and Gandra, a different kind of bird.
• Jock Dad, Nerd Son: Mark Beaks implies his dad was a Jerk Jock who demeaned him for being unathletic. Might also double as Mark's Freudian Excuse if it's true.
  Mark: Who's a loser now, Coach Dad?!
• "King Kong" Climb: Mega Beaks climbs to the top of the Waddle tower with Huey and Webby in one hand, all to get attention.
• Lampshade Hanging: When battling the mutated Mark Beaks, Gizmoduck fires a multitude of pies at him, several of which Mark eats whole as they're being fired. Immediately after, he asks aloud, "Did I just eat the pie tins?"
• Literal Metaphor: Fenton takes a girl he likes on a date, only for his date to be outed as a spy helping Mark Beaks complete a nanotech device based on stolen Gizmo tech, and Beaks downs a serum that leads to him Hulking Out and fighting Gizmoduck. Which leads to this exchange:
  Huey: "This date is a disaster! Fenton's going to be crushed!"
  (Mega Beaks pins Gizmoduck and begins pressing him into the floor.)
  Webby: "Fenton's going to be CRUSHED!"
• Magic Pants: Beaks' clothes rip as his nanites activate, but still manage to keep his pants on. When the deflates later, it looks as if the pants had expanded, but shrink with him as he collapses.
• Mama Bear: After helping him get ready for the date, Mamá Cabrera sweetly tells Fenton that if Gandra breaks his heart, she'll hunt her down and destroy her life piece by piece.
• Meet Cute: Name-dropped by Huey at Fenton and Gandra's first meeting (naturally, it's in the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook). He even mentions that all that's missing is an "awkward yet adorable accident", which Fenton promptly supplies.
• Mythology Gag:
  • One of the science projects Fenton shows Gandra is the Universal Solvent, a green liquid that can tear through anything but the strongest of diamonds. The Universal Solvent marked its debut in the eponymous comic by Don Rosa, although it was colored black rather than green.
  • Launchpad mentioning having dated a viking shieldmaiden might be a refrence to an episode of the original series, "Maid of the Myth".
• Noodle Incident:
  • Somehow, Fenton managed to expose his Secret Identity to his dry-cleaner, his mailman, a barista, and everyone who lives on his block.
  • Launchpad's many, many past relationships. Probably each and every one is an interesting story on its own.
• Not-So-Harmless Villain: Mark demonstrates again how competent he can be when he actually makes an effort. He makes his way past the Money Bin's laser turret security system while dabbing to music and riding a hoverboard so he can break into the lab. And when he gains superpowers he becomes an unstoppable juggernaut.
• One-Winged Angel: Because Beaks drank more than one serum, he turns into a Hulk-like giant.
• Open Secret: Gizmoduck's identity is slowly becoming this, as Webby figures it out in a matter of seconds. Fenton's keeping a list of everyone who knows.
• Opposites Attract: Despite both being smart and somewhat misunderstood, Gandra and Fenton are quite different. Gandra's casual while Fenton's formal (grunge vs suit and tie or a tux). Gandra specializes in bio-mechanical creations while Fenton shows off more Biochemical work. And Gandra is much more about being able to do whatever she wants wherever or whenever, while Fenton's all about taking responsibility for what he does or what others might do with his work. Despite this, there's a clear attraction and respect that sadly doesn't fully develop due to Gandra's "freelance" work with Beaks.
• Our Werebeasts Are Different: Launchpad mentions a were-duck among his exes, but we don't hear any more details about it.
• Pec Flex: Beaks does this to show off his muscles after Huey asks whether he has a heart.
• Punny Name: Dr. Atmoz Fear is a pun on "atmosphere". Fittingly, he has Weather Manipulation powers.
• Really Gets Around: Launchpad does his best to talk up Fenton as he's driving him to pick up Gandra, but it devolves into a list of his previous partners.
  Launchpad: I say it's good for you to find that special someone. And that someone can be many things. A friend, a confidant, a deadly ninja, a forbidden mermaid, a were-duck, a clone of yourself... [...]a Viking shield-maiden, a talking cloud of energy that one time...
• Rubber-Hose Limbs: Beaks temporarily gets these when he's deflating from his Hulk-like giant form.
• Shipper on Deck: Huey jumps aboard fairly quickly while watching Fenton and Gandra's first meeting.
• Shock and Awe: Gandra added nanotech into her hands, allowing her to shock people at will.
• Shout-Out:
  • Visually, Dr. Atmoz Fear is a bird version of Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz - right down to the cheesy haircut and accent.
  • "And so once again, the day is saved thanks to Gizmoduck!" For bonus points, the TV reporter is even voiced by Tom Kenny.
  • The white long sport coat and pants combo Mama Cabrera gives Fenton for his date looks like one of Sonny Crockett's. It raises interesting questions about who Fenton's dad was...
  • The romantic dinner Huey and Webby prepare for Fenton and Gandra is based on Lady and the Tramp. They even try to invoke the Spaghetti Kiss by tying all the noodles together.
  • Fenton's describes Fentonium as gathering energy rather than expending it, which was also used to describe Flubber.
  • Beaks mutates into the Duckverse's version of the Hulk. His being a 'Grey Hulk' can also be a reference to Bruce Banner's amoral, Jerkass alternative transformation.
• Skewed Priorities:
  • After learning that Gandra is a spy for Beaks, Huey is more concerned about Fenton's heart getting broken than the fact that, y'know, she's a spy and she's in the lab.
  • Beaks is pretty much impossible to beat, but all it takes to bring him down is his Attention Whore nature by having him look at a news article about him on his phone...which he can't operate because of his large fingers and breaks it. Cue Big "NO!".
• Spaghetti Kiss: While getting rid of everything Huey and Webby brought to the lab for the evening, Fenton discovers that the plate of spaghetti they made has all the noodles tied together. Huey explains they were trying to invoke this. The noodles—and their plan—fall apart when they start eating it.
• Super Serum: Gandra developed a nanite serum for Mark Beaks that are meant to give him powers but, since they're networked to an implant derived from Gizmoduck tech, he needs the activation phrase from Fenton himself to activate them. In his boredom waiting to get the phrase, he drank multiple vials and ends up gigantic when the subsequent megadose is finally activated.
• Superhero Paradox: Life in Duckburg might be like a hurricane, but three weather-themed supervillains in one month seems like more than Duckburg ever had to deal with before Gizmoduck showed up.
• Superpowers for a Day: Thanks to Gandra's Super Serum, Beaks becomes a Nigh-Invulnerable behemoth. He's changed back to normal in the climax.
• You Fight Like a Cow: Lampshaded in the opening, where Gizmoduck squares off with Dr. Atmoz Fear. Since he's the third weather-based supervillain Fenton has faced that month, between that and dealing with more conventional crime, Fenton hasn't had the time to work on any better quips than "I'm about to rain on your parade!"
• You Monster!: Gizmoduck says this to Mega Beaks:
  Gizmoduck: You've always been a monster, but now you are a literal monster.

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