Chapter 8C: Hearts of the Yukon
Dates: 1898
Desperately wanting to see Scrooge again, Goldie decides there's only one logical thing to do: take advantage of the town's hatred for Scrooge and press charges against him for kidnapping her with the newly arrived Royal Canadian Mounted Police (Anyone could press charges against him but she was the only one who wasn't afraid of hitting Scrooge's Berserk Button). Scrooge makes the dangerous journey back to town in a storm as a wildfire burns out of control and almost meets up with Goldie in the burning Blackjack Saloon before a fire hose knocks him unconscious. Thanks to some help from his friend Casey Coot, and Goldie tricking the RCMP into thinking he saved her from the fire instead of the other way around, Scrooge clears his name, gets his gold claim reinstated, and heads back to White Agony Creek. On the way, a mountie delivers a letter to him from Goldie... which he refuses to open, preferring "to pretend that there's one person in this sorry world that I might... that I can..." Love Hurts, and pride conquers all.
This chapter provides examples of:
- The Ace: Samuel Steele, greatest lawman in the north. What else you can call a man who was able to directly takes on gunpowder barrels explosion without as much as a scratch?
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking:Colonel Sam Steele: Halt, McDuck! It won't do to add jaywalking to your already prodigious list of civil violations!
- Bait-and-Switch: Scrooge enters town and sees everyone run away at the mention that "Steele" is coming. Scrooge then meets a giant thug at a bar, riding a bear, speaking only in manly roars, eating his food with a bowie knife and so on. Suddenly the brute leaves, causing Scrooge to question this, to which the brute gets a terrified look and says "Didn't you hear? Steele's coming!"
- Bulletproof Fashion Plate:Colonel Sam Steele: A superintendent of the North-Western Mounted Police does not get... 'Muddy'.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Essentially the driving force of the plot.
- Chick Magnet: In addition of being feared by the shady men, Steele seems to also garnered a large numbers of admirers from Dawson women... with the exception of Goldie.
- Convection, Schmonvection: The climax is Scrooge and Goldie staring each other down in a burning building. Granted, Goldie eventually ends up fainting... only to quickly reveal she was just faking.
- Delicious Distraction: When Scrooge finally gets to Dawson, he's prepared to fight off the local toughs, per the norm. When the claim-jumpers learn that Scrooge arrived on a shipment of food, the starving men instantly forget about the duck.
- Downer Ending: Leaves most readers wishing Don Rosa could have dismissed 'canon' and just let Scrooge and Goldie get together, dammit!
- The Dreaded: The mere mention of the name "Steele" is enough to make any Yukon resident involved in anything shady flee in terror. Scrooge also this to some extent as even after he was accused of false misdeeds and gets his gold claim rescinded by the RCMP, the jealous Dawson toughs are still wary of his potential reprisal against them.
- Fluffy the Terrible: The brute with a bear for a mount apparently calls it "Petunia Blossom".
- For Want Of A Nail: Because of a random ice block to his head, Scrooge is knocked out cold and misses his opportunity to reunite with Goldie. One can only guess if his life might have turned out very different if not for that. Used to great
Tear Jerker-effect in "The Dream of a Lifetime". - Furry Confusion: A group of men are shown fighting over bacon in the same chapter that has an anthropomorphic pig. There's also Soapy Slick.
- Historical Badass Upgrade: Samuel Steele was certainly an exemplary officer of the RCMP who re-established order in the lawless Yukon during the Gold Rush, but Rosa tops this by making him The Ace. The meanest, orneriest prospector imaginable rides into town on a friggin' bear, but is so scared of Steele that he rushes off before the man arrives. In fact, Steele is SO badass that explosions can't even hurt him.
- Idea Bulb: Goldie has the "oil lamp being turned on by hand" variant as she gets the idea to sign an official accusation against Scrooge so the RCMP could bring him to her.
- Large Ham: Steele. Goes with the territory of being The Ace. As his introduction to the comic shows someone arriving to town: a Brute with the Beard of Barbarism, BFG, and a bear for the mount. Pretty badass? Actually he's somebody else afraid of Steele and running away. That's how epic Steele is.
- The Masochism Tango: Goldie and Scrooge, again.
- No Badass to His Valet: Although almost the entirety of Dawson wants Scrooge gone, only Goldie who actually presses charge against him because she wasn't afraid that The King of Klondike would retaliate against her. Sure enough when Scrooge learns that it was Goldie who signed the lawsuit against him, he immediately froze up and instead seeks to reason by meeting with her directly (which is exactly what she wanted).
- Poor Communication Kills: Scrooge, why couldn't you just read the letter, you idiot?!note
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Steele, while bombastic, isn't completely unreasonable. After Casey Coot puts in a good word and Goldie has Scrooge Framed for Heroism, Steele withdraws the charges and lets Scrooge have his claim back.
- Tap on the Head: The ice block knocking Scrooge out.
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: Between Goldie and Scrooge.
- Who Will Bell the Cat?: The toughs get an idea to turn Scrooge and Steele against each other by accusing Scrooge of misdeeds, but Steele insists that someone has to step forward to make an official statement. And almost no one in Dawson wants to get on Scrooge's bad side if the plan flops. Except for Goldie, who seeks an excuse to meet Scrooge again and isn't afraid of his reprisal.
