History Recap / DarkwingDuckS1E1DarklyDawnsTheDuck

* EurekaMoment: After getting Gosalyn to sleep with the lullaby her grandfather used to sing to her, Darkwing looks at the photo of her, her grandfather and the Ramrod while humming it to himself. That's when he noticed the colored buttons on the machine and figures out that Gosalyn's grandfather actually ''did'' tell her the code after all, she just didn't realize it.

-->'''Darkwing:''' ''Yellow, blue, red, blue, purple''… too? Hold the phone! (''Pulls out a magnifying glass to look at the buttons on the photo'') "Yellow, blue, red, blue"… the lyrics match the controls of the Ramrod! She's had the arming code all along and never even ''knew it''! Oh, and for her sake, it better stay that way.

** He can't stand how the warden smuggly taunts Bulba.
** He was moved to tears when Gosalyn gloomingly tells him that nobody wants to adopt her.
* EveryoneKnowsMorse: When Hammerhead brings up that Bulba's trap for Darkwing won't work if he doesn't know Morse Code, Bulba is not concerned, believing that Darkwing is such a do-gooder he probably [[CrazyPrepared keeps a Boy Scout handbook under his pillow]]. Sure enough, as he's talking, that's where Darkwing is getting it.
** Little bit of trivia: In the comic adaptation, the book is actually a Junior Woodchuck Guidebook, rather than the generic "Boy Scout handbook".

* IneffectualLoner: When in jail, Darkwing eventually comes to see himself as this. He laments that he doesn't have a friend to ask for help. (And is promptly rescued by Launchpad, who is instrumental in rescuing Gosalyn.)

* TrustPassword: While adopting Gosalyn, Drake Mallard explains his injuries as a breakfast injury where he "forgot the milk". Gosalyn realizes what this means and leaps into his arms.

* VillainHasAPoint:
** Taurus' henchman ask why they should intercept a moving train to steal the Ramrod instead of waiting for it to reach its destination. It's because the base will have added security.

In his holding cell, Darkwing is feeling sorry for himself, and the criminals he captured at the beginning of the episode are put off wreaking revenge by his almost aggressive self-pity. Fortunately, [[CarMeetsHouse Launchpad crashes through the jail wall on the Ratcatcher]] (in reverse gear again), which he found at Canard Tower after Darkwing was arrested. When he hears that Taurus Bulba is in an airship, Launchpad shows Darkwing the plane he mentioned during their first meeting: the Thunderquack, which looks just like Darkwing's face. Darkwing is delighted, and Launchpad is even more delighted when Darkwing addresses him as "sidekick". Taurus Bulba is on his way to set up the Ramrod on top of Canard Tower; when he sees the Thunderquack approaching, he fires upon it. Darkwing notes that he and Launchpad need to blow an entry hole in the airship, and when Launchpad says that sounds dangerous, Darkwing utters his CatchPhrase for the first time: "LetsGetDangerous!"

* BadassInDistress: Taurus Bulba's men go through a HumiliationConga twice to get to Gosalyn. The second time, she pulls off a successful defense if not for his condor.

* OffModel: Similar to ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar'', [[Creator/WaltDisneyAnimationUnits Walt Disney Television Animation Australia]] animates the first half of the movie, while Walt Disney Animation Japan animates the second half. The very different animation styles of the Australian and Japanese units creates subtle visual inconsistencies between the two halves.

* RightForTheWrongReason: Bulba suspects that Darkwing got the ramrod code from Gosalyn. He was right, but Gosalyn wasn't even aware she had given it to him; she had merely taught Darkwing the lullaby that her grandfather had made out of the code and Darkwing figured out the connection by looking at the photo of her and grandfather.

* ExactWords: When Bulba demands the ramrod's arming code from Darkwing, Darkwing claims Gosalyn never told him any code. She didn't, she told him a lullaby.

* DidNotSeeThatComing: Taurus Bulba's plan to get the Ramrod arming code and then get rid of Gosalyn took into account escaping from prison, the guards watching the Ramrod, and even the local superhero. However, he was unaware of Launchpad when making his plans. Once the pilot saves Gosalyn, Darkwing's concentration snaps back to the problem at hand and he makes mincemeat of Bulba's EvilPlan.

* RightUnderTheirNoses: DW learns that Goslyn's lullaby is actually code to activate the Ramrod, realizing that she doesn't know and hopes it stays that way.

Luckily, Launchpad catches Gosalyn on the Thunderquack, and Darkwing uses the resulting confusion to race to the control panel for the Ramrod and begin mashing random buttons, overloading the weapon. It fires on Hammerhead, Hoof, and Mouth, who are lifted into the air, and then on Taurus Bulba's airship, which causes it to lose the depository's gold before it crashes into the river and explodes (as Clovis ejects, she mutters that she should have followed her mother's advice and become a dental hygienist); meanwhile, Gosalyn gets revenge on Tantalus by getting Launchpad to bite off the condor's tail feathers with the Thunderquack, sending the bird falling out of the sky. But as the Ramrod continues to fire while Taurus Bulba and Darkwing fight just below it, the overloaded weapon finally explodes, [[NoOneCouldHaveSurvivedThat leaving the top of Canard Tower a ruin as a horrified Gosalyn and Launchpad look on.]]

* ArmorPeircingQuestion: When they hear that Taurus is ready to surrender to DW, Gosslyn asks why, believing that it may be a trick. When DW confronts Taurus, Taurus himself asks the same question:
'''Taurus''': Why would ''I'' surrender to ''you''?

* UnderestimatingBadassery: An enraged Taurus Bulba admits as much after Darkwing foils his plan.

** Upon learning about a newspaper story that he was the one who robbed the train, Darkwing is shocked...but he does think the picture of him beating up Bulba's men disguised as guards isn't bad.

* XanatosSpeedChess: Bulba shows off he's a master at this at the certain points, particularly when he takes advantage of the police thinking Darkwing was behind the theft of the ramrod to get him captured and out of the way.

* DramaticIrony: The audiencand knows full-well that Taurus Bulbs is [[LuredIntoATrap luring Darkwing into a trap]], so [[ProperlyParanoid Gosalyn is right to suspect his so-called "surrender"]]. This unfortunately makes her brief falling out with Darkwing all the more depressing.

* AdultFear:
** Two criminals nearly kidnap an orphan by claiming to be friends of her grandfathers to her guardians in foster care. Science fiction elements aside, that is a terrifyingly realistic scenario.
** Darkwing gets captured by cops while Taurus Bulba kidnaps Gosalyn for the arming code he thinks she has. Seeing Darkwing helplessly screaming out her name is pretty chilling for a children's afternoon cartoon show.

* OffModel: Similar to ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar'', [[Creator/WaltDisneyAnimationUnits Walt Disney Television Animation Australia]] animates the first half of the movie, while Walt Disney Animation Japan animates the second half. The very different animation styles of the Australian and Japanese units creates visual inconsistencies, even though the animation of both halves is itself quite good and some of the series' best.

* {{Glomp}}: Gosalyn makes it a habit to tackle people, especially the ones that she loves. She manages to take down Darkwing this way.

* RealityEnsues:
** While Darkwing's survival from the explosion is improbable, he still has sustained painful injuries from it and needs assistance even to do simple things like drive places.
** After Darkwing rescues Gosalyn from Bulba's henchmen, she naturally assumes that he too is trying to kidnap her, since he just grabbed her off the street without explanation.
** Darkwing is technically a vigilante trespassing on a train carrying a top secret military weapon. Since Hammerhead covered his tracks by having Hoof and Mouth knock out the soldiers guarding it and take their place, the conductor thinking that Darkwing is the real thief is not unreasonable.