History Recap / DuckTalesS1E4WhereNoDuckHasGoneBefore

* IllKillYou: A third-person variation; Scrooge tells Gyro that if Major Courage makes it home in one piece, he'll kill him.

* LoopholeAbuse: Beautifully averted in Courage's five-year contract, as shown in the KarmaHoudiniWarranty.

* StrawLoser: Major Courage served as this for Launchpad; Launchpad may be a bumbler, but he's still a fairly competent pilot (bar some crashing issues). Courage, on the other hand, is a TV star first, with no actual experience flying.

* AnAesop: An actor is not their character.

* IronicEcho: Scrooge obtains ownership of a studio that produces a show that Scrooge dislikes, and the star, Major Courage, constantly reminds Scrooge of his five-year contract, especially after he accidentally blasts off into space with the nephews and upon finding out he really is in space, finds a way out and leaves them behind, refusing to come back for them. At the end, Scrooge turns the studio into a space museum, where Courage is forced to do humiliating work as a candy vendor, to which Scrooge reminds him of his five-year contract.

* MilesGloriosus: Courage, who doesn't know that the danger is real for most of the episode, walks around making hammy heroic declarations and challenging the aliens to fights. Then he attacks Buvolvan, gets smacked down, and realizes that this isn't an episode he's filming -- and promptly takes off in the only ship, leaving the others behind.

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Earlier, the aliens probed Launchpad's brain for info on Earth to plan for an invasion. When our heroes escape, the aliens planned to use what information they scanned to follow the ducks back to Earth. Unfortunately, it was misinformation (directions are reversed, the sun orbits the Earth, etc.), resulting in the alien ship pin balling all over space.
* TheNicknamer: Courage tends to nickname everyone, such as calling Scrooge and Launchpad by their initials.
* ShowWithinAShow: ''Courage of the Cosmos'' is a sci-fi show in the ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales'' universe.

* TortureForFunAndProfit:
* WeldTheLock: Launchpad squirts custard from the food synthesizer on the lock to the transporter room door to make sure the Kronks can't open it.
* WhereNoParodyHasGoneBefore: The show ''Courage of the Cosmos'' is a reference[=/=]parody of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''.

* IllKillYou: A variation; Scrooge tells Gyro, in reference to [[CaptainSpaceDefenderOfEarth Major Courage]], "If he ever gets home alive, ''I'll kill him!''

* MindProbe: The aliens "strip the data [about how to get to Earth]" from Launchpad's mind.

* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: Major Courage is so confident that he can escape Scrooge's reprisal that he feels safe gloating about the fact that he's safe right after refusing to go back to save Scrooge's nephews. He gets a shocking dose of retribution when Scrooge has him employed as a candy vendor at the new space museum. Worst of all, [[LoopholeAbuse since the five-year contract doesn't specify in what capacity Scrooge is required to employ him]], Courage isn't allowed to bail out!
* LanternJawOfJustice: Subverted with Courage of the Cosmos. He has a heroic beak, but he's really a Dirty Coward.

* NiceCharacterMeanActor: The actor who plays [[CaptainSpaceDefenderOfEarth Courage of the Cosmos]] is an arrogant blowhard and a Dirty Coward.

* YoureInsane: Launchpad asks Courage, "Are you crazy?" when he insists on fist-fighting the alien leader. The encounter proves enlightening for Courage.

* GladIThoughtOfIt: Seconds after Launchpad suggests that one of them should play sick as a distraction, Courage announces that they'll use "the old sickness ploy" to escape.

* MilesGloriosus: Courage, who doesn't know that the danger is real for most of the episode, walks around making hammy heroic declarations and challenging the aliens to fights. Then he attacks the Buvolvan, gets smacked down, and realizes that this isn't an episode he's filming -- and promptly takes off in the only ship, leaving the others behind.

* MilesGloriosus: Courage, until he attacks the fat alien.

* ActorRoleConfusion: The boys don't seem to recognize that Major Courage is a TV character and the actor's stunts on the show are no less fake than the scenery. They get a hard lesson on this when they get a chance to see "Major Courage" in action, and he's ''nothing'' like the heroic character he portrays.

* CaptainErsatz: Major Courage was a copy of Creator/WilliamShatner's Kirk, in all the wrong ways. He talks in the same odd rhythm that Kirk does when he gets excited, and is equally [[LargeHam hammy]], but he's got none of the courage of the original.

* HumiliationConga: "Courage". In the climactic battle with (unbeknownst to him) real aliens in (again unbeknownst to him) real outer-space, [[CurbStompBattle he gets taken down easily]]. Then he realizes they are in space with real aliens and abandons the others. Exposed as a DirtyCoward, he loses the admiration and respect of [[ImYourBiggestFan the boys]]. When the failing show is canceled, and the studio becomes a museum, Courage is forced to work as a candy vendor. When Scrooge [[IronicEcho reminds him of]] [[KarmaHoudiniWarranty his five-year contract,]] no less in front of a crowd of demanding bratty ducklings, Courage looks ready to bawl.

* IronicEcho: Scrooge obtains ownership of a studio that produces a show that Scrooge dislikes, and the star, Major Courage, constantly reminds Scrooge of his five-year contract, especially after he accidentally blasts off into space with the nephews and upon finding out he really is in space, finds a way out and leaves them behind, refusing to come back for them. At the end, Scrooge turns the studio into a space museum, where Courage is forced to do humiliating work as a mascot and candy vendor, to which Scrooge reminds him of his five-year contract.

* HumiliationConga: "Courage". In the climactic battle with (unbeknownst to him) real aliens in (again unbeknownst to him) real outer-space, [[CurbStompBattle he gets taken down easily]]. Then he realizes they are in space with real aliens and abandons the others. Exposed as a DirtyCoward, he loses the admiration and respect of [[ImYourBiggestFan the boys]]. When the failing show is canceled, and the studio becomes a museum, Courage is forced to work as a candy vendor. When Scrooge reminds him of his [[IronicEcho five-year contract,]] no less in front of a crowd of demanding bratty ducklings, Courage looks ready to bawl.
* IdiotHoudini: Gyro Gearloose. True, Major Courage was kind of obnoxious and he did [[DirtyCoward leave Scrooge's nephews and Launchpad behind on an alien ship]], but Gyro, who caused the whole incident because of his LiteralMinded interpretation of Scrooge's orders for a real-looking set, got no comeuppance.

* KarmaHoudiniWarranty / LoopholeAbuse: Major Courage is so confident that he can escape Scrooge's reprisal that he feels safe gloating about the fact that he's safe right after refusing to go back to save Scrooge's nephews. He gets a shocking dose of retribution when Scrooge has him employed as a candy vendor at the new space museum. Worst of all, since the five-year contract doesn't specify in what capacity Scrooge is required to employ him, Courage isn't allowed to bail out!

* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: Major Courage is so confident that he can escape Scrooge's reprisal that he feels safe gloating about the fact that he's safe right after refusing to go back to save Scrooge's nephews. He gets a shocking dose of retribution when Scrooge, required by the five-year contract to employ him in some capacity, has him employed as a candy vendor at the new space museum. Worst of all, Courage isn't allowed to bail out!

* LoopholeAbuse: Courage thinks he's safe from Scrooge's retribution because he has a five-year contract with the studio. But said contract doesn't determine ''what'' job Courage would have, and so Scrooge demotes him to a food vendor, ''and'' it prevents him from quitting!

* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: Major Courage is so confident that he can escape Scrooge's reprisal that he feels safe gloating about the fact that he's safe right after refusing to go back to save Scrooge's nephews. He gets a shocking dose of retribution when Scrooge implements his five-year contract to ensure he has to work five years as a candy vendor at the new space museum.

* KarmaHoudini: Gyro Gearloose (admittedly, the thing he didn't get punished for was caused more through ignorance than malice). True, Major Courage was kind of obnoxious and he did [[DirtyCoward leave Scrooge's nephews and Launchpad behind on an alien ship]], but Gyro, who caused the whole incident because of his LiteralMinded interpretation of Scrooge's orders for a real-looking set, got no comeuppance.

* KarmaHoudini: Gyro Gearloose (admittedly, through ignorance rather than malice). True, Major Courage was kind of obnoxious and he did [[DirtyCoward leave Scrooge's nephews and Launchpad behind on an alien ship]], but Gyro, who caused the whole incident because of his LiteralMinded interpretation of Scrooge's orders for a real-looking set, got no comeuppance.

** Scrooge tells Gyro to make the set "as real as [he] can." He means to make it realistic-looking, but Gyro makes it a real spaceship. The boys, Launchpad, and Courage [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisWholePlot could have avoided their hair-raising encounter with the Kronks]] if Mr. Gearloose wasn't so LiteralMinded.

* AsteroidThicket: Launchpad, the only person aware that a field of asteroids is real and deadly, has an absolutely terrifying time trying to keep the ''Phoenix'' from running into them. Ultimately, he brings it "right through without a scratch", but the toll the experience took on him is clear as she staggers upstairs to inform the others.

* CaptainErsatz: Major Courage was a copy of Creator/WilliamShatner's Kirk.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Upon discovering that everyone has actually gone up into outer space, Scrooge destroys the computer console in front of him in frustration. Unfortunately, it happens to include the only working radio, keeping him and Gyro from contacting Courage, Launchpad and the boys and warning them about what's happened.

* AsteroidThicket: Launchpad steers through a bunch of asteroids.

* ImprobablePilotingSkills: Launchpad intuits how to operate an [[UpToEleven alien space ship.]]

* HumiliationConga: "Courage". In the climactic battle with (unbeknownst to him) real aliens in (again unbeknownst to him) real outer-space, [[CurbStompBattle he gets taken down easily]]. Then he realizes they are in space with real aliens and abandons the others. Exposed as a DirtyCoward, he loses [[BrokenPedestal the admiration and respect of]] the boys. When the failing show is canceled, and the studio becomes a museum, Courage is forced to work as a candy vendor. When Scrooge reminds him of his [[IronicEcho five-year contract,]] no less in front of a crowd of demanding bratty ducklings, Courage looks ready to bawl.

* HumiliationConga: "Courage". He gets [[CurbStompBattle curb stomped]] by an alien while showboating, reveals himself as a DirtyCoward in front of [[ImYourBiggestFan the nephews]] and Scrooge, and was reduced to a candy vendor (also see IronicEcho below).