The Complete Life And Times Of Uncle Scrooge Volume 1 (COMPLETE LIFE & TIMES SCROOGE MCDUCK HC) Hardcover – April 23, 2019

Although I am a fan of Disney's Donald Duck and other related characters, the original Ducktales cartoon was before my time and so I never watched it growing up. I had heard good things about its 2017 reboot however and at the time bored, with little else to watch, I decided to give the show a shot. The first two episodes impressed me enough to continue watching and I am glad I did. The series had so many of the same elements that made the cartoons I grew up with memorable and the show has the potential to be a defining one for this generation.Both the reboot, and the original series, have their roots in the Disney Duck Comics. Now, I must admit to having a very limited knowledge of these comics. I had read somewhere though, that this 12 issue Limited Series in particular was a major influence on the new Ducktales specifically.The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck is written and drawn by Don Rosa, considered to be by many the successor to the original Duck Comics legend Carl Barks. I've read exactly one Barks' story to date but I did enjoy it for what it was. Rosa himself is a huge fan of Barks' work, and was known to weave in references and easter eggs to his idol's stories into some of his own, and even wrote a few follow-ups to Barks' as well. The Life and Times is kind of the logical conclusion to this. It is meant to be the definitive origin of the character of Scrooge McDuck, tying together almost every known Barksian fact about his life into one cohesive narrative.This may seem like a lot of information coming from a self-professed novice on the material but that is because this edition of the book proved to be very informative. It might have seemed ill-advised to invest in a book of this price with only a limited knowledge of the contents beforehand, but the payoff was well worth it. As a special edition aimed at collectors, it was something I just couldn't resist.It is an oversized hardcover volume which comes in a beautiful Slipcase with a removable replica of Scrooge's #1 Dime set in the front cover. In a lot of ways this presentation reminds me of the DC Comics Absolute Editions, but significantly bigger even than those books. It can be a bit cumbersome to read at this size, even when compared to an Omnibus, but I find it to be a worthwhile tradeoff for the quality of this product in both artwork and story.The Life and Times fully told is truly amazing, although it took me longer to get through than I originally intended. I read through the first two issues pretty quickly when I first got the book, but didn't pick it back up again for almost a year. Not to say I wasn't enjoying the series, but it didn't quite grab me then so I ended up setting it aside for several other books I'd been wanting to read.When I did eventually come back to it, I found myself hooked and couldn't read anything else until I'd finished. This is a truly incredible story, one which highlights the complexity of the character of Scrooge.It is very much much a story about rising from little means to wealth and prosperity through hard work and sharp wit but losing something of oneself along the way and by the end maybe finding that piece again. The Life and Times is an exciting and action filled story but at times deeply introspective. It will take the reader all over the world in its course, weaving itself at times into and between real historical events. This of course with a little leeway as far as accuracy is concerned, when needed.Beyond the original 12 chapters, this edition includes 6 follow-up stories written after the original issues that fill out some gaps left in the story, as well as 4 relevant to the series tales from Rosa's time on the regular Uncle Scrooge comics.As I mentioned before, everything here is written and drawn by Rosa. Through his writing and artwork he exhibits a real fun wit. His art is especially spectacular to behold at this scale. Rosa himself helps curate the collection, which is packed with extras throughout the volume. Best among them the "Making Of" essays by Rosa himself that follow every chapter of the book. These include invaluable insights into how this Eisner Award Winning series took shape. Most of the details I've relayed in this review come from these pages, but all I've said is just the tip of the iceberg.This book hits all the right notes for me. It transported me back to my childhood in the best way possible. To a time where adventure and discovery felt like they were right there waiting.If anything I've said in this review has piqued your interest, then this just might be worth purchasing. This edition is certainly worth it. I absolutely loved this story. Circling back to the beginning of this review, if you were a fan of the 2017 Ducktales, or even the original 1987 series, I expect this will be an enjoyable read.5/5

The book comes in its own cardboard box with an image of Scrooge McDuck and a sticker on the front and some more information on the bottom.Once you open it, you're greeted by the great artwork present on the sleeve cover and the shiny dime replica that can be popped out of it once the book is removed from the cover. The book is wonderfully decorated with embossed drawings giving a 3d feel and the spine of the book is made out of cloth with golden writing. The inside is wonderfully printed on rather thick paper with a shiny finish.It is the complete edition of the first 12 chapters plus the additional extra chapters in their own section at the end of the book.I fully recommend this purchase because it is one of a kind, wonderfully made and beautiful to just admire. Will make your eyes smile!Mind that the book is quite heavy and large and with the cover on it becomes a behemoth!

This is worth every penny. Get it, don't regret it!! It's a beautiful edition of a classic work. And the size, the commentary and art make it worth it.One thing: check that the centerfolds aren't creased. I only noticed that one was misfolded after the return/exchange window.

The media could not be loaded. This book will only go up in value. Insanely cool collectable, in so many ways. Just look at that quality, the size, the gold and silver. A book Scrooge McDuck would demand to be nothing less.

I wish I had this book when I was 10-15. It is simply amazing. The art of Don Rosa is enchanting and the best way to enjoy it is with these big-sized comic panels. With that being said, you have to keep in mind that this book is massive, it weighs over 5 kg and is giant in size, really hard to hold in your hands and read from, and also hard to store. But these are little problems, for once you open the box and gaze at the wonderful slipcase and its colors, you will forget about everything else and just spend the whole day feasting your eyes upon this little treasure and reading the incredible stories. The book comes with small articles after each chapter written by the author Don Rosa himself, where he explains the story behind each chapter and presents all the details he hid here and there.