Kon Ducki is the eleventh episode of the second season of Tiny Toon Adventures, and the 76th episode overall.
Summary[]
Intro[]
Buster introduces the show, dressed as a pirate captain, to tell the viewers that it's High-Seas Adventure day on Tiny Toons. He says, "So let's hit the waves!" and as he says it, he gets splashed from behind by a tidal wave, then says, "Or vice versa."
Kon Ducki[]
The film Kon Ducki begins with a title sequence where Plucky is listed in most of the opening credits. After the title sequence ends, the film cuts to the Explorers Club, where Plucky, playing Captain Pluck Heyerdahl, holds a meeting to prove his theory that his ancestors before him did not fly from the Island of Yap to Salinas, but in fact, sailed there. The members of the Explorers Club express their disbelief over that theory. Plucky then tells the members that not only will he sail there, he will build his ship out of materials his ancestors had in 1977, and will attempt to reach his destination in only twenty-one days.
Later, on the Island of Yap, we see what looks like Plucky assembling his ship, as he explains as a voiceover that the task of building the Kon Ducki proved arduous. In actuality, Plucky is taking a lunch break, and trying to open a bottle of mango juice. Plucky then introduces his crew, Koom-Bye-Ya, played by Hamton Pig (in a wig, lei, and grass skirt), his trusted companion, first mate, cook, navigator, and pillow fluffer, and Little Parrot, played by Sweetie (with a flower in her hair), who is only along for comic relief and bemused bitter overused asides ("Ah, it's a living."). Sweetie then warns the viewers that a violent sight gag is about to approach. The violent sight gag being, Hamton's grass skirt falling down just as he puts up the mast, revealing a "naked pig", complete with a bus tour guide pointing it out. With Hamton distracted, in what will later become a running gag, the mast falls on Plucky, who is about to drink some mango juice ("Ahh, mango juice!", SPLAT!). After Hamton pulls his grass skirt up, he is ready to report to Plucky that the mast is in place. He calls for Plucky, only to find out that he is trapped under the mast.
After the Kon Ducki is built, Hamton and Sweetie tow it into the water, which Plucky's voiceover describes as their unsinkable vessel meeting the sea, only for the ship to sink like a stone a second later. After a second try, the ship stays afloat, but Plucky, Hamton and Sweetie unknowingly sail in the wrong direction, as the Salinas are on the other side of the Island of Yap. Plucky then asks Hamton if they have all of the 70s items that, like his ancestors before him, they brought with them on their journey. Hamton then goes through the items to ensure that they have them; among them are a Popeil Pocket Fisherman fishing rod, a Presto Individual Hamburger Maker, a pair of clogs, extra-polyester shirts with enormous cuffs and collars, Pet Rocks, really big headphones, a full-length Keep on Truckin' poster, and Peter Frampton, Bee Gees, and Abba 8-track tapes. Regarding the music tapes, Hamton tells Plucky that all those groups are "divorced", Plucky replying with "I didn't even know they were married". Sweetie then enquires, "What? None of those really wide ties?" Plucky then tells her, "What do you think the sail's made of?" and shows her the sail, made out of a giant wide tie.
Day 3 at sea, Plucky tells Hamton and Sweetie that the wind should pick up at any moment, then sticks his finger in the air in a pose to check for the wind. The days pass, the weather changes, and various cameos pass by, but Plucky remains in his pose, until Day 12, where he begins to lose hope. Then, he gets the idea of doing his ancient ancestor's dance to the wind god, claiming that this giver of wind to the noble sailor has been alive forever. Asiding to the viewers, Sweetie adds "And he wrote the very first song." Plucky then dances and sings to the tune of "Staying Alive" by the Bee Gees. This causes the wind to pick up, and Plucky to think his plan worked. Sweetie, who is actually providing the wind via operating a hair dryer, tells the viewers "Well, someone had to shut him up." The crew's glorious journey to Salinas had finally begun.
Plucky then impersonates Captain James Kirk of Star Trek, until he realizes he was reading the wrong script. Day 16 at sea, it is nighttime, the waters are calm, and Plucky's voiceover tells the viewers that he stood watch. He claimed that like his ancestors before him, he knew the sea, the course, and his ship well. Then, he spots the "water gate" hatch, and wonders what it is. Despite the warning on the water gate saying DO NOT OPEN, Plucky opens it anyway. This causes the vessel to start sinking. This awakens Hamton and Sweetie, the former asking what happened, and Plucky tries to play innocent. Sweetie, not fooled, tells him "Nice move, Popeye!. Hamton tells him the boat's sinking, which Plucky notes that that gag happened already. Sweetie, however, does not find this a good time to bring up redundancy. Plucky and Hamton scoop up the water in buckets and bail the water out, which lasts until the morning. Then, Plucky tells his crew that they will make it to Salinas and nothing will stop them. His speech is interrupted by a giant ocean liner approaching them, which shocks them all.
In the second act, the ocean liner is still approaching them, and Hamton begs Plucky to stop it, as he is their leader. Plucky, scared, decides to quit and puts Hamton in charge as the leader. Hamton is not sure what to do, as he doesn't think he can order the ocean liner's crew to stop. Quickly getting an idea from this, Sweetie goes to the top of the crow's nest and holds up a sign that says TOLL CROSSING. The first mate on the ocean liner sees the sign and informs his captain, who stops the ship immediately, which throws a lot of the equipment and passengers overboard. The first mate then tosses two quarters into Plucky's ship, after which the liner edges around the Kon Ducki and speeds off, and Plucky and Hamton run for the coins. Hamton, who recovers the two quarters, says that he is a good leader, but Plucky argues, insisting that "decisions made in stressful situations don't count", so he takes his hat back, along with the two quarters, stating that he is still leader. Sweetie adds that they are still sinking, with the boat partially submerging further, so Plucky decides that Hamton can be the leader until their current crisis is resolved, and gives him the hat. Hamton dives below and closes the water gate. The ship then resurfaces, and Plucky congratulates Hamton by demoting him, taking his hat back.
Day 17 at sea, as the ship sails on rough seas, Hamton decides to make lunch for Plucky which, in keeping with Plucky's theory, consists of food Plucky's ancestors ate back in the 1970's, such as Hamburger Helper, Fiddle Faddle, Cheese Whiz, Screaming Yellow Zonkers, and a glass of Bubble-up. Unfortunately, Plucky is seasick and has lost his appetite, so he tosses the food overboard, telling Hamton as he throws up in his mouth, "I'll skip lunch!".
Day 18 at sea, in the "dreaded doldrums", Plucky wonders how he would be able to reach Salinas within the remaining days of their journey. He decides that, as the captain, he needs to keep his spirits up for the sake of his crew, who he fears is near the point of utter terror. Hamton and Sweetie have fallen asleep while watching a laughing cartoon mouse on TV, and Plucky tells the viewers, "Utter terror takes a lot of different forms, okay?"
Day 19 at sea, time is running short, the Kon Ducki is being bounced around in a storm, and despite Plucky's voiceover claiming he and his crew are full of faith, Plucky panics, fearing he'll be laughed out of the Explorers Club if he fails. Hamton tells Plucky that he mustn't give up, as anything worth doing is worth trying. Plucky then tells Hamton that he's right, "nothing easy is ever simple, and that they shall overcome obstacles and laugh in their general direction". As their ship continues to sail, Plucky spots a tidal wave heading their way, which keeps splashing him. Hamton is about to speak, but Plucky angrily tells him, "One more cheery cliche, and I'll turn your face inside out." Sweetie, who is holding onto the crow's nest for dear life, tells Plucky that the wind's kicking up. Thunder booms and lighting flashes, and Plucky tells Hamton and Sweetie that they shall prepare for the worst and head for Salinas. After this, another wave splashes Plucky. It starts raining, and Hamton is worried that they're heading into a storm. Plucky doesn't believe him, until they reach a humongous tidal wave, to which Plucky tells Hamton, "That's no storm, It's the end of the world!" The wave splashes over the ship and sinks it, and as it resurfaces, Plucky and Hamton panic. The waves toss the ship back and forth, eventually tearing the ship apart and sending it into a whirlpool.
The next morning, Hamton, Sweetie, and the remains of the ship are beached on an island, and Hamton worries about where Plucky might be. To his and Sweetie's relief, Plucky is behind them, buried in sand. Plucky tells them that even though he tried his best, they failed, and even though they failed, he tells Hamton and Sweetie, "To quote Frank Capra, 'No man is a failure who has friends.'" Hamton then tells Plucky that they did make it to Salinas. Plucky, surprised, then spots the carnival of Salinas, and is overjoyed to have made it on the 21st day. Imagining the looks on the faces of the Explorers Club when they discover he succeeded, he stands on a rock and claims himself the bravest explorer of all time, upon which a wave splashes him, with Plucky pitifully saying afterwards, "Mommy, make it stop..." Sweetie then reveals that she splashed Plucky with a bucket of water, telling the viewers "Well, somebody had to shut him up."
The Making of Kon Ducki[]
Buster, dressed in a tuxedo, stands outside a movie theater where Kon Ducki is playing. He explains that when the film came to the screen, it captured the imagination of millions. But how was it done? As he reluctantly reads over the script Plucky wrote self-promoting himself, he invites the viewers to join him, as he is the host of the behind the scenes special The Making of Kon Ducki.
After the title sequence, Buster introduces the writer/producer/director, Plucky Duck, who is in the studio, with the prop ship being bounced around by Calamity Coyote, and Concord Condor splashing Plucky with a bucket of water to create the wave effect. Buster describes Plucky as "A mature professional, the definition of grace under pressure," and then Plucky yells, "Cut!" after being splashed for the umpteenth time. He slams the bucket over Concord's head and bangs it with a hammer repeatedly, yelling, "NOT! IN! MY! FACE!" at Concord.
Buster says that for the filming of Kon Ducki, locations like Brazil, Tunisia, and Tibet, were not used, and that the filming was all done in a sound stage. He interviews Plucky, who tells him that when he saw the cover to the book Kon Ducki, he thought it would make a great film, and had he actually read the book, he would have been sure; unsurprisingly, the book has Plucky's face on it. Shirley the Loon tells Plucky that they're ready to start shooting. Plucky arrives at the studio angrily, as his director's chair is misspelled "PLUGGY DOUG". Unaware the camera is rolling, he throws a tantrum and calls her a simpleton, as he can't be a creative genius in a misspelled chair. He continues his tantrum until he realizes he is on camera, and then he kindly tells Shirley that she is a capable assistant and should kindly fix the chair.
Buster says that Plucky's dedication to perfection requires that he look exactly like his character, so each day requires a full eight hours of makeup. As Plucky goes into his trailer, Fifi places straws in Plucky's nostrils so that she can make a plaster mold of his face. As she places the plaster over Plucky's face, Buster says that the mold is removed through a time-tested secret movie magic method. Fifi tells Plucky that someone has parked in his very private parking space, which angers Plucky enough to split the hardened mold in half. Fifi uses the mold to make a latex mask, and finally, the highly detailed mask is applied, with a total time of eight hours. Plucky, with his head upside down, says, "but it's worth it to look like this, don't you think?"
Buster says that other cast members must wear a full costume that covers their entire body. Sweetie reveals that she is really Richard Nixon in disguise, then says, "Did I mention I'm only getting scale?"
Buster reveals in some rare behind the scenes footage that mega-stars like Plucky Duck rely on support from their fellow cast members. In the footage, which is of Plucky's speech from Day 19, Plucky is reading his lines off Hamton's eyelids and a piece of paper on Sweetie's tongue, accidentally causing the latter to chomp down on his finger just as he yells "cut"!
For the scene where Plucky gets hit by a mast after saying "Ahh, mango juice!", Plucky originally intended to have Hamton as his stunt duck. Hamton is nervous about this job, but Plucky cons Hamton into the job by telling him that, as the director, he could have picked anyone for the job, but Hamton is the only one who can act. During the first take, Hamton ends up forgetting his lines, and says, "Ahh, mango fruit!" instead of "mango juice", with Plucky yelling "cut" and telling him "Not fruit, juice! Mango juice!" Plucky calls for a second take, but this time, Hamton, now with a lump on his head from the fallen mast, says, "Ahh, mango drink!", with Plucky again telling him "Juice! Mango juice!" after the mast falls. In take 46, Hamton, now with two lumps on his head and looking phased out, says, "Ahh, mango liquid refreshment!" In take 47, he, now with three lumps on his head, and dazed, says "Ahh, mango wango!" In take 63, now with his head spinning, he says, "I'll take Charley Weaver to block!" Plucky, outraged, decides to show Hamton how it's done, demonstrating perfectly to open the bottle and say, "Ahh, mango juice!" After the mast falls on Plucky, he decides to print that take.
Plucky then explains that his crew did a lot of special effects for Kon Ducki; he says that you'd have a huge number of special effects if you added up all those that were used in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and the Back to the Future trilogy. While his crew didn't do as many, he reveals that for the storm scene, they built the largest fan system ever constructed. The initial attempt to film the scene doesn't go according to plan though; as Plucky starts filming the storm scene, Calamity turns on the large amount of fans, which ends up blowing a huge hole in the studio and a lot of the filming equipment away. Buster then tells the viewers that after losing six weeks worth of shooting time to the fan incident, Plucky decided to construct the storm scene in miniature form. First, he built a scale model of the boat and filmed it in a storm situation; or rather, flushing the model down the toilet. Then, he filmed the scenes of the actors. Buster says that the latest, state of the art, servo-controlled motors were used for the boat in the actors' scene, which were operated by trained professionals. In reality, the boat and the actors consisted of puppets controlled by puppeteers, who themselves are puppets controlled by puppeteers.
Hamton, who played Koom-Bye-Ya, tells the viewers that it was a pleasure for him working with a creative genius like Plucky Duck, which is later revealed to be him reading off cue cards that Plucky wrote, as he has trouble reading the last line.
Finally, Buster says that after the film was edited (with the editor ending up being "mummified" by the film) and the soundtrack was added (which is Sneezer playing a kazoo), the director reviews the final product. Plucky is pleased with the film, and decides to toast himself with a cup of mango juice, but he forgetfully says "Ahh, mango juice!", which sends the mast from the set to fall on him.
Allusions[]
Kon Ducki[]
The story is a parody of the 1950 film Kon Tiki, which is an adaptation of Thor Hayerdahl's 1947 voyage.
- While Plucky waits for the wind to pick up, several sailor characters pass by the raft, including Gilligan and Skipper from Gilligan's Island, Captain Bligh and Fletcher Christian from Mutiny on the Bounty (as played by Charles Laughton and Clark Gable), the shark from Jaws, and Ned Land from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (as played by Kirk Douglas); the latter vents frustation over his cameo.
- Despite not being from the 70's, two parody references to The Wizard of Oz appear:
- On Day 12, a stiff Plucky requests, "Oil can.", similar to the Tin Man's initial scene.
- When the crew encounter the giant tidal wave which Plucky proclaimed to mean the end of the world, the Wicked Witch of the West suddenly briefly appears within it, but astride Miss Gulch's bicycle instead of her own broomstick, complete with Toto (simultaneously referencing and parodying the tornado scene from that film).
- The mouse on the television looks simular to Mickey Mouse.
- The eight-track tapes from the 70s are composed of Peter Frampton Comes Alive, The Bee Gees, and ABBA.
The Making Of[]
- The Warner Bros. water tower has the words "AFTER WE BOOTED OUT COLUMBIA" under the shield logo. This is a reference to when Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures shared ownership of the famous Warner backlot in Burbank from 1972 to 1990, when Warner sold their Lorimar-Telepictures lot in Culver City (formerly the MGM lot) to Sony Pictures.
- In his final attempt at the "Ah, mango juice" scene, a dazed Hamton instead says "I'll take Charley Weaver to block," a reference to comedian Cliff Arquette's regular appearances in The Hollywood Squares as his alter ego.
Trivia[]
- The tour guide gag from the "The Acme Acres Zone" segment "A Bacon Strip" appears again in this episode.
- In "The Making of Kon Ducki", one of the running gags is Plucky's director's chair being misspelled. It is spelled, PLUGGY DOUG, PLOOGY DOOG, and finally, PLUNKY DUNK.
- Another running gag is every time Plucky says, "Ahh, mango juice," a ship mast falls on him.
- The episode makes references to the Watergate scandal, which saw then-US president Richard Nixon being kicked out of the White House.
Cast[]
| Voice Actors: | Character(s): |
| Charlie Adler | Buster Bunny, Tour Guide |
| Joe Alaskey | Plucky Duck, Richard Nixon |
| Don Messick | Hamton J. Pig |
| Candi Milo | Sweetie Bird |
| Gail Matthius | Shirley the Loon |
| Kath Souci | Fifi La Fume |
| Maurice LaMarche | Kirk Douglas |
| Hal Rayle | Coast Guard Captain |
Quotes[]
- Sweetie: "Beware, a violent sight gag approaches."
(Hamton's grass skirt falls down and he blushes in embarrassment)
Tour Guide: "And to your left is a naked pig."
(with Hamton distracted, the mast begins to fall over)
Plucky: "Ahh, Mango Juice!" (Gets hit with the mast)
- Hamton: "You know, they're all divorced now."
Plucky: "I didn't even know they were married."
- Kirk Douglas: "These cameos make me wanna puke!"
- Plucky (After Hamton stops the ship from sinking): "Good work! You're demoted now."
- Plucky: "When I first saw the cover to the book, Kon Ducki, I thought it would make a great film. And if I'd read it, I would have been sure."
- Plucky: "Stunt duck! Stunt duck!"
Hamton: "Uh, uh... I'm not sure if I want to do this, P.D."
Plucky: "Hamton, Babe, Swineheart, listen. Sure, I could use just any old stinky duck, but you, Babe, you are the only one, who can act."
Hamton: "You think so?"
Plucky: "I don't have to think! I'm the director! You've got talent out the snout! Now, go get em'! ...Sucker. Action!"
Hamton: "Ahhh, mango fruit!" (The mast falls on him.)
Plucky: "Cut! Cut cut cut cut, cut cut. Not 'fruit'. 'Juice'! Mango Juice! Let's do it again! Action!"
Hamton: "Ahhh, mango drink!" (The mast falls on him again.)
Plucky: "'Juice'! Mango juice!"
(Take 46...)
Hamton: "Ahhh, mango liquid refreshment!" (The mast falls on him)
(Take 47...)
Hamton: "Ahhh, mango wango!" (The mast falls on him)
(Take 63...)
Hamton: "I'll take Charley Weaver to block!"
(The mast falls on the end of the chair, launching Hamton out of it)
Plucky: "You imbecile! You call yourself an actor? Gimme that!" (takes the bottle and sits in the chair) "You open the bottle and say," (opens the bottle) "'Ahhh, mango juice!'" (The mast falls on him.) "Print that!"
Transcript[]
To read this episode's transcript, click here.
Gallery[]
Main article: Kon Ducki/Gallery
Home Video Releases[]
