Elisto Dragonwings

i do admit he was kind of taking his normal pills in his debut episode but i almost feel like that was to bury the lede about him being drake. and also to shine more light on the idea of darkwing duck's ability to endure becoming less of a cartoon gag and more of an inspirational ability.

but like "a cut of the toy sales would be nice," "i'm very strong and resilient," "i AM better than gizmoduck," ("the man stepping into your cape" somewhat) etc. TDKR was also half about negaduck's origin story and RIP negaduck never seen again died in the sewers.

in moonvasion, you see more of that ego though. he's been at it for i dunno call it a month and he is already buying his own hype as the terror that flaps in the night. declaring that the invaders will surrender immediately, assuming his image will strike fear into their hearts, reacting genuinely annoyed/sadly when he's ignored or told nobody is scared of him. much like 91 he's engaging in the fantasy of being Not Drake Mallard and the power/lack thereof that comes with that.

similar to darkly dawns, let's get dangerous has him immediately falling for bulba's flattery because it's probably the first time anybody but launchpad or like dewey treated him like a hero. "bulba believes in me! the city needs me!" no tf it does not need you. you didn't do anything. the reason drake would rather not believe gosalyn's story is because bulba was nice to him. it takes launchpad reminding him that he wanted to do all this to make a difference for someone for him to take action.

and later, "another dastardly deviant deposed and defeated etc" buddy you didn't do anything you let him get away. he's more braggadocious in general in LGD. he still takes jabs at gizmoduck (and as usual his hatred for gizmoduck stems from his insecurity as a hero. probably even moreso than in 91 because gizmoduck is a genuinely agreeable guy who's just trying to help out.) and acts very self-important about his work even though it kind of amounted to a cookbook when he was on dewey dew-night.

his ego does cause conflict but again, he's sharing the spotlight with gos and worrying about gos for most of the second half of that episode. (i don't think leaving gos and LP behind to deal with the ramrod alone comes from ego, but from his concern for gosalyn's safety. he probably did expect to be able to take on the fearsome four alone though.)

in escape from the impossibin, he looks at his fucked up face in a little compact mirror and frowns. his vanity <3

in the finale, which i admit i've watched fewer times than TDKR and LGD, darkwing and gizmoduck are playing support to launchpad's story. they are representations of heroes and literally leave him behind several times. he feels like he's holding them back. he feels like he holds everyone back. darkwing and gizmoduck and gosalyn fight steelbeak to protect him. but it's drake saying "i don't need dead weight holding me back." that breaks launchpad's heart. he automatically assumes it's about him, and i know that's more about launchpad than drake.

but drake doesn't immediately jump to reassure LP before being crushed by a giant box because he's spent this entire episode being too absorbed in a one-sided pissing match with gizmoduck to notice that his best friend is going through something.

drake is self-centered. he thinks about others' safety because he can physically act to preserve it but he has trouble conceptualizing their emotions because he is so entrenched in his own. it's only seeing LP physically on the ground saying "i can't do it, i'm not a hero." that tells him launchpad needs support and he's way too late on picking up on that.

got a little carried away at the end there but yeah, i wouldn't necessarily call that part ego but also one of drake's lasting flaws from 91, being that he doesn't notice how others are feeling emotionally until there are physical consequences.

ANYWAY

to answer your question, yeah it's all there. but DWD18 would give drake way more opportunity to be the center of plots so that those things could feature prominently, since it would be about him and two other people for the most part. the way that his ego and self-centeredness affect the people he cares about most.

sorry anon you didn't cause this long post. this is something i think about a lot and i was given the opportunity. i think some people think there's a wide gulf between him and 91 drake, but compared to other reboot characters it's not THAT huge a difference. he just doesn't have many opportunities for the plot to center around his flaws, which exacerbates them.

i'm excited to exacerbate them while writing DWD18. i love making drake mallard make bad decisions.

I'm an absolute sucker for soulmates so good they find each other in every universe.

I really wanted to play with the idea of Aziraphale and Crowley's love being so powerful it imprinted on the new world, the seeds of it lying dormant for millennia until it blooms again.

I also love thinking about how a single choice can change one's life. Had he not taken the next turn right, Crowley would've never met Asa. Now, if one believes in the supernatural, perhaps someone gave him a nudge ;)

Details:

The piece transitions from purples and pinks to earthy tones. I tend to draw the celestials with sort of a soap-bubble/oil slick palette that gives it this ethereal feeling; For Tony and Asa I wanted to move towards earthy tones.

My goal for the dream panel was to make it feel almost like you are in a primordial space: twisting dark scales, suggestions of things, fragments. The essence of an angel and a demon like rich soil for things to grow from.