Della Duck

{{short description|Disney cartoon character}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}}

{{Infobox character

| name = Della Duck

| franchise = Donald Duck

| image = Della Duck (DuckTales 2017).png

| caption = Della Duck in the DuckTales reboot

| alt = Della Duck standing in front of a crashed airplane

| image_size = 200px

| first = {{Plainlist|

In print:

  • Donald Duck Sunday strip on October 17, 1937 (name only)

In animation:

}}

| last =

| creator = Al Taliaferro and Ted Osborne

| voice = Paget Brewster (2018–2021)

| alias = {{Plainlist|

  • Dumbella Duck
  • Thelma Duck

}}

| species = American Pekin Duck

| gender = Female

| family = Duck family

| spouse = Mr. Duck

| children = {{Plainlist|

}}

| relatives = Quackmore Duck (father)
Hortense McDuck (mother)
Donald Duck (older twin brother)
Scrooge McDuck (maternal uncle)
Ludwig Von Drake (uncle)
Gladstone Gander (first cousin)
Gus Goose (second cousin)
Duck family (paternal relatives)
Clan McDuck (maternal relatives)

}}

Della Duck (sometimes named Dumbella Duck) is a cartoon character created in 1937 by Al Taliaferro and Ted Osborne. She is a core member of the Disney Duck family, as the niece of Scrooge McDuck, the younger twin sister of Donald Duck and the mother of his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie. Della is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet.

She is one of the main characters in the DuckTales reboot, where she typically wears an aviator hat, bomber jacket with a light blue scarf and brown pants. As an adult, being an amputee, she also has a robot leg. She is known for her boisterous and adventurous spirit as a female adventurer, and has been cited as a positive role model to other women and to people with disabilities.{{cite web |url=https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/empowered-ducktales-character-inspires-young-girls-children-disabilities-64950380 |title=How empowered 'DuckTales' character inspires young girls, children with disabilities |last=Rothman |first=Michael |publisher=Good Morning America |date=August 14, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190820012949/https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/empowered-ducktales-character-inspires-young-girls-children-disabilities-64950380 |archive-date=August 20, 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://apnews.com/da1abf50e0954d6ebcc4002027adbe5b |title=Della Duck, intrepid space explorer and amputee, comes to TV |publisher=Associated Press |last=Elber |first=Lynn |date=March 9, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190623174827/https://apnews.com/da1abf50e0954d6ebcc4002027adbe5b |archive-date=June 23, 2019 |url-status=live }}

History

Della Duck was first mentioned in Donald Duck comic strips in 1937 as "Cousin Della". The second time, and first mention on screen, was in the animated short "Donald's Nephews" (1938) as "Sister Dumbella". Prior to her animation debut in the 2017 DuckTales reboot, Della never appeared in any animated film or television series,{{cite book |title=Disney Trivia from the Vault: Secrets Revealed and Questions Answered |first=Dave|last=Smith |publisher=Disney Editions|location=New York City|isbn=9781423178576 |date=2012 |quote=Q: Who are Huey, Dewey, and Louie’s parents? Do they appear in any of the cartoons? Sarina, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. A: According to the cartoon Donald’s Nephews, Donald receives a postcard from his sister, Dumbella, saying she is sending the three for a visit. That is the only time we ever hear of Dumbella, and a father’s name is never mentioned.}} and had only limited appearances in Disney comics.{{cite web |url=https://thenostalgiaspot.com/2019/05/17/della-duck-comes-home/ |title=Della Duck Comes Home |publisher=The Nostalgia Spot |date=May 17, 2019 |access-date=January 16, 2020}}{{cite web |url=https://decider.com/2017/08/16/ducktales-reboot-huey-dewey-louie-mother-della-duck/ |title=The 'DuckTales' Reboot Is Solving A MAJOR Disney Mystery, Possibly Rewriting History |first=Brett |last=White |date=August 16, 2017 |publisher=Decider |access-date=January 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831144727/https://decider.com/2017/08/16/ducktales-reboot-huey-dewey-louie-mother-della-duck/ |archive-date=August 31, 2019 |url-status=live }} As a result, almost nothing was known about the character prior to 2017.{{cite web |url=https://insidethemagic.net/2018/08/della-duck-paget-brewster-ducktales/ |title=Della Duck voiced for first time by Paget Brewster on season finale of "DuckTales" |publisher=InsideTheMagic.com |date=August 20, 2018 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190524171844/https://insidethemagic.net/2018/08/della-duck-paget-brewster-ducktales/ |archive-date=May 24, 2019 |url-status=live }}

=Beginnings of the character=

Della was first mentioned in a 1937 Donald Duck Sunday strip on October 17, 1937, in which she writes a letter explaining to Donald that she is sending her sons to stay with him. This first appearance referred to Della as Donald's cousin, though later depictions would refer to her as Donald's sister.{{Cite comic |writer=Osborne, Ted |artist=Taliaferro, Al |title=Donald Duck (comic strip) |date=October 17, 1937 |publisher=King Features |location=United States}} One year later, Della was mentioned in similar fashion in 1938's Donald Duck animated cartoon Donald's Nephews. This cartoon, which marked the film debut of Della's three sons (and Donald's nephews), Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck, opened with Donald receiving a postcard from his sister (addressed "Dear Brother" and signed "Sister Dumbella"), letting him know that the three boys are coming to visit him.

In a 1990 Duck family tree by Carl Barks, Donald's sister appears as "Thelma Duck".{{cite web|url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=Qus%2FCBL+6HA|title=Dondal Duck Family Tree (D 11221) |website=I.N.D.U.C.K.S. |date=November 16, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://goofy313g.free.fr/calisota_online/trees/ducktrees/worden.html|title=Mark Worden's Duck Family Tree|first=Gilles|last=MAURICE|website=goofy313g.free.fr|access-date=August 24, 2018}}

File:Della Duck in Duck Family Tree.jpg]]

In the 1993 Duck family tree by Don Rosa, she was renamed "Della". Rosa later included her in the mid-1990s series The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, in the story The Empire-Builder from Calisota (1994), in which she and Donald wore identical sailor suits in their childhood.

Her first appearance in comics as an adult was in a 2014 Dutch-language Donald Duck comic, 80 is Prachtig!, created to celebrate Donald's 80th birthday.{{cite web |url=https://comicbookinvest.com/2018/02/09/first-may-missed-della-duck/ |title=First You May Have Missed: Della Duck |publisher=Comicbookinvest.com |date=February 9, 2018 |access-date=January 16, 2020}} In this comic, Donald finally tells the nephews the story of their mother, depicting her in flashbacks; Della is depicted as a successful test pilot, the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, and stranded in space after test-flying a rocket ship that accidentally propelled her to near light speed.{{Cite comic |writer=Geradts, Evert |penciller =Tortajada Aguilar, Maximino |inker=Comicup Studio|story=80 is Prachtig! |title=Donald Duck Weekblad |date=June 5, 2014 |publisher=Sanoma Media Netherlands B.V. |location =The Netherlands }}

=Youth in Dutch comics (2017)=

During 2017, Della appeared every month in the Dutch Donald Duck comic strips, appearing in a total of 22 stories, starting with "Donalds eerste schaatsles" ("Donald's First Skating Lesson"),{{cite web |url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=H+2016-230 |title=Donalds eerste schaatsles |website=INDUCKS |date=May 10, 2021}} published in January, to "Donalds eerste skiles" ("Donald's First Skiing Lesson"),{{cite web |url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=H+2016-258 |title=Donalds eerste skiles |website=INDUCKS |date=May 10, 2021}} published in December. The stories featuring Della focused mainly on her childhood with Donald, with the exception of two stories published in March, "Donalds eerste liedje" ("Donald's First Song"){{cite web |url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=H+2016-243 |title=Donalds eerste liedje |website=INDUCKS |date=May 10, 2021}} and "Donalds eerste afspraakje" ("Donald's First Date"),{{cite web |url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=H+2016-255 |title=Donalds eerste afspraakje |website=INDUCKS |date=May 10, 2021}} which showed them closer to adolescence. Subsequently, Della reappeared in June 2019 in the story "Haring met roomijs" ("Herring and Ice Cream") from the Donnie Duck comics, centered on Donald's childhood.{{cite web |url=https://inducks.org/story.php?c=H+2019-057 |title=Haring met roomijs |website=INDUCKS |date=May 10, 2021}}

=''DuckTales'' (2017–2021)=

Della plays a prominent, although initially off-screen, role in the 2017 reboot version of the TV series DuckTales. As the mother of the main characters, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, she is revealed during the first season to be a skilled pilot and fearless adventuring partner of her uncle Scrooge McDuck and twin brother Donald.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2018/08/disney-channels-animated-della-duck-has-criminal-minds-behind-her-1202448042/|title=Disney Channel's Animated Della Duck Has 'Criminal Minds' Behind Her|first=Bruce|last=Haring|date=August 18, 2018|publisher=Deadline Hollywood|access-date=January 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205010341/https://deadline.com/2018/08/disney-channels-animated-della-duck-has-criminal-minds-behind-her-1202448042/|archive-date=December 5, 2019|url-status=live}} Della is first depicted in the series at the end of the pilot episode, in a painting discovered by the triplets. Dewey notices what looks like Della in one corner of the painting, shown fighting pirates alongside Scrooge and Donald.{{cite web |url=https://ew.com/tv/2017/10/06/ducktales-reboot-disney-review/ |title=The new DuckTales is so much better than the old DuckTales: EW review |last=Franich |first=Darren |publisher=Entertainment Weekly |date=October 6, 2017 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191020223305/https://ew.com/tv/2017/10/06/ducktales-reboot-disney-review/ |archive-date=October 20, 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite episode |title=Woo-oo! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=August 12, 2017 |season=1 |number=1}} This discovery triggers a search, first by Dewey and Webby Vanderquack before eventually involving all three triplets, for information about their mother and her disappearance; forming the central mystery of the show's first season.{{cite episode |title=The Great Dime Chase! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=September 23, 2017 |season=1 |number=4}}{{cite episode |title=The Spear of Selene! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=May 4, 2018 |season=1 |number=12}}

The first appearance of Della as an adult in the United States was in November 2017, in a series of flashback stories in issue #2 and #3 of the IDW published DuckTales comic, a tie-in to the rebooted TV series.{{Cite comic |title=DuckTales |issue=#2 |date=November 2017 |publisher=IDW Publishing |url=https://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-2/ |access-date=January 20, 2020 |archive-date=April 20, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420133821/https://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-2/ |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-2/ |title=DuckTales #2 – IDW Publishing |access-date=January 20, 2020 |archive-date=April 20, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420133821/https://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-2/ |url-status=bot: unknown }}{{Cite comic |title=DuckTales |issue=#3 |date=November 2017 |publisher=IDW Publishing |url=https://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-3/ |access-date=January 20, 2020 |archive-date=December 11, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181211152052/http://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-3/ |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-3/ |title=DuckTales #3 – IDW Publishing |access-date=January 20, 2020 |archive-date=December 11, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181211152052/http://www.idwpublishing.com/product/ducktales-3/ |url-status=bot: unknown }} Della was depicted for the first time in animation, again in flashbacks, in the DuckTales season 1 episode "Last Crash of the Sunchaser!", which revealed the story of Della Duck to Huey, Dewey, and Louie: Della discovered a prototype rocket ship Scrooge was building as a gift for her, took it on an unauthorized launch, and got caught in a cosmic storm. Della was presumed lost to the cosmic abyss after Scrooge launched a massive and expensive rescue operation, but ultimately failed in his attempt to find her.{{cite episode |title=The Last Crash of the Sunchaser! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=August 11, 2018 |season=1 |number=22}}

On August 18, 2018, in the DuckTales season 1 finale ("The Shadow War!"), Della was depicted for the first time in a speaking role, revealed to have survived the cosmic storm and still living in the remains of her rocket ship.{{cite episode |title=The Shadow War! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=August 18, 2017 |season=1 |number=23}} Della Duck has recurring appearances in season 2 of the series, beginning with the episode "Last Christmas!", a time travel episode which depicts younger versions of Della and Donald. In this episode, Donald calls his sister "Dumbella" at one point, meant as an insult but also a reference to Della's alternate name from the 1930s.{{cite web |url=https://thenostalgiaspot.com/2019/12/01/dec-1-ducktales-last-christmas/ |title=DuckTales – "Last Christmas!" |publisher=The Nostalgia Spot |date=December 1, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020}}{{cite episode|title=Last Christmas! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |airdate=December 1, 2018 |season=2 |number=6}}

In February 2019, Disney began promoting, as a special event, the premiere of the first episode of DuckTales to focus on Della. The episode promised to fully reveal what happened to the character for the first time since she was lost in space.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-ducktales-della-duck-first-look-20190222-story.html |title='DuckTales' exclusive first-look at Della Duck's official debut episode |last=Brown |first=Tracy |date=February 22, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411052753/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-ducktales-della-duck-first-look-20190222-story.html |archive-date=April 11, 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ducktales-finally-reveals-the-secret-of-huey-dewey-and-louies-long-lost-mom |title=DuckTales Finally Reveals the Secret of Huey, Dewey, and Louie's Long-Lost Mom |publisher=SyFy |date=February 22, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190223023117/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/ducktales-finally-reveals-the-secret-of-huey-dewey-and-louies-long-lost-mom |archive-date=February 23, 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.cbr.com/ducktales-how-della-survived/ |title=DuckTales: New Footage Reveals How Della Survived Her Rocket Ship Crash |last=Hickson |first=Colin |publisher=CBR |date=March 1, 2019 |access-date=March 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190302134836/https://www.cbr.com/ducktales-how-della-survived/ |archive-date=March 2, 2019 |url-status=live }} The episode, titled "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!", aired on March 9, 2019.{{cite episode|title=What Ever Happened to Della Duck?! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |airdate=March 9, 2019 |season=2 |number=7}} Describing the episode as "thrilling, tragic, powerful, and defining." The A.V. Club wrote that it "gets to the heart of Della as a character even before the title appears on screen."{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/ducktales-returns-with-the-quietly-powerful-solitary-t-1833041578 |title=DuckTales returns with the quietly powerful, solitary tale of one, Della Duck |last=Johnson |first=Kevin |publisher=The A.V. Club |date=March 9, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421021508/https://tv.avclub.com/ducktales-returns-with-the-quietly-powerful-solitary-t-1833041578 |archive-date=April 21, 2019 |url-status=live }} Entertainment Weekly included the episode on its end-of-year list of the 30 best television episodes of 2019, praising the reveal of Della Duck and writing that "this whole time, DuckTales had been hiding its best character off-screen."{{cite web |url=https://ew.com/tv/best-tv-episodes-2019/?slide=6259614#6259614 |title=The 30 best TV episodes of 2019: 9 of 30 – What Ever Happened to Della Duck?! DuckTales (Disney XD) |author=EW Staff |publisher=Entertainment Weekly |date=December 12, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2020}} Following this, Della was able to return to Earth in the repaired Spear of Selene, but subsequently had trouble bonding with the triplets (whose names were apparently "meant" to be Jet, Turbo and Rebel) as she has no actual experience being a mother, her attitude being more focused on attempting to bond with them as the "cool mom". The latter half of the season explored her developing role, such as encouraging Huey to explore more varied activities and grounding Louie after his latest get-rich-quick scheme to steal lost treasures from the past nearly causes a serious temporal paradox. In the season two finale, the Moon aliens Della encountered attempt to mount an invasion using technology reverse-engineered from Della's rocket, but although she tries to hide her children away, the returned Donald convinces her to join them in fighting off the invasion, leaving the alien mothership stuck in orbit between Earth and the Moon while the rest of the invasion fleet surrender.

In "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!", it is revealed that Della was forced to amputate one of her legs due to injuries from the rocket crash, and that she built a robotic prosthetic leg as a replacement. DuckTales showrunners consulted with the Amputee Coalition on the depiction of Della as an amputee.{{cite tweet |author=Amputee Coalition |user=AmputeesUSA |number=1104381373022912512 |date=March 9, 2019 |title=Meet the newest member of our Amputee Coalition Community- Della Duck, astronaut, amputee, and mom of Huey, Dewey, and Louie of Disney's @DuckTales gang. Amputee Coalition staff members helped in her creation. Welcome back, Della! #DisneyChannel #DuckTales #Amputee |access-date=January 19, 2020 }} Show producer Francisco Angones explained that it was important that Della's injury and amputation does not define her, and that rather than simply depicting her as "the amputee hero", he wanted the show to make clear that "she's a person who has a prosthetic and she's dealing with her limb loss but she's dealing with a lot of other things."

Della uses one of her brother's signature phrases, "Aw, phooey!" Like Donald, she can be hotheaded and she uses the phrase to indicate that she has given up on something she was trying to do (such as when she realizes she cannot free her leg from rocket wreckage), or after realizing things have gone horribly wrong (such as after accidentally awakening an ancient robotic foe).{{cite episode|title=Nothing Can Stop Della Duck!|series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=May 13, 2019 |season=2 |number=13}} Reflecting her unstoppable attitude, Della also has her own signature catchphrase, "Nothing can stop Della Duck!"

=Other appearances=

Della (in her DuckTales version) has a cameo appearance in a Chibiverse episode "The Chibi Couple Game", being on a date with Penumbra.{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_Eb4iTJHyg | title=Chibi Couple Game 💜 | Chibiverse | Full Episode | WITH 2 EXCLUSIVE CHIBI TINY TALES! |@disneychannel | website=YouTube | date=February 14, 2024 }}

Characteristics

=Voice=

Della's first speaking appearance was in the season 1 finale of 2017's DuckTales. Paget Brewster voiced Della in the episode before joining the DuckTales cast as a recurring cast member in season 2 and a main character in season 3. Brewster told Entertainment Weekly that she really wanted the role and to be on the DuckTales cast, saying "it's very exciting to be able to be a part of the creation of [Della's] backstory, and who she is." Brewster was initially worried that, because Della is Donald Duck's twin, she might be asked to do a Donald-like voice for the character, telling Entertainment Tonight that "I could not pull it off."{{cite AV media |date=March 4, 2019 |title=Paget Brewster Dishes on Playing Della Duck on Disney Channel's DuckTales (Exclusive) |url=https://www.etonline.com/media/videos/paget-brewster-dishes-on-playing-della-duck-on-disney-channels-ducktales-exclusive |access-date=January 19, 2020 |publisher=Entertainment Tonight |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191116005626/https://www.etonline.com/media/videos/paget-brewster-dishes-on-playing-della-duck-on-disney-channels-ducktales-exclusive |archive-date=November 16, 2019 |url-status=live }}

Entertainment Weekly said that Brewster "makes Della Duck sound like someone generating rocket fuel with pure pep."{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/tv-reviews/2019/05/08/ducktales-season-2-review/ |title=DuckTales keeps getting better: EW review |last=Franich |first=Darren |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=May 8, 2019 |access-date=January 21, 2020}} Since voicing Della in her speaking debut, Brewster has been praised for her performance in the role; with Den of Geek writing that "the fantastic work of Paget Brewster" helped breathe "an adventurous and loving spirit into Della,"{{cite web |url=https://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/ducktales/279764/ducktales-season-2-episode-7-review-what-ever-happened-to-della-duck |title=DuckTales Season 2 Episode 7 Review: What Ever Happened To Della Duck?! |website=Den of Geek |last=Kelley |first=Shamus |date=March 9, 2019 |access-date=January 21, 2020}} while The A.V. Club wrote that Brewster was "selling Della with every passionate line-reading, making her such a perfect addition to the cast."{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/a-sweeping-epic-finale-displays-ducktales-at-its-best-1837823023 |title=A sweeping, epic finale displays DuckTales at its best despite a rocky second half to the season |last=Johnson |first=Kevin |website=The A.V. Club |date=September 12, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190913042758/https://tv.avclub.com/a-sweeping-epic-finale-displays-ducktales-at-its-best-1837823023 |archive-date=September 13, 2019 |url-status=live }} Paget Brewster was nominated for the 2020 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for her performance as Della Duck.{{cite web |url= https://www.animationmagazine.net/events/daytime-emmy-awards-dragon-prince-ask-the-storybots-last-kids-on-earth-win-key-animation-categories-for-netflix/ |title=Daytime Emmy Awards: 'Dragon Prince,' 'Ask the Storybots' & 'Last Kids on Earth' Win Key Animation Categories for Netflix |magazine=Animation Magazine |date=July 26, 2020}}

=Personality=

{{blockquote |text=Della Duck is an extraordinary example of a strong female character, because she also is flawed. This isn't a perfect line drawing of someone; it's an interesting, deep character, and I think it gives kids the opportunity to see that you don't always have to be right, or perfect, or a superhero. You can have strengths and you can have weaknesses, and they're both of equal value if you are honest with who you are and do the best you can, and I think that Della Duck sort of embodies that. |author=Paget Brewster, voice of Della Duck |source=Entertainment Tonight interview}}

Little is known of Della's personality prior to the 2017 DuckTales series. In the Dutch comic 80 is Prachtig!, Della is depicted in flashbacks as a brave and adventurous pilot. In fact, she first declared she wanted to be a pilot at the same time her brother Donald declared he wanted to be a sailor. Della's accomplishments as a pilot included being the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic, flying as a test pilot (and successfully landing a plane that caught fire), and piloting an experimental rocket ship. She is also depicted as caring about and missing her family while she was adventuring. Due to the effects of time dilation from Della's near-lightspeed rocket travel while Huey, Dewey, and Louie lived with Donald for several years, Della believed she had been gone for less than an hour. Through radio transmissions, Della revealed she was eager to finish her test flight and get home to her boys, unaware that several more years will pass on Earth by the time she does so.

In 2017's DuckTales, Della is similarly depicted as an adventurous pilot and as a mother who cares for and loves her family, but the show also establishes that Della shares personality traits with the new series' versions of her relatives. Like her twin brother Donald, Della can be temperamental. For example, after seeing a taunting illustration by Gyro Gearloose in a rocket instruction manual, Della flies into a rage; not only tearing the manual apart, but also stomping on the remains. Della also shares personality traits with her sons, including their fearlessness and mischief. These common traits are what allow them to accept and bond with her once she returns home. Like her son Huey, Della was a Junior Woodchuck, as evidenced by her bringing her Junior Woodchuck Guidebook with her to the moon and quoting Junior Woodchuck rules by heart. Della also shares Dewey's adventurous spirit and Louie's quick-talking cleverness and tendency to cause trouble without considering the consequences.{{cite episode|title=Timephoon! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=September 9, 2019 |season=2 |number=21}}

Furthermore, Della is also shown to have an unstoppable attitude. This is established early in "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!", which opens with Della having crashed her rocket on the Moon, and awakening to her leg trapped underneath the wreckage. After seeing a photo of her family and assessing the situation, she determines the wreckage is too heavy for her to move on her own, amputates her leg, and declares her intent to return home. As described by DuckTales producer Francisco Angones, "she's gonna beat every odd, she's gonna take charge of her decisions. She made the choice to amputate her leg [on the Moon] and it proved, nothing would stop her."

While Della is tenacious and determined, after finally making it back home, she struggles with returning to civilization and her family. While she has ample experience as an adventurer, she had little experience being a mom, and needed time to adjust to the responsibilities of being a parent.{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/della-duck-finally-returns-home-in-an-emotional-advent-1834534925 |title=Della Duck finally returns home in an emotional, adventurous, Mother's Day DuckTales |last=Johnson |first=Kevin |publisher=The A.V. Club |date=May 13, 2019 |access-date=January 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513214504/https://tv.avclub.com/della-duck-finally-returns-home-in-an-emotional-advent-1834534925 |archive-date=May 13, 2019 |url-status=live }} DuckTales co-producers Angones and Matt Youngberg said they wanted to use Della to depict how difficult, but also rewarding, it is to be a mom. It was revealed in the episode "The Lost Harp of Mervana!" that Della suffers from ichthyophobia, resulting in her having a strong dislike towards fish.{{cite episode|title=The Lost Harp of Mervana! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=April 18, 2020 |season=3 |number=4}} Della also suffers from eisoptrophobia from her time on the Moon when she was so desperate for human connection that she had a staring contest with her reflection that lasted three weeks.{{cite episode|title=The Richest Duck in the World! |series=DuckTales |series-link=DuckTales (2017 TV series) |date=September 11, 2019 |season=2 |number=23}}

References

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