There's just something special about recurring comic book bad guys. What reader doesn't love to hate tireless, eccentric foes who return again and again to challenge our heroes? Be it due to vengeance, madness, or simple competition, they can be counted upon to provide an exciting conflict. And this month, the conflicts are in Mickey Mouse and Friends #282 and Donald Duck and Friends #333! Having shipped last Wednesday, October 12, these $2.95, 36-page books will be arriving in comic shops this week or next.

Mickey Mouse #282, drawn entirely by modern fan favorite Francisco Rodriguez, features a nogoodnik from Mickey's 1930s heyday: con man and hustler Eli Squinch! When Mickey travels to Mexico for the wedding of Minnie's old babysitter, Sierra Motty, he's not expecting to find Squinch as her bridegroom. Mickey and Minnie are sure he's marrying her to further some crooked plot, but Sierra isn't convinced. The quest to get to the bottom of things leads Mickey and Eli to an awesome underground Aztec city, where treacherous traps imperil them both! “The Treasure of Sierra Motty” is written by famed X-Files and Nancy Drew scribe Stefan Petrucha.
Then in our backup story, “Penalty Problems,” Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse face another kind of bad guy: a smarmy soccer ref who repeatedly favors the team playing against Mickey's nephews. Featuring a story by British mouse man Paul Halas and dialogue by Tony Isabella (Black Lightning), “Penalty” continues Morty and Ferdie's ongoing “Riverside Rovers” subseries.

Donald Duck #333 presents additional classic foes for its heroes, beginning with an unexpected Thanksgivingtime stalwart -- nasty, violent wild turkeys! Whenever Donald tries bagging big game for our great American holiday, he always regrets it; and “Turkey Trouble,” a Carl Barks classic from 1946, delivers the mayhem via a captive specimen won in a raffle. Then, in Sarah Kinney's “Party Animus,” it's Mickey's turn to fight a recurring foe. His old rival, Mortimer Mouse, is back, and inviting everyone to a posh Thanksgiving dinner at his plushy estate. Mickey would like to humble the sneaky slicker one way or another, but how? We'll see...
We finish this month's study of scoundrels with “Bargain Hunter,” an extended Donald epic by Michael T. Gilbert (Mr. Monster) -- proving that at the end of the day, man is sometimes his own worst enemy! Donald has become addicted to squandering money at garage sales; Daisy and the boys would like to cure him, but they've got a very difficult row to hoe.

Gemstone is your source for new and vintage Disney greats. Order our titles online at http://www.gemstonepub.com/disney or http://www.walmart.com. Find them at your local comics shop. And if you can't find a comic shop, don't assume it's because an unknown villain bought them all and shut them down. Call Diamond Comics' Comic Shop Locator Service at 1-888-COMIC-BOOK.

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