Disney's fan-favorite animated series Darkwing Duck found a bit of controversy thanks to its"Hot Spells" episode. The series followed in the footsteps of DuckTales and follows the superhero alter-ego of Drake Mallard known as Darkwing Duck. After it launched in 1991, Darkwing Duck ran for three seasons and made quite an impression on an entire generation of kids. Most recently, Darkwing appeared in the DuckTales reboot.
Given the popularity of the series, it is no surprise that plenty of fans are now pleased to be able to revisit the show on Disney+. After Darkwing Duck's initial run on cable, it was a constant re-run program on Disney's various channels through 2007. This is the last time the series was regularly made available until it eventually hit digital platforms. But, Darkwing Duck is now available on Disney+ as well, allowing fans to revisit most of their favorite episodes as much as they want.
As explored in a new Screen Rant video though, one episode that fans haven't seen since it debuted though is the controversial "Hot Spells" episode from season 3. Originally airing in 1992, "Hot Spells" followed Darkwing and Gosalyn going to Morgana's old magic school, and was scrutinized for the religious subject matter it tackled. The character Beelzebub is a stand-in for the devil, and the prominent role he had resulted in parents complaining to ABC shortly after the episode debuted. The network decided to then pull the episode from all future re-runs.
For a show still intended mostly to be viewed by younger audiences, the push-back Darkwing Duck received is hardly surprising. Beelzebub not only had a vaguely similar appearance to how the devil is believed to look, but the episode revolves around him tempting the main characters to use forbidden spells. The use of these spells by Darkwing allows Beelzebub to steal his soul. There are clear religious parallels to this story, with Beelzebub acting as a devil who tempts humanity to do what is wrong to claim control of them in the afterlife.
Even though the outrage for over Beelzebub arose from "Hot Spells," this episode was not where the character first appeared in Darkwing Duck. The character appeared in the season one episode "Dead Duck." In that episode, Beelzebub is featured when Darkwing arrives at the gates to heaven and tries to convince the angel at the gate that Darkwing belongs with him in hell. This episode remains part of Darkwing Duck's re-runs, digital releases, and can be seen on Disney+. However, "Hot Spells" - and all of season 3 - is not available on Disney's streaming service. If the third season comes to Disney+ in the future though, fans shouldn't expect to see "Hot Spells" as they scroll through the episodes.