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I'm really not sinister, just misunderstood.
―Bushroot[src]

Dr. Reginald Bushroot is a recurring antagonist of the Darkwing Duck franchise. Once a renowned leading botanist who worked at St. Canard University, Reginald Bushroot tried to integrate plant chloroplasts into animals in an attempt to give people the ability to feed themselves through photosynthesis. After his research funding was cut, Bushroot used himself as a test subject in an attempt to prove that his theories were correct and thereby regain his funding. The experiment was a success, though he was turned into a half-duck / half-shrub mutant with the power to control plants. Eventually, he ended up as a member of Negaduck's Fearsome Five.

Background[]

Personality[]

Well, Bushroot's not exactly a villain...
―Darkwing and Launchpad describing Bushroot[src]

In contrast to his fellow villains who mostly are driven by sadism, sociopathy, greed, insanity, erratic mentality, or professional occupation, Bushroot is driven by emotions and loneliness and is not completely evil. By far the most complex and sympathetic antagonist on the show, Reginald wants nothing more than love and companionship and is only doing crimes for what he believes to be good reasons. He is lonely and longs for acceptance, creating a sidekick to keep him company, a wife to love him, and numerous other projects. With the exception of Spike, all his creations have turned on him, resulting in an even stronger desire for companions.

He is a villain bent on doing things due to being misunderstood by society. As a scientist, he was shunned and bullied by his colleagues and as a plant, he does bad things for what he assumes are the right reasons. Unfortunately, he can take things too far, such as when attempting to get revenge on the Dean of St. Canard University, he decided that because Darkwing and Launchpad were getting in his way, they must be out to get him, and thus he attempted to dispose of them. He also kidnapped his colleague Rhoda and tried to turn her into a mutant like him in order for her to become his wife, feeling entitled to have her, despite the fact that Rhoda wasn’t interested at all.

Despite still being a villain, Bushroot has displayed some heroic qualities throughout the series. For example, in the episode "Twin Beaks", Bushroot worked together with Darkwing Duck and the alien cows to protect the entire planet of Earth from evil plant mutants.

In the Dynamite Entertainment Darkwing Duck comic, Bushroot is implied to now be working for F.O.W.L., despite this never being the case in the cartoon or the previous comic series.

Spike[]

Spike is Bushroot's plant sidekick/companion, who behaves much like a dog and resembles an overgrown Venus flytrap. A recurring theme involves Spike to be chemically altered making him either smaller or larger than usual. In "The Incredible Bulk", he secretly helped Darkwing and Launchpad because he was jealous of the attention Bushroot was giving Daisy instead of him. Bushroot later remarked in that episode that he found Spike dependable, much to the plant's pleasure.

Powers and abilities[]

Even before his transformation, Reginald was a brilliant botanist and scientist which he employs in all of his crimes. After blooming into a plant-duck hybrid he gained mental control over flora, the ability to accelerate their growth and metabolism, and to make them do his bidding. With the power to make mighty trees and thorny vines strike at his enemies, this would make him one of the most dangerous beings in Saint Canard. However, his personality, largely being that of a pacifist, renders the potential violence of these powers near non-existent. The only time he has actively harmed anyone was when he took revenge against his former coworkers for their long time torment of him,

Due to his plant physiology, Bushroot is less susceptible to potentially fatal injuries than normal ducks. Several times, he has been chopped to pieces, only to regrow his body from a single root or leaf. He can also shift his body into various forms such as vines or compress himself into a log.

Appearances[]

Darkwing Duck[]

According to the episode "Beauty and the Beet", Bushroot was once a renowned scientist, but his funding for his experiments was about to be cut. To prove his theories were correct, Bushroot performed an experiment on himself and was permanently transformed into a half-duck half-plant creature.

He used his newfound powers to pursue revenge on rival scientists Dr. Gary and Dr. Larson who bullied him. After, Bushroot seemingly killed off Dr. Gary and Dr. Larson (issues #7 and 8 of the Joe Books comic would later reveal that they had actually survived and turned into half-plant hybrids themselves, but their brains had been reduced to mush as a result) and attempted to woo Dr. Rhoda Dendron, who had previously defended Bushroot from bullies. Rhoda was dismayed by Bushroot's lack of scientific ethics and shunned him when he appeared before her. Heartbroken and more than a little insane, Bushroot took her hostage, intending to perform the same experiment on her, but was stopped by Darkwing Duck.

In later episodes, Bushroot mainly commits crimes to fund his experiments, though sometimes he acts in a manner reminiscent of an environmentalist (a la Greenpeace). Bushroot has the ability to control any and all forms of plant, though some seem to obey better than others. He sometimes has to use chemicals or fertilizers to make a plant useful in a fight. In one episode, he attempts to create a mate for himself, but mistakenly used the wrong seeds and creates a giant slobbering mutant potato named Posey. He also has a pet plant named Spike, which resembles a Venus flytrap.

Bushroot has dark green feathers, vines for arms, ivy leaves for hands, and shaggy magenta foliage for hair. He has the ability to regenerate himself when cut and is therefore virtually impossible to kill. He has also been known to fake his own death by leaving dried dummy husks behind and regenerating through various methods. Aside from his many plant cohorts, Bushroot was also allied as a member of the Fearsome Five, acting as one of Negaduck's henchmen. In the Negaverse, Bushroot's counterpart is a member of the Friendly Four. In the episode "A Star is Scorned", Bushroot is portrayed as a less-than-intelligent actor (along with the rest of the Darkwing Duck cast) for "Dizzy" (Disney) studios.

DuckTales 2017[]

Bushroot appears in the Season 3 episode, "Let's Get Dangerous!", being summoned from the Darkwing Duck TV show universe (of the in-show version, not the 1990s one) with the rest of the Fearsome Four. However, he does not speak and appears lifeless; he only makes screeching noises.

Bushroot is one of the four villains summoned by Taurus Bulba in order to take revenge against Gosalyn Mallard and Darkwing Duck where, alongside Liquidator, Quackerjack, and Megavolt to wreak havoc in the city of St. Canard. He later holds Gizmoduck hostage in a plan to protect the city and later enters Bulba Supervillain Solutions where Bushroot is tasked to find Darkwing Duck and bring him to Taurus Bulba in a plan destroy him just as Bushroot is summoned to find Darkwing.

Huey, Dewey, and Louie enter a room full of vegetation, followed by Bradford Buzzard following the trio just as the four notice Bushroot chasing them. Bushroot is later present during the battle fighting against Darkwing, Gosalyn, and Launchpad to which during battle, he throws a few thorns at Darkwing to which Drake thwarts him and removes the thorns from him while Darkwing and Launchpad continue fight against Liquidator. Later as the rift becomes unstable due to Gosalyn overusing it, she manages to fire an arrow to close the rift before it destroys everything, causing Bushroot and the other villains to be sucked back in.

Bushroot's original appearance cameoed earlier with the rest of the Fearsome Four in "The Duck Knight Returns!" during Drake's flashback of his childhood.

Gallery[]

Wiki
The Disney Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Bushroot.

Trivia[]

  • Bushroot is likely based on the Batman villainess, Poison Ivy, since he has the ability to communicate with and control other plants.
  • Ironically, despite being one of the more sympathetic Darkwing Duck villains, he is also one of the few who ever seemingly murdered people.
  • He is stated by Tad Stones in this interview to have been modeled after Swamp Thing.
  • According to a conversation with Tad Stones on Twitter, Bushroot has a higher body count than Negaduck (although Bushroot's victims were actually canonically revived later on).
  • Bushroot's name was originally going to be Bib Overall.


v - e - d
Darkwing Duck Logo
Media
Darkwing Duck (Videography) • RebootWalt Disney's World on Ice: Double Feature... Live!

Video Games: NES gameTurboGrafx-16 gameDisney Heroes: Battle Mode
Books: High Wave RobberyThe Silly Canine CaperThe Darkest NightBoom! Studios comicJoe Books comic

Characters
Heroes and Allies: Darkwing DuckLaunchpad McQuackGosalyn MallardHonker MuddlefootTank MuddlefootHerb and Binkie MuddlefootGizmoduckMorgana MacawberNeptuniaStegmuttJ. Gander HooterDerek BluntVladimir GryzlikoffSara BellumRhoda DendronGloria SwansongPrincess of OilrabiaGoose LeeComet Guy

Villains: Negaduck/NegatronBushrootMegavoltLiquidatorQuackerjackSteelbeakTaurus BulbaHammerhead HanniganHoof and MouthTantalusClovisTuskerniniDr. FossilPhineas SharpProfessor MoliartyAmmonia PineAmple GrimePaddywhackLilliputJambalaya JakeGumboBug MasterHigh CommandMajor SynapseHotshot and FlygirlDr. SlugSplatter PhoenixCamille ChameleonAnna MatronicIsis VanderchillJohnny T. RexFluffyDark Warrior DuckNodoffBrainteasers

Episodes
Syndication: "Darkly Dawns the Duck" • "Beauty and the Beet" • "Getting Antsy" • "Night of the Living Spud" • "Apes of Wrath" • "Dirty Money" • "Duck Blind" • "Comic Book Capers" • "Water Way to Go" • "Paraducks" • "Easy Come, Easy Grows" • "A Revolution in Home Appliances" • "Trading Faces" • "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlatan" • "Can't Bayou Love" • "Bearskin Thug" • "You Sweat Your Life" • "Days of Blunder" • "Just Us Justice Ducks" • "Double Darkwings" • "Aduckyphobia" • "When Aliens Collide" • "Jurassic Jumble" • "Cleanliness is Next to Badliness" • "Smarter Than a Speeding Bullet" • "All's Fahrenheit in Love and War" • "Whiffle While You Work" • "Ghoul of My Dreams" • "Adopt-a-Con" • "Toys Czar Us" • "The Secret Origins of Darkwing Duck" • "Up, Up and Awry" • "Life, the Negaverse, and Everything" • "Dry Hard" • "Heavy Mental" • "Disguise the Limit" • "Planet of the Capes" • "Darkwing Doubloon" • "It's a Wonderful Leaf" • "Twitching Channels" • "Dances with Bigfoot" • "Twin Beaks" • "The Incredible Bulk" • "My Valentine Ghoul" • "Dead Duck" • "A Duck By Any Other Name" • "Let's Get Respectable" • "In Like Blunt" • "Quack of Ages" • "Time and Punishment" • "Stressed to Kill" • "The Darkwing Squad" • "Inside Binkie's Brain" • "The Haunting of Mr. Banana Brain" • "Slime Okay, You're Okay" • "Whirled History" • "U.F.Foe" • "A Star is Scorned" • "The Quiverwing Quack" • "Jail Bird" • "Dirtysomething" • "Kung Fooled" • "Bad Luck Duck"

ABC Season One: "That Sinking Feeling" • "Film Flam" • "Negaduck" • "Fungus Amongus" • "Slaves to Fashion" • "Something Fishy" • "Tiff of the Titans" • "Calm a Chameleon" • "Battle of the Brainteasers" • "Bad Tidings" • "Going Nowhere Fast" • "A Brush with Oblivion" • "The Merchant of Menace"
ABC Season Two: "Monsters R Us" • "Inherit the Wimp" • "The Revenge of the Return of the Brainteasers, Too!" • "Star Crossed Circuits" • "Steerminator" • "The Frequency Fiends" • "Paint Misbehavin'" • "Hot Spells" • "Fraudcast News" • "Clash Reunion" • "Mutantcy on the Bouncy" • "Malice's Restaurant" • "Extinct Possibility"

Vehicles and Gadgets
RatcatcherThunderquackDarkwing Duck's gas gunRamrodSuper Sensitive Darkwing Duck-tectorTronsplitter
Songs
Darkwing Duck ThemeLittle Girl BlueKickin' in the GrooveI'm the KingI'm Darkwing Duck
See also
DuckTalesThe Disney AfternoonDisney XD (Netherlands)Justice DucksFearsome FiveF.O.W.L.S.H.U.S.H.St. CanardNegaverse


v - e - d
DuckTales logo
Media
Shows/Movies: 1987 series (videography) • 2017 seriesWalt Disney's World on Ice: Double Feature... Live!Raw ToonageDuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost LampChibi Tiny TalesThis Duckburg Life

Video Games: Video game (HD remake/Soundtrack) • DuckTales 2The Quest for GoldScrooge's LootDisney Heroes: Battle ModeDisney All-Star RacersDisney All-Star Party
Comics: Comic Books (IDW)
Books: The Secret City Under the SeaSphinx for the Memories and Sir Gyro GearlooseScrooge's Treasure HuntChristmas at the North PoleWebby Saves the Day

Disney Parks
DuckTales World Showcase AdventurePLAY!Donald's Duck Pond
Characters
1987 series: Scrooge McDuckHuey, Dewey, and LouieLaunchpad McQuackWebby VanderquackBentina BeakleyDuckworthChief O'HaraShedlock JonesGyro GearlooseLittle HelperYardarmDoofus DrakeFenton CrackshellDonald DuckLudwig Von DrakeGladstone GanderBubba the Cave DuckAbominable SnowwomanTootsie the TriceratopsSkittlesBlackjackPouponGene the GenieGlittering GoldieMad Dog McGurkFeathers GaloreBurt QuackarachMajor CourageMicro DucksAdmiral GrimmitzKing HomerQueen ArielShawebizadGandra DeeMcPapaMcMamaRoboticaBeagle BoysMa BeaglePeteFlintheart GlomgoldPhantom BlotDijonArgus McSwineMagica De SpellMinima De SpellPoe De SpellEl CapitanJoaquin SlowlyMerlock the MagicianCinnamon TealDracula DuckDr. NoGoodMillionara VanderbucksFritter O'WayLawrence LoudmouthBruno Von BeakArmstrongThe SirensCirceHarpiesYuckalindaQueen GriseldaDjinniTerra-Firmie KingOverlord BulovanSolegoGICU-2Magica's ShadowThe Fear DemonsVacation Van Honk

2017 series: Della DuckLenaBradford BuzzardBentley and Buford BuzzardCaptain PeghookManny the Headless Man-HorsePixiuGabby McStabbersonHack and Slash SmashnikovRoxanne FeatherlyToad Liu HaiMark BeaksFalcon GravesAmunetSabafToth-RaZeusSeleneStorkulesCharybdisBriar and BrambleDarkwing DuckGosalyn MallardMegavoltDon KarnageQuackerjackLiquidatorBlack HeronZan OwlsonFisherMannDrosera occidendumJosé CariocaPanchito PistolesFethry DuckJohn D. RockerduckJeevesGavinGrandpappy BeagleViolet SabrewingUnicornPercival P. PeppingtonNightmare BeastPaddywhackBushrootNegaduckDaisy DuckGoofyChip and Dale Monterey JackZipperGadget HackwrenchKit CloudkickerTaurus BulbaMolly CunninghamLieutenant PenumbraGeneral LunarisMoonlandersMoon MitesGilded ManNeighbor JonesSteelbeakIsabella FinchIndy and Ty SabrewingTri-Crested TittertwillAletheiaVeroKing HonestusEmma GlamourInspector TezukaAkitaStrongbeardHeckaJormungandrPonce de LeonMatilda McDuckEmutilda

Episodes
1987 series

Season One: "The Treasure of the Golden Suns" • "Send in the Clones" • "Sphinx for the Memories" • "Where No Duck Has Gone Before" • "Armstrong" • "Robot Robbers" • "Magica's Shadow War" • "Master of the Djinni" • "Hotel Strangeduck" • "Lost Crown of Genghis Khan" • "Duckman of Aquatraz" • "The Money Vanishes" • "Sir Gyro de Gearloose" • "Dinosaur Ducks" • "Hero for Hire" • "Superdoo!" • "Maid of the Myth" • "Down and Out in Duckburg" • "Much Ado About Scrooge" • "Top Duck" • "Pearl of Wisdom" • "The Curse of Castle McDuck" • "Launchpad's Civil War" • "Sweet Duck of Youth" • "Earth Quack" • "Home Sweet Homer" • "Bermuda Triangle Tangle" • "Micro Ducks from Outer Space" • "Back to the Klondike" • "Horse Scents" • "Scrooge's Pet" • "Catch as Cash Can" • "Merit-Time Adventure" • "The Golden Fleecing" • "Ducks of the West" • "Time Teasers" • "Back Out in the Outback" • "Raiders of the Lost Harp" • "The Right Duck" • "Scroogerello" • "Double-O-Duck" • "Luck o' the Ducks" • "Duckworth's Revolt" • "Magica's Magic Mirror"/"Take Me Out of the Ballgame" • "Duck to the Future" • "Jungle Duck" • "Launchpad's First Crash" • "Dime Enough for Luck" • "Duck in the Iron Mask" • "The Uncrashable Hindentanic" • "The Status Seekers" • "Nothing to Fear" • "Dr. Jekyll & Mr. McDuck" • "Once Upon a Dime" • "Spies in Their Eyes" • "All Ducks on Deck" • "Ducky Horror Picture Show" • "Till Nephews Do Us Part"
Season Two: "Time is Money" • "Super DuckTales"
Season Three: "The Land of Trala La" • "Allowance Day" • "Bubbeo & Juliet" • "The Good Muddahs" • "My Mother the Psychic" • "Metal Attraction" • "Dough Ray Me" • "Bubba's Big Brainstorm" • "The Big Flub" • "A Case of Mistaken Secret Identity" • "Blue Collar Scrooge" • "Beaglemania" • "Yuppy Ducks" • "The Bride Wore Stripes" • "The Unbreakable Bin" • "Attack of the Fifty-Foot Webby" • "The Masked Mallard" • "A DuckTales Valentine"
Season Four: "Ducky Mountain High" • "Attack of the Metal Mites" • "The Duck Who Knew Too Much" • "New Gizmo-Kids on the Block" • "Scrooge's Last Adventure" • "The Golden Goose"

2017 series
Season One: "Woo-oo!" • "Daytrip of Doom!" • "The Great Dime Chase!" • "The Beagle Birthday Massacre!" • "Terror of the Terra-firmians!" • "The House of the Lucky Gander!" • "The Infernal Internship of Mark Beaks!" • "The Living Mummies of Toth-Ra!" • "The Impossible Summit of Mt. Neverrest!" • "The Spear of Selene!" • "Beware the B.U.D.D.Y. System!" • "The Missing Links of Moorshire!" • "McMystery at McDuck McManor!" • "JAW$!" • "The Golden Lagoon of White Agony Plains!" • "Day of the Only Child!" • "From the Confidential Casefiles of Agent 22!" • "Who is Gizmoduck?!" • "The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck!" • "Sky Pirates...in the Sky!" • "The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck!" • "The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!" • "The Shadow War!"
Season Two: "The Most Dangerous Game...Night!" • "The Depths of Cousin Fethry!" • "The Ballad of Duke Baloney!" • "The Town Where Everyone Was Nice!" • "Storkules in Duckburg!" • "Last Christmas!" • "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!" • "Treasure of the Found Lamp!" • "The Outlaw Scrooge McDuck!" • "The 87 Cent Solution!" • "The Golden Spear!" • "Nothing Can Stop Della Duck!" • "Raiders of the Doomsday Vault!" • "Friendship Hates Magic!" • "The Dangerous Chemistry of Gandra Dee!" • "The Duck Knight Returns!" • "What Ever Happened to Donald Duck?!" • "Happy Birthday, Doofus Drake!" • "A Nightmare on Killmotor Hill!" • "The Golden Armory of Cornelius Coot!" • "Timephoon!" • "GlomTales!" • "The Richest Duck in the World!" • "Moonvasion!"
Season Three "Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks!" • "Quack Pack!" • "Double-O-Duck in You Only Crash Twice!" • "The Lost Harp of Mervana!" • "Louie's Eleven!" • "Astro B.O.Y.D.!" • "The Rumble for Ragnarok!" • "The Phantom and the Sorceress!" • "They Put a Moonlander on the Earth!" • "The Trickening!" • "The Forbidden Fountain of the Foreverglades!" • "Let's Get Dangerous!" • "Escape from the ImpossiBin!" • "The Split Sword of Swanstantine!" • "New Gods on the Block!" • "The First Adventure!" • "The Fight for Castle McDuck!" • "How Santa Stole Christmas!" • "Beaks in the Shell!" • "The Lost Cargo of Kit Cloudkicker!" • "The Life And Crimes of Scrooge McDuck!" • "The Last Adventure!"

Locations
DuckburgAtlantisThe Money BinMcDuck ManorCastle McDuckFountain of YouthScotlandNotre DuckValley of the Golden SunsSt. CanardCape Suzette
Organizations
Air PiratesF.O.W.L.Junior WoodchucksS.H.U.S.H.
Objects
Number One DimeJunior Woodchucks GuidebookGizmosuitGene's LampMerlock's TalismanSun CoinSun ChaserHarp of TroyMillennium ShortcutGyro's HelicopterMolecular ManipulatorGolden GooseWebby's Quacky Patch DollHindentanicMagic MedallionRatcatcherJewel of AtlantisPep!Gummiberry JuiceIron VulturePirate FightersSpear of SeleneSea DuckRanger Plane
Songs
DuckTales ThemeThree Cheers for Bubba DuckBoogie Beagle BluesMoon Stage ThemeSky PiratesThe Three CaballerosHear My Voice
See also
Carl BarksThe Disney AfternoonDarkwing DuckQuack PackDisney XD (Netherlands)Let's Go to Disneyland Paris
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