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The DuckTales reboot is coming to an end after four years, with the 90-minute "Last Adventure" airing on March 15 on Disney XD. The show has been canceled after three seasons and 75 episodes.
"The talented creative team, led by Matt Youngberg and Francisco Angones, have delivered exceptional storytelling with uniquely reimagined characters for three seasons of 75 episodes and more than 15 shorts," a Disney XD spokesperson said in a statement. "While physical production is wrapping, DuckTales continues to be available daily on Disney Channels and Disney+ around the world and fans will get an epic season finale in 2021."
While many shows get canceled due to falling ratings and/or departures in the creative team, this does not seem to be the case with the ending of DuckTales.
In general, 75 episodes is the longest that a non-Marvel Disney Channel and/or Disney XD show runs unless it has been a massive smash hit. Among the canceled shows that now air reruns on Disney XD are Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, which ended after 73 episodes. Other former shows that aired on the network include Star Wars: Rebels (76 episodes) and Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja (73 episodes).
This seems to be an unofficial version of the so-called "65 episode rule" that was part of the Disney Channel's programming strategy in the '90s and '00s. This rule saw even hit shows like Even Stevens and Lizzie McGuire end after 65 episodes exactly, as this meant that Disney could syndicate the show every day for 13 weeks, allowing them to broadcast four shows in a given slot a year.
It should be noted, however, that the original DuckTales was an exception to this rule, airing 100 episodes (including a 65-episode first season) over 1987 to 1990. One hundred episodes was at that time seen as the length that shows needed to be to get picked up for syndication on other networks.
Although the biggest and best Disney XD shows now get a slightly longer episode order, the move towards streaming has led to shorter episode orders. An unofficial 'three season rule,' for example, seems to be in force over at Netflix. Only the most successful shows like Stranger Things and The Crown find themselves ordered past the end of Season 3.
With the cancelation of DuckTales, history appears to be repeating itself. After the show first ended in 1990, a superhero spin-off titled Darkwing Duck was ordered and broadcast throughout the '90s.
Now, Darkwing Duck is getting its own reboot. In November 2020, it was announced that Disney+ was working on a new version of the show, which is reportedly in development with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, creators of Superbad, Pineapple Express and The Interview.
DuckTales Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming now on Disney+. Season 3 is expected to come to Disney+ in mid-April 2021.
