Re: Comments on Sonic Comic #29 (spoilers)

From: <Sugahhog_at_aol.com>
Date: Mon, 9 Oct 1995 10:19:59 -0400

Just a few words on Sonic #29, commenting about comments already made........

>Subj: Comments on Sonic Comic #29 (spoilers)
Date: 95-09-24 21:42:13 EDT
From: BAUERLE_at_engr.erie.ge.com (Ron Bauerle)
Sender: owner-sonic_at_bort.mv.net
Reply-to: sonic_at_bort.mv.net
To: sonic_at_sard.mv.net
CC: alt-fan-sonic-hedgehog_at_cs.utexas.edu, aa2043_at_freenet.lorain.oberlin.edu,
bradc_at_unix.infoserve.net, pearse_at_rpi.edu, quozl_at_netcom.com,
ray.rooney_at_dscmail.com, rune_at_delphi.com, BAUERLE_at_engr.erie.ge.com

>Here are my comments on Sonic 29, FWIW:

>I'll let somebody else summarize all the plot and credit details...

>Spoiler alert:

>Well, I see they know how to give green eyes to _somebody_ (namely, Dulcy).
>Now if only they'd get Bunnie's right...

Not to mention the lower half of her body. As they brought in Dulcy *as is*
from the show for which I'm forever grateful, and the Archie people saw fit
to change their first two attempts at Sally to the one we all know and love
from the show, why do these guys have such a sticking point on Bunnie with
robotisizing her waist and that cute little bunny behind of hers? (I mean,
they're even going to be bringing Uncle Chuck in as we know him to look like
from the show) Well, I can't complain *too* much. At least she's been a
pretty full time character for the last few issues, instead of just a
background bunny, if she was to be put in the story at all as she hasn't been
for awhile.

>And isn't it convenient that the portable de-roboticizer would have only
_one_ charge left (and of course I assume they can't figure out how to
recharge it or anything...)

Not to mention the fact that even with all of Rotor's technical skill, along
with Sally and Tails' computer savy, they didn't first de-robotisize Uncle
Chuck or Bunnie or both, (couldn't they have just stood together under the
ray?) and then taken the thing apart to see what exactly made it tick so that
they could have built more of the little godsends to have in reserve before
attempting something so risky as what Sally did, and ended up losing the
de-robotisizor in the first place, ending up back at square one. I know they
needed a plot, but as I always look for the logic, this one had a few holes
to deal with (I also find it a little too convienient that 1) A derobotisizor
would pop up at all. Why would Robotnik need such a thing? Time off for good
behavior for one of the robotisized animals (cheap shot, and a sick joke I
know. Sorry.)? 2) That a Robotisizor would be a large, telephone booth sized
contraption that would probably weigh a couple of tons, yet the derobotisizor
is this little hand held gizmo that Ducly could stuff in her pouch, or Sonic
in his backpack with ease. A bit of a reach to make that plot work, no?

>I'll let somebody else comment on how Antoine was holding Bunnie...

Agreed.

>Why should Sally have volunteered to be roboticized when Uncle Chuck's
already there? Or was this story set before he had regained his will?
(Maybe the next issue will clarify this - Uncle Chuck's on the cover...)
While I appreciate the comic's move towards the Sat. AM Sonic, I wish they'd
note how it fits into the continuity, sort of like the Gargoyles comic is
doing (or at least _was_ doing) with respect to the daily show.

I wish they would as well.

>I don't know whether to be glad or disappointed at them not showing Sally's
roboticization - by not doing so, they spare us a possibly horrific sequence;
but OTOH this might have given the story even more drama...

Very true. As disappointed as I was with the plot holes I mentioned, it *was*
a good story, and it would have been more dramatic (as I like a story to be)
with seeing Sally robotisized. All I know is when I saw that cover pic, I got
one hell of a feeling of horror. <shiver!> That cover was one creepy piece of
fantastic art!

>And of course
the widget that was supposed to preserve her free will "fell off" during the
process - again, how convenient. Why didn't Rotor clip it to her or
something? (Or even stick it _in_ her ear?)

Here's another surpising thing. From what we know, you can't robotisize
something that's already robotisized. Ie: You can't turn something from flesh
to metal, if it's already metal. Now. With this in mind, once that
Robotisizor ray hit Sally, why didn't the "Free will" disc blow up? If the
writers forgot this, a good thing that the disc fell off, no? The explosion
wouldn't have been all that great, but even so.... <especially if Rote had
put it in a better place. Surprising that Sal herself didn't think of this
potential risk when she volunteered for this mission, considering what she
did to sabotage Robotnik as we saw in her mini series>(if I'm missing
something for which the FW disc wouldn't have blown up for some logical
reason, then in her ear would indeed have been a good place to put it. ) I'm
also surprised that since the disk, should have blown up, Sally and Rote
didn't consider the plan a bust before trying it, as there would have been no
way for that Disc to give Sally back her will....

>Odd that the process preserved all of Sally's coloring...

Indeed, while Bunnie just gets a cold steel gray, while she isn't even a grey
hare! (Insert rim shot wav..)

>And while they at least showed _some_ struggle on Sally's part to obey
Robotnik while roboticized, given her intense feelings for the Freedom
Fighters (and presumably Sonic), I'd've thought she'd've struggled a bit
harder and longer (maybe we can blame it on the shock of being
roboticized)...

Well in "Ultra Sonic" it took a power ring for Uncle Chuck to come out of his
"programming" the first time, and he has feelings just as intense for the FF.
I thinnk Sally did okay that she had any free will left at all!

>But the art by Mawhinney and Koslowski was excellent as usual...

I wonder what Spaza would have done with it though......... (I wasn't at all
disappointed in the art though. Loved it in fact!)

>The fan art isn't too shabby this time out (fanboys check out Sally's
outfit); but I wouldn't think Bunnie and Sally are into tattoos and pierced
ears,

Nor I . Fans have some *pretty strange* concepts of the FF for them to be
drawing this stuff. Still, there are those alt worlds along the cosmic
interstate that they could be drawing these sketches from....... "Biker Babes
from Mobius!" <G> (Forgive me, Girls!)

>and Bunnie's _left_ arm is the robot one, not her right...

Exactly.

>Now onto the Tails story:

>That was a rather lame escape by Tails: using fur from his tails to clog up
the roboticizer??? They didn't look too threadbare after he got out, and I
would think anything that could handle a whole two-tailed fox could handle
whatever loose fur he could shake off...

As far as Tails' tails not looking too threadbare, perhaps he's a really good
shedder? ;) Seriously though, it was a lame escape, unless he was somehow
able to throw that extra fur from his Tails into a vent where it *did* clog
up the air system for the machine.

>I also find it hard to believe Tails' tails are strong enough for him to
pull out a mechanical tree by the roots and swing it like a golf club (but
it was still amusing :^)).

Agreed. And yet, as David Bruce Banner demonstrated to the world for years
and years, (The Incredible Hulk to all you who've never picked it up) there's
no telling what one is capable of, in a fitted pique of emotion, particularly
*anger*.....
(Wonder how many FF Tails could fly out of danger in one shot if he really
needed to? He could be as good as Dulcy! )

>That bit about "robbing me of my _innocence_" was a bit much - at the risk
of getting a bit crude, just how realistic _was_ that Fiona automaton?

Not to mention that with that explanation in mind, this is still a children's
book by all accounts....;)

>(And
note that the letter column for this issue has a quasi-explanation for Tails
being 10 not 5, but 10 is still a bit young for this sort of thing, isn't it?
Or do Mobians hit puberty quicker than we do?) And again, Tails' comment
about "my lost youth" was a bit overdramatic; while it may be true, I doubt
most people recognize the loss of their youth *when it happens* - I'd say it
takes years for it to sink in (and for us toon fans, maybe it never does
:^)).

I agree wholeheartedly. The explanation about Tails' age was quite lame
(sounded like D.C.'s attempt at merging all the multi universes). If they're
going to be basing the comic from here on in on the Sat A.M. series, why
don't they just *do* it, (Lose that crabmeat character) start over from the
ish where Sally from the show first appeared (Ish #16 I think, while still
keeping important issues like "This island Hedgehog" in the continuity.) and
say that Tails is ten years old through nothing else but the natural action
of ol father time (and the timekeeper with his timestones of course. <G>) The
"Lost innocence" and "lost youth" bit, was quite out of character for Tails.
He's only Ten, and he's talking more dramatically than Sally was in her
miniseries! Come on people! Match age to appropriate dialogue, would ya?

>And another cliche: the nearly-instantly-rusting-out-when-wet-robot; I
could've believed a short-circuit, but not rust. And I don't know whether
to applaud Fiona's final tear as a nice touch, or sneer at it as yet another
predictable cliche...

Indeed. I really found the whole part of Tails' reaction to Fiona's betrayal
to be the worst part of this story, and I *really* wish that they hadn't done
the story this way, or at least they could have chosen it as a story on it's
own that I could have convieniently and gratefully forgotten about, instead
of having it lead into the miniseries, which I'm really looking forward to.
If this story was just one of those not so great short one-shot stories that
seem to come about every so often, then I would have been okay with it, but
now it's a part of the larger continuity........*sigh*.
I mean, Tails was with this robot girl for one day or so we can assume, and
already he's so in love with her, that he outright denies the fact that she's
a robot? She's trying to kill him, and he keeps coming back with "Don't do it
Fiona! You love me!"? GAG! Spare me! And then the whole "I'll make him fix
you and then we'll be together again." Oh please! (First off, if she's simply
rusted, why don't you just get some of that oil from your crankcase that you
<*snicker*> filled up from that oiled seagull? (I know from videos of the
Alaskan oil spill that those birds get a lot of oil in their feathers, but
not enough to fill a crankcase for a sub!))
And second of all, *hel-o-hoooo!* Tails? Anybody home? I've heard of a girl
stealing your heart and mind, and even your common sense and logic, but this
is rediculous! Are you so desperate for companionship that you deny that this
girl is not a flesh and blood being? Yes this does bring up arguments of how
a robot could perhaps grow to full or near sentience, (The Vision from "The
Avengers", who was married after all to a mutant ie: The Scarlet
Witch,....Then there's Data from ST:TNG, who did pretty good in his personal
growth before getting his full range of emotions in "Generations" with that
chip...and of course, most recently there's EVE....), and how a person could
grow to love a being that isn't flesh and blood, but I really don't think
that Fiona has had any time (considering her behavior) to evolve any, like
the other mechanical being's I've listed. After all, there's no guarantee
that she would anyway, unless Robotnik had incorporated some of the "self
awareness and adaptability programs from his EVE schematics into Fiona and
the other robots he created.......hmmm.....I'm suddenly beginning to be
reminded of "Batman:The Animated Series" with the ep: "His silicon soul..."
Batman (To Alfred about his robotic duplicate) : "Could it have had a soul
alfred? A soul of silicon, but a *soul* nonetheless?"
Still, even with this possibility, as I've said, I don't think with Fiona's
behavior, at the moment, this possibility took place. (I'm kinda marveling
here how I suddenly switched positions from flaming a story that made no
sense and was dumb, to musing about a story, if they had explained it a bit
more, would've had some good posibilities......)

>Finally, with the part with the tear in Fiona's eye at the end, some may
think it cliche, some may think it touching, but considering that Fiona
showed *no* repeat, *NO* remorse or hesitancy about trying to robotisize or
strangle, or drown our favorite young fox, the only thing that I can think
of, is that her sheded tear was for the fact that she failed in her mission
to Robotnik to destroy the young "mongrel" (as Robotnik put it.) I'll admit
that I *did* like the scenes of Tails being in love with Fiona (strange
though that as a protector of the environment, Tails would do an act of
vandalism like carving his and Fiona's initials on a living tree.....), but
unless we see *some* evidence of Fiona developing a soul as I've mentioned, I
hope that this is last we see of Fiona, and that Tails in the meantime, can
find another love on his own in the miniseries with one of the Freedom
fighters "down under". With Fiona coming back and joining the FF as some of
the other posters to this list have said, well, it would be nice, but only if
they have it make sense. Maybe you could pass these comments on down to the
editor, Paul old pal?

One last note on this story that I have just *got* to say, is thus: Did this
this whole story remind *anyone else* besides me (through overdramatics and
stupidity (at certain points) to the point of it being comedy) of the Bugs
Bunny Cartoon where Bugs gets lured to the lair of an Evil Scientist by a
cute little robotic bunny that he finds to be as such later on. Then, when
the ES (Hmmm...Eric Shwartz? <G>) and the monster (Rudolph) are defeated,
Bugs says in overdramatic fashion....
Bugs: "And soooo, having re-*re* disposed of the monster......"
(At this point, another mechanical Bunny babe (the first one was destroyed
earlier in the short) goes walking by and gives him a comes hither look....)
Bugs (to audience, giving them a confident and calmly knowing look as he
hooks a thumb over toward the babe): It's mechanical.
(Bunnybabe give Bugs a smooch on the cheek at this point, dazing Bugs before
walking off camera)
Bugs: (regaining himself and speaking to audience in a near frenzy of
emotion) SO?!!...<shrug> IT'S MECHANICAL!!! (With this, Bugs starts off in
earnest, walking in lovesick robot fashion toward bunnybabe off camera). I
can't help laughing at the similarity. Well, here's hoping that "notes from
the net" starts up again so I can put at least some of my critiques to good
use....

>But the art by Manak and Harvo was fairly good; Tails really did look
half-dead when Fiona was about to dunk him for the third time (although he
seemed to make a typical toonish quick recovery from it :^)).

Agreed. They couldn't have showed him crawling up onto shore? When Tails had
gotten whipped by Sonic in the last issue, he didn't get up again as soon as
he hit the floor....

> I hope they
do as good a job in the Tails miniseries...

Personally, I hope they do a better job. If its as good as or better than
Princess Sally's first mini series (from "In your face" and the three
previous connecting stories from the back issues before it) with the emotions
it drew out, I'll be a writing some praises in the mail once more...

>Tidbits from the letters page: I'll let Dan Drazen flame the continuing
office humor; Dylan is revealed to be a porcupine (then why didn't they name
him Patrick or Percy or something?);

What's wrong with Dylan?

>Antoine is said to be 18 (then isn't
Sally a bit young for him? But he sure doesn't _act_ 18...);

In the show, Ant is the same age as everyone else. Why would they say he's 18
here? They lost me on this one.

>and Boomer was
a former nickname for Rotor supposedly because of his voice (O-kayyyy...).

::Echo::

>I suppose all the above seems a bit harsh; I'll confess I've been in a bit
of a bad mood this weekend due to various things (not having a life being
part of them), but I still think the observations above are valid.

I know that my own comments were a bit harsh in some places, but I'll make no
claim to being in a bad mood. If I see holes, I'm gonna point em out.

>Also,
I'd rather have flawed stories like the above that at least try to live up
to the Sat. AM Sonic, then the lame ones of the earlier days that weren't
much better than the daily shows.

Agreed. Something that's good though flawed in spots, is better than not
having something good at all....(an ironic comment if you think about it,
since we don't have new eps of the show while drek has grown on ABC in it's
place...).

Received on Mon Oct 09 1995 - 10:37:49 PDT